The invention relates to a gastric restraining device for treating excessive weight or obesity in mammals. The gastric restraining device includes an elastomeric sheet configured to be placed around a stomach of a mammal, an ablation device attached to the elastomeric sheet, the ablation device configured to emit energy toward an outer surface of the stomach when the elastomeric sheet is placed around the stomach, and an energy device coupled to the ablation device to generate the energy and to transfer the energy to the ablation device.

1. Field
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for treating obesity and controlling weight gain in mammals, and more specifically, to an inflatable gastric skirt placed around the stomach to cause a reduced desire for eating for treating obesity and controlling weight gain in mammals.
2. Related Art
Extreme obesity is a major illness in the United States and other developed countries. More than half of Americans are overweight, while nearly one-third are categorized as obese. Obesity is the accumulation of excess fat on the body, and is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 30. Many serious long-term health consequences are associated with obesity, such as, hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, venous disease, multiple orthopedic problems and pulmonary insufficiency with markedly decreased life expectancy.
Medical management of obesity including dietary, psychotherapy, medications and behavioral modification techniques have yielded extremely poor results in terms of treating obesity. Several surgical procedures have been tried which have bypassed the absorptive surface of the small intestine or have been aimed at reducing the stomach size by either partition or bypass. These procedures have been proven both hazardous to perform in morbidly obese patients and have been fraught with numerous life-threatening postoperative complications. Moreover, such operative procedures are often difficult to reverse.
One procedure for treating morbid obesity is referred to as a "biliopancreatic diversion." Biliopancreatic diversion surgery is a reduction of the stomach volume and a diversion of food from the stomach to the final segment of the small intestine, bypassing the beginning and middle portions of the small intestine to limit the amount of nutrients and calories absorbed by the body. This procedure removes about one half of the stomach, and then connects the stomach to the last 250 cm of the small intestine. Some disadvantages of this surgery include patients suffering from protein malnutrition, anemia, gastric retention, diarrhea, abdominal bloating, and intestinal obstruction.
Another bariatric surgery, "gastric bypass," is a bypass connecting the lower compartment of the stomach to the initial portion of the small intestine. This procedure limits the amount of food that can be ingested at one sitting and reduces absorption of food across the small intestine. In addition to surgical complications, patients may also suffer from acute gastric dilation, anastomotic leak, anemia, and dumping syndrome.
Yet another bariatric surgical procedure is "vertical-banded gastroplasty," which restricts the volume of the stomach by using staples. In this procedure, staples are placed in the upper stomach region to create a small pouch with a narrow outlet to the remaining portion of the stomach. A band is placed around the narrow outlet to provide support and inhibit stretching of the stomach. In addition to surgical complications, patients undergoing this procedure may suffer from vomiting, ulcers, band erosion, and leaks.
Recently, minimally invasive procedures and devices which create a feeling of early satiety have been introduced into the marketplace in an attempt to address some of the issues above. The LAP-BAND® is a band which encircles the stomach at the region of the fundus-cardia junction; it is a restrictive procedure similar to stomach stapling. The procedure requires general anesthesia, a pneumoperitoneum, muscle paralysis, and extensive dissection of the stomach at the region of the gastro esophageal junction. The procedure also requires continual adjustment of the band, or restriction of a portion of the device. Although less invasive than other bariatric surgical procedures and potentially reversible, the LAP-BAND® does not reduce the volume of the stomach by any great extent and some patients report a feeling of hunger most of the time. Furthermore, once implanted, the LAP-BAND®, although it is adjustable by percutaneous means, may require many iterative adjustments before it is optimally positioned. In addition, the port used to adjust the LAP-BAND® is left inside the patient's body.
Therefore, there is a need for minimally-invasive procedures and devices that eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks of conventional methods and devices that are currently being used to treat obesity.

Gastric restriction devices with fillable chambers and ablation means for treating obesity


An LED printer apparatus or the like and method of controlling same is described wherein a sensor is provided at the focal plane of a lens means used to focus light from the LED's onto a film. This allows the sensor to provide corrections during actual printing operations. In response to the light sensed, adjustments are made by altering drive current to the LED's and/or changing the duration of an exposure period.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to non-impact printer apparatus and methods of controlling same and particularly to those non-impact printers employing a plurality of recording elements emitting light for recording upon a photosensitive recording medium.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,850,517, light-emitting diode (LED) arrays for use in printing are described. Specifically, printing may be accomplished by selectively turning selected LED's on or off to modulate the charge upon a photosensitive recording medium such as photographic film or upon an electrostatically charged photoconductor. In the case of the photoconductor, the modulation of the electrostatic charge may be developed with appropriate charged toners and a permanent record made by transferring and fusing the toned image to a receiver sheet such as plain paper, for example. In order to provide image quality that is satisfactory, it is required that the amount of light used to create each pixel (picture element) of image information be controlled so that exposure upon the recording medium will not be over or underexposed. To this end, the aforementioned patent provides a prism with a linear photocell in the exposure path. A portion of the light reaches the photocells and another portion impinges upon the recording medium. The LED's are driven sequentially; i.e., during a period for exposing one line of pixels, i.e., one is on and then turned off and then the next LED turns on. The electronic controls determine when enough light has impinged upon the photocell, and hence the recording medium, and turns the LED off and the next LED to be illuminated is turned on and so on. A problem with this type of printer is that it would be desirable to record a line of pixels simultaneously. In order to do so with the described printer, such would require a timing circuit for each LED where thousands of LED's on a printhead are typical.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,780,731, the contents of which are incorporated herein by this reference, describes an LED printhead where control over LED activation times is made electronically. Photoelements are moved into position either by traversing one across the printhead from LED to LED or by swinging an entire assembly of photoelements into position. The photoelements measure LED light output during periods when printing is not occurring and determine the need for adjustment of LED activation times. As noted in this patent, the required activation time for each LED changes during the life of the LED printhead; i.e., aging effect, and also changes dependent upon the operating temperature of the printhead.
A problem with this prior art printer apparatus is that in measuring the light output of the LED's, measurements are not made at the focal plane of the lens. Because of this, one is required either to make the measurements for each LED one at a time to avoid cross-talk or to remove the recording medium and move the photosensor into position at the focal plane. The latter is very undesirable, particularly when corrective measurements are to be made frequently during the life of the printhead.
The objects of the invention are therefore to overcome the disadvantages noted in the prior art.

LED printhead with post lens optical feedback and method of controlling same


An surgical apparatus and method are described for manipulating one or more osteochondral plugs, including, but not limited to, extracting and/or impacting the one or more osteochondral plugs.

The present disclosure relates to osteochondral implants or plugs and, more particularly, to a surgical apparatus and method for manipulating one or more osteochondral plugs, including, but not limited to, extracting and/or impacting the one or more osteochondral plugs.
Osteochondral plugs may be extracted from, and/or impacted into, various locations in the human body. For example, one or more osteochondral plugs may be impacted into the knee of the human body. More particularly, in the human body, the knee consists of three bones—a femur, a tibia, and a patella—that are held in place by various ligaments. The chondral surfaces of the femur and the tibia form a hinge joint, and the patella protects the joint. Portions of the chondral surfaces of the femur and the tibia, as well as the underside of the patella, are covered with an articular cartilage which allow the femur and the tibia to smoothly glide against each other without causing damage. A menicus sits between the articular cartilage and the bone to distribute weight and to improve the stability of the joint. The articular cartilage often tears, usually due to traumatic injury (often seen in athletics) and degenerative processes (seen in older patients). This tearing does not heal well due to the lack of nerves, blood vessels and lymphatic systems and the resultant knee pain and swelling and limited motion of the bone(s) and must be addressed.
Damaged adult cartilage has historically been treated by a variety of surgical interventions including lavage, arthroscopic debridement, and repair stimulation, all of which provide less than optimum results. Another known treatment involves removal and replacement of the damaged cartilage with a prosthetic device. However, the known artificial prostheses have largely been unsuccessful since they are deficient in the elastic, and therefore in the shock-absorbing, properties characteristic of the cartilage. Moreover, the known artificial devices have not proven able to withstand the forces inherent to routine knee joint function.
In an attempt to overcome the problems associated with the above techniques, osteochondral transplantation, also known as "mosaicplasty" has been used to repair articular cartilage. This procedure involves removing injured tissue from the articular defect and drilling openings such as, for example, cylindrical holes in the base of the defect and underlying bone. Osteochondral plugs such as, for example, cylindrically shaped osteochondral plugs of healthy cartilage and bone, are obtained from another area of the patient, typically from a lower-bearing region of the joint under repair, or from a donor patient, and are implanted in the drilled holes. (The term "autograft" refers to tissue or cells which originate with or are derived from the recipient, whereas the term "allograft" refers to cells and tissue which originate with, or are derived from, a donor of the same species as the recipient, in this case, another human.)
However, one or more problems or issues may arise in connection with an osteochondral transplantation procedure. For example, multiple instruments may be required during the osteochondral transplantation, with one or more instruments being used for each step in the procedure, thereby possibly increasing the time spent during, and the overall costs and/or complexity of, the procedure. Moreover, in procedures involving multiple osteochondral plugs, the one or more sites containing healthy bone and cartilage may need to be revisited several times, from the articular defect, in order to complete the transplantation, thereby also possibly increasing the time spent during, and the overall costs and/or complexity of, the procedure. Also, during the impacting of one or more osteochondral plugs, the operator may not be able to adequately determine the amount of force that is being applied to each of the osteochondral plugs, and therefore may not be able to know whether enough force has been applied to suitably impact each of the osteochondral plugs, or whether too great a force is being applied against the osteochondral plugs during the impacting.
In view of all of the above and/or other considerations, what is needed is an apparatus and/or method for manipulating one or more osteochondral plugs, including, but not limited to, extracting and/or implanting the one or more osteochondral plugs, that overcomes one or more of the above-described problems, among other problems.

