This patent document relates to the field of biotechnological apparatuses. It relates particularly to a biotechnological apparatus comprising a bioreactor, an exhaust gas temperature control device and a method for treating an exhaust gas stream. This patent document further relates to a connection device for a sterile single-use fluid conduit of a single-use bioreactor and to a method for treating a fluid stream. The reusable connection device comprises a receptacle in which a portion of the fluid conduit can be detachably arranged, and a coupling member connecting the connection device to a temperature control device, the receptacle having a contact surface which is arranged such that the contact surface abuts a fluid conduit arranged in the receptacle, and wherein a portion of a fluid conduit can be introduced into the receptacle in a direction running substantially orthogonally to a longitudinal axis of the connection device.

Bioreactors, also referred to as fermentors, are a part of biotechnological apparatuses. They have a closed reaction chamber, in which eukaryotic or prokaryotic cells are cultivated under conditions that are as optimal, defined and controlled as possible. Conversions of substances, mostly automated and controlled by process engineering, are researched, optimised and performed using the boundary conditions necessary for the organism and in the presence of the primary and secondary substances required for the process.
Biotechnological cultivation is carried out under conditions that are optimised for the organism and for the conversions to be achieved. For a large proportion of the cell types used, this process takes place at 37° C., at which temperature dry air can absorb around 40 grams of water per kilogram of air. This means that water is continuously withdrawn from the system when the culture is gassed with the gas composition required for the microorganisms. In order to counteract this effect, the exhaust gas stream is guided through the exhaust gas conduit provided with the temperature control device which cools the surface of the exhaust gas conduit, which then cools the gas stream, for example to a temperature between about 4° C. and about 10° C. By this means, the exhaust gas stream is cooled down significantly. The temperature on the surface of the exhaust gas conduit falls below the dew point. As a result of this measure, the water being removed in the exhaust gas stream condenses on the walls of the exhaust gas cooler and runs back into the culture medium.
When using such bioreactors in the field of cell culture technology, cultivation times ranging from a number of days to a few weeks are not atypical. The gassing rates are also significantly lower than in microbiological applications. For this reason, it may also be necessary to heat the exhaust gas stream in order to prevent clogging of the sterile filter connected downstream from the exhaust gas conduits.
Controlling the temperature by means of the temperature control device is typically done using a temperature control fluid. This fluid is conditioned in a separate unit. Mains water may also be used as an alternative if its temperature is sufficiently controlled.
When using coolants and separate units, complex connection technology is needed. The different temperatures of the surroundings and the connector units result in many temperature divergences, which is why strong formation of condensate on supply and discharge pipelines can be observed.
In typical biotechnological methods carried out on "benchtop scale" (laboratory scale), glass reaction vessels are frequently used. This allows an autoclavable bioreactor to be designed in which the glass reactor vessel can be steam sterilised in one piece in an autoclave. In this context, it is then necessary that all connections to the reaction vessel be disconnected from the control units before autoclaving. Connections are typically in the form of hose connectors such as clamp screw connections, push-in connectors, crimp connections and the like. Such an autoclavable design of the bioreactor thus requires that functional components of the biotechnological apparatus which connect to the bioreactor itself are mounted on the reactor vessel as efficiently as possible and can be dismantled again when autoclaving is due.
Another bioreactor design takes the form of single-use bioreactors, in which the reactor vessel, for example, is used in one cultivation process only, whereas functional elements assigned to the reactor vessel, such as stirrer drives, or the temperature control unit for exhaust gas removal, can be reused. In this connection also, it is necessary that functional components of the biotechnological apparatus which are coupled to the bioreactor be mounted on the reactor vessel and dismantled again after use as efficiently as possible.
Bioreactors, which are also frequently referred to as fermenters, enclose a reaction chamber in which biological or biotechnological processes can be carried out on a laboratory scale. Such processes include, for example, the cultivation of cells, microorganisms or small plants under defined, preferably optimized, controlled and reproducible conditions. Bioreactors mostly have a plurality of connectors via which the primary and secondary substances, as well as various instruments, such as sensors, can be introduced to the reaction chamber, or to which fluid conduits, for example, can be connected. Fluids, in particular gases, can be supplied to or removed from the reaction chamber through such fluid conduits, in particular gas conduits. Depending on the direction of fluid flow, fluid conduits can be referred to as feed conduits or discharge conduits. Gas conduits, for example, can be referred to as gas feed or gassing lines or conduits or as gas exhaust or discharge conduits, depending on the direction of the gas stream.
Bioreactors are preferably used in bioreactor systems, preferably in parallel bioreactor systems, not only in the field of cell cultivation but also in microbiological applications. Parallel bioreactor systems are described in DE 10 2011 054 363.5 and DE 10 2011 054 365.1, for example. In such a bioreactor system, a plurality of bioreactors can be operated in parallel and controlled with higher precision. High-throughput experiments that are well reproducible and scalable can be carried out in the individual bioreactors, even with small operating volumes.
In the cell culture field, such parallel bioreactor systems are used, for example, for test series for process optimization based on statistical planning methods (design of experiments DoE), for process development and in research and development, for example to cultivate different cell lines such as Chinese hamster ovary (CHO), hybridoma or NSO cell lines. In the context of the present application, the expression "cell culture" is specifically understood to mean the cultivation of animal or plant cells in a nutrient medium outside the organism.
In the field of microbiology, parallel bioreactor systems are likewise used for test series for process optimization based on statistical planning methods (design of experiments DoE), for process engineering and in research and development, for example to cultivate various microorganisms, in particular bacteria or fungi, such as yeast.
Bioreactors used in laboratories are often made of glass and/or metal, in particular of stainless steel, as the bioreactors must be sterilized between different uses, preferably by steam sterilization in autoclaves. Sterilizing and cleaning reusable bioreactors is a complex process. The sterilization and cleaning process can be subject to validation, and needs to be precisely documented for each individual bioreactor. Residues in a bioreactor which has not been fully sterilized can falsify the results of a subsequent process, or render them useless, and may cause disruption of the subsequent process. Furthermore, the sterilization process may also expose individual components or materials in bioreactors to stress and strain, and in some cases can damage them.
Single-use bioreactors provide an alternative to reusable bioreactors and are used to carry out just one biological or biotechnological process before being disposed of. By providing a new single-use bioreactor for each process, and one that is preferably sterilized during the production process, it is possible to reduce the risk of (cross-) contamination, while simultaneously obviating the need to perform and document the impeccable cleaning and sterilization of a previously used bioreactor. Single-use bioreactors are often designed as flexible containers, for example as bags, or as containers having walls that are flexible in sections thereof at least. Examples of such bioreactors are described in US 2011/0003374 A1, US2011/0058447A1, DE 20 2007 005 868U1, US 2011/0058448A1, US2011/0207218A1, WO 2008/088379A2, US 2012/0003733 A1, WO2011/079180A1, US2007/0253288A1, US 2009/0275121A1 and US 2010/0028990A1. Dimensionally stable single-use bioreactors are known from EP 2 251 407 A1 and from US 2009/0311776 A1, for example.
A sterile single-use bioreactor generally includes a fluid conduit attached thereto, which is likewise sterilized and provided for single use, in particular one or more gas conduits. Such a single-use fluid conduit may be embodied as a rigid pipe or as a flexible tube. A sterile filter which in most cases is likewise sterilized and provided for a single use is usually provided on a single-use fluid conduit, preferably at the end which is not attached to the bioreactor. In a gas conduit in particular, a sterile filter is used to filter gas flowing into a bioreactor through a gassing conduit, or gas flowing out of a bioreactor via an exhaust gas conduit.
When using bioreactors in biological or biotechnological processes, for example to cultivate various microorganisms, in particular bacteria or fungi, such as yeast, or for cultivating various cell lines such as Chinese hamster ovary (CHO), hybridoma or NSO cell lines, it is important that the sterility of the single-use bioreactor and its components is not compromised. In the context of the present application, the expression "cell culture" is specifically understood to mean the cultivation of animal or plant cells in a nutrient medium outside the organism.
Such biological and biotechnological processes are generally carried out under sterile conditions in aqueous media, also referred to as culture broths, in a reaction chamber of a bioreactor. Gaseous fluid, for example mixtures of nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, etc. are fed to the system during at least a certain period of cultivation in order to keep the biological processes running, and/or gaseous fluids such as methane, carbon dioxide, etc. are removed from the system that may also contain other components produced by biological processes. The sterile conditions in the reaction chamber of a bioreactor and hence also of the biological system, both when supplying fluids and also when removing fluids, are generally maintained by sterile filters inserted into the fluid stream. The gaseous fluid which is removed is typically saturated with water vapor. The temperature of the aqueous culture broth is mostly higher than the temperature of the system's environment, for example in a laboratory. In such cases, the removed gaseous fluid is cooled at least slightly when discharged from the reaction chamber of the bioreactor into the exhaust gas tube. This causes part of the water vapor in the gas to condense. It is desirable to return the condensate to the reaction chamber, because otherwise the concentration of media components in the culture broth could increase in the course of the process, which can lead, for example, to an undesirable increase in osmolality. Another disadvantage is that the sterile filter may be blocked by the formation of condensate, as a result of which the gaseous fluid can no longer be removed, thus causing the exhaust gas stream to be blocked. This can lead to the gas supply into the reaction chamber being blocked as well, thus disrupting or terminating the cultivation process.
Cooling devices are therefore deployed in the exhaust gas conduits in reusable bioreactors, as shown, for example, in US 2012/0103579 A1, US 2010/0170400 A1 and US 2011/0076759 A1. An exhaust gas cooling device for single-use bioreactors is proposed in WO 2011/041508 A1, for example.
Due to the need to preserve sterility, in particular, the use of systems for cooling exhaust gas has not yet become established practice in single-use bioreactors, however, which can lead to the aforementioned disadvantages of water extraction and filter blocking. In some existing solutions, the attempt is made to prevent blocking of a sterile filter by lowering the relative moisture in the exhaust gas stream to such an extent, by heating the exhaust gas in the region of the exhaust gas tube, that the exhaust gas can pass through the sterile filter without condensate being produced. This does not do away with the disadvantage that no condensate is recovered from the exhaust gas that could be returned to the culture solution. Moreover, blocking of the sterile filter can still occur when these solutions are applied. In order to increase process reliability, complex single-use sterile filters such as depth filters or capsule filters are often used, therefore, instead of membrane filters, which are inexpensive but have a tendency to clog. However, this results in higher costs for single-use bioreactors.
It is also tried to avoid blocking of the sterile filter by means of heating the sterile filter itself, by increasing the temperature in the sterile filter to avoid or reduce the forming of condensate. This also, inter alia, has the disadvantage that no condensate is recovered from the exhaust gas that could be returned to the culture solution, and also this approach cannot reliably enough prevent a blocking of the sterile filter.
A biotechnological device with a temperature control device is known from the patent application DE 10 2011 054 364.3. Although the biotechnological device described therein and the temperature control device likewise described therein provide advantages for bioreactors which can be autoclaved, it is nonetheless desirable to further simplify and improve temperature control of exhaust gases for sterile, single-use bioreactors, particularly with regard to process reliability and energy efficiency. The sterility of a single-use bioreactor and of a sterile disposable exhaust gas tube attached thereto should not be adversely affected by providing a device for controlling the temperature of the exhaust gas.
Another disadvantage of prior art solutions is that the temperature in the reaction chamber can be influenced or changed by feeding fluids or gases, for example cooled fluids, into the reaction chamber, which can have negative effects on temperature-sensitive processes especially, and may make it more complex or expensive to control the temperature of the culture broth. Also, the temperature control can be negatively influenced by feeding fluids or gases, for example cooled fluids, into the reaction chamber, particularly by cold gas impulses. Gas supply or gassing conduits may likewise be fitted with filters that may become blocked as a result of condensate forming. When feeding moist gas or gas mixtures, for example when feeding the exhaust gas from an upstream process as a feed gas to a downstream bioreactor, it may be desirable to filter out gas components by means of a filter, for which blocking of the filter is likewise disadvantageous.

