An end effector for use with an ultrasonic surgical instrument. A body extends along a longitudinal axis. The body includes a proximal end and a distal end. The body comprises an outer surface that defines an inner portion. The proximal end of the body is configured to couple to an ultrasonic transducer configured to produce vibrations at a predetermined frequency and a predetermined amplitude. An extendable folded element includes a first end coupled to the distal end of the body and extending proximally along the longitudinal axis from the distal end of the body toward the proximal end of the body. The extendable folded element comprises a second free acoustic end. The extendable folded element and the outer surface of the body define a single substantially parallel acoustic path.

Ultrasonic instruments, including both hollow core and solid core elements, are used for the safe and effective treatment of many medical conditions. Ultrasonic instruments, and particularly ultrasonic instruments comprising contact ultrasonic elements, are advantageous because they may be used to cut and/or coagulate tissue using energy in the form of mechanical vibrations transmitted to a surgical end effector at ultrasonic frequencies. Ultrasonic instruments utilizing contact ultrasonic elements are particularly advantageous because of the amount of ultrasonic energy that may be transmitted from an ultrasonic transducer, through a transmission component or waveguide, to the surgical end effector. Such instruments may be used for open or minimally invasive surgical procedures, such as endoscopic or laparoscopic surgical procedures, wherein the end effector is passed through a trocar to reach the surgical site.
Activating or exciting a single or multiple-element end effector of such instruments at ultrasonic frequencies induces longitudinal, transverse or torsional vibratory movement relative to the transmission component that generates localized heat within adjacent tissue, facilitating both cutting and coagulating. Because of the nature of ultrasonic instruments, a particular ultrasonically actuated end effector may be designed to perform numerous functions. Ultrasonic vibrations, when transmitted to organic tissue at suitable energy levels using a suitable end effector, may be used to cut, dissect, separate, lift, transect, elevate, coagulate or cauterize tissue, or to separate or scrape muscle tissue away from bone with or without the assistance of a clamping assembly.
Ultrasonic vibration is induced in the surgical end effector by electrically exciting a transducer, for example. The transducer may be constructed of one or more piezoelectric or magnetostrictive elements located in the instrument hand piece. Vibrations generated by the transducer section are transmitted to the surgical end effector via an ultrasonic transmission component such as a waveguide extending from the transducer section to the surgical end effector. The waveguide and end effector are most preferably designed to resonate at the same frequency as the transducer. Therefore, when an end effector is attached to a transducer the overall system frequency is the same frequency as the transducer itself.
The zero-to-peak amplitude of the longitudinal ultrasonic vibration at the tip, d, of the end effector behaves as a simple sinusoid at the resonant frequency as given by:d=A(x)sin(ωt)  (1)where:
ω=the radian frequency which equals 2π times the cyclic frequency, f; and
A(x)=the zero-to-peak amplitude as a function of position x along the blade.
The longitudinal excursion is defined as the peak-to-peak (p-t-p) amplitude, which is just twice the amplitude of the sine wave or 2A. A(x) varies as a standing wave pattern and is referred to as the displacement curve. At displacement nodes, A(x)=zero and there is no ultrasonic excursion. At antinodes, A(x) is at a local extreme, either a maximum or a minimum (minimum refers to a negative maximum).
Acoustic assemblies may comprise acoustic horns geometrically formed to amplify, attenuate, or transmit the amplitude of the vibrations produced by the piezoelectric or magnetostrictive actuators. Conventional horns generally have two distinct cross-sectional areas, usually with a taper between them, with the larger area, or input area, facing the actuation stack. Conventional horns are configured with a direct transition between the input and output areas. An amplifying acoustic horn (e.g., a fore-bell) is configured as a tapered solid with a larger diameter end (e.g., the input area) adapted to couple directly to the transducer and a smaller diameter end (e.g., the output area) at the tip adapted to couple to the end effector. The tapering cross-sectional area of the horn amplifies the limited displacements generated by the transducer. Vibration actuators operating from acoustic to ultrasonic frequencies generally include three main components. These components include the horn, a stack of piezoelectric or magnetostrictive elements (e.g., a transducer, actuator stack), and a backing material (e.g., an end-bell). The stack of piezoelectric elements is held in compression by a stress bolt that joins the backing material to the horn. The change in area is used to amplify the limited displacement that is induced by the stack.
Solid core ultrasonic instruments may be divided into single-element end effector devices and multiple-element end effector devices. Single-element end effector devices include instruments such as blades, scalpels, hooks, or ball coagulators. Multiple-element end effectors include the single-element end effector in conjunction with a mechanism to press or clamp tissue against the single-element end effector. Multiple-element end effectors comprise clamping scalpels, clamping coagulators or any combination of a clamping assembly with a single-element end effector generally referred to as clamp coagulators. Multiple-element end effectors may be employed when substantial pressure may be necessary to effectively couple ultrasonic energy to the tissue. Such end effectors apply a compressive or biasing force to the tissue to promote faster cutting and coagulation of the tissue, particularly loose and unsupported tissue.
Various design examples of vibration amplifiers, e.g., acoustic horns, are discussed in "Novel Horn Designs for Ultrasonic/Sonic Cleaning Welding, Soldering, Cutting and Drilling", Proc. SPIE Smart Structures Conference, Vol. 4701, Paper No. 34, San Diego, Calif., March 2002. Additional examples of horn designs are discussed in United States Patent Application Publication US20040047485A1, titled "Folded Horns for Vibration Actuator". The first reference discusses a folded horn connected to an ultrasonic transducer or actuator and the other end is in contact with the work piece (e.g., an ultrasonic blade or an ultrasonic transmission component or waveguide coupled to the blade). The "distal end" of the folded horn described in the reference, however, is not in contact with the work piece.
There is a need, however, for an end effector comprising one or more folded elements to reduce the overall length of an end effector while remaining in contact with the target tissue. There is also a need for an end effector comprising moveable folded elements. There is also a need for an end effector comprising a folded element located at the distal end that is located neither at a node nor an antinode and operates at an intermediate displacement amplitude.

Folded ultrasonic end effectors with increased active length


A display device is provided that includes a plurality of pixel circuits that are arranged in a matrix and supplied with power through a first power supply line maintained at a first voltage and a second power supply line maintained at a second voltage having a positive value less than the first voltage. The display device also includes a first power supply circuit of a synchronous rectification type that outputs the first voltage to the first power supply line by chopping an input voltage. The display device further includes a second power supply circuit of the synchronous rectification type that outputs the second voltage to the second power supply line by chopping the first voltage.

A display device using an organic electroluminescent (EL) element is known as an example of a display device using a current-driven light-emitting element.
An organic EL display device using a self-luminous organic EL element does not require a backlight, which a liquid-crystal display device requires, and therefore is most suitable when a thinner display device is desired. Since there is no limit on a viewing angle of the organic EL display device, the organic EL device is expected to be put to practical use as a next-generation display device. The organic EL element used in the organic EL display device is different from a liquid-crystal cell in that luminance of each light-emitting element is controlled by a value of a current flowing therethrough whereas the liquid-crystal cell is controlled by a voltage applied thereto.
As just described, the organic EL display device, which is a device having almost the same structure as the liquid-crystal display device, can be provided as a ultra-thin, light-weight display for the above-mentioned reason that no backlights are necessary. In this case, structures other than an organic EL display panel need to be made thinner. The size of a power supply device, among the structures other than the organic EL display panel, depends on power consumption of the organic EL display panel, and therefore it is difficult to simply make the power supply device thinner.
For example, FIG. 1 of Patent Literature (PTL) 1 discloses, as a power supply in an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, two power source circuits connected in parallel for an input voltage. Specifically, a +ELVDD power source circuit and a −ELVSS power source circuit are included as the two power source circuits. The +ELVDD power source circuit generates a +ELVDD voltage of a ELVDD power source which is supplied to a pixel (PX) of the OLED display. The −ELVSS power source circuit generates a −ELVSS voltage of a ELVSS power source which is supplied to a pixel (PX) of the OLED display.


A phase locked loop with phase clipping and/or resynchronization is disclosed. A reference signal is compared to a feedback signal derived at least in part from an output signal of an oscillator to determine a phase error. A magnitude of at least one of the phase error and a change in the phase error, if required, is clipped to provide at least one of a clipped phase error that has a clipped magnitude that does not exceed a prescribed maximum phase error and a clipped change in phase error that has a clipped magnitude that does not exceed a prescribed maximum change in phase error. If a resynchronization triggering event is detected, the oscillator is resynchronized with the reference signal.

