One aspect of the present invention relates to asymmetric catalytic nitroaldol (Henry) reactions with ketones as the electrophilic component. In one embodiment, the present invention relates to asymmetric nitroaldol reactions with α-keto esters catalyzed by a new C6′-OH cinchona alkaloid catalyst. In certain embodiments, this reaction is operationally simple and affords high enantioselectivity as well as good to excellent yield for an exceptionally broad range of α-keto esters.

The demand for enantiomerically pure compounds has grown rapidly in recent years. One important use for such chiral, non-racemic alcohols is as intermediates for synthesis in the pharmaceutical industry. For instance, it has become increasingly clear that enantiomerically pure drugs have many advantages over racemic drug mixtures. These advantages include fewer side effects and greater potency often associated with enantiomerically pure compounds.
Traditional methods of organic synthesis were often optimized for the production of racemic materials. The production of enantiomerically pure material has historically been achieved in one of two ways: use of enantiomerically pure starting materials derived from natural sources (the so-called "chiral pool"); and the resolution of racemic mixtures by classical techniques. Each of these methods has serious drawbacks, however. The chiral pool is limited to compounds found in nature, so only certain structures and configurations are readily available. Resolution of racemates, which requires the use of resolving agents, may be inconvenient and time-consuming.
Catalytic asymmetric synthesis is providing chemists with new and powerful tools for the efficient synthesis of complex molecules. While many of the catalytic systems are metal-based and rely on chiral Lewis acid and organometallic redox-based catalysis, increasing numbers of asymmetric reactions are catalyzed by chiral nucleophiles, building on the vast assortment of situations in nature in which nucleophiles play pivotal roles. For leading references, see: (a) In Comprehensive Asymmetric Catalysis; Jacobsen, E. N., Pfaltz, A., Yamamoto, H., Eds.; Springer: Heidelberg, 1999; (b) In Asymmetric Catalysis in Organic Synthesis, Noyori, R., Ed.; Wiley: New York, 1994; (c) In Asymmetric Synthesis, 2nd ed.; Ojima, I., Ed.; VCH: New York, 2000; (d) Acc. Chem. Res. 2000, 33, 323. (e) Groger, H.; Wilken, J. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2001, 40, 529; (f) Pierre, J.-L. Chem. Soc. Rev. 2000, 29,251-257. (g) Roberts, B. P. Chem Soc. Rev. 1999, 28, 25. Chiral amines play a central role in this expanding area of asymmetric catalysis. Although chiral amines have been utilized extensively as chiral ligands, they have also shown great promise in catalyzing a broad range of asymmetric transformations, yielding optically enriched products in high selectivity and yield that may not be accessible through alternative asymmetric technology. Seyden-Penne, J. Chiral Auxiliaries and Ligands in Asymmetric Synthesis; Wiley & Sons: New York, 1995.
The cinchona alkaloids were the first chiral amines to be used in asymmetric catalysis, most notably in the pioneering work of Pracejus from the 1960s on disubstituted ketene alcoholysis. Cinchona alkaloids also possess a rich and colorful history that is rooted in natural products and pharmaceutical chemistry. Turner, R. B.; Woodward, R. B. In In the Alkaloids; Manske, R. H. F.; Holmes, H. L., Eds.; Academic Press: New York, 1953; Vol. 3, p 24; Verpoorte, R.; Schripsema, J.; Van der Leer, T. In In the Alkaloids. Chemistry and Pharmacology, Brossi, A., Ed.; Academic Press: New York, 1988; Vol. 34; Michael, J. P. In The Quinoline Alkaloids, In Rodd's Chemistry of Carbon Compounds, 2nd ed.; Sainsbury, M., Ed.; Elsevier: Amsterdam, 1998; 2nd suppl., part F and G, vol 4; 432. They are isolated en masse by extracting the bark of the cinchona tree, which is native to tropical regions. Outside of organic chemistry, the cinchona alkaloids have found wide use as food flavorings (for example as the bitter principle of tonic water) and in the treatment of malaria. Fletcher, D. C. J. Am. Med. Assoc. 1976, 236, 305; Mturi, N.; Musumba, C. O.; Wamula, B. M.; Ogutu, B. R.; Newton, C. R. J. C. CNS Drugs 2003, 17, 153. Additionally, their roles as ligands, chromatographic selectors, and NMR discriminating agents have been examined extensively over the past thirty years. Several reviews have been published on the catalytic chemistry of cinchona alkaloids over the past four decades. Pracejus, H. Forschr. Chem. Forsch. 1967, 8, 493; Morrison, J. D.; Mosher, H. S. Asymmetric Organic Reactions; Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, 1971; Wynberg, H. Top. Stereochem. 1986, 16, 87; Kacprzak, K.; Gawronski, J. Synthesis 2001, 7, 961.
These reactions appear to be broadly applicable to both research and industrial scale asymmetric synthesis of a wide variety of important chiral building blocks, such as hemi-esters, α-amino acids and α-hydroxy acids. Commercially available modified dimeric cinchona alkaloids (DHQD)2AQN and (DHQ)2AQN, have been identified recently by Deng and coworkers as enantioselective, recyclable catalysts for enantioselective alcoholyses of cyclic anhydrides. However, commercially available (DHQD)2AQN is expensive. For example, the commercial price (Aldrich Chemical Company) for a mole of (DHQD)2AQN is more than $100,000.00. Furthermore, the dimeric catalyst is not available in large quantity (e.g., in kilogram quantity). Therefore, stereoselective reactions using dimeric catalysts are not practical on a relatively large scale (>0.1 mol). Consequently, the development of a new generation of monomeric catalysts that is comparably effective to (DHQD)2AQN, but substantially less costly to produce, is of significant practical value.
Chiral metal and organic catalysts that possess both an acidic and a basic/nucleophilic structural moiety constitute an increasingly powerful platform for the development of asymmetric catalysis. The design and development of such bifunctional chiral catalysts that are efficient yet easily accessible continues to be a major challenge. Wynberg and coworkers demonstrated that natural cinchona alkaloids, via their C9-OH and amine groups, served as bifunctional chiral organic catalysts for enantioselective reactions by activating the nucleophile and electrophile, respectively. Wynberg, H., Hiemstra, H., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1981, 103, 417. However, the enantioselectivity of various reactions catalyzed by natural cinchona alkaloids as chiral organic catalysts was usually modest. Hatakeyama and coworkers recently reported a rigid modified cinchona alkaloid that is readily accessible from quinidine. Hatakeyama, S. et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1999, 121, 10219; Hatakeyama, S., Organic Lett., 2003, 5, 3103. The catalyst was found to be efficient for an enantioselective Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) reaction. Both the C6′-OH and the amine groups are believed to be involved in the stabilization of the transition state of the enantioselective MBH reaction.
The nitroaldol reaction, or Henry reaction, constitutes an important class of C—C bond forming reactions that provides straightforward access to important synthetic intermediates from readily accessible nitroalkanes and carbonyl compounds. For reviews, see: Luzio, F. A. Tetrahedron 2001, 57, 915-945; Ono, N. The Nitro Group in Organic Synthesis; Wiley-VCH: New York, 2001; and Seebach, D.; Beck, A. K.; Mukhopadhyay, T.; Thomas, E. Helv. Chim. Acta 1982, 65, 1101-1133. Due to its significance in organic synthesis, considerable efforts have been devoted to the development of efficient catalytic asymmetric nitroaldol reactions. For a recent review of catalytic asymmetric nitroaldol reactions, see: Palomo, C.; Oiarbide, M.; Mielgo. A.; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2004, 43, 5442-5444. As mentioned above, the nitro group, often described as a "synthetic chameleon," can serve as masked functionality to be further transformed after the addition has taken place. G. Calderari, D. Seebach, Helv. Chim. Acta 1995, 68, 1592-1604. The Nef reaction, the nucleophilic displacement, the reduction to amino group, the Myer reaction, and the conversion into a nitrile oxide are only a few examples of the transformations that nitro groups can undergo. H. W. Pinnick, Org. React. 1990, 38,655-792; J. U. Nef, Justus Liebigs Ann. Chem. 1894, 280, 263-291; R. Tamura, A. Kamimura, N. Ono, Synthesis 1991, 423-434; R. C. Larock, Comprehensive Organic Transformations, VCH, New York, 1989, pp. 411-415; A. K. Beck, D. Seebach, Chem. Ber. 1991, 124, 2897-2911; R. E. Maeri, J. Heinzer, D. Seebach, Liebigs Ann. 1995, 1193-1215; M. A. Poupart, G. Fazal, S. Goulet, L. T Mar, J. Org. Chem. 1999, 64, 1356-1361; A. G. M. Barrett, C. D. Spilling, Tetrahedron Lett. 1988, 29, 5733-5734; D. H. Loyd, D. E. Nichols, J. Org. Chem. 1986, 51, 4294-4298; V. Meyer, C. Wurster, Ber. Dtsch. Chem. Ges. 1873, 6, 1168-1172; M. J. Kamlet, L. A. Kaplan, J. C. Dacons, J. Org. Chem. 1961, 26, 4371-4375; T. Mukayama, T Hoshino, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1960, 82, 5339-5342. A number of catalytic synthetic methods have been developed in recent years, making use of nitroalkenes even more attractive. A. G. M. Barret, G. G. Graboski, Chem. Rev. 1986, 86, 751-762; R. Ballini, R. Castagnani, M. Petrini, J. Org. Chem. 1992, 57, 2160-2162; G. Rosini, R. Ballini, M. Petrini, P Sorrenti, Synthesis 1985, 515-517. Consequently, several chiral metal complexes and a phase-transfer catalyst have been identified to be highly efficient catalysts for enantioselective nitroaldol reactions with aldehydes. Sasai, H.; Suzuki, T.; Arai, S.; Shibasaki, M. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1992, 114, 4418-4420; Shibasaki, M.; Yoshikawa, N. Chem. Rev. 2002, 102, 2187-2209; Trost, B.; Yeh, V. S. C. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2002, 41, 861-863; Trost, B.; Yeh, V. S. C.; Ito, H.; Bremeyer, N. Org. Lett. 2002, 4, 2621-2623; Evans, D. A.; Seidel, D.; Rueping, M.; Lam, H. W.; Shaw, J. T.; Downey, C. W. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125, 12692-12693; Palomo, C.; Oiarbide, M.; Laso, A.; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2005, 44, 3881-3884; and Ooi, T.; Doda, K.; Maruoka, K. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125, 2054-2055.
In contrast to the substantial progress made with aldehydes, efforts to develop enantioselective nitroaldol reactions with ketones have met with limited success. Christensen, C.; Juhl, K.; Jørgensen, K. A.; Chem. Commun. 2001, 2222-2223; Christensen, C.; Juhl, K.; Hazell, R. G.; Jørgensen, K. A. J. Org. Chem. 2002, 67, 4875-4881; Misumi, Y.; Bulman, R. A.; Matsumoto, K. Heterocycles 2002, 56, 599-606; Lu, S. F.; Du, D. M.; Zhang, S. W.; Xu, J. X. Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 2004, 15, 119-126; and Du. D. M.; Lu, S. F.; Fang, T.; Xu, J. X. J. Org. Chem. 2005, 70, 3712-3715. To date, only one catalyst system, consisting of a Cu-bisoxazoline complex and triethyl amine, has been identified to afford synthetically useful enantioselectivity for the addition of nitromethane to α-keto ethyl esters. However, in addition to requiring a catalyst loading of 20 mol % and the use of anhydrous conditions, both the yield and enantioselectivity of the reaction display a dependence on the structure of the α-keto ethyl esters. For example, the enantioselectivity was high for reactions with aryl α-keto ethyl esters bearing an electron-withdrawing group on the aromatic ring, it became moderate when the electron-withdrawing group was replaced with an electron-donating substituent. Depending on the steric bulk of the alkyl α-keto ethyl esters, the enantioselectivity could be either high or modest. For α-keto ethyl esters bearing an alkenyl group, synthetically useful enantioselectivity was not attainable.
Therefore, it is especially desirable to realize a catalytic asymmetric nitroaldol reaction that affords high enantioselectivity for a wide range of α-keto esters. Such a reaction, in combination with the synthetic versatility of the ester and the nitro groups, would provide enantioselective access to a broad range of optically active tertiary carbinols. Remarkably, in one aspect of the invention, bifunctional organic catalysts derived from either quinidine or quinine have been developed and utilized for catalytic asymmetric nitroaldol reactions.