Biotechnological apparatus comprising a bioreactor, exhaust gas temperature control device for a bioreactor and a method for treating an exhaust gas stream in a biotechnological apparatus


Systems and methods for minimizing laser persistence are provided. In one implementation, a timing circuit for controlling a barcode reader is provided. The timing circuit comprises a shutter control circuit configured to control an electronic shutter function of an image sensor and a laser control circuit configured to control the activation of a reference laser. When activated, the reference laser directs a laser beam to an approximate position of a field of view of the image sensor. The activation of the reference laser includes a delay to minimize laser persistence on an image captured by the image sensor.

Typical barcode readers or laser scanners utilize a laser that is scanned perpendicularly across a number of lines and spaces of a "one-dimensional" barcode. The laser radiation is reflected off the lines and spaces and can be sensed by a light sensor in order to read the barcode.
Further developments have led to two-dimensional imagers that are configured to sense two-dimensional codes, such as QR codes, which can contain a greater amount of coded data. Many two-dimensional imagers utilize charged-coupled device (CCD) sensors or complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensors for sensing the two-dimensional barcodes. The CCD and CMOS sensors are able to sense the codes without a laser acting as a light source.
Nevertheless, a laser may be used as a reference in some two-dimensional scanners, specifically handheld scanners, for showing the user where the image sensors are directed. Thus, when the reference laser beam is directed toward a barcode image to be scanned, the barcode will be in the field of view of the image sensors and can be scanned properly.
A problem with the use of a reference laser when using CMOS sensors is that many CMOS sensors being developed today do not typical use a mechanical shutter as is used in other types of image sensors. Instead, CMOS sensors may use an electronic shutter. Without a mechanical shutter, the reference laser beam can interfere with the sensed light patterns and therefore can lead to a misreading of the codes. Therefore, a need exists for providing systems and methods for minimizing the laser persistence in the images sensed by two-dimensional imagers.

Minimizing laser persistence on two-dimensional image sensors


A method for inducing immunological tolerance in mammals which comprises feeding an antigen to a mammal, wherein the mammal is not allowed to ingest a fat-soluble component or a fat-soluble component-containing substance simultaneous with ingestion of the antigen, and an immunological tolerance inducing food kit and an immunological tolerance inducer kit which comprise an antigen-containing preparation containing no fat-soluble component and an antigen-free preparation containing no fat-soluble component. According to this invention, immunological tolerance can be induced effectively.

