An endoscope that integrates the functions of an optical tower into a portable device, while eliminating the use of cords or cables that carry light, video signals or images, and power to the endoscope that may conflict with the movement of a surgeon and the members of the surgical team, or other operators in non-medical related applications is provided. The endoscope incorporates a camera, an image processor, a light source, a transmitter, a communication interface, a control interface, and one or more of a power source in a single portable unit or enclosure. The camera is in electrical communication with the image processor and supplies images and video to the image processor obtained via an elongated endoscope tube. The light source illuminates a viewing field of the endoscope via the elongated tube.

An endoscope is a device with a light attached to one end, used to look inside or inspect a region inside a confined area or a specific body cavity or organ. Endoscopes are inserted through a natural opening, such as the mouth or rectum and are commonly used to detect ulcers, inflammation, erosions, polyps, strictures, malignancies, varices, and bleeding sites. In a surgical procedure, an endoscope is inserted through a small incision that permits minimally invasive procedures that improve patient care and minimize recovery time. Any medical procedure that uses endoscope equipment is called an endoscopy. Particular medical procedures that employ endoscopes include arthroscopy (orthopedic joints), bronchoscopy (lung), colonoscopy (colon), cystoscopy (bladder), gastroscopy (upper gastrointestinal tract), laryngoscopy (larynx), laparoscopy (abdomen, peritoneal cavity, ovaries, fallopian tubes and uterus), nephroscopy (kidney), otoscopy (ear), and rhinoscopy (nose).
Endoscopes capture images through a long tube, which can be rigid or flexible. Images may be captured by a purely fiber optic scope with a bundle of glass fibers that collect the lighted images at one end and transfer them to an eye piece, or video images may be obtained using a small, optically sensitive computer chip at the end of the scope. The computer chip transmits electronic signals up the scope to a computer which then displays the image on a large video screen. Advances in lighting technologies, such as light emitting diodes (LED) have improved the imaging performance of endoscopes. Additional instruments for cutting, grasping and other functions are often attached to the endoscope, or are supplied via an open channel in the endoscope to allow other instruments to pass through in order to perform biopsies, remove polyps or inject solutions, as needed. Endoscopes are also well suited for a number of industrial applications such inspections and are synonymously referred to herein as borescopes.
While endoscopes offer many advantages to physicians and patients, the use of current endoscopes require the use of an optical tower. Optical towers include a power source for the endoscope, a monitor/display, a light source, and a video receiver and processor. Optical towers are generally quite large, and take up valuable floor space in an operating room. In addition, the use of cords or cables that carry light, video signals or images, and power to the endoscope interfere with the movement of the surgeon and the members of the surgical team.
Modern operating rooms and surgical theaters, even in remote locations, have several electrical and mechanical instruments, as well as data gathering electronics that potentially generate electromagnetic and radio wave interference. These sources of interference can potentially disrupt data transmission from surgical diagnostic devices such as endoscopes.
Spread Spectrum refers to a system that spreads a signal over a large frequency band thereby providing a secure communication signal that is also more robust and impervious to potential sources of signal interference, signal jamming, and unauthorized eavesdropping and signal interception. FIG. 1A illustrates a frequency spectrum (domain) view of a narrowband signal 10 with respect to a random noise floor 12. The narrowband signal 10 is easily isolated from the random noise floor 12, and is easily jammed by any other signal in the same band. Likewise, the narrowband signal 10 is easy to detect and can also be intercepted since the frequency band is fixed and narrow. FIG. 1B illustrates a frequency spectrum view of the narrowband signal 10 of FIG. 1A converted to a spread spectrum signal 14 in relation to the random noise floor 12. The spread spectrum signal 14 uses more bandwidth than the original message of the narrowband signal 10 while maintaining the same signal power. A spread spectrum signal does not have a clearly distinguishable peak in the spectrum, which makes the signal more difficult to distinguish from noise and therefore more difficult to jam or intercept. Furthermore, an interfering signal in a specific frequency will have little to no impact on the spread spectrum signal.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a spread spectrum communication system 20. An input message is encoded to a series of pulses with a channel encoder 22 that in turn control a modulator 24 which is combined with a spreading generator 26 to produce the transmitted spread spectrum signal. At the receiving end, the demodulator 28 using a decryption or synchronization key from the spreading generator 26 the series of pulses obtained from the demodulated signal are provided to the channel decoder 30 to obtain the an output message that corresponds to the input message. There are two predominant techniques to spread the spectrum communications: frequency hopping and direct sequence. Frequency hopping involves a narrow band signal jumping in random narrow bands within a larger bandwidth. Direct sequence which introduces rapid phase transitions to the data to make the data have a larger in bandwidth in the frequency domain. Direct sequence spread spectrum technique is the predominantly used in the industry as code division multiple access (CDMA), Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS), and 802.11 wireless standard. The advantages of spread spectrum include enhanced privacy and secure communications because a signal is "hidden" like noise, non-interference with other signals in the same band, the possibility to share frequency and time at the same time (CDMA), and protection against jamming.
While there have been many advancements in endoscopes, there exists a need for an endoscope that integrates the functions of an optical tower into a portable device, while providing the flexibility eliminating the use of cords or cables that carry light, video signals or images, and power to the endoscope that may conflict with the movement of a surgeon and the members of the surgical team. There is a further need for interference free transmission of image data from the endoscope.

Portable endoscope with interference free transmission


A method and system is provided for copying data between two deduplicating storage systems. A list of unique fingerprints is compiled from the data which will be sent. This list is transmitted to the receiving system during a preliminary data exchange called the preamble. The receiving system replies with a second list which contains the unique fingerprints of the data which either needs to be sent or can be omitted. Which list depends on the size of the list where the smaller list is sent for efficiency and lower bandwidth consumption. A reference list of duplicate blocks being sent is retained on the receiving system until the copy operation is complete. This reference list is used to protect blocks on the receiving system by deferring deletions until the incoming hallow block can reference the duplicate block on the receiver to confirm that is on the target system and should not be deleted.

The present invention relates generally to a method for a method for moving data between two of more data storage systems. The present invention relates to such a method that is implemented in computer software code running on computer hardware.
The operation of computers are very well known in the art. File systems exist on a computer or across multiple computers, where each computer typically includes data storage, such as a hard disk or disk(s), random access memory (RAM) and an operating system for executing software code. Software code is typically executed to carry out the purpose of the computer. As part of the execution of the computer code, storage space on the hard disk or disks and RAM are commonly used. Also, data can be stored, either permanently or temporarily on the hard disk or disks and in
RAM. The structure and operation of computers are so well known in the art that they need not be discussed in further detail herein.
In the field of computers and computing, file systems are also very well known in the art to enable the storage of such data as part of the use of the computer. A computer file system is a method for storing and organizing computer files and the data they contain to make it easy to find and access them. File systems may use data storage devices such as a hard disks or CD-ROMs and involve maintaining the physical location of the files, and they might provide access to data by the computer operating system or on a file server by acting as clients for a network protocol (e.g., NFS, SMB, or 9P clients). Also, they may be virtual and exist only as an access method for virtual data.
More formally, a file system is a special-purpose database for the storage, organization, manipulation, and retrieval of data. This database or table which centralizes the information about which areas belong to files, are free or possibly unusable, and where each file is stored on the disk. To limit the size of the table, disk space is allocated to files in contiguous groups of hardware sectors called clusters. As disk drives have evolved, the maximum number of clusters has dramatically increased, and so the number of bits used to identify each cluster has grown. For example, FAT, and the successive major versions thereof are named after the number of table element bits: 12, 16, and 32. The FAT standard has also been expanded in other ways while preserving backward compatibility with existing software.
File systems are specialized databases which manage information on digital storage media such as magnetic hard drives. Data is organized using an abstraction called a file which consists of related data and information about that data (here after referred to as metadata). Metadata commonly consists of information like date of creation, file type, owner, and the like.
The file system provides a name space (or a system) for the unique naming of files. File systems also frequently provide a directory or folder abstraction so that files can be organized in a hierarchical fashion. The abstraction notion of file and folders does not represent the actual physical organization of data on the hard disk only its logical relationships.
Hard disks consist of a contiguous linear array of units of storage referred to as blocks. Blocks are all typically the same size and each has a unique address used by the disk controller to access the contents of the block for reading or writing. File systems translate their logical organization into the physical layer by designating certain address as special or reserved. These blocks, often referred to as super-blocks, contain important information about the file system such as file system version, amount of free space, etc. They also contain or point to other blocks that contain structures which describe directory and file objects.
One of the most important activities performed by the file system is the allocation of these physical blocks to file and directory objects. Typically each file consists of one or more data blocks. If files are stored on the file-system which contains identical data blocks, no provision is made to identify that these blocks are duplicates and avoid the allocation of (wasted) space for these duplicate blocks.
When data is moved between two or more data storage systems, it is common that the storage space used to store information on both the sending and receiving data storage systems are optimized utilizing a data deduplication technique. Data deduplication is a method in which only unique data is physically kept in a data storage system. However, known deduplication techniques are inefficient and result in the transfer of unnecessary data blocks. For example, in the prior art, unique data is referenced by a unique "fingerprint" derived from the data often in the form of a cryptographic hash function. Deduplication methods compare the fingerprint of incoming data blocks to the fingerprints of all existing data blocks. If the incoming data block is unique it is stored, if it is not unique it is not stored but is added as a reference to the existing unique data block. When data is copied from one system to another there is a probability that the data being copied is already stored in a data block on the receiving system. This method relates to the process of sending data in a manner in which only unique data blocks are transferred from the sender to the receiver. In this context, unique blocks are blocks that are already stored on the receiving system (e.g. via prior transactions with other systems).
Therefore, there is a need to eliminate the need to send duplicate blocks to significantly reduce the time and network resources needed to accomplish the data transfer.

