Techniques are disclosed for identifying discriminative, fine-grained features of an object in an image. In one example, an input device receives an image. A machine learning system includes a model comprising a first set, a second set, and a third set of filters. The machine learning system applies the first set of filters to the received image to generate an intermediate representation of the received image. The machine learning system applies the second set of filters to the intermediate representation to generate part localization data identifying sub-parts of an object and one or more regions of the image in which the sub-parts are located. The machine learning system applies the third set of filters to the intermediate representation to generate classification data identifying a subordinate category to which the object belongs. The system uses the part localization and classification data to perform fine-grained classification of the object.

Machine learning systems may be used to process images to generate various data regarding the image. For example, a machine learning system may process an image to identify one or more objects in the image. Some machine learning systems may apply a model generated by a neural network, such as a convolutional neural network, to process the image. Machine learning systems may require a large amount of "training data" to build an accurate model. However, once trained, machine learning systems may be able to perform a wide variety of image-recognition tasks previously thought to be capable only by a human being. For example, machine learning systems may have use in a wide variety of applications, such as security, commercial applications, scientific and zoological research, and industrial applications such as inventory management and quality control.

Machine learning system for generating classification data and part localization data for objects depicted in images


Described herein is a method, apparatus, and system for driving a droplet ejection device with multi-pulse waveforms. In one embodiment, a method for driving a droplet ejection device having an actuator includes applying a first subset of a multi-pulse waveform to the actuator to cause the droplet ejection device to eject a first droplet of a fluid in response to the first subset. The method includes applying a second subset of the multi-pulse waveform to the actuator to cause the droplet ejection device to eject a second droplet of the fluid in response to the second subset. The first subset includes a drive pulse that is positioned in time near a beginning of a clock cycle of the first subset. The first droplet has a smaller volume than the second droplet.

Droplet ejection devices are used for a variety of purposes, most commonly for printing images on various media. They are often referred to as ink jets or ink jet printers. Drop-on-demand droplet ejection devices are used in many applications because of their flexibility and economy. Drop-on-demand devices eject one or more droplets in response to a specific signal, usually an electrical waveform that may include a single pulse or multiple pulses. Different portions of a multi-pulse waveform can be selectively activated to produce the droplets.
Droplet ejection devices typically include a fluid path from a fluid supply to a nozzle path. The nozzle path terminates in a nozzle opening from which droplets are ejected. Each ink jet has a natural frequency which is related to the inverse of the period of a sound wave propagating through the length of the ejector (or jet). The jet natural frequency can affect many aspects of jet performance. For example, the jet natural frequency typically affects the frequency response of the printhead. Typically, the jet velocity remains near a target velocity for a range of frequencies from substantially less than the natural frequency up to about 25% of the natural frequency of the jet. As the frequency increases beyond this range, the jet velocity begins to vary by increasing amounts. This variation is caused, in part, by residual pressures and flows from the previous drive pulse(s). These pressures and flows interact with the current drive pulse and can cause either constructive or destructive interference, which leads to the droplet firing either faster or slower than it would otherwise fire.
One prior ink jetting approach uses a pulse string followed by a cancelling pulse. The cancelling pulse is a shortened pulse that is timed so that the resulting pressure pulses arrive at the nozzle out of phase with the residual pressure from previous pulses. Given that jets will have a dominant resonant frequency, the cancellation features are timed in units of resonance period Tc. FIGS. 1a and 1b show two common types of cancellation pulses: same sense cancellation pulse 180 in FIG. 1a and opposite sense cancellation pulse 199 in FIG. 1b. A same sense cancellation pulse is preceded by a cancel edge delay, which has a voltage level that is similar to a voltage level of one or more delays between drive pulses. An opposite sense cancellation pulse is preceded by a cancel edge delay, which has a voltage level that is different than a voltage level of one or more delays between drive pulses. The voltage level of the cancel edge delay is in the opposite direction, relative to the bias level or level between fire pulses, compared to the fire pulse. FIG. 1a illustrates a fire edge of pulse 181 that is followed by a cancellation puke delay 182 (e.g., To) and then cancellation pulse 180. FIG. 1b illustrates pulses 190-197, a fire edge 198 that is followed by a cancellation pulse delay 184 (e.g., Tc) and then cancellation pulse 199. In these architectures, a large droplet is created by expressing all the pulses while smaller droplets are expressed by removing the earlier pulse(s). Hence, considering the opposite sense cancellation pulse 199 shown in FIG. 1b, a middle droplet may be constructed from pulses 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, and the cancellation pulse 199 while a small droplet could be formed using the pulse 197 and the cancellation pulse 199.
FIGS. 2a and 2b show prior waveform designs for a small droplet with a same sense cancellation pulse 210 and an opposite sense cancellation pulse 220. In both cancellation pulse styles, the small droplet pulse occurs at the end of the waveform directly in front of the cancellation pulse 210 or 220. These waveforms have the advantage that the cancellation pulse effectively controls the meniscus motion. These waveforms have the disadvantage that the small droplet formation is late compared to the formation of the other droplets that use pulses that start earlier. This small droplet arrives at the medium (e.g., paper) later because this droplet is formed late. Typically, the fire pulse amplitude is increased in order to compensate. However, since faster droplets tend not to form single droplets, but instead have a slower droplet formed out of the tail, there are practical limits to this strategy.

Method, apparatus, and system to provide droplets with consistent arrival time on a substrate


A heat sensor has the ability to correct for errors introduced during temperature changes of the hot junction of the thermopile for the heat sensor. For example, the effect of temperature changes at the hot junction of the heat sensor relative to the cold junction is mathematically modeled such that the effect on the temperature determination can be corrected given certain information relating to the thermopile, its electrical output, and the temperature history and current temperature of the cold junction. By accounting for these factors, a processing device can modify the temperature determination output for the heat sensor while correcting for error introduced by temperature changes at the hot junction as determined by the mathematical model.

Electronic devices of various kinds are well known. Moreover, each of these electronic devices includes elements that tend to heat up with use over time. For example, computing devices include processor circuits that will heat up over time and with increased use of the processing device as a result of the amount of current that flows through a circuit during its operation. The heating of the processing device is a known artifact in the computing world. For example, certain computing devices such as large desktop computers include temperature protection mechanisms such that the processing device or other components of the system do not overheat and break down.
Accordingly, in certain applications, temperature sensors are incorporated into computing devices to sense the temperature of certain components that are susceptible to break down or failure as a result of overheating. For example, an infrared heat detector can be disposed to collect infrared energy given off by a heated portion of the device. The infrared sensor collects that infrared radiation and converts it into a voltage from which a computing device can determine the temperature of the material from which the heat sensor is collecting infrared radiation. In one example, a heat sensor includes a thermopile or a component whose electrical properties (such as voltage) change when the temperature gradient across the component changes. So configured, one end of the thermopile is configured to be heated by the infrared radiation received from the material of which the temperature is to be sensed. This side is called a "hot junction" of the thermopile. The other side of the thermopile is called a "cold junction" and is kept at a relatively stable temperature such that changes in temperature of the first side of the thermopile or "hot junction" will result in a change in the electrical properties of the thermopile that can be tracked and correlated to temperature of the target material.
It is known, however, that during a thermopile's hot junction temperature change, the temperature determination of the target material will be inaccurate. This is because part of the heat flow on the thermopile's hot junction is used to change the temperature of the hot junction rather than generate the signal. Once the temperature is stable then this error disappears. The major source of temperature change of the hot junction in an infrared sensor is through heat transfer to and from the cold junction. As a result, infrared sensors designed to be placed into computing devices, for example, are designed such that sensor itself or at least the cold junction is as thermally isolated from the remaining system and computing device as possible so as to reduce temperature changes that could result in temperature sensing errors. By configuring the infrared sensor in this manner, the infrared sensor itself has a relatively bulky size and takes up a relatively large amount of space which can be detrimental when implemented in a computer or other mobile electronic device or size and portability device can be a high priority or concern. Moreover, thermal isolation only partially mitigates the errors introduced during temperature variations because the thermal isolation is not perfect.


A personal device holder for hands free positioning of a sexual device includes a primary support member having a proximal end and a distal end. The personal device holder include an auxiliary support member having a first end coupled to the proximal end of the primary support member and a second end opposite the first end, the auxiliary support member having a planar configuration and being normally positioned perpendicular to the primary support member. The primary support member defines a first aperture in communication with a peripheral edge of the proximal end thereof. The first ring assembly is pivotally coupled to the proximal end of the primary support member and positioned in the first aperture, the first ring assembly including a first ring having a flexible diameter having a 360 degree range of rotation and operable to receive the cap end of the sexual device in a friction fit arrangement.

