At least defective printing element information about a defective printing element among a plurality of printing elements is stored in an EEPROM. A complementary printing element for masking printing data corresponding to the defective printing element indicated by the defective printing element information and complementarily printing the printing data corresponding to the defective printing element is determined. The printing data of the defective printing element is printed using the determined complementary printing element.

The present invention relates to a printing apparatus for performing printing using a printhead with a plurality of printing elements, a control method therefor, and a computer-readable memory.
Note that the present invention is applicable not only to a general printing apparatus but also to a copying machine, a facsimile apparatus having a communication system, a word processor having a printing unit, and an industrial printing apparatus combined with various processors.
Serial-scan printing apparatuses for printing data while scanning a printing medium with a printhead are applied to formation of various images. Particularly, inkjet printing apparatuses are rapidly being spread because of higher resolution, advanced color printing, and higher image quality in recent years.
Such a printing apparatus prints an image at a higher resolution by decreasing the ink discharge amount per dot while increasing the integration density of nozzles for discharging ink droplets. To realize an image quality equivalent to a silver halide photograph, various techniques have been developed such that printing is done simultaneously using four basic color inks (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black), and light inks prepared by decreasing the ink concentrations of these basic color inks. As the ink concentrations are related to image density, the ink concentrations will also be hereinafter referred to as ink densities. The printing speed, which may decrease for higher image quality, can be increased by increasing the number of printing elements and the driving frequency, and using a printing technique such as two-way printing of performing printing in reciprocal scans of a printhead.
In a printhead containing many printing elements, a defective printing element (to be also referred to as a defective channel hereinafter) is generated over time in accordance with the use frequency. As the number of printing elements aligned at a high integration density increases, the probability of generating defective printing elements in manufacturing a head also increases. If an integrated structure for a plurality of colors is adopted to prevent color misregistration and improve the operability, this probability further increases. Although most printing elements are nondefective, even one defective printing element degrades the image quality. Importantly, such a printhead cannot be used for the recently required application of printing photographic images.
There have already been proposed many methods in response, including various defective printing element detection methods, and recovery methods or printing methods corresponding to the detection results. Such methods in printing when a defective printing element exists are disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 5-309874, 61-123545, 11-988, 11-77986, and 10-258526.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-309874 discloses a method of setting the number of multipass printing operations in accordance with image data to be printed, the presence/absence of a defective printing element, and the type of image because image degradation by a defective printing element is reduced by multipass printing of printing an image while scanning a predetermined region of the image by a printhead a plurality of number of times.
However, even if the number of scan operations (passes) in multipass printing is increased, the influence of a defective printing element on an image stands out as a stripe on a high-quality photographic image, an application which has been in demand more and more in recent years. To obtain a higher image quality, the number of passes must be greatly increased. From the two points, the invention discloses in the above reference cannot be practically used.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-123545 discloses a method of printing image data of a defective channel by a nondefective channel mainly in 1-pass printing of a predetermined region of an image by one scanning of a printhead. When a carriage prints data to the right, normal printing is done. When the carriage moves to the left, a sheet is fed by an integral multiple of one pixel for the purpose of complementary printing of a pixel by a nondefective printing element which cannot be printed by a defective printing element. That is, a defective channel is complemented by a nondefective channel. This method completely complements image data, but assumes 1-pass printing. Thus, the method cannot cope with a color mode in which a high-quality photographic image is printed, which is an object of the present invention. The original printing method is 1-pass printing, but alternate printing is substantially 2-pass printing in which the throughput is low.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-77986 discloses a method of counting the use frequency of a complementary nozzle, and when the total use frequency reaches a predetermined value, sequentially switching complementary nozzles in consideration of the service life of each complementary nozzle on the complementary printing side. Similar to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-123545, this method assumes 1-pass printing and cannot cope with a color mode in which a high-quality photographic image is printed, which is an object of the present invention.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-988 discloses an arrangement in which n/m printing elements prepared by dividing n printing elements by m (the divisor of the number of nozzles) are set as first printing elements used for a normal printing scan. Other n(mxe2x88x921)/m printing elements are set as second printing elements not used for the normal printing scan, and the printing operation is effected using a second printing element as an alternate printing element only when a first printing element is defective. This arrangement basically assumes a multipass printing method of completing an image by repeating the printing scan and sheet feeding m times for a single image region. This method can complement an image without decreasing the throughput. However, this printing method (generally called interlaced printing) is one in which an image of one line in the carriage scan direction is completed by one printing scan with one printing element.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-258526 assumes multipass printing, similar to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-309874, and discloses a method of complementing omitted data of one nozzle by another nozzle. After a standard mask is obtained prior to printing, a defective nozzle is specified, and an alternate exchange nozzle is selected in accordance with the position of the defective nozzle. Printing data of the defective nozzle is erased from its mask, and added to the mask of the exchange nozzle. This method can print an image without decreasing the throughput, even in a color mode in which a high-quality photographic image is printed, which is an object of the present invention.
As printers are becoming more for personal use and smaller in size, cartridge-type printheads or ink tanks are becoming popular. Printhead or ink tanks are individually different in their manufacture or practical use. This occurs due to different driving methods of discharging proper amounts of ink droplets, or due to concerns about the remaining ink amount in an ink tank which has already been used by another main body. Information about the cartridge characteristics is effectively stored not in a printing apparatus, but in each printhead or ink tank. This is because a plurality of cartridges are mounted/dismounted on/from a plurality of main bodies. From this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-320732 discloses that an EEPROM is mounted on a board constituting a printhead, the EEPROM stores information about the characteristics of the printhead such as printhead driving conditions or density unevenness correction data, or information about the printing history such as the number of printed sheets or the number of discharge operations, and driving conditions and the like are updated in accordance with the information. In practice, many printing apparatuses employ this arrangement.
However, each conventional method in printing when a defective printing element exists suffers a problem such that either the complement is imperfect, the throughput decreases, or the complementary load concentrates on one nozzle. Even in the complementing method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-258526, which assumes multipass printing, the number of complementary candidates increases, but either the discharge load is double the normal discharge load or continuous driving is concentrated on one nozzle in actual printing. For this reason, this method is not the most preferable complementing method in terms of the service lives of the nozzle and printhead.
The present invention has been made to overcome the conventional drawbacks, and has as its object to provide a printing apparatus for realizing stable, efficient printing, a control method therefor, and a computer-readable memory.
A printing apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object has the following arrangement. A printing apparatus for performing printing using a printhead with a plurality of printing elements is characterized by comprising storage means for storing at least defective printing element information about a defective printing element among the plurality of printing elements, determination means for determining a complementary printing element for masking printing data corresponding to the defective printing element indicated by the defective printing element information and complementarily printing the printing data corresponding to the defective printing element, and printing means for printing the printing data of the defective printing element using the complementary printing element determined by the determination means.
A control method for a printing apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object has the following steps. A control method for a printing apparatus for performing printing using a printhead with a plurality of printing elements is characterized by comprising the determination step of referring to a storage medium which stores at least defective printing element information about a defective printing element among the plurality of printing elements, and determining a complementary printing element for masking printing data corresponding to the defective printing element indicated by the defective printing element information and complementarily printing the printing data corresponding to the defective printing element, and the printing step of printing the printing data of the defective printing element using the complementary printing element determined in the determination step.
A computer-readable memory according to the present invention for achieving the above object has the following program codes. A computer-readable memory storing program codes of control of a printing apparatus for performing printing using a printhead with a plurality of printing elements is characterized by comprising a program code of the determination step of referring to a storage medium which stores at least defective printing element information about a defective printing element among the plurality of printing elements, and determining a complementary printing element for masking printing data corresponding to the defective printing element indicated by the defective printing element information and complementarily printing the printing data corresponding to the defective printing element, and a program code of the printing step of printing the printing data of the defective printing element using the complementary printing element determined in the determination step.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the figures thereof.

Printing apparatus, control method therefor, and computer-readable memory


Provided are disposable dosage units for use in iontophoresis-facilitated transdermal delivery which have hydrophilic polymer first and second layers, the first layer having ionic resin particles dispersed therein and the second layer having an ionized pharmaceutical contained. The second layer having on its surface a thin fabric layer bearing an adhesive layer. The polymer first and second layers are separated by a permselective membrane. Also provided are related devices and processes using the novel disposable dosage units.