Method of minimizing the amount of network bandwidth needed to copy data between data deduplication storage systems

Greenbytes, Inc., a Rhode Island corporation


A first amplification unit amplifies at a predetermined amplification rate an output signal from a photodetection unit for detecting an optical signal from a specimen and detecting it. An offset unit assigns offset to an output signal from the photodetection unit. A second amplification unit amplifies at an amplification rate smaller than the amplification rate of the first amplification unit an output signal from the photodetection unit assigned the offset by the offset unit. A rectification unit rectifies an output signal from the second amplification unit. An addition unit adds an output signal from the first amplification unit to an output signal from the rectification unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a photodetection circuit and a confocal microscope having the circuit, and more specifically to a photodetection circuit for enlarging the photodetection dynamic range and improving the S/N ratio of height data, and a confocal microscope having the circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a confocal microscope applies dotted illumination to a specimen, converges transmitted light, reflected light, or fluorescence from the specimen on a confocal diaphragm, and detects by a photodetector the intensity of the light passing through the confocal diaphragm, thereby obtaining the surface information about the specimen. A scanning confocal microscope scans the surface of the specimen using dotted illumination in various methods, thereby obtain the surface information about the specimen in a wide range.
FIG. 1 shows the outline of the configuration of a conventional confocal microscope (scanning confocal laser microscope).
With the confocal microscope shown in FIG. 1, a laser beam output from a laser beam source 101 passes through a beam splitter 102, and enters a two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103. The two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103 has a first optical scanner 103a and a second optical scanner 103b, performs two-dimensional scanning using luminous flux, and leads it to an object lens 107. The luminous flux input to the object lens 107 becomes converging beam and scans the surface of a specimen 108.
The light reflected by the surface of the specimen 108 is introduced from the object lens 107 again to the beam splitter 102 through the two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103, then reflected by the beam splitter 102, and converges on a pinhole 110 by an image forming lens 109. The pinhole 110 cuts off the reflected light from the points other than the beam condensing point of the specimen 108, and a photodetector 111 detects the light only passing through the pinhole 110.
The specimen 108 is held on a specimen table 113. A stage 114 and the photodetector 111 is controlled by a computer 112.
The beam condensing position by the object lens 107 is in a position optically conjugate with the pinhole 110. When the specimen 108 is in the beam condensing position of the object lens 107, the reflected light from the specimen 108 converges on the pinhole 110 and passes through the pinhole 110. When the specimen 108 is displaced from the beam condensing position of the object lens 107, the reflected light from the specimen 108 does not converges on the pinhole 110, and does not pass through the 110.
FIG. 2 shows an I-Z curve indicating the relationship between the relative position (Z) of the object lens 107 to the specimen 108 and the output (I) of the photodetector 111.
As shown in FIG. 2, when the specimen 108 is in the beam condensing position Z0 of the object lens 107, the output of the photodetector 111 indicates a maximum value. As the relative position of the object lens 107 to the specimen 108 leaves from the position, the output of the photodetector 111 indicates a sudden decrease.
With the characteristic, if the two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103 performs two-dimensional scanning on the beam condensing point, and an image is generated by the output of the photodetector 111 in synchronization with the two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103, then an image of only a specific height portion of the specimen 108 is formed, and an image (confocal image) is obtained by optically slicing the specimen 108. Furthermore, the specimen 108 is discretely moved on the specimen 108 in the optical axis direction, the two-dimensional scanning mechanism 103 performs scanning in each position to obtain a confocal image, and the Z position of the stage 114 where the output of the photodetector 111 indicates the maximum value is detected, thereby obtain the height information about the specimen 108. Additionally, by overlaying and displaying the maximum value of the output of the photodetector 111 at each point of the specimen, an image can be obtained with all points of the image displayed in focus (extend image).
Thus, when there is a large difference in brightness with the confocal microscope, that is, when a specimen having a large brightness difference between a bright portion and a dark portion is observed, it is necessary to adjust the detection sensitivity not to reach saturation on the screen. In this case, the adjustment is to be made based on a bright portion, and the data of a dark point includes much noise. Therefore, generally, a bright portion is compressed using a logarithm amplifier (γ characteristic) while a dark portion is brightened to expand the photodetection dynamic range, thereby reducing the entire contrast (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. H7-212158). There also the technology of using the LUT (lookup table) to improve the visibility of a dark portion (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. H6-124192).

Photodetection circuit and confocal microscope that has it


Disclosed are a multifunctional locking device a housing, and a motor in the housing. An actuator includes a distal end, a filament configured to convey a signal between the distal end and the housing, a first actuator section including a first plurality of engagement members, and a second actuator section including a second plurality of engagement members. There is a reel in the housing, the reel being driven by the motor, the reel being configured to wind up and store the first actuator section at a time when the first engagement members are disengaged from the second engagement members. A combining head is configured to bring the first actuator section together with the second actuator section, to engage the first engagement members with the second engagement members, thereby increasing a rigidity of the actuator, enabling the actuator to impart both a pushing force and a pulling force to an object.

In the present state of the art all locks are mostly fitted directly to the object which one intends to lock or in any case and necessarily near the bolt or the actuator, thus at the opening point. This is an inconvenience as it makes them easily detectable and easily reachable the breaking-into point. And even more so if one deals with locking devices using a mechanical key or with latch systems. Moreover, when necessary, in case of emergency exits or in case of failures or lack of electricity it is not always easy and quick to disconnect the engine-driven mechanisms thus to invalidate the opening or closing functions of the locking system with all related problems. Also, at present in case of a locking device disconnection the subsequent good re-establishment of the mechanism is often endangered. Besides, in the security and domotics fields an inconvenience is that it is necessary to fit different devices to obtain all the functions carried out by our device. For example, at present sensors and engine driver mechanisms must be fitted into or onto the inside or outside doors or shutters or opening points to perform the day and night functions. Moreover other protection, control and anti breaking-into systems are required and these are often aesthetically or practically not suitable and also rather expensive. Another inconvenience is that all the present systems in case of failure must either be repaired or replaced as they have lost their characteristics and, while waiting for an engineer to arrive, often not quickly, the disabling of the mechanism and thus closure of doors and windows as well as the protection of real estates also from breaking-into dangers is not always safe and easy or even possible. Other usually rather large and sometimes hardly available to the wide public devices are those using a hybrid system made up mostly by air or oil miniaturized pistons always connected to a compressor or to an hydraulic control unit which make them difficult to fit both for space reasons and above all for difficulty to fit all security controls and limit switches. A further inconvenience has been noticed also when different mechatronics devices using actuators made up of complex and redundant mechanisms have been used for example in some expanding fields such as amateur, professional and/or industrial robotics applied also to two or more wheel-vehicles and to mobile or hide away accessories. What is needed, therefore, is a device combining different functions and easily fit for various fields and representing the solution for one or more of the above mentioned inconveniences.

Multifunctional locking device and servomotor with actuator which can be wound up around an interchangeable reel


A dishwasher (1) is shown comprising a body (2), a door (3) which provides access into the body (2) and opens from the top downwards by rotating around the horizontal axis, a door latch (4) which provides the door (3) to be locked, and a door opening mechanism (6) having a linear actuator (5) that provides the door (3) to be opened automatically at the end of the washing and drying processes such that some gap remains between the door (3) and the body (2).

In dishwashers, after the washing process, the drying process is performed. In some embodiments, at the end of the washing and drying processes, the door of the dishwasher can be partially opened automatically, the hot vapor inside is discharged to the outside and the washed items are provided to dry faster. In dishwashers wherein the door is partially opened automatically at the end of the washing and drying processes, applying less heat in the drying process is sufficient and thus, energy is saved. Opening of the dishwasher door automatically, furthermore, prevents the vapor getting cold from condensing and leaving stains on the washed items. In the state of the art, in order that the door is opened automatically, door opening mechanisms are used which extend from the body towards the door and provide the door to be partially opened by pushing the door by the activation of the devices such as solenoid motor or electric motor. In some embodiments, the door latch providing the door to be locked is at the same time a part of the door opening mechanism, keeps the door locked during the washing program and furthermore, provides the door to be partially opened by pushing it at the end of the washing program. When the door is slightly opened by the door opening mechanism at the end of the washing program, the user sometimes tries to close the door by pushing it in the reverse direction, and this causes the door opening mechanism to be damaged.
In the state of the art European Patent No EP1733675 and European Patent Applications No EP0687439 and EP0711528, dishwashers are explained, the doors of which are opened automatically at the end of the washing program.