The phase locked loop (PLL) and frequency locked loop (FLL) are well-known closed loop feedback circuits commonly used to maintain synchronization between an oscillator or other clock or frequency signal generator, such as a digital frequency synthesizer, and a reference signal. FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a typical prior art PLL. In the example shown, in PLL 100 the output of oscillator 102 is provided to a divider, the output of which is provided to a phase detector 106. The phase detector 106 receives a reference (e.g., timing) signal on line 108, and generates and provides as output on line 110 an error signal that reflects the difference in phase, if any, between the feedback signal provided by divider 104 and the reference signal received on line 108. The error signal on line 110 is filtered using a low pass filter 112 (sometimes referred to as a "loop filter") to provide to oscillator 102 via line 114 a control signal to keep the oscillator in synch with the reference signal, e.g., by causing it to speed up or slow down—for example by increasing or decreasing the control voltage supplied to a voltage control oscillator—as required to bring it back into phase synchronization with the reference. A FLL is similar to a PLL except that the time derivative of the phase information is used.
A PPL or FLL achieve acceptable results and performance in environments in which the communication path between the source of the reference signal and the PLL or FLL is stable and/or predictable. However, if the transmission path is characterized by excessive jitter/noise and/or is susceptible to long term changes, such as long term changes in average transmission delay, such conditions can affect the results obtained by using a typical prior art PLL or FLL. One possible response to jitter or noise in the transmission path would be to narrow the bandwidth of the loop filter, to filter out the jitter or other noise. However, that approach has the potentially undesirable effect of significantly slowing response to conditions affecting oscillator performance, such as environmental changes (e.g., increased or decreased temperature), crystal or other oscillator component aging, and other factors that can affect the short term accuracy of an oscillator. A FLL typically would respond better than a PLL to long term changes in transmission delay of the reference/timing signal; however a typical prior art FLL suffers from the same shortcoming as a typical prior art PLL with respect to the effect of jitter or other short term noise in the transmission path.
Therefore, there is a need for an effective way to maintain synchronization between a local oscillator and a reference signal transmitted via a path characterized by excessive jitter or other noise. Similarly, there is a need for an effective way to maintain synchronization between a local oscillator and a reference signal when changes in the long term average transmission delay of a path via which the reference signal is provided.

PLL with phase clipping and resynchronization


An apparatus for installation of a material having discrete elements. The apparatus includes a supply material having discrete elements and a transporter system downstream of the supply material having discrete elements. In the preferred embodiment, the transporter system includes: (i) a high speed, inline blower (ii) a material agitator upstream of the inline blower and (iii) a planetary transmission connected to the shaft of the blower for providing a lower speed mechanical output to the material agitator. The material agitator may include a plurality of concentric rings with serrations on the upper surface of each ring. In the preferred embodiment, the apparatus further includes an applicator assembly connected downstream to the transporter system.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for installation of a material having discrete elements, and, more particularly, to a transporter system including a high speed, inline blower, a material agitator upstream of the inline blower, and a planetary transmission connected to the shaft of the blower for providing a lower speed mechanical output to the material agitator
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Insulation is used in residential and commercial dwellings both to conserve energy and to reduce noise. The two most common types of insulation are blown and batt. Loose fill insulation, unlike batt insulation, requires the use of a machine to open the product in baled or compressed form. Opening in the industry commonly refers to modifying a product of a relatively high packaged density to a much lower installed density, perhaps as much as only 5-10% of the initial packaged density. The opened insulation is then conveyed to the final installation location through an air conveyance system. The finished installation is accomplished in several ways depending on final product needs.
One method for opening and conveying the product is to provide a rotational insulation opening device in a hopper in the machine to prepare the product for further transport. The semi-opened insulation materials is then gravity fed into the top cavity of an airlock, a horizontally rotating device that segregates portions of the material, and then rotates it into contact with a air stream created by a air blower pump. Typically, these devices are run by separate motors, creating added weight machine weight both for the motors, and for all the support brackets, control electrical controls and other associated hardware. The airlock also adds significant weight to the machine.
Airlock based machines have a horizontally oriented cylinder with a longitudinal opening in the top for the gravity fed and/or mechanical introduction of insulation material. The cylinder is divided longitudinally into a plurality of chambers by a rotating series of blades or paddles. The blades or paddles seal off the inner dimensions of the airlock cylinder creating discrete chambers that are sealed from each other during rotation. The lower chamber of the cylinder has an opening at either end such that air from an air pump can be introduced into one end of the cylinder and can exit the other end, carrying with it any insulation material that is in that particular chamber.
The effect of the airlock is to create a series of rotating chambers that sequentially accept insulation material that is gravity or force fed into the top chamber. As the material drops into the top chamber, the rotation of the blades or paddles carries the material away from the opening and seals the cavity in which the insulation now resides. When the chamber rotates to the other side of the cylinder, it comes into contact with the air stream provided by the air pump, and the insulation in just that cavity is blown out into the conveying hose to the installation location.
A problem with airlock-based insulation blowing machines is that material is gravity or mechanically fed into the top chamber of the cylinder, and then is conveyed directly into the conveying stream. If the product is not fully opened prior to entering the conveying stream, only the additional turbulence of the conveying hose can be used to further open the product to its design density. Thus, many if not all insulation hoses are internally ribbed to force increased agitation post-blower.
Yet another method is to provide for insulation opening and introduction into the conveying air stream, and use a through blower device where the insulation passes through the pumping vanes of the blower itself. Such machines are thought to increase the opening ratio of the density of the opened product as installed to the density of the packaged product. However, the available machines use two motors as well, either both enclosed in the machine housing, or with one motor detached from the machine during transit, and then reattached at the installation site. Either method increases the total machine weight, complexity, and electrical demands.
Also, through blower devices force the machine designer to compensate for the relatively smaller introduction cross section leading to the conveying stream of the pump by attempting to force increased product opening prior to air stream entrance of the insulation. This has created a limitation in standard practices such that only the very smallest of insulation machines currently use the through blower concept. Medium and large sized blowing machines use the airlock device and two or more motors to provide a high rate of material flow, but with a resulting sacrifice in achieving full product value.
Thus, there remains a need for an apparatus for installation of insulation materials that uses a through blower concept, is very light weight, and also fully opens the insulation materials so that the full value as created in the insulation manufacturing plant can be achieved.


A method and apparatus, including software, for the development and operational use of precise utility location and utility asset management information. Field-usable data sets may be produced that meet standards of accuracy and usability that are sufficient for use by field operations personnel participating in damage prevention activities associated with ground penetrating projects (e.g., excavating, trenching, boring, driving, and tunneling) or other asset applications. Some embodiments relate to integrating utility asset data including coordinate location, and geographical information data using a consistently available and accurate coordinates reference for collecting the data and for aligning the geographical information data. Some embodiments relate to managing projects with equipment that provides real time images and the updating of the data as required with this desired accuracy.

There are many assets above ground and below ground that need to be protected and avoided. Included in these assets are utility lines and components and protected areas, such as archeological sites and habitat of endangered species. There are millions of miles of utility lines around the world, some buried and some above ground. These utility lines include, without limitation, electric power lines, telephone lines, water lines, sewer lines, fiber-optic cable lines, natural gas transmission lines, natural gas distribution lines, and utility lines for transporting hazardous liquids.
Every year incidents occur in which mobile ground breaking equipment comes in contact with utility lines with costly results in loss of life and/or loss of money. Statistics kept by the United States Office of Pipeline Safety regarding pipelines indicate that between 1986 and 2001 there were 1286 incidents involving natural gas transmission lines, which killed 58 people, injured 217 people and caused 284 billion dollars in property damage. In that same period there were 2159 incidents involving natural gas distribution lines, which killed 282 people, injured 1264 people and caused 256 billion dollars in property damage. There were also 3034 incidents involving utility lines carrying hazardous liquids which killed 36 people, injured 244 people and caused a further 731 billion dollars in property damage. In order to understand the full impact of such incidents, one would have to also include environmental damage and economic loss as a result of a service disruption.
There have been many attempts to address damage prevention when groundbreaking equipment is used around utilities and other assets that need protection. Non-exhaustive examples of these attempts include marking the location of a utility by painted lines. Commonly in the past, the utility companies and/or service companies are called to the site to place marks (spray the ground with an identifying color; for example, red for electric lines, yellow for gas lines and so forth) on the surface to show the location of a specific utility line and/or its components. Such marking is not permanent and typically lasts only for the one earth moving operation, such as digging a trench, for which the utilities were marked.
Another approach was to make a record of the location of the utility lines as the line was placed in the earth. However, the accuracy of the location is dictated by the accuracy of the reference point. It has been found that attempting to locate a utility line based op this record has resulted in an error of up to 15 feet or more because of the inaccuracy in the position of the reference point.
Another approach is to use the record of the location of a facility, with its inherent error from inaccurate reference points, as the record to compare to the location of a piece of ground breaking equipment. This approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,477 issued on Aug. 28, 2001 to Adam J. Gudat, et al., the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. As noted in the Gudat et al patent at Col. 5, lines 39-50, there is a region of uncertainty that is a function of at least one parameter, including, but not limited to, inherent errors in the position determining system and errors in the determined location of the object (utility).
The determined location of the utility may be acquired by underground imaging, which is commonly accomplished by the use of ground penetrating radar. Examples of underground imaging are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 6,766,253 issued Jul. 20, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,735,888 issued May 18, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,700,526 issued Mar. 2, 2004; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,388,629 issued May 14, 2004, the disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
A common way of referencing the generated data identifying location of the utility is to use a fixed object, such as the curbing of a road. An example of the use of ground penetrating radar to acquire location data for underground utilities is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,553, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

Precision GPS driven utility asset management and utility damage prevention system and method


A semiconductor package includes a substrate, at least one chip including a first side and a backside opposite of the first side, the first side electrically coupled to the substrate, a conductive layer coupled to the backside of the at least one chip, and at least one electronic component coupled to the conductive layer and in electrical communication with the substrate.