Surgical apparatus and method for manipulating one or more osteochondral plugs


A battery module includes: a battery cell assembly having a plurality of battery cells; a top plate configured to cover an upper side of the battery cell assembly; a bottom plate configured to cover a lower side of the battery cell assembly; a sensing assembly disposed to cover a front side and a rear side of the battery cell assembly; a pair of side plates disposed at side surfaces, respectively, of the battery cell assembly; and a pair of compression pads disposed between the pair of side plates and the battery cell assembly, respectively.

Secondary batteries which are highly applicable to various products and exhibit superior electrical properties such as high energy density, etc. are commonly used not only in portable devices but also in electric vehicles (EVs) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) driven by electrical power sources. The secondary battery is drawing attentions as a new energy source for enhancing environment friendliness and energy efficiency in that the use of fossil fuels can be reduced greatly and no byproduct is generated during energy consumption.
Secondary batteries widely used at present include lithium ion batteries, lithium polymer batteries, nickel cadmium batteries, nickel hydrogen batteries, nickel zinc batteries and the like. An operating voltage of the unit secondary battery cell, namely a unit battery cell, is about 2.5V to 4.5V. Therefore, if a higher output voltage is required, a plurality of battery cells may be connected in series to configure a battery pack. In addition, depending on the charge/discharge capacity required for the battery pack, a plurality of battery cells may be connected in parallel to configure a battery pack. Thus, the number of battery cells included in the battery pack may be variously set according to the required output voltage or the demanded charge/discharge capacity.
Meanwhile, when a plurality of battery cells are connected in series or in parallel to configure a battery pack, it is common to configure a battery module having at least one battery cell first, and then configure a battery pack by using at least one battery module and adding other components.
In recent years, the demand for battery modules and battery packs that may realize a high energy density while maintaining a more compact size in accordance with the slimming trend has been gradually increasing.
Accordingly, it is required to find a way to realize a more compact size while further securing a greater space for the battery cells provided in the battery module or the battery pack.

Battery module, battery pack including same battery module, and automobile including same battery pack


There is described an analyzer capping element for blocking off air access to pipette tips, such capping element being mounted for automatic unblocking directly in response to movement of a test element into position for pipette dispensing.

Analyzers used to test body liquids for their concentration of analytes often use slide-like test elements. A small amount of a patient sample liquid is dispensed from a pipette onto such a test element, which is then incubated and "read" for a detectable change indicative of the concentration of analyte. Frequently, "n" dispensing steps occur from the same patient sample, onto "n" different test elements to run "n" different assays. This requires each sample at the pipette to remain at the dispensing station until all the "n" dispensing events are made. (The sample is usually contained in a disposable tip in the pipette.)
In high speed analyzers, little delay occurs between each of those "n" dispensing events. However, in some newer analyzers, delays as much as 3.5 minutes can occur between sequential dispensing. An example includes those analyzers that have the detecting or "read" station located off the incubator, and which test for rate assays as well as end-point assays. Such rate assays require a single test element to remain at the detecting station for one minute or more, while as many as 95 separate readings are taken to confirm the rate of change of the signal. This means that the incubator upstream is unable to offload any other test elements. This in turn prevents new test elements from having sample liquid dispensed thereon, since there is no room in the incubator to place them. Thus, the pipette has to delay substantially, with exposed sample in the tip, until the next amount of sample can be dispensed.
A delay between sequential dispensing by the pipette is particularly significant if the patient sample has high amounts of protein, as is often the case. Without a cover placed over the exposed dispensing tip, such sample can dry up, plugging the tip to prevent the next dispensing step. Alternatively, the analyte concentration can be unacceptably altered due to sample evaporation at the tip.
Pipette tips have been covered in the past to prevent this problem. However, such constructions have involved either operator-handling of the covers (to remove them and replace them), or separate analyzer actuation in response to the operator or a signal indirectly responsive to a new test element entering the system. Separate operator intervention is undesirable as it is a source of errors and delays. Any automated operation of tip covers that is only indirect, is also subject to delays and errors due to separate action required by the analyzer.
What has been needed, prior to this invention, particularly in analyzers having significant delays between sequential dispensing of patient sample, is capping means for the pipette tips that are directly operated, that is, removed, by the presence of a test element ready for dispensing. In this way, the tip uncovering is only responsive to the direct presence of the test element to be spotted, and there is avoided the chance of error that is possible with less direct actuation or removal of the capping means.

Automated capping means for analyzer pipette


A container designed for protecting and displaying flowers. The container comprising interchangeable, rectangular lid and base components. The components are preferably made of plastic, such as polyethylene tetrafluoride. Each component has two outwardly extending rims. One rim has a male protrusion and the other has a female recess. In operation, the two sides of opposing lid and base components form a loose joint. Each component also has two end portions. Each end portion has an interlocking lip. The lips extend over halfway across each end portion. Lips on opposing lid and base components are forced past each other to interlock and hold the container together. The components also have a rectangular extension at one end for hanging the container on display or hanging the components in storage.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to containers, and more particularly to flower containers for displaying and protecting cut flowers.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Flowers are pleasing to look at and smell. They bring back fond memories of precious moments and childhood. People often give flowers to someone they care for to show genuine affection. To this end, flowers and stems are cut from their roots and packaged for resale. A package for selling flowers should showcase the beauty of the flower to attract customers. Wilted or damaged flowers are not wanted by customers. Therefore, a package for selling flowers must also protect the flowers from the elements and handling.
The package for selling flowers must be durable, disposable, and inexpensive. In today's marketplace, flowers are sold in a variety of locations including specialty shops, drug stores, retail food outlets and street corners. In the past, flowers have been sold either without a package or wrapped in tissue paper. These techniques give the flower very little, or no, protection and are not suitable for the market channels flowers are sold in today.
Inexpensive, disposable containers for marketing, storing, packaging and serving various foods are well known. These containers commonly use at least two different components. However, this requires the stocking of several non-interchangeable components, taking up a large amount of storage space.
Food containers having interchangeable top and bottom portions have been built in the past. U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,738, issued to Kidd et al., discloses a container having a tray component and an independent cover component. The tray and cover are interchangeable, each providing a laterally extending rim. The rim is divided into two halves, one half interlocking with the second half when the tray and cover components are in a closed position. This provides a very securely locked container and an almost completely sealed compartment for transporting food. Material inside the container of the Kidd et al. patent can be observed through the cover. However, the container of the Kidd et al. patent is more securely locked and sealed than needed for protecting flowers. A flower container must let the flower breathe.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,999,611, issued to Paulson, discloses a rectangular container having interchangeable top and bottom halves. Each section has a continuous main wall and a pair of auxiliary walls at diagonal corners. The auxiliary walls are offset outwardly and extend about half-way around the main wall. A post-like abutment on the inner side of each main wall, at diagonal corners, assists in aligning the sections for assembly. A nib, attached to the main wall, fits into a socket for locking the two sections together. The container of the Paulson patent is not designed for protecting a flower. The overlapping auxiliary walls and the nib & socket arrangement seal the container more tightly than needed or desired for flowers. A flower container needs to breathe so excess moisture can be given off and lack of moisture remedied by surrounding conditions.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,620,403, issued to Rump, discloses a thin-walled thermoplastic container having an identically shaped triangular top and bottom. The top and bottom have an outwardly extending rim with a flanged portion for interlocking with the opposing rim. This container is designed for carrying food, such as pies and cakes. The container is not designed to breathe.
A container for carrying at least one flower and having the capacity to protect and display the flower while allowing the flower to breathe is not shown in the above references.

Rose box with interchangeable lid and base


A method for refilling an emptied hydraulic coupler of a fuel injector comprises the steps of: connecting a pressure generator to a return line of the fuel injector; operating the pressure generator in order to generate a return pressure in the return line; operating the fuel injector. The method can also include the step of monitoring the pressure level in the return line.