Dishwasher comprising an automatic door opening mechanism


A method renders volume data having multi-resolution. The volume data is divided into a plurality of sub-volumes according to a resolution, a sampling interval for each of the plurality of sub-volumes is determined based on resolutions of the plurality of sub-volumes, sub-volumes present in a path of a ray passing through each of pixels on a projection plane onto which the volume data is projected from one viewpoint are sampled according to the sampling intervals thereof, and a rendering value of each of the pixels on the projection plane is obtained by synthesizing a plurality of sampling values corresponding to each of the pixels from among sampling values obtained through the sampling.

1. Field
Apparatuses and methods consistent with exemplary embodiments relate to rendering volume data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Volume rendering is performed to project volume data representing the volume of a three-dimensional (3D) object onto a two-dimensional (2D) screen and then display a projected resultant 2D image. It is possible to display an image visualizing the inside of a 3D object or 3D semi-transparent materials by performing volume rendering.
However, the 3D volume data may be a non-uniform volume data having multi-resolution, and the related art methods reconstruct the 3D volume data to have uniform resolution in the entire volume. Thus, a large number of calculations and a long time are needed to perform the volume rendering.

Apparatus and method for rendering volume data


MR image data corresponds to physiological signals. First image data is acquired by the magnetic resonance tomograph. Physiological signal data is acquired, and the first image data is provided with first meta data and the physiological signal data with second meta data. The meta data enables a temporal association to the instant of acquisition and the first image data. The physiological signal data is transmitted to an evaluation computer.

Magnetic resonance tomographs are imaging devices that, for imaging an examination object, orient nuclear spins of the examination object using a strong external magnetic field and excite the spins to precession around this orientation by way of a magnetic alternating field. The precession or return of the spins from this excited state into a state with lower energy in turn generates a magnetic alternating field, also called a magnetic resonance signal, as a response, which is received by antennae.
With the aid of magnetic gradient fields, a spatial encoding is impressed on the signals, and this subsequently enables allocation of the received signal to a volume element. The received signal is then evaluated, and a three-dimensional representation of the examination object supplied.
The representation that is generated indicates a spatial density distribution of the spins.
Acquisition of the data for a large number of volume elements requires a considerable amount of time, which is often significantly longer than typical physiological processes such as beating of the heart or respiration. There are therefore magnetic resonance tomographs that acquire physiological measured values such as pulse or breathing by way of sensors to synchronize the image data acquisition by magnetic resonance with the physiological processes, so that, for example, data from a two-dimensional volume slice of the examination object is acquired during a pause in breathing, a further volume slice is acquired during the next pause in breathing and so on.
Document DE 10 2014 210 471 A1 describes a method for carrying out a magnetic resonance examination with a prospective movement correction.
From document DE 10 2015 205 937 A1 a method is known for simultaneously acquiring physiological signals and image data of a volume portion of an examination object.
For the safety of the patient, control of a magnetic resonance tomograph requires precise checking and certifying of the individual examination processes, so that only the most important fundamental examinations are covered by image data acquisition of this kind that is controlled by physiological signals.

Method and system for determining magnetic resonance image data as a function of physiological signals


Methods, devices, kits and compositions for detecting the presence or absence of roundworm in a fecal sample are disclosed herein. The methods, devices, kits and compositions of the present invention may be used to confirm the presence or absence of roundworm in a fecal sample from a mammal that may also be infected with one or more of hookworm, whipworm, and heartworm. Confirmation of the presence or absence of roundworm in the mammal may be made, for example, for the purpose of selecting an optimal course of treating the mammal and/or for the purpose of determining whether the mammal has been rid of the infection after treatment has been initiated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to compositions, devices, kits and methods for the detection of roundworm in mammals. More particularly, the present invention relates to polypeptides and polypeptide compositions, antibodies and antibody compositions, devices, kits, and methods for detecting the presence or absence of roundworm antigen in a sample from a mammal that may also include one or more of hookworm, whipworm, and heartworm antigen.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Adult roundworms live in the small intestine and lay eggs that pass out in the feces. In the environment, infective larvae remain within the eggs and develop into an infective stage after approximately three weeks at optimal temperatures. The infective eggs enter a host by ingestion and hatch in the small intestine. In dogs less than five weeks of age, larvae migrate through the tissue and into the bloodstream before eventually reaching the lung and trachea where additional development occurs. The host coughs up and swallows the larvae, which molt into adults that reside in small intestine. Larvae that hatch within dogs greater than five weeks of age or within other animals, including humans, are capable of traveling to a wide range of tissues including the liver, lungs, heart, brain, and skeletal muscle. These larvae subsequently arrest their development and encyst in the tissue of the host. In pregnant and lactating dogs, encysted larvae can become reactivated and cause intestinal infection in the mother, migrate to the uterus and directly infect the fetus through the placenta, or migrate to the mammary tissue and infect nursing animals. Parasitic roundworms cause disease not only in their animal hosts, but are also the etiological agents of larval migrans syndrome as well as severe enteritis and allergic reactions in humans, which occurs after ingestion of infectious eggs from the environment or ingestion of larvae found within liver, meat or other tissues of paratenic hosts.
Intestinal roundworm infection is common in animals and, if left untreated, can cause serious disease and even death. Although it is relatively easy to diagnose a roundworm-infected animal as having a parasitic worm (helminth) infection of some type, it is significantly more difficult to identify roundworm, specifically, as the causative worm. This is a problem because roundworm infections are best treated when the infected animal's caregiver has knowledge that roundworm is the specific source of the infection. In addition, humans who may come in contact with the infested animal or its excretions may be advised to take precautions against acquiring the parasite. In this context, it is important to determine the worm species with high specificity, as some helminths, such as roundworms and hookworms, can cause significant disease (e.g., larva migrans) in humans, while it is generally accepted that whipworm does not play a zoonotic role of importance in humans.
Current methods for diagnosis of roundworm infections primarily involve microscopic examination of fecal samples, either directly in fecal smears or following concentration of ova by flotation in density media. Despite this procedure's high adoption, the method has significant shortcomings. These microscopic methods are time consuming, are unpleasant, require specialized equipment and can have low specificity [Dryden et al., 2005, Vet Therap. 6(1), 15-28]. In addition, the accuracy of results of these methods is highly dependent upon the skill and expertise of the operator.
Stool handling is disagreeable and hazardous. Sanitary and inoffensive procedures for processing stool are awkward and often complex. Such procedures may include weighing, centrifuging and storing, and are difficult except in a clinical laboratory equipped with a suitable apparatus, protective equipment, and a skilled technician. Therefore, any reduction in the number of steps required to perform a fecal test and any reduction in contact between test operator and the test material is desirable. Clinical laboratories have been using the immunoassay methods for the detection of various viruses, bacteria and non-helminth parasites and organisms in feces. However, there remains a need for a simple immunoassay method for the detection of a parasitic worm infection, and roundworm infection in particular in feces, whole blood or in serum.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods, devices, kits and compositions for detecting roundworm


An ignition laser is provided for an internal combustion engine, in which the combustion chamber window is connected to a housing of the ignition laser in a gas-resistant, pressure-resistant, and temperature-resistant manner. Furthermore, a pressure relief bore is present which effectively prevents a pressure increase in the housing of the ignition laser.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ignition device for providing laser ignition of an internal combustion engine.
2. Description of Related Art
A so-called laser ignition is known from published international PCT patent application WO 2005/066488 A1. This laser ignition includes an ignition laser, which extends into the combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine. The ignition laser is optically pumped by a pumping light source via a fiber optic guide.
At one end of the ignition laser facing the combustion chamber, there is a so-called combustion chamber window, which is able to transmit the laser beams generated for the ignition laser. This combustion chamber window has to be accommodated in a sealing manner in a housing of the ignition laser. There are high requirements on the sealing between the combustion chamber window and the housing, because during the operation of the internal combustion engine surface temperatures of more than 600° C. may occur at the combustion chamber window. In addition, there may also be intermittent pressure loads of up to ca. 250 bar. When an ignition laser is used for igniting a gas turbine, it is true that slight pressures prevail in the combustion chamber of the gas turbine, but the surface of the combustion chamber window may reach up to 1,000° C., and uncontrolled ignition by incandescence having to be controlled in every case.
It is clear that the inside of the ignition laser has to be reliably sealed from the extremely high temperatures and pressures. If exhaust gases should happen to reach the inside of the ignition laser, this would lead to failure of the ignition laser.
From post-published German patent application document DE 102007041528.3, an ignition laser is known in which the combustion chamber window and the housing are sealed in such a way that, over the entire service life of the internal combustion engine, and at the pressures and temperatures prevailing in the combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine, a secure and reliable seal of combustion chamber window and housing are ensured.