This invention relates generally to holding devices and, more particularly, to a personal device holder that is operable to secure and position one or more personal devices, such as a vibrator or dildo, for use without a user's hands.
There are multiple surveys now that a statistically significant number of women masturbate for personal enjoyment and to experience an orgasm(s). It is well known that sometimes female masturbation includes the use of a "personal sexual device" such as a vibrator, a wand, or other battery powered device that simulates a penis. The personal use of a device for this purpose, of course, requires use of her hand to hold the device in position for an extended period of time and this can become tedious and tiring.
Therefore, it would be desirable to have a personal device holder to which a sexual device, such as a vibrator, may be attached and rotatably positioned so that the sexual device can be used for stimulation without use of a user's hands. Further, introduction of a swivel ring allows a sexual device to move vertical and rotationally as desired and as the user moves around. The present invention enables a woman to exercise her legs, abdomen, and buttocks and having a very enjoyable workout. The invention make include one, two, or three swivel rings so that one, two, or three personal sexual devices may be positioned and used simultaneously—by one person or multiple persons.


A hydrophobic film is formed on the electrode foil surface by adding a straight-chain saturated dicarboxylic acid represented by the general formula: HOOC(CH2)nCOOH (wherein n indicates an integer from 9 to 11) to the electrolytic solution for medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor. Addition of a large amount of water to the electrolytic solution is allowed since this hydrophobic film suppresses the hydration reaction between the electrode foil and water. Further, it is possible to retain good lifespan property of the electrolytic capacitor in a medium/high-voltage electrolytic solution by having low specific resistance property and by suppressing the hydration decomposition of the electrode foil, wherein the electrolytic solution is azelaic acid, sebacic acid, 1-methyl-azelaic acid, 1,6-decanedicarboxylic acid, or a salt thereof dissolved in a solvent having ethylene glycol as the main component.

An electrolytic capacitor is configured by using a valve metal having an insulating oxide film formed on the surface of aluminum or tantalum etc. as the anodic electrode foil, using said oxide film layer as the dielectric, contacting the surface of this oxide film layer with an electrolytic solution that will be the electrolyte layer, and further placing an electrode foil ordinarily referred to as the cathode for collecting current.
The electrolytic solution for electrolytic capacitor is in direct contact with the dielectric layer as described above, and acts as a true cathode. In other words, the electrolytic solution is interpositioned between the dielectric and the collector cathode of the electrolytic capacitor, and the resistance of the electrolytic solution is serially inserted into the electrolytic capacitor. Accordingly, the property of the electrolytic solution will be a great factor in influencing the properties of an electrolytic capacitor.
In the conventional technology of electrolytic capacitors, it is common to use an electrolytic solution having high withstand voltage and small decomposition of electrode foil as the electrolytic solution for medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor in an attempt to stabilize properties at medium/high-voltage, wherein the electrolytic solution employs ethylene glycol as the solvent and azelaic acid, sebacic acid, 1-methyl-azelaic acid, 1,6-decanedicarboxylic acid, or a salt thereof as the solute.
In the meantime, a power factor improvement circuit has been recently integrated on the primary side of a power source as a countermeasure for high frequency, and with this, a high-frequency low-impedance electrolytic capacitor for medium/high-voltage that can withstand a large high frequency ripple current has been desired.
Conventionally, a method for reducing the impedance of an electrolytic capacitor at high frequency has been done by reducing the specific resistance of the electrolytic solution. A method of mixing a large amount of water into the electrolytic solution is known as a method for reducing the specific resistance of the electrolytic solution. (Patent Document 1)
However, when the electrolytic solution for medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor employed comprises a large amount of water, reliability as an electrolytic capacitor was reduced in high-temperature shelf test due to for example the oxide film of the anodic electrode foil for the medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor being dissolved by water in the electrolytic solution (hydration decomposition), the electric capacitance being increased compared to the initial property, and the withstand voltage being decreased.
A method for adding an additive that suppresses the hydration reaction between the electrode foil and water is known as such a method for slowing the hydration decomposition of the electrode foil. (Patent Document 2)    Patent Document 1: Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-145004    Patent Document 2: Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-164260
However, in a medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor such as that in Patent Document 2, addition of water conventionally could not be allowed to be greater than 10 wt % in the medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor and thus impedance at high frequencies could not be sufficiently lowered, since the hydration reaction suppression effect of the additive against the electrode foil will become insufficient when the amount of water mixed is greater than 10 wt %. For this reason, a medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor that yields sufficient low-impedance property at high frequencies and has high reliability has not yet been proposed.
Accordingly, the object of the present invention is to provide a medium/high-voltage electrolytic capacitor which is high-frequency low-impedance and further having good reliability.

Electrolytic solution for electrolytic capacitor


A plastic container that is fabricated from an extrudable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) using an extrusion blow molding process includes a neck portion, a bottom portion and a main body portion. The main body portion has a central opening that extends completely through the main body portion and may have generally toroidal area surrounding the central opening. The bottom portion includes a plurality of support feet and a substantially smooth central raised portion that has substantially no discontinuities such as the gate well that is commonly found on PET containers fabricated using the conventional stretch blow molding process. The neck portion may be offset from a longitudinal axis of the container so as to facilitate pouring by a consumer.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to plastic containers that are fabricated from polyethylene terephthalate, which is commonly known by the acronym PET. More specifically, the invention relates to PET containers that are fabricated using an extrusion blow molding process.
2. Description of the Related Technology
Many products that were previously packaged using glass containers are now being supplied in plastic containers, such as containers that are fabricated from polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
PET containers are typically manufactured using the well-known stretch blow molding process. This involves the use of a pre-molded PET preform having a threaded portion and a closed distal end. The preform is first heated and then is longitudinally stretched and subsequently inflated within a mold cavity so that it assumes the desired final shape of the container. As the preform is inflated, it elongates and stretches, taking on the shape of the mold cavity. The polymer solidifies upon contacting the cooler surface of the mold, and the finished hollow container is subsequently ejected from the mold.
Another conventional process for fabricating plastic containers is the extrusion blow molding process, in which a continuously extruded hot plastic tube or parison is captured within a mold and inflated against the inner surfaces of the mold to form a container blank. The mold is typically designed to travel at the speed at which the extruded parison is moving when it closes on the parison so that the process can operate on a continuous basis. There are several different types of extrusion blow molding machines, including shuttle molds that are designed to travel in a linear motion and extrusion blow molding wheels that travel in a rotary or circular motion.
The extrusion blow molding process is typically used to form containers that are fabricated from material such as polyolefin or polyethylene. It is not conventionally used for fabricating materials out of PET, although an extrudable PET material has recently been made commercially available.
The stretch blow molding process is the industry standard for forming PET containers that are used to package consumer beverages as well as other materials. However, it has some inherent limitations. These include unsightly gate wells or discontinuities on the bottom portions of containers, and limitations on the possible spectrum of designs that can be realized using the stretch blow molding process.
A need exists for an improved PET plastic container that obviates some of the disadvantages that are inherent to containers that are fabricated using the stretch blow molding process.

Extrusion blow molded PET container and method of making


Reflective members for use in encoder systems are provided. One embodiment comprises a reflective member comprising a reflective layer, at least another layer, and a reflective pattern comprising a first portion having a first reflective property and a second portion having a different reflective property. The reflective layer forms at least a part of the reflective pattern. In addition, the aforementioned first portion of the reflective member has a width of less than half of the grating period. The reflective member enables measurement of at least one operational attribute of an object.

In the present environment, an encoder system measures one or more operational attributes of an object (e.g., a rotary shaft, a printer head, a paper feeder). Examples of such operational attributes include the linear position of the object, the rotary position of the object, the speed of the object, and the like. In some existing encoder systems, measurement of one or more operational attributes of an object involves an emitter of the encoder system focusing light onto a codewheel or codestrip moving in conjunction with the object. The light is either reflected or not reflected to a receiver of the encoder system depending upon the "bar and window" pattern of the codewheel or codestrip. In existing reflective encoder systems, the "bar and window" pattern of the codestrip or codewheel consists of a repeating pattern of a non-reflective surface (i.e., the bar) and a reflective surface (i.e., the window). The total width of the non-reflective surface and the reflective surface is known as the grating period of the codewheel/codestrip pattern. As the codewheel or codestrip moves, an alternating pattern of light and dark corresponding to the pattern of the codewheel or codestrip falls upon the receiver. This collected light pattern is used to produce internal signals, which in turn are used to determine the earlier-mentioned measurements.
FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary prior art bar and window pattern for existing codestrips and codewheels. In FIG. 1, pattern 100 includes window 110 and bar 120. Bar 120 has a width w1. Likewise, window 110 has a width w2, thus creating a grating period of w1+w2. In some existing codewheels and codestrips, w1 is equal to w2. Moreover, for existing codestrips and codewheels, the value of w1, as well as that of w2, is usually greater than or equal to 1.6 μm to allow formation of part window patterns.
The precision of the aforementioned measurements depends upon the resolution of the codewheel or codestrip. The resolution of a codestrip is equal to the number of lines (i.e., bar and window pairs) formed by the codestrip per unit length of the codestrip (e.g., per inch, per mm, etc.). Furthermore, the resolution of a codewheel is equal to the counts per revolution (CPR) for the codewheel. The CPR for a codewheel may be determined using the following equation.CPR=LP×2πROPwhere LP=the number of lines per unit length (e.g., per inch, per mm, etc.); and                ROP=radius of the codewheel
As can be seen from the above-equation, the resolution of a codewheel may be increased by increasing ROP, while keeping LP constant. However, size constraints for encoder systems may make increasing the size of the codewheel impractical.
Moreover, similar to earlier discussions, present techniques only allow so many bar and window pairs per unit length using existing codewheel or codestrip manufacture technologies (e.g., stamping windows into a codestrip or codewheel, printing opaque bars on the surface of a codestrip or codewheel, etc.). Therefore, increasing the LP of a codewheel or a codestrip to increase the resolution is also impractical. Using the maximum LP values, CPR values of up to 32, 768 have been achieved.