A basic countermeasure to prevent recidivation of allergy is to avoid exposure to allergen. For example, in the case of food allergy, a countermeasure is taken by not eating allergen-containing food, refraining ingestion thereof or attenuating its allergenic property by thorough heating. In the case of pollen allergy, the most simple and effective countermeasure is to wear a mask or safety goggles or to refrain going out when drifting amount of pollen is large. These basic countermeasures are taken in daily life.
However, the object of these countermeasures is to prevent recidivation of allergic symptoms and not to perform fundamental treatment, although spontaneous remission may be expected in some cases.
In recent years, substitute milks for the mother's milk in which partially hydrolyzed peptide of milk protein is used as a nitrogen source have been put on the market to be used by familially allergic high risk babies for preventing crises of allergy. However, since there is no definite ground that the crises of milk allergy do not occur easily after changing to ordinary milk and dairy products, it is evident that these substitute milks are merely one of the choices to avoid antigens.
On the other hand, induction of the state of immunological tolerance is a therapeutic or preventive method in which its expected effects can be explained at least by its immunological mechanism. As examples of such a method, hyposensitization therapy and oral tolerance are known and have been carried out practically.
There are some reports in which percutaneous hyposensitization therapy is applied to treatments. Warner et al. disclose that a delayed asthmatic reaction induced by inhalant tick antigen was inhibited by hyposensitization therapy using a tick antigen preparation (Warner, J. O. et al., Lancet, 2:912 (1978)). Also, Norman et al. disclose that increase in the production of IgE antigen at a flowering time was inhibited by hyposensitization therapy using a urea-modified antigen IgE as a main antigen of ragweed pollen (Norman, P. S. et al., J. Allergy Clin. Immunol., 66:336 (1980)).
Patriarca et al. disclose oral hyposensitization therapy for treating food allergy (Patriarca, G. et al., eds., Food Allergy, Milano, Massom Italia, p.131 (1979)). Patriarca et al. have administered to patients who were allergic to milk, eggs or fruits, starting with a dose of 1 .mu.g which was gradually increased thereafter by a factor of 1.5 for each step and finally succeeded in administering 10 g. Shenassa et al. disclose hyposensitization therapy of patients of peanut allergy (Shenassa, M. M. et al., J. Allergy Clin. Immunol., 75:177 (1985)). In the case of food allergy, however, the cause of the disease is an antigen which passed through the same route to begin with, and serious symptoms frequently occur even by an extremely small amount of the antigen, so that it seems to be difficult to carry out the treatment using a specific oral hyposensitization therapy without causing an allergic reaction because of a danger at least when un-treated antigen is used.
Recently, oral immunological tolerance is drawing attention as an effective method for treating autoimmune patients. Trentham et al. disclose the case of treating patients suffering from chronic rheumatoid arthritis (Trentham, D. E. et al., Science, 261:1727 (1993)). When each patient was allowed to ingest 0.1 to 0.5 mg of fowl II type collagen for 90 days in a total amount of 33 mg, the rheumatic symptoms were attenuated and 4 of 28 cases have completely recovered from the disease. Also, Weiner et al. disclose the clinical results of patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (Weiner, H. L. et al., Science, 259:1321 (1993)). A bovine myelin antigen containing myelin basic protein was administered to the patients with a dose of 300 mg a day for one year. Although significant effect was not found as a whole, an effect was observed in certain groups.
A living custom of Indians (Dakin, R., Am. J. Med. Sci., 4:98, (1829)) and lacquer artisans in relation to the prevention of lacquer poisoning is well known as a prior art means for inducing immunological tolerance for the purpose of prevention. They have learned from their ancestors that children who were forced to eat lacquer would hardly be poisoned with lacquer later, and this is still handed down by tradition.
Wells et al. have studied and reported the phenomenon of oral immunological tolerance for the first time as a science (Wells, H. G. et al., J. Infect. Dis., 8:66 (1991)). Wells et al. disclose that, when un-sensitized guinea pigs are allowed to ingest ovalbumin, an anaphylactic reaction cannot be induced using the antigen. In Hanson et al., an aqueous solution of ovalbumin was administered to mice of a highly ovalbumin-responding line by single and plural gastric administration and then the mice were immunized with the same antigen by intraperitoneal injection using aluminum hydroxide gel as the adjuvant (Hanson, D. G. et al., J. Immunol., 123:2337 (1979)). Hanson et al. disclose that, as a result, the production of serum anti-ovalbumin antibodies and reagin antibodies was inhibited almost completely.
Antigens which induce oral immunological tolerance are not limited to food antigens. Aramaki et al. disclose that, when an extract of ragweed pollen was orally administered to mice and then the same antigen was used in booster together with an adjuvant, production of specific IgE antibodies was inhibited (Aramaki, Y. et al., Immunol. Lett., 40:21 (1994)). Ishii et al. disclose that, when guinea pigs were immunized with a tick extract by parenteral administration using aluminum hydroxide as an adjuvant and then the extract was orally administered for 1 week, an oral hyposensitization effect was observed, because threshold value of a tick inhalation induction test and threshold value of histamine inhalation were increased, thereby discussing that oral hyposensitization therapy would be effective also upon pollen allergy (Ishii, A. et al., Int. Arch. Allergy Appl. Immunol., 94:288 (1991)).
It is said that aptness to cause induction of oral immunization is different depending on kinds of animals. According to reports so far published, it is considered that ruminants, rabbits and guinea pigs are resistant to the induction, and rodents such as mice, rats and the like are sensitive to the induction. Even in the case of human, a possibility of establishing oral immunological tolerance has been suggested by Korenblatt et al. and Lowney (Korenblatt, P. E. et al., J. Allergy, 41:226 (1968); Lowney, E. D., J. Invest. Dermatol., 512:411 (1968)). Recently, Husby et al. have asked a volunteer to ingest 0.5 g of hemocyanin of a shellfish, Macroschisma siensis, a protein which is not generally taken by human, and subcutaneous immunization was carried out thereafter, and suggested that immunological tolerance could be induced at least in T lymphocytes (Husby, S. et al., J. Immunol., 152:4663 (1994)).
In the above cases, all of the antigens are used in the form of aqueous solution as if a coincidence, but the reason for this is not described. Since comparison of these antigens with test groups in which other components are added is not described, it is evident that such an administration in the form of aqueous solution is not selected on purpose.
It is known in general that antigens having stronger property to induce immune response also have stronger property to induce immunological tolerance. Because of this, antigens to be used for the induction of the tolerance (tolerogens) are un-hydrolyzed in most cases. On the other hand, JP-A-5-5000 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") and JP-A-7-101873 propose use of protein hydrolyzates for preventing crises of milk allergy. For example, in JP-A-5-5000, mice were provided with a solid feed preparation containing a peptide having a molecular weight of not more than 10,000 prepared by hydrolyzing casein or whey protein. Thereafter, each un-hydrolyzed sample of these proteins was intraperitoneally administered together with Freund's adjuvant to effect booster, thereby finding that production of specific antibodies was significantly low in comparison with the control group in which ion exchange water containing no peptide was provided. Since the antigenicity is reduced to a degree while maintaining the immunological tolerance function, it is concluded that these peptides having a molecular weight of not more than 10,000, namely partial protein hydrolyzates, are useful as food substances which can sufficiently activate the allergy defense mechanism.
However, the results in JP-A-5-5000 do not show that the tolerance induced by the pre-administration of the peptide prepared by partial protein hydrolysis is also effective in a case in which the original un-hydrolyzed protein is provided thereafter. The same can be said about the comparative group in which un-hydrolyzed protein was provided as the tolerance inducing antigen. To begin with, these results have a problem in that there is no comparative group in which the production of specific antibodies was said to be induced by continuous provision of un-hydrolyzed protein.
Although there are many reports on the use of percutaneous specific hyposensitization therapy as an effective symptomatic therapy of allergy (caused by food, pollen, ticks, house dust and the like), there is a danger of inducing shock and allergic symptoms such as asthma, fever and the like because of the injection of causal substances. Because of this, attempts have been made to inject these substances after attenuating their allergenic properties by polymerization, modification and the like, but complete avoidance of these actions have not been made.
Most serious problems of the percutaneous hyposensitization therapy are that the therapy requires a prolonged period of time which is at least several months and it gives pain in not a small degree. Accordingly, efforts for the treatment do not last long and are abandoned in the middle of the therapy in many cases. In addition, when it is prescribed as a therapy for children including babies, it causes emotionally difficult elements. Because of these factors, aside from the case in which it is used for the treatment of allergy, the percutaneous hyposensitization therapy is apt to be avoided when it is applied to the allergy prevention which has many uncertain elements, because its successive effects cannot be felt actually.
As a substitutive means for the percutaneous specific hyposensitization therapy having such problems, oral hyposensitization therapy is drawing attention in recent years. Since the oral hyposensitization therapy has an advantage of not causing pain of injection, it has been applied to the treatment of pollen and tick allergies, and its effects have also been recognized in a certain degree. In consequence, this therapy is expected to be useful for the fundamental prevention and treatment of various allergic diseases.
In the case of food allergy, however, the cause of disease is the ingested antigen in the first place, so that it is difficult to carry out the therapy using oral immunological tolerance without causing allergic reactions. Also, although there are many reports on animal experiments in which inhibitions of production of specific antibodies and delayed type reactions were observed and immunological tolerance was induced, the oral hyposensitization therapy still remains only as a possible candidate as a useful means to be applied to human because of the possible danger of establishing sensitization and inducing allergic symptoms.
The most important reason for the unstable effects of the oral hyposensitization therapy in the treatment of pollen and tick allergies and the hesitation in applying it to the prevention of the crises of food allergy is that nothing is known about a mechanism which decides selection of the completely incompatible phenomena of immunological tolerance and allergy induced by the ingested antigen.


A position reference system (100) for multilateral exit construction in a wellbore (32). The system (100) includes a casing string (34) having a window joint (106) and a pair of latch couplings (102, 104) interconnected therein and positioned in the wellbore (32). The first latch coupling (102) has a first inner profile operably engagable with a mating profile of a first latch assembly (114) to anchor and orient the first latch assembly (114) relative to the window joint (106). The second latch coupling (104) has a second inner profile that is different from the first inner profile of the first latch coupling (102). The second inner profile is operably engagable with a mating profile of a second latch assembly (124) to anchor and orient the second latch assembly (124) relative to the window joint (106).

Without limiting the scope of the present invention, its background will be described in relation to forming a window in a casing string for a multilateral well, as an example.
In multilateral wells it is common practice to drill a branch or lateral wellbore extending laterally from an intersection with a main or parent wellbore. Typically, once the casing string is installed and the parent wellbore has been completed, a whipstock is positioned in the casing string at the desired intersection and then one or more mills are deflected laterally off of the whipstock to form a window through the casing sidewall.
In certain installations, it is desirable to drill the lateral wellbore in a predetermined direction from the parent wellbore such as out of the high side of the parent wellbore. In such installations, it is necessary to form the window at a predetermined circumferential orientation relative to the parent casing. In order to properly position and rotationally orient the whipstock such that the window is milled in the desired direction, a latch assembly associated with the whipstock is anchored into and rotationally oriented within a latch coupling interconnected in the casing string. The latch assembly typically includes a plurality of spring operated keys, each of which have an anchoring and orienting profile that is received in a mating profile formed internally within the latch coupling. In this manner, when the latch assembly is operatively engaged with the internal profile of the latch coupling, the latch assembly and the equipment associate therewith may be anchored and rotationally oriented in the desired direction within the casing string.
It has been found, however, that operative engagement of the latch assembly with the latch coupling sometimes fails. For example, a latch coupling may be damaged during completion of the parent wellbore. Alternatively or additionally, drilling fluid solids or other debris may obstruct portions of the internal profile of the latch coupling such that it fails to properly interact with the latch assembly. In such situations, numerous additional trips into the well may be required to perform remedial action including, for example, installation of a new position reference device that is suspending within the casing via a packer assembly.
Accordingly, a need has arisen for improved system for constructing an exit for a multilateral well that does not require numerous additional trips into the well in the event of a latch coupling failure. In addition, a need has arisen for such an improved system that does not require remedial action to be performed in the event of a latch coupling failure. Further, a need has arisen for such an improved system that does not require installation of a new position reference device in the casing string in the event of a latch coupling failure.

Redundant position reference system for multilateral exit construction and method for use of same


The present disclosure is directed to a method of preparing an osteogenic bone graft. The method includes introducing an anticoagulant compound into a volume of cellular material including a mononuclear cell population from the intramedullary canal of a long bone; collecting an effluent including the volume of cellular material containing the anticoagulant compound at a collection point; separating a concentrated cell fraction from the effluent, the concentrated cell fraction including the mononuclear cell population and the anticoagulant compound; and preparing an osteogenic bone graft from the concentrated cell fraction.