Asymmetric aldol additions using bifunctional cinchona-alkaloid-based catalysts


A plasma display panel (PDP) designed to reduce the amount of external light that is reflected. This is accomplished by having some phosphor material on portions of the tops of the barrier ribs outside the discharge cells. Since the reflectance of the barrier rib material is higher than that of phosphor material, such a design will reduce the amount of external light reflected off the screen of a plasma display panel. By reducing external light reflection, the contrast of the image is improved. This can be achieved while still preventing crosstalk between neighboring discharge cells.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a plasma display panel, and more particularly, to a plasma display panel having a structure that can improve contrast by reducing reflective brightness from external light.
2. Description of the Related Art
A plasma display panel (PDP) displays images by exciting phosphor layers formed in a predetermined pattern with ultraviolet rays that are generated from a glow discharge. The glow discharge occurs when a predetermined voltage is applied to electrodes formed is a closed space where a discharge gas is filled.
PDPs can be classified into direct current PDP, alternating current PDP, and hybrid PDP according to driving methods. PDPs can be further classified into those having a minimum of two electrodes and those having a minimum of three electrodes. A direct current PDP includes address electrodes that increase addressing speed by performing an address discharge and a sustain discharge separately. Alternating current PDPs can be divided into those with an opposing discharge electrode structure and those with a surface discharge electrode structure according to the disposition of the electrodes. In the opposing discharge electrode structure, a discharge occurs in a direction perpendicular to the PDP by applying a potential difference to two sustain electrodes on different substrates. In the surface discharge electrode structure, a discharge occurs on one surface of a substrate by having both sustain electrodes on the same substrate.
In PDPs, reflective brightness of external light is an important factor affecting performance. Reflective brightness is from light external to the PDP that reflects off the display of the PDP during operation of the PDP. The more reflective brightness there is, the poorer the image quality becomes. The brightness and contrast of the PDP are reduced if the reflective brightness is increased. The reflective brightness can be further increased if a white pigment, such as TiO2, is added to a barrier rib to effectively reflect light emitted from a phosphor layer. Therefore, there is a need to reduce the reflective brightness. A conventional method of preventing the reflection involves placing a black stripe that can block external light on a non-discharge region of the PDP. A problem with incorporating the black stripe into the design of a PDP is that several extra manufacturing steps are required to make a PDP having the black stripe. For example, the black stripe material must be applied or deposited on the structure somehow. Then the black stripe material has to be patterned. All of these extra steps can be extremely expensive in a manufacturing production environment. Therefore, what is needed is a more effective solution to the reflection of external light problem that both results in an effective PDP structure that is also inexpensive, simple and easy to make.


A metal air battery includes: cells, each of which includes a positive electrode, an negative electrode, and an electrolyte layer located between the positive electrode and the negative electrode; and a magnetic field generator configured to form a magnetic field in the cells. The magnetic field generator comprises a permanent magnet attached to one of the positive electrode and the negative electrode.

Recently, metal air batteries have been implementing a high energy density and are thus spotlighted as next-generation secondary batteries for vehicles.
Particularly, among metal air batteries, a lithium air battery theoretically has a high capacity which is 10 times or more the capacity of a conventional lithium ion battery and is thus spotlighted as a next-generation middle or large battery now.
While the lithium ion battery has an energy density of about 200 Wh/kg in a saturation state, the lithium air battery may implement a higher energy density than the lithium ion battery and is thus a secondary battery which satisfies requirements as a next-generation energy storage device.
In the lithium air battery, an active carbon-based material is basically used as a positive electrode material, lithium ions come into contact with oxygen and form lithium oxides, such as Li2O2, LiO2, Li2O, etc., and thus the lithium air battery is discharged, and then, charging of the lithium air battery is carried out by decomposing such discharge products.
However, metal air batteries, such as the above-described lithium air battery, have a high possibility of changing a paradigm as next-generation energy storage devices having a high-energy density, but are still difficult to implement.
Particularly, over-voltage of 1 V or more when the lithium air battery is charged may occur due to low electrical conductivity of lithium peroxide (Li2O2) generated at a positive electrode of the lithium air battery at the time of discharge of the lithium air battery, and thereby, various electrochemical side reactions, such as degradation of an electrolyte and the carbon positive electrode, may occur.
Thereby, reversibility of the lithium air battery is hindered, thus restricting or shortening battery lifespan.
Therefore, technology to control overall reaction of a lithium air battery has been required, but research on reduction in over-voltage when a lithium air battery is charged, by stabilizing the state of an intermediate reaction product, has not been reported yet.
In relation to intermediate reaction products, research on improvement in capacity through inducement to solvation of an intermediate reaction product of a lithium air battery by controlling electrolyte conditions using a method, such as using a polar solvent or by providing water, has been reported in the academic world.
However, in the corresponding research, since control of the state of the intermediate reaction product of the lithium air battery is not emphasized but only control of a reaction path is emphasized, lithium peroxide is generated in the same manner as the conventional methods, and thus, the typical problem of the lithium air battery, i.e., high over-voltage in charging the lithium air battery, is not greatly improved.
Further, several methods using a solid catalyst or an oxidation/reduction chemical species have been reported as research to lower over-voltage when a lithium air battery is charged. However, in the corresponding methods, over-voltage is reduced by effectively decomposing lithium peroxide, which was already generated, and during such a process, not only lithium peroxide but also an electrolyte reacts and side reactions occurring when the lithium air battery is charged become severe.


There is provided an optical power measurement method, an offset calibration method and an optical power meter that is adapted to apply the offset calibration method. The optical power measurement method, the offset calibration method and the optical power meter are characterized in that two temperature sensors are used for more accurate predictions of the optical power offset. A first temperature sensor is positioned to read a temperature of the photodiode and a second temperature sensor is positioned to read a temperature of the PCB ground plane.

Optical power of light is typically measured using a photodiode which converts optical power received on the surface of the photodiode into photocurrent.
Even in absence of light incident on the photodetector, photodiodes generally generate an electrical noise, called the "dark current". The total current out of the photodiode is therefore the sum of photocurrent and the dark current. If not accounted for, the dark current introduces an offset in the optical power measurement, which impacts the linearity or implicit uncertainty of the measurement. It is known that the dark current significantly varies with the temperature of the photodiode.
When measuring optical power using a photodiode, it is known in the art to perform a prior step of offset nulling to cancel the optical power offset caused by dark current and other electrical circuit components. Because of the temperature variation of the offset, such offset nulling is valid only for the moment of the offset nulling is executed and, it is typically recommended to repeat the offset nulling step each time the optical power meter is being used. Such offset nulling is also sensitive to optical power meter warm-up and care should be taken to perform the offset nulling step after the recommended warm-up time. Offset nulling can be automated by blocking input light or switching the input electronic circuit. Some drawbacks of such offset nulling (manual or automated) is that the measurement process needs to be interrupted to perform this operation, which must be performed with great care and requires some additional time and additional hardware.
One alternative solution is to perform a factory offset nulling calibration at a given room temperature (23° C.±1° C.) after a given warm-up time. This factory offset nulling calibration allows to avoid the repetition of the offset nulling step in the field for each new optical power measurement, as long as the optical power meter is used near the given room temperature. Any measurement made outside of a narrow temperature range is subject to an offset nulling error.
However, handheld optical power meters are intended for outdoor use, under high humidity and temperature ranges. When handheld optical power meters are made hermetically closed, they may require hours as warm-up time. A factory offset nulling calibration cannot be made reliable without such warm-up time and such warm-up time is not acceptable in the industry.
There therefore remains a need for an offset nulling calibration method that allows for optical power measurements at varying ambient temperatures, without requiring long warm-up time.