Avago Technologies ECBU IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.


An electrical connector configured to be mated with a mating connector along a mating direction includes a plurality of contact elements each having a contact surface at least partially inclined with respect to the mating direction. The contact elements are spaced apart from each other along a circumferential direction with respect to the mating direction.

In the field of electromobility, charging systems for batteries are required to operate with a high efficiency, while maintaining their functionality throughout the entire service life. Charging systems operating according to the inductive principle (i.e. energy transmission through electromagnetic induction between a source-side module and a load-side module) often exhibit high energetic losses and take up comparably large space. This is especially disadvantageous for large-scale charging systems e.g. of electric vehicle batteries and the like.
Charging systems, in which energy transmission takes place through an electric current directly flowing between a source-side conductor and a load-side conductor (i.e. conductive charging systems), require sufficient contacting forces between the respective conductors in order to achieve efficient energy transmission. This contacting force is typically exerted by spring-like electrical contact elements, which constitute the respective conductors. As a result, high mating forces are necessary during the mating process. Furthermore, the conductors' contact surfaces slide and scrape each other during the mating process, thus creating the risk of wear and damage to the contact surfaces, which are usually plated with an electrically conductive layer for reducing the electric contact resistance between the conductors. Damage to the contact surfaces causes the electric contact resistance to increase and the efficiency of the charging system to drop.

Electrical connector, connector assembly and charging robot for a conductive charging system


This invention relates to a vacuum pump. The pump includes a pump housing (10) having upper and lower cylindrical, partly liquid filled, compression chambers (11 and 12 respectively) which are separated from each other and in which an upper and a lower part (14, 15) of a piston (12) is movable. The piston has a passage (21) which is provided with a check valve and which provides communication between the upper and the lower chamber (11 and 12 respectively). The upper chamber communicates, via an opening (26) which is provided with a check valve, with a liquid filled de-aeration receptacle (27). The lower chamber (12), during a part of the movement of the piston, via an inlet (33), communicates with the space being evacuated.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a vacuum pump. The pump according to the invention is primarily used to create a vacuum insulation for walls and doors of refrigerators and freezers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Previously suggested vacuum insulations for this purpose--see for instance SE 90937, EP 188806, U.S. Pat. No. 4,668,555--comprise powder or cellular materials which are placed in a diffusion-tight receptacle which is evacuated and sealed before it is placed in the wall or door panel of the refrigerator or freezer. It is, however, time consuming to continue with the evacuation procedure as long as is desirable, which means that the procedure is not particularly well suited for mass production. There is also a risk that leakage occurs in the diffusion-tight layer during the lifetime of the refrigerator, which is about 15 to 20 years, which means that the contribution which the vacuum gives to the insulating capability disappears.
In order to create a vacuum for this type of equipment, conventional vacuum pumps are used. For instance DE 157471 describes a one step evacuation pump having a piston reciprocating in a cylinder, the cylinder and piston being provided with a check valve system by means of which the air is evacuated through an oil reservoir to the atmosphere, whereas the oil is partly returned to the lower part of the pump where it is used to eliminate dead space. However, this type of vacuum pump is expensive, large, comparatively power demanding and cannot be used to evacuate water vapor or to continue the evacuation procedure to a particularly great extent.

Two-stage compression vacuum pump having valved piston and power limiting valve

Electrolux Research & Innovation Aktiebolag


The present invention provides a method for producing an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin composition, said method comprising: a) introducing into an extruder an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin having a water content of at least 0.5 weight % and an additional component; b) kneading the resin and the additional component whereby to form an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin composition; and c) discharging said resin composition from the extruder; wherein said method further comprises feeding water in a liquid state to the extruder and/or removing water in a liquid state from the extruder. Thereby, strand-breakage or cutting errors are suppressed and thus, molded products such as pellets can be provided with a stable shape.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for producing an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (hereinafter abbreviated as xe2x80x9cEVOHxe2x80x9d) resin composition.
2. Description of the Related Art
EVOH has a high gas barrier property and excellent oil resistance, aroma retention property, transparency, and the like. Due to these properties, EVOH is formed into films, sheets, bottles etc. and widely used for food packaging and the like.
Conventionally, various properties of EVOH have been improved by blending it with various other components. It has also been proposed that the EVOH and various components be melt-kneaded in an extruder. Although typically EVOH in a dry state is introduced into an extruder, JP05 (1993)-9334A discloses a method of using water-containing EVOH. In JP05 (1993)-9334A, EVOH pellets having a water content ranging from 20 wt % to 60 wt % and raw starch (corn starch with a water content of 12 wt %) are introduced into a Henschel mixer and mixed. The mixture is fed to a twin-screw extruder with a vent-port to be kneaded at a temperature of 120xc2x0 C., and melt-extruded in a strand form. The strand-like coagulate is pelletized by means of a pelletizer. However, when such a mixture containing the above-mentioned amount of water is melt-kneaded using a twin-screw extruder having no dewatering portion, free water is readily generated and as a result, the strands break immediately after being discharged from the extruder. This breakage makes it difficult to provide pellets having a stable shape. When the pellet shape is unstable, several problems may occur, for example, powder may be generated during transportation of the pellets thus causing thermal deterioration, or the powder may block in a hopper when the pellets are fed into a molding machine, resulting in surging.
The method of producing an EVOH resin composition according to the present invention comprises: introducing an EVOH resin having a water content of at least 0.5 wt %, preferably 0.5 wt % to 70 wt % (componentA) and an additional component (component B) into an extruder; kneading the components A and B while adjusting the water content of the resin composition in the extruder by feeding water to and/or removing water from the extruder; and discharging the resulting EVOH resin composition. Here, water is fed and removed as a liquid. Unless otherwise stated, the term xe2x80x98waterxe2x80x99 is used here to indicate liquid water and not water in non-liquid state such as water vapor.
The present invention provides an EVOH resin composition having a stable shape since the water content is adjusted before the composition is discharged by feeding water to and/or removing water from the extruder so as to suppress strand-breakage or the like.

Method for producing ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer resin composition


A process for the froth flotation beneficiation and separation of molybdenite from copper mining by-product is disclosed.

This invention relates to the froth flotation of ores and in particular to the froth flotation of molybdenum containing ores.
Froth flotation procedures for the recovery of desired minerals from ores containing the same have been employed for many years. Froth flotation operates to separate finely ground valuable minerals from their associated gangue. In general, the frothing process is carried out by introducing air into a pulp of finely divided ore in water containing a frothing or foaming agent whereby a froth is formed. The minerals with a specific affinity for air bubbles rise to the surface in the froth and are thus separated from the gangue wetted by water.
Typically, the flotation process consists of crushing the mineral containing ore; contacting the resulting finely ground mixtures of particles of mineral and gangue with flotation agents, frothing agents and other additives; contacting the treated mineral particles with air bubbles to buoy or lift the mineral to the surface and recovering the desired metal from the resulting froth.
Froth flotation is the principal means of concentrating copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphate, zinc, potash ores and numerous other minerals. In the case of recovering molybdenum, upon which the present invention is particularly focused, it is well known that a significant portion of the world supply of molybdenum is recovered as a by-product of copper mining, namely molybdenite, MoS.sub.2. Copper mining operations produce, as a by-product, a concentrate containing copper and molybdenum (as molybdenite) and typically the molybdenite is separated from the copper by froth flotation as generally described hereinbefore.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,347,126 and 4,347,127 disclose apparatus and methods for the froth flotation of coal and other particulate mineral matter. In accordance with the method of froth flotation disclosed in said U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,347,126 and 4,347,127, an input slurry of particulate matter is sprayed under pressure through a spray nozzle into a flotation cell so that the particulate matter is dispersed through an aeration zone into the liquid surface in the cell to create a froth on the liquid surface in which a quantity of the desired particulate matter is floating.
It has now been found that utilization of the teachings of said U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,347,126 and 4,347,127 to recover and beneficiate molybdenite from bulk molybdenite concentrate containing impurities including copper, results in a significant improvement over conventional flotation procedures used for recovering molybdenite.