Many pharmaceuticals are required to be administered by injection. Other pharmaceuticals may be administered orally, but in some cases, there is inefficient absorption into the bloodstream to permit the pharmaceuticals to achieve the intended therapy. Also, with regard to oral administration, many orally administered pharmaceuticals undergo a high degree of destruction by the hepato-gastrointestinal first-pass metabolism. Often the metabolites of the first-pass metabolism cause unwanted biological activity or toxicity. In oral administration, there are variables which cause undesirable variations in the extent of gastrointestinal absorption from subject to subject, especially in the case of some pharmaceuticals; and there are also associated problems of uneven blood levels resulting from an initial large absorption with attendant undesirable side effects or toxicities, and subsequent blood levels which are less than therapeutically optimal.
There has been an increasing interest in transdermal delivery. However, transdermal absorption of a number of pharmaceuticals has not been satisfactorily developed for adequate therapy, since they have not been absorbed transdermally to any significant degree.
Investigations have been carried out to explore the delivery of certain therapeutic agents transdermally by use of iontotherapy. Development of previous reservoir electrode devices have been reported, for example, by Sanderson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,722,726 and references cited therein.
It is highly desired to provide new and improved iontotherapeutic devices, reservoir electrodes therefore, and iontotherapeutic processes and disposable dosage unit forms for use with the reservoir electrodes and to provide further thereby therapeutic levels of systemically-active pharmaceuticals efficiently with a physiologically-acceptable low electric current.

Disposable dosage unit for iontophoresis-facilitated transdermal delivery, related devices and processes

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey


The sensor device accurately measures small angle changes of mechanical parts that rotate relative to each other. The sensor device includes only one cylindrical magnet (3) extending axially from a first part; two magnetoresistive sensors (5',5") mounted on a second part and located in the magnetic field of the sole magnet (3), the two magnetoresistive sensors having respective magnetic field sensitive layers (MS) facing a magnetic pole of the magnet (3), extending tangentially to a rotation direction in which the parts rotate relative to each other and generating respective output signals according to magnetic field line direction; and a device (PT) for combining the respective output signals of the two magnetoresistive sensors (5',5") to produce a combined output signal characteristic of the relative rotation angle of the parts. The combined output signal is set to zero when the parts are at a predetermined relative rotation angle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sensor device for detecting small angular position changes and, more particularly, to a sensor device for detecting angular position changes of mechanical parts that rotate relative to each other, especially those angle changes due to the torsion experienced by an axle.
2. Prior Art
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,501,110, a sensor device is already known in which the torque transmitted to an axle is to be detected. The torque is determined by the torsion or the angle of rotation of the ends of the axle and a constant that depends on the material and geometry of the axle. Two magnets and one Hall sensor opposite each magnet are mounted on two disks that each rotate with the axle and are mechanically solidly coupled to the ends of the axle.
For instance, to detect the torque acting on a steering wheel axle of a motor vehicle while the steering wheel is rotating, very small angle changes in both directions of rotation of the steering wheel must be measured. Evaluating the changes in the field originating at the magnets therefore requires an extremely sensitive and also temperature-stable measurement device.

Sensor arrangement for detecting changes in angle


A cable connector assembly (8) includes an insulative housing (1), a number of contacts (6) received in the housing, a cable (4) electrically connecting with the contacts, a cover (2) cooperating with the housing to sandwich the cable therebetween, and a pair of fastening members (5). The housing includes a base (10) and a mating portion (11) projecting outwardly from the base. The base forms a pair of ear portions (12) disposed at opposite ends thereof and extending vertically from an upper surface (100) thereof, and a pair of spring arms (108) formed on a lower surface (106) thereof, and a pair of guiding members (13) extending outwardly therefrom. Each guiding member forms a protrusion (132) on the lower surface for preventing the cable connector assembly moving away from a panel on which the assembly is mounted.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a cable connector assembly, and more particularly to a floatable cable connector assembly.
2. Description of Related Art
Cable connector assemblies are widely used for signal or power transmission between personal computers and peripheral equipments. Such a cable connector assembly is usually needed to be float-mounted to a panel on which a plurality of connectors are arranged side by side to form a sub module. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,647,130 and 4,915,641 each disclose such an assembly.
The connector assembly disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,130 comprises matable plug and receptacle connectors. The plug connector comprises a pair of flanges diagonally formed at opposite ends of a base thereof and a pair of guide pins disposed at opposite ends of the base and diagonally across from each other. Each flange defines a mounting hole therein and a pair of arcuate projections are located at a substantial angle from the major axis of the plug connector and are around a corresponding mounting hole. A pair of elastomeric ring-like members are secured around a respective pair of projections, thus becoming elongated. A pair of shoulder screws respectively protrude through the mounting holes and the elastomeric ring-like members to tightly engage with the panel. However, this design is relatively complex in structure and the manufacturing cost is relatively high.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,641 discloses a pair of matable female and male connectors each being mounted to a panel. The female connector comprises a planar mounting flange having mounting apertures therethrough for mounting the assembly to a panel. The male connector comprises a pair of flanges on opposite ends thereof and each flange defines a mounting aperture and a mounting collar therethrough to enable the float mounting of the male connector to an appropriate panel. The collar is a hollow generally cylindrical collar having an aperture dimensioned to receive a bolt, rivet or other connecting means. However, the flanges of the male and the female connectors occupy a relatively big space and the dimension of the male or the female connectors in a longitudinal direction thereof is thus increased.
Hence, an improved floatable cable connector assembly is highly desired to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a cable connector assembly with a minimized transverse size.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a suspensory panel mount cable connector assembly.
In order to achieve the object set forth, a cable connector assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of conductive contacts received in the housing, a cable comprising a plurality of conductors electrically connected with the contacts, a cover cooperating with the housing to sandwich the cable between the cover and the housing, and a pair of fastening members for securing the cable connector assembly to a panel. The housing comprises a base and a mating portion projecting outwardly from the base. The base comprises an upper surface and an opposite lower surface. The base forms a pair of ear portions disposed at opposite ends thereof and extending vertically from the upper surface thereof, a pair of spring arms formed on the lower surface thereof. A pair of guiding members extend outwardly from the base and are spaced by the mating portion. Each guiding member forms a protrusion extending away from a corresponding ear portion.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A crab shelling machine includes first and second transfer mechanisms for conveying crabs, a cutting mechanism for sectioning the crabs and a separating mechanism for separating crab meat and/or crab roe from crab shells. The cutting mechanism includes a frame body, a pair of transmitting apparatuses positioned above the frame body, and a cutter vertically extending into a slot formed by the pair of transmitting apparatuses. The slot is adapted for the crabs to be conveyed therethrough. Each transmitting apparatus includes two transport wheels and a transport belt associated to the transport wheels. The separating mechanism includes a storage box located above the second transfer mechanism, a suction tube fixed to the storage box for separating the crab meat and/or the crab roe, and a driving apparatus for driving the suction tube.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a shelling machine, particularly to a crab shelling machine for separating crab meat and/or crab roe from crab shells.
2. Description of Related Art
Crabs are a kind of arthropoda crustacean having delicious taste and rich nutritious. In recent years, with rapid increase in aquaculture production of crabs, there are more and more food-related types processed by the crabs and well received by the consumers.
Most crab-processing products are made from crab meat and crab roe, so we can see that it is a key step to separate the crab meat and the crab roe from the crab shell. In the existing crab processing flows, the crab meat and the crab roe are separated from the crab shell basically via manual work. The main processes include manually using a variety of small tools, such as knives, scissors, tweezers, spoons etc., to scrape the crab meat and the crab roe from the crab shells, after cleaning and cooking the crabs. It is understandable that such processes may result in large labor intensity, low processing efficiency and the waste of more residual meat on the crab shells, and so on. Besides, such processes may cause the manual processing pollution and affect food safety.
Hence, it is desirable to provide an automatic crab shelling machine for separating the crab meat and the crab roe from the crab shells.

Suzhou Xi Fu Rui Agriculture Technologies Co., Ltd.