Non-unions, in particular those involving large segmental defects in long bones, present a significant healing challenge. One method of healing these defects involves the use of autograft obtained from the medullary canal of a long bone, for example, a femur or tibia, using a surgical reamer irrigator aspirator (RIA) system. This system has the advantages of being able to harvest a larger quantity of autograft, with lower morbidity and greater rapidity, as compared to, for example, iliac crest bone grafting. RIA bone grafts are emerging as the new "gold standard" as it relates to the use of bone grafts, either in repair of large segmental defects or other clinical situations requiring bone grafts. One problem that remains is that a large quantity of cells including mesenchymal stem cells, endothelial progenitors, and other progenitor cells, which become available during harvesting are currently lost or underutilized.
In general, surgical reamers utilize a rotating cutting head similar to a drill displaced at the distal end of a drive shaft. Bone cutting devices for use in intramedullary reaming typically use a flexible drive shaft because the medullary canals of hones are seldom straight and usually will have some degree of curvature. Most reamers also have a central longitudinal bore through both the reamer and the drive shaft. The central bore is intended to receive a long, small diameter guide pin or wire which is initially inserted into the medullary canal to ad as a track for the advancing reamer. Reamers are used in orthopedic surgery to prepare the medullary canals of bone for surgical procedures such as total hip and knee replacement, nail insertion to stabilize a long bone fracture, an intramedullary osteotomy, and bone harvesting for grafting purposes.
Conventional methods of isolating and harvesting certain cell types from an intramedullary canal aspirate sample generally involve centrifugation of the sample. During centrifugation, populations of cells migrate to a relative position along the axis of lesser to greater acceleration, and concentrate in layers according to their density, displacing other higher and lower density cell types and plasma during the process.
Currently most of the effluent harvested during an intramedullary reaming is disposed of as medical waste. There is no practical way to isolate the therapeutically beneficial cells due to the large volumes present ˜250 cc-3000 cc and the presence of extraneous fluid, cells, and tissues, that do not promote bone healing (such as, RBCs, plasma, irrigant fluid, adipocytes, triglycerides, cholesteryl ester, certain proteins acting as adpokines, etc.) Existing cell separation methods are typically based on density gradation (e.g. centrifugation), filtration (e.g. tangential flow filtration) and other methods. Filtration of effluent at the cellular level is impractical due to the very large filter surface areas required, and complications associated with clogging, coagulation, and cell death. Centrifugation has been used as a method to separate and collect cells from the total effluent volume; however, existing systems suffer from drawbacks. Most commercially available systems cannot process more than about 50 cc of fluid per individual container, or 200 cc total for each centrifugation cycle in a four-container centrifuge system, making them impractical for processing the large volumes of effluent present in most intramedullary reaming procedures.
Additionally, problems can arise with the usefulness of harvested graft material due to the interaction of blood coagulation and the aggregation of adhesive fat particles created by the reaming tool. Blood coagulation, or clotting, is one of the body's natural means of stopping bleeding. It comprises a complex cascade of many clotting factors, some always present in the blood and some released from damaged tissue and activated platelets. When the lining of a blood vessel is broken, platelets are attracted forming a platelet plug. These platelets have thrombin receptors on their surfaces that bind serum thrombin molecules, which in turn convert soluble fibrinogen in the serum into fibrin at the wound site. Fibrin forms long strands of tough insoluble protein that are bound to the platelets. Factor XIII completes the cross-linking of fibrin so that it hardens and contracts. The cross-linked fibrin forms a mesh atop the platelet plug that completes the clot. The end-product is a mesh of fibrin strands in which blood cells are trapped to form a solid mass that seeks to stop bleeding. The entrapment of cells that promote bone growth by fibrin clots can be deleterious to the regeneration of bone tissue at the site of the trauma injury.
The blood clotting cascade begins almost instantly after a reamer head damages the endothelium lining of any blood vessels or other tissue in the medullary canal of the femur or tibia. Once intiated, this process is normally irreversible and in certain instances all useful cellular graft material, as well as fatty tissues residing in the medullary canal that becomes atomized by the cutting of the reaming head, can become trapped in the clot matrix, rendering it unusable as a bone graft. These entrapped cells often die because the fibrin clot, interwoven with the highly adhesive fat particles, entomb and prevent the revascularization of the cells by new blood vessels formed in response to the tissue damage incurred both by the original trauma and the reaming of the intramedullary canal. Existing methods described in the prior art rely on placing anticoagulant with the generated effluent at the point of final collection or sampling a quantity of effluent (typically 50 cc or less) and adding it to a separate container with a fixed volume of anticoagulant. The principle disadvantage of these methods is that they do not facilitate a rapid proportionate mixing of the anticoagulant into the effluent and therefore are suboptimal in terms of both arresting; the onset of the clotting cascade, and cell recovery and viability.
Consequently, there is a need in the art to find a method for improving the use of harvested biologic components of the intramedullary canal as osteogenic bone graft, and further a need to arrest the clotting cascade within the harvested material in order to prevent the harvested material from becoming irreversibly bound in a clot matrix.

Method of preparing an osteogenic bone graft


A method and apparatus are disclosed which allow for compensation of repeatable runout in a disk drive when an actuator arm assembly has a relatively high friction to inertia ratio in a pivot bearing assembly. The compensation uses one of two initial runout coefficients, based on a seek length. If the seek length is shorter than a predetermined distance, a current runout coefficient is used to compensate for repeatable runout which is continuously updated throughout a previous seek operation. If the seek length is greater than the predetermined distance, a transient runout coefficient is used to compensate for repeatable runout which is updated following the initial revolutions of the hard disk.

