A blood treatment system is primed with a replacement liquid that flows directly into the access line of the blood circuit. The replacement liquid may be replacement fluid or blood stored in the replacement bag or the pre-blood pump (PBP) bag. These replacement liquids from the replacement and PBP bags are also used during blood treatment. These replacement liquids are blood or a replacement fluid and, particularly, have electrolyte levels the same as or similar to the electrolyte levels in the vascular blood of the patient.

The present invention relates to supplying priming and restitution liquids to extracorporeal blood treatment systems.
The blood and other liquid passages, e.g., the blood and dialysate circuits, in extracorporeal blood treatment systems are primed by being filled with an isotonic fluid, which is typically a sterile saline solution. Priming rinses the blood and dialysate circuits with saline solution, and purges air and particles from these circuits.
Priming liquids are used to prepare extracorporeal blood treatment to receive and treat blood from patients. The priming liquid flows from the bag through the blood and effluent lines, e.g., flexible plastic tubes, of the blood circuit in the blood treatment system. The priming liquid purges air and particles from the lines. Air in the lines could hinder the pumping operation of the system and to avoid infusing air bubbles into the vascular system of the patient. Particles in the lines could clog the blood access device during infusion.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional blood treatment system coupled to a priming bag 12 filled with a saline solution. The priming bag is connected to a pumping and controller console 14 for the system 10. The priming bag is typically a flexible bag sealed to prevent the entry of air and environmental contaminants to the sterile saline solution in the bag. FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional approach to priming the blood treatment system.
The blood circuit is typically primed before blood is withdrawn from the patient 36 into the blood treatment system 10. To prime the blood circuit, a nurse or other medical professional connects the priming bag 12 to the access line 16, e.g., a blood withdrawal tube, for the blood circuit. After priming, the access line is disconnected from the priming bag and connected to the patient 36.
The priming bag 12 is connected to an inlet of a Y-connector 17 that is also connected to the access line 16 and effluent line 42 of the blood treatment system 10. A peristaltic blood pump 18 (such as a roller pump) moves priming liquid from the bag 12, through Y-connector 17, the access line 16 and to a blood inlet port 20 at a lower end of a blood chamber 24 in a blood treatment device 22. The priming liquid flows up through a blood chamber 24, out a blood outlet port 26, and through a blood line 28, a de-aeration chamber 30, a return line 32 and to a collection bag 34.
The flow through the access line 16, blood chamber 24, blood line 28, de-aerator 30 and return line 32 corresponds to the blood circuit, e.g., blood flow passage, through the extracorporeal blood treatment device. In other blood treatment systems, the blood circuit may include other components and have other configurations. For example, the blood may flow downward direction in other types of blood treatment devices. A common characteristic of the blood circuit is that it represents a flow path of blood withdrawn from the patient, through the blood treatment device and returned to the patient.
The dialysate circuit is also conventionally primed with priming liquid from the priming bag 12, which may be the same as or a separate priming bag as used to prime the blood circuit. The priming liquid is pumped from the bag 12 by an effluent peristaltic pump 40 (rotating in a direction opposite to the rotation during blood treatment) through the effluent line 42 and into an effluent port 44 of an dialysate/effluent chamber 46 in the blood treatment device 22. The priming liquid flows through a dialysate/effluent chamber and out a dialysate port 48 of the blood treatment device 22. The priming liquid flows from the dialystate port, through a blood line 50 coupled to a three-way valve 52 directing the priming liquid to the de-aeration chamber 30, the return line 32 and the collection bag 34. A portion of the priming fluid may pass through a semipermeable membrane between the effluent chamber 46 and the blood chamber 24, and into the blood circuit while priming the dialysate circuit.
Similar conventional liquid priming processes may be performed using the liquids in the replacement liquid bag 54 which is pumped by a replacement peristaltic pump 56; the dialysate bag 58 which is pumped via line 59 by the dialysate peristaltic pump 60, and the pre-blood liquid bag 62 which is pumped by the pre-blood pump (PBP) 64. The upper three-way valve 52 and lower three-way valve 68 are switched during the priming operations to ensure that liquids fill all infusion lines associated with the infusion pumps and to avoid pumping air bubbles into the return line 32 when connected to the patient 36. The infusion lines do not include the access line, associated blood lines and blood treatment device.
After the blood treatment system 10 has been primed, the access line 16 is disconnected from the priming bag 12 and connected to withdraw blood from the patient 36, the return line 32 is disconnected from the collection bag 34 and connected to infuse blood and other liquids into the patient, and the effluent line 42 is disconnected from the priming bag 12 and connected to the collection bag 34.
The priming liquid bag 12 is typically discarded after the blood treatment system is primed. The priming bag is typically used only to prime the blood treatment system. Given the limited use of the priming bag, it represents an additional complexity to blood treatment systems, requires that additional supplies be stored for the system and could result in a delay of treatment if a priming liquid bag is not readily available.
Priming liquid may remain in the blood circuit when the blood treatment system is switched to a blood treatment mode. While the priming liquid is typically a saline solution that may be safely infused into a patient, there is a risk that in certain cases the infusion of the saline solution could upset the electrolyte balance in the patient. One such case is when the patient is a small child. Examples of conventional priming systems and method for extracorporeal blood treatment systems include U.S. Patent Application Publication 2008/0237, 128 entitled "Process and Apparatus for Filling and/or Rinsing An Extracorporeal Blood Circuit"; U.S. Patent Application Publication 2009/0101576 entitled "Priming and Air Removal Systems and Methods for Dialysis", and EP 1 457 218 A1 entitled "Automatic Apparatus for Blood Dialysis and Priming Method Using the Apparatus."
Priming techniques have been proposed that use the dialysate liquid to prime an extracorporeal circuit in U.S. Pat. No. 5,259,961 (see also EP 0 560 368 A2) entitled "Method and Assembly for the On-Line Flushing and Filling of an Extracorporeal Blood Circulation System of Dialysis Machines"; U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,925 entitled "Assembly for the On-Line Flushing and Filling of an Extracorporeal Blood Circulation System of Dialysis Machines"; U.S. Pat. No. 6,132,616 entitled Method for Flushing and Filling of an Extracorporeal Blood Circulation System of a Dialysis Machine", and U.S. Pat. No. 6,582,604 entitled "Method of Cleaning and Priming Dialysis System." These techniques generally apply pressure in the blood treatment device to move dialysate liquid across the semipermeable membrane to fill and prime the blood circuit.