Market demand for smaller and more functional electronic devices has driven the development of semiconductor devices, packages, and recently, entire systems disposed on a chip. Many electronic devices, such as cellular telephones, employ a variety of design-specific electronic components. However, the space available inside the electronic devices is limited, particularly as the electronic devices are made smaller.
Most semiconductor package solutions provide a chip coupled to a carrier and one or more electronic components coupled to the carrier adjacent to the chip. Some of the electronic components are tuned in a specific manner according to the end application, usually by the end-user customer. Consequently, the package manufacturer is often required to supply a variety of packages, each of which is configured to be tuned by the customer in accordance with their desired end use. These design-specific packages limit the package manufacturer from offering a set of flexible, broad-based packaging solutions useful to multiple customers. Package manufacturers would prefer to fabricate packages having an economy of scale that are suited to meet the individual needs of many consumers.
Both the manufacturers and the consumers of these advanced electronic devices desire devices that are reduced in size and yet have increased device functionality.
For these and other reasons there is a need for the present invention.

Semiconductor device including electronic component coupled to a backside of a chip


A decarbonization apparatus for a coking chamber of a coke oven, which comprises a lance connected to an oxygen-containing gas pressure source, and a support for supporting and inserting the lance into the coking chamber. The lance has at least one nozzle projecting therefrom in such manner that the gas ejected therefrom flows almost parallel to the side wall of the coking chamber.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to decarbonization of the coking chamber of a coke oven, more particularly an apparatus for removing the carbon deposition on the inside of the coking chambers.
2. Description of Prior Arts
In coke production in coke ovens, carbon deposits on all parts of the coking chamber during the coking period and if this carbon deposition, particularly on the inside walls of the coking chamber, is allowed to accumulate, it hinders the pushing-out operation of the produced coke through the chamber, decreases the effective dimensions of the chamber, and causes lowering in the thermal conductivity of the chamber walls and the adverse effects on the coke production. Therefore, the carbon deposition on the inside walls of the coking chamber must be removed periodically. Meanwhile, if the carbon deposition on the upper inside wall (ceiling surface) of the coking chamber is allowed to accumulate, it hinders the levelling operation of the coal charges, and this carbon deposition also must be removed periodically. Also the carbon deposition on the root portion and the rising portion of the ascension pipe, if allowed to accumulate, hinders the outlet of the generated gases, and must be removed periodically. In the conventional arts, as taught by Japanese Patent Publication No. Sho 60-2348, it has long been a common practice for the removal of the carbon deposition on the inside walls of the coking chamber that a spear-like tool of about 5 to 6 meters in length, with a pointed tip, is used for manually stripping off the carbon deposits from above the coking chamber. This practice, however, has been confronted with various problems such that the carbon deposition layer is completely stripped off from the walls without leaving the least carbon deposition necessary for sealing the wall refractory joints, the workers are exposed to a high temperature and heavy muscular labor and that the oven operation must be stopped during the stripping off of the carbon deposits. Further, for the removal of the carbon deposits on the ceiling surface or on the upper portions of the side walls of the coking chamber, which are at the dead angle from above the coking chamber, it is difficult to strip them off by the conventional practice.
In substitution of the above conventional practice, it has been proposed to liberate the coal charging holes and the ascension pipe about one hour before the pushing-out of the coke to introduce air into the chamber by a natural ventilation for combustion of the carbon deposits. However, the introduction of air about one hour before the pushing-out of the coke from the chamber has economical and technical problems that much of the oven gas is wastefully discharged together with the introduced air through the ascension pipe, because the oven gas is still generated at a rate of about 3 to 5 Nm.sup.3 /Hr.Coal t. (4800 Kcal/Nm.sup.3) at this stage, and that the coal charging holes and portions nearby are unduely cooled by the introduced air and very susceptible to damages such as by spalling.
For removal of the carbon deposits on the root portion and rising portion of the ascension pipe, the conventional practice is that in addition to the above-mentioned introduction of air through the coal charging holes, the levelling bar hole is liberated before the pushing-out of the coke to introduce air therethrough for combustion of the carbon deposit and the carbon deposit is mechanically sticked off by a tool from through the levelling bar hole or through the top hole of the rising portion of the ascension pipe. All of these practices have been confronted with the problem that the oven gas generating during these decarbonization operations is discharged from the coking chamber.

Decarbonization apparatus for coke oven chamber

c/o Nippon steel Corporation, Yawata Works, 1-1-1

Edamitsu, Yahatahigashi-ku, Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka-ken


A mobile terminal including a display unit outputting an image, a communication unit transceiving data with an external mobile terminal, and a controller controlling the communication unit to receive a screen information of the mobile terminal and a 1st control information of the screen information from the mobile terminal and to transmit a 2nd control information of the screen information to the mobile terminal, the controller controlling the display unit to transform the 1st control information of the screen information and to output the transformed screen information to a user. The 1st control information includes an image size transformation information of the screen information and an image compression format information of the screen information. The 2nd control information includes a supportable compression format information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, image display device mounted on a vehicle and data processing method using the same. Although the present invention is suitable for a wide scope of applications, it is particularly suitable for the mobile terminal and the image display device to share a screen with each other.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Generally, an image display device is the device that displays image information using a screen. In particular, an image display device mounted on a vehicle provides a user with such a function as a vehicle information display function, a navigation system function, a TV output function and the like. The recent development of technology enables an image display device mounted on a vehicle to perform data communication with a mobile terminal carried by a user by being connected with the mobile terminal using wire/wireless network.
Through the data communication between the image display device mounted on the vehicle and the mobile terminal, screen data of one device is transmitted to another device so as to share a screen between the two devices. However, in order to share a screen between the image display device and the mobile terminal, the demand for a data processing method for efficiently transmitting screen data between devices is rising.

Mobile terminal, image display device mounted on vehicle and data processing method using the same


A reclining beach chair incorporating a frame having pairs of crossed front, rear and side legs, with each leg including a pair of bends in opposing directions in bringing the seat level of the chair closer to the ground, and with connectors for the legs and a tilt-locking mechanism for stabilizing the chair and positively fixing it at the reclining angle set when opened or folded, and for collapsing the chair to a compact package when closed.

1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates to foldable chairs, in general, and to a collapsible chair especially useful at a beach or seashore location, in particular.
2. Description Of The Related Art
Folding or collapsible chairs in the nature of furniture have been described in such U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,635,520 (Roher et al) and 5,984,406 (Lee). In a multiple seat arrangement, they are also described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,570,928 (Staunton et al). For outdoor use, in camping and watching sports games, chairs of this type have been illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,893,605 (Chang). When a reclining chair is desired for camping, hiking, fishing, and concert events, a construction of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,068 (Levine) is said to be useful.
While chairs of these types may prove adequate to suit their intended purposes, they have proven deficient when employed at beaches or seashore locations where users prefer low seat heights, typically no more than 6" to 10" above ground. While adjustments for multiple reclining positions in these chairs are highly desirable, the need for adjusting the position safely and easily is equally as important. As the reclining chair is oftentimes left unoccupied when open, it is almost as important, if not more so, for the beach chair to have a degree of stability about it, so as to limit its propensity to be blown about by wind gusts, as well as when being sat upon by a user. These various features, however, are not readily available with the type of folding chair arrangements that typify the prior art.


A method and electronic circuit operate a quartz auxiliary lamp lighting lamp and circuit to light a quartz auxiliary lamp at 120 Vac and 50-60 Hz current connected to an electronic HID ballast operating at a frequency of 100 Hz to over 400 kHz and voltages of from 120 Vac, as provided by a multitap transformer and related circuitry.

High intensity discharge lamps require a certain warm-up period, approximately five minutes, before the light output of the high intensity lamp reaches usable levels. Also, if a supply voltage drop is experienced, the high intensity lamp will extinguish and will not again reach a usable light output until after a substantial cool-down period and subsequent restart period; an accumulative period of approximately 15 minutes. In certain applications for these lamps, the period prior to attaining full luminescence after the period subsequent to a supply voltage drop in which the lamp is extinguished can result in substantial inconveniences. In certain specific applications such as hospitals, supermarkets, and department stores, sudden light failure resulting from a voltage drop can cause patients or patrons to expose themselves or others to injury.
Accordingly, control devices for auxiliary lamps have been sought to automatically provide auxiliary lighting when the high intensity discharge lamp is in a low luminescence condition. However, control devices have not been readily available for an auxiliary light source for use with electronic high intensity discharge lamp ballasts to provide supplemental lighting during start-up and cool-down phases of operation of an associated high intensity discharge lamp.
The provision of an auxiliary control circuit for an auxiliary lamp which automatically functions to provide lighting during times when the high intensity discharge lamp is not at full luminescence can encounter an operational frequency mismatch of the 50/60 Hz frequency operation of conventional power supplies and the 100 Hz-400 kHz frequency of operation of high intensity discharge lamp ballasts. Additionally, conventional auxiliary lamps may use a power source of 120 Vac whereas high intensity discharge lamp electronic ballasts operate over a range of voltages of from 120-277 Vac.
Electronic HID ballast systems for HID lamps have been provided as alternatives to traditional magnetic ballasts in both low wattage applications and mid-wattage applications of 50 to 450 watts, although low wattage HID lamps frequently have not used auxiliary emergency lighting sources. Auxiliary quartz lamp lighting systems now are used for mid-wattage (50-450 watts) HID lamps with electronic ballasts.