The invention relates in general to transducer positioning in a magnetic data storage system and, more particularly, to compensation for low-frequency repeatable run-out (RRO) created by relatively high actuator arm bearing pivot friction in a magnetic disk drive.
A simplified diagrammatic representation of a disk drive, generally designated 10, is illustrated in FIG. 1. The disk drive 10 comprises a disk stack 12 (illustrated as a single disk in FIG. 1) that is rotated by a spindle motor 14. The spindle motor 14 is mounted to a base plate 16. An actuator arm assembly 18 is also mounted to the base plate 16.
The actuator arm assembly 18 includes a transducer 20 (or head) mounted to a flexure arm 22 which is attached to an actuator arm 24 that can rotate about a pivot bearing assembly 26. The actuator arm assembly 18 also includes a voice coil motor 28 which moves the head 20 relative to the disk 12. The spin motor 14, and actuator arm assembly 18 are coupled to a number of electronic circuits 30 mounted to a printed circuit board 32. The electronic circuits 30 typically include a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor-based controller and a random access memory (RAM) device.
Referring now to the illustration of FIG. 2, the disk stack 12 typically includes a plurality of disks 34 each having a pair of disk surfaces 36, 36. The disks 34 are mounted on a cylindrical shaft 37 and are designed to rotate about axis 38 of the shaft 37. The shaft 36 has clamps 40 which are used to secure each disk 34 to the shaft 37. The spindle motor 14 as mentioned above, rotates the disk stack 12.
Referring now to the illustration of FIG. 3, the actuator arm assembly 18 includes a plurality of transducers 20, each of which correspond to a disk surface 36. Each transducer 20 is mounted to a corresponding flexure arm 22 which is attached to a corresponding portion of the actuator arm 24 that can rotate about the pivot bearing assembly 26. The VCM 28 operates to move the actuator arm 24, and thus moves the transducers 20 relative to their respective disk surfaces 36.
Although the disk stack 12 is illustrated having a plurality of disks 34, it may also contain a single disk 34, with the actuator arm assembly 18 having a corresponding single actuator arm 24. A recent trend of many disk drive manufacturers is to move toward a single disk, single head, low cost design. This helps to reduce costs associated with the disk drive, as fewer components are required. Additionally, as is typical with many high volume manufacturing process, costs can be further reduced by using common components for a number of different products. Thus, it would be advantageous to have common components for both hard disk drives having multiple hard disks, and hard disk drives having a single disk. By having common components, the volume of the components required is increased, which typically results in a lower unit cost for each component.
Data is read from or written to a track on the disk surface using the transducer 20 that is held close to the track while the disk 34 spins about its center at a substantially constant angular velocity. The transducer 20, located at the end of the actuator arm 24, is positioned in close proximity to the track using the VCM 28. When a disk drive 10 initially receives a request to read or write data to a specific track, the disk drive determines the current location of the transducer 20 (i.e. the starting track) and the location of the track where data is to be read or written (i.e. the destination track). The distance from the starting track to the destination track is commonly known as the seek length.
The electronic circuits 30 within the disk drive 10 determine a seek velocity profile which is used to supply current to the VCM 28 in order to move the actuator arm 24, and thus the transducer 20 from the starting track to the destination track. Once the transducer 20 has reached the destination track, the disk drive 10 enters a settle state, where the position of the transducer 20 is settled close to the center of the destination track. When the transducer 20 has settled, the disk drive 10 enters a track following operation.
To properly locate the transducer 20 near the target track during a read or write operation, a closed-loop servo scheme is generally implemented that uses feedback from servo data read from the disk surface 36 to align the transducer 20 with the target track. The servo data is commonly written to the disk surface 36 using a servo track writer (STW), but may also be provided in other ways, such as through pre-printed media. The servo data is commonly written as radially aligned servo sectors, or servo wedges, which extend between the inner diameter and outer diameter on each disk surface 36.
In an ideal disk drive system, the tracks of the data storage disk are non-perturbed circles situated about the center of the disk. As such, each of these ideal tracks includes a track centerline that is located at a known constant radius from the disk center. In an actual system, however, non-perturbed circular tracks on the data storage disk are rare. That is, problems, such as inaccuracies in the STW and disk clamp slippage, can result in tracks that are not ideal non-perturbed circular tracks. Positioning errors created by the perturbed nature of these tracks are known as written-in repeatable run-out (RRO). The perturbed shape of these tracks complicate the transducer positioning function during read and write operations because the servo system needs to continuously reposition the transducer during track following to keep up with the constantly changing radius of the track centerline with respect to the center of the spinning disk.
A number of methods are currently used to compensate for RRO, with a common method being a feedforward circuit. The RRO is measured by using a single-point discrete Fourier transform (DFT) to generate a runout coefficient which is stored in the memory of the digital signal processor (DSP). When compensating for the RRO, the runout coefficient is retrieved from the DSP memory. The runout coefficient is stored in the DSP memory in an index-synchronized sine and cosine value for the particular track and sector. The runout coefficient is adjusted with the gain and phase change by the controller, adjusted by the cylinder skew, and added back to the control output. The control output is used to actuate the VCM to reposition the transducer with respect to the disk surface and help keep the transducer centered over the data track.
The feedforward circuit generally uses one of two schemes to generate the runout coefficient. The first scheme calibrates the RRO at the power up and adaptively modifies it at the first one or two revolutions after the seek according to the following equations:                               Runout_Sin                                _Coef            k                          =                              Runout_Sin                                      _Coef                              k                -                1                                              +                      g            *                          2              /              N                        *                                          ∑                                  k                  =                  0                                                  N                  -                  1                                                                          xe2x80x83                                                          perr                                                  xe2x80x83                                                                  (                  k                  )                                *                sin                                                  xe2x80x83                                                                  (                                      2                                                              xe2x80x83                                                            π                    *                                          k                      /                      N                                                        )                                                                                [        1        ]                                          Runout_Cos                                _Coef            k                          =                              Runout_Cos                                      _Coef                              k                -                1                                              +                      g            *                          2              /              N                        *                                          ∑                                  k                  =                  0                                                  N                  -                  1                                                                          xe2x80x83                                                          perr                                                  xe2x80x83                                                                  (                  k                  )                                *                cos                                                  xe2x80x83                                                                                (                                          2                                                                    xe2x80x83                                                                  π                      *                                              k                        /                        N                                                              )                                    .                                                                                [        2        ]
In the above equations, N is the number of servo wedges in one revolution, and g is the adaptation gain. In an ideal case, g is equal to one, which implies a one revolution cancellation of runout, however, since accurate cancellation requires precise knowledge of the servo system transfer function (gain and phase), g is generally less than one to ensure stability of the servo loop due to variation of the system. The position error signal, perr, is generated from the servo information located on the disk surface. The magnitude of perr corresponds to the distance between the transducer and the track centerline. The runout coefficient is stored in the memory of the DSP in an index-synchronized table, which corresponds to the track and sector for that runout coefficient. Following the first one or two revolutions of the hard disk, the runout coefficient is stored. The runout coefficient is retrieved when needed to compensate the RRO when the transducer is located at that track and sector on the disk surface.
A second common scheme to determine the runout coefficient is to continuously adapt the runout coefficients after the actuator arm settles on track. That is, the runout coefficient is stored at the end of the seek operation, rather than after just the first one or two revolutions of the hard disk. The latest runout coefficient is stored in the memory of the DSP in the same index-synchronized table as described above. The runout coefficient is retrieved when needed to compensate the RRO when the transducer is located at that track and sector on the disk surface.
As mentioned above, an important factor in disk drive design and manufacturing is cost, which can be reduced through single disk hard disk drives which use common components with other, multiple head disk drives. One such component which would be beneficial to use as a common component between different disk drives is the pivot bearing assembly. That is, it would be beneficial to use a pivot bearing assembly in several types of disk drives, including a single disk type configuration. This can help reduce costs in such a system due to both the high volume of common pivot bearing assemblies used in the different types of disk drives, as well as reducing or eliminating the need to design a separate pivot bearing assembly for such a disk drive.
However, having a common pivot bearing assembly for a single disk hard disk drive results in further complicating transducer positioning in such a drive. This is because the relative amount of friction in the pivot bearing assembly for a single disk hard disk drive is increased as compared to the friction of the same pivot bearing assembly in a multiple disk hard disk drive. In many disk drives, the pivot bearing friction in the actuator arm is relatively low with respect to the inertia in the actuator arm. As such, the friction effect on the movement of the actuator arm is repeatable for all operations of the disk drive. However, in a single disk, single head, low cost design, the friction effects of the bearing pivot become more significant. With a single disk configuration, the actuator arm assembly has only one actuator arm, and one transducer for the single disk. As a result, the bearing pivot friction compared to the actuator arm assembly inertia may have a much higher ratio than the ratio present in a disk drive having a plurality of hard disks, and thus a plurality of actuator arms and tranducers.
The movement of the actuator arm assembly in such a system may be even further complicated because the movement of the actuator arm can vary depending upon the seek length. For relatively short seek lengths, the bearing members (i.e. balls) within the pivot bearing may not be rotating smoothly, resulting in additional compensation to move the actuator arm assembly in such a situation. For relatively long seek lengths, the bearing members within the pivot bearing are likely to be rotating relatively smoothly, thus less compensation is required. The gain for the actuator arm assembly, known as mechanical plant gain, can thus vary depending upon the seek length.
Referring now to FIG. 4, a bode plot comparison of mechanical plant frequency response between an actuator arm assembly with low pivot bearing friction 50 (i.e. multiple disk hard disk drive) and an actuator arm assembly with high bearing friction 54 (i.e. single disk hard disk drive) on a 5400 RPM hard disk drive, is illustrated. As will be understood, a 5400 RPM hard disk drive, a common rotation speed in present day hard disk drives, rotates at 90 Hz, known as a 1 f frequency. As can be seen from the figure, the actuator arm assembly with the low pivot bearing friction 50 has a mechanical plant which resembles a rigid body down to a frequency of approximately 55 Hz. As can also be seen from the figure, the actuator arm assembly with a high pivot bearing friction 54 has a plant which resembles a rigid body only down to a frequency of approximately 200 Hz. Because the 1 f frequency in this example is 90 Hz, the corner frequency of an actuator arm assembly with a high friction pivot bearing is above the 1 f frequency. Accordingly, the plant does not resemble a rigid body down to the 1 f frequency for this actuator arm assembly, and additional feedback is required in order to properly move the actuator arm assembly into a correct position with respect to the disk surface.
Furthermore, as mentioned above, the mechanical plant gain may also be dependent upon the seek length. Referring to the graph of FIG. 5, the gain variation with respect to time, following a long seek, of an actuator arm assembly having a relatively high friction to inertia ratio is illustrated. The graph of FIG. 5 illustrates, on the y-axis, the number of DSP counts from the DSP for the servo with respect to the number of revolutions since the transducer has started settling on-track. In this case, a DSP count of 300 represents the system gain at a steady state. As can be noted from the graph, the actuator arm assembly has a high gain jump, more than a 10% gain variation, immediately after a long seek. In such a system, following a long seek, there will be a large transient RRO during the course of settling. This large transient RRO is not desirable, as it may contribute to both write-to-write track misregistration (TMR), because track squeeze may occur depending upon the history of seek operations. The large transient RRO may also contribute to write-to-read TMR as read and write operations occur following different types of seeks, such as between a long seek and a short seek.
As noted above, there are two common schemes used to generate a runout coefficient for use in a feedforward circuit. The first scheme is suitable when the frequency response of the plant resembles a rigid body up to the compensated frequency. However, if the plant does not resemble a rigid body up to the compensated frequency, such as the case with an actuator arm assembly with a relatively high pivot bearing friction, the gain variation may result in a large RRO. The second scheme is effective in following slow gain variation, which may be present with an actuator arm assembly having a high pivot bearing friction. However, the second scheme can result in a large transient RRO as described above with respect to FIG. 5, when there is a high gain jump following a long seek. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have a compensation scheme for compensating RRO in a disk drive which can compensate for both the gain variation present when the plant does not resemble a rigid body up to the compensated frequency, as well as compensating for high transient mechanical plant gain after a long seek.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have a servo compensation scheme for positioning an actuator arm assembly in a hard disk drive which can (1) compensate for relatively high bearing pivot friction, (2) can compensate for gain variation present following different seek lengths, and (3) can allow the use of a similar pivot bearing assembly in both single and multiple disk hard disk drives.
The present invention solves the aforementioned problems and meets the aforementioned, and other, needs. A method and apparatus for reducign low frequency repeatable runout in a hard disk drive is provided. In one embodiment, the invention provides a mixed compensation scheme which employs different adaptation and application methods for determining a runout coefficient depending on the type of seek. Different runout coefficients are stored in the hard disk drive for use in calculating runout compensation. A transient runout coefficient is used to store runout coefficients adapted during the initial revolutions of the hard disk following a long seek. A current runout coefficient is used to store the continuously adapted runout coefficient for use during short seeks.
At the start of a seek, the disk drive determines if the seek is a long seek or a short seek. If the seek is a long seek, the disk drive uses the transient runout coefficient in the runout compensation in order to compensate for the large gain variation present following a long seek. During a long seek, the runout coefficient is stored into the transient runout coefficient following the initial revolutions of the hard disk. If the seek is a short seek, the disk drive uses the current runout coefficient in the runout compensation. After the transducer settles on the destination track, the runout adaptation starts to operate and the current runout coefficient continues to be updated throughout the seek. The runout coefficient is saved at the end of the seek as the current runout coefficient.