The purpose of the injectors in a fuel injection system is to inject the fuel volume requested by the control unit into the combustion chamber of the engine at a predefined point in time. Common rail diesel injection systems having so-called piezo injectors, which have a piezoelectrically driven actuator module, have been in production use for several years. One of the special design features of piezo injectors is the hydraulic coupler. The hydraulic coupler equalizes temperature-related changes in the length of the actuator module. One prerequisite for proper functioning of the injector is that the coupler space be completely filled with fuel during operation. An incompressible liquid volume in the coupler space then allows force to be transferred from the actuator to the switching valve of the injector.
A further prerequisite for proper functioning of the injector is that a counter-pressure be present in the injector return line. The counter-pressure is generated as a rule by a constant pressure valve (CPV) or a throttling element located in the injector return line.
If the coupler space is not completely filled with fuel, and if instead an air cushion has accumulated in the coupler space, this results in negative effects on injector function. Force transfer from the actuator to the switching valve is impaired as a result of the compressibility of the air/fuel mixture in the coupler space. The injection volume decreases as a function of the size of the enclosed air volume; in the worst case the injection volume becomes zero. The result of this is that the engine is no longer capable of running.
The air inclusion can result, for example, from repair work on the fuel system, running the tank dry, defects in the constant pressure valve, fuel degassing effects, or incorrect installation or storage of the injector.
Lack of counter-pressure in the return line, as well as failure to inject because of an empty coupler, result in engine missing and failure to start. Neither defect can be detected by the control unit; this makes fault localization very difficult.
Also known are numerous end-of-the-line faults in which vehicles can no longer be started because of empty couplers or defective constant pressure valves. The subsequent troubleshooting in such cases is always complex.
In order to restore injector function and allow the engine to run again, the only possibility that remains in many cases is to replace emptied injectors with new parts. As delivered, the injectors are filled at the factory with a testing oil in order to ensure injector function.
British Published Patent Appln. No. 2 277 386 describes a diagnostic system for detecting malfunctioning fuel injectors for an internal combustion engine, having an injector controller for individual application of control to the injectors, which are connected to a fuel distributor. Pressure sensors are mounted on the fuel distributor in order to detect pressure waves that result from the operation of the individual injectors.
A signal processing apparatus is provided in order to process the pressure signals of the pressure sensors. The output signal of the signal processing apparatus corresponds to the fuel flow rate through the fuel injectors. An output signal of this kind can be used to inform an operator of the engine of a malfunction of the fuel injectors. The output signal can also be delivered to a fuel injector control apparatus in order to adapt the actuation duration of the injectors so that a desired flow rate for each activation is achieved.

Method and device for refilling and checking the leak-tightness of a fuel injector


A method for improving fuel efficiency and energy efficiency, while maintaining or improving deposit control and cleanliness performance, in an engine lubricated with a lubricating oil by using as the lubricating oil a formulated oil. The formulated oil includes a base oil mixture. The base oil mixture includes a lubricating oil base stock as a major component, and at least one cobase stock, as a minor component. The at least one cobase stock is present in an amount sufficient to reduce kinematic viscosity (Kv100) of the base oil mixture as determined by ASTM D445, while maintaining or controlling cold cranking simulator viscosity (CCSV) of the lubricating oil as determined by ASTM D5293-15, such that the lubricating oil meets both kinematic viscosity (Kv100) and cold cranking simulator viscosity (CCSV) requirements for a SAE engine oil grade as determined by SAE J300 viscosity grade classification system. A lubricating oil having a composition including a lubricating oil base stock as a major component, and at least one cobase stock, as a minor component.

Fuel efficiency and energy efficiency requirements for passenger vehicles are becoming increasingly more stringent. New legislation in the United States and European Union within the past few years has set fuel economy and emissions targets not readily achievable with today's vehicle and lubricant technology.
Over the last decade, the global trend toward tighter carbon dioxide emission regulations has resulted in automobile manufacturers requiring higher levels of fuel economy performance for engine oils. One of the changes car makers are imposing is a slow but steady shift toward lower viscosity grade engine oils such as SAE 0W-20 and SAE 0W-16. Despite this trend, SAE 5W-20, 5W-30, and 10W-30 oils are still key viscosity grades used by many autobuilders and widely sold in the marketplace. Therefore, strategies to improve fuel economy for "5W" and 10W viscosity grade engine oils are of paramount importance to meet tightening fuel economy requirements of new engine oil specifications.
To address these increasing standards, automotive original equipment manufacturers are demanding better fuel economy as a lubricant-related performance characteristic, while maintaining deposit control requirements. One well known way to increase fuel economy is to decrease the viscosity of the lubricating oil. However, this approach is now reaching the limits of current equipment capabilities and specifications. At a given viscosity, it is well known that adding organic or organo-metallic friction modifiers reduces the surface friction of the lubricating oil and allows for better fuel economy. However these additives often bring with them detrimental effects such as increased deposit formation, seals impacts, or they out-compete the antiwear components for limited surface sites, thereby not allowing the formation of an antiwear film, causing increased wear.
Contemporary lubricants such as engine oils use mixtures of additives such as dispersants, detergents, inhibitors, viscosity index improvers and the like to provide engine cleanliness and durability under a wide range of performance conditions of temperature, pressure, and lubricant service life.
Lubricant-related performance characteristics such as high temperature deposit control and fuel economy are extremely advantageous attributes as measured by a variety of bench and engine tests. As indicated above, it is known that adding organic friction modifiers to a lubricant formulation imparts frictional benefits at low temperatures, consequently improving the lubricant fuel economy performance. At high temperatures, however, adding increased levels of organic friction modifier can invite high temperature performance issues. For example, engine deposits are undesirable consequences of high levels of friction modifier in an engine oil formulation at high temperature engine operation.
Improved energy efficiency is of paramount importance to nearly all automobile and equipment manufacturers. Improved fuel economy and energy efficiency can often be achieved by using lower viscosity lubricants or by reducing the kinematic viscosity at 100° C. of the base oil mixture used to formulate an engine oil (Crosthwait et al. "The Effect of High Quality Base Stocks on PCMO Fuel Economy" LW-99-126), however often the higher volatility of such lower viscosity fluids becomes an issue. While there are efforts to develop low viscosity, low volatility base stocks, such fluids will likely produce SAE 5W-30, SAE 5W-20, and SAE 10W-30 oils with very high base oil kinematic viscosity at 100° C. Such oils would struggle to meet industry fuel economy requirements because of a very Newtonian character. SAE 5W-30 and SAE 5W-20 viscosity grades currently represent a large volume of lubricants sold in the United States, therefore low viscosity, low volatility base stocks having improved the fuel economy and energy efficiency of these viscosity grades, without compromising other performance characteristics, are of significant business value.
A major challenge in engine oil formulation is simultaneously achieving high temperature deposit control while also achieving improved fuel economy.
Despite the advances in lubricant oil formulation technology, there exists a need for engine oil lubricants that effectively improve fuel economy while maintaining or improving deposit control.
The present disclosure also provides many additional advantages, which shall become apparent as described below.

Method for improving engine fuel efficiency and energy efficiency

EXXONMOBIL RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING COMPANY


Before restarting an IS-IS protocol process, the first device sends an IIH packet with a RR flag set and a hold time field being a first predetermined value to a second device. The first predetermined value is greater than a normal value of a hold time kept in the second device for the first device, and the first device establishes an adjacency with the second device. After receiving an IIH packet with a RA flag replied by the second device, the first device restarts the IS-IS protocol process and starts to execute a GR process. The IIH packet with the RA flag set is replied by the second device after the second device updates the hold time kept in the second device for the first device according to the first predetermined value.

Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System (IS-IS) protocol is a dynamic routing protocol originally designed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to operate on the connectionless network protocol (CLNP).
In IS-IS, all link states in the network forms a link state database (LSDB). There is at least one LSDB in each IS. The IS uses a shortest path first (SPF) algorithm and LSDB to generate its own routes. Each IS can generate a link State Protocol Data Unit (LSPDU) or link state packet (LSP) which contains all the link state information of the IS. Each IS collects all the LSPs in the local area to generate its own LSDB.
Graceful Restart (GR) is a mechanism that enables a device to forward data uninterruptedly when it performs an active/standby switchover or restarts a routing protocol. When a GR-capable device restarts a routing protocol, it notifies the event to its neighbors, which then maintain adjacencies and the routing information of the device within a specified interval. After the protocol is restarted, the device retrieves the information (topology, routing and session information maintained by the protocol supporting GR) from the neighbors and restores the state before reboot. During the restart process, no route flapping occurs and no forwarding path is changed. Thus, the system can operate continuously. IS-IS GR can ensure the service continuity of an IS-IS-enabled device such as a router during active/standby switchover or IS-IS restart.

Realizing graceful restart in IS-IS network

HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT LP


A sun visor holder for supporting a supporting bar of a sun visor includes a main body and a plug member formed on the main body and insertable into a mounting opening formed on an automobile body. The plug member has a slit for vertically splitting same and has a through bore into which a fastening member is received. The through bore includes a tapered surface extending along the slit. The plug member is flared by virtue of the slit so as to be held in the mounting opening when the fastening member is inserted into the through bore of the plug member fitted to the mounting opening formed on the automobile body, whereby the main body is fixed to the automobile body.