In a distributed processing system having a plurality of interconnected subsystems of equal level, each subsystem operates to diagnose faults in other subsystems and protects its own subsystem based on the diagnosis of the faults of the other subsystems. The subsystems may be network control processors connected to common signal transmission lines, each of which carries major and minor loop check messages used to detect the faults in the other network control processors and constitutes a bypass route to protect its own unit when the fault occurs. If a transient fault occurs in the systems, an indication of the degree of the transient fault is stored and a possibility that the transient fault will change to a permanent fault is determined based on a time variation of the degree of the fault. If it is determined that the transient fault will change to a permanent fault, it is indicated to a man-machine system. In this manner, a loop transmission system which can be readily prediction-diagnosed for a fault is provided. In a second embodiment, means for calculating a feedback rate of a signal sent out to the transmission line and means for calculating the degree of fault on the transmission line based on the feedback rate calculated by the calculation means are provided.

The present invention relates to a distributed processing system, and more particularly to a distributed processing system which includes mutually related subsystems and in which a fault in one subsystem may adversely affect other subsystems and in which a system-down condition is prevented and the degree or magnitude of the failure is diagnosed so as to improve system reliability.
FIG. 1 shows a comparing table for fault detection and diagnostics and recovery processing based on the result of diagnostic operations in a previously proposed distributed processing system and a recovery processing scheme according to the present invention. The ordinate in FIG. 1 represents an object item to be detected and diagnosed, and abscissa represents the object in need of recovery as a result of the detection and diagnosis.
In FIG. 1, an apparatus which detects a fault in its own subsystem and recovers from the fault in its own subsystem or faults in another subsystem based on the detection of the fault is called a self-diagnostic tester. In a self-diagnostic tester, each subsystem is configured on the presumption that "another subsystem perfectly detects and diagnoses all faults and recovers the faults based on the result of the diagnosis". Accordingly, if a subsystem fails to detect, diagnose or recover from the fault or makes a mistake, the other subsystems are influenced and a system-down condition is caused. An apparatus which detects and diagnoses a fault in another subsystem and recovers from the fault in the other subsystem based on the result of the diagnosis is called a centralized tester. A failure or a mistake in the detection, diagnosis or recovery in a centralized tester also directly affects other subsystems and causes the system-down condition.
In accordance with the present invention, on the other hand, an autonomous tester detects and diagnoses faults in other subsystems and protects its own subsystem from the faults of the other subsystems based on the result of the diagnosis. The functions of these three types of testers are illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3.
A self-diagnostic tester includes the two types shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. A tester in a subsystem 1 controls a fault recovery processing operation 21 in its own subsystem 1 or fault recovery processing operation 22 or 22' in other subsystems 2 or 3 based on the detection and diagnosis 11 or 12 of a fault in its own subsystem. If fault recovery processing operation is not correctly effected (symbol x in FIGS. 3A and 3B), the other subsystems 2 and 3 are affected (31, 32 or 32') and faults are caused therein.
In a centralized tester (FIG. 2D), the tester in the subsystem 1 detects and diagnoses (14, 14') faults in the other subsystems 2 and 3 and controls fault recovery processing operations 24 and 24' in the subsystems 2 and 3 based on the diagnosis. Accordingly, a fault in the subsystem 1 directly affects (34, 34') the other subsystems 2 and 3.
On the other hand, in an autonomous tester (FIG. 2C), the tester in the subsystem 1 detects and diagnoses (13, 13') faults in other subsystems 2 and 3 and controls a fault recovery processing operations 23 to protect its own subsystem from being affected by faults in other subsystems based on the diagnosis. Accordingly, a failure or a mistake in the detection, diagnosis or recovery processing operation for a fault in the subsystem 1 does not affect the other subsystems 2 and 3.
In the prior art distributed processing system, particularly in a system having a plurality of processors coupled through transmission lines, when a transient fault occurs, there is no means to determine whether it is indeed only a temporary fault or whether it is highly probable that the fault will become permanent.

Fault diagnostic distributed processing method and system


A magnetic fluid treatment device is provided in which elongated cup shaped members are aligned to form a tube about a fluid conducting conduit. Interposed between the conduit and the elongated cup shaped member are a plurality of magnets which are arranged in diametrically opposed pairs within the tube. According to one embodiment of the invention, the cup shaped members are secured about the fluid conducting conduit by interconnecting longitudinally extending flanges. According to another embodiment of the invention, the elongated cup shaped members are received within a housing having end caps closing the ends thereof about the fluid conducting conduit. Each end of the conduit is provided with an adapter or appropriate connector to then be received within a conduit carrying the fluid to be treated.

The science of affecting fluids by submitting them to magnetic fields has been recognized and used for many years. The phenomenon is known as magnetohydrodynamics. It is based on the observations of Michael Faraday and explained as the electromotive forces generated by passing conductive materials between the poles of magnets. A generator is a common application of this effect. The Lorentz principal states that ions are separated by a charge when passed between the poles of a magnet, further demonstrating the effects of treating fluids with magnetic fields. There are most likely additional discoveries to be made in the application of magnetic forces to a flowing fluid. Volumes of additional information are available and need not be discussed here.
The hydrogen atom is known to be highly susceptible to the influences of magnetic fields. An application of this principal is the processing proton magnetometer that is used to measure the total magnetic intensity of a sample of hydrocarbon fluid or water. Another application of this well know science is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Even though the purpose of both of these concepts is to measure the energy released by the spinning protons after they are aligned by a magnetic field and subsequently disturbed either by the earth's magnetic field or a radio frequency beamed at the sample, they serve to illustrate the scientifically accepted phenomenon of realigning spinning protons with magnetic force. Additionally, such concepts illustrate that energy is released when the spinning protons are so affected.
Spinning protons in fluids including water, alcohol, gasoline, kerosene, and many others act as spinning magnetic dipoles. Under normal circumstances, these protons spin randomly inside their respective atoms. The dipoles are temporarily polarized and aligned by the influence of a magnetic field. Magnets may be employed to create consistent powerful magnetic fields that cause the protons to align and spin in uniform directions. This alignment and subsequent concentration of energy in uniform directions causes an attraction between the hydrocarbon fuel molecule and the oxygen molecule. When used with fuels, the result is increased efficiency by combining more fuel molecules with more oxygen molecules. Hydrocarbon emission tests have been conducted on many vehicles to confirm these facts. Consistently, hydrocarbon emissions have been reduced.
The invention presented herein can be used on all types of equipment that use fuel. Common applications include, but are not limited to, automobiles, trucks, buses, boats, motorcycles, heaters, furnaces, torches, and the like. When used in association with the flow of crude oil in a conduit, the magnetic fluid treatment device also serves to prevent the formation of paraffin and gypsum and other unwanted materials upon the conduit walls. Additional utilization of the invention is to reduce hydrocarbon emissions and increase the efficiency of internal combustion engines and other equipment that uses any type of hydrocarbon based fuel. When used in an agricultural applications, the invention, by increasing the solubility of water, and other phenomenon will enhance plant growth by increasing the amount of water and nutrients the root structure of plants are able to absorb. When used in a waste water treatment application, the invention has proven to enhance the efficiency of waste water treatment facilities by increasing the biological activity of the system. Properly designated magnetic fluid treatment units are recognized with well documented results to increase the efficiency of ion exchange water softener systems thereby reducing the amount of salt needed to regenerate these systems and consequently reducing the volume of toxic salt water brine introduced to the environment. It is further accepted that a properly designated and installed magnetic field will enhance many chemical reactions thereby reducing the amount of chemicals needed to accomplish many tasks such as using chlorine in swimming pools and spas. The application of the magnetic units may also increase the efficiency of natural gas utilization equipment. Many other applications for magnetic fluid treatment currently exist and new ones are being discovered with regularity. The key ingredient appears to be the presence of the hydrogen atom in fluids that are treated with magnetic fields, although there may be other key factors also.
The phenomenon of altering the spin of protons is likewise the reason that a magnetic field will affect the scaling effect that hard water has on conduits and other equipment using water. A similar configuration of magnets has proven to eliminate or reduce the scaling effect of hard water and the corrosive effect of acid water.
Accordingly, it has become well known to employ magnetic fluid treatment devices in fluid conduits to treat the fluid to achieve the benefits mentioned above. However, prior art magnetic fluid treatment devices are typically inefficient in generating a strong magnetic curtain in the fluid flow path and are frequently limited in the sizes of conduit they can treat. Additionally, existing designs require manufacturing techniques that result in high cost due to needing completely different components for each size of conduit. The effectiveness of the magnetic field is, of course, dependent upon the strength of the magnetic field and that strength is also known to be inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the magnetic source. The prior art has been generally ineffective in optimizing the magnetic field strength that may be obtained from a permanent magnet array, and has further been ineffective in treating large systems employing conduits of significant cross sectional diameter in which large volumes of fluid pass. The prior art has further not provided magnetic fluid treatment devices which are modularized to accommodate various fluid flow systems and to allow the magnetic treatment of the same to be tailored to a particular system. Additionally, the prior art has typically not proposed magnetic fluid treatment devices which may be either intrusive for implementation with new fluid flow systems, or non-intrusive to be easily added to existing fluid flow systems.