Auxiliary quartz lamp lighting system for electronic high intensity discharge lamp ballasts


Colorless or colored nail polish contains, in a polish solvent system, a film-forming substance, a resin, a plasticizer, and 0.01 to 0.5 wt. % aramide fibers (poly[paraphenylene terephthalamide]), and provides improved adhesion and strength of the polish on the nails.

Of the principal characteristics that nail polishes should possess, the following may be singled out in particular: good adhesion to the nail surface, and a certain flexibility and strength of the film to prevent its fragility leading to cracking of the polish.
In general, at the present time, modified resins are used to confer good adhesion and plasticizers to lead to good flexibility of the polish.
After a substantial volume of research, it has not been found that good adhesion of a colorless or colored polish to the nail surface as well as good strength can be obtained by incorporating certain fibers.
British Patent No. 1,177,420 has already proposed polishes for reinforcing and repairing broken nails, containing 0.5 to 12% of certain fibers such as for example fibers of silk, cotton, nylon, polyacrylonitrile, polyethylene terephthalate, and other polymers or copolymers.
According to this patent, the fibers present in the polish act as a nail-reinforcing agent but do not favor adhesion or strength of the polish on the nail at all.

Colorless or colored nail polish containing aramide fibers


Microball delivery solutions for solder bumping are generally described. In this regard, according to one example embodiment, a microball delivery assembly includes a mask with at least two microball holder(s) to hold at least two different sizes of microball(s) that may correspond with at least two different-sized openings on a substrate, to provide simultaneous delivery of different-sized microballs upon a substrate.

Generally, solder bumping includes placing solderable material on bonding pads of a chip substrate and then reflowing the solderable material to form attached solder bumps on the bonding pads. A number of solder bump forming methods exist according to the prior art. In a common method, illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, a stencil mask printing method 100, 200 is used wherein solder paste 102, is squeezed through openings in a metal mask 104 and openings in a solder resist layer 106 onto bonding pads 110 located on the surface of a substrate 108. After mask 104 removal, the placed solder 102 is heated or reflowed to melt the solder 102 to form bumps 202 on the bonding pads 208 of the substrate 206. The stencil printing method and associated methods may not be suited for future platforms that require decreasing solder pitch and bump sizes. Stencil mask printing at fine pitches (i.e.—less than about 150 μm) results in mask lift-off, missing bumps, bump voiding, and excessive bump height variation, thus negatively affecting die attachment yields.
Alternative bumping techniques are being investigated to overcome these limitations. Microball delivery is one such technique that has elicited interest owing to its ability to produce relatively void-free bumps with excellent bump height control. However, delivery methods available today may be restricted to substrates with a single solder resist opening (SRO) size. Current microball techniques cannot deliver microballs of different sizes to mixed pitch and mixed size SROs without using a multiple delivery and placement process, with concomitant increased costs and lowered throughput time. For example, substrates with mixed SROs may currently require a delivery process for each SRO/microball size. Separate delivery of different-sized microballs may also require multiple reflow steps. Solutions for improved microball delivery and placement in a more cost and time efficient manner are needed.


A robochain including a plurality of link units, a connecting member (1300) between the link units, a hollow part formed inside the link unit (1100) for enabling the connecting member (1300) to be detachably attached to each of the link units, and a neck part (1316) formed in the connecting member (1300) for preventing the connecting member (1300) from being easily detached from the hollow part (1118). Repair of a link plate is facilitated by simply separating the engaging part of the connecting member from the hollow part.

A robochain used in an industrial field in which various machines are used is a safety apparatus for moving a reciprocating hydraulic/pneumatic hose, cable, and so on, at the same angle as the safety apparatus, and protecting them from moisture, dusts, and so on.
The robochain enables a machine to be more safely operated because the robochain applies to the same intensity to the hydraulic/pneumatic hose and cable for supplying electric power or a pressure to the machine while the hydraulic/pneumatic hose and cable are reciprocated in a protective apparatus.
In the robochain of the related art, a connecting rod is inserted into through-holes of link plates to connect the link plates. However, fastening of the connecting rod is inconvenient, and when one of the link plates should be repaired, the all of the link plates are released due to separation of the connecting rod to make a repair operation inconvenient.

Robochain and connecting members used in the same


Disclosed is an improved apparatus and method for collecting, freezing and removing a liquid such as blood or blood components, and particularly blood plasma. In accordance with the present invention, a container (16) for blood plasma is defined by a pair of substantially flat, flexible opposing sidewalls (40, 42) which are substantially adjacent when the container is empty. The sidewalls are peripherally sealed together to define an interior compartment, and the side seals (44, 46) converge toward one end (48) of the container. After a selected quantity of plasma is collected in the container, the filled container is formed and frozen in a wedge-shaped configuration, with the opposed sidewalls (40,42) converging toward the end of the container. An air space (82) may be provided in the top of the container so that a knife (86) may be easily inserted into the frozen container without contacting the frozen liquid (88) therein. Slight warming of the container then permits the frozen contents to be removed efficiently as a single slug. Also disclosed is a form (60) for shaping a container as described above into a wedge-shape for freezing. The form includes a pair of rigid, perforated walls (62, 66) hinged together at one end (64) and configured to receive a container therebetween. The rigid walls of the form are disposed to shape the container walls into a converging configuration during freezing.

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for storing and freezing a liquid. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for collecting, storing, freezing and removing a frozen liquid from a plastic container, wherein the liquid is generally blood plasma.
Blood plasma is usually obtained through volunteer donation. In general, the blood is collected from the donor, processed into its component parts, including plasma, and frozen or stored for future infusion or further fractionation.
To this end, blood may be collected from the donor into an interconnected multiple-bag collection system, such as that marketed by the Fenwal Division of Baxter Healthcare, Inc., of Deerfield, Ill., U.S.A., under product code number 4R1402. In such a system, whole blood from the donor is first collected into a donor bag. The donor bag is then centrifuged to separate the whole blood into two layers: a lower layer of red cells and an upper layer of plasma. The plasma contains platelets, which are instrumental in the clotting process. This plasma is commonly referred to as platelet-rich plasma. The platelet-rich plasma is expressed, usually by manually squeezing the donor bag, into a second bag of the multiple-bag blood collection system.
If there are three bags in the blood collection system, as there are in the above-identified Baxter Healthcare product, the third bag may contain a red blood cell preservative to extend the shelf-life of the red blood cells. The red blood cell preservation solution is transferred to the donor bag and mixed with the packed red blood cells. The tube between the donor bag and the rest of the blood collection system is then sealed and severed.
To further separate the platelet rich plasma into platelets and plasma, the bag containing the platelet rich plasma is again centrifuged. This forms a lower layer of platelets and an upper layer of platelet-poor plasma. The platelet-poor plasma is then expressed into the third bag of the blood collection system and the tube connecting these two bags is sealed and severed.
Following collection and fractionation, some blood components are usually frozen for increased storage life and for ease of transportation to another location. The bags containing the platelet-poor plasma, for example, are typically placed into blast freezers designed for quickly freezing liquids. The frozen plasma is then stored in a storage freezer.
The frozen plasma can be thawed and used for plasma infusion or processed by further fractionation into its component parts, such as serum albumen, antihemophilic factor, fibrinogen, gamma globulin and the like. As a first step in plasma fractionation, the frozen plasma must be removed from the bag. As a result of the soft and pliable nature of vinyl at room temperature, the shape of the vinyl collection bags and the freezing process itself, the plasma tends to freeze in a large bulbous lump in the bottom of the bag. This makes simple removal of the frozen plasma slug very difficult and time consuming. In one removal technique, the blood collection bags are immersed in liquid nitrogen to make the plasma and the bag colder, and thus more brittle. The collection bags are then manually beaten onto a table to fracture the bags. The large chunks of frozen plasma are manually selected from among the broken pieces of vinyl bag material. However, any plasma stuck to a blood collection bag or trapped in a corner, fold, or wrinkle of the bag is swept from the table with the waste. As a result, a significant quantity of the collected plasma also may be wasted in this procedure.
One form of apparatus and method to improve recovery of frozen plasma is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,253,458. This patent discloses a bag for collection of plasma which is made of a polyolefin material, which material is significantly stiffer than vinyl and generally maintains its as-molded shape. The shape of the polyolefin bag is configured wherein the sides taper substantially from the top towards the bottom, so that the frozen slug of plasma may be more completely expelled from the bag. Although the polyolefin bag improves the efficiency of plasma removal, because it is more rigid than vinyl, it does not provide a lay-flat configuration when empty. Accordingly, fewer containers can be packaged in a given sized shipping container. Moreover, polyolefin containers are considerably more expensive than vinyl, due to material costs and to the blow molding process used to make such containers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,340,152 discloses a method and apparatus for removing frozen blood automatically from containers such as the container disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,253,458, discussed above. That patent does not, however, address the increased cost of polyolefin containers or the higher shipping cost associated with such containers.
Accordingly, it is a general object of this invention to provide an improved apparatus and method useful for the collection of blood and blood components.
It is a more particular object of this invention to provide an apparatus and method useful in the collection of blood and blood components in vinyl bags.
These and other objects of the present invention are set forth in the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiment of the present invention.