In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for automated test case generation and scheduling. These mechanisms and methods for automated test case generation and scheduling can provide an automated manner of generating test cases and scheduling tests associated with such test cases. The ability to provide this automation can improve efficiency in a testing environment.

The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may also be inventions.
Conventionally, software testing has been provided by executing a particular test case (i.e. scenario, such as a scenario within an application, webpage, code, etc.) and validating a result of the execution. Unfortunately, techniques for generating test cases and executing tests in association with such test cases have been limited. For example, test cases are generally written manually based on an individual's determination that there is a scenario which is desired to be tested. When the scenario changes, such as when a new feature is added which affects the scenario, the test case must be manually changed or a new test case written. As another example, test executions are generally run serially to ensure that prerequisites for a test to be run (i.e. where such prerequisites are associated with another test) are completed, for allowing successful execution of the test.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide techniques enabling the automation of test case generation and scheduling to improve efficiency in a testing environment.

System, method and computer program product for automated test case generation and scheduling


Disclosed are granular mesoporous silica and a preparation method thereof. The preparation method includes preparing powdered silica containing a structure derivative to form mesopores; preparing a molded precursor including the powdered silica and an inorganic binder or an organic binder; preparing a granular molded article having a predetermined shape by extruding or injection-molding the molded precursor; and removing the structure derivative by calcinating the granular molded article. The granular mesoporous silica represents superior pore characteristics and is used as an adsorbent capable of effectively removing pollutants in water treatment and air pollution treatment.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to mesoporous silica and a preparation method thereof. More particularly, the present invention relates to granular silica having mesopores and a preparation method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Granular activated carbon has the superior adsorption property, persistency and economical efficiency, so the granular activated carbon has been mainly used as an adsorbent in a conventional water treatment system to remove pollutants in water. However, with the global urbanization and industrialization, new pollutants, such as heavy metals and endocrine disrupting chemicals, have appeared, so the pollutants may not be effectively removed by using the conventional water treatment system.
In this regard, mesoporous materials have been spotlighted as a substitute for the adsorbent of the granular activated carbon. In addition, various studies and research have been actively performed with respect to mesoporous silica, mesoporous carbon, and mesoporous metal oxide.
Among them, the mesoporous silica has the regular porous structure, the large specific surface area, and the wide pore size and is stable under the high temperature of about 850° C., so the mesoporous silica is generally known as to be readily reproduced (Zhao et al., 1998). The mesoporous silica is classified as MCM-41, MCM-48 and SBA-15 (Kresge et al., 1992; Zhao et al., 1998) and a study has been performed to adsorb and remove various water pollutants, such as cyanuric acid, p-chlorophenol (Copper et al., 1999) and phenol (Burleigh et al., 2002) by using the mesoporous silica.
However, although the mesoporous silica has the superior porous characteristics and adsorption property, if the powdered adsorbent is used in the water treatment process or the air pollutant treatment process, the treatment efficiency may be lowered due to the long-time exposure of the powdered adsorbent. In addition, since the powdered adsorbent has a small grain size, the powdered adsorbent may be lost during the pollutant treatment process, so the recovery of the powdered adsorbent is difficult.
For this reason, various studies and research have been pursued to granulize the powdered adsorbent. For instance, according to the study of Govindasamy et al., 2009, bentonite, methylcellulose, and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) are injected into the mesoporous silica to granulize the mesoporous silica. In addition, according to another study of Pavel et al., 2011, the granulation is achieved by using colloidal silica, and the porous characteristic and the mechanical strength of the granular silica are analyzed and measured.
However, according to the conventional method for preparing spherical molded articles or the conventional granulation method, a greater amount of organic binder or inorganic binder must be used to hold the molded article, so the purity of the molded article may be reduced. Especially, due the binder used to granulize the mesoporous materials, pores of the mesoporous materials may be occluded. In this case, the porous characteristic of the adsorbent may be degraded, so the adsorbent may not sufficiently perform the function thereof.
Therefore, it is necessary to develop the preparation method for a granular silica molded article, which can hold the superior mesoporous characteristics and can be efficiently used for the air pollutant treatment process and the water treatment process.

Granular mesoporous silica and preparation method thereof

Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology


Apparatus for forming a continuous ribbon of connected dish-shaped sequins including a punch-and-die system for receiving a continuous ribbon of moldable material, a power source coupled to the continuous ribbon of moldable material to move the ribbon through the punch-and-die system incrementally to discrete spaced positions; and forming a score line at a first discrete position of the ribbon, punching a hole at a second discrete position of the ribbon, shaping the sequin at third and fourth discrete positions of the ribbon, forming the dish-shaped face at a fifth discrete position of the ribbon and accomplishing the formation of the score line, the hole, the outer shape of the sequin and the dish-shaped face on each sequin simultaneously by the punch-and-die system.

Sequins are well known in the art and are usually flat, circular, shiny disks that can be applied to garments to increase the appeal and attractiveness thereof. Such flat sequins are made in a continuous strip as illustrated in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,546. Each of the sequins has a substantially circular outer diameter with a slight degree of flattening at the noon and six o'clock positions due to the inherent process of severing the sequins from the continuous strip without discarding any material. An orifice is also present in the center of each sequin to allow for passage of needle and thread so that it can be attached to a garment or other material. In order to provide for easy and precise detachment of a single sequin from the continuous strip, at the neck portion adjoining adjacent sequins, a score line is produced perpendicular to the length of the strip. It has been found, as indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,546, that scoring of the strip results in a cleaner separation of the sequin from the continuous strip thereby ensuring that the portion of the strip at the narrowest point between sequins is not unduly weak and will not sever during feeding of the strip from a feed wheel to the sewing attachment. Such continuous rolls or reels of flat sequins can then be used in an automated process for attaching the sequins to garments or other material as set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,546.
However, dish-shaped sequins with multifaceted faces are more attractive on garments or other material because they provide multiple light reflecting faces and provide enhanced decoration. Such sequins have been handmade in the prior art with each individual sequin being placed in a die with a manual punch being used to form the sequin with the dish-shaped face having multiple facets thereon. Such sequins are obviously very expensive because of the arduous labor that must be performed to shape each sequin properly. Further, such sequins must be hand-sewn on garments or other material because no machine has been developed that can feed individual sequins to a sewing device. They must be continuously connected to each other in a ribbon form and in the prior art this has not been possible with dish-shaped sequins.
The present invention solves the problems of the prior art by providing an apparatus for forming a ribbon of continuously connected dish-shaped sequins. A continuous ribbon of moldable material, such as seven mil polyester in widths of approximately 0.312 inch or other desired widths, is fed to a punch-and-die system. The material must be of sufficient thickness and moldability that it will retain a dish shape after being formed in the punch-and-die system. The continuous ribbon of moldable material is moved through the punch-and-die system incrementally from one discrete position to the next. At a first position a score line is formed in a plane perpendicular to the movement of the ribbon of material which will later become a score line between individual sequins to facilitate their removal automatically when they are sewed on material. At a second position in the die, a hole is punched in the ribbon. At third and fourth positions, the outer shape of the sequin is formed such that the ribbon has continuous sequins coupled together by a narrow piece of ribbon on which the score line is located. At a fifth spaced location in the punch-and-die system, the dish-shaped sequin is formed with a multifaceted face. The completed ribbon of continuously connected dish-shaped sequins is then received from the output of the punch-and-die system on a take-up reel for use at a later time. The forming of the score line, the hole, the outer shape of the sequin and the multifaceted dish-shaped face is accomplished simultaneously by the punch-and-die system after the ribbon has moved from the first position to the fifth position.
The punch plate has thereon in sequential order the scoring punch, the round punch for forming the hole, the trim or sequin shaping punches and the dish-shape forming punch. Obviously, the die portion has the appropriate orifices therein for receiving the punches as designated. A motor is coupled to any well-known device such as stepping wheels to step the tape through the punch-and-die plates incrementally to the five discrete positions. Further, the motor drives a cam operated arrangement in a well-known manner which forces the punch plate into the die plate when the continuous ribbon has stopped at each particular discrete position.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for forming a ribbon of continuously connected dish-shaped sequins.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a punch-and-die system for receiving a continuous ribbon of moldable material, forming a score line between sequins, punching a hole in the ribbon of moldable material at the center of each sequin, cutting the outer shape of each sequin around the hole so as to leave a connecting portion with the score line between sequins and forming a dish-shape in each sequin with multiple faces to enhance the light reflecting capabilities of the sequin.

Apparatus and method for forming a ribbon of continuously connected dish-shaped sequins


A wiring structure, a display substrate and a display device; the wiring structure comprises a plurality of hollow patterns, and edges of the wiring structure along a length direction of the wiring structure extend in a straight line, the wiring structure can release stress through the hollow patterns so as to avoid breakage of the wiring structure, the display substrate, and the display device.

In order to fabricate a flexible display device, many display members made of organic materials have been developed, for example, an organic light emitting layer, an organic passivation layer, and a polymer substrate (e.g., a PI substrate) serving as a flexible substrate. However, it is infeasible to replace metallic wiring in a display with organic materials because the electrical conductivity of organic materials is much lower than that of the metallic wire. When a flexible display device is being bent, the metallic wiring in the display panel may break (the ratio is about 1%), resulting in failure of the display device.