Method and apparatus for reducing low frequency repeatable runout in hard disk drive


A protective case for a personal electronics device of the type such as, but not limited to, cell phones, personal digital assistants, digital camera, and digital electronic games, includes a shell defining a first compartment and a second compartment. The first compartment formed to closely receive and retain a personal electronics device therein, and the second compartment defining a selectively accessible storage volume. A cosmetic tray is housed in the accessible storage volume and has at least one form of cosmetic selected from the group of nail polish, mascara, eyeliner, lipstick, lip liner, and lip gloss.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to protective cases for personal electronics devices in general and more particularly to a protective case for a personal electronics device that includes a compartment for cosmetics.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
From centuries past, women have been wearing cosmetics to enhance their physical appearance. Cosmetics containers are well known in the art. A large variety of such containers are currently commercialized and sold. They include small cases, such as tubes or circular cases for containing lipstick, mascara, eyeliner, lip liner, nail polish, and other health and beauty aids. Such containers with the cosmetics included therein, are widely used by people from adolescence to old age.
Women have typically carried their cosmetics with them in abbreviated form by using containers also known as "compacts" that they keep in a handbag in which they also keep other personal items such as a wallet, keys, tissues, pens, notepads, etc. for convenience. In order to conserve space in a woman's handbag, compacts are typically made to be relatively thin with a mirror integrated within the compact. The compact will typically have one or more small compartments for each composition of makeup contained therein. In this manner a woman can touch up her makeup throughout the day without the need for an entire collection of separate bottles and containers.
In recent years the wearing of cosmetics has also become ever more popular with teenage girls. However, today's teenage girls generally shun the use of handbags and are most often seen wearing casual clothes and carrying only those items they consider to be essential to their daily life. Typically, these essentials are limited to a form of identification, money, and a cell phone or other type of personal electronics device such as a personal digital assistant or a digital electronic game. Since they shun the carrying of handbags, these adolescent girls are limited in the number and bulk of items that they can carry on their person. Additionally, adolescent girls are always looking for new and unique items to enhance their appearance and stature among their peers.
Thus what is desired is a personal electronics device or a protective case for such devices as a cell phone, personal digital assistant, or digital electronic game that incorporates within the protective case a compartment for containing replaceable cosmetic trays.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Personal electronics device protective case with cosmetics compartment


A wafer chuck temperature control system is disclosed for use in a semiconductor wafer testing apparatus. The wafer chuck is divided into a plurality of temperature sensor and cooling element domains corresponding to chip location regions of an overlying undiced wafer being tested. Computer scanning of the sensors determines which domain is the one harboring the heat source (chip under test) and selects the same for connection to a closed loop temperature control feedback servo. Provision also is made for introducing a helium gas interface between the wafer and the chuck by placing annular grooves in the face of the chuck through which the helium flows when the wafer is vacuum-seated against the chuck. A predetermined helium gas flow rate is maintained to preserve vacuum holddown and to optimize the thermal resistance of the wafer-chuck interface.

The present invention generally relates to semiconductor wafer testing apparatus and, more particularly, to a closed loop temperature sensing feedback system using an area-selected temperature controlled wafer chuck.
In previous practice, when wafer testing undiced semiconductor chip devices and circuitry at the then prevailing relatively low chip wattage levels (well below the 20 watt range), the required chip junction temperature of about 25 degrees Centigrade was readily maintainable. More recently, however, it has become necessary to test chip devices in undiced wafer form at wattage levels of 20 watts and beyond. Unless the thermal resistance of the wafer-chuck interface is maintained below about 1.2 degrees Centigrade per watt, it becomes very difficult, if not impossible, to obtain reliable functional test results while maintaining chip junction temperature at about 25 degrees Centigrade. Known available chuck temperature control techniques do not lend themselves to the high wattage testing of individual chips of an uncut wafer.
High wattage chips heat up significantly during wafer final test. The electrical performance of the chip depends on its operating or "junction" temperature. Performance degrades with increasing junction temperature in a non-linear manner. A certain minimum performance level is required of every chip to pass final test. In establishing this level, it had been assumed that the junction temperature held constant during test at the value prescribed in the test specification. This assumption worked reasonably well in the past, when the power levels of the chips were low (less than 5 watts.) Higher power levels make the assumption erroneous. When testing high wattage chips, there is a significant difference between the prescribed test temperature and the actual junction temperature. For example, at 20 watts of chip power, the chip can be an average of 50 degrees centigrade hotter than the chuck, the device used to support the wafer and control its temperature during final test. Worse yet, the variability of this temperature rise makes it difficult to predict the actual junction temperature, given the power input and the chuck temperature. In the example given, the junction can actually be anywhere between 25 degrees Centigrade and 75 degrees Centigrade hotter than the thermochuck. The product yield is directly affected by this uncertainty, since good chips could be testing as bad chips due simply to overheating.
The ideal approach is to actually measure the junction temperature of the device as it is being tested, and use it as a feedback control signal to the chuck temperature control system. Provided enough cooling power is available, this method would maintain the junction temperature within a narrow range centered at the prescribed temperature. Unfortunately, such a direct approach is not yet feasible in practice, and it is unlikely to become a reality in the near future. Temperature sensitive diodes would have to be placed in the chip to provide the temperature feedback, but their outputs would not be easily accessible or measurable.
The principle of operation of the state of the art in wafer temperature control is to keep constant the temperature of the chuck which supports the wafer, by means of a closed loop temperature feedback control system. The temperature of the chuck is monitored by a thermocouple and cooling power is provided by respective thermoelectric elements mounted under the plate. The control unit turns the thermoelectric element on and off as required to keep the thermocouple within 2 degrees Centrigrade of the prescribed temperature. However, extensive studies have shown that with this set-up, the only useful and statistically valid junction temperature prediction that can be made is that chips dissipating under 25 watts would remain under 85 degrees Centigrade when tested on a 10 degree Centigrade chuck.
IBM (R) Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Vol. 31, No. 1, June 1988, "Electrostatic Wafer Holder for Wafer Cooling During Reactive Ion Etching" by G. Fortune and J. H. Keller discloses one technique useful in lowering the thermal resistance at the wafer-chuck (wafer-holder) interface in a reactive ion etching application. The wafer is electrostatically clamped to its holder while helium gas is applied to the backside of the wafer through annular surface grooves in the holder. However, the cited publication does not address the problem of cooling solely an area portion or domain of a wafer which is non-uniformly heated, wherein only a small surface of the wafer is heated at one time as caused by the testing of only one chip at a time among many others comprising the surface of a common undiced wafer.
Helium gas also is used in channels on the face of a wafer chuck for providing thermal contact to the back of a wafer which is mounted on the chuck as described in European patent publication 0250064, published Dec. 23, 1987, Bulletin 87/52 by George L. Coad et al. The wafer is tightly secured to the chuck by holding clamps to reduce helium leak. Again, there is no teaching of heating or cooling a wafer whose temperature is non-uniform across the face of the wafer.

Dry interface thermal chuck temperature control system for semiconductor wafer testing

International Business Machines Corporation


Disclosed are a method and a system in which a client intending to participate in a chat Push-to-talk over Cellular (PoC) group, presents a session participation-invitation reservation to a server when the number limit has been exceeded pursuant to the policy of the chat PoC group, or when a chat PoC group ID exists but a corresponding session has not been initiated. Herein, when a client intending to participate in a chat PoC group receives a response indicating participation is not possible because the number limit of the chat PoC group has been exceeded, the client performs invitation reservation until participation is possible.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and a system in which a client, intending to participate in a chat Push-to-talk over Cellular (PoC) group, presents session participation-invitation reservation to a server when the number limit has been exceeded pursuant to the policy of the chat PoC group, or when a chat PoC group ID exists but a corresponding session has not been initiated.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the rapid development of mobile communication and the spread of communication networks, numerous services and applications using a cell phone have been provided. Further, as user requirements are varying, a service is being developed from a simple communication service to such services as a location, a multimedia and a Push-To-Talk (PTT) service. Specifically, a PTT service supports various supplementary functions including instant messenger and a state indication, as well as group and voice communication which can be provided by the conventional radio or Trunked Radio System (TRS).
Recently, there has been active discussion regarding the standard establishment for a PoC service in which such a PTT concept is provided through a mobile communication network. According to the characteristics of a PoC service distinguished from an existing mobile communication service, a user belonging to multiple sessions can perform communication while navigating among the sessions. The requirements for this concurrent communication and navigation have been clearly defined in the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA).
According to a chat PoC session participation scenario, there may exist various reasons for which normal session participation is impossible, such as when the number limit of a chat PoC group stipulated in the policy of the chat PoC group has been exceeded or when the ID of the chat PoC group exists but a session has not been initiated. As described above, when the normal session participation of a client is impossible, the client must repeat a session participation request in order to participate in a session. Therefore, the Quality of Experience (QoE) of a transmission-side PoC client may significantly deteriorate.