A power control and management method for servers connected to an uninterruptible power system (UPS) comprises: detecting current power supply statuses of the UPS and the servers; detecting instantaneous status data of the UPS and the servers to generate a server power control and management table; and according to the server power control and management table, determining an activation time of the UPS and a shutdown sequence of the servers.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a power control and management method, and particularly to a power control and management method implemented with an uninterruptible power system (UPS) and a number of servers connected to the UPS.
2. Related Art
To prevent either accidental power interruptions or abnormal levels of power supply, a UPS is usually required for server computers. Generally, a UPS can be divided into an off-line type UPS and an online type UPS. The off-line type UPS usually is cheaper to produce. When the AC power is normally supplied, it is directly delivered to the computer. When there is a power failure, the UPS immediately switches to an internal DC battery that, via a converter, provides AC power to the computer. Because it is activated only when there is power failure, this type of UPS is also called a standby UPS. When there is power failure, the off-line UPS switches from the domestic power source to the internal battery, which usually causes a short interruption at the switch transition time. However, because the capacitors in the switching power supply of the computer system provides sufficient power during the short power interruption, the computer system is not affected during short UPS switch transitions. However, as the power output increases, it becomes increasingly difficult to perform short and stable switch transitions. Therefore, the off-line UPS conventionally has a lower power output. Further, because the off-line UPS is not activated when the domestic power source is generally normal, the computer system is not protected against very sudden abnormal power surges.
In the conventional online UPS, the normal domestic power supply first passes through a charging circuit of the UPS to both deliver power to the computer system and at the same time charge the UPS. When there is power failure, the internal battery provides the required power, and there is no switching event. Therefore, the online UPS does not have the disadvantages of power interruptions, due to switching transitions. Further, because the domestic power first passes through the charging and stabilizing circuit of the UPS, power spikes, surges or other undesired parasitic effects can be filtered out, which allows a more stable operation of the computer system. The online UPS conventionally is more expensive to manufacture, because there is a higher standard requirement for its components.
In addition to provide necessary power to the computer, the UPS can be also connected via a RS232 cable to the computer COM port so as to enable, for example, a UPS management program of the operating system Windows NT to communicate with the UPS. Via this interface, the UPS management program can access to information such as the UPS current power voltage, electric current, frequency, temperature, load capacity, etc. The UPS management program can be also operable to set the UPS to timely switch off or switch on the computer. For example, when an abnormal event occurs, such as a power failure or insufficient battery power, the UPS can consequently inform Windows NT so that the operating system can timely conduct adequate actions. For example, if there is power failure, the operating system can switch off the computer; before the UPS battery is completely empty, a signal can be sent to Windows NT so that the UPS management program can set the execution of a specific program before the computer shutdown and outputs a signal commanding the UPS shutdown after the computer is shut down.
Various disadvantages can be observed in the conventional UPS implementation. When a single UPS is used to supply a number of load systems, a proper power allocation cannot be obtained due to overload of the UPS internal battery. Therefore, each of the load systems usually cannot complete its work and switch off in optimal conditions. In addition, the traditional UPS implementation does not enable a central management of the power use of the load systems and neither allows for an optimal use of the UPS battery power.
Therefore, there is a need for a power control and management method for managing the UPS battery power, alerting the user of the remaining time the UPS battery can sustain, and the service life of the UPS battery. In particular, there is a need for a method that can conduct an optimal power allocation according to the work amount and the priority of the load systems.

Power control and management method for uninterruptible power system and servers


A method of forming a bottom electrode for MRAM comprises: depositing a conductive material into a trench in a substrate and planarizing; depositing a selective cap on the conductive material; depositing a layer of high stress material on upper surfaces of the substrate and the cap; patterning the high stress material to remove the layer of high stress material on the upper surfaces of the substrate and leaving the layer of high stress material on the upper surfaces of the cap; depositing a layer of dielectric material on the upper surfaces of the substrate and on upper surfaces of the high stress material on the cap; planarizing the layer of dielectric material; and forming a magnetic tunnel junction stack on the dielectric material over the conductive material.

The exemplary embodiments described herein relate generally to semiconductor devices and methods of forming such devices and, more specifically, to semiconductor devices comprising magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) structures and methods for the formation thereof.
Magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) is a non-volatile random access memory technology in which data is stored using magnetic storage elements. The elements are formed as a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ), which is a cell formed by the arrangement of two ferromagnetic layers, each of which can hold a magnetization, separated by a thin insulating layer that forms a tunnel barrier. One of the ferromagnetic layers may be a permanent magnet of a particular polarity, whereas the magnetization of the other layer may be a writable layer that is matched to that of an external field to store data. Generally, for two layers having the same magnetization alignment (for example, arranged in parallel), the resistance state is low and is assigned a value of "1." If the two layers have magnetizations that are in anti-parallel alignment, the resistance state will be considered to be high and will be assigned a value of "0." A plurality of such cells arranged in grid form forms a memory device.
Methodologies for the formation of MRAM structures in the prior art involve the use of an etching process to form self-aligning bottom electrodes which are used to connect an MRAM structure to an access transistor. MRAM formation processes are carried out in which copper is deposited in an MRAM area of a substrate, the copper is then recessed, the recessed areas are filled with tantalum nitride (TaN) or titanium nitride (TiN), and the MRAM area is subsequently subjected to a chemical mechanical polish (CMP) to planarize the surface. However, during planarization, the TaN or TiN often delaminates from the copper. Additionally, during physical ion mill etching processes in which tapered profiles of the magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) pillars are corrected, shorting across the magnetic tunnel junction and damage to dielectric material around the MTJ pillars may occur.

Method and structure for forming MRAM device

International Business Machines Corporation


Provided are a lubricating oil composition used in a diesel engine equipped with a forced-induction compressor, containing a base oil (A) containing a poly-α-olefin (A1), and a viscosity index improver (B) having an SSI (shear stability index) of 20 or less, having a distillation amount of a light fraction of 496° C. or less in a gas chromatography distillation test of less than 80% by volume, having a high retention of the effect of suppressing the formation of deposits that may occur inside the compressor, and being capable of retaining a high efficiency of the compressor for a long period of time, in the use thereof in a diesel engine equipped with a forced-induction compressor having an outlet temperature of the compressor becoming a high temperature reaching 190° C. or more, and a method for using the lubricating oil composition.

In recent years, internal-combustion engines are being demanded to address various issues including the fuel consumption regulation, the waste gas regulation, and the like, and the improvement of forced-induction compressors for addressing the demands has been widely performed.
For example, for addressing the waste gas regulation, development is being performed for a forced-induction compressor equipped with an EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system in which a part of an exhaust gas is again breathed and circulated.
In the forced-induction compressor equipped with the EGR system, the increase of the boost pressure increases the outlet temperature of the compressor, and deposits derived from the engine oil tend to build up inside the compressor.
The presence of the deposits formed inside the compressor may problematically be a factor decreasing the efficiency of the forced-induction compressor.
Under the circumstances, various investigations have been made for an engine oil capable of suppressing the formation of deposits inside the compressor of the forced-induction system.
For example, PTL 1 describes, for providing a lubricating oil composition having an enhanced capability of suppressing the deposits that may build up inside the compressor, a lubricating oil composition containing a fraction having a boiling point of 500 to 550° C. in an amount of 14% by mass or more and a fraction having a boiling point exceeding 550° C. in an amount of 5% by mass or more.

Lubricating oil composition and use method therefor


There are provided a method and apparatus for block-based error concealment. The apparatus includes an error concealment module for concealing a current block in a lost picture of a video sequence by projecting positions of at least one block in a correctly received picture of the video sequence to a position of the current block in the lost picture using motion vectors of the at least one block in the correctly received picture so as to obtain a resultant projection, and selecting one of the at least one block in the correctly received picture based upon an amount of overlap in the resultant projection. The current block in the lost picture is then concealed using a motion vector of the selected one of the at least one block in the correctly received picture.