The present invention relates to a sun visor holder for stably holding a supporting arm of a sun visor, and particularly to a sun visor holder having a specific mounting mechanism for mounting same on an automobile body.
As shown in FIG. 7, a sun visor 101 for an automobile is generally rotatably connected to an L-shaped supporting arm 103 at one end portion thereof. The supporting arm 103 is mounted on a roof panel 102 of an automobile body, thereby mounting the sun visor 101 on the roof panel 102. Provided on the other end portion of the sun visor 101 is a supporting bar 104 which is held by a sun visor holder 105 fixedly mounted on the roof panel 102. With this arrangement, the sun visor 101 can be rotated around the supporting arm 103 and the holding bar 104.
FIG. 8 is sectional view showing a conventional sun visor holder 105 mounted on the roof panel 102. As shown therein, the sun visor holder 105 includes a main body 105A. Formed on the lower surface of the main body 105A is a hook-like holding portion 111 which may receive the supporting bar 104 therein as the sun visor holder 105 is affixed to the roof panel 102. The main body 105A includes a positioning pin 106 which projects upwardly from the upper surface thereof. The main body 105A also includes a vertical stepped bore 109 formed therethrough.
The sun visor holder 105 is located on the roof panel 102 by inserting the positioning pin 106 into a through hole 107 formed on the roof panel 102. The sun visor holder 105 is then affixed to the roof panel 102 by screwing a threaded fastener 110 into a threaded bore 108 formed on the roof panel 102 through the stepped bore 109. As will be appreciated, the through hole 107 and the threaded bore 108 are previously formed on the roof panel 102 so as to align with the positioning pin 106 and the stepped bore 109, respectively.
A problem usually associated with the conventional sun visor holder 105 is that since the sun visor holder 105 is affixed to the roof panel 102 by the threaded fastener 110, the threaded fastener 110 may loosen due to vibrations from the automobile body, thereby causing chattering of the sun visor holder 105. This may lead to poor performance of the sun visor holder 105, thereby causing undesirable vibrations of the sun visor 101. In extreme case, loosening of the threaded fastener 110 may lead to a completely falling off of the sun visor holder 105 from the roof panel 102.
Another problem usually associated with the prior art sun visor holder 105 is that the threaded fastener 110 is screwed to affix the sun visor holder 105 to the roof panel 102, thereby increasing work time for mounting the sun visor holder 105 on the roof panel 102.


A production of a capacitor includes the simultaneous production, in at least part of an intertrack insulating layer (3) associated with a given metallization level, on the one hand, of the two electrodes (50, 70) and of the dielectric layer (60) of the capacitor and, on the other hand, of a conducting trench (41) which laterally extends the lower electrode of the capacitor, is electrically isolated from the upper electrode and has a transverse dimension smaller than the transverse dimension of the capacitor, and the production, in the interlevel insulating layer (8) covering the intertrack insulating layer, of two conducting pads (80, 81) which come into contact with the upper electrode of the capacitor and with the conducting trench, respectively.

This application is based upon and claims priority from prior French Patent Application No. 0010727, filed on Aug. 18, 2000, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the fabrication of integrated circuits and more particularly to the production of xe2x80x9cmetal-metalxe2x80x9d capacitors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Among the various types of capacitor that can appear within an integrated circuit on a semiconductor chip, for example a silicon chip, mention may be made of capacitors known as xe2x80x9cpolysilicon-siliconxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cpolysilicon-polysiliconxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cmetal-metalxe2x80x9d capacitors, depending on the composition of their electrodes.
Capacitors known as xe2x80x9cmetal-metalxe2x80x9d capacitors, that is to say those in which the two electrodes are made of metal, allow capacitors of high capacitance to be produced and offer the advantage of having a very small variation in the capacitance depending on the voltage that is applied to them. Furthermore, they have a very small resistive component. Thus, xe2x80x9cmetal-metalxe2x80x9d capacitors are advantageously used in radio-frequency applications.
An integrated circuit generally comprises electronic components, for example transistors, produced within a semiconductor substrate, and various metallization levels making it possible in particular to produce interconnect tracks between the various components of the integrated circuit. Each metallization level then generally has, after a metal layer has been etched, several interconnect tracks located at this same level that are mutually separated by an intertrack insulating layer. The metallization level immediately above is then produced on an interlevel insulating layer covering the lower metallization level. Interconnection between tracks located at two adjacent metallization levels is achieved by interconnect holes filled with a fill metal, for example tungsten, and usually called by those skilled in the art xe2x80x9cviasxe2x80x9d.
A known process for fabricating a metal-metal capacitor within an integrated circuit consists in producing one of the electrodes of the capacitor at the same time as all of the interconnect tracks of a given metallization level. On this given metallization level is then deposited an interlevel insulating layer intended to support the metallization level immediately above it. An aperture emerging above the first electrode of the capacitor is then etched in this interlevel insulating layer and then a thin layer of dielectric, for example generally silicon dioxide or possibly silicon nitride, is then deposited. The aperture is then filled, by deposition followed by planarization, with fill metal, typically tungsten. Next, the metal layer of the metallization level immediately above is deposited and etched so as to produce the interconnect tracks of this metallization level, and the second electrode of the metal-metal capacitor.
In other words, according to this solution, the two electrodes of the metal-metal capacitor are produced on two metallization levels.
In other solutions, provisions are made to produce the two electrodes of the metal-metal capacitor using a single conducting level.
Thus, in French Patent Application No. 2 766 294, the two metal electrodes and the dielectric layer of the capacitor are produced virtually on one metallization level, the lower electrode of the capacitor resulting from etching of the metal layer intended to form the various tracks of the metallization level.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,008,083 describes another way of producing a metal-metal capacitor whose two electrodes are produced within the same interlevel insulating layer. However, the production of such a capacitor requires, prior to the production of the lower electrode, the formation of a pad contacting this lower electrode and produced within the lower metallization level.
Accordingly, there exists a need for overcoming the disadvantages of the prior art as discussed above.
The aim of the invention is to produce a metal-metal capacitor using a single conducting level, but according to a process which is completely different from those used in the prior art and especially requiring no formation, prior to that of the first electrode, of a contact pad allowing connection to the lower electrode.
According to an aspect of the invention a preferred embodiment provides production processes that are compatible with a process of the xe2x80x9cdamascenexe2x80x9d type using the term well known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
According to an aspect of the invention a preferred embodiment provides a process that allows the production, at the same level, of a capacitor and of a metal track belonging to this metallization level.
A subject of the invention is therefore a process for fabricating an integrated circuit, comprising the production of several metallization levels, which are mutually separated by interlevel insulating layers, and of intertrack insulating layers each separating the tracks of the same metallization level. The process also comprises the production of at least one capacitor comprising a lower electrode and an upper electrode which are mutually separated by a dielectric layer.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the production of the capacitor comprises:
the simultaneous production, in at least part of an intertrack insulating layer associated with a given metallization level, on the one hand, of the two electrodes and of the dielectric layer of the capacitor and, on the other hand, of a conducting trench which laterally extends the lower electrode of the capacitor, is electrically isolated from the upper electrode and has a transverse dimension smaller than the transverse dimension of the capacitor; and
the production, in the interlevel insulating layer covering the intertrack insulating layer, of two conducting pads which come into contact with the upper electrode of the capacitor and with the conducting trench, respectively.
In other words, the invention, by simultaneously producing the capacitor and the lateral trench, provides for the contacting of the two electrodes of the capacitor from the top of the integrated circuit. The invention therefore in no way requires the formation, prior to that of the capacitor, of a lower contact pad for connection to the lower electrode.
According to one method of implementing the process according to the invention, the production of the capacitor and of the trench comprises:
a) the formation of the intertrack insulating layer on an interlevel insulating layer;
b) the etching of at least part of the intertrack insulating layer so as to form a cavity having a main part laterally extended by the trench;
c) the formation of a first layer of a first conducting material, for example copper or aluminium, on the structure obtained in step b) and the formation of a layer of a dielectric, for example silicon dioxide, on the first layer; and
d) the formation of a second layer of a second conducting material, for example also copper or aluminium, on the dielectric layer so as to fill the main part of the cavity, the dimensions of the trench and the thicknesses of the first layer and of the dielectric layer being chosen so as to obtain, after step d), a trench comprising at least the first conducting material but not containing the second conducting material (the trench possibly containing dielectric material);
e) chemical-mechanical polishing of the multilayer stack formed in steps c) and d) so as to leave, in the main part of the cavity, the capacitor whose lower electrode is formed from a residual part of the first layer coating the internal walls of the cavity and whose upper electrode is formed from a residual part of the second layer, which is separated from the residual part of the first layer by a residual part of the dielectric layer, and to leave, in the trench, another residual part of the first layer coating at least the internal walls of the trench, to the exclusion of any residual part of the second layer.
The first conducting layer and the dielectric layer are formed in step c) by a conformal coating. In this case, the width of the trench is preferably at least twice the thickness of the first conducting layer and less than twice the sum of the thickness of the first conducting layer and of the thickness of the dielectric layer.
Depending on the dimensions of the trench, the latter may comprise only the conducting material forming the first electrode, or possibly the conducting material forming the first layer and a residual part of the dielectric material.
The invention also makes it possible, advantageously, to produce the tracks of the given metallization level simultaneously with the formation of the upper electrode of the capacitor.
Thus, according to one method of implementing a preferred embodiment of the invention, the production of the tracks of the given metallization level comprises:
after step c), etching of the dielectric layer, of the first conducting layer and of the intertrack insulating layer so as to form at least one auxiliary trench (defining the location of a track);
the deposition of the second conducting layer carried out in step d) so as to fill the trench or trenches; and
the chemical-mechanical polishing carried out in step e) so as to remove the first conducting layer, the dielectric layer and the second conducting layer from the surface of the intertrack insulating layer.
The subject of the invention is also an integrated circuit comprising several metallization levels, which are mutually separated by interlevel insulating layers, and intertrack insulating layers each separating the tracks of the same metallization level. The integrated circuit also includes at least one capacitor comprising a lower electrode and an upper electrode that are mutually separated by a dielectric layer.
According to a general aspect of the invention, the capacitor is located in at least part of an intertrack insulating layer associated with a given metallization level. The lower electrode of the capacitor is laterally extended by a conducting trench that is electrically isolated from the upper electrode and has a transverse dimension smaller than the transverse dimension of the capacitor. The integrated circuit also comprises, in the interlevel insulating layer covering the intertrack insulating layer, two conducting pads which come into contact with the upper electrode of the capacitor and with the conducting trench, respectively.
According to one embodiment of the integrated circuit according to the invention, the trench comprises only the conducting material forming the lower electrode.
In another embodiment of the invention, the trench may only comprise the dielectric encapsulated by the conducting material forming the lower electrode.
However, in all cases, the trench contains no conducting material forming the second electrode.
Moreover, the tracks of the given metallization level are advantageously formed from the same material as that forming the upper electrode of the capacitor.