Method and system for session participation through chat PoC group invitation reservation in PoC system


A reflection-detector sensor position indicator comprises emitters that transmit light having a plurality of wavelengths. A detector outputs a sensor signal. At least one reflection detector outputs at least one sensor position signal. An attachment assembly attaches the emitters, the detector and the reflection detector onto a tissue site. A sensor-on condition indicates that the attachment assembly has positioned the emitters generally centered over a fingernail, the detector on a fingertip opposite the fingernail and the reflection detector over the fingernail. The sensor signal, in the sensor-on condition, is at least substantially responsive to the emitter transmitted light after attenuation by pulsatile blood flow perfused within a fingernail bed underneath the fingernail. The sensor position signal, in the sensor-on condition, is at least substantially responsive to the emitter transmitted light after reflection off of the fingernail.

Pulse oximetry is a technique that utilizes a noninvasive sensor to determine a person's oxygen status. An optical sensor used in pulse oximetry has light emitting diodes (LEDs) that transmit optical radiation of red and infrared wavelengths into a tissue site. A detector in the sensor responds to the intensity of the optical radiation after attenuation by pulsatile arterial blood flowing within the tissue site. Based on this response, a processor determines measurements for SpO2 and pulse rate among other parameters. Pulse oximeters capable of reading through motion induced noise are available from Masimo Corporation ("Masimo") of Irvine, Calif. Moreover, portable and other pulse oximeters capable of reading through motion induced noise are disclosed in at least U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,770,028, 6,658,276, 6,157,850, 6,002,952, 5,769,785 and 5,758,644, which are owned by Masimo and are incorporated by reference herein. Corresponding low noise optical sensors are also available from Masimo and are disclosed in at least U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,985,764, 6,813,511, 6,792,300, 6,256,523, 6,088,607, 5,782,757 and 5,638,818. Such reading through motion pulse oximeters and low noise sensors have gained rapid acceptance in a wide variety of medical applications, including surgical wards, intensive care and neonatal units, general wards, home care, physical training, and virtually all types of monitoring scenarios. Moreover, pulse oximeters capable of reading through motion induced noise and low noise optical sensors including LNOP® disposable, reusable and/or multi-site sensors and Radical®, Rad-5™, Rad-8™, Rad-9™, PPO+™ monitors are also available from Masimo.
Further, noninvasive blood parameter monitors capable of measuring parameters in addition to SpO2, such as HbCO, HbMet and Hbt, and corresponding multiple wavelength optical sensors are also available from Masimo. Noninvasive blood parameter monitors and corresponding multiple wavelength optical sensors are described in at least U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/367,013, filed Mar. 1, 2006, titled Multiple Wavelength Sensor Emitters and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/366,208, filed Mar. 1, 2006, titled Noninvasive Multi-Parameter Patient Monitor, both assigned to Masimo Laboratories, Irvine, Calif. (Masimo Labs) and both incorporated by reference herein. Moreover, multiple parameter monitors and multiple wavelength sensors including Rad-57™ and Radical-7™ monitors and Rainbow™ Rainbow™-brand adhesive and reusable sensors are available from Masimo. MS- and MX-brand processor boards are also available from Masimo.

Reflection-detector sensor position indicator


A data storage device including, in one implementation, a non-volatile memory and a controller. The non-volatile memory includes a memory block. The memory block includes a plurality of word lines that are written sequentially from a first end of the memory block to a second end of the memory block. The controller is coupled to the non-volatile memory. The controller is configured to determine a last written word line of the memory block. The controller is also configured to set a non-selected word line voltage based on the last written word line of the memory block. The controller is further configured to apply the non-selected word line voltage to non-selected word lines of the memory block.

This application relates generally to memory devices, and more particularly, to a controller that reduces non-selected word line voltage in memory devices based on word line load.
Most reads are performed on fully-programmed blocks of memory (i.e., closed blocks). However, some reads are performed on blocks of memory that are partially-programmed and partially-erased (i.e., open blocks). Further, some reads are performed on blocks that are fully-erased (i.e., erased blocks). Open blocks may be read, for example, during host reads, relocation reads, and find last good page ("FLGP") detections. Erased blocks may be read, for example, during ungraceful shutdown ("UGSD") recoveries and FLGP detections. The supply current applied during open block reads is higher than during closed block reads (for example, about 20% higher on average). In addition, the supply current applied during erased block reads is significantly higher than during closed block reads (for example, up to about 60% higher).

Power reduction during open and erased block reads of memory based on the position of last written word line of a memory block


An improved structure and methods of fabrication for finFET devices utilizing a cladding channel are disclosed. A staircase fin is formed where the fin comprises an upper portion of a first width and a lower portion of a second width, wherein the lower portion is wider than the upper portion. The narrower upper portion allows the cladding channel to be deposited and still have sufficient space for proper gate deposition, while the lower portion is wide to provide improved mechanical stability, which protects the fins during the subsequent processing steps.

As integrated circuits continue to scale downward in size, the finFET (fin type field effect transistor) is becoming an attractive device for use with modern semiconductor devices. In a finFET, the channel is traditionally formed by a semiconductor vertical fin (as compared with a planar channel in a conventional CMOS), and a gate electrode is located and wrapped around the fin. With finFETs, for a given plot space (or foot-print), FinFETs tend to be able to generate significantly higher drive current density than planar transistor devices. Additionally, the leakage current of FinFET devices after the device is turned "OFF" is significantly reduced as compared to the leakage current of planar FETs, due to the superior gate electrostatic control of the "fin" channel on FinFET devices. In short, the 3D structure of a FinFET device is a superior MOSFET structure as compared to that of a planar FET, especially in the 20 nm CMOS technology node and beyond.
Device manufacturers are under constant pressure to produce integrated circuit products with increased performance and lower production costs relative to previous device generations. Thus, device designers spend a great amount of time and effort to maximize device performance while seeking ways to reduce manufacturing costs and improve manufacturing reliability. As it relates to 3D devices, device designers have spent many years and employed a variety of techniques in an effort to improve the performance capability and reliability of such devices. Device designers are currently investigating using alternative semiconductor materials, such as so-called Ge, SiGe, or III-V materials, to manufacture FinFET devices, which are intended to enhance the performance capabilities of such devices, e.g., to enable low-voltage operation.
One prior art process that has been employed to form alternative fin materials on silicon substrate fins is simply to perform an etch process on a substrate through a patterned hard mask layer to form a plurality of trenches in the substrate. As before, this etching process results in the definition of a plurality of substrate fins. Then, a layer of insulating material is formed in the trenches of the device such that it overfills the trenches. Next, an etching process, such as a dry, wet or vapor phase etching process, is performed to reduce the thickness of the layer of the insulating material, and this process essentially defines the final fin height of the fins. Then, a layer of alternative semiconductor material is formed on the exposed portions of the substrate fins by performing an epitaxial deposition process (referred to as a "cladding" channel formation). Then, a gate structure, either a permanent gate structure or a sacrificial gate structure would be formed on the fins using traditional techniques.
A drawback of the prior art is that the final fin width (initial fin width+twice of the cladding thickness) is too large, such that it limits the scaling of the fin pitch to maximize the channel width under fixed footprint. It is therefore desirable to have improvements in the fabrication of finFETs having a cladding channel.


The invention relates to a metal cutting tip having an upper face and a curved relief face, defining between them a substantially circular cutting edge. A chip former is located in the upper face and comprises a plurality of substantially radially directed recesses formed in the upper face. The recesses extend from the land at the cutting edge to a substantially centrally located deflector wall. The recesses are positioned to deflect cut metal into a curved rigidized shape and against the deflector wall to cause breaking thereof.