Ignition device for a laser ignition of an internal combustion engine


A catalyst including active particles that have a core including a first metal oxide, and a shell including an alloy of a second metal with a reduction product of the first metal oxide; a method of preparing the catalyst; a fuel cell including the catalyst; an electrode for lithium air battery that includes the active particles; and a lithium air battery including the electrode.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a catalyst including active particles, a method of preparing the catalyst, a fuel cell including the catalyst, an electrode including the active particles for lithium air battery, and a lithium air battery including the electrode.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fuel cells are power generating cells that, for example, directly convert energy from a chemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen into electric energy. Fuel cells may continue to generate electricity unless an external supply of hydrogen and oxygen is interrupted, unlike general batteries, and the ability to directly generate electricity, which is distinct from existing power generating modes suffering from efficiency loss over multiple steps, may lead to efficiencies twice as high as those of internal combustion engines.
According to the types of electrolyte and fuel used, fuel cells can be classified as polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs), molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs), or solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs).
PEMFCs and DMFCs, which are power generating systems generating direct current (DC) electricity from electrochemical reactions between hydrogen or methanol and oxygen, may each include a membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) with an anode to which reaction liquid or gas is supplied, a cathode, and a proton conducting membrane disposed between the anode and the cathode.
In the anode, protons are generated through oxidation of hydrogen or methanol, employing a catalyst. These protons pass through the proton conducting membrane and reach the cathode where the protons react with oxygen in the presence of a catalyst, thereby generating electricity. Thus, in fuel cells having such a structure as described above the role of the catalysts is crucial.
A PEMFC employs an amorphous carbon support with dispersed Pt particles both in the anode and the cathode. A DMFC uses Pt—Ru in the anode, and Pt in the cathode, which are used either in particulate form or dispersed in an amorphous carbon support.
Catalysts are a key contributing factor to the entire manufacturing cost of fuel cells, and may have a crucial effect on the mass production and commercialization of fuel cells. Therefore, there has been an increasing demand for the development of catalysts that exhibit high activity even with the use of a small amount thereof.

Catalyst including active particles, method of preparing the catalyst, fuel cell including the catalyst, electrode including the active particles for lithium air battery, and lithium air battery including the electrode


A visual presenter includes a body including a base and a support column on which an imaging camera is mounted, a stage which is separate from the body and is formed with a placement surface on which a material to be presented is placed, a positioner located on the base, and a positioned member located on the stage so as to be connectable to the positioner so that the placement surface falls within an imaging range of the imaging camera.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a visual presenter which displays on a monitor, screen or the like a captured image of material placed on a placement surface of a stage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional visual presenters include an integral type in which a support column on which an imaging camera is mounted is provided on a stage on which a material is placed. The conventional visual presenters also include another type in which a stage is provided with an insertion receptacle into which a support column is inserted. JP-A-2004-56558 discloses one of the latter type visual presenters.
However, the conventional visual presenters have no backlighting function and/or information cannot be written directly onto the placement surface of the stage in such a manner as in a whiteboard. As a result, an intended usage of the conventional visual presenters is limited depending upon the functions of the stage. Accordingly, different visual presenters need to be purchased according to the number of intended usages or a whiteboard needs to be placed on the stage. Thus, the conventional visual presenters have problems about economy, operability, usability and the like.


Most generally, the invention provides a method for making a neutralized polyether polyol, comprising the steps of. a) Polymerizing one or more alkylene oxides in the presence of an alkaline catalyst to form a polyalkylene oxide intermediate; and PA1 b) Neutralizing the intermediate, after the polymerization step a) is complete, with an organic acid of general formula ##STR1##. where R1 is hydrogen, methyl, or ethyl; R2 is methyl or ethyl; and R3 is an alkyl, aryl, or aralkyl group containing one to twelve carbon atoms. The invention also comprises the novel compositions made by the above process.

Polyether polyols and nonionic surfactants are prepared by means well known in the art. Generally, they are prepared by the reaction of alkylene oxides with starter molecules that have active hydrogens. The reaction is often catalyzed with alkaline catalysts. At the end of the reaction it is desirable to deactivate the catalyst by either removing or neutralizing it. A common method of catalyst removal is by treatment with magnesium silicate and subsequent filtration. In other cases the alkaline catalyst is neutralized with an inorganic acid to precipitate the salts which are filtered with or without further treatment with magnesium silicate. However, the most cost-effective way of deactivating the catalyst is by neutralizing with an acid and leaving the salt in the nonionic surfactant. The most commonly used catalysts in the preparation of nonionic surfactants are potassium and sodium hydroxides, and the most commonly used neutralizing acids are acetic, sulfuric, and phosphoric acids. Hypophosphorous acid is also used.
A disadvantage with neutralizing with an acid and leaving the salt in the polyether polyol or nonionic surfactant (the two terms are used interchangeably in the discussion which follows) composition arises where the salt is not soluble in the polyol. In such a case, the salt generated by the neutralization process will show up as a haze or precipitate. Precipitation of the salt in the product creates problems in storage tanks, filter pumps and lines. Further, the salt creates disposal problems and product loss by absorption. Even though most of the salt can be removed by bag filtration at the point of manufacture, crystallization is a slow process and so salts can crystallize and precipitate after shipment. This final crystallization of the salt in the polyether polyol fouls feed equipment resulting in equipment damage and loss of product flow to the process stream. Filtration and removal of the catalyst by the aforementioned magnesium silicate procedure is not cost effective since the filter cake has to be disposed of and there is product loss by absorption onto the magnesium silicate. The most cost-effective way therefore, is to neutralize the nonionic surfactants with an acid, which gives soluble salts, and to leave the salt in the nonionic surfactant.
The art has experimented with ways to neutralize nonionic surfactant products by using different acids as neutralizing agents. U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,490 discloses the use of hydroxy carboxylic acids to form a clear reaction mixture without otherwise removing the alkaline catalyst. The polyether polyols are said to be useful for the production of polyurethane foams. U.S. Pat. No. 4,426,301 discloses the use of certain benzoic acid derivatives (such as e.g. salicylic acid) as a neutralizing agent for polyoxyalkylene surfactants (both monool and polyol) having greater than 50% ethylene oxide units. While these acids gave clear products, the hydroxy benzoic acids are solids and encounter process difficulties in their incorporation. Further, the neutralized polyoxyalkylene surfactants may generate a pink color when neutralized with hydroxy benzoic acids. Finally, the use of hydroxy carboxylic acids such as lactic acid introduces hydroxyl functionality into the neutralized polyether polyol. The increased hydroxyl functionality may lead to off spec material due to a too high hydroxyl number, or may interfere with applications of the polyols, as for example in polyurethanes when there is to be a subsequent reaction of hydroxyl groups on the polyol with isocyanate groups.
Applicants have now discovered that a class of branched aliphatic acids, which overcomes the disadvantages of the known acids discussed above, is useful for neutralizing polyether polyols. The salts of neutralization may be left in the polyether polyol product, sparing the expense of catalyst removal by absorption and/or filtration. The acids are generally liquids at room temperature, and are of low viscosity for ease of handling. They are relatively odor free and have a low order of toxicity. These acids give clear products with no settlement of salts when used to neutralize the alkaline catalyst after polymerization of alkylene oxides onto starter molecules. Essentially, the neutralized salts of these acids are soluble in the polyether polyol. Because there is no precipitate, there is no accumulation of crystallized salt, and equipment clean up is not required due to the accumulation of crystallized salt. Furthermore, the flow of the product to the process stream is not obstructed by the accumulated salt. Finally, the organic acids of the invention do not contribute to hydroxyl number of the final product, and do not interfere in subsequent reactions of the polyol.

Haze free polyether polyol compositions and a method for their preparation


Disclosed herein are a mobile terminal and an operating method thereof. The mobile terminal includes a short-range communication module configured to perform short-range communication with an omnidirectional capture device for capturing an omnidirectional image, a display unit configured to display the omnidirectional image received through the short-range communication module and to receive user input, and a controller configured to set an area, in which a moving image is generated, in the omnidirectional image and to generate the moving image in the set area. Therefore, it is possible to acquire the moving image of the moving object in the omnidirectional image.