Apparatus and method for collecting and freezing blood plasma


In described examples, a packaged semiconductor device includes a frame, a pre-fabricated interposer, and an integrated circuit die. The frame includes multiple conductive frame leads and multiple conductive connection points, as well as a hole in the frame surrounded by the frame leads and the conductive connection points. The pre-molded interposer has an external perimeter including multiple conductive interposer leads, and is for insertion into the hole. At least one of the interposer leads does not extend to the external perimeter of the interposer. The die is electrically coupled to selected ones of the frame leads and of the interposer leads. The interposer is inserted into the hole and coupled to the frame, and the frame, interposer, and die are together encapsulated by encapsulation material.

This application relates generally to connections between integrated circuits and circuit boards, and more particularly to lead frames in a packaged semiconductor device.
FIG. 1A shows a prior art example of a lead frame 100. FIG. 1B shows a prior art example of a quad-flat no-leads (QFN) package 102. FIG. 1C shows a prior art example of a flip chip 104. The lead frame 100 includes a die attach pad 106 on which a control integrated circuit 107 (control IC 107) is mounted, typically using an adhesive. The control IC 107 controls input and output functions of the fully assembled package 102. The lead frame 100 also includes multiple conductive leads 108, 110 (non-floating leads 108 and floating leads 110). The flip chip 104 is electrically coupled to the lead frame 100 of FIG. 1A, and the assembled flip chip 104 and lead frame are encapsulated using encapsulation material to produce the QFN package 102 of FIG. 1B. The QFN package 102 of FIG. 1B shows a bottom side of the attach pad 109 of the lead frame 100.
FIG. 1D shows a prior art example of multiple pre-singulation QFN lead frames 100 physically connected together in an array 124. Connection points 112 and a bottom surface of the flip chip 118 are visible in FIG. 1D. After the lead frames 100 are encapsulated, the array 124 of lead frames 100 is singulated (separated using, for example, saw singulation or shear singulation) into separate, individual lead frames 100. The individual lead frames 100 can be electrically connected to circuits on a printed circuit board (PCB, not shown) surface, as further described below.
Conductive leads 108, 110 can be floating leads 110 or non-floating leads 108. Non-floating leads 108 are conductive leads 108, 110 that are electrically and mechanically connected by continuous conductive lead frame 100 structure to a connection point 112. Floating leads 110 are conductive leads 108, 110 that are not electrically and mechanically connected by continuous conductive lead frame structure to a connection point 112. Wire bonds or other electrically connective structures are added to the lead frame 100 to electrically connect floating leads 110 to respective connection points 112, prior to the flip chip 104 being attached to the lead frame 100 and the resulting fully assembled lead frame system being packaged (for example, to form a QFN package 102).
Some of the conductive leads 108, 110 are electrically connected to the control IC 107 by wire bonds 111. Connection points 112 on the lead frame 100 are conductive locations on the perimeter of the lead frame 100 that remain exposed when the lead frame 100, with a flip chip 104 (or other integrated circuit) mounted thereon, is enclosed in molding compound to form a QFN (or other) package 102. Some of the connection points 112 are electrically connected to the control IC 107, either directly using wire bonds 111, or indirectly via conductive leads 108, 110 that are electrically connected to the control IC 107 using wire bonds 111.
The QFN package 102 includes the connection points 112, which are left exposed when the lead frame 100 is encapsulated using molding compound. The QFN package's connection points 112 can be surface-mounted on a PCB to electrically connect the QFN package 102 to circuits on the PCB surface. The flip chip 104 includes conductive pads 114 on a top surface 116 of the flip chip 104. The conductive leads 108, 110 on the lead frame 100 are arranged so that the flip chip 104 can be flipped over so that its top surface 116 faces down—towards the lead frame 100—and the conductive leads 108, 110 are aligned with the conductive pads 114. The pads 114 can then be electrically and mechanically connected to the conductive leads 108, 110 using solder balls (not shown). This results in electrically coupling the circuits in the flip chip 104 to the connection points 112, via the conductive leads 108, 110. Packaging in which a flip chip is used with a lead frame is referred to as Flip Chip on Lead (FCoL) packaging.
FIG. 1E shows a prior art example of a view 120 of the flip chip 104 being placed onto a lead frame 100, in which a bottom surface 118 of the flip chip 104 is visible. FIG. 1F shows a prior art example of a view 122 of the flip chip 104 being placed onto the lead frame 100, in which the top surface 116 of the flip chip 104 is visible.

Semiconductor apparatus and method having a lead frame with floating leads


A process is provided for the low temperature preparation of CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2 which comprises reacting CF.sub.3 CHClOCHF.sub.2 with hydrogen fluoride in the presence of an antimony pentachloride catalyst or mixture of antimony pentachloride and antimony trichloride.

The compound 1,2.2,2-tetrafluoromethyl difuoroethyl ether (CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2) is an important volatile liquid inhalation anesthetic particularly suited for administration to patients during outpatient surgery due to its rapid rate of recovery. Economical methods for the preparation of CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2 using inexpensive, available raw materials are therefore highly desirable.
One known method for preparing CF3CHFOCHF2 is by first chlorinating 1,2,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl methyl ether (CF.sub.3 CHFOCH.sub.3) to produce a compound having the formula CF.sub.3 CHFOCHCl.sub.2, which compound is then fluorinated with hydrogen fluoride in the presence of antimony pentachloride. See, for example, Ger. Offen. 2,361,058 (1975). However, such a process is disadvantageous for producing CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2 on an industrial scale as it is a complex, multiple-step synthesis which can require large amounts of chlorine and is, therefore, both cumbersome and expensive.
The use of hydrogen fluoride with antimony pentachloride as a catalyst as in the above process is nevertheless an attractive method of preparing fluorinated hydrocarbon derivatives such as the subject compound as such well known technology has been used in industry for years and involves inexpensive, readily available raw materials.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,005,708, for example, describes the production of chlorofluoroalkanes from the reaction of a chlorinated hydrocarbon with hydrogen fluoride in the presence of an antimony halide, for example, antimony pentachloride or a mixture of antimony pentachloride and antimony trichloride. U.S. Pat. No. 2,005,705 also describes fluorination of organo chlorine compounds, for example, carbon tetrachloride, methylene chloride, fluorotrichloro methane and the like, with hydrogen fluoride in the presence of an antimony pentachloride catalyst to produce chlorofluoro alkanes. Further, European Application No. 129,863 describes a process whereby antimony pentachloride is first reacted with hydrogen fluoride to produce an antimony chlorofluoride, which is then reacted with a haloalkane, for example, carbon tetrachloride, penta- and hexachloroethane and the like. to produce mixtures of fluoro and chlorofluoroalkanes. None of these references teaches or suggests a means of replacing chloro with fluoro on an internal carbon atom in a chlorofluoro ether containing at least three carbon atoms.
The processes described above, however, have not contemplated the preparation of fluorinated organoethers such as CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2. Moreover, the formation of highly fluorinated hydrocarbons by such processes typically involve relatively high reaction temperatures and pressures which, in addition to incurring high energy costs, can cause decomposition of reactants and products and rapid deterioration of process materials.
It is, therefore, an obJect of this invention to provide an economical, energy efficient process employing mild reaction conditions for the preparation of CF.sub.3 CHFOCHF.sub.2 using inexpensive, readily available raw materials.

Process for production of 1,2,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl difluoromethyl ether


A composite material having a high thermal conductivity and a small thermal expansion coefficient, which is obtained by impregnating a porous graphitized extrudate with a metal; the composite material having such anisotropy that the thermal conductivity and the thermal expansion coefficient are 250 W/mK or more and less than 4×10−6/K, respectively, in an extrusion direction; and that the thermal conductivity and the thermal expansion coefficient are 150 W/mK or more and 10×10−6/K or less, respectively, in a direction perpendicular to the extrusion direction.