A high-pressure rotary nozzle includes a magnetic coupling for the purposes of driving a rotor body within the nozzle housing. The nozzle housing defines an internal chamber, and a propulsion ring is retained within the housing such that a liquid introduced into the propulsion ring causes the propulsion ring to rotate and passes into the chamber. The rotor body is pivotally supported within the chamber and is operably coupled to the propulsion ring such that the rotor body moves along with the propulsion ring. The rotor body rotates about the housing, such that the liquid exits the chamber in a rotating jet.

present invention relates to a rotary nozzle, especially one used for high pressure cleaning. The nozzle includes a propulsion ring that drives an inclined rotor body about its axis thereby causing a liquid to exit the rotary nozzle in a rotating jet.
nozzles that provide a high-pressure stream of cleaning fluid are used for a variety of cleaning applications. Many such systems implement a nozzle housing, with an inlet, an outlet, an internal housing chamber, and a rotor body disposed in the chamber at an incline. By connecting the inlet to an appropriate hose, a high-pressure liquid is introduced into the inlet, entering the chamber along a tangential path. The liquid flow causes the rotor body to rotate about the housing chamber, the side of the nozzle bearing along an interior side of the housing. The liquid exits the rotary nozzle through the outlet as a rotating jet. The jet is intended to assist the cleaning efficiency, avoiding spot treatment, and enhance uniformity.
Existing nozzles rely upon the force of swirling liquid in the housing chamber to create the desired rotating jet. The operation of these nozzles, however, depends upon the frictional force between the rotor body and the interior side of the housing. As the rotor body and housing begin to wear, the friction between the two surfaces changes. Accordingly, the same nozzle configuration may lead to significantly differing rotation speeds and impact levels owing to wear on the nozzle elements.
Further, as the surfaces exhibit deterioration, an increased level of friction between the two surfaces leads to a decreased startup speedxe2x80x94the time from the liquid first flowing into the nozzle to the time the rotating fluid jet reaches its maximum speed. Slow startup speeds can be damaging to the target being cleaned by the nozzle; a sluggish acceleration of rotation speed of the fluid jet can abrade the target. By focusing solely on the friction between the two surfaces, the prior art has inadequately addressed these and other shortcomings of existing rotary nozzles.
Furthermore, existing rotary nozzles provide insufficient control over the impactxe2x80x94the concentration of liquid in a specific location on the cleaning targetxe2x80x94and stream qualityxe2x80x94the precise placement of all the liquid particles in a uniform diameter on the cleaning targetxe2x80x94of their rotating jets. The impact a rotating jet has on its target is attributable to the flow rate of the liquid exiting the nozzle and the rotation speed of the liquid. Because of the aforementioned varying level of friction, prior rotary nozzles have provided only limited ability to determine and maintain the impact of their rotating jets. Similarly, control of the stream quality of these rotary nozzles has also been limited. The stream quality is considered to be the clarity of the water stream exiting the nozzle; the diameter restraint and uniformity of the rotating jet.
For these reasons, it is an object of the present invention to provide a rotary nozzle that does not rely solely on a high-pressure fluid to directly rotate the nozzle body. It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a rotary nozzle that effectively maintains a desired flow rate and rotation speed of the exiting rotating jet and enhances the stream quality of the rotating jet, which contributes to the cleaning efficiency of the rotary nozzle. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a maximized startup speed in a rotary nozzle and substantially maintain that startup speed over the life of the rotary nozzle.
A high-pressure rotary nozzle of the present invention includes a housing defining an internal chamber, the housing having a top end and a bottom end, the bottom end having an outlet. An endcap assembly is attached to the top end of the housing and defines an endcap bore. The endcap bore is essentially a liquid passage that runs through the center of the endcap assembly and opens into a drive orifice that is tangential to the endcap bore. The endcap assembly also includes a propulsion ring that is rotatably disposed in the endcap assembly about the endcap bore. A drive magnet is fixedly attached to the propulsion ring such that the drive magnet and the propulsion ring rotate together.
Inside the housing chamber, a rotor body having an internal rotor bore therethrough is rotatably disposed and extends longitudinally through the housing chamber. The rotor body is supported in a rotor seat, which is fixedly attached to the housing at the outlet. The rotor body is disposed in the housing chamber at an angle such that a bearing surface of the rotor body bears on an interior side of the housing. A receiver magnet is fixedly attached to the rotor body, such that rotation of the drive magnet produces rotation of the receiver magnet. The rotation of the receiver magnet causes the rotor body to rotate with respect to housing such that the liquid flowing through the internal rotor bore exits the outlet in a rotating jet.
In operation, a liquid is introduced into the endcap bore at a high pressure and exits through a drive insert orifice tangential to the endcap bore. As the liquid exits through the drive insert orifice, it strikes the propulsion ring, thereby propelling the propulsion ring to rotate at a high rate of speed, or RPM, relative to the housing. The drive magnet is thereby rotated at the same RPM as the propulsion ring. The liquid then travels past the propulsion ring in a swirling pattern.
The liquid flows in a circular and downward path through a water gap between the endcap assembly and the housing and enters the housing chamber. While continuing to swirl in the housing chamber, the liquid pervades the housing chamber, exerts the rotor body downward into the rotor seat, creating a seal, and enters the internal rotor bore. Both the force exerted on the receiver magnet by the drive magnet and the force of the swirling liquid cause the rotor body to rotate about the longitudinal axis of the rotary nozzle in the housing chamber. As the rotor body rotates around housing chamber, the bearing surface is in contact with an interior side of the housing. The liquid passes through the rotor body and exits through the nozzle outlet. The orbiting motion of the rotor body causes the liquid to exit the rotary nozzle in a rotating jet.
Importantly, the magnets propel the rotor body to rotate even when the bearing surfaces exhibit wear. Because the drive magnet and the propulsion ring operate independently from the rotor body, the drive magnet continues to rotate as long as the liquid moves through the rotary nozzle.
The impact that the liquid exiting the rotary nozzle has on its target may be controlled by manipulating various characteristics of the endcap assembly. For instance, the diameter of drive insert orifice affects the rate at which the liquid exits the endcap bore into the propulsion ring, which in turn affects the rotation speed of propulsion ring, ultimately affecting the flow rate at which the liquid exits the rotary nozzle. Similarly, the geometric characteristics of the propulsion ring, as well as its mass, affect the flow rate and rotation speed of the exiting liquid. By manipulating any of these characteristics, the present invention provides effective control and maintenance of the impact of the rotating jet. By providing such control and consistency in the rotating jet, the stream quality is also thereby enhanced.
The characteristics of the drive magnet and the receiver magnet can also be manipulated to control the rotating jet. By adjusting the strength of the magnetic charge on each magnet, the force exerted by the drive magnet on the receiver magnet can effectively be influenced. Similarly, the size, shapes, and locations of the magnets can be adjusted to affect the interaction between the two magnets.
Similarly, the width of the water gap through which the liquid passes from the propulsion ring into the housing chamber affects the rotation speed of the exiting liquid as well as the flow rate at which the liquid exits the rotary nozzle. The diameter of the internal rotor bore at the exit point from the rotor body and the diameter of the rotary nozzle outlet control the flow rate at which the liquid exits the nozzle.
Further, the width of the water gap affects the startup speed; maintaining a predetermined width ensures an enhanced startup speed that minimizes the damage caused to the target being cleaned by the nozzle owing to the rapid variation in rotation speed of the fluid jet. Each desired flow rate corresponds to a specific water gap width range that will maximize the startup speed.


A continuous flow syringe pump includes a first syringe configured for at least one of loading or dispensing at least one fluid, a second syringe configured for at least one of loading or dispensing the at least one fluid, and a first valve connected to the first syringe and the second syringe. The continuous flow syringe pump also includes a second valve connected to the first valve. The continuous flow syringe pump further includes at least one outlet connected to the first valve. The at least one outlet is configured to alternate output of the at least one fluid between the first syringe and the second syringe in a substantially continuous operation.

Pumps are utilized to introduce samples carried by carrier solution into nebulizers for further analysis of nebulized liquids in an analytical device such as an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) spectrometer. When a pump operates with substantial discontinuity of flow, analysis by analytical equipment may be inaccurate and/or unreliable.