Process for fabricating a capacitor within an integrated circuit, and corresponding integrated circuit


An apparatus and method for determining directionality of acoustic signals arriving from an acoustic source is disclosed. A plurality of reflectors for modifying the acoustic signals and a transducer located proximate to the reflectors is used. A notch detector detects and identifies spectral notches in the modified acoustic signals. A device then determines the direction of the acoustic source. In one embodiment, a microphone system capable of detecting three-dimensional sound is provided. The microphone system comprises an elliptical-shaped microphone enhancer having at least two reflectors located different distances apart from a microphone located in the center of the ellipse. The reflectors have asymmetric ridges which cause interference patterns in the signals received by the microphone, conceptually analogous to the patterns generated by the pinnae of the human ear.

Many systems have been proposed which can detect a signal from a sound source for a variety of different purposes. Videoconferencing systems and other communication systems, as well as various types of security, automation and monitoring systems are used to enhance, simplify or safeguard lives. More advanced sound-detecting systems also make it possible to determine the direction or location of the sound source using voice-directional camera image steering. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,082 to Chu et al., for example, a system and method for localization of an acoustic source is described using a pair of spatially separated microphones to obtain direction or location of speech or other acoustic signals from a common sound source. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,686,957 to Baker uses an array of microphones to determine the direction of a particular human speaker in a hemispheric viewing area, and to provide directional signals to a video camera system. However, since the Chu and Baker systems, as well as other similar systems can only detect the "differences" in audio signal amplitude, two or microphones must be used to determine directionality of a sound source, thus increasing the cost and complexity of these systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,742,693 to Elko discloses an acoustic transducer comprising a finite acoustical reflecting surface or baffle having one or more sensors to produce a first or second-order differential response pattern at a predetermined frequency. The sensors in Elko are image-derived sensors which must be positioned on the baffle itself. Furthermore, the transducer in Elko requires the baffle to be about one to one-half of an acoustic wavelength at a predetermined frequency. Such limitations make it difficult to use the device in Elko with standard videoconferencing equipment, such as video cameras.
For the reasons stated above, there is a need in the art for a more convenient and compact system for detecting the directionality of a sound source.


An image density control method for an image forming apparatus of the type forming a latent image of a document image on a photoconductive element and developing the latent image to form a toner image by an electrophotographic procedure. A background pattern is implemented as a light pattern having a low density and provided independently of a reference density pattern. The light pattern is illuminated to form a latent image thereof on the photoconductive element, and the latent image is developed by a toner. The density of the resultant toner image is sensed by an image density sensor. Such a procedure allows a change in background density ascribable to contamination, increase in background potential and so forth to be detected. The light pattern may be replaced with a leading edge portion of a document if the leading edge portion has a density corresponding to the background density. Then, the latent image of the background pattern will be formed under exactly the same conditions as the latent image of an ordinary image, i.e., without any limitations as to the position of the pattern.

The present invention relates to an image density control method for an image forming apparatus of the type forming a latent image representative of a document image on a photoconductive element and developing the latent image to produce a toner image by an electrophotographic procedure.
A predominant type of copier or similar image forming apparatus which is implemented by an electrophotographic procedure uses a two component developer, i.e. the mixture of a toner and a carrier. In this type of copier, for example, as the toner is consumed by the repetitive copying process, the toner concentration in the developer is sequentially reduced to in turn lower the density of the resultant toner image. It has been customary, therefore, to supply a supplementary amount of toner to the developer to maintain the density of the developed image constant. In an automatic density control mode, a desired or target image density is associated with the density of a document image which is sensed by a document density sensor. On the other hand, in a manual density control mode, the target density is associated with a particular image notch manually selected on an operation board of the copier. Generally, the first to seventh notches are available with a copier, and the image density decreases with the increase in the notch number. For this kind of image density control, use may be made of a reference density pattern having a reference density, as well known in the art. Specifically, a latent image representative of the reference density pattern is formed on a photoconductive element and then developed by the toner, every time a predetermined number of copies are produced. Then, an image density sensor (sometimes referred to as a P sensor) optically senses the density of the resultant toner image. The sensed image density is fed back to a toner supply section of a developing device included in the copier to supply an adequate amount of toner, whereby the image density is maintained constant. This method determines a change in the toner concentration of the developer, i.e., a change in the proportion of the toner to the carrier in terms of a change in the density of the toner image of the reference pattern formed on the photoconductive element, thereby controlling the toner concentration of the developer. While a reflection from the reference density pattern is weak when the toner concentration is high, it becomes intense as the toner density decreases. The reference voltage of the image density sensor or P sensor (surface potential of the photoconductive element developed by an eraser) is usually selected to be 4 V. Then, when the output of the sensor associated with the reference density pattern is higher than 0.5 V which is one-eighth of 4 V and representative of an adequate toner concentration, the toner is determined to be short and, therefore, it is supplied. When the output of the sensor is lower than 0.5 V, the toner is determined to be sufficient and not supplied at all.
The surface potential of the photoconductive element sequentially increases with the number of copies produced. In addition, mirrors and a glass platen incoporated in the machine are contaminated by toner particles and silicone oil which is used to fix a toner image on a paper sheet and vaporizes, resulting in the decrease in the amount of light and, therefore, in the increase in the potential of light areas. By such an increase in the surface potential of the photoconductive element, the image density adequately adjusted at first is shifted to the dark side with the result that the background is disturbed.
To eliminate the drawback of the toner supply control scheme stated above, there has also been proposed a method which substantially variably controls the developing ability by controlling the total current to be fed to a charger which charges the photoconductive element, the bias voltage for development to be applied to a developing sleeve of the developing device, the voltage to be applied to a lamp of optics, etc., or by relying on the user's manual correction. Such an approach is also successful in setting up a desired image notch and disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication (Kokai) Nos. 61-128269, 62-280871 and 54-134635, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,248.
A photoconductive element for use in an electrophotographic copier or similar image forming apparatus is often implemented by As.sub.2 Se.sub.3 which is an inorganic compound of selenium and a small amount of arsenic. This kind of photoconductive element has the highest sensititivity. The surface of As.sub.2 Se.sub.3 is coupled with oxygen existing in the air to form an AsO (arsenic oxide) layer, whereby a charge is retained on the photoconductive element. This brings about a problem that the charge retaining ability depends on the condition of the AsO layer. Since an As.sub.2 Se.sub.3 photoconductive element has hardly any charge retaining ability just after evaporation, it is left in the dark until the charge retaining ability reaches saturation. However, about three to six months are needed for the charge retaining ability to reach saturation. This results in the need for a considerable amount of stock and, therefore, in low productivity. To accelerate such a procedure, i.e., to reduce the period of time over which the photoconductive element should be left in the dark, the element just undergone evaporation may be loaded in a copier, then run with paper sheets for a test for about five to fifteen minutes, and then left in the dark. In practice, however, a copier is put on the market without its photoconductive element being left in the dark for such a sufficient period of time, and it is actually operated before the element attains the expected charge retaining ability. While a serviceman usually tests a new copier for about 5 minutes on the delivery of the machine to a user in order to provide it with as great a charge retaining ability as possible, such a measure is not satisfactory. With a copier having an As.sub.2 Se.sub.3 photoconductive element, it usually occurs that after the installation of the copier the potential (background potential) of the element increases by about 90 V when about 1,000 copies are produced, i.e., on the lapse of about one to three months. Such an increase in the potential shifts the entire image to the dark side and thereby contaminates the background, often constituting the cause of serviceman call.
Optics built in a copier is generally made up of a glass platen, mirrors, a lens, a dust glass, and an arrangement for cooling the entire optics. When various contaminants such as dust floating in the air, the vapor of oil filling the machine and toner particles deposit on the mirrors and other components of the optics, the transmittance and/or reflectance of the entire optics is lowered to reduce the quantity of light available for imagewise exposure. Especially, the prior art automatic density type control method does not take account of the deposition of such contaminants, i.e., the decrement of the amount of light, so that the entire image is shifted to the dark side. For example, assuming that maintenance cycle a copier is about 80,000 copies, the decrement of the quantity of light corresponds to about 100 V to 200 V in terms of the potential of the photoconductive element. Hence, the density is brought out of the automatic control range, constituting another cause of serviceman call. The shift of the potential of the photoconductive element to the dark side as stated above means that the background potential of the element is changed to contaminate the background.
The conventional image density control of the kind using an image density sensor or P sensor does not give any consideration to the problems discussed above, i.e., it simply controls toner supply in such a manner as to maintain the developing ability constant. Hence, the image density is prevented from matching a selected image notch. This is also true with the alternative approach shown and described in any of the previously mentioned Laid-Open Publications. Specifically, the alternative approach replaces one variable factor capable of changing the developing ability with another variable factor when the former reaches a predetermined value. However, it does not detect a change in the density of the background and, therefore, cannot automatically deal with the background contamination ascribable to the shift of the potential of the photoconductive element to the dark side.