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and an operating method thereof and, more particularly, to a mobile terminal capable of generating a moving image based on an omnidirectional image, and an operating method thereof.
Terminals may be generally classified as mobile/portable terminals or stationary terminals according to their mobility. Mobile terminals may also be classified as handheld terminals or vehicle mounted terminals according to whether or not a user can directly carry the terminal.
Mobile terminals have become increasingly more functional. Examples of such functions include data and voice communications, capturing images and video via a camera, recording audio, playing music files via a speaker system, and displaying images and video on a display. Some mobile terminals include additional functionality which supports game playing, while other terminals are configured as multimedia players. More recently, mobile terminals have been configured to receive broadcast and multicast signals which permit viewing of content such as videos and television programs.
As such functions become more diversified, the mobile terminal can support more complicated functions such as capturing images or video, reproducing music or video files, playing games, receiving broadcast signals, and the like. By comprehensively and collectively implementing such functions, the mobile terminal may be embodied in the form of a multimedia player or device.
Recently, mobile terminals may interwork with a capture device for capturing an omnidirectional image. While a general camera captures a two-dimensional (2D) image, a 360-degree camera may capture a spherical omnidirectional image of a three-dimensional space. The captured omnidirectional image may be transmitted to the mobile terminal and displayed on a display.
An existing 360-degree camera may capture an omnidirectional background without movement, but cannot designate an area to be captured. That is, an angle of view of the 360-degree camera cannot be set and thus a user cannot capture only a desired area.
In addition, since the omnidirectional image has a wide capture range, a large storage space is required to store the omnidirectional image.
Accordingly, there is a need for generating a moving image having capacity less than that of a video using an omnidirectional image.

Mobile terminal and operating method thereof


A receiver adapted to receive a signal having at least first and second carrier frequencies on which first and second information signals are modulated, respectively. The inventive receiver further includes circuitry for converting the received signal to a complex baseband signal. In the illustrative embodiment, the received signal includes first and second ensembles. The first ensemble includes a first signal from a first source, a first signal from a second source and a first signal from a third source. The second ensemble includes a second signal from the first source, a second signal from the second source and a second signal from the third source. The receiver is adapted to selectively output the first and/or the second ensemble. Conversion of the band is achieved with quad mixers. The outputs of the mixers are digitized and selectively provided as the first and/or the second ensemble by a digital translation stage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to communications systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to satellite digital audio service (SDARS) receiver architectures.
While the present invention is described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments within the scope thereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility.
2. Description of the Related Art
Satellite radio operators will soon provide digital quality radio broadcast services covering the entire continental United States. These services intend to offer approximately 100 channels, of which nearly 50 channels will provide music with the remaining stations offering news, sports, talk and data channels. According to C. E. Unterberg, Towbin, satellite radio has the capability to revolutionize the radio industry, in the same manner that cable and satellite television revolutionized the television industry.
Satellite radio has the ability to improve terrestrial radio""s potential by offering a better audio quality, greater coverage and fewer commercials. Accordingly, in October of 1997, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted two national satellite radio broadcast licenses. The FCC allocated 25 megahertz (MHz) of the electromagnetic spectrum for satellite digital broadcasting, 12.5 MHz of which are owned by CD Radio and 12.5 MHz of which are owned by the assignee of the present application xe2x80x9cXM Satellite Radio Inc.xe2x80x9d. The FCC further mandated the development of interoperable receivers for satellite radio reception, i.e. receivers capable of processing signals from either CD Radio or XM Radio broadcasts. The system plan for each licensee presently includes transmission of substantially the same program content from two or more geosynchronous or geostationary satellites to both mobile and fixed receivers on the ground. In urban canyons and other high population density areas with limited line-of-sight (LOS) satellite coverage, terrestrial repeaters will broadcast the same program content in order to improve coverage reliability. Some mobile receivers will be capable of simultaneously receiving signals from two satellites and one terrestrial repeater for combined spatial, frequency and time diversity, which provides significant mitigation against multipath and blockage of the satellite signals. In accordance with XM Radio""s unique scheme, the 12.5 MHz band will be split into 6 slots. Four slots will be used for satellite transmission. The remaining two slots will be used for terrestrial re-enforcement.
In accordance with the XM frequency plan, each of two geostationary Hughes 702 satellites will transmit identical or at least similar program content. The signals transmitted with QPSK modulation from each satellite (hereinafter satellite1 and satellite2) will be time interleaved to lower the short-term time correlation and to maximize the robustness of the signal. For reliable reception, the LOS signals transmitted from satellite1 are received, reformatted to Multi-Carrier Modulation (MCM) and rebroadcast by non-line-of-sight (NLOS) terrestrial repeaters. The assigned 12.5 MHz bandwidth (hereinafter the xe2x80x9cXMxe2x80x9d band) is partitioned into two equal ensembles or program groups A and B. The use of two ensembles allows 4096 Mbits/s of total user data to be distributed across the available bandwidth. Each ensemble will be transmitted by each satellite on a separate radio frequency (RF) carrier. Each RF carrier supports up to 50 channels of music or data in Time Division Multiplex (TDM) format. With terrestrial repeaters transmitting an A and a B signal, six total slots are provided, each slot being centered at a different RF carrier frequency. The use of two ensembles also allows for the implementation of a novel frequency plan which affords improved isolation between the satellite signals and the terrestrial signal when the receiver is located near the terrestrial repeater.
In any event, with different content being provided on each ensemble and inasmuch as data will be transmitted along with music content on one or both ensembles, it is conceivable that a listener will may want to access content on both ensembles simultaneously.
Unfortunately, there was no efficient satellite radio receiver architecture capable of receiving two ensembles simultaneously. Accordingly, system designers were forced to consider either replicating the data on both ensembles or replicating the tuner within the receiver. Both approaches were unacceptably costly. As a result, there was a need in the art for satellite radio receiver architecture capable of receiving two ensembles simultaneously which will not require a replication of the tuner nor a replication of the data broadcast channel on both ensembles.
The need in the art for a satellite radio receiver architecture capable of receiving two ensembles simultaneously is addressed by the invention disclosed and claimed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/318,296, filed May 25, 1999 by P. Marko et al., entitled LOW COST INTEROPERABLE SATELLITE DIGITAL AUDIO RADIO SERVICE (SDARS) RECEIVER ARCHITECTURE (Atty. Docket No. XM 0006), assigned to the present assignee, the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The receiver architecture of the referenced patent involves an analog mixing of RF signals to complex baseband for digital conversion. However, as is appreciated by those skilled in the art, the analog mixing of RF signals to complex baseband for digital conversion has inherent limitations related to the dynamic range of the input signals. In practice, these limitations often steer the receiver designer to digital conversion at an intermediate frequency at the expense of higher cost and size.
One such limitation of mixing analog signals to baseband is second order intermodulation products generated in the baseband mixers and post mixer amplifiers. These undesired products develop when two RF (or IF) signal components (f1 and f2) present at the mixer input self-mix and the difference product (f1-f2) falls at baseband. If the amplitude of the difference product is sufficiently large, destructive interference with the desired baseband signal occurs.
A second limitation of analog mixing of RF signals to baseband is due to the fact that the conversion of RF signals to baseband using analog conversion results in the creation of images about 0 Hz axis due to gain and/or phase imbalance in the I and Q complex signal paths. The imbalance may be due to many causes including imperfect device matching, layout asymmetries, mechanical and process variations in present production RF circuit technology. Best case I/Q matching with standard bipolar integrated circuit processing results in a minimum image attenuation in the range of 30-40 dB. The image of the large amplitude signal creates destructive interference for the small signal. Those skilled in the art appreciate that a receiver operating in a typical land mobile environment will encounter substantially large signal amplitude variations due to the varied proximity to terrestrial transmitters.
Hence, there is a further need in the art for a receiver architecture for multiple signal reception which includes an analog conversion to baseband stage with image rejection capability effective to yield acceptable interference protection.
The need in the art is addressed by the system and method of the present invention. In general, the inventive system includes a receiver adapted to receive a signal having at least first and second carrier frequencies on which first and second information signals are modulated, respectively. The inventive receiver further includes circuitry for converting the received signal to a complex baseband signal.
In the illustrative embodiment, the received signal includes first and second ensembles. The first ensemble includes a first signal from a first source, a first signal from a second source and a first signal from a third source. The second ensemble includes a second signal from the first source, a second signal from the second source and a second signal from the third source. The receiver is adapted to selectively output the first and/or the second ensemble. Conversion of the band is achieved with quad mixers. The outputs of the mixers are digitized and selectively provided as the first and/or the second ensemble by a digital translation stage.

Receiver architecture for SDARS full band signal reception having an analog conversion to baseband stage


A particulate filter for an exhaust system having an exhaust flow and a nominal flow area includes a housing and a plurality of plates arranged parallel to each other within the housing. Each plate has a plurality of orifices and a plurality of micropockets configured to trap exhaust particulates.