Provided is a sunroof apparatus including a movable roof panel installed in an opening in a fixed outer roof panel of a vehicle, a drive slider to move in a front-rear direction along a fixed guide frame, and a panel support stay interposing between the roof panel and the drive slider to support the roof panel. The roof panel is tilted up and moves backward by a backward moving of the panel support stay while the panel support stay is in an inclined position, as the drive slider slides backward. A part of a plurality of engagement portions between the panel support stay and the drive slider is located rearward more than a rear edge of the opening when the opening is fully opened.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a sunroof apparatus for a vehicle.
2. Description of Background Art
A sunroof apparatus described in the patent document 1 listed below exemplifies a prior sunroof apparatus. This sunroof apparatus includes a movable roof panel installed in an opening formed in a fixed outer roof panel of a vehicle, a drive slider to move in a front-rear direction of the vehicle, and a panel support stay interposing between the movable roof panel and the drive slider. The panel support stay moves rearward while inclining as the drive slider slides rearward. Hereby, the movable roof panel is tilted up and moves rearward.
Furthermore, the patent document 1 discloses a technology to protrude a front end portion of a guide rail for guiding the drive slider to a more forward location than a drainage ditch in a front frame. According to this technology, a span between support portions of the panel support stay for supporting the roof panel can be enlarged without sacrificing an open degree of the opening as much as the front end portion of the guide rail is protruded. Therefore, the supporting stiffness for supporting the movable roof panel can be enhanced.
Patent document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2005-41345 (Paragraph 0025)


A method, computer program, and system for real-time signal analysis providing characterization of temporally-evolving densities and distributions of signal features of arbitrary-type signals in a moving time window by tracking output of order statistic filters (also known as percentile, quantile, or rank-order filters). Given a raw input signal of arbitrary type, origin, or scale, the present invention enables automated quantification and detection of changes in the distribution of any set of quantifiable features of that signal as they occur in time. Furthermore, the present invention""s ability to rapidly and accurately detect changes in certain features of an input signal can also enable prediction in cases where the detected changes associated with an increased likelihood of future signal changes.

A computer program listing appendix containing the source code of a computer program that may be used with the present invention is incorporated herein by reference and appended hereto as one (1) original compact disk, and an identical copy thereof, containing a total of forty-one (41) files as follows:
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods, computer programs and systems for automated signal analysis providing rapid and accurate detection, prediction, or quantification of changes in one or more signal features, characteristics, or properties as they occur. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method, computer program, or system for automated real-time signal analysis providing characterization of temporally-evolving densities and distributions of signal features of arbitrary-type signals in a moving time window by tracking output of order statistic filters (also known as percentile, quantile, or rank-order filters).
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is often desirable to detect and quantify feature changes in an evolving signal, and there have been numerous attempts to develop automated signal analysis means operable to do so. One well-known approach, for example, is based upon analysis of the signal""s mean value, which is typically a well known, well understood, and easily computed property. Other well-known techniques look for changes in signal variance or standard deviation over time.
Unfortunately, these commonly used approaches have significant drawbacks, including lack of robustness in the presence of signal outliers. Furthermore, in all but a few ideal cases, monitoring these individual parameters does not enable detection of all types of changes in feature distribution. This is because the mean and standard deviation rarely completely describe the signal distribution. Another problem that plagues many existing analysis techniques is that they are unable to deal adequately with real-world problems in which the analyzed signal is often highly complex, non-stationary, non-linear, and/or stochastic.
Another well-known approach, one more suited to practical situations than the above-mentioned methods, uses order statistics (e.g., the median or other percentile or quantile values). Order statistics are advantageous because they are directly related to the underlying distribution and are robust in the presence of outliers. For example, a method of signal analysis that enables the detection of state changes in the brain through automated analysis of recorded signal changes is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,868. This method addresses the problem of robustness in the presence of outliers through novel use of order-statistic filtering. Additionally, given information from a moving time window of a certain time scale, referred to as the xe2x80x9cforegroundxe2x80x9d, this method provides for real-time comparison thereof with a reference obtained from past data derived, e.g., from a longer time scale window, referred to as the xe2x80x9cbackground.xe2x80x9d This approach thereby addresses some of the normalization problems associated with complex, non-stationary signals.
Although the prior invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,868 has successfully addressed many of the above-mentioned limitations, including normalization problems associated with complex non-stationary signals, it is lacking in breadth of scope. Detection of changes, for example, is limited to a particular order statistic of the signal. Additionally, the order statistic filter employed to detect signal changes requires large amounts of processing ability, memory, and power when used on digital signals for which sorting procedures are performed at each point in time. Furthermore, the method does not enable full analog implementation.
Most work on order statistic filters, such as median filters, and their implementation is in the areas of digital signal and image processing, which, as mentioned, requires large amounts of processing ability, memory, and power not practical or cost-effective for some applications. Work on analog median filters is limited to situations where the input is provided as parallel lines of data, and a program or circuit that implements the filter outputs a value that is equal to the median of the data on different input lines. Work on analog median filtering for continuous-time signals is not extensive, and no realizable implementations exist able to track a percentile (e.g., median) of a continuous-time signal. One reason for this is that the operation of finding the rank or order is non-linear, making modeling the procedure using an ordinary differential equation so complicated that it has not yet been addressed.
Due to the above-described and other problems, a need exists for a more general, powerful, and broad method for automated analysis of signals of any degree of complexity and type.
The present invention solves the above-described and other problems to provide a distinct advance in the art of automated signal analysis. More specifically, the present invention comprises a method, computer program, and system for real-time signal analysis providing characterization of temporally-evolving densities and distributions of signal features of arbitrary-type signals in a moving time window by tracking output of order statistic filters (also called percentile, quantile, or rank-order filters).
The present invention is operable to analyze input signals of arbitrary type, origin and scale, including, for example, continuous-time or discrete-time, analog or digital, scalar or multi-dimensional, deterministic or stochastic (i.e., containing a random component), stationary (i.e., time invariant) or non-stationary (i.e., time varying), linear or nonlinear. Thus, the present invention has broad applicability to analysis of many different types of complex signals and sequences of data, including but not limited to biological signals such as those produced by brain, heart, or muscle activity; physical signals such as seismic, oceanographic, or meteorological; financial signals such as prices of various financial instruments; communication signals such as recorded speech or video or network traffic signals; mechanical signals such as jet engine vibration; target tracking and recognition; signals describing population dynamics, ecosystems or bio-systems; signals derived from manufacturing or other queuing systems; chemical signals such as spectroscopic signals; and sequences of data such as word lists, documents, or gene sequences. Furthermore, the present invention is applicable to any set of signal features so long as they are quantifiable, thereby allowing for a high degree of system adaptability and selectivity.
Thus, the present invention enables automated detection and quantification of changes in the distribution of any set of quantifiable features of a raw input signal as they occur in time. The input signal, denoted as {x(t)}, can be any data parameterized by a real-valued variable, t, which will be interpreted as a time variable. The input signal may be optionally preprocessed in order to produce a new signal, the feature signal, denoted as {X(t)}. {X(t)} quantifies a set of features of the input signal that the system will use in detecting and quantifying changes. For a fixed t, X(t) is called the signal feature vector at time t. The feature vector has as many components as there are signal features. While potentially of substantial value, this preprocessing step is optional in the sense that the raw input signal itself may be used as the feature vector (i.e., X(t)=x(t)), in which case the invention proceeds to detect changes in the distribution of the raw input signal as it evolves in time. The desirability of preprocessing will depend upon the nature of the raw input signal and the nature of the features of interest.
The present invention also introduces a useful new object called the time-weighted feature density of a signal, {f(t,X)}, which can be computed from the feature signal at each point in time. This object allows access to estimates of the full time-dependent density and cumulative distribution function of varying signal features with any desired degree of accuracy, but confines these estimates to any desired time-scale through the use of time-weighting (time localization of feature density). This time-weighted feature density describes the raw input signal features measured in moving windows of time specified by the time-weight function, which allows a user to apply different significances to portions of available information (e.g., to consider recent information as more relevant than older information; or to weight information according to its reliability, etc.).
Moreover, the present invention allows for rapidly obtaining these estimates in a computationally efficient manner that can be implemented in digital or analog form, and a method for detecting, quantifying, and comparing changes of arbitrary type in the density/distribution of the feature vector as it changes. The significance of this increase in computational efficiency, along with analog implementability, becomes especially clear when considering medical device applications where, for example, the present invention enables currently used externally-worn devices that require daily battery recharging to become fully implantable devices with an operational lifetime of several years, thereby improving safety and convenience.
In operation, a raw time-varying input signal of arbitrary type, origin, and scale is received for analysis. Optionally, depending upon the nature of the raw input signal and the nature of the features of interest, pre-processing occurs to produce a feature signal more amenable to further analysis. Next, time-weighted density or distribution functions are determined for both a foreground or current time window portion of the signal and a background portion of the signal or reference signal (which also may be evolving with time, but potentially on a different timescale) in order to emphasize, as desired, certain data.
Percentile values for both foreground and background signals are then accurately estimated and compared so as to detect and quantify feature changes on any timescale and to any desired degree of precision as the raw input signal evolves in time. Density and distribution approximations may also be compared. As noted above, the state of the existing art requires that the data be laboriously sorted in order to determine these percentile values. In the present invention, however, percentile values are accurately estimated without sorting or stacking, thereby increasing processing speed and efficiency while reducing computation, memory, and power needs. Thus, the present invention is able to perform in a highly computationally efficient manner that can be implemented in a low power consumption apparatus consisting of an analog system, a digital processor, or a hybrid combination thereof, thereby providing tremendous system power savings.
The present invention is also operable to facilitate real-time signal normalization with respect to the density/distribution approximations, which is useful in processing and analysis of series of different orders. This is particularly useful where the features or characteristics of interest are invariant to a monotonic transformation of the signal""s amplitude.
It will also be appreciated that the present invention""s ability to rapidly and accurately detect changes in certain features of the input signal can enable prediction in cases where the changes it detects are associated with an increased likelihood of future signal changes. For example, when applied to seismic signals, the method can enable prediction of an earthquake or volcanic eruption; when applied to meteorological signals, the method can enable prediction of severe weather; when applied to financial data, the method can enable prediction of an impending price change in a stock; when applied to brain waves or heart signals, the method can enable prediction of an epileptic seizure or ventricular fibrillation; and when applied to brain wave or electromyographic signals, it can enable prediction of movement of a body part.
These and other novel features of the present invention are described in more detail below in the section titled DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT.