Image density control method for an image forming apparatus


A server in a subscriber television network receives service instances from a headend of the subscriber television network. The server is adapted to encrypt according to an encryption scheme and re-transmit service instances to a client-receiver. The server reformats the service instance from a first format into a second format the client-receiver can access the service instance.

Frequently, broadband systems transmit television signals and programs to subscribers of a conditional access system, or a subscriber network system. Broadband systems, such as cable and satellite television systems, typically include a headend for receiving programming and/or data from various sources and redistributing the programming and other data through a distribution system to subscribers. The headend receives programming signals from a variety of sources, such as content providers or entitlement agents, and combines the signals from the various sources, and transmits the combined signals through the distribution system to subscriber equipment. The subscriber network system offers subscribers of the system with services such as, but not limited to, Internet service and telephone service and potentially hundreds of program selections or service instances. Service instances include, but are not limited to, an installment of an audio or visual or audio/visual program. A service instance can be broadcast to all of the subscribers of the conditional access system, a portion of the subscribers, or an individual subscriber. Service instances include regular programming, special programming such as pay-per-view, and subscriber requested services such as personal television.
At a subscriber location, a digital subscriber communications terminal (DSCT) is typically coupled to a coaxial outlet by a short coaxial cable and the coaxial outlet is coupled to the broadband distribution system. Today, there are many subscriber devices such as, but not limited to, smart appliances, laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), video cassette recorders (VCRs) and televisions that can receive service instances and other information from the subscriber network.
The DSCT and the subscriber devices are sometimes coupled together via a local area network (LAN), which can be wired or wireless or a combination thereof. Wired communication paths include, among others, HomePNA 1, 2, and 3 which uses home telephone lines and coaxial cable and which has a data transfer rate of up to 1, 10, and 100 Mbps, respectively, HomePlug, which has a data transfer rate of 14 Mbps, and Ethernet. Other mechanisms for connecting the DSCT to other subscriber devices include transmitting using QAM modulation over coaxial cables. Wired communication has the disadvantage of requiring that a wire extend from the DSCT to the subscriber device, which in an existing subscriber residence may entail retrofitting the residence, and that can be expensive. Therefore, it is frequently desirable to couple subscriber devices to the DSCT using wireless communication, especially with the proliferation of portable computing devices. Wireless communication allows the subscriber to easily move his or her portable computing device, smart appliance, and other client-devices, within his or her wireless LAN while remaining connected to the subscriber network through the subscriber's DSCT and also eliminating the need to wire multiple rooms with coaxial cable or other wires. Wireless technologies have advanced so that they enable data to be pumped quickly through a wireless connection. The Institute for Electronics and Electrical Engineers (IEEE) 802.11b standard enables the user to transfer data at a rate approximately equal to Ethernet data rates, about 10 Mbps. As such it is sometimes called wireless Ethernet. IEEE 802.11a enables transfer rates of up to 54 Mbps. Industry collaboration, Bluetooth 2.0 enables users to transfer data at a rate of about 10 Mbps. HomeRF 2.0 is another industry collaboration, backed by a few of the same companies promoting the Bluetooth standard, and like Bluetooth 2.0, has a maximum data transfer rate of about 10 Mbps.
However, local area networks introduce security and control concerns for the operators of the subscriber network system due to issues such as payment, theft of services, and privacy. Thus, there exists a need for a system that addresses these concerns.

Apparatus for entitling and transmitting service instances to remote client devices


In an anti-skid device of fit-in type, less time and effort are needed for adjusting the inner width of anti-skid bodies. The anti-skid device is such that two or more anti-skid bodies having a U-shaped cross-section are fitted therein with a tire of a car and arranged in circumferential direction of the tire so as to be connected with one another. An exterior part of each anti-skid body is provided with a contact member for contacting with an outside surface of the tire, while an interior part is provided with a contact member for contacting with an inside surface of the tire. The exterior part or the interior part of each anti-skid body is attached thereto with a shaft 7 along an axial direction of the tire T. The shaft can move forward and backward in the axial direction of the tire. The contact member 6 is provided at an inner end of the shaft. An elastic member 9 is provided to apply a forward movement force to the shaft attached thereto with the contact member. The contact member is pressed against the outside surface or the inside surface of the tire by an elastic force of the elastic member. The contact member moves forward by the elastic force of the elastic member when the outside surface or the inside surface of the tire moves to opposite side to the contact member. The contact member moves backward against the elastic force of the elastic member when the outside surface or the inside surface of the tire moves to the contact member side.

Patent literature exemplifies an anti-skid device for tires in which anti-skid bodies having U-shaped cross-sections are fitted therein with a tire of a car. That is so-called fit-in type. Two or more anti-skid bodies are arranged in the circumferential direction of the tire so as to be connected with one another. The two or more anti-skid bodies are attached to the tire in a circular fashion. When the anti-skid device is detached from the tire, the anti-skid bodies are disconnected from one another thereby to be released from the tire.
Each of the anti-skid bodies having U-shaped cross-sections has a crossing part that crosses the ground contact surface of the tire, an exterior part that is along the outside surface of the tire, and an interior part that is along the inside surface of the tire.
The exterior part of the anti-skid bodies is provided with a contact member that contacts with the outside surface of the tire. The interior part of the anti-skid bodies is provided with a contact member that contacts with the inside surface of the tire. The contact members are configured capable of changing their positions in the width direction of the anti-skid bodies and in the axial direction of the tire. The anti-skid bodies are configured capable of increasing and decreasing the distance in the width direction of the anti-skid bodies between the exterior-side contact member and the interior-side contact member, i.e. the inner width. The inner width of the anti-skid bodies is adjusted depending on the width of the tire.


A system includes a wavelength tunable laser to provide a first optical pulse of a first wavelength and a second optical pulse of a second wavelength to an optical fiber, a reflection detector to determine a first fiber attenuation curve from the first reflected pulse and a second fiber attenuation curve from the second reflected pulse, and a discontinuous loss event analyzer to identify a discontinuous loss event at a discontinuous loss point in at least one of the first fiber attenuation curve and the second first fiber attenuation curve, determine a return loss slope based on a return loss at the discontinuous loss point for the first fiber attenuation curve and a return loss at the discontinuous loss point for the second first fiber attenuation curve, and determine whether the discontinuous loss event is a bad fiber bending event based on the return loss slope.

An optical time domain-reflectometer (OTDR) is an optoelectronic instrument that identifies characteristics of optical fibers. The OTDR sends pulses (i.e., optical signals) through the optical fiber that is being tested. The pulses pass every point in the fiber and will cause return pulses or reflections, known as Rayleigh backscattering, at each point/location based on local fiber characteristics. The time that each reflection is received by a receiver in the OTDR correlates to the location where each reflection happens.
OTDR measurements of the fiber reflections may be analyzed to determine whether there are discontinuities in different locations of the optical fibers. The strength of the return pulses may be integrated as a function of time. The OTDR may identify fiber signal attenuation and discontinuous loss events. Technicians may be deployed to locations along the optical fiber to fix the issues in the optical fiber.