Method and system for providing priming and restitution liquids for an extracorporeal blood treatment


A seal includes an at least partially cylindrical annular body defining a radial direction, an axial direction, and a circumferential direction. The at least partially cylindrical annular body has a radially outer flange, a radially inner ring, and a resilient intermediate portion joining the radially outer flange to the radially inner ring. The radially outer flange defines a seal outer diameter and a flange axial thickness, and a ratio of the seal outer diameter to the flange axial thickness ranges from 14.0 to 15.0.

Off-highway machines have a dump body may operate in a variety of environments. Such machines can include one or more hoist cylinders configured to selectively pivot the dump body about its rear end from a horizontal position to an inclined dumping position, etc. During the dumping process, the end of the hoist cylinder that is connected to the frame of the machine can pivot about a bearing to accommodate the different orientations of the dump body. The operational efficiency of the hoist cylinder can be impaired such that it experiences increased mechanical loads that lead to early maintenance for the bearing. Thus, it is desirable to provide a robust seal that protects the bearing from the infiltration from outside contaminants. Also, it may be desirable to seal in any lubricant that may help prolong the useful life of the joint in certain applications.
Various seal designs have been developed to address these issues. For example, U.S. Pat. Application Publ. No. 2016/0097454A1 to Chapagain et al. discloses a seal member for a joint between a pivot member movable about a rotational axis of a shaft that includes a ring, a flange, and a resiliently flexible intermediate portion interposed between the ring and the flange. The ring includes an annular distal and proximal ring faces disposed in spaced relationship to each other along a longitudinal axis. The flange may include a pair of flange faces disposed in spaced relationship to each other along the longitudinal axis. The flange may include an outer and an inner flange surface extending along the longitudinal axis between the pair of flange faces at, respectively, the outer and inner flange perimeters thereof. The intermediate portion is connected to the proximal ring face of the ring and to the inner circumferential flange surface of the flange such that the ring is relatively movable with respect to the flange.
Continuous improvement of such seals is warranted such that the seals are easy to install and manufacture, as well as be robust enough to withstand the pressure exerted on them externally by mud packing, etc.


A grinding machine has two grindstones, each of which has a grindstone shield disposed thereover. The grindstone shield is provided with a dust receiving portion in communication with a vacuum cleaner via a connecting tube. Pivoted to the grindstone shield is a worktable having an angle adjusting plate with a bevel scale disposed along the outer edge thereof. A plurality of concave retaining surfaces are constructed along the outer edge of the angle adjusting plate in such a manner that the concave retaining surfaces are corresponding in locations to a plurality of predetermined angles. The grindstone shield is further provided with a locating element engageable with the concave retaining surfaces of the worktable for facilitating the angle adjustment of the worktable. The dust produced in the grinding process is removed from the machine by the vacuum cleaner so as to prevent the dust from polluting the air at the work site.