Wiring structure, display substrate and display device

CHENGDU BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


A flow control valve includes a housing having a valve chamber, an inlet port, an outlet port, and a valve seat. In addition, the flow control valve includes a valve body disposed in the valve chamber, an actuator having an output rotational shaft, a feed screw mechanism to convert forward and reverse rotational motion of the output rotational shaft to axial reciprocating motion of the valve body, a backlash preventive spring positioned between the housing and the valve body, and a spring supporting device formed on the housing and having a spring seating surface. The spring seating surface is spaced from the valve seat in an opening direction of the valve body.

The present disclosure relates generally to a flow control valve.
Conventionally, a vehicle with an internal-combustion engine is provided with an evaporated fuel processing device. The evaporated fuel processing device includes a canister configured to adsorb and desorb evaporated fuel generated in a fuel tank of the vehicle. Further, the evaporated fuel processing device includes a flow control valve that is installed in a vapor passage connecting the fuel tank and the canister. The flow control valve may function to close the vapor passage when the vehicle is parked and to open the vapor passage when the vehicle is refueled. Such a flow control valve is taught by JP2019-152180A. The flow control valve taught by JP2019-152180A includes a valve housing, a valve body disposed in a valve chamber formed in the valve housing, a feed screw mechanism, and a backlash preventive spring. The valve body is configured to move or reciprocate axially in the valve chamber so as to close and open a valve seat. The feed screw mechanism converts the forward and reverse rotational motion of an output rotational shaft of an actuator to the axial reciprocating motion of the valve body. The backlash preventive spring biases the valve body in such a direction that backlash of the feed screw mechanism can be prevented. The backlash preventive spring is generally a coil spring. The valve housing has a spring contact surface formed thereon and is configured to receive a coil end of the backlash preventive spring. Further, the spring contact surface is formed so as to be flush with the valve seat on which the valve body is seated in an axial direction of the valve chamber.


A fuel delivery rail assembly for supplying fuel to a plurality of fuel injectors in an engine is provided. The assembly comprises an elongated conduit having a rectangular section and a plurality of sockets. One wall of the conduit is provided with openings for receiving the sockets. Each opening is accompanied with a counter bore on its periphery. The counter bore is a stepped cut out portion within the wall thickness of the one wall. One end of each socket is tightly fixed within the counter bore.

This invention relates to a fuel delivery rail assembly for an internal combustion engine, especially for an automotive engine, equipped with a fuel injection system. The fuel delivery rail assembly delivers pressurized fuel supplied from a fuel pump toward intake passages or chambers via associated fuel injectors. The assembly is used to simplify installation of the fuel injectors and the fuel supply passages on the engine.
An ordinary fuel delivery rail assembly having a rectangular section is constructed as shown in FIG. 1 of the attached drawings. In this assembly, an elongated conduit 1 is formed by a steel tube having a rectangular hollow section. To an end of the conduit 1, a fuel inlet pipe 2 for introducing gasoline fuel is secured, and to the other end of the conduit 1, a fuel return pipe 3 leading to an exit for residual fuel is secured, both pipes being welded to the conduit by copper brazing. To the inside of the conduit 1 and the pipes 2, 3, copper plating or nickel plating is coated for protecting the surfaces from rust and for keeping the fuel clean.
The conduit 1 comprises four walls and a fuel passage therein (FIG. 2). To an outside surface of one wall 4, are attached a plurality of sockets 5, the number of which corresponds to the number of combustion cylinders. One end of each socket 5 communicates with the fuel passage 10, and the other end of each socket 5 is so formed as to receive an associated tip of a fuel injector. In most cases, these sockets 5 are inserted into guide holes arranged within the wall 4 of the conduit 1 at predetermined intervals, and welded thereto by copper brazing. The axial directions of the sockets 5 should precisely line up in alignment with the respective axial direction of the injectors. Furthermore, pitch lengths between adjacent sockets should precisely coincide with the corresponding pitch lengths between associated injectors. One of the objects of the present invention is directed to these alignment problems as discussed in detail below.
FIG. 4 shows a conventional connection between a fuel conduit 11 and a socket 15. For producing this kind of metallic socket 15, many kinds of working steps are needed. For example, at first a rough fabrication is made by a forging work, and then it is machined to make a form of an interior surface 16 and a stepped annular portion 17. The annular portion 17 is inserted into a guide hole 18 arranged in the wall 14 of the conduit 11. Then, copper brazing is applied to the abutment surface between the conduit 11 and the socket 15. Therefore, for making the complicated socket 15, many kinds of time-consuming working steps and transferring handling are needed, resulting in an increase of manufacturing cost.
FIG. 5 shows another conventional connection between a fuel conduit 21 and a socket 23, disclosed in Japanese utility model public disclosure No. 40577/1984. In this simple connection, a bottom surface of the socket 23 is secured to a wall surface of the conduit 21 in abutment relation therewith. Apparently, this connection cannot provide a precise alignment between the two parts, since the wall surface of the conduit 21 is not machined. Furthermore, there is no room for adjustment in assembling of the two parts.


A plug flow process for the production of chlorine dioxide by reacting chloric acid and/or an alkali metal chlorate, optionally a mineral acid and a reducing agent in such proportions that chlorine dioxide is produced. Reactants are continuously fed to a plug flow reactor under conditions that chloride dioxide is produced as the reactants flow through the reactor. The process stream has an acidity between 2N and 11N. The process stream is subjected to superatmospheric pressure in the reactor sufficient to maintain the formed chlorine dioxide in solution. After removal of the chlorine dioxide from the process stream exiting the plug flow reactor, the process stream can optionally be fed to a second chlorine dioxide generator for further reaction.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the art of chlorine dioxide production, and in particular, to the continuous production of chlorine dioxide in a plug flow reactor by reduction of an alkali metal chlorate or chloric acid with a reducing agent. In a preferred embodiment, the process of the invention uses hydrogen peroxide as the reducing agent.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Chlorine dioxide used in aqueous solution is of considerable commercial interest, mainly in pulp bleaching, but also in water purification, fat bleaching, removal of phenols from industrial wastes, etc. It is therefore desirable to provide processes in which chlorine dioxide can be efficiently produced.
In existing processes for the production of chlorine dioxide, chlorine gas is often formed as a by-product, due to the use of chloride ions as a reducing agent. The basic chemical reaction involved in such processes is: EQU ClO.sub.3.sup.- +Cl.sup.- +2H.sup.+ .fwdarw.ClO.sub.2 +1/2Cl.sub.2 +H.sub.2 O [1]
The chlorate ions are provided by alkali metal chlorate, preferably sodium chlorate, the chloride ions by alkali metal chloride, preferably sodium chloride, or by hydrogen chloride, and the hydrogen ions are provided by mineral acids, generally sulfuric acid and/or hydrochloric acid.
In the production of chlorine dioxide with chloride ions as the reducing agent according to reaction [1], half a mole of chlorine is produced for each mole of chlorine dioxide. This chlorine gas by-product has previously been used as such in paper mills as a bleaching agent in aqueous solution. However, increased environmental demands have resulted in a change-over to pure chlorine dioxide bleaching. To achieve pure chlorine dioxide bleaching there is an increasing demand for chlorine dioxide manufacturing processes which do not produce chlorine as a by-product.
One known way of reducing the chlorine by-product is to use reducing agents which do not produce chlorine as a by-product. One example is in the so-called "Solvay" process, wherein alkali metal chlorate is reduced in an acid medium with methanol as the reducing agent. Another example is in the "Mathieson" process, in which chlorate is reduced with sulfur dioxide in a sulfuric acid-containing medium. These processes use methanol and sulfur dioxide, respectively, as indirect reducing agents, and hence the rate of reaction is very slow. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,081,520, an allegedly more effective "Solvay" process is described using a reduced pressure and a high acid normality in a single vessel reactor.
The direct reducing agent in the case of methanol and sulfuric acid reactions is chloride ion reacting according to reaction [1]. The chlorine produced then reacts with methanol to regenerate chloride ions according to the reaction: EQU CH.sub.3 OH+3Cl.sub.2 +H.sub.2 O.fwdarw.6Cl.sup.- +CO.sub.2 +6H.sup.+[ 2]
or with sulfur dioxide according to the reaction: EQU Cl.sub.2 +SO.sub.2 +2H.sub.2 O.fwdarw.2HCl+H.sub.2 SO.sub.4[ 3]
According to one prevalent theory holding that chloride ion must be present, it is often necessary to continuously add a small amount of chloride ion in order to obtain a steady production. Due to the continued presence of chloride ion, even with methanol or sulfur dioxide as the reducing agent, a certain amount of chlorine by-product is produced. According to U.S. Pat. No. 4,081,520, operating with methanol as reducing agent, the amount of chlorine by-product produced is decreased with increasing acid normality in the reaction medium. The reaction rate is also increased with increasing acid strength. At a low acid normality, the reaction is so slow that it is of no commercial interest. However, the drawback with a high acid strength in the reaction medium is, in addition to more corrosion in the equipment, the production of an acid salt in the form of sesquisulfate (Na.sub.3 H(SO.sub.4).sub.2) or bisulfate (NaHSO.sub.4). This occurs at an acid normality of from above about 5N to about 12N. An acid salt results in loss of acid in production and costs for neutralization of the salt. From about 2 N to about 5N acid normality, a neutral alkali metal salt (alkali metal sulfate) is formed.
It is also known to speed up the reaction rate at low acidities by using catalysts both with chloride and methanol as the reducing agent. U.S. Pat. No. 3,563,702 discloses catalysts for chloride reduction. However, catalysts are expensive and thus increase the production costs.
Another drawback with methanol as the reducing agent is the possible formation of chlorinated organic compounds, from by-products of methanol, in the downstream bleaching process. It is well known that the efficiency of the added methanol is lowered due to side reactions wherein formaldehyde and formic acid are formed. Also, some of the methanol leaves the reactor without having participated in the reduction reaction. The corresponding ether and ester are probably there as well. It could be expected that reactions can occur in the bleaching train with aldehyde, acid, ether and ester, resulting in chlorinated organic compounds.
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,091,166 and 5,091,167, the draw-backs of using methanol as a reducing agent are addressed by substituting hydrogen peroxide for methanol. These patents disclose production of chlorine dioxide using a single vessel process under subatmospheric pressure. Alkali metal chlorate is reduced with hydrogen peroxide as the reducing agent in an aqueous reaction medium containing sulfuric acid. The reaction medium is maintained at its boiling point of between 50.degree. C. and 100.degree. C. such that water is evaporated therefrom, forming steam. A gaseous mixture containing the steam, produced chloride dioxide, and by-product oxygen is withdrawn from the vessel.
In the reaction medium an alkali metal salt crystallizes and is removed. The type of salt crystallized is a function of the acid normality of the reaction medium. At an acid normality of between 2 and 4, a neutral sodium sulfate salt, for example, Na.sub.2 SO.sub.4, forms. At higher acid normalities, a sesquisulfate salt or a bisulfate is formed.
While the processes disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,091,166 and 5,091,167 are a great improvement over the prior art methanol processes, they are performed in a single vessel process (SVP.RTM.) reactor in which the generation and separation of chlorine dioxide are carried out in a single reaction vessel maintained at the boiling point of the reaction medium. Kinetically, the single reaction vessel functions as a constant flow stirred tank reactor ("CFSTR" or "CSTR"). There are indeed numerous advantages to this type of reaction vessel. By maintaining the reaction medium at its boiling point, the evolved chlorine dioxide is diluted with steam, thereby reducing explosion risk. Alkali metal salt concentration in the reaction medium is maintained at saturation, resulting in the alkali metal salt being continuously deposited and easily removed.
On the other hand, single vessel processes require long residence times to obtain an acceptable rate of conversion. Long residence times require either a low flow rate through the reaction vessel (and subsequent low production rate) or a large vessel size. Production requirements, at least for large consumers of chlorine dioxide, dictate that residence times be maintained via a large reaction vessel. Paper pulp mills, for example, require between 15 and 60 tons per day (TPD) of chlorine dioxide, and this production level requires large scale equipment.
A typical SVP.RTM. reaction vessel for 40 TPD of chlorine dioxide is about 10 feet in diameter and has a volume of about 8800 gallons. Since chlorine dioxide is produced on-site (for safety reasons), the SVP.RTM. reaction vessel and related process equipment must be shipped to and installed at the location of use. Shipping costs are high due to the weight and bulk involved. Also, the size of the reaction vessel requires the commitment of considerable plant space.
In addition to the costs and the space requirements of an initial installation, further costs are incurred if an upgrade in chlorine dioxide production capacity using SVP.RTM. technology is required. Such an upgrade would require removal of the existing generator vessel and replacement with an even larger vessel, essentially duplicating the initial installation costs. Alternatively, the upgrade would require the addition of a secondary SVP.RTM. generator having additional installation costs and space requirements. In either case, the upgrade would be expensive.
The concept of plug flow reactors has heretofore been applied to various chemical processes and offers the advantage of small size with reasonable production rates. However, plug flow reactors were not believed feasible for producing chlorine dioxide, due to the relatively slow kinetics of uncatalyzed reaction schemes. Catalyzed systems were also deemed unsuitable for plug flow processes due to accumulation and clogging of the equipment by the solid phase catalyst.
In very small scale processes, non-CSTR, continuous chlorine dioxide reactions have been used successfully. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,061,471, there is disclosed a process for continuous production of chlorine dioxide using alkali metal chlorate, sulfuric acid and sulfur dioxide as the reducing agent. This process is suitable for small scale chlorine dioxide applications such as treatment of drinking water, etc. This patent does not teach plug flow, however, since the concentration profile in the reactor is uniform, which approximates a CSTR.
There is accordingly a need in the art for a chlorine dioxide process which has the advantages of low chlorine by-product generation and high production rate and which also has reduced installation and upgrading costs compared to processes using single vessel process generators.