A steroidal compound n-hexyl-p-stigmasteryloxy-benzoate is reported as a novel potent antitubercular drug.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious disease. Like the common cold, it spreads through the air. Only people who are sick with TB in their lungs are infectious. When infectious people cough, sneeze, talk or spit, they propel TB germs, known as bacilli, into the air. A person needs only to inhale a small number of these to be infected.
Left untreated, each person with active TB disease will infect on average between 10 and 15 people every year. But people infected with TB bacilli will not necessarily become sick with the disease. The immune system "walls off" the TB bacilli which, protected by a thick waxy coat, can lie dormant for years. When someone's immune system is weakened, the chances of becoming sick are greater.
Overall, one-third of the world's population is currently infected with the TB bacillus. About 5-10% of people who are infected with TB bacilli (but who are not infected with HIV) become sick or infectious at some time during their life. People with HIV and TB infection are much more likely to develop TB.
WHO estimates that the largest number of new TB cases in 2008 occurred in the South-East Asia Region, which accounted for 35% of incident cases globally. However, the estimated incidence rate in sub-Saharan Africa is nearly twice that of the South-East Asia Region with over 350 cases per 100 000 population.
An estimated 1.7 million people died from TB in 2009. The highest number of deaths was in the Africa Region.
In 2008, the estimated per capita TB incidence was stable or falling in all six WHO regions. However, the slow decline in incidence rates per capita is offset by population growth. Consequently, the number of new cases arising each year is still increasing globally in the WHO regions of Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean and South-East Asia.
The new reports on the incidence, prevalence and mortality from tuberculosis are alarming (Global tuberculosis control 2010, WHO). Accordingly, the prevalence of TB is the lowest in The Americas at 37/100,000 while corresponding prevalence is 63 in Europe, 160 in Western Pacific, 280 in South-East Asia and 450 in Africa. The mortality rates are accordingly, 2.1 in The Americas to 50 in Africa. Africa accounts for almost 30% of all new cases of tuberculosis, The Americas only 2.9% and the highest incidence is found in South-East-Asia which accounts for 35% of new cases.
HIV and TB form a lethal combination, each speeding the other's progress. HIV weakens the immune system. Someone who is HIV-positive and infected with TB bacilli is many times more likely to become sick with TB than someone infected with TB bacilli who is HIV-negative. TB is a leading cause of death among people who are HIV-positive. In Africa, HIV is the single most important factor contributing to the increase in the incidence of TB since 1990.
WHO and its international partners have formed the TB/HIV Working Group, which develops global policy on the control of HIV-related TB and advises on how those fighting against TB and HIV can work together to tackle this lethal combination. The interim policy on collaborative TB/HIV activities describes steps to create mechanisms of collaboration between TB and HIV/AIDS programs, to reduce the burden of TB among people and reducing the burden of HIV among TB patients.
Until 50 years ago, there were no medicines to cure TB. Now, strains that are resistant to a single drug have been documented in every country surveyed; what is more, strains of TB resistant to all major anti-TB drugs have emerged. Drug-resistant TB is caused by inconsistent or partial treatment, when patients do not take all their medicines regularly for the required period because they start to feel better, because doctors and health workers prescribe the wrong treatment regimens, or because the drug supply is unreliable. A particularly dangerous form of drug-resistant TB is multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), which is defined as the disease caused by TB bacilli resistant to at least isoniazid and rifampicin, the two most powerful anti-TB drugs. Rates of MDR-TB are high in some countries, especially in the former Soviet Union, and threaten TB control efforts.
While drug-resistant TB is generally treatable, it requires extensive chemotherapy (up to two years of treatment) with second-line anti-TB drugs which are more costly than first-line drugs, and which produce adverse drug reactions that are more severe, though manageable. Quality assured second-line anti-TB drugs are available at reduced prices for projects approved by the Green Light Committee.
The emergence of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) TB, particularly in settings where many TB patients are also infected with HIV, poses a serious threat to TB control, and confirms the urgent need to strengthen basic TB control and to apply the new WHO guidelines for the programmatic management of drug-resistant TB.
Although over 37 species of mycobacteria have been identified, more than 95% of all human infections are caused by six species of mycobacteria: M. tuberculosis, M. avium intracellulare, M. kansasii, M. fortuitum, M. chelonae, and M. leprae. The most prevalent mycobacterial disease in humans is tuberculosis (TB), which is predominantly caused by mycobacterial species comprising M. tuberculosis, M. bovis, or M. africanum (Merck Manual 1992). Infection is typically initiated by the inhalation of infectious particles, which are able to reach the terminal pathways in lungs. Following engulfment by alveolar macrophages, the bacilli are able to replicate freely, with eventual destruction of the phagocytic cells. A cascade effect ensues wherein destruction of the phagocytic cells causes additional macrophages and lymphocytes to migrate to the site of infection, where they too are ultimately eliminated. The disease is further disseminated during the initial stages by the infected macrophages which travel to local lymph nodes, as well as into the blood stream and other tissues such as the bone marrow, spleen, kidneys, bone and central nervous system. (See Murray et al. Medical Microbiology, The C.V. Mosby Company 219-230 (1990)).
There is still no clear understanding of the factors which contribute to the virulence of mycobacteria. Many investigators have implicated lipids of the cell wall and bacterial surface as contributors to colony morphology and virulence. Evidence suggests that C-mycosides, on the surface of certain mycobacterial cells, are important in facilitating survival of the organism within macrophages. Trehalose 6,6′ dimycolate, a cord factor, has been implicated for other mycobacteria.
The interrelationship of colony morphology and virulence is particularly pronounced in M. avium. M. avium bacilli occur in several distinct colony forms. Bacilli, which grow, as transparent, or rough, colonies on conventional laboratory media are multiplicable within macrophages in tissue culture, are virulent when injected into susceptible mice, and are resistant to antibiotics. Rough or transparent bacilli, which are maintained on laboratory culture media, often spontaneously assume an opaque R colony morphology, at which time they are not multiplicable in macrophages, are avirulent in mice, and are highly susceptible to antibiotics. The differences in colony morphology between the transparent, rough and opaque strains of M. avium are almost certainly due to the presence of a glycolipid coating on the surface of transparent and rough organisms, which acts as a protective capsule. This capsule, or coating, is composed primarily of C-mycosides which apparently shield the virulent M. avium organisms from lysosomal enzymes and antibiotics. By contrast, the non-virulent opaque forms of M. avium have very little C-mycoside on their surface. Both the resistance to antibiotics and the resistance to killing by macrophages have been attributed to the glycolipid barrier on the surface of M. avium.
Diagnosis of mycobacterial infection is confirmed by the isolation and identification of the pathogen, although conventional diagnosis is based on sputum smears, chest X-ray examination (CXR), and clinical symptoms. Isolation of mycobacteria on a medium takes as long as four to eight weeks. Species identification takes a further two weeks. There are several other techniques for detecting mycobacteria such as the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), mycobacterium tuberculosis direct test, or amplified mycobacterium tuberculosis direct test (MTD), and detection assays that utilize radioactive labels.
One diagnostic test that is widely used for detecting infections caused by M. tuberculosis is the tuberculin skin test. Although numerous versions of the skin test are available, typically one of two preparations of tuberculin antigens are used: old tuberculin (OT), or purified protein derivative (PPD). The antigen preparation is either injected into the skin intradermally, or is topically applied and is then invasively transported into the skin with the use of a multi-prong inoculator (Tine test). Several problems exist with the skin test diagnosis method. For example, the Tine test is not generally recommended because the amount of antigen injected into the intradermal layer cannot be accurately controlled. (See Murray et al. Medical Microbiology, The C.V. Mosby Company 219-230 (1990)). Although the tuberculin skin tests are widely used, they typically require two to three days to generate results, and many times, the results are inaccurate since false positives are sometimes seen in subjects who have been exposed to mycobacteria, but are healthy. In addition, instances of misdiagnosis are frequent since a positive result is observed not only in active TB patients, but also in persons vaccinated with Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG), and those who had been infected with mycobacteria, but have not developed the disease. It is hard therefore, to distinguish active TB patients from the others, such as household TB contacts, by the tuberculin skin test. Additionally, the tuberculin test often produces a cross-reaction in those individuals who were infected with mycobacteria other than M. tuberculosis (MOTT). Therefore, diagnosis using the skin tests currently available is frequently subject to error and inaccuracies.
The standard treatment for tuberculosis caused by drug-sensitive organisms is a six-month regimen consisting of four drugs given for two months, followed by two drugs given for four months. The two most important drugs, given throughout the six-month course of therapy, are isoniazid and rifampin. Although the regimen is relatively simple, its administration is quite complicated. Daily ingestion of eight or nine pills is often required during the first phase of therapy; a daunting and confusing prospect. Even severely ill patients are often symptom free within a few weeks, and nearly all appear to be cured within a few months. If the treatment is not continued to completion, however, the patient may experience a relapse, and the relapse rate for patients who do not continue treatment to completion is high. A variety of forms of patient-centered care are used to promote adherence with therapy. The most effective way of ensuring that patients are taking their medication is to use directly observed therapy, which involves having a member of the health care team observe the patient take each dose of each drug. Directly observed therapy can be provided in the clinic, the patient's residence, or any mutually agreed upon site. Nearly all patients who have tuberculosis caused by drug-sensitive organisms, and who complete therapy will be cured, and the risk of relapse is very low ("Ending Neglect: The Elimination of Tuberculosis in the United States" ed. L. Geiter Committee on the Elimination of Tuberculosis in the United States Division of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Institute of Medicine. 2000.)
Needed are effective therapeutic regimens that include improved vaccination and treatment protocols. Currently available therapeutics are no longer consistently effective as a result of the problems with treatment compliance, and these compliance problems contribute to the development of drug resistant mycobacterial strains.
Clearly effective therapeutic regimens that include improved vaccination and treatment protocols are needed. A therapeutic vaccine that would prevent the onset of tuberculosis, and therefore eliminate the need for therapy is desirable. Although currently available therapeutic measures are effective, the emergence of drug resistant strains has necessitated new formulations and compositions that are more versatile than current drugs. What is needed are new anti-tubercular drugs that provide highly effective treatment, and shorten and simplify tuberculosis chemotherapy.
The present invention also relates to methods and compositions having improved anti-mycobacterial activity, namely compositions comprising a novel antitubercular steroid.
The present invention relates to a novel use of a steroid analog, their preparation, and their use as pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical compositions containing them.
More particularly the invention provides a new use of compound of formula n-hexyl-p-stigmasteryloxy-benzoate. (Compound I).
Compound I
FIG. 1
On account of the asymmetrical carbon atom(s) which is (are) present in Compound I, the compound may appear in optically active form or in form of mixtures of optical isomers, e.g., in form of racemic mixtures. All optical isomers and their mixtures including the racemic mixtures are part of the present invention.
Compound I exhibits valuable pharmacological properties when tested in vitro using tuberculosis agent, and in level I and level II assay of toxicity using mammalian VERO cells lines, and are therefore useful as pharmaceuticals.
In particular the agent of the invention shows high activity against tuberculosis organism. The agent of the invention is therefore useful for treatment of tuberculosis.
Accordingly in a further aspect the present invention provides the agents of the invention for use as pharmaceuticals, more specifically for treatment in the above-mentioned conditions, e.g., tuberculosis.
The present invention furthermore provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising an agent of the invention in association with at least one pharmaceutically acceptable diluent or carrier. Such compositions may be formulated in conventional manner.
Agents of the invention may be administered by any conventional route, for example parenterally e.g. in form of injectable solutions or suspensions, or enterally, preferably orally, e.g., in the form of tablets or capsules.
The agents of the invention may alternatively be administered e.g. topically in the form of a cream, gel or the like, or by inhalation, e.g., in dry powder form.
Examples for compositions comprising an agent of the invention include, e.g., a solid dispersion, an aqueous solution, e.g. containing a solubilizing agent, a microemulsion and a suspension of an agent of the invention. The composition may be buffered to a pH in the range of e.g., from 3.5 to 9.5, by a suitable buffer.
The agents of the invention can be administered either alone or in combination with other pharmaceutical agents effective in the treatment of conditions mentioned above.
Thus, the agents of the invention can be used for the treatment of tuberculosis in combination with: ethambutol, isoniazid, pyrazinamide, rifampicin, streptomycin, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin and p-aminosalicylic acid.
The pharmaceutical compositions for separate administration of the combination partners and for the administration in a fixed combination, i.e., a single galenical composition comprising at least two combination partners according to the invention, can be prepared in a manner known per se and are thus suitable for enteral, such as oral or rectal, and parenteral administration to mammals, including man, comprising a therapeutically effective amount of at least one pharmacologically active combination partner alone or in combination with one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers, especially suitable for enteral or parenteral application.
In particular, a therapeutically effective amount of each of the combination partners may be administered simultaneously or sequentially and in any order, and the components may be administered separately or as fixed combination.
Accordingly the invention also provides a combination comprising a therapeutically effective amount of an agent of the invention and a second drug substance, said second drug substance being for example for use in any of the particular indications herein before set forth.
The preferred indications are treatment of tuberculosis.
The preferred agent of the invention for the above-mentioned indications is n-hexyl-p-stigmasteryloxy-benzoate.
In accordance with the foregoing, the present invention also provides the use of an agent of the invention as a pharmaceutical, e.g., for the treatment of tuberculosis.
Moreover the present invention provides the use of an agent of the invention for the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of any condition mentioned above, e.g., tuberculosis.
The following examples illustrate the invention.