Such metal cutting tips have long been proposed and used, whether the metal cutting tip constitutes an integral part of the metal cutting tool or whether the metal cutting tip forms part of a replaceable cutting insert which is releasably held, for example by screw clamping or by wedge clamping, in an appropriate tool holder. Examples of such metal cutting inserts having circular cutting edges are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,626,140; 4,844,668; 4,946,319 and published European Patent Application No. 300172.
Such cutting tips having circular cutting edges are generally employed in turning operations where the cutting tip is designed to machine a workpiece into a relatively complicated cross-sectional shape, thereby requiring the relative motion of the cutting tip with respect to the workpiece in a continuously curving direction. It will be appreciated that, as a consequence, the extent of contact between the circular cutting edge and the workpiece, as well as the direction of contact (i.e. the angle between a normal to a tangent at the region of contact and the longitudinal axis of the cutting tool) vary with the relative displacement of the cutting tool with respect to the workpiece.
These continuous changes, both in the extent and direction of contact, which are inherent in the use of the circular cutting edge for the purposes indicated, make it increasingly difficult to control the formation and disposal of the chips generated during the turning operation.
Thus, it is known that chips generated with such cutting tips are generally thinner than those generated with cutting tips having a straight cutting edge when the cutting operation takes place under identical conditions of cutting depth and feed rate. Furthermore, it is known that the cross-sectional area of the chips so generated vary in accordance with the extent and direction of contact between the cutting edge and the workpiece. As a consequence of the general thin nature of the chips and their non-uniform cross-sectional area, it has been found very difficult to control the direction of flow of the chips and, in consequence, the provision of effective chip forming and breaking means is rendered more difficult. Thus, as will be readily appreciated, thin chips tend to bend easily and are therefore not readily broken. The provision of conventional means to break the chip and the requirement that these means be available for chips generated in varying directions, carry with it the introduction of an increased resistance to chip flow. This, in turn, leads to an increase in the forces which have to be expended during cutting and also gives rise to vibrations of the cutting system and to a consequent reduction in the surface quality of the machined workpiece.
Known metal cutting tips such as those, for example, described in the prior art referred to above, have not adequately dealt with this problem.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved cutting tip having a circular cutting edge, in which the above-referred-to problems involved in the formation and disposal of the cutting chips, are significantly reduced.

Cutting insert having a circular cutting edge with a chip former


A guide roller has a hollow roller and a fabric tube fitted under pressure over the hollow roller. The fabric tube has ends held respectively in axial ends of the hollow roller and fixed thereto by respective pressers which are pressed into the axial ends of the hollow roller.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet member guide mechanism having a guide roller for guiding a sheet member.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is known a system for recording radiation image information of a subject such as a human body with a stimulate phosphor, and reproducing the recorded radiation image information on a photosensitive medium such as a photographic film, or displaying the recorded radiation image information on a display unit such as a CRT or the like.
The stimulate phosphor is a phosphor which, when exposed to a radiation (X-rays, xcex1-rays, xcex3-rays, electron beams, ultraviolet radiation, or the like), stores a part of the energy of the radiation, and, when subsequently exposed to stimulating rays such as visible light, emits light in proportion to the stored energy of the radiation. Usually, a sheet provided with a layer of the stimulate phosphor is used as a stimulate phosphor sheet.
The above known system includes an image information reading apparatus which comprises a reading unit for reading the recorded radiation image information carried on the stimulate phosphor sheet, and an erasing unit for erasing residual radiation image information remaining on the stimulate phosphor sheet after the recorded radiation image information has been read from the stimulate phosphor sheet. The image information reading apparatus also includes a loading unit for accommodating a cassette which stores a stimulate phosphor sheet with the radiation image information of a subject being recorded thereon by an external exposure device.
When the cassette is opened, a sheet picking mechanism removes the stimulate phosphor sheet from the cassette, and the stimulate phosphor sheet is fed to the reading unit by a sheet feed mechanism. The reading unit reads the recorded radiation image information from the stimulate phosphor sheet. Thereafter, the erasing unit erases residual radiation image information from the stimulate phosphor sheet, which is then stored back into the cassette in the loading unit.
There has recently been a demand for efficiently reading the energy stored in a stimulate phosphor sheet in order to reproduce the recorded radiation image information of a subject with high image quality. Such a demand is particularly growing in the field of mammography or the like. One attempt to meet the demand is to use a transparent base in a stimulate phosphor sheet. When stimulating light is applied to the outer surface of a phosphor layer (recording surface) of the stimulate phosphor sheet, light is emitted from both surfaces of the phosphor sheet, i.e., light is emitted is from the outer surface of the phosphor layer and the outer surface of the transparent base (reverse surface). Therefore, the stimulate phosphor sheet serves as a double-side-readable stimulate phosphor sheet.
The sheet feed mechanism employs a roller for preventing the stimulate phosphor sheet from rising off a curved feed path to smoothly guide the stimulate phosphor sheet along the curved feed path. The roller has a damping member applied to an area thereof which will be contacted by the reverse surface or recording surface of the stimulate phosphor sheet. The damping member is effective to prevent the reverse surface or recording surface of the stimulate phosphor sheet from being damaged by contact with the roller.
The damping member is attached to the roller by an adhesive tape or the like. However, the adhesive tape fails to keep the damping member bonded smoothly to the entire surface of the roller. In order to bond the damping member smoothly to the entire surface of the roller, it is necessary to repeatedly detach and bond the damping member. As a result, the process of attaching the damping member appropriately to the roller is considerably complex.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a sheet member guide mechanism which has a simple structure and is capable of feeding a sheet member smoothly and reliably along a desired feed path without causing damage to the sheet member.
According to the present invention, there is provided a sheet member guide mechanism comprising a guide roller for guiding a sheet member which is being fed, the guide roller comprising a roller core and a fabric tube fitted under pressure over the roller core. Since it is not necessary to attach the fabric tube to the outer circumferential surface of the roller core by an adhesive tape or the like, the guide roller can be assembled highly efficiently. The fabric tube is woven or knit of fibers such as nylon filaments or the like, so that there is no joint formed in the outer circumferential surface of the fabric tube, and hence the fabric tube which is held against a sheet member does not cause damage to the sheet member.
The sheet member guide mechanism also has a pair of pressers mounted respectively in axial ends of the roller core to hold and secure respective ends of the fabric tube in the axial ends of the roller core. The ends of the fabric tube are kept out of sliding contact with the sheet member, and are prevented from being unraveled.
The roller core comprises a hollow roller which is rotatably supported on a shaft by a pair of bearings. Therefore, even if foreign deposits such as dust particles are applied to the fabric tube, since the fabric tube does not slide against the sheet member, the sheet member is effectively prevented from being damaged by those foreign deposits.
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.

Sheet member guide mechanism having a fabric tube fitted over a roller core


The method for indicating protocol data unit session status includes that: a terminal device indicates activation and/or deactivation of a protocol data unit session based on configuration signaling sent by a network device. A terminal device and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium are also provided.

At a non-access stratum (NAS) layer of a terminal device (e.g. a user equipment, UE), the UE needs to know the status (such as an activated state or a deactivated state) of a protocol data unit (PDU) session so as to determine whether there is a need to activate the PDU session.

Method for indicating protocol data unit session status, terminal device, and non-transitory computer-readable storage medium

GUANGDONG OPPO MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS CORP., LTD.


Embodiments relate to a semiconductor device and a method of fabricating semiconductor device, that may uniformly form a barrier layer in a via hole to thus prevent layers from being broken. In embodiments, a method of fabricating a semiconductor device may include forming an interlayer dielectric layer on a substrate, forming via holes selectively on the interlayer dielectric layer, forming a first metal layer on a top surface of the substrate including inner portion of the via hole, forming spacers on sides of the via holes by etching back the first metal layer, forming a second metal layer on the substrate including the spacer, and forming a tungsten layer by depositing tungsten on the second metal layer.

As semiconductor devices become more highly-integrated and operate at higher speeds, metal interconnections formed in the semiconductor device may become micro-sized and multi-layered.
Such metal interconnections may be formed by exposing and developing a photoresist film to make a photoresist film pattern, and then etching the metal layer, for example using photoresist film pattern as a mask. In addition, to reduce a signal delay caused by low resistance and capacitance of the metal interconnection, copper may be used.
Copper may rarely be etched as compared with other metals. Thus, to make a copper interconnection, a damascene process may be performed. In a damascene process, a trench may be formed and a copper layer may be formed to fill the trench. Chemical mechanical polishing may then be performed relative to the copper layer. Similar to the copper interconnection, a plug, which may be used to interconnect multi-layered metal interconnections, may also be formed by filling a via hole with tungsten, etc.
When forming a copper interconnection or a tungsten plug, a barrier layer may be necessary to prevent a metal from diffusing into other layers, and may enhance a bonding property relative to an insulating layer.
An interlayer dielectric layer, however, may have a certain amount of moisture. The moisture contained in the interlayer dielectric layer may be exhausted when forming the barrier layer at a high temperature. This may cause the barrier layer to be irregularly formed.
In addition, if the barrier layer is irregularly formed, a diffusion of metal may occur when the metal layer is filled in the via hole at a high temperature. Thus, a material forming the plug, such as tungsten, may not be easily introduced into the via hole, but may block an inlet of the via hole (which is called "overhanging"). Also, tungsten may be stacked up only around the inlet of the via hole.
Moreover, if the barrier layer is weakly formed, aluminum of the barrier layer's lower part may be discharged. Diffusion of metal may occur if a metal layer is formed by tungsten, etc. Aluminum (Al) in the barrier layer may react with fluorine of WF6 gas, which may be source material forming the plug. This may form AlF3. In addition, if AlF3 is discharged out of the via hole, the phenomenon of blocking introduction of W into the via hole in the process of W deposition may occur.