Because electronic parts have been increasing their heat generation as their integration, volume, output, etc. are increasing, demand is mounting on materials having a high thermal conductivity and a small thermal expansion coefficient. Because semiconductor devices such as CPUs, light-emitting diodes, etc. generate large amounts of heat, heat sinks are usually mounted to them. Heat transmitted from the semiconductor devices to the heat sinks is dissipated by fans or cooling media, etc. The heat sinks are usually made of aluminum, copper or their alloys having excellent thermal conductivity.
Because CPU, for instance, is much smaller than the heat sink, a high-thermal-conductivity body called "heat spreader" is usually interposed therebetween. Materials for the heat spreader preferably have a high thermal conductivity and as small a thermal expansion coefficient as that of the CPU made of silicon. This is true of light-emitting diodes made of compound semiconductors (GaAs, GaN, etc.). For such purposes, a lot of substrates made of composite materials of ceramics having small thermal expansion coefficients such as silicon carbide, alumina, silicon nitride or aluminum nitride and aluminum or copper have been proposed. However, substrates made of these composite materials are disadvantageously poor in workability because of containing ceramics. Though composite material substrates made of metals having small thermal expansion coefficients such as tungsten or molybdenum and copper have also been proposed, these composite material substrates are disadvantageously poor in workability.
Under the above circumstances, a lot of attempts have recently been proposed to use composite materials of carbon particles or fibers and metals for heat-dissipating substrates. For instance, JP 10-168502 A discloses a high-thermal-conductivity composite material obtained by mixing 1 to 200 parts by weight of one or more crystalline carbon materials selected from the group consisting of graphite, carbon fibers, carbon black, fullerene and carbon nanotubes, and 100 parts by weight of metal powder selected from the group consisting of Fe, Cu, Al, Ag, Be, Mg, W, Ni, Mo, Si, Zn and these alloys, and hot-pressing the resultant mixture. However, because this composite material has a structure containing crystalline carbon materials dispersed in a metal matrix, it has as large a thermal expansion coefficient as that of the metal matrix, though it has a high thermal conductivity.
JP 2000-203973 A discloses a carbon-based metal composite material comprising a carbonaceous matrix impregnated with at least one metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, magnesium, tin, zinc, copper, silver, iron, nickel and their alloys, 90% by volume or more of voids in the carbonaceous matrix being impregnated with the metal, and the amount of the metal being 35% by volume or less of the entire carbon-based metal composite material.
JP 2001-58255 A discloses a carbon-based metal composite material produced by impregnating carbon moldings comprising carbon particles or fibers containing graphite crystals with aluminum, copper, silver or these alloys at high pressure by a melt-forging method, which has a thermal conductivity of 150 W/mK or more and a thermal expansion coefficient of 4×10−6/K to 12×10−6/K in a thickness direction at room temperature. This carbon-based metal composite material has a structure comprising a graphite matrix having high rigidity, a high thermal conductivity and a small thermal expansion coefficient as a skeleton, with its voids impregnated with a metal. Accordingly, it has both small thermal expansion coefficient inherent in graphite and high thermal conductivity inherent in a metal.
Despite the above advantages, these carbon-based metal composite materials are disadvantageous in having much larger thermal expansion coefficients than those of silicon and compound semiconductors. Large differences from silicon and compound semiconductors in a thermal expansion coefficient undesirably exert large thermal stress to CPUs or light-emitting diodes during soldering or brazing heat-dissipating substrates to the CPUs or the light-emitting diodes, or during the operation of the CPUs or the light-emitting diodes. Accordingly, a stress-relieving member is usually interposed between the CPU or the light-emitting diode and the heat-dissipating substrate. However, because the stress-relieving member does not necessarily have a sufficiently large thermal conductivity, the use of the carbon-based metal composite material having a high thermal conductivity for the heat-dissipating substrate does not exhibit its effect sufficiently.
Further, when the heat-dissipating substrate is bonded to the CPU or the light-emitting diode, soldering is usually conducted at about 200 to 300° C. in the case of an aluminum-impregnated graphite substrate, and brazing is usually conducted at about 700 to 800° C. in the case of a copper-impregnated graphite substrate. It has been found, however, that when exposed to such high temperature, the composite substrate impregnated with aluminum or copper exhibits extremely different sizes due to a residual stress before and after the heating. Such thermal hysteresis causes warp in the heat-dissipating substrate bonded to the CPU or the light-emitting diode, so that the heat-dissipating substrate may finally be broken, or that the CPU or the laser diode, etc. may also be damaged by thermal stress.

Composite material having high thermal conductivity and low thermal expansion coefficient, and heat-dissipating substrate, and their production methods


A system, an abutment, a dental implant, kits and a method for implanting a prosthesis onto a jaw of a patient. The proximal end of the abutments is a flat connection of a predefined shape that is circularly symmetrical with a proximad decreasing radius. The prosthesis is attached to the distal ends of the abutments, and each abutment corresponds to a dental implant in the jaw. The dental implants are not all parallel to each other and may form any angle between them. The flat connection allows substantial tolerance in attaching the prosthesis to the dental implants. The predefined form may be a proximal disc connected to a distal truncated cone, wherein the proximal disc is congruent to the proximal face of the truncated cone. One system comprises abutments, dental implants, elastic supporting elements and extension elements.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to the field of medical appliances, and more particularly, the present invention relates to dental implants.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Dental prostheses are supported by abutments connected to them, which are attached to dental implants in the patient's jaw. The method of attaching the abutment to the implants limits the cases in which prostheses are applicable and the geometrical configuration of the dental implants.
Prior to setting forth the background of the related art, it may be helpful to set forth definitions of certain terms that will be used hereinafter.
The term "standard dental implant" as used herein in this application, is defined as any dental implant with an inner cavity such as internal hex, internal octagon or internal star.


The invention provides methods for determining the probability that a given region of a tissue sample contains tissue of a given category, such as CIN 1 (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, grade 1), CIN 2/3 (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grades 2 and/or 3), normal squamous, normal columnar, and metaplasia, for example. The invention provides increased diagnostic accuracy by combining a plurality of statistical classification techniques. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the invention comprises combining one or more statistical techniques with one or more non-statistical classification techniques.

It is common in the field of medicine to perform visual examination to diagnose disease. For example, visual examination of the cervix can discern areas where there is a suspicion of pathology. However, direct visual observation alone may be inadequate for proper identification of an abnormal tissue sample, particularly in the early stages of disease.
In some procedures, such as colposcopic examinations, a chemical agent, such as acetic acid, is applied to enhance the differences in appearance between normal and pathological tissue. Such acetowhitening techniques may aid a colposcopist in the determination of areas in which there is a suspicion of pathology.
Colposcopic techniques are not perfect. They generally require analysis by a highly-trained physician. Colposcopic images may contain complex and confusing patterns and may be affected by glare, shadow, or the presence of blood or other obstruction, rendering an indeterminate diagnosis.
Spectral analysis has increasingly been used to diagnose disease in tissue. Spectral analysis is based on the principle that the intensity of light that is transmitted from an illuminated tissue sample may indicate the state of health of the tissue. As in colposcopic examination, spectral analysis of tissue may be conducted using a contrast agent such as acetic acid. In spectral analysis, the contrast agent is used to enhance differences in the light that is transmitted from normal and pathological tissues.
Spectral analysis offers the prospect of at least partially-automated diagnosis of tissue using a classification algorithm. A typical tissue classification algorithm applies a single statistical technique to determine the probability that data from a tissue sample falls within a certain predetermined class. The result may be inaccurate, and may vary depending on the assumptions of the statistical technique applied. Furthermore, examinations using spectral analysis may be adversely affected by glare, shadow, or the presence of blood or other obstruction, rendering inaccurate tissue-class probabilities.
Thus, there exists a need for an improved method of determining tissue-class probabilities for a tissue sample.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods and apparatus for characterization of tissue samples


A quantitative risk assessment system (QRAS) builds a risk model of a system for which risk of failure is being assessed, then analyzes the risk of the system corresponding to the risk model. The QRAS performs sensitivity analysis of the risk model by altering fundamental components and quantifications built into the risk model, then re-analyzes the risk of the system using the modifications. More particularly, the risk model is built by building a hierarchy, creating a mission timeline, quantifying failure modes, and building/editing event sequence diagrams. Multiplicities, dependencies, and redundancies of the system are included in the risk model. For analysis runs, a fixed baseline is first constructed and stored. This baseline contains the lowest level scenarios, preserved in event tree structure. The analysis runs, at any level of the hierarchy and below, access this baseline for risk quantitative computation as well as ranking of particular risks. A standalone Tool Box capability exists, allowing the user to store application programs within QRAS.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to risk analysis systems, and, in particular, to computer-based risk assessment systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
The prior art includes many software tools, primarily CAFTA, ETA, RISKMAN, and IRRAS. In addition, performing risk analysis through the construction of fault trees is known.
The state-of-the-art in risk assessment software is now described. The current software packages/systems for probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) utilize a fault-tree model approach, an event tree model approach, or event trees with fault trees attached to branch points. Two main examples are CAFTA for WINDOWS and Riskman. Other software of the same genre includes IRRAS--with the WINDOWS based version called SAPPHIRE.
The fundamental problem with fault trees, though, is they only provide an upper bound to the true risk (and this is not a least upper bound). Riskman and CAFTA use fault trees. CAFTA is essentially a large fault tree program. Riskman uses top level event trees and, in general, hangs fault trees at the branch points.
Therefore, the Quantitative Risk Assessment System (QRAS) model of the present invention, as explained herein below, gives a better approximation to the true but unknown risk.
From a structural point of view, a fault tree only looks at the base events and creates cut sets, and then finds the minimal cut sets. However, none of the prior art software handles all of the elements simultaneously. The prior art software does not allow one to change an element (a failure mode or a failure mode quantification) and have it changed everywhere it applies. If one changes the set up of a system in CAFTA, the prior generated cut sets still exist (in file form).
On the other hand, in QRAS of the present invention, as explained herein below, if a user changes the structure (e.g., a failure mode or a failure mode quantification) of the system for which risk is being analyzed, then the baseline will be removed and all analysis runs pertaining to it will not exist. (More particularly, in QRAS of the present invention, the user must first supply a password to delete the baseline. Alternatively in QRAS of the present invention, the entire project can be saved and a new project created by a copy/paste function or simply by using WINDOWS Explorer, and then this new project can be modified.) That is, in QRAS of the present invention, all of the analysis runs will not exist unless the entire model is preserved unchanged. In CAFTA, on the other hand, a cut set file can exist, even though one can then change the original fault tree model and the cut set file, although inaccurate, refers both to the old system (because it has the refer-back name), but it does not really apply because the system has changed.
In addition, event sequence diagrams are known. Also known are failure modes, as are demand-based and time-based quantifications of failure modes, such as point estimate/uncertainty distribution, writing the probability (P) as a function of variables, logistic regression for P, limit state functions, exponential with uncertainty in .lambda., piecewise exponential, weibull--with uncertainty on .beta., .eta., standby redundancy, conditional probability (exponential), and conditional probability (weibull).
Also known is risk ranking individually by mean, by median, and by uncertainty (for a scenario or a failure mode). No software makes a distinction between scenarios that immediately propagate to failure (i.e., single point failures) and scenarios with one or more pivotal events, as in the present invention. No software internally collects the probabilities of failure over scenarios and then ranks the individual elements or subsystems using those fundamental units of failure, as in the present invention. A singleton, which is an initiating event followed immediately by an end state, itself is known, but the present invention allows an immediate determination of what are those single point failures (i.e., singletons).
There are, in addition, WINDOWS-based software programs for creating and analyzing reliability block diagrams, and for incorporating uncertainties. There is also WINDOWS-based software for failure modes and effects analysis, etc.
However, there is no conventional risk assessment software incorporating as a unit the following: ease-of-use; the availability of as many quantification methods; the linkage via a hierarchy (with plain text for names) to a time-based quantification and the abilities to store documentation; and perform sensitivity analysis (linked to original risk analysis)--as in the present invention.
Although each individual quantification or statistical method used by QRAS of the present invention is known, the combination of these methods used as they are in QRAS of the present invention is unique. Moreover, there is no other software that handles event sequence diagrams (ESDs) and automatically translates the ESDs into event trees, as in the present invention.
Further, the prior art systems are not particularly user-friendly. More specifically, none of the prior art systems allows the range of failure probability characterizations as in the present invention, none are based on a hierarchical arrangement with the features as in the present invention, none include a WINDOWS-based event-sequence diagram builder to automatically create event trees, as in the present invention. In addition, the prior art systems include limited sensitivity analysis capabilities. Also, and most importantly, the prior art systems do not integrate the above-mentioned features in a cohesive, simple, yet powerful platform.