Method, computer program, and system for automated real-time signal analysis for detection, quantification, and prediction of signal changes


A focus detection device includes: a defocus information detection unit that detects phase difference information indicating a phase difference manifested by a pair of images formed with a pair of light fluxes having passed through different areas of a photographic optical system and detects defocus information based upon the phase difference information; and a correction unit that executes correction for correcting the defocus information, detected by the defocus information detection unit, in correspondence to a predetermined direction extending between a first direction that orthogonally intersects an optical axis of the photographic optical system and radially extends from the optical axis and a second direction that orthogonally intersects the first direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a focus detection device.
2. Description of Related Art
A focus detection device in the known art detects the focusing condition achieved by a photographic optical system based upon a phase difference (often referred to as an image shift) manifested by a pair of images formed with a pair of focus detection light fluxes having passed through different areas of the photographic optical system. Such a focus detection device adopting the phase detection method is known to give varying focusing condition detection results in correspondence to different phase difference detection directions due to the field curvature manifesting at the photographic optical system (see Japanese Laid Open Patent Publication No. 2009-128843). In more specific terms, the phase difference detected along a straight line (tangential direction) radially extending from the optical axis of the photographic optical system does not match the phase difference detected along a direction (radial direction) orthogonally intersecting the tangential direction on a concentric circle centered on the optical axis.


An airflow velocity measuring apparatus that includes a fixed-temperature heat generating device. The fixed-temperature heat generating device includes a power supply, a positive-temperature-coefficient thermistor element, a switching element, a comparator element, a first negative-temperature-coefficient thermistor element, a second negative-temperature-coefficient thermistor element, and plural resistor elements. The positive-temperature-coefficient thermistor element is disposed at a measuring point at which the velocity of airflow is measured. The switching element is repeatedly turned ON and OFF so as to cause the positive-temperature-coefficient thermistor element to generate heat at a preset temperature, thereby applying a pulse voltage from the power supply to the positive-temperature-coefficient thermistor element. The airflow velocity measuring apparatus measures the velocity of airflow at the measuring point based on the waveform of this pulse voltage. Adding of a second switch makes it possible to correct measurement errors caused by a rise or a fall in the temperature of subject airflow.

An airflow velocity measuring apparatus that is disposed within a duct, for example, to measure the velocity of a gas passing through the apparatus is disclosed in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-241318). A gas flowmeter 1000 disclosed in Patent Document 1 is shown in FIG. 6. The gas flowmeter 1000 is a device for measuring "airflow rate (gas flow rate)" instead of "airflow velocity." As suggested in Patent Document 1, however, converting between "airflow rate" and "airflow velocity" is very easy.
The gas flowmeter 1000 includes a sensor body 101 and a controller 102.
The sensor body 101 includes a thermocouple 104 and a thermistor element (thermistor) 105 formed on a printed substrate 103.
The thermocouple 104 includes heating wire 106 and copper foils 107a and 107b bonded to the respective ends of the heating wire 106. The heating wire 106 is formed of constantan, which is one type of Cu—Ni alloy, generating a thermo-electromotive force between the heating wire 106 and copper. In the thermocouple 104, as a result of supplying power to the heating wire 106, a thermo-electromotive force is generated between nodes 108a and 108b, which are disposed between the heating wire 106 and the respective copper foils 107a and 107b.
The controller 102 includes a power-supply control circuit 109, a thermo-electromotive force detecting circuit 110, a thermometer circuit 111, an A/D converter 112, and a control circuit 113. The power-supply control circuit 109 controls power supply to the heating wire 106. The thermo-electromotive force detecting circuit 110 detects a thermo-electromotive force generated between the nodes 108a and 108b. The thermometer circuit 111 receives output from the thermistor element 105. The A/D converter 112 converts an analog signal supplied from the thermo-electromotive force detecting circuit 110 or the thermometer circuit 111 into a digital signal. The control circuit 113 controls the above-described elements.
In the case of a gentle gas flow, the gas flowmeter 1000 causes the thermo-electromotive force detecting circuit 110 to detect a thermo-electromotive force corresponding to a temperature difference ΔT between the nodes 108a and 108b. The gas flowmeter 1000 then calculates a gas flow rate based on the magnitude of the thermo-electromotive force.
In the case of a strong gas flow, however, the heating wire 106 is exposed to the strong gas flow and is cooled, which makes it difficult for the thermocouple 104 to measure a gas flow rate. For a strong gas flow, the gas flowmeter 1000 detects the substrate temperature T of the printed substrate 103 by using the thermistor element 105, and calculates a gas flow rate based on the detected substrate temperature T.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-241318

Airflow velocity measuring apparatus and airflow rate measuring apparatus


Methods for a lithographic process used to pattern fins for fin-type field-effect transistors (FinFETs). A first plurality of hardmask sections may be formed, and sacrificial spacers may be formed on vertical sidewalls of the first plurality of hardmask sections. Each of the first plurality of hardmask sections is comprised of a first material. Gaps between the sacrificial spacers are filled with a second material, which is selected to etch selectively to the first material, in order to define a second plurality of hardmask sections each comprised of the second material.