The present disclosure relates generally to an exhaust system, and particularly to a particulate filter for an exhaust system.
Automotive exhaust systems for diesel and other internal combustion engines typically include an exhaust subsystem that limits the mass of particulate matter emitted with the exhaust gases. In diesel engine systems, this matter typically includes both carbonaceous components and metallic components. Present filtering methods to trap the exhaust particulates include both surface filtration and depth filtration approaches. Surface filtration relies on interception as the mechanism for particulate filtration, while depth filtration relies on impaction as the main mechanism for particulate filtration. With surface filtration systems, particulate deposits tend to block the flow path and lead to high trapping efficiency and an increase in pressure drop over time. With depth filtration systems, particulate deposits do not block the flow path, which leads to low trapping efficiency and limited change in pressure drop over time. In view of present particulate filter arrangements, it is desirable to have a more advanced particulate filter that can operate in limited space, have sufficient trapping efficiency, and can operate with limited change in its pressure drop characteristics over time.
In one embodiment, a particulate filter for an exhaust system having an exhaust flow and a nominal flow area includes a housing and a plurality of plates arranged parallel to each other within the housing, each plate having a plurality of orifices and a plurality of micropockets configured to trap exhaust particulates.
In another embodiment, a particulate filter for an exhaust system having an exhaust flow and a nominal flow area includes a housing and a plurality of plates, each plate having a plurality of orifices and a plurality of micropockets arranged within the housing and configured to trap exhaust particulates. The plates are arranged parallel to each other as plate pairs and have their micropockets facing the exhaust flow. The plates have gaps between them that decrease in size in the direction of the exhaust flow. The orifices of each plate are in line with the micropockets of an adjacent plate, each orifice being surrounded by a funnel shaped surface with the bottom of the funnel facing the exhaust flow. The total flow through area of the orifices of each plate is equal to or greater than the nominal flow area of the exhaust system.
In a further embodiment, a method for filtering particulates of an exhaust flow of an exhaust system includes receiving the exhaust flow at one end of a particulate filter, impinging the exhaust flow on the plates, collecting a portion of the particulates at micropockets on the plates, passing a portion of the exhaust flow through orifices on the plates toward a subsequent plate, repeating the impinging, collecting, and passing processes for all plates, and discharging the exhaust flow at an opposite end of the particulate filter. The plates are arranged perpendicular to the exhaust flow and have gaps between them. The orifices of each plate are in line with the micropockets of a subsequent plate.

Method and apparatus for filtering exhaust particulates


Devices and methods for assembling co-planar electrical contacts in a connector are provided herein. In one aspect, an exemplary method of assembly comprises depositing solder in a connector plug enclosure, positioning electrical contacts on the solder deposits, advancing the hotbar toward the enclosure contacting each of the electrical contacts so as to planarize a top surface of each of the electrical contacts with the enclosure and melting the solder with the heated hotbar to solder the electrical contacts to the enclosure. In one aspect, an exemplary hotbar device includes a magnet for releasably coupling the electrical contacts to the hotbar. In another aspect, the hotbar includes metallic portions for heating the electrical contacts and insulated ceramic portions for contacting the enclosure. In another aspect, an electrically conductive hotbar includes side portions that extend away from the bottom heating surface facilitating more uniform current flow through the hotbar.

Data transfers between devices such as computers and peripheral devices, including portable media devices, have become ubiquitous over the last several years. Music, phone numbers, video, and other data are moved among these devices, often using cables to form electrical pathways for signals that carry information between devices. Such cables are connected to these devices using a connector.
These electrical connectors are typically formed by inserting a connector plug on each end of a data cable into a connector receptacle located on the computer or peripheral device. A typical connector plug includes a distal plug portion, which has one or more electrical contact terminals exposed so as to electrically connect with corresponding contact terminals within a connector receptacle.
In many applications, repeated insertion of a connector plug into a connector receptacle over time may cause wear and tear on the exposed electrical contacts, resulting in a shortened life span of the connector device. When fabricated with a non-uniform delivery profile, slight differences in the position of each electrical contacts may cause unevenly distributed stresses that degrade the performance of the connector. Additionally, an uneven delivery profile between electrical connectors may cause gaps that may result in premature deterioration of the device, accumulation of debris and reduced aesthetic appeal.

Hotbar device and methods for assembling electrical contacts to ensure co-planarity


A method for actuating a button on a graphical user interface (GUI) is disclosed. The method includes navigating a graphical cursor corresponding to an input device onto the button, activating a fence around a border of the button if the navigation occurs via a pre-defined portion of the border and navigating the graphical cursor away from the button via a pre-defined area of the button.

The present invention is directed to user interfaces and more Particularly, to a method of navigation and interaction with a user interface. Such interaction and navigation involve operating an input device such as a mouse, a trackball or a three-dimensional (hereinafter "3D") pointing remote device. The operation of the input device includes at least one of scroll, point, click, gesture, etc.
User interfaces, such as graphical user interfaces (GUIs) are well known. Virtually all computers include (or, enable) a graphical user interface in order to make the interaction with the computer more "user friendly". This is accomplished by reducing, if not eliminating, the number of keystrokes a user is required to enter (or depress or input, etc.) in order to perform a function such as launching an application residing on the computer. An increasing number of other electronic devices, from cell phones to user controls on appliances, rely on various graphical user interfaces that facilitate a user interaction with the particular device.
Traditional methods of using a GUI (on a computer for example) include the use of an input device such as a mouse or a track ball. A movement of the mouse or the track ball results in a corresponding graphical cursor (sometimes called a cursor or a pointer) moving on the graphical user interface. The graphical cursor (or pointer) can thus be navigated to an object (represented by an icon) on the GUI that corresponds to an executable task such as launching a software application for example.
Once the graphical cursor is navigated to an icon, the corresponding task can be executed by clicking (depressing) on an actuating button that is integrated within the input device. For example, if the icon on the GUI corresponds to a word processing application, clicking on the icon results in launching the word processing application. The graphical cursor can also be used to rapidly scroll through pages of text within a word processing document for example.
More recently, other input devices such as the Free Space Pointing Device™ developed by Hillcrest™ Labs of Rockville, Md. (assignee of the present application) have incorporated functionality associated with a mouse or track ball. The Free Space Pointing Device is a handheld device similar to that illustrated in FIG. 10. This device, like a mouse or a track ball, has a corresponding graphical cursor which can be navigated around on a display or user interface to highlight, select and actuate buttons (or icons) for executing functions associated with the buttons.
By holding the Free Space Pointing Device and through hand and arm gestures or movement (twisting or waving of the hand for example) of the user, the graphical cursor can be navigated to the desired buttons for selection and actuation.
The precision of the Free Space Pointing Device enables detection of the slightest movements of a user. The graphical cursor may be navigated to an icon (or a button) by user hand movement and the user may contemplate his or her next action prior to actuating the icon. During this time, slight movements of the user hand, given the precision of the device, may lead to drifting of the graphical cursor from the highlighted or selected (but not yet actuated) icon. This may take place, for example, during a presentation or a tutorial in which the user may be explaining to an audience the functionality associated with a highlighted (or selected) icon prior to actuating the icon. In order to actuate the icon, additional user action (such as movement) may be required to reposition the graphical cursor on the icon of interest before actuation of the icon.
Some embodiments provide controlled navigation of a graphical cursor on a user interface.


An electrical dentifrice dispensing toothbrush using a replaceable bristle unit with a permanent drive head and handle is described. The replaceable bristle unit consists of a rotary bristle element and a stationary bristle element that has an opening for the flow of dentifrice material through the drive head. The bristle unit is snap-on latched to the side walls of the drive head. Opposing tabs which also function as pressure sensors on the bristle unit are pressed toward each other to release the bristle unit. A linkage is used to convert the rotation of the drive shaft to a planar oscillation that enables a compact drive head configuration. The dentifrice dispensing is accomplished by using a rotary solenoid for actuating an internal button that applies pumping pressure to the dentifrice material. As a benefit to arthritis suffers, no external squeezing action is involved.