Quantitative risk assessment system (QRAS)

The United States Government as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration


An improved cup device including a cup unit having an improved holder. The cup device includes a one-piece holder structure with two parallel sides, a holding part, a supporting part having two parallel sides, and a fitting part positioned between the two parallel sides of the supporting part. The supporting part contacts the side of the cup unit. The holding part is located at the two parallel sides of the one-piece holder structure and positioned above the supporting part in a direction away from the side of the cup unit. An upper portion of the supporting part includes an extruded rib. The fitting part is positioned at a tail end of the one-piece holder structure and below the holding part. The fitting part rests against the side of the cup unit. The extruded rib is upwardly pushable to enable a front part of the supporting part to bend and form a tied pressing part that can be pressed and locked to the upper edge of the cup unit. The supporting part is deformable to permit the holding part to bend and form a storage space to provide for a user's fingers to pass therethrough.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to disposable cups, more particularly, a disposable cup with an improved holder.
2. Description of the Related Art
Disposable cups have gained wide popularity because of they are convenient to use. However, such disposable cup devices contain certain defects. For instance, prior art cup devices are made of paper or plastic and therefore if such disposable cups are used to receive very hot drinks, since the thermal insulation properties are not adequate, the user of the cup may have extreme difficulty in holding such a cup filled with a hot liquid, resulting in injury to the user. One solution is to provide a holder for the disposable cup, which is typically made of a paper or plastic material. Such a fastening or holding device attached or clipped typically to the edge of the disposable cup enables a user to avoid direct thermal contact with the cup device filled with a hot liquid. Such a design can solve the problem of direct thermal contact with the contents of the cup, yet it is still inconvenient to use because the disposable cup and the attached holder are two separate elements. Providing for a cup and a separate holder that is later assembled together will add to the production cost, as well as the labor cost in assembling the cup with the separate holder.

No. 7 Alley 5, Lan 3, Ryh Shin Rd., Dong Shan


The present invention extends to mapping between object oriented and service oriented representations of a distributed application. A computer system accesses an annotated object oriented representation of a service, which is annotated with service description attributes mapping included objects to corresponding service oriented elements in a service oriented representation of the service. The computer system identifies a service description attribute that annotates an object of the annotated object oriented representation. The computer system maps the object to a corresponding service oriented element in accordance with service description information contained in the identified service description attribute. The computer system outputs a channel object configured to implements behaviors and data formats described in the service oriented representations. The computer system initiates a channel that is compatible with behaviors and data formats of the service.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to distributed applications and, more particularly, to mapping between object oriented and service oriented representations of a distributed application.
2. Background and Relevant Art
Computer systems and related technology affect many aspects of society. Indeed, the computer system's ability to process information has transformed the way we live and work. Computer systems now commonly perform a host of tasks (e.g., word processing, scheduling, and database management) that prior to the advent of the computer system were performed manually. More recently, computer systems have been coupled to one another and to other electronic devices to form both wired and wireless computer networks over which the computer systems and other electronic devices can transfer electronic data. As a result, many tasks performed at a computer system (e.g., voice communication, accessing electronic mail, controlling home electronics, Web browsing, and printing documents) include the exchange of electronic messages between a number of computer systems and/or other electronic devices via wired and/or wireless computer networks.
Networks have in fact become so prolific that a simple network-enabled computing system may communicate with any one of millions of other computing systems spread throughout the globe over a conglomeration of networks often referred to as the "Internet". Such computing systems may include desktop, laptop, or tablet personal computers; Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs); telephones; or any other computer or device capable of communicating over a digital network.
In order to communicate over a network, one computing system (referred to herein as a "sending computing system") constructs or otherwise accesses an electronic message and transmits the electronic message over a network to another computing system (referred to herein as a "receiving computing system"). The electronic message may be read by a human user as when the electronic message is an e-mail or instant message, or may be read, instead, by an application running on the receiving computing system. The electronic message may be constructed by an application running on the sending computing system with the possible assistance of a human user.
In some environments, such as, for example, a service oriented architecture environment, connection endpoints (often and hereinafter referred to as "services") communicate with one another to implement desired functionality. Desired functionality can be as simple as two services exchanging data. For example, a service consumer can send a service request message to a service provider. The service provider processes the service request and returns a service response message to the service consumer. However, desired functionality can also be more complex involving a number of services exchanging messages to coordinate some activity. A service typically has some type of computer system (both hardware and software) that supports the connection endpoints.
Service oriented concept descriptions (addresses, bindings, and message interaction patterns) can be used to describe a service. The service oriented concept descriptions can then be accessed by service consumers that desire to communicate the described service. Generally, service oriented concepts are described in accordance with some service oriented standard, such as, for example, Distributed Component Object Model ("DCOM"), Common Object Request Broker Architecture ("CORBA"), or Web services. Web services can be further defined in accordance with various Web services specifications, such as, for example, Web Services Description Language ("WSDL"), Web Services Policy Framework ("WS-Policy"), etc.
Thus, a service provider can describe a service using WSDL. On a Local Area Network ("LAN") or possibly even between known interconnected networks, the service provider can publish the description to a directory of services, for example, that uses Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration ("UDDI"). An aware service consumer with access to the directory can issue queries against the directory to locate a WSDL service description. Portions of the WSDL service description published by the service provider can be passed on to the service consumer in response to a query. The service consumer uses the portions of the WSDL service description to send appropriately formatted requests to the service provider. In turn, the service provider provides an appropriate response to the service consumer.
However, to implement a service in accordance with a specified service oriented concept description, there must be executable modules that process messages as described in the service oriented concept description. Thus, a developer typically writes source code (e.g., in an object oriented language, such as C#, C++, or Visual Basic) to implement message processing for the service as described in the service oriented concept description. The source code can then be compiled into an executable module (e.g., a dynamic link library) and executed, for example, as a server runtime, to provide the service to service consumers.
Unfortunately, services can utilize different programming models that implement distributed messaging functionality in different ways. For example, one programming model can implement a request message using one interface and a corresponding reply message using a second different interface. On the other hand, another programming model can implement both a request message and a corresponding reply message using a single interface that has separate methods. The single interface can have one method for the request message and a second different method for the corresponding reply message. Thus, services based on different programming models typically cannot communicate with one another.
Further, distributed applications are typically rigid in their programming models allowing only one programming model that is tightly coupled to their service runtime. Accordingly, for compatibility, a client runtime (e.g., at a service consumer) is also typically required to process messages in accordance with the programming model used to develop a corresponding service runtime. For example, if a service runtime was developed using separate interfaces for request and reply messages and using particular security mechanisms, the client runtime must implement those as well. Failure to use a client runtime developed in accordance with the same programming model can prevent a client runtime from communicating with a service runtime.
Unfortunately, there is always some chance that no service description has been published for a service runtime. Further, even when a service description has been published, a client may be unaware that the published service description exists, or may be prevented (e.g., by security mechanisms or network conditions) from accessing the published service description. On larger distributed networks, such as, for example, the Internet, the chances of such difficulties occurring substantially increase. Thus, it may be difficult, if not impossible, to implement a client runtime in accordance with the appropriate programming model. As a result, the client may be prevented from communicating with a server runtime.
Therefore systems, methods, and computer program products for accessing a service description in other ways would be advantageous.