The present invention relates to semiconductor device fabrication and integrated circuits and, more specifically, to methods for a lithographic process used to pattern fins for fin-type field-effect transistors (FinFETs).
A FinFET is a non-planar device structure for a field-effect transistor that is capable of being more densely packed in an integrated circuit than planar field-effect transistors. A FinFET includes one or more fins of semiconductor material and an overlapping gate electrode that intersects a channel within the body of each fin. The channel in each fin is located between heavily-doped source/drain regions formed in fin sections that are not covered by the gate electrode. The fin dimensions and the number of fins determine the effective channel width of the FinFET.
Lithographic processes may be used to form the fins for a FinFET. For example, using optical photolithography, features can be formed by patterning a photoresist layer and an image of the features can be transferred into an underlying semiconductor layer to form fins. However, lithographic processes are incapable of satisfying the ever-increasing demand for smaller and more closely spaced fins.
Sidewall image transfer (SIT) involves the use of mandrels as sacrificial structures. Sidewall spacers, which have a thickness less than that permitted by the current ground rules for optical lithography, are formed on the vertical sidewalls of the mandrels. After selective removal of the mandrels, the sidewall spacers are used as an etch mask to etch an underlying hardmask and semiconductor layer, for example, with a directional reactive ion etching (RIE). Because the sidewall spacers may have a sublithographic line width, the fins formed from the underlying semiconductor layer will also have a sublithographic line width. The sidewall spacers are removed after the fins are formed.
A problem associated with forming semiconductor fins at tight pitch relates to the cutting of unwanted fins. As the available space between fins decreases, it becomes increasingly difficult to remove unwanted fins with etching and the assistance of a cut mask without adversely affecting adjacent fins due to process variation and small process margin of lithographic processes. Misalignment of the cut mask may lead to undesired partial or complete cutting of adjacent fins.
Improved methods for a lithographic process used to pattern fins for FinFETs are needed.

Fin cut with alternating two color fin hardmask


A circuit board with a processing unit and a delay line with a controllable number of delay elements fabricated thereon includes apparatus for testing and calibrating the delay line elements. In the test mode, a calibrated pulse is delayed by the delay line while determining the logic state of pulse at two times, the interval between the two times being the same as the pulse width. By adding delay elements, the period of the calibrated pulse as a function of number of delay elements can determine the delay of each delay element. In the calibration mode, the delay line is configured as a ring oscillator and the frequency of the ring oscillator as a function of number of delay elements provides the time delay for the individual elements.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to integrated circuit delay lines, and more particularly to the test, characterization, and calibration of delay lines in microprocessors and digital signal processors.
2. Background of the Invention
Programmable digital delay lines, delay lines fabricated from N equal delay elements, are important components in microprocessor and digital signal processor devices. Examples of the applications of these devices include: providing accurate delay signals edges for the purpose of correcting/adjusting signal skews; accurately adjusting the width of a pulse to a finer resolution than is possible with the device system clock (especially pulse width modulation {PWM}); and generating frequencies at finer resolution steps using a ring oscillator technique than is possible with a system clock.
Referring to FIG. 1, a typical controllable digital delay line is illustrated. The delay line is a plurality of series coupled delay elements d0 through dN-1. Coupled to the output terminal of each delay element dn is the input terminal of gate gn. A multiplexer 11 activates gate gn in response to a numerical value n. In this manner, in response, to an input value of n, the gate gn is activated. Thereafter, a pulse applied to the DELAY IN terminal of the delay element d0 will be transmitted to the output terminal of gate gn. The input pulse is therefore delayed by gates d0 through dn, and is applied to the DELAY OUT terminal.
Because geometry determines the characteristics of the delay elements, each delay element can be designed to match the other delay elements. However, this matching only insures relative delay element accuracy. More importantly, a "measure" of the absolute delay for each delay element is needed to have a useful value in an application. This absolute value needs to be dynamically determined over temperature and process variations. The embedded delay structure operates within a clocked system (i.e., necessary for microprocessor devices or digital signal processor deices), the clocked system usually based on a quartz crystal. If a determination can be made as to how many delay elements give a delay equal to the system clock period, Tsys, of the system, then important calibration information needed to program the delay structure with absolute times is provided.
Referring to FIG. 2, an example how m delay elements are needed to span a 100 nS system clock is shown. (Note the assumption is that the delay structure is designed with a sufficiently large number of delay elements to span the width of the system clock under both temperature and process variations.) When m is known, absolute time delay values ranging from 0-Tsys can be programmed according to the following relationship:Dabs(i)=Tsys*i/m
Although the advantages of using delay lines are well-known, problems have been found when delay lines are embedded in integrated circuits. Two important areas that should be addressed to derive the full benefit of the embedded delay lines are 1.) the test and characterization during the manufacturing process, and 2.) the delay line calibration in the field.
With respect to the testing and the characterization during the manufacturing process, the delay structures are embedded in microprocessor and digital signal processor devices and, consequently, share the same process technology, i.e., high density complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Delay values for each device can be on the order of 100 ps. Even expensive and sophisticated chip testers can have problem resolving the timing resolution required to test and characterize such delay elements. Moreover, accessing such elements via device pins introduces large amounts of input/output (I/O) pad delays, thereby skewing the actual measurement itself.
With respect to the field calibration, although each delay element can be made equal to the other delay elements, (achieved by equal geometry), process and temperature variations prevent identical absolute delay values. For the delay structures to be useful in an application, the dynamic determination of the absolute value of the delays is necessary for use in a background calibration scheme.
A need has therefore been felt for apparatus and an associated method having the feature of improved determination of the delay line characteristics. It is another feature of the apparatus and associated method provide a stand-alone test and characterization of a delay line in an integrated circuit. It would be a further feature of the apparatus and associated method to provide test and characterization techniques involve frequency and period-based techniques. It would be a still further feature of the apparatus and associated method to permit data relevant to the test and characterization of a delay line to be analyzed either with an associated processing unit or external testing equipment. It is still a further feature of the apparatus and associated method to provide an iterative calibration method based on counters averaged over time. It would be a more particular feature of the apparatus and associated method to provide an iterative calibration technique that is tolerant to noise and to meta-stability. It is still another feature of the apparatus and associated method to provide a characterization scheme that can run concurrently with an application program.

Apparatus and method for test, characterization, and calibration of microprocessor-based and digital signal processor-based integrated circuit digital delay lines


A rail-to-rail comparator including a first comparison unit connected to a first terminal and configured to compare differential input signals to differential reference voltages; a second comparison unit connected to a second terminal and configured to compare the differential input signals to the differential reference voltages; and an output unit configured to be driven in response to a clock signal and to generate a complementary output signal according to comparison results of the first and second comparison units.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a data transmitter/receiver, and more particularly, to a rail-to-rail is comparator and a pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) receiver using the same.
2. Related Art
A multi-level input/output system is a concept designed to transmit and receive a larger amounts of data without increasing a data transmission rate. In order to support the multi-level input/output system, various modulation methods such as pulse amplitude modulation (PAM), pulse duration modulation (PDM), and pulse position modulation (PPM) may be used.
Among the modulation methods, the PAM changes only the amplitude of a pulse without changing the width and period of the pulse. According to the number of symbols M to be transmitted, the PAM may be expressed as M-PAM (M is a natural number equal to or larger than two). That is, symbols transmitted and received in an M-PAM system have any one of M levels. The PAM is used in a system for converting an analog signal into a pulse-type digital signal. The system may include a communication system between integrated circuits (ICs), a power line communication system, a high-speed digital communication system, an ultra wideband communication system, and the like.
In a communication system using the M-PAM, a receiver requires reference signals having a constant voltage level to determine the voltage levels of symbols. Desirably, the receiver may determine the levels of received symbols using (M−1) reference signals. In order for the receiver to accurately determine the levels is of received symbols, a voltage margin between M symbols may be set to a large value.
However, with an increase of M, the voltage margin between symbols inevitably decreases. Furthermore, when the system is designed for low power consumption, a high-performance device is required to restore the received symbols.
In general, the receiver of the M-PAM system may include a comparison circuit, a decoder, and an output buffer. The comparison circuit is configured to compare an input signal to a reference voltage, amplify the compared signal, and output the amplified signal as a thermometer code. The decoder is configured to convert an output signal of a differential amplifier into corresponding data. The output buffer is configured to amplify the binary signal outputted from the decoder and output the amplified signal.
When the comparison circuit is to compare the input signal to the reference signal it must be able to accurately determine the level of the input signal. A current mode logic (CML) comparator and a CMOS dynamic comparator are widely known as circuits used for the comparison circuit.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a conventional CML comparator.
Referring to FIG. 1, a load is formed by serial connection between an inductor and a resistor. In FIG. 1, VINP and VINM represent analog differential inputs, VRP and VRM represent differential reference voltages, and VOUTP and VOUTM represent is output voltages of the comparator. When complementary clock signals VCLKP and VCLKM are at low and high levels, respectively, cross-coupled switching elements M7 and M8 are turned off, switching elements M3 and M6 are enabled, and the comparator operates as a pre-amplifier. On the other hand, when the complementary clock signals VCLKP and VCLKM transit to high and low levels, respectively, the switching elements M7 and M8 are enabled, and the comparator operates a regenerative latch.
Cascode elements M1 and M2 serve to reduce parasitic capacitance at an output node and improve a regenerative time constant. Furthermore, the cascode elements M1 and M2 prevent noise from being introduced into the reference voltages VRP and VRM. The gate terminals of the cascode elements M1 and M2 are controlled by the clock signal VCLKM, and switching elements M9 and M10 are controlled by the same clock signal VCLKM. Since the source potential of the cascode elements M1 and M2 is higher than the source potential of the switching elements M9 and M10, the cascode elements M1 and M2 are turned on later than the switching elements M9 and M10. Therefore, residual charges from the switching elements M7 and M8 are discharged through the output node, and disturbance between the reference voltages does not occur.
In the CML comparator illustrated in FIG. 1, all amplifiers used therein operate in an active region. Furthermore, when comparing an input voltage to the reference voltage, the CML comparator consumes a current as a tail current at all time. Therefore, the power consumption thereof inevitably increases. Furthermore, since there is a limitation on the range of the input voltage and the reference voltage, it is difficult to acquire high voltage resolution in a low power supply voltage environment. FIG. 1 also illustrates switching elements M4, M5, M11, and M12, power supply voltage VDD, and VSS.
FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a CMOS dynamic comparator. FIG. 2 also illustrates switching elements M25 to M32, power supply voltage VDD, and VSS.
The comparator illustrated in FIG. 2 performs a reset/regenerative operation according to the level of a clock signal CLK, compares input signals INP and INN to reference voltages REFP and REFN, respectively, and generates output voltages OUTP and OUTN at a high or low level.
The CMOS dynamic comparator has an advantage in that it has smaller power consumption than the CML comparator. However, when the levels of the input voltages INP and INN and the reference voltages REFP and REFN are lower than the threshold voltages of amplifiers, that is, switching elements M21 to M24, the amplifiers may be turned off. In this case, the CMOS dynamic comparator cannot operate.
That is, since the input voltage range is limited, it is difficult to guarantee a normal operation in a low power supply voltage environment.