Plug flow process for the production of chlorine dioxide


A liquid crystal panel and a display device are disclosed. In the liquid crystal panel, the first anisotropic optical layer comprises a first phase difference film and a second phase difference film, the second anisotropic optical layer comprises a liquid crystal film and a third phase difference film, wherein an orientation of liquid crystals in the liquid crystal film and an orientation of the liquid crystal layer are parallel to each other, a slow axis direction of the second phase difference film is vertical to the orientation of liquid crystals in the liquid crystal film.

Liquid Crystal displays (LCDs) has the advantages of compact, low power consumption and radiation-less. The LCDs are developed rapidly over the past years and are in a leading position in the present flat-panel display market. Currently, the LCDs are employed in products of various sizes and cover most electronic products in our information society, such as Liquid Crystal Televisions, High Definition Digital TVs, computers (desktop computers and notebooks), mobile phones, PDAs, GPSs, in-vehicle displays, projector displays, video recorders, digital cameras, digital watches, calculators, electrical instruments, meters, public displays and virtual displays. Such a position is non-achievable by any conventional display.
However, as liquid crystal materials do not produce light by themselves, a LCD is a passive display device and requires external light sources to realize display with a certain brightness and colors. According to the method of using the external light sources, the LCDs generally comprise Reflective LCDs (RE-LCDs), Transmissive LCDs (TS-LCDs) and Transflective LCDs (TR-LCDs). TR-LCDs may use the display mode of RE-LCDS in the case of having enough ambient light, which overcomes the disadvantage of blur display under strong ambient light of the TS-LCD and reduces the power consumption; while in a dark circumstance a backlight may be switched on. By using the TS-LCD display mode, the disadvantage of not able to display anything in dark environment is overcome.
In a TR-LCD, liquid crystals and phase difference films are normally combined. Specifically, in a display portion of the TR-LCD, liquid crystal elements are sandwiched between a pair of phase difference films to form a laminated structure, polarizing films or protection films are further laminated to outer sides of the laminated phase difference films. The phase difference films that can be used together with the liquid crystal elements may produce phase differences by using difference in refraction indices, thereby improving viewing angles of the LCDs.
In conventional technologies, the TR-LCDs are normally realized by making an orientation of liquid crystals in liquid crystal films, an orientation of a liquid crystal layer and a slow axis direction of the phase difference film on top of the liquid crystal layer to be in the same direction, that is to say, the three layers are parallel to each other and having a 90 degrees or 45 degrees angle with a direction (which is normally a direction of a line connecting both eyes of a user under normal viewing situation) vertical to the orientation of the liquid crystal layer (refer to Japanese Patent publication No. 2004-125830A). Such a three layer parallel structure may maintain wide viewing angle of the LCD while realizing high contrast ratio. However, such a structure may cause the problem of color cast, especially yellow color cast, which is quite serious. The reason for the color cast issue is that the liquid crystal is a birefringent material, when being viewed from an oblique direction, refractive indices for light of different wavelengths are different, and the differences in refractive indices are different as well. After being refracted by the liquid crystal, the phase retardation value of the light are different, which will generate difference in the light intensity after being polarized by the polarizer, thereby producing color cast. In the U.S. patent application publication No. 2002/0159007A1, the color cast problem with the reflective LCDs are solved by a design which provides a polarizer, a quarter wavelength (¼λ) phase difference film and a half wavelength (½λ) phase difference film. This technique may achieve quite good color cast correction effect for RE-LCDs; however, the actual effect at the transmissive region of the TR-LCDs is not ideal.


An image forming apparatus includes a motor, an image formation-transfer section, a switching mechanism, a fixing section, and a controller. The motor generates driving force. The image formation-transfer section state-changes between a first contact state and a first separate state by the driving force. The switching mechanism transmits and cuts off the driving force to the image formation-transfer section. The fixing section includes first and second rotating members, and state-changes between a second contact state and a second separate state by the driving force. The controller controls the motor and the switching mechanism and thereby causes part or all of a first period, in which the fixing section state-changes from the second separate state to the second contact state, and part or all of a second period, in which the image formation-transfer section state-changes from the first separate state to the first contact state, to overlap each other.

The technology relates to an image forming apparatus that controls contact operation and separate operation of an image forming section and forms an image on a medium.
In an image forming apparatus, for example, a toner image is formed in an image forming section, the formed toner image is transferred onto a medium, and the transferred toner image is fixed to the medium in a fixing section. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-057652 discloses an image forming apparatus that performs control of switching between contact operation and separate operation of a photosensitive drum and a belt of the image forming section.

Image forming apparatus performing warm-up operation by rotation of a motor


An echo processor (117) for an ultrasound imaging device (102) includes a frame processor (118) that aligns a plurality (N) of sequentially received frames of echoes based on a set of motion displacement fields for the plurality of frames and combines the aligned plurality of sequentially received frames, thereby forming a compounded frame. A method includes obtaining a set of frames of echoes acquired at different times, determining a motion displacement field based on at least two of the frames of the set, motion-compensating all of the frames of the set based on the displacement field and previously determined displacement fields, and generating a compounded frame based on the motion-compensated frames.