It has been recognized that an electrical toothbrush is more effective in removing plaque and preventing gum disease than a conventional manual toothbrush. It is also well known that the manual squeezing action of dentifrice dispensing presents a significant challenge to severe arthritis suffers who lack finger dexterity and strength. Thus a total-electrical toothbrush is desirable for everyday dental care and a necessity for the physically challenged. Oral hygiene requires that toothbrush bristles should be replaced on a regular basis for maintaining bristle effectiveness and minimizing bacteria buildup. While the entire toothbrush can be replaced, it is desirable to discard only the part having bristles and retain the drive mechanism and the brush handle as permanent parts for minimizing the replacement costs. For long service life of the permanent parts, all wearable parts need to be included in one replacement unit. For the ease of replacement, it is desirable to have a replaceable snap-on bristle unit for fastening on a permanent drive head containing driving components. For the convenience of portability, it is desirable to have a self-contained, dentifrice dispensing electrical toothbrush for brushing anywhere at anytime. For the ease of operation especially for the physically challenged, it is desirable simply to press on an electrical switch for the automatic dispensing of dentifrice material to the top of the bristles. The objects of this invention are to achieve all of the above desirable features in one electrical toothbrush.
(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electrical dentifrice dispensing toothbrushes with a replaceable bristle unit.
(2) Prior Art
It is recognized in the prior art that electrical toothbrushes which have oscillatory brush elements are more effective than toothbrushes with rotating brush heads. The reciprocating movement and wiping action of the bristles provides an effective means for plaque removal. U.S. Pat. No. 4,326,314 by Moret and Jousson describes a means for oscillating a brush head through an oscillating shaft which is connected to a cam riding on a biased wheel mounted on the shaft of a motor. Since the source of vibration is at the cam and the motor which is usually located in the handle, a strong vibration may cause discomfort during brushing.
To minimize the vibration at the handle, U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,916 by McDougall provides a means for converting rotary motion to oscillatory motion near the brush head area which is remote to the motor. It uses a bent remote-most end of a shaft having rotary motion to engage with a slot formed on the side of a bristle holder to force it to oscillate back and forth as the bent remote-most end is driven in a circular annular path. While it achieves relocation of the vibration source to the brush head, the central axis of the bent remote-most end is required to intersect with the central axis of the brush head. This requirement precludes its application from simultaneously driving two brush heads since the same central axis of the remote-most end of a shaft cannot intersect two separate central axes in its circling positions. Also, its use of a closed ended slot on the side of the brush head for engagement also prevents the remote-most end from reaching more than one brush head.
Owing to its complex assembly, the entire neck including the brush head, the mounting base and the drive shaft assembly are replaced when the brush head is changed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,743 by Shek uses an off-set finger mounted at the end of a rotating shaft for engaging the fork of a pivotally supported wobble plate which is meshed with a gear for oscillating a brush head. The use of the closed end fork and the blocking of the extension of the finger by the pivoting and gear-meshing mechanism prohibit its application to oscillate two brush heads. Similarly, the replacement of the whole neck including the drive shaft is required when the brush head is replaced.
The prior art has also recognized that the brushing area is broadened and the brushing time reduced when two brush heads are used instead of one. For oscillating two brush heads, U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,460 by Bauman uses an oscillating shaft to drive one brush head and utilizes a linkage between the two brush heads to drive the other brush head. The linkage requires a pivoting post on each brush head which adds an increased friction load to the drive mechanism for oscillation of the brush heads. U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,536 by Hirabayashi uses two shafts aligned at different angles. The gearing mechanism allows for driving more than one brush head but its drive mechanism does not cause oscillatory motion. In order to change the brush head, each of the above two patents also requires replacing the neck connected to the brush head which includes part of a drive shaft assembly.
A description of an electrical toothbrush which dispenses liquid is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,866 by Klupt. The patent discloses a delivery means for a cleaning liquid through oscillating brush heads. A motor is connected to a series of gear mechanisms causing a drive shaft to oscillate and a piston to pump the liquid through a flow conduit to openings in the brush head. Because it is connected to the same motor, the motorized piston pumps the liquid continuously while the brush heads are oscillating. This common drive mechanism is not desirable for dispensing material that only needs to be dispensed prior to the brushing action.
A dentifrice dispensing electric toothbrush of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/649,074 by Kuo mounts a pair of rotary bristle elements on a pair of posts attached to a brush head and uses a retention cradle for keeping the two rotary bristle elements in free-to-rotate positions. The neck of the toothbrush includes a channel which is part of the flow path for dentifrice material that is pumped from the cartridge to the brush head. The pumping is achieved by using an elastic compressible button positioned on the external surface of the brush handle for manually supplying a pumping force to pump dentifrice and for simultaneously activating a switch positioned inside the brush handle to energize the motor. Although only the bristle elements and the retention cradle are replaced, the posts which are subject to wear from the oscillation motion remain on the brush head. A worn post can cause wobbling of oscillating bristle element and noise that results in reduced service life of the toothbrush. Also, catch arms used in the retention cradle are only for keeping the bristle elements in place in packaging, not required in the operation of the toothbrush. Furthermore, the elevated position of the cradle platform from the bristle base is a barrier for the free brushing motion and running of cleaning water. As for dentifrice dispensing, the requirement of manual squeezing on the compressible button on the handle is a major hindrance for a severe arthritis suffers who lack of finger dexterity and strength.
In view of the deficiencies as exemplified in above patents in the prior art, there is a pressing need for an electrical dentifrice dispensing toothbrush that can provide permanent drive head and handle with minimal replacement of bristle parts, and a pumping means that does not require manual squeezing action for dispensing the dentifrice material.
This invention provides an electrical toothbrush that satisfies the needs for less throw-away, easy replacement of bristle elements and high cleaning efficiency. It also provides an electrical means of dispensing dentifrice material from a cartridge attached to the brush head for the convenience of users in general and especially for severe arthritis sufferers who have difficulty in the manual squeezing action of dispensing toothpaste. The replaceable bristle unit which is mounted on a permanent drive head consists of a rotary bristle element, a staionary bristle element, and a detachable snap-on platform which has a post for supporting the free-rotation of the rotary bristle element. The mounting of the rotary bristle element on the post is un-detachable as detachment is prevented by the engagement of the annular groove in the bushing of the bristle element and the protruding rim of the post with 90 degree detent angle. All the wearable parts are included in the replaceable bristle unit and the driver components, including the drive shaft, remain in the permanent drive head and the body of the electrical toothbrush. The replaceable bristle unit is locked to the drive head through the engagement of its latch arms with the latch recesses on the side walls of the drive head. The latch arms are released for replacing the bristle unit by applying an opposing force on the tabs that are on the opposite ends of the latch arms which are hinged on the edges of the detachable platform. The tabs are optionally layered with rubber material and positioned below the bristle surface and for protecting gums from excessive brushing pressure. The replaceable bristle unit of present invention may have two rotary bristle elements or a combination of a rotary and a stationary bristle element. For achieving the use of the minimal disposal bristle unit with a compact drive head, the present invention optionally employs an oscillation conversion linkage for converting the rotational motion of a drive shaft at the input end to a planar oscillation in the output end for driving the rotary bristle element. The planar oscillation motion reduces the height requirement (in the bristle direction) for the drive head.
The present invention also includes an electrical dentifrice dispensing toothbrush which uses a replaceable bristle unit and an electrical means of delivering dentifrice material from a cartridge in the handle to the top of bristles. To achieve these functions, the detachable platform of the replaceable bristle unit has an opening for slidably mounted on the wall of a spout opening extending from the top of the drive head. The delivery of the dentifrice material is achieved by using a toothbrush neck having two separated channels. One channel houses the drive shaft and the other channel functions as part of the flow path for the dentifrice material as it is pumped from the handle to the brush head. The electrical pumping mechanism includes a switch, a rotary solenoid, and a plunger in contact with a resilient compressible button. The activation of the switch causes the rotary solenoid to move the plunger to press on the resilient compressible button for applying pressure to force dentifrice material to flow to the top of the bristles. Through a control mechanism, release of the switch causes the rotary solenoid, the plunger, and the elastic button back to their original home positions and accordingly the follower inside the cartridge advances to keep the dentifrice material inside the cartridge at a packed condition for next pumping action.
The replaceable bristle unit of present invention is applicable to dual rotary bristle elements, a combination of rotary and stationary bristle elements, or a combination of rotary and dentifrice dispensing bristle elements.
The essential components of the electrical toothbrush include 1) a handle which serves as a housing for a motor, batteries and a cartridge containing dentifrice material; 2) a replaceable bristle unit having a rotary bristle element with a drive notch and a detachable platform having latch arms; 3) a drive head having a driver component that engages with the drive notch of the bristle element and latch recesses on its side walls for locking with the latch arms of the detachable platform; 4) a neck which connects the handle and the drive head; 5) a drive mechanism that is driven by a motor and imparts an oscillatory motion to the driver component in the drive head. The electrical dentifrice dispensing toothbrush also includes; 6) a series of flow path components including a spout in the drive head, a flow channel in the neck, a pump chamber, a one-way valve and an internal resilient compressible button; 7) an electrical actuation mechanism including a switch, a rotary solenoid, and a plunger which presses on the resilient compressible button for dispensing the dentifrice material when the switch is actuated; 8) a refillable dentifrice cartridge.

Electrical dentifrice-dispensing toothbrush with replaceable bristle unit and refillable cartridge


A GOA circuit including a plurality of cascade single-stage GOA circuit units, wherein each of the single-stage GOA circuit units includes: a first pull-down maintaining unit connected to a low power source voltage line and including a first output end; a second pull-down maintaining unit connected to the low power source voltage line and including a second output end; a first compensation unit connected to the first pull-down maintaining unit and configured to connect the first input end to a pre-charging node and a high power source voltage line in response to a first control signal and a second control signal, respectively; and a second compensation unit connected to the second pull-down maintaining unit and configured to connect the second input end to the high power source voltage line and the pre-charging node in response to the first control signal and the second control signal, respectively.