A user interface enables a user to concurrently select a plurality of network objects of a network object database (e.g., a MIB) from a same network device or different network devices and specify a value, only once, to which to set the selected objects. The user can initiate setting of the selected objects on the one or more devices by specifying only once that the objects on such devices be set to the specified value. The user interface, which may include a GUI, may be configured to enable the user to specify a value for a cell of a first table (“editing table”), in response to which a plurality of cells of a second table (“primary table”) are set equal to the specified value. The primary table may represent a view of a network object database, each column of the view representing an object type of the network object database.

Communications networks continue to have a growing role in today's world. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a communications network 100. As used herein, a "communications network" or a "network," for example, network 100, is group of two or more devices (i.e., network elements), for example, network devices 102, 104 and 106, interconnected by one or more segments of transmission media on which communications may be exchanged between the devices. Each segment may be any of a plurality of types of transmission media, including one or more electrical or optical wires or cables made of metal and/or optical fiber, air (e.g., using wireless transmission over carrier waves) or any combination of these transmission media. As used herein, "plurality" means two or more.
As networks become more complex and continue to include more network devices, the importance of efficiently managing these devices has grown. As used herein, a "network device" is a device configured as part of a network. Such network devices may be and/or include any of a variety of types of devices, including, but not limited to, switching devices, workstations, personal computers, terminals, laptop computers, end stations, servers, gateways, registers, directories, databases, printers, fax machines, telephones, transmitters, receivers, repeaters, and any combination thereof.
Managing network devices is referred to herein as "device management," and includes configuring network devices, where one or more these network devices are typically configured remotely (i.e., from another network device residing at a different location on the network) by exchanging messages (e.g., packets) between network devices over network media.
To facilitate configuring large numbers of network devices, object types often are defined to represent aspects of network devices, for example, status, location (e.g., Internet Protocol (IP) address and/or Media Access Control (MAC) address), port characteristics, device description, other aspects, permissible states of any aspects, or any combination thereof.

User interface for editing objects of a network object database


An intramedullary nail is disclosed having a tubular elongated body that includes a proximal head portion, an intermediate portion and a distal end portion. The intermediate portion has a longitudinal slot along one side thereof, a groove coextensive with a portion of the slot, and three other grooves spaced about the circumference of the body. This construction provides more desirable flexibility and allows improved revascularization about the nail. The nail is formed of a rod material and the slot and grooves are machined therein to the desired depth and shape.

Field of the Invention
It has become accepted practice in the orthopedic field to use devices known as intramedullary nails to stabilize fractured bones. In particular, intramedullary nails are used for stabilizing fractures of the tibia and of the femur to thereby enable the bones to heal properly.
The nails are adapted for insertion into the intramedullary canal of the bone which may be reamed or left unreamed, depending on the situation at hand. Locking screws are often inserted through the bone to lock the nail in place. This method has proven valuable because it reduces the incidence and severity of malunion or displacement of the fracture. It allows the patient to apply weight to and walk on the injured bone earlier, thus, reducing the amount of muscle atrophy.
Various intramedullary nails have heretofore been known and disclosed int eh prior art. Prior art nails can be broken down by category:
First, many intramedullary nails have been proposed which are formed of a slid rod material. These have been found to be much too rigid to follow the usually imperfect intramedullary bone canal, and their insertion has all too often caused chipping of the bone material.
Nails formed of sheet metal have been proposed to provide greater flexibility. Some of these nails have been formed with closed cross-section and others have been formed into open cross-section configurations. To obtain desired flexibility/rigidity characteristics and to provide sufficient area about the nail to allow proper revascularization, such nails are generally formed with other than circular cross-section. This is, grooves on flat walls are often bent into the side walls of the sheet metal. Examples of such nails are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,628 to Brudderman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,697,585 to Williams, European publication 0273872, U.S. publication 2,114,005, British publication 1,593,440, and Zimmer publication "A More Precise View of Interlocking Nails." Such sheet metal nails have proven to be relatively inefficient in their manufacture, and relatively difficult to modify in their configuration. More specifically, difficulties, inherent in the bending operation necessary to provide sheet metal nails with non-circular cross-section, have placed limitations on the ability to economically provide nails of cross-section which, for example, have grooves which are varied in their depth.
Other nails have been proposed which are formed from a rod material with a central longitudinal bore disposed therethrough. Such a bore provides a flexibility which is improved over that of the solid axis, but remains less than desirable. Examples of such nails are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,103,683 to Neufeld, U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,857 to Otte, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,959 to Marcus, European publication 0118778 and European publication 0008758.
Although the prior art nails have found varying degrees of success, there remains a need in the field for an intramedullary nail with a more desirable flexibility and with features which allow for easy and efficient modifications to the nail configuration during manufacture.