Ultrasound scanners provide useful information about the interior characteristics of an object under examination. In medical applications, clinicians have used ultrasound scanners to examine human subjects in settings such as hospitals, physician's offices, and other locations. Ultrasound scanners have been used in the emergency room, operating room, and similar environments.
Spatial compounding is the process of registering and combing ultrasound frames of the same structure that were acquired at different times and different angles of insonation to form a single compounded or combined frame. The individual frames can be obtained by holding the transducer at a fixed position and transmitting the beam at different angles via electronic beam steering and/or electronically controlled mechanical steering of the array of transducer elements inside the scanhead.
To form a single compounded frame, frames shot with different steering angles are aligned and combined. Alignment can be done based purely on geometric transforms using the transducer array geometry constants as well as the applied steering angles, the sampling frequency, and the speed of sound in the insonated tissue. Sources of incorrect alignment include transducer motion, respiration, incorrect speed of sound, varying speed of sound, and refraction of the beam due to interfaces of varying acoustic impedance making the sound wave alter direction. The latter, in particular, is an issue with spatial compounding because the refracted beam direction is a function of the angle with which the insonated beam hits the interface.
To compensate for motion (transducer motion and/or respiration) registration (rigid and/or elastic) of image features visible in the frames to be aligned has been proposed. The limited success for this approach may be due to the problem of finding out what image to align to. As refraction causes a particular image feature to appear in slightly different spatial locations of the image depending of the steering angle, a strong periodicity is introduced in the series of acquired frames. Even (hypothetical) perfect registration and alignment to the latest image would not produce an acceptable series of compounded images, although every single image in the sequence of compounded images would be crisp and clear. Consequently, compensation for motion by registration has so far only been proven successful in practice for non-compounding applications such as cardiac imaging.
Compounded frames generally have lower speckle and better specular reflector delineation relative to the individual frames making up the compounded frames. Generally, speckle is reduced by the square root of N in a compounded frame with N frames, provided that the frames used to create the compounded frame are substantially independent and are averaged. For specular reflector delineation, spatial compound scanning improves frame quality by improving the acquisition of specular interfaces. The final compounded frame generally has improved contrast resolution and enhanced border visualization.
However, as the insonated tissue may be moving due to respiration, heart beat, etc., and as the transducer is purposely or unpurposely (not held still) moving, the features in the frames being combined may not align very well. In general, it may be difficult to know the exact location of a feature in a frame, which has been inferred from crude assumptions on the speed of sound of the insonated tissue. Unfortunately, miss-registration of the frames (the features in the frames) may introduce artifacts into the resulting compounded frame. Such artifacts may include, but are not limited to, blurring, aliasing, and/or duplication of imaged features.


An image forming apparatus including: a plurality of photosensitive drums; a plurality of scorotron chargers provided for the plurality of photosensitive drums, respectively, a voltage application circuit commonly connected to the plurality of scorotron chargers, a plurality of wires provided for the plurality of scorotron chargers, respectively; a plurality of grid electrodes provided for the plurality of scorotron chargers, respectively; at least one of current detecting units provided for at least one of the plurality of grid electrodes, respectively, and at least one of the current detecting units detecting grid current which flows into at least one of the grid electrodes, respectively; and a control device configured to control the voltage application circuit such that at least one of the grid currents detected by at least one of the current detecting units become equal to or higher than a reference value.

In a multicolor image forming apparatus, such as a color laser printer, a charger is provided for every process cartridge corresponding to each developer color (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black). In this type of image forming apparatus, the following Patent Document 1 discloses that a reduction in the number of parts and miniaturization of the apparatus are achieved by making common a high-voltage power supply unit (voltage application circuit) which applies high voltages to the individual chargers.


Treating compositions for application to particles of a filler consist of 5-95 percent by weight of a silicon atom containing hydrophobic-type treating agent, and 5-95 percent by weight of a silicon atom containing functional-type treating agent, based on the weight of the composition. Useful functional-type treating agents include bis(alkoxysilylalkyl)polysulfides and mercaptoorganosilicon compounds. Useful hydrophobic-type treating agents include polyorganohydrogensiloxanes and silanol terminated silicone oligomers. The filler most preferred is precipitated (i.e., synthetic) calcium carbonate.

This invention is directed to (i) treating compositions of a silicon atom containing hydrophobic-type treating agent and a silicon atom containing functional-type treating agent, (ii) filler particles treated with the composition, (iii) organic tire rubbers containing treated fillers, and (iv) methods of treating filler particles with a neat composition of the treating agents.
While United Kingdom Patent Application GB 2 355 453 A, published on Apr. 25, 2001, describes a neat treatment method for making hydrophobic calcium carbonate fillers for use in rubbers, the organosilicon treating agents used in the UK publication are not the same as the organosilicon treating agents used herein. The UK publication does show a polymethylhydrogensiloxane as a component of the treating composition for providing hydrophobicity to filler particles, but the UK publication fails to show a functional-type organosilicon compound containing sulfur as the other component of the treating composition.
Similarly, while U.S. Pat. No. 6,342,560 (Jan. 29, 2002) describes some organosilicon treating agents similar to the organosilicon treating agents used herein, the method of making hydrophobic calcium carbonate fillers in the ""560 patent is not via a neat treatment. Rather, the method of making hydrophobic calcium carbonate fillers in the ""560 patent is carried out in an aqueous suspension, and the ""560 patent fails to show a polymethylhydrogensiloxane as the component for providing hydrophobicity to the filler particles.
This invention relates to treating compositions suitable for applying to particles of a filler. The composition contains 5-95 percent by weight of a silicon atom containing hydrophobic-type treating agent, and 5-95 percent by weight of a silicon atom containing functional-type treating agent, based on the weight of the composition. In particular, the functional-type treating agent is a bis(alkoxysilylalkyl)polysulfide or a mercaptoorganosilicon compound, and the hydrophobic-type treating agent is a polyorganohydrogensiloxane or a silanol terminated silicone oligomer. The most preferred filler is precipitated (i.e., synthetic) calcium carbonate.
The invention also relates to fillers of particles treated with this treating composition, organic tire rubbers containing the treated fillers, and methods of treating particles of the filler with neat compositions of treating agents.
These and other features of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the detailed description.
This invention is directed to the treatment of surfaces of precipitated calcium carbonate fillers with a treating composition containing treating agents which consist of hydrophobic-type silicon atom containing treating agents, and functional-type silicon atom containing treating agents. These treating agents are applied to the surfaces of the filler by a neat process.
Because of the treatment, it was unexpectedly discovered that the properties of rubber containing the treated fillers were much improved. In this regard, the hydrophobic-type silanes and siloxanes are used to impart to the particles of the reinforcing filler hydrophobicity for compatibility with organic rubbers, while the functional-type silanes and siloxanes provide bonding or coupling to the rubber network during its curing operation.
The term neat as used herein, is intended to mean that fillers are rendered hydrophobic and functionalized by applying the treating composition consisting of the organosilicon compounds or mixtures of the organosilicon compounds in their undiluted form. Thus, the organosilicon compound(s) is not dissolved, dispersed, combined, or mixed with another substance or ingredient, such as water, solvents, or carriers, as a solution, dispersion, or emulsion. To this extent, the treating composition is applied in a substantially pure condition.
The term functional, as it applies to organosilicon compound(s), is intended to mean that the compound contains groups capable of reacting with the surfaces of the filler and the rubber.
In one particular embodiment of the invention, therefore, hydrophobized and functionalized fillers were prepared by applying a treating composition containing a treating agent consisting of a methylhydrogenpolysiloxane as the hydrophobic-type treating agent. The functional-type treating agent present in the treating composition was the compound 3-mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane (MPTES), i.e., (C2H5O)3SiCH2CH2CH2SH, or the compound bis[3-(triethoxysilyl)-propyl]tetrasulfide (TESPT), i.e., (C2H5O)3SiCH2CH2CH2xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94CH2CH2CH2Si(OC2H5)3.
Characterization of properties of treated fillers was determined by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller Nitrogen Adsorption (BET). These analytical techniques showed the hydrophobic and SH functional treatments present on surfaces of precipitated calcium carbonate fillers. When evaluated in organic tire rubber formulations, rubber samples containing treated precipitated calcium carbonate fillers showed a higher modulus and an increased 300/100 modulus ratio, which reflect an improvement in tire mechanical performance.
The Filler Substrate (Precipitated Calcium Carbonate)
While any type of precipitated calcium carbonate can be used, it is preferably a precipitated calcium carbonate with a high surface area. Particularly preferred materials are rhombohedral calcites with specific surface areas of 20 m2/g. Such materials are generally available on a commercial basis from Solvay Interox, Houston, Tex., under Solvay""s trademark SOCAL 31(copyright).
The Functional-Type Treating Agent (Polysulfide)
This component of the treating composition comprises a bis(alkoxysilyl)polysulfide. Some general examples of bis(alkoxysilylalkyl)polysulfides which can be used include the bis(2-trialkoxysilylethyl)polysulfides in which the trialkoxy groups consist of trimethoxy, triethoxy, tri(methylethoxy), tripropoxy, tributoxy, or trioctyloxy, and in which the polysulfide is di-, tri-, tetra-, penta-, or an hexasulfide. Corresponding bis(3-trialkoxysilylpropyl)-, bis(3-trialkoxysilylisobutyl), -bis(4-trialkoxysilylbutyl)-, or bis(6-trialkoxysilylhexyl)polysulfide can also be used. Most preferred are the organosilanes including bis(3-trimethoxy-, -triethoxy-, and -tripropoxysilylpropyl)polysulfide; namely the di-, tri-, or tetrasulfide.
Specific examples of bis(alkoxysilylalkyl)polysulfides include compositions such as 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(trimethoxysilylpropyl)disulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)tetrasulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(trimethoxysilylpropyl)tetrasulfide, 2,2xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylethyl)tetrasulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(trimethoxysilylpropyl)trisulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)trisulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)disulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(trimethoxysilylpropyl)hexasulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(trioctoxysilylpropyl)tetrasulfide, and their mixtures.
One most preferred compounds is 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl) tetrasulfide (TESPT). TESPT is a commercial product marketed by Dow Corning Corporation, Midland, Mich. It is a mixture of 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)disulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)trisulfide, 3,3xe2x80x2-bis(triethoxysilylpropyl)tetrasulfide, and higher sulfide homologues having average sulfide contents of 3.5.
The Functional-Type Treating Agent (Mercaptoorganosilicon)
In another embodiment of the invention, the functional-type component of the treating composition may comprise a mercaptoorganosilicon compound instead of a bis(alkoxysilylalkyl)polysulfide.
Some representative examples of useful mercaptoorganosilicon compounds which can be employed herein are mercaptomethyltrimethoxysilane, mercaptoethyltrimethoxysilane, 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane, mercaptomethyltriethoxysilane, mercaptoethyltripropoxysilane, 3-mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane, (mercaptomethyl)dimethylethoxysilane, (mercaptomethyl)methyldiethoxysilane, 3-mercaptopropylmethyldimethoxysilane, and mixtures thereof. The most preferred of the compounds is 3-mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane (MPTES).
Some examples of useful blocked mercaptosilanes are 2-triethoxysilyl-1-ethyl thioacetate, 3-trimethoxy-silyl-1-propyl thiooctoate, bis-(3-triethoxysilyl-1-propyl)-methyldithiophosphonate, 3-triethoxysilyl-1-propyldimethylthiophosphinate, 3-triethoxysilyl-1-propylmethylthiosulfate, 3-triethoxysilyl-1-propyltoluenethiosulfonate, and their mixtures. By blocked is meant that the mercapto hydrogen atom is replaced by another group.
The Hydrophobic-Type Treating Agent (Polyorganohydrogensiloxane)
The hydrophobic-type component of the treating composition consists of a polyorganohydrogen siloxane of the formula:
in which R1 and R2 represent alkyl groups containing 1-8 carbon atoms such as methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, and octyl; aryl groups such as phenyl, xenyl, naphthyl, and anthracyl; alkaryl (alkylaryl) groups such as tolyl and xylyl; aralkyl (arylalkyl) groups such as benzyl (phenylmethyl), phenylethyl (phenethyl), and 2-phenylpropyl; and cycloaliphatic groups containing 3-8 carbon atoms such as cyclobutyl and cyclopentyl. R1 can also be hydrogen. Typically, n has a value of 10-100, preferably 40-70. Such siloxanes generally have a viscosity of about 10 to about 1,000 mm2/s (centistoke).
The polyorganohydrogen siloxane used in the examples below was a trimethylsiloxy terminated polymethylhydrogensiloxane having a silicon bonded hydrogen content of 1.4-1.75 weight percent, and a viscosity of 20-40 mm2/s (centistoke). The composition is commercially available from the Dow Corning Corporation, Midland, Mich.
The Hydrophobic-Type Treating Agent (Silanol Terminated Silicone Oligomer)
In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the hydrophobic-type component of the treating composition may comprise a silanol terminated silicone oligomer, instead of the polyorganohydrogen siloxane above. The silanol terminated silicone oligomer has the formula:
in which R3 is an alkyl group containing 1-8 carbon atoms such as methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, and octyl; an aryl group such as phenyl, xenyl, naphthyl, and anthracyl; an alkaryl (alkylaryl) group such as tolyl and xylyl; an aralkyl (arylalkyl) group such as benzyl (phenylmethyl), phenylethyl (phenethyl), and 2-phenylpropyl; or a cycloaliphatic group containing 3-8 carbon atoms such as cyclobutyl and cyclopentyl. Typically, m has a value in the range of 1-10. Such oligomeric siloxanes generally have a viscosity of about 20 to about 800 mm2/s (centistoke).
The silanol terminated silicone oligomer used in the examples was a hydroxyl endblocked polydimethylsiloxane fluid having a viscosity between 38-45 mm2/s (centistoke), in which m is about 6, and wherein the xe2x80x94OH content is between 3.9-4.3 weight percent.
This particular embodiment of the invention is unique to the extent that the silanol terminated silicone oligomer contains dimethyl units in the molecule which are capable of providing the hydrophobing characteristic needed, as well as xe2x80x94OH containing units capable of providing the functional characteristic needed, i.e., reactions (coupling) between the surface of the filler particles and the rubber surfaces in which the filler is employed, and/or with other coupling agents present in the treating composition.
Filler particles can be treated with the treating composition (i) by applying the hydrophobic-type treating agent and the functional-type treating agent to filler particles at the same time, (ii) by applying the hydrophobic-type treating agent and the functional-type treating agent to filler particles sequentially, (iii) or by first premixing the hydrophobic-type treating agent and the functional-type treating agent, and then applying the mixture to filler particles.
Application of the treating composition to the filler particles can be carried out at temperatures ranging from xe2x88x9220xc2x0 C. to 200xc2x0 C., preferably room temperature (20xc2x0 C.-25xc2x0 C.). The treated filler particles are then heated to temperatures of 100xc2x0 C.-150xc2x0 C. for one minute to 24 hours, to cause surfaces of the filler particles to react with the treating composition.
The treating composition is applied to the filler particles in the amount of 1-15 percent by weight, based on the weight of filler particles being treated. The treating composition contains 5-95 percent by weight of the hydrophobic-type treating agent, and 5-95 percent by weight of the functional-type treating agent, based on the total weight of the treating composition.