Compressed video content is often subject to channel impairment during transmission. In some applications, corrupted video bitstreams may reach the video decoder. When this happens, the quality of delivered video can degrade severely if no proper action is taken. Error concealment is a technique often used by the video decoder in this case. Error concealment recovers the lost or damaged video information by utilizing the remaining redundancy inside a compressed bitstream.
Slice loss error concealment has been considered and implemented in the prior art. However, at least one slice has to be received for each lost frame in order to apply the error concealment. Therefore, it is not applicable when a video frame is lost entirely. However, in many applications, especially those operating at low bit-rates, such as 3G wireless networks, a coded frame is often encapsulated into a transmit unit. When such a transmit unit is lost during transmission, a corresponding frame is lost. Slice loss error concealment fails in these applications.
There are some existing simple error concealment algorithms that can handle entire frame losses. For example, one technique is "Frame Copy" (FC), which is a scheme that simply performs pixel-by-pixel copy from a given reference frame to reconstruct a lost frame. Frame Copy is effective for stationary video sequences which have little motion. However, for those video sequences which possess active motion, Frame Copy often produces low PSNR values as well as noticeable error propagation.
"Motion Copy" (MC) is another simple error concealment which can conceal a lost frame. Motion Copy copies the motion field of a given reference frame to a lost frame and then performs motion compensation to reconstruct the lost frame. Motion Copy is effective for video sequences which possess homogeneous motion fields, such as those occurring in camera panning. However, Motion Copy can generate concealment artifacts when there is abundant chaotic motion in a video sequence.
Some more sophisticated error concealment algorithms have been proposed to conceal a lost frame. These error concealment algorithms can be generally divided into block-level and pixel-level algorithms. One such pixel-level error concealment algorithm extrapolates the motion vectors (MVs) at each pixel from the last received frame. Then, for each pixel in the current missing frame, the error concealment algorithm estimates its MV by either averaging the MVs of all overlapping macroblock (MBs) or duplicating it from the MV of the same location in the previous frame.
In another such pixel-level error concealment algorithm, motion estimation based on optical flow was proposed. Estimated motion vectors (MVs) are projected onto a missing frame after spatial regularization to avoid excessive discontinuities. Unfilled pixels in the lost frame are then interpolated spatially.
All of the above algorithms operate at pixel-level, which estimate the MV for each pixel and then perform motion compensation. These algorithms generally require changing existing data structures and adding function modules to the existing video decoding diagram. Furthermore, these algorithms require a substantial amount of additional computation. In contrast, there are algorithms that operate at block-level, which estimate the MV for each block. Block-level error concealment algorithms generally require much less complexity or overhead.
In one such block-level error concealment algorithm, for each 16×16 or 4×4 block, the consistency of the MVs falling inside is checked by computing the first and second order moments. However, the block-level error concealment algorithm does not provide a solution for those blocks that fail the check, which compromises performance.

Method and apparatus for motion projection error concealment in block-based video


An assistant combustion agent for use in a high-frequency combustion furnace is characterized by a blending together of tungsten powder and tin powder. The blended mixture is then molded into a form and a plurality of the molded forms are added to a sample in the furnace. The ratio of tungsten powder to tin powder is between about 80:20 to 60:40.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an assistant combustion agent used in a high-frequency combustion furnace for elemental analysis of carbon, sulfur or the like which are contained in a steel and iron sample, and a nonferrous metal sample.
2. Description of Related Art
A prior method of elemental analysis with a high-frequency combustion furnace has utilized a crucible made of ceramics housing a weighed amount of a steel and iron sample and a nonferrous metal sample. The samples are then heated by passing a high-frequency current through the samples and blowing oxygen gas at the same time to burn the samples. Subsequently, the combustion gas which is formed is transported by a carrier gas into an analyzer where the combustion gas is analyzed.
However, in the above described combustion, the samples cannot provide a sufficiently high combustion temperature (1,600.degree. to 1,800.degree. C.) and so carbon and sulfur are insufficiently extracted. Thus, in general, tungsten and tin have been used as an assistant combustion agent.
But, even the above described method using an assistant combustion agent has exhibited disadvantages. Tungsten is advantageous in that a specific resistance heat generated by the high-frequency current and a combustion heat are increased to promote an oxidation process. However, tungsten cannot cover all the sample where the sample is formed in a block-like shape or where the weight of the sample is relatively large. As a result, only portions of the sample brought into contact with tungsten are heated until high temperatures to burn out, whereby producing metallic films A, A and cavities B, B, as disclosed in FIG. 4, and the supply of the oxygen gas to these cavities B, B becomes insufficient to make the extraction of carbon and sulfur complete.
On the other hand, tin has exhibited a basic advantage in that a melting point and viscosity of the sample are reduced to satisfactorily bring the oxygen gas into contact all over the sample, whereby a satisfactory extraction can be achieved. However, a disadvantage has occurred in that tin cannot effect the generation of heat as does tungsten, whereby the analysis becomes difficult.
Accordingly, in order to satisfactorily burn the sample and carry out the complete extraction even in the case where the sample is formed in a block-like shape, or in the case where the weight of the sample is relatively large, a mixture comprising tungsten and tin at an appointed ratio has been used as an assistant combustion agent.
In the preparation of the mixture comprising tungsten and tin, those two elements have been separately weighed in the crucible and their mixture has been used as the assistant combustion agent. The assistant combustion agent has been put in the crucible together with the sample. However, the mixture has been inferior in uniformity, and the mixing process has taken much time, whereby the efficiency of the analytical operation itself is lowered.
To overcome at least some of the above problems, tungsten has been coated with tin or tin coated with tungsten to integrate tungsten with tin, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Sho 59-191671 and applied for by Horiba, Ltd. That method seeks to make the time required for mixing tungsten with tin in the analytical operation unnecessary and to carry out the analytical operation efficiently.
However, since tin is coated on a circumference of tungsten by immersing granular tungsten (having a particle diameter of, for example, 1.0 mm) in molten tin, when tungsten is integrated with tin by coating, a disadvantage has occurred in that a mixing ratio of tungsten and tin in the assistant combustion agent is apt to fluctuate.

Assistant combustion agent for use in high-frequency combustion furnace


An ozone containing gas is injected into a portion of top soil that was previously oversaturated with water, to stimulate the propagation and growth of living organisms. The injected ozone oxidizes at least one molecule (also called "parent molecule") in the top soil to create at least one byproduct that is smaller than the parent molecule. The small size of such byproducts allows the byproducts to cause the growth of living organisms (such as plants including fungi and tomatoes). The byproducts can be used to grow a fungi (such as Trichoderma, spp.) that is (1) parasitic to detrimental fungi such as fusarium or is (2) a stimulant for chlorophyll-bearing plants, or is both. The byproducts can also be used to directly grow the chlorophyll-bearing plants. An ozone containing gas can be injected via a soil injector connected to an ozone supplier that is either stationary or is moved over a field, e.g. by a vehicle. Alternatively, top soil in a field can be injected with gaseous ozone by an arrangement of conduits, or can be transferred to a chamber for in-vitro treatment. The ozone containing gas can include carbon dioxide that competes with ozone for interaction with the soil molecules and thereby preserves ozone.

In the agricultural industry, weeds, insects, nematodes, bacteria and other single celled or multi-celled living organisms in the top soil of a field, are killed immediately prior to growing crops, for example by application of methyl bromide. Methyl bromide destroys living cells once transported across the cell walls. However, methyl bromide is being phased out of agricultural use due to deleterious effect on the ozone layer of earth and due to a hazard to human health.
Ozone dissolved in aqueous solutions (also called "aqueous ozone") is used for inhibition or reduction of biological life forms such as molds, fungi, bacteria, algae, in numerous applications including swimming pools, potable water, bottled water, aquaria, fish hatcheries, and cooling towers. However, application of aqueous ozone to soil is not expected to be effective to kill living organisms because aqueous ozone has the drawback of slow dispersion of water into and through the soil of a field. Also, aqueous ozone suffers from rapid breakdown of ozone, so that maintaining sufficiently high concentrations of ozone in the water in soil can be difficult. Aqueous ozone has a half life on the order of minutes in ambient conditions.
Moreover, according to traditional thinking, if gaseous ozone were used for soil treatment, ozone would quickly dissolve in the entrapped soil moisture and rapidly break down. Furthermore, conventional thinking suggests that dispersion of gaseous ozone would be inhibited by the compacted, compressed nature of soil in a field or that untoward emissions of ozone gas would escape from a field into the atmosphere and so minimize ozone's effectiveness. Traditional thinking also indicated that the sometimes high concentration of naturally occurring organic compounds in soil close to the surface of a field can consume large amounts of ozone and so result in insufficient exposure of living organisms to ozone.
To "increase the stability of the ozone in the soil environment," prior art teaches that an "ozone containing gas is treated with acid" (see abstract of U.S. Pat. No. 5,269,943 to Wickramanayake). Regarding untreated ozone, Wickramanayake states that "long-term treatment of soils to remove contaminants with untreated ozone is not feasible since ozone decomposes too rapidly" (column 6, lines 31-33), and that "ozone that was not acidified was not expected to be useful especially for the treatment of larger quantities of soils" (column 8, lines 25-27).
Wickramanayake also states that his "treatment results in degradation of the organic compounds to less hazardous compound or compounds that are more readily biodegradable than the parent compound" (column 1, lines 14-17). Wickramanayake further states that "[a]fter the decontamination process, if the soil is found to be too acidic, the pH may be increased to the required level by applying unacidified gas ozone mixture for some time" (column 9, lines 65-68).
However, for "field applications," Wickramanayake requires "injecting of a stabilized gas-ozone mixture . . . into one or more injection wells in the contaminated areas. The distribution of the well bank is to be determined by the effective ozonation zone in the subsurface" (column 9, lines 45-50). In contrast, U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,627 describes the "agricultural use of ozone (O.sub.3) to sanitize, i.e. kill or weaken living organisms in top soil suitable for plant growth purposes" (column 2, lines 31-34). See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,635.