A liquid crystal display has been widely applied to products, such as laptop computers, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), flat-screen TVs, mobile phones or the like, due to its merits of low radiation, small volume, low power consumption and the like. A conventional liquid crystal display drives a chip on a display panel using an external driving chip to display images. However, in order to reduce the number of elements and reduce manufacturing cost, it is gradually developed to directly manufacture a driving circuit structure onto the display panel by adopting for example a GOA technique in recent years.
The GOA technique is integrating a gate driving circuit of a TFT LCD (Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display) on a glass substrate to form scan driving for a liquid crystal panel. In comparison with a traditional driving technique by using COF (Chip On Flex/Film), the GOA technique may save the manufacturing cost significantly, also omit a bonding process of COF at a side of a gate, and offer great advantages for enhancing production capacity. Thus, the GOA is a major technique of the development of the future liquid crystal panel.
As shown in FIG. 1, a GOA circuit of a current liquid crystal panel generally includes a plurality of cascade single-stage GOA circuit units, and each of the single-stage GOA circuit units corresponds to a scan driving line in a corresponding level. Each single-stage GOA circuit unit may include: a pull-up control unit {circle around (1)}, a pull-up unit {circle around (2)}, a signal downlink unit {circle around (3)}, a pull-down unit {circle around (4)}, a pull-down maintaining unit {circle around (5)}, and a bootstrap capacitance {circle around (6)}.
In FIG. 1, the pull-up control unit {circle around (1)} is mainly used for implementing pre-charging of a pre-charging node Q(N), to which a start signal ST(N−1) and a scan driving signal G(N−1) from a GOA circuit unit of an upper stage are generally input. The pull-up unit {circle around (2)} is mainly used for increasing a potential of a scan driving signal G(N) of a current level. The signal downlink unit {circle around (3)} is mainly used for controlling turning on and off signal transmission to a GOA circuit unit of a lower stage. The pull-down unit {circle around (4)} is mainly used for pulling down potentials of the pre-charging node Q(N) and the scan driving signal G(N) of the current level to a low power source voltage VSS. The pull-down maintaining unit {circle around (5)} is mainly used for maintaining the potentials of the pre-charging node Q(N) and the scan driving signal G(N) of the current level at the low power source voltage VSS unchangeable. The bootstrap capacitance {circle around (6)} is mainly used for proving and maintaining the potential of the pre-charging node Q(N), and this is helpful for the pull-up unit {circle around (2)} to output the scan driving signal G(N).
The pull-down maintaining unit {circle around (5)} actually includes an inverter. For example, the pull-down maintaining unit {circle around (5)} may be constituted by using a Darlington inverter, of which a specific circuit structure is shown in FIG. 2. The Darlington inverter may include four thin film transistors and has an input end Input and an output end Output. If a control signal LC is set to be a high potential signal always and a low power source voltage VSS is set to be a low potential signal always, the output end Output outputs the low potential signal when the input end Input inputs the high potential signal, and the output end Output outputs the high potential signal when the input end Input inputs the low potential signal. When the pull-down maintaining unit {circle around (5)} includes the Darlington inverter as shown in FIG. 2, its specific circuit structure may be illustrated in FIG. 3: taking a 2CK signal as an example, two pull-down maintaining units 1 and 2 are generally provided to work alternatively to prevent thin film transistors T32, T42, T33 and T43 from being affected by a PBS (Positive Bias Stress) for long time so that a threshold voltage Vth of a device is caused to drift positively, thereby causing a device failure of the GOA circuit.
FIG. 4 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a thin film transistor (TFT). As shown in FIG. 4, three electrodes of the TFT will be referred to as a gate electrode Gate, a source electrode Source and a drain electrode Drain, respectively, in the present disclosure. Correspondingly, voltages applied to the electrodes are marked as Vg, Vs and Vd, respectively. Here, the source electrode Source and the drain electrode Drain do not have any difference in fact. In order to facilitate explanation, in exemplary embodiments, generally, an end having the lower voltage is referred to as a source electrode Source, while the other end having the higher voltage is referred to as a drain electrode Drain. Thus, a voltage Vgs for determining an On-state of the TFT satisfies Vgs=Vg−Vs. When Vgs>0, the TFT is in the On-state, a current flows from the drain electrode Drain to the source electrode Source; and when Vgs<0, the TFT is in an Off-state. Selectively, in other exemplary embodiments, an end having the lower voltage of the TFT may also be referred to as a drain electrode Drain, while the other end having the higher voltage of the TFT is referred to as a source electrode Source, that is, when the TFT is in the On-state, the current flows from the source electrode Source to the drain electrode Drain.
Next, a technical problem to be encountered by the present disclosure will be illustrated. A waveform of the control signal LC may be set according to FIG. 5. Referring to FIG. 3 together with FIG. 5, when a first control signal LC1 is at a high potential and a second control signal LC2 is at a low potential, the pull-down maintaining unit 1 is in a working state, while the pull-down maintaining unit 2 is in a closed state. At this moment, a point A is at the high potential, the TFTs T32 and T42 are affected by the PBS; and a point B is at the low potential, the TFTs T33 and T43 are affected by an NBS (Negative Bias Stress). Similarly, when the first control signal LC1 is at the low potential and the second control signal LC2 is at the high potential, the pull-down maintaining unit 2 is in the working state, while the pull-down maintaining unit 1 is in the closed state. At this moment, the point A is at the low potential, the TFTs T32 and T42 may be affected by the NBS; and the point B is at the high potential, the TFTs T33 and T43 may be affected by the PBS. Thus, during a period of time, the TFTs T32, T42, T33 and T43 located between the point A and the point B may be affected not only by the PBS but also by the NBS such that the device failure caused due to charge trapping may be relieved to an extent.
However, as for another TFTs in FIG. 3, for example, as for four TFTs T52, T54, T62 and T64, cases are significantly different. Gate electrodes of the above four TFTs are all connected to a point Q. The point Q is a pre-charging node, which is at the high potential only when the scan lines of the upper level and the current level are turned on while is at the low potential at other times. Thus, a time duty ratio of the low and high potentials of the point Q may be estimated as about 2:(n−2), wherein n is the number of scan lines of the display panel. Accordingly, since the point Q is at the low potential for a long term, the device failure will be easily caused because the four TFT devices will be affected by the NBS for the long term.

SHENZHEN CHINA STAR OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


Devices and techniques are generally described for object co-segmentation in image data using a semantic filter. In various examples, first image data and second image data may be received. First semantic feature data may be determined for the first image data and second semantic feature data may be determined for the second image data. Filtered semantic feature data corresponding to the first semantic feature data may be generated by filtering the first semantic feature data and the second semantic feature data in a semantic feature space. A determination may be made that a first pixel corresponds to a first class of an object, where at least one object of the first class is represented in the first image data and the second image data.

Segmentation of image data includes separation of pixels determined to be part of the foreground environment from pixels determined to be part of the background environment. For example, a person standing in the foreground of an image may be segmented from the background environment or an article of clothing being held may be segmented from the person holding the article using segmentation techniques. Segmentation techniques may generate segmentation masks that denote whether each pixel of an image is a part of the "foreground" or the "background." Additionally, convolutional neural networks and/or other machine learning models can be used to classify types and/or classes of objects. For example, a convolutional neural network may be used to detect and classify objects present in segmented foreground image data and/or background image data corresponding to a class for which the convolutional neural network has been trained.

Object co-segmentation in image data using semantic filter


Aspects of the present invention provide compositions comprising a sulfur containing compound and a compound of the formula (I); and also provide methods of their preparation and use.

Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a highly abundant mammalian protein, which is essential for cell viability and which exhibits dual chaperone functions. It plays a key role in the cellular stress-response by interacting with proteins after their native conformations have been altered by various environmental stresses, such as heat shock, thereby ensuring adequate protein-folding and preventing non-specific aggregation. Hsp90 may also play a role in buffering proteins against the effects of mutation, presumably by correcting the inappropriate folding of mutant proteins. Hsp90 also has an important regulatory role under normal physiological conditions and it is responsible for the conformational stability and maturation of a number of specific client proteins.
Hsp90 antagonists are currently being explored in a large number of biological contexts where a therapeutic effect may be obtained for a condition or disorder by inhibiting one or more aspects of Hsp90 activity. Although the primary focus of the research has been on proliferative disorders, such as cancers, other conditions have also been shown to be amenable to treatment using Hsp90 antagonists.
Geldanamycin is a macrocyclic lactam that is a member of the benzoquinone-containing ansamycin family of natural products. Geldanamycin's nanomolar potency and apparent selectivity for killing tumor cells, as well as the discovery that its primary target in mammalian cells is Hsp90, has stimulated interest in its development as an anti-cancer drug. However, the low solubility and association of hepatotoxicity with the administration of geldanamycin have led to difficulties in developing an appropriate composition for therapeutic applications. In particular, geldanamycin is poorly water soluble, making it difficult to deliver in therapeutically effective doses.
There have been considerable efforts to develop analogs of geldanamycin with reduced hepatotoxicity, increased aqueous solubility and comparable bioactivity. For example, geldanamycin analogs substituted at the 17-position with various amino groups ("17-amino-substituted geldanamycin analogs") such as 17-AAG have shown reduced hepatotoxicity while maintaining Hsp90 binding but still suffer from low aqueous solubility (for example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,261,989; 5,387,584; and 5,932,566). Examination of the corresponding hydroquinones has been limited as these compounds have generally been found to be unstable due to facile air oxidation (see Schnur et al., J. Med. Chem. (1995) 38:3813-3820 and Schnur et al., J. Med. Chem. (1995) 38:3806-3812).