Method of treating precipitated calcium carbonate fillers


A system and method for performing image-based authentication requires users to enter an image-based password in order to access a secure system or network. A user may identify at least one password image, and may enter the system or network if he or she selects each of the password images shown in a group of images on the display. Additionally, the user may designate specific locations for multiple password images on a user interface, and a user may enter the system or network if he or she locates each of the password images in its designated location on the user interface.

Access to secure systems or networks, such as electronic mail systems or banking web sites, is often conditioned upon the entry of a character-based password or code, such as a Personal Identification Number ("PIN"), by an authorized user. Such passwords need not contain "words," and may include combinations of uppercase or lowercase letters, numbers and/or other American Standard Code for Information Interchange ("ASCII") characters, while PINs may generally include one or more numbers. Character-based passwords and PINs are typically used in combination with a corresponding user name or identifier assigned to someone who is authorized to access a secure system or network, and may either authenticate entry to the secured system or network by authorized users, or prevent access to such the system or network by unauthorized users. Unless a user name and corresponding password or PIN are entered, access is denied.
Passwords or PINs that consist solely of alphanumeric and/or ASCII characters have many intrinsic limitations, however. First, character-based passwords or PINs are more secure when they are longer, i.e., when they include a greater number of characters. Because a password must be committed to memory, many people choose character-based passwords that are easy to remember, such as a birthday or a relative's name. However, a password that is easy for a user to memorize may also be easy for a person with surreptitious motives, such as a "hacker" or "fraudster," to guess, predict or acquire covertly. Alternatively, the user may elect to record a lengthy password on a piece of paper. However, if such a piece of paper is obtained by a hacker or fraudster, he or she may enter the secure system or network by posing as the user, and take actions within the system or network on the user's behalf.
Second, because the entry of a character-based password is required to access a variety of systems or networks, many people use the same or similar user names and/or passwords for several different systems or networks. For example, a person may utilize the same password, or similar passwords, to access his or her electronic mail account, bank account, credit card account or network server at work. If any one of these systems or networks is compromised, a hacker or fraudster may access the user's other accounts that are protected by the same password, or predict the user's passwords on other accounts having similar passwords, and thereby expose the user to a cascading risk of widespread fraud across multiple accounts.
Third, in an age when portable computing devices are increasingly able to perform a variety of functions, and are being built with smaller keyboards or other character-entry devices, the task of entering a lengthy character-based password may be difficult for users who wish to access secure systems or networks from such devices.
Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, the combinations available for use in character-based passwords or PINs are always mathematically limited in number. For example, a PIN formed from four digits has only 104 (or 10,000) combinations of numbers available to users. Where a password may be formed from the twenty-six letters of the modern English alphabet, an eight-character password has 268 (or 208,827,064,576) combinations of letters that are available to users. While this may be a very large number, a hacker or fraudster armed with computer-based processors may attempt to overcome a secure system or network by brute force, such as by running through each of the potential combinations of passwords or PINs very quickly, particularly if the hacker or fraudster is aware of personal information regarding the user that may suggest one or more combinations of letters or numbers that may more likely, or less likely, be included within a user's password or PIN.

Methods and systems for image-based authentication


To permit a container and a cap to remate with each other during resealing without fouling by solid debris such as small particles without exceptional preparations to withstand the deteriorating effects of corrosive materials and solvents and to consistently and quickly form a gas-tight seal, the container has a flat angled surface and the cap has cooperating edge that engages the flat surface in a closed line when the cap is fully inserted with a solid closed surface within the line, the closed line having a width perpendicular to its length within a range of 0.5 millimeters to 1.5 millimeters. The cap is closed by screw threads or the like that force the cooperating surfaces together with a pressure of at least 100 psi at an angle of between 75 degrees and 105 degrees.

This invention relates to containers and/or closures therefor useful under adverse environments.
One class of containers includes a cap and a vessel body having walls and a bottom that are liquid or gas tight. The cap has either integrally formed or separate sealing means to form a liquid-tight or gas-tight enclosure with the vessel, the vessel and cap being formed of a material or materials capable of withstanding adverse environments, such as for example, acidic or basic environments with or without small particles. These containers are adapted to close tightly such as through the use of screw threads or toggles or the like capable of exerting a mechanical advantage to form tight cooperating sealing surfaces which withstand the passage of gases or liquids between the container body and the cap for the container.
In one type of prior art container of this class, the cooperating sealing surfaces are parallel or substantially parallel with relatively wide matching surfaces when engaged.
Such types of prior art containers have several disadvantages, such as for example: (1) the caps are not easily removable and replaceable but instead require time-consuming care such as cleaning or the like to provide a proper seal the second time they are used; (2) they are subject to fouling by solid debris such as particles within the material being contained; (3) some of them are not stable to corrosive materials and solvents; and (4) they do not consistently and quickly form a gas-tight seal so as to maintain a vacuum or hold gas under positive pressure or preserve an inert atmosphere within them.