Method for treatment of top soil of a field with ozone gas to increase growth of plants


The present invention relates to an adjustable drinking cup that limits the risk of aspiration by retaining a neutral neck position or by permitting a patient to tuck their chin while drinking. The adjustable drinking cup has a continuous wall formed by an exterior and interior surface that extends between a top and bottom end. The continuous wall forms a top and bottom opening. A plunger is received within the bottom opening. During use the patient fills the adjustable drinking cup with a liquid and after a predetermined amount of liquid is consumed the plunger is pressed upwards to raise the liquid to a predetermined position near the top opening. This is repeated each time a predetermined amount of liquid is consumed.

This invention is directed toward drinking cups used in a patient care setting. More specifically, and without limitation, this invention relates to an adjustable drinking cup.
Drinking cups are well known in the art. In the health care field, aspiration, or the inhalation of liquid or material into the lungs, is a major concern, as it can lead to lung infection or what is more commonly referred to as pneumonia. The risk for aspiration increases the greater a patient extends their neck while drinking. The increased risk is the result of permitting the fluid to act under the influence of gravity thereby entering the trachea instead of the esophagus. The risk of aspiration is heightened further in cases involving patients who have recently suffered from a stroke. As such, care givers strive for drinking cups that permit the patient to retain their neck in a neutral position where the chin is not raised, or if possible, a position where the chin is tucked to further prevent aspiration.
Another related issue pertains to patients who cannot cope with quickly flowing fluids that come from the bottom of a cup. In this circumstance, the patient raises their cup to drink the remaining portion of their drink, but the drink travels from the bottom of their cup at a sharp slope to their mouth at a high velocity, and results in aspiration. This is especially problematic when a caregiver attempts to pour the liquid into a patient's mouth.
Yet another issue related to drinking cups concerns patients with limited range of arm motion. These patients encounter issues consuming all of the liquids they are provided as part of their diets. This is caused by an inability to sufficiently raise their cup to empty the contents into their mouths. As a result, these patients go without sufficient hydration or must repeatedly refill their cups, which ultimately leads to waste as a portion of their drink is never consumed.
Given these problems in the field, a number of advancements have been made. One such advancement is what is referred to as the nosey cup. The nosey cup has a portion of the cup cut out in order to accommodate the tip and bridge of the patient's nose. In other iterations based on the same concept, the top of the cup slopes downward so that one side of the cup is substantially lower than the other. By making room for the patient's nose, the cup can be raised further up thereby allowing more liquid to be poured into the patient's mouth without the patient having to extend their neck backwards risking aspiration.
This design, however, has its deficiencies. The primary deficiency is it appears different from other cups, which causes a loss of dignity for the patient. Retaining a patient's dignity is an utmost concern for health care providers, hospitals, state health administrations, as well as the patients and, therefore, a tremendous amount of emphasis and commercial value is placed on designs that retain a patient's dignity.
Another deficiency to this advancement is its failure to address patients with limited arm mobility. If a patient has suffered a bone or muscle injury that limits their range of motion, they will not be able to raise the nosey cup the extra distance provided by the space cut away for their nose.
One other solution to this problem is the use of straws. By inserting a straw into a cup, the patient can use suction to draw the liquid into their mouth without extending their neck. This is also useful for patients with limited mobility as the straw can extend to their mouth.
This design also suffers from deficiencies. In particular, a straw can be difficult to manipulate and get to a patient's mouth; especially if the patient has limited mobility or has suffered from a stroke. In attempting to manipulate the location of the straw and get it into their mouth, a great amount of dignity can be lost for a patient.
Straws in general also pose the problem of a patient accidentally drawing too much liquid too quickly into their mouth, which can lead to choking or aspiration. Also, straws have a narrow tubular design making them difficult to clean, which results in increased disposal which causes increased costs and waste.
To address this particular deficiency, sippy cups have been developed. These cups have lids that have a nozzle that is pointed in a single directed for the patient to use. Some sippy cups also have limited amounts of liquid that can be drawn up at a time to prevent choking and aspiration hazards.
As with the other advancements, these designs also have deficiencies. Many of the designs resemble children's cups and therefore severely diminish a patient's dignity. Further, the nozzles are often stubby which prevents patients with limited arm mobility from using the sippy cup unless the nozzle reaches their mouth. Additionally, like straws, sippy cups can also be difficult to clean, especially if there are mechanisms to restrict the amount of fluid that can be withdrawn from the cup.
Another solution is to place handles on the cup. Handles permit the use a greater grip on the cup, which can be beneficial if the patient's hand or arms have been injured, or if the patient has suffered a stroke. Handles can also extend the patient's range of motion.
A handled cup, however, fails to assist with the risk of aspiration as the patient will still extend their neck backwards to consume the contents at the bottom of the cup. Also, the handles in many cases can cause the cups to look odd, which diminishes the patient's dignity.
For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the specification, there is a need in the art for an adjustable drinking cup.
Thus, it is a primary objective of this invention to provide an adjustable drinking cup that improves upon the art.
Another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that is inconspicuous and retain patient dignity.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that is easy to use.
Another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that is easy to clean and reuse.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that reduces the risk of aspiration.
Another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that improves hydration for patients with limited range of arm mobility.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that is user friendly and has a limited number of parts.
Another objective of this invention is to provide an adjustable drinking cup that maximizes the amount of fluid that can be held in the cup.
These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the specification and claims.


A waterproof connector includes a housing on which an opening is formed, and in which terminals connected with electric wires are housed; a mat seal which is installed into the opening of the housing, and through which the wires are inserted; a mat seal holder which is engaged with the opening of the housing by an engagement structure to prevent the mat seal from dropping off from the housing, and through which the wires are inserted; and an engagement strengthening portion which is provided on one of the housing and the mat seal holder and configured to strengthen an engagement of the engagement structure. According to the waterproof connector, retention of the mat seal in the housing can be improved.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a waterproof connector.
2. Background Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,788 (filed based on a priority of Japanese Patent Application No. H7-228167 [publication No. H9-73948]) discloses one of prior art waterproof connectors. The waterproof connector disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,788 includes a housing, a mat seal, and a terminal holder (mat seal holder). An opening is formed on the housing, and terminals connected with electric wires are housed in the housing. The wires are inserted through the mat seal, and the mat seal is installed into the opening of the housing to seal the housing. The wires are also inserted through the terminal holder, and the terminal holder is fixed at the opening of the housing by an engagement structure (retaining pawls and retaining holes) to prevent the terminal holder from dropping off from the housing.
In the above-explained waterproof connector, the retaining pawls are provided on the terminal holder, and the retaining holes are provided on the housing. The terminal holder is inserted into the housing until the retaining pawls and the retaining holes are engaged with each other. Then, the mat seal is held by being surrounded with a cover plate of the terminal holder and a projected plate and a support projection of the housing. As a result, the housing is sealed by the mat seal.