Mapping between object oriented and service oriented representations of a distributed application


A martensitic stainless steel, having high temper softening resistance, for disc brakes is provided. The martensitic stainless steel is not seriously softened by maintaining the steel at more than 600° C. The steel has a hardness of 32 or more or a hardness of 30 or more in HRC after the steel is tempered at 650° C. for one hour or tempered at 670° C. for one hour, respectively. In particular, the martensitic stainless steel for disc brakes contains less than 0.050 mass % carbon, 1.0 mass % or less silicon, 2.0 mass % or less manganese, 0.04 mass % or less phosphorus, 0.010 mass % or less sulfur, 0.2 mass % or less aluminum, more than 11.5 mass % to 15.0 mass % chromium, 0.5 mass % to 2.0 mass % nickel, more than 0.50 mass % to 4.0 mass %. copper, more than 0.08 mass % to 0.6 mass % niobium, and less than 0.09 mass % nitrogen, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities. The carbon content, the nitrogen content, the niobium content, the chromium content, the silicon content, the nickel content, the manganese content, and the copper content satisfy the following inequalities (1) and (2):0.03≦[C]+[N]−13/93×[Nb]≦0.09   (1)5×[Cr]+10×[Si]+30×[Nb]−9×[Ni]−5×[Mn]−3×[Cu]−225×[N]−270×[C]≦40   (2).

Disc brakes for motorcycles and other vehicles have a function of slowing the rotation of wheels by the friction between discs and pads. The temperature of the discs is greatly increased due to friction heat generated during braking. In recent years, in order to achieve high fuel efficiency to protect the Earth's environment, vehicles have been reduced in weight and the discs have been therefore reduced in thickness. Since a reduction in disc thickness results in a reduction in heat capacity, the temperature of the discs is greatly increased by friction during braking. Therefore, there is a possibility that the discs are rapidly worn away because the discs are tempered and softened.
In view of hardness and corrosion resistance, a low-carbon martensitic stainless steel containing 12% chromium and 0.06% carbon on a mass basis is used to manufacture discs of known disc brakes. The stainless steel is usually machined so as to have a predetermined shape, hardened, and then provided to users. The composition of the stainless steel is designed such that the stainless steel has a hardness of 32 to 38 in HRC (Rockwell C hardness determined according to JIS Z 2245).
After a disc brake made of the martensitic stainless steel is heated to high temperature, particularly 550° C. or more, by friction heat, the hardness thereof is seriously decreased due to the relief of the strain of the disc brake and the precipitation of carbonitrides. Therefore, the hardness of the disc brake can be reduced to less than its lower limit, that is, less than 32 in HRC. In particular, since the discs have been reduced in thickness as described above, the discs need to have high temper softening resistance because the discs are heated to more than 600° C. in some cases.
In order to meet such a need, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-146482 discloses a steel sheet used to improve the disc warpage caused by an increase in temperature. However, the temperature disclosed in this document is up to 600° C. and no technique for improving temper softening resistance, which is a key to prevent the hardness of heated steel sheets from being reduced, is disclosed in the document. Meanwhile, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-220654 discloses another steel sheet with high temper softening resistance. This steel sheet has a hardness of 30 or more in HRC after the steel sheet is maintained at 530° C. or more. However, the hardness of this steel sheet is insufficient because the following steel sheets have been recently demanded: steel sheets that have high temper softening resistance after they are heated to more than 600° C.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a martensitic stainless steel, having high temper softening resistance, for disc brakes. The steel is slightly tempered and softened if the steel is maintained at more than 600° C.; that is, the steel has a hardness of 32 or more or a hardness of 30 or more in HRC after the steel is tempered at 650° C. or 670° C., respectively.

Martensitic stainless steel for disk brakes


The present invention is directed to development of a device which makes it possible to precisely and easily measure, evaluate, and quantify dynamic properties of an alimentary bolus by simulating swallowing of a wide variety of types of food products, and also directed to a method to estimate mouthfeel from the dynamic properties by use of the device. The above measurement device to simulatively reproduce a state of the swallowing of the alimentary bolus, and to measure motion and shape of a specimen as a simulative alimentary bolus, comprises a tilted plate having a tilted surface; a supply unit (a) to supply the specimen onto the tilted surface; a supply sensor (c) to detect the specimen supplied from the supply unit (a) onto the tilted surface; arrival sensors (d, f) to detect the specimen downwardly flowing through a predetermined site on the tilted surface; a data logger (i) to record an output from each of the sensors; an upper camera (h) to image, from a position above the tilted surface, the specimen downwardly flowing on the tilted surface, to produce an upper image; a side camera (g) to image, from a side of the tilted surface, the specimen downwardly flowing on the tilted surface, to produce a side image; and a calculation unit which uses at least one of the output from the data logger (i), the side image, and the upper image to calculate a state parameter that represents a state of the specimen downwardly flowing on the tilted surface.

The third cause of death of the Japanese people is pneumonia, and 90% or more of pneumonia of elderly people is said to be aspiration pneumonia. When elderly people suffer from pneumonia, they may be hospitalized for a longer time, rapidly deteriorate in physical strength and the like, and have a risk of becoming frail (a state of being declined in muscular strength and vitality due to advanced age), suffering from sarcopenia (a phenomenon of age-related muscular decline), and the like. For the extension of healthy life expectancy and the restraint of medical costs, attention is being paid to the mechanism of a living body during swallowing and to behavior of an alimentary bolus during swallowing.
Swallowing is a reflex motion to send food (including drinks) taken into the oral cavity, to the stomach through the pharynx and the esophagus. During swallowing, muscles of the oral cavity, the pharynx, the larynx, and the esophagus act in a set order within a short time, and achieve a complicated motion.
As a technique to simulate behavior of an alimentary bolus during swallowing, there has heretofore been disclosed a swallowing dynamic state simulator using a computer (PATENT LITERATURES 1 and 2). PATENT LITERATURE 1 discloses a swallowing simulation device which includes oral cavity modeling, an organ properties setting unit, an organ motion setting unit, a food physical properties setting unit, a motion unit, a physical properties deciding unit, and a control unit.
A swallowing dynamic state and alimentary bolus behavior can be simulated on a computer. It is possible to extract an alimentary bolus downward flow velocity during swallowing, acceleration, shear velocity, shear stress, viscosity of food, force on living body organs, energy, and others. Not only data at a given time and position but also changes in physical quantity during a swallowing operation can be extracted, and then visualized and quantified.
PATENT LITERATURE 2 discloses a swallowing simulation device which includes a head and neck modeling unit, an organ motion setting unit, an oral ingestion material physical properties setting unit, an input unit to input a false oral ingestion material into the oral cavity; a motion analysis unit, a physical properties deciding unit, and a control unit.
A swallowing dynamic state and alimentary bolus behavior can be simulated on a computer. It is possible to extract an alimentary bolus downward flow velocity during swallowing, acceleration, shear velocity, shear stress, viscosity of food, force on living body organs, energy, and others. Not only data at a given time and position but also changes with time in physical quantity during swallowing operation can be extracted, and then visualized and quantified.
Another technique to simulate behavior of an alimentary bolus during swallowing can measure fall velocity, fall aspect, and a fall path of a false food by use of a full-scale oropharyngeal model manufactured by a powder deposition method. There is disclosed a method to compute a velocity on the basis of a contrast photograph of swallowing (refer to NONPATENT LITERATURE 1).
Furthermore, a measurement method of physical quantity directed to micro liquid droplets is disclosed as measurement that considers water repellency (or wettability) of food and a wall surface (PATENT LITERATURES 3 and 4). PATENT LITERATURE 3 discloses an evaluation device for wettability including a light source which illuminates a specimen from above, an upper surface measurement camera which sends upper video data resulting from photography of the specimen from above to a personal computer main unit, a light source which illuminates the specimen from the side, a camera which sends side video data resulting from sidewise photography to the personal computer main unit, a specimen stage which adjusts droplet hitting positions on a liquid specimen or a solid specimen, and the personal computer main unit which calculates the video data. This device can capture a liquid droplet from the side and then measure and compute a contact angle, a liquid diameter, a liquid height, and a liquid amount, and can also capture the liquid droplet from its upper surface photographed simultaneously with its side surface and then evaluate the circularity of the liquid droplet and the water repellency dependent on a wet area.
PATENT LITERATURE 4 discloses a measurement method of liquid droplet moving behavior to measure, with a camera, the acceleration of one point on a moving direction side, between two points on both sides of the intersection of a liquid droplet outer periphery and a solid substance surface seen from the side of the moving direction when the liquid droplet moves on a fixed surface. A dynamic contact angle based on a dynamic falling method can be measured; and movement distance, velocity, acceleration, and the upper surface can be observed, so that shear velocity and shear stress can be measured from a velocity distribution of flux inside the liquid droplet.

Measurement device and method for estimating mouthfeel and behavior of alimentary bolus during eating and swallowing