The Board of Regents of The University of Nebraska


A method, system, and apparatus is presented for presenting retail information on a device having an image capture unit and a user interface. The method, system, and apparatus may receive, from the image capture unit, an image of a retail item. A triggering feature in the image of the retail item may be detected. An augmented-reality-enhanced view may be presented on the user interface. The augmented-reality-enhanced view may overlay over the image of the retail item multimedia presenting a demonstration, such as a fashion show video, of a retail product associated with the image. A touch input on a touch screen of the user interface may be received, and an action based on the touch input may be performed. The action performed may include presenting information on the retail product or facilitating a transaction for the retail product.

Augmented reality generally refers to a field in computer technology that relates to combining computer-generated information and real-world information, which typically involves overlaying virtual imagery over real-world imagery. For example, many television sports broadcasts now incorporate augmented reality applications to superimpose or otherwise overlay virtual images over real-world game action to provide viewers information about the broadcast or otherwise enhance the viewer experience (e.g., football broadcasts often superimpose a virtual "first down" marker to show the distance that the offense has to cover to continue a current drive, baseball broadcasts often superimpose a virtual "strike zone" marker to indicate whether a certain pitch was a ball or strike, etc.).

Method, medium, and system for an augmented reality retail application


Embodiments of the present invention are directed to various enhanced discrete-universal denoisers that have been developed to denoise images and other one-dimensional, two-dimensional or higher-dimensional data sets in which the frequency of occurrence of individual contexts may be too low to gather efficient statistical data or context-based symbol prediction. In these denoisers, image quality, signal-to-noise ratios, or other measures of the effectiveness of denoising that would be expected to increase monotonically over a series of iterations may decrease, due to assumptions underlying the discrete-universal-denoising method losing validity. Embodiments of the present invention apply context-class-based statistics and statistical analysis to determine, on a per-context-class basis, when to at least temporarily terminate denoising iterations on each conditioning class. Each iteration of the iterative methods applies context-based denoising only for those conditioning classes that statistical analysis indicates remain valid for denoising purposes.

Whenever information is electronically encoded as original, or clean, data, and then transferred from the data source to a data destination, noise may be introduced into the data by the transfer process, resulting in alteration of the original, clean data and reception of the data by the data destination as noisy data. For example, when information is electronically encoded as a sequence of binary bits and sent through a communications network, such as a local Ethernet, to a destination node, there is a small probability that any given bit within the original, or clean, sequence of binary bits ends up being corrupted during transfer through the Ethernet, resulting in a "0" bit in the clean data being altered to a "1" bit in the noisy data received at the destination node, or a "1" bit in the clean data altered to a "0" bit in the noisy data received at the destination node. Although electronic communications media are classic examples of noisy channels, almost any type of data transfer, data storage, or data manipulation may result in data corruption, and therefore may be modeled as a noisy channel. For example, there is a small probability, associated with each bit of a block of binary data, that the bit will be altered when the block of data is stored and then retrieved from a hard disk, or even when the block of data is transferred from local cache memory to global random-access memory within a computer system. In general, redundant data, including check sums and cyclical redundancy codes, are embedded into data encodings to allow corrupted data to be detected and repaired. However, the amount of redundant data needed, and the accompanying costs and inefficiencies associated with redundant data, grows as the acceptable level of undetectable and/or unrepairable data corruption decreases.
In many cases, data corruption may occur prior to a point in a process at which redundant information can be embedded into a data signal to facilitate error detection and correction. As one example, a scanner that optically scans a printed document to produce a digital, electronic encoding of an image of the document can be viewed as a noisy channel in which discrepancies between the digitally encoded image of the document and the original document may arise. Such discrepancies may be introduced by a variety of optical and electronic components within the scanner that focus an optical image of the document onto a light-detecting component that transforms the detected optical image into an electronically encoded image of the document. When the digitally encoded image of the document is displayed or printed, different types of noise may be perceived as graininess, irregularities along the edges of text characters or objects within graphical images, uneven shading or coloration, random speckling, or other such visually distinguishable differences between the printed or displayed version of the digitally encoded data and the original document.
Denoising techniques can be applied to a noisy, digitally encoded image in order to produce a denoised, digitally encoded image that more accurately represents the original document that was scanned to produce the noisy, digitally encoded image. Denoising techniques may also be applied to data received over channels that are too noisy for recovery of the original data using the redundant data incorporated within the data to facilitate error correction. A wide variety of additional applications of denoising techniques have been identified and are well known. Recently, a discrete universal denoiser method ("DUDE") has been developed for denoising the noisy output signal of a discrete, memoryless data-transmission channel without relying on knowledge of, or assumptions concerning, the statistical properties of the original, or clean, signal input to the discrete, memoryless channel. Even more recently, the DUDE method has been extended for denoising continuous tone images, such as scanned documents or images. The extended DUDE method is referred to as the "DUDE-CTI method," or simply as the "DUDE-CTI." The DUDE-CTI method is intended for use in a variety of image and data scanning, processing, and transfer applications. The DUDE-CTI method has shown promising results for certain types of noisy channels. An efficient DUDE-CTI depends on collections of symbol-occurrence statistics for each of a large number of different pixel contexts observed within an image. Because of the large number of possible contexts, an expedient approach is to coalesce individual contexts into groups, or classes, of contexts, and to then collect statistics on a context-class basis, rather than for individual contexts.
In various embodiments of the DUDE-CTI method, and other denoising methods, it is desirable, when possible, to prefilter a noisy image in order to remove, as far as possible, various types of noise that can be ameliorated by context-dependent filtering or denoising prior to applying the more complex, global, and statistical DUDE-CTI and DUDE methodologies. In the DUDE-CTI method, and even more recent, enhanced discrete-universal-denoising methods for denoising images and other two-dimensional and higher-dimensional data sets, the discrete-universal-denoising method is iterative. Each iteration produces a next filtered image from which contexts are determined for a next subsequent application of the method. In currently available iterative discrete-universal-denoising methods, iteration continues until one of several possible global convergence criteria are satisfied. However, in certain cases, image quality, signal-to-noise ratios, or other measures of denoising effectiveness do not increase, but may, in fact, decrease with additional iterations. Information-theory researchers, denoising-method developers, and manufacturers and users of a variety of data acquisition, data-storage, data-processing, and data-transfer devices that employ denoisers, continue to seek iterative, enhanced discrete-universal denoisers that efficiently produce optimally or near-optimally denoised data sets.

Context-cluster-level control of filtering iterations in an iterative discrete universal denoiser

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


An apparatus (10) for the rehabilitation, assistance and/or augmentation of arm strength in a user (U) comprises a support arrangement (12) for supporting the apparatus (10) on the user (U), a linkage arrangement (14) coupled to the support arrangement (12) and for coupling to an arm (A) of the user (U), and an actuation arrangement (16) for operating the linkage arrangement (14) and thereby manipulating the user's arm (A) in response to a user input signal.

Partial paralysis affects a significant number of people around the World, whether as result of an inherited condition or due to an injury. In some instances, partial paralysis may be the result of a stroke. In other instances, partial paralysis may be result of an injury to the brachial plexus nerve—a network of neurons originating from the spinal cord which carries the motor and sensory information between the brain and the upper limbs.
Brachial Plexus Injury (BPI) may for example be caused by an inflammatory disease, by a tumour impinging on the brain, during childbirth, or by traumatic injury and typically leads to functional impairment and disability to one or more of the upper limbs.
Direct effects of BPI are muscle atrophy, pain and somatosensory deficit. BPI can also affect the patients psychologically.
BPI patients require early and prolonged treatment. Surgical reinnervation is often necessary to repair an injury caused due to muscle denervation.
However, physical therapy is required before and after the surgical reinnervation in order to prevent the development of muscular contracture, joint stiffness and secondary deformities in the affected arm, since denervated muscle can develop atrophy within weeks.
Currently, physical therapy is provided for BPI patients immediately on their diagnosis to prevent the development of muscle contracture, joint stiffness and secondary deformities, with muscle stretching the primary task given by therapists to avoid muscular atrophy.
Orthosis devices are used in physical therapy and include braces, splints, or other external devices which function to support the limbs or spine of a user or to prevent and assist relative movement.
More recently, the emergence of robotic technology has been introduced to assist users in the rehabilitation of stroke patients.
However, there are a number of drawbacks with conventional equipment.
For example, although current systems are capable of providing sufficient power to anatomical joints for performing various upper arm movements, these systems are bulky and not portable. Hence, these devices are limited to laboratory or clinical environments and not capable of providing physical therapy for BPI patients while they are at home.
Moreover, conventional robotic equipment requires a muscle activity signal to control and operate. However, in the case of users with complete paralysis of the given limb, such a muscle activity signal is not present.

Apparatus for the rehabilitation, assistance and/or augmentation of arm strength in a user


Techniques for facilitating social networking via a media device are described. Some embodiments provide a social networking facilitator (“SNF”) as part of a media device, such as a set-top box that is configured to receive media content events from a broadcast system, such as a satellite broadcast system. As the media device presents a media content event, a user can share, via the SNF, information about the presented media content event with members of his social network. In particular, the SNF prepares a message that includes information about or from the presented media content event, such as a title, a channel, a summary, rating, video clip, or the like. This message can then be edited by the user, such as by adding a comment or rating, before being transmitted by the SNF a social networking system, to be forwarded as a notification to members of the user's social network.

Social networking systems represent networks of people or organizations that are related to one another as friends, colleagues, acquaintances, or the like. Such social networking systems facilitate communication and information sharing between members of a network, such as by providing facilities for sending messages, sharing information, updating a personal profile, and the like.
Social networking has become increasingly integrated into the online user experience, particularly in the context of the World-Wide Web ("the Web"). For example, many Web pages now include buttons or other user interface controls that are operable by a user to "share" a Web page, such as by informing members of the user's social network about the Web page.
Unfortunately, social networking is not well-integrated into the broadcast television medium. For example, if a user wishes to inform members of his social network about a television program, the user typically must utilize a separate device, such as a smart phone or laptop computer, to interact with the appropriate social networking system and manually enter information about the program.

Apparatus, systems and methods for facilitating social networking via a media device