Therapeutic treatment of malignant melanoma in humans is disclosed wherein a synergistically effective amount of DTIC in combination with IL-2 is administered to an individual having such cancer.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of medical treatment. More particularly, this invention is directed to a method for treating malignant melanoma using a combination of IL-2 and DTIC (dimethyl-triazeno-imidazolecarboxmide).
2. Description of Related Art
Melanoma in its advanced stages is an incurable disease. Seventy-five percent of skin cancer deaths in the United States are due to malignant melanoma (Cancer Manual, Sixth Edition, (1982), American Cancer Society, Boston, p. 104). Worldwide, the incidence has been rising sharply doubling, every decade over the past 30 years.
Surgery is the only curative therapy for melanoma in its early stages, although this modality, if used aggressively for local recurrence or metastatic disease to regional nodes, is associated with only a 20%-30% cure rate. The role of surgery in advanced diseases is palliative.
Melanoma is considered radioresistant and radiotherapy is used mostly for palliation. Hormonal therapy to date has been disappointing. Chemotherapy has resulted in some partial remissions with a single agent response rate for DTIC of 24% (Roth and Kirkwood (1987) Curr Top Oncology 9(5):2-11). This agent is considered the most effective single agent for the treatment of metastatic melanoma although visceral metastases involving the gastrointestinal tract, the liver, and the brain are relatively less responsive than soft tissue disease.
The hematologic and GI toxicities vary with the DTIC dose regimen used, but antitumor schedule dependency has not been observed. Although not widely studied in melanoma, five-day continuous infusions seem to be a rational compromise with the least acute toxicity and equivalent dose responses. Multidrug combination regimens when compared in randomized prospective trials have not shown statistically significantly better response rates than DTIC alone. (De Vita, V. T., Jr., et al, eds. (1985) CANCER, Principles & Practice of Oncology, 2nd ed., p. 1406).
Although the total spontaneous regression of melanoma has been reported on rare occasions, partial spontaneous regression is a regularly recognized phenomenon. This suggests that an immunologic event occurs with regularity in the disease. Pathologists frequently describe an intense mononuclear cell infiltrate beneath many melanomas suggestive of this immune response (Cancer Rates and Risks, 3rd Ed. (1985), NIH Pub. No. 85-691:99).
Earlier studies using immunotherapy in melanoma have been disappointing. Local immunotherapy with bacille Clamette-Guerin (BCG) showed greatest response in patients with small tumor burdens limited to the dermis. Visceral metastases did not respond and there was, at best, a minor effect on survival. However, much renewed interest in this modality of therapy has been aroused by the discovery of a wide range of immunomodulatory agents. Interferon is in clinical trials and has shown definite but limited efficacy to date (Creagan, E. T., et al (1986) Cancer Treatment Rep 70(5):619-624).
For successful specific immunotherapy, the existence of immunogenic tumor associated antigen is required. This is difficult in humans because many human cancers have low immunogenicity. Although there has been some success in preparing melanoma vaccine, some studies have shown that human melanomas only rarely stimulate autologous lymphocytes. The reasons for this lack of stimulatory activity are not well understood. Some investigators have shown a suppression of lymphocyte activity by tumor-derived factors (Roth, J. A., et al (1983) J Immunol 130:303-308).
IL-2, a lymphokine that is produced by normal peripheral blood lymphocytes and induces proliferation of antigen- or mitogen-stimulated T-cells after exposure to plant lectins, antigens, or other stimuli, was first described by Morgan, D. A., et al (1976) Science 193:1007-1008. In addition to its growth factor properties reported by Morgan et al, IL-2 has been found also to modulate a variety of functions of immune system cells in vitro and in vivo.
IL-2 was initially made by cultivating human peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) or other IL-2 producing cell lines. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,401,756. Recombinant DNA technology has provided an alternative to PBLs and cell lines for producing IL-2. Taniguchi, T., et al (1983) Nature 302:305-310 and Devos, R., (1983) Nucleic Acids Research 11:4307-4323 have reported cloning the human IL-2 gene and expressing it in microorganisms.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,518,584 describes muteins of IL-2 in which the cysteine normally occurring at position 125 of the wild-type or native molecule has been replaced with a neutral amino acid, such as serine. These muteins possess biological activity. U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,377 issued 5 Aug. 1986 discloses an IL-2 composition suitable for reconstituting in a pharmaceutically acceptable aqueous vehicle composed of oxidized microbially produced recombinant IL-2.
Various therapeutic applications of human IL-2 have been investigated and reported by S. Rosenberg and colleagues (see, for example, Mule, J. J., et al (1984) Science 225:1487-1489, Rosenberg, S., et al (1987) New England Journal of Medicine 316(15):889-897, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,690,915 issued 1 Sept. 1987).
Combination chemotherapy using two or more anticancer drugs to treat malignant tumors in humans is currently in use in research and in the clinic. However, the reported experience with many of these regimens is modest. Combination chemoimmunotherapy consisting of doxorubicin hydrochloride and recombinant IL-2-stimulated cytotoxic lymphocytes plus recombinant IL-2 (rIL-2) showed promising results in the treatment of murine renal carcinoma (Salup and Wiltrout (1986) Cancer Res 76(7):3358-3363).
In light of the seriousness of the disease and the paucity of effective therapeutic agents to treat malignant melanomas, there exists a need to develop a therapeutically effective protocol for treatment of such melanomas.

Combination therapy of IL-2 and DTIC for the treatment of melanoma


The invention relates to nanoparticulate preparations containing at least one mixed metal oxide in the form of supramagnetic, nanoscale particles, methods for heating such a preparation, and methods for producing and dissolving adhesive compounds of the basis of said preparations.

Preparations of particles with particle sizes in the nanometer range (nanoscale particles) are used in many branches of industry. This applies in particular to dispersions which contain particles with magnetic, ferroelectric or piezoelectric properties and which can be heated using magnetic, electrical or electromagnetic alternating fields. Such dispersions are used, for example, for the production of adhesives and sealants which cure under the effect of the heat induced by application of magnetic, electrical or electromagnetic alternating fields or where an existing adhesive bond is dissolved. In many branches of industry, particularly in the metal-processing industry, for example the aircraft industry, the motor industry, in the manufacture of utility vehicles and the associated supplier industries or even in the production of machines and domestic appliances and in the building industry, corresponding adhesives and sealants are being increasingly used to join identical or different, metallic and non-metallic substrates together by adhesion or sealing. This method of joining structural components is increasingly replacing conventional joining techniques, such as riveting, screwing or welding, because bonding/sealing offers a number of technological advantages, for example in regard to possible recycling of the components used.
DE-A 199 23 625 describes a process for the production of redispersible metal oxides or metal hydroxides with a volume-weighted mean crystallite size of 1 to 20 nm which are particularly suitable for so-called magnetic fluids (ferrofluids).
DE-A 199 24 138 describes adhesive compositions which contain nanoscale particles with ferromagnetic, ferrimagnetic, superparamagnetic or piezoelectric properties in the binder system and which are suitable for forming dissolvable adhesive bonds. The adhesive bonds can be heated by electromagnetic radiation to such high temperatures that easy dissolving (debonding) is possible.
WO 01/30932 describes a process for the adhesive separation of adhesive bonds. The adhesive bond comprises a heat-softenable thermoplastic adhesive layer or a heat-cleavable thermoset adhesive layer and a primer layer, the primary layer containing nanoscale particles which can be heated by electromagnetic alternating fields.
WO-A 01/28771 describes a microwave-curable composition containing particles capable of absorbing microwaves with a Curie temperature which is higher than the curing temperature of the composition. The particles capable of absorbing microwaves can be ferrites, for example.
EP-A-0 498 998 describes a process for the microwave heating of a polymer material to a predetermined temperature, the polymer material containing dispersed ferromagnetic particles with a Curie temperature which corresponds to the temperature to be reached by the microwave heating. The particle diameter of the ferromagnetic material is in the range from 1 to 100 nm; the Curie temperature is in the range from 50 to 700° C. The target heating temperature can be, for example, the curing or melting temperature of the polymer material or the temperature required to activate a cleavage reaction.
WO 01/14490 describes a process for bonding substrates with hotmelt adhesives which are used in combination with a microwave-activatable primer.
Unpublished German patent application P 100 37 883.8 describes a process for heating a substrate containing metallic, magnetic, ferrimagnetic, ferromagnetic, antiferromagnetic or superparamagnetic particles with a mean particle size of 1 to 5000 nm, the substrate being exposed to microwave radiation with a frequency of 1 to 300 GHz and, at the same time, to a d.c. magnetic field of which the field strength is at least twice as high as the strength of the earth's magnetic field.
The disadvantage of the nanoparticulate compositions mentioned above lies in the inadequate utilization of the energy introduced. Such systems generally have a high content of dispersed particles of which only a small proportion is capable of absorbing magnetic, electric or electromagnetic radiation of a certain applied frequency and hence contributes towards heating. Besides the high cost of the nanoscale particles used, which makes such compositions uneconomic, other disadvantages, for example in regard to the rheological properties of the systems and the properties of the bond (embrittlement tendency), are generally associated with a high content of dispersed particles.


A nail includes a shank with a head and a tip portion on two ends of the shank. Two guide flanges extend radially outward from the shank and a flexible and deformable sleeve is mounted to the shank and located between the two guide flanges. The nail penetrates an object and defines a hole which is defined by a periphery which cuts into the sleeve so that the nail is cannot be pulled out from the object.

A conventional nail 1 for staplers is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and generally includes a shank 11 with a head 10 at a first end of the shank 11 and a tip portion 13 at a second end of the shank 11. A plurality of engaging rings 12 are defined radially in a section of the shank 11. When the nail penetrates through an object 2, the tip portion 13 first penetrates the object 2 and the shank 11 an the engaging rings 12 are merged into the object 2 till the head 1 is completely engaged with the hole made by the penetration. The hole in the object includes an outward curve periphery 20 through which the nail 1 extends. It is noted that the outer diameter of the engaging rings 12 is the same as the diameter of the shank 11 so that the engaging rings 12 cannot firmly engage with the outward curve periphery 20 and the nail 1 can be easily pulled out from the object 2. Another conventional nail 1 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and the engaging rings in FIG. 1 are replaced with longitudinal grooves 120 in the shank 11. Again, the grooves 120 cannot prevent the nail from being pulled out from the object.
The present invention intends to provide a nail that includes flexible and deformable sleeve which is deformed and engaged by the periphery defining the hole in the object so that the nail can be well positioned and cannot be pulled out from the object easily.

Nail having flexible sleeve mounted thereto