Rail-to-rail comparator, pulse amplitude modulation receiver, and communication system using the same


Disclosed are oral care compositions and the use of such oral care compositions for treating conditions caused by biofilm formation. Also disclosed are methods for inhibiting biofilm formation and/or degrading biofilm. The oral care composition includes a sesquiterpenoid and an antimicrobial agent, in which the sesquiterpenoid and the antimicrobial agent are present in an amount effective to inhibit and/or degrade a biofilm in the oral cavity.

Bisabolol is a natural monocyclic sesquiterpene alcohol. It is commonly found in nature as the principle extract of chamomile. It is used in the cosmetics industry specifically for its skin healing properties, as well as its anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial benefits.
Szalontai, M; Verzár-Petri, G.; Flórián, E.; Gimpel, F., Pharmaz. Ztg, 120, 982 (1975) and Szalontai, M., Verzár-Petri, G.; Flórián, E.; Gimpel, F., Dtsch. Apoth. Ztg. 115, 912 (1975) disclose the bactericidal and fungicidal action of biologically active substances of chamomile including α-bisabolol.
Issac O., Dtsch. Apoth. Ztg 120, 567-570 (1980) discloses that bisabolol has antimicrobial and antimycotic effects.
Luppold O., Pharmazie in unserer Zeit, 13,(1984), 3, p 65-70 discloses that chamomile is an effective remedy in traditional medicine. This document discloses that bisabolol, especially (−)-α-bisabolol is important for the pharmacological action of chamomile oil and have antiphlogistic, spamolytic and antibacterial activity.
Sesquiterpenoids including bisabolol have also been found to increase bacterial permeability to antimicrobial agents. Brehm-Stecher, B. F., Johnson, E. A., Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 47(10), (2003), p 3357-3360 and WO99/66796 each disclose that the sesquiterpenoids nerolidol, farnesol, bisabolol and apritone were found to enhance non-specifically the permeability of cultured bacterial cells to certain exogenous chemical compounds including antimicrobial agents.
A biofilm is a structured group of microorganisms encapsulated within a self-developed polymeric extracellular matrix. Biofilms are typically adhered to a living or inert surface. In the human or animal body biofilms can form on any internal or external surface. Biofilms have been found to be involved in a wide variety of microbial infections in the body and, therefore, cause a number of conditions including urinary tract infections, middle-ear infections, formation of dental plaque and gingivitis.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,116,602 discloses an antiplaque oral composition containing a low concentration of a sesquiterpene alcohol flavour compound to inhibit the formation of dental plaque in the presence of an additive selected from the group consisting of benzoic acid, a preservative, and a polycarboxylate and mixtures thereof, in an oral vehicle. The sesquiterpene alcohol flavour compound is not disclosed as an antimicrobial agent by itself, but must be used in combination with the additives disclosed therein.
JP 58213706 discloses a composition for the oral cavity capable of suppressing and inhibiting the formation of bacterial plaque, preventing dental caries and periodontosis, obtained by blending a composition for an oral cavity with an active ingredient selected from amygdalin, indigo, sanshool, bisabolol and rutin.
JP 2005298357 discloses a composition for the oral cavity containing a biosurfactant selected from a glycolipid produced by the microorganism, a polypeptide produced thereby and a derivative thereof and further contains one, two or more kinds of essential oil components selected from thymol, anethole, eugenol, bisabolol, farnesol and nerolidol.
Microorganisms present in a biofilm have significantly different properties from free-floating microorganisms of the same species. This is because the polymeric extracellular matrix acts to protect the microorganisms from the surrounding environment allows the microorganisms to cooperate and interact in various ways which are not exhibited by free-floating microorganisms. These complex communities of microorganisms present a unique challenge in that they are often resistant to classical means of antimicrobial control. Bacteria living in a biofilm exhibit increased resistance to antibiotics because the dense extracellular matrix and the outer layer of cells protect the interior of the biofilm from the effects of the antibiotics. Therefore, known antimicrobial agents will not have the same effect on bacteria present in a biofilm.
There is a need in the art to provide an improved oral composition capable of inhibiting biofilm formation and degrading biofilms.


Mass spectrometry of large nucleic acids by infrared Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization (MALDI) using a liquid matrix is reported.

Mass spectrometry provides a means of xe2x80x9cweighingxe2x80x9d individual molecules by ionizing the molecules in vacuo and making them xe2x80x9cflyxe2x80x9d by volatilization. Under the influence of combinations of electric and magnetic fields, the ions follow trajectories depending on their individual mass (m) and charge (z). For molecules of low molecular weight, mass spectrometry has long been part of the routine physical-organic repertoire for analysis and characterization of organic molecules by the determination of the mass of the parent molecular ion. In addition, by arranging collisions of this parent molecular ion with other particles (e.g., argon atoms), the molecular ion is fragmented, forming secondary ions by the so-called collision induced dissociation (CID). The fragmentation pattern/pathway very often allows the derivation of detailed structural information.
During the last decade, mass spectrometry (MS) has become an important analytical tool in the analysis of biological macromolecules. This is due at least in part to introduction of the so-called xe2x80x9csoft ionizationxe2x80x9d methods, namely Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization (MALDI) and ElectroSpray Ionization (ESI), which allow intact ionization, detection and exact mass determination of large molecules, i.e. well exceeding 300 kDa in mass (Fenn, J. B., et al., (1989) Science 246, 64-71; Karas M. and Hillenkamp F. (1988) Anal. Chem. 60, 2299-3001).
MALDI-MS (reviewed in (Nordhoff E., et al., (1997) Mass Spectrom. Rev. 15: 67-138) and ESI-MS have been used to analyze nucleic acids. However, since nucleic acids are very polar biomolecules, that are difficult to volatize, there has been an upper mass limit for clear and accurate resolution.
ESI would seem to be superior to MALDI for the intact desorption of large nucleic acids even in the MDa mass range (Fuerstenau S. D. and Benner W. H. (1995). Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 9, 1528-38; Chen R., Cheng X., Mitchell et al., (1995). Anal. Chem. 67, 1159-1163). However, mass assignment is very poor and only possible with an uncertainty of around 10%. The largest nucleic acids that have been accurately mass determined by ESI-MS, so far, are a 114 base pair double stranded PCR product (Muddiman D. C., Wunschel D. S., Lis C., Pasxc3xa2-Tolic L., Fox K. F., Fox A., Anderson G. A. and Smith R. D. (1996) Anal. Chem. 68, 3705-3712) of about 65 kDa in mass and a 120 nucleotide E. coli 5S rRNA of about 39 kDa in mass (Limbach, P. A. Crain, P. F., McCloskey, J. A., (1995) J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom. 6:27-39). ESI furthermore requires extensive sample purification.
A few reports on the MALDI-MS of large DNA molecules with lasers emitting in the ultraviolet (UV) have been reported (Ross P. L. and P. Belgrader (1997) Anal. Chem. 69: 3966-3972; Tang K., et al., (1994) Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrum. 8: 727-730; Bai J., et al., (1995) Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrum. 9: 1172-1176; Liu Y-H-, et al., (1995) Anal. Chem. 67: 3482-3490 and Siegert C. W., et al., (1997) Anal. Biochem. 243, 55-65. However, based on these reports it is clear that analysis of nucleic acids exceeding 30 kDa in mass (i.e. ca. a 100 mer) by UV-MALDI-MS gets increasingly difficult with a current upper mass limit of about 90 kDa (Ross P. L. and P. Belgrader (1997) Anal. Chem. 69: 3966-3972). The inferior quality of the DNA UV-MALDI-spectra has been attributed to a combination of ion fragmentation and multiple salt formation of the phosphate backbone. Since RNA is considerably more stable than DNA under UV-MALDI conditions, the accessible mass range for RNA is up to about 150 kDa (Kirpekar F., et al., (1994). Nucleic Acids Res. 22, 3866-3870).
The analysis of nucleic acids by IR-MALDI with solid matrices (mostly succinic acid and, to a lesser extent, urea and nicotinic acid) has been described (Nordhoff, E. et al., (1992) Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 6: 771-776; Nordhoff, E. et al., (1993) Nucleic Acids Res. 21: 3347-3357; and Nordhoff, E. et al., (1995) J. Mass Spec. 30: 99-112). The 1992 Nordhoff et al., paper reports that a 20-mer of DNA and an 80-mer of RNA were about the uppermost limit for resolution. The 1993 Nordhoff et al. paper, however, provides a distinct spectra for a 26-mer of DNA and a 104-mer of tRNA. The 1995 Nordhoff et al., paper shows a substantially better spectra for the analysis of a 40-mer by UV-MALDI with the solid matrix, 3-hydroxy picolinic acid, than by IR-MALDI with succinic acid (See FIGS. 1(d) and 1(e)). In fact the 1995 paper reports that IR-MALDI resulted in a substantial degree of prompt fragmentation.
Nucleic acid analysis can be useful, for example, for diagnosing the existence of a genetic disease or chromosomal abnormality; a predisposition to a disease or condition, infection by a pathogenic organism or to provide information relating to identity, heredity or compatibility. Since mass spectrometry can be performed relatively quickly and is amenable to automation, improved methods for obtaining accurate mass spectra for larger nucleic acid molecules (e.g. larger than about 90 kDa of DNA and 150 kDa of RNA) are clearly needed.
In one aspect, the invention features processes for rapidly and accurately determining the mass of nucleic acids (e.g. DNA or RNA) using infrared matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (IR-MALDI) mass spectrometry and a liquid matrix.
In a preferred embodiment, a solution containing the nucleic acid and a liquid matrix is deposited onto a substrate to form a homogeneous, transparent thin layer of nucleic acid solution, which is then illuminated with infrared radiation, so that the nucleic acid is desorbed and ionized, thereby emitting ion particles, which are then analyzed using a mass analyzer to determine the identity of the nucleic acid. Preferably, sample preparation and deposition is performed using an automated device.
Preferred liquid matrices for use herein have a sufficient absorption at the wavelength of the laser to be used in performing desorption and ionization and are a liquid (not a solid or a gas) at room temperature (20xc2x0 C.). For absorption purposes, the liquid matrix can contain at least one chromophore or functional group that strongly absorbs infrared radiation. Preferred functional groups include: nitro, sulfonyl, sulfonic acid, sulfonamide, nitrile or cyanide, carbonyl, aldehyde, carboxylic acid, amide, ester, anhydride, ketone, amine, hydroxyl, aromatic rings, dienes and other conjugated systems.
Particularly preferred liquid matrices are substituted or unsubstituted: (1) alcohols, including: glycerol, 1,2- or 1,3-propane diol, 1,2-, 1,3- or 1,4-butane diol, triethanolamine; (2) carboxylic acids including: formic acid, lactic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butanoic acid, pentanoic acid, hexanoic acid and esters thereof; (3) primary or secondary amides including acetamide, propanamide, butanamide, pentanamide and hexanamide, whether branched or unbranched; (4) primary or secondary amines, including propylamine, butylamine, pentylamine, hexylamine, heptylamine, diethylamine and dipropylamine; (5) nitriles, hydrazine and hydrazide.
Preferably, a liquid matrix for use herein, is miscible with a nucleic acid compatible solvent. It is also preferable that the liquid matrix is vacuum stable, i.e. has a low vapor pressure, so that the sample does not evaporate quickly in the mass analyzer. Preferably the liquid should also be of an appropriate viscosity to facilitate dispensing of micro- to nano-liter volumes of matrix alone or mixed with a nucleic acid compatible solvent. Mixtures of different liquid matrices and additives to such matrices may be desirable to confer one or more of the above-described properties.
Once prepared, the nucleic acid/matrix solution is deposited as a thin layer on a substrate, which is preferably contained within a vacuum chamber. Preferred substrates for holding the nucleic acid/matrix solution are selected from the group consisting of: beads, capillaries, flat supports, pins and wafers, with or without filter plates. Preferably the temperature of the substrate can be regulated to cool the nucleic acid/matrix solution to a temperature that is below room temperature.
Preferred infrared radiation is in the mid-IR wavelength region from about 2.5 xcexcm to about 12 xcexcm. Particularly preferred sources of radiation include CO, CO2 and Er lasers. In certain embodiments, the laser can be an optic fiber or the laser radiation can be coupled to the mass spectrometer by fiber optics.
In a further preferred embodiment, the ion particles generated from the analyte are extracted for analysis by the mass analyzer in a delayed fashion prior to separation and detection in a mass analyzer. Preferred separation formats include linear or reflector (with linear and nonlinear fields, e.g. curved field reflectron) time-of-flight (TOF), single or multiple quadrupole, single or multiple magnetic sector, Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) or ion trap mass spectrometers.
Using the processes reported herein, accurate (i.e. at least about 1% accurate) masses of sample DNA can be obtained for at least about 2000-mers of DNA (i.e. masses of at least about 650 kDa) and at least about 1200-mers of RNA (i.e. masses of at least about 400 kDa). In addition, signals of single stranded as well as double stranded nucleic acids can be obtained in the spectra.
The improved accuracy for measuring the mass of deoxyribonucleic acids (DNA) by IR-MALDI mass spectrometry (accuracy of at least about 1%) is far superior to that provided by standard agarose gel sizing of nucleic acids (accuracy of about 5%). Mass determination of ribonucleic acids (RNA) by IR-MALDI mass spectrometry (accuracy of at least about 0.5%) is even more significant, since an accurate size determination of RNA by gel analysis is difficult if not impossible, in part because of the absence of suitable size markers and of a really well-suited gel matrix.
As important as the extension in mass range is the dramatic decrease in the amount of analyte needed for preparation, down to the low femtomole (fmol) and even the attomole (amol) range even with an essentially simple preparation method. In addition, by using a liquid rather than a solid matrix, the ion signals generated have been found to be more reproducible from shot to shot. Use of a liquid matrix also facilitates sample dispensation, for example to various fields of a chip array. Further, by using a liquid matrix in conjunction with IR-MALDI mass spectrometry, essentially all sample left on the target after IR-MALDI analysis can be retrieved for further use.
Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description and claims.

IR MALDI mass spectrometry of nucleic acids using liquid matrices