The present invention relates to a grinding machine, and more particularly to a grindstone shield and a worktable of the grinding machine. The grindstone shield is provided with a receiving portion for collecting the dust produced in the grinding process, and with a connecting tube that can be fastened to a vacuum cleaner, and further with an angle adjusting plate pivoted to the grindstone shield for supporting a work piece and for adjusting the inclination of the worktable of the grinding machine. The angle adjusting plate is provided with a plurality of concave retaining surfaces which are situated respectively at the predetermined angles and are intended for retaining therein the locating element disposed on the grindstone shield, so as to facilitate the job of adjusting the inclination of the worktable and locating the work piece on the worktable.
The prior art grinding machine is generally provided horizontally at the center thereof with a motor having two end portions, each of which is coupled with a grindstone so that the motor drives the grindstones synchronously. In addition, each grindstone has a shield disposed thereover. A worktable for supporting the work piece is mounted in front of the shield. Such prior art grinding machine is in itself defective in that the dust produced in the grinding process is a potential health hazard to a grinder, in view of the fact that the centrifugal force of the rotating grindstone and the turbulent air flow generated by the rotating grindstone make it difficult to contain the dust so produced.
The worktable of the prior art grinding machine is provided with an angle measuring plate having a size corresponding to one quarter of a disk. Such angle measuring plate is fastened to the outer side of the shield of the grindstone by means of a bolt and is provided with a shaft pivoted to the shield. As a result, a grinder is able to adjust the bevel between the worktable and the grindstone by using the shaft as a central of axis and by using the distance between the shaft and the bolt as a radius. Thereafter, the worktable is locked in that position by tightening the bolt. The desired angle so adjusted between the worktable and the grindstone is indicated on the bevel scale of the angle measuring plate by a pointer that is fastened to the bolt.
The prior art method of adjusting the bevel between the worktable and the grindstone is rather cumbersome and inefficient. For example, the most commonly used grinding angles are zero degree, 15 degrees, 30 degrees, 45 degrees, etc., which must be individually adjusted and checked each time when the use of such bevel is called for.

Grindstone shield and worktable of grinding machine


Provided is a terminal apparatus capable of efficiently performing uplink and/or downlink communication. A coding unit (1071) configured to divide a transport block into multiple CBs and code each of the multiple CBs, a transmitter (107) configured to transmit the transport block by using a PUSCH, and a receiver (105) configured to receive a first HARQ-ACK are included, wherein each of the multiple CBs is included in any one of multiple CBGs, the first HARQ-ACK includes a second HARQ-ACK for each of the multiple CBGs or a third HARQ-ACK for the transport block, in a case that a signal waveform applied to the PUSCH is OFDM, whether the first HARQ-ACK includes the second HARQ-ACK or the third HARQ-ACK is given based on higher layer signaling, and in a case that a signal waveform applied to the PUSCH is DFT-s-OFDM, the first HARQ-ACK includes the third HARQ-ACK.

A radio access method and a radio network for cellular mobile communications (hereinafter, referred to as "Long Term Evolution (LTE)", or "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA)") have been studied in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In LTE, a base station apparatus is also referred to as an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), and a terminal apparatus is also referred to as a User Equipment (UE). LTE is a cellular communication system in which multiple areas are deployed in a cellular structure, with each of the multiple areas being covered by a base station apparatus. A single base station apparatus may manage multiple cells.
In 3GPP, to propose to International Mobile Telecommunication (IMT)-2020 that is a standard for next-generation mobile communication systems established by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), a next-generation standard (New Radio (NR)) has been studied (NPL 1). In a single technology framework, NR is required to satisfy requirements assuming three scenarios including enhanced Mobile BroadBand (eMBB), massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC), and Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC).
In order to satisfy the above requirements, error correction codes employed in NR have been studied (NPL 2).

Terminal apparatus, base station apparatus, and communication method


A method of forming a composite material for use in multi-modal transport includes providing three-dimensional graphene having hollow channels, enabling a polymer to wick into the hollow channels of the three-dimensional graphene, curing the polymer to form a cured three-dimensional graphene, adding an active material to the cured three-dimensional graphene to form a composite material, and removing the polymer from within the hollow channels. A composite material formed according to the method is also provided.

Many engineered systems utilize active materials in which transport must occur concurrently in two different modes. In thermochemical systems, such as adsorption heat pumps, the active material must simultaneously support both vapor and heat transport. In electrochemical systems, such as battery electrodes, the active material must support both electron and ion transport. Both of these transport modes are equally critical, and both must be optimized for effective device operation. However, enhancement of one transport mode typically degrades the other mode. For example, in adsorption systems, the high macropore volume required for effective mass transport increases the tortuosity of the heat transport path, degrading the bulk thermal conductivity of the material. One typical approach to solving this problem is to mix in a low-volume additive of non-active material that enhances one transport mode while hindering the other as little as possible. For example, graphite flakes are added to powdered MnO2 cathode material of alkaline batteries to increase the electrical conductivity of the material while blocking ion transport as little as possible. In adsorption systems, ceramic binders have been used to similarly enhance the thermal transport while limiting the impact on vapor transport. However, common features of these and all similar solutions are 1) enhancement of only one transport mode, and slight degradation of the other, and 2) a reduction in the overall active material density due to the added fraction (typically about 5-20%) of non-active material.

Percolated microstructures for multi-modal transport enhancement in porous active materials


The present invention provides a system and method for determining the necessary departure time to allow for an on-time or desired arrival time at a particular location over a particular route based on the evaluation of historic, present, and predicted road conditions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of time-management for road travelers and vehicles, and more particularly, to determining departure times to allow for on-time arrivals at particular locations based on evaluation of historic, present, and predicted road conditions.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recent studies have found that road travelers can spend almost 50% of their commute time 'stuck' in traffic, that is, not making significant progress on traversing a total distance to their final destination. This unfortunate phenomenon is sometimes referred to as 'grid lock.' Grid lock is often exacerbated, if not caused by, road construction, high traffic volume related to 'rush hour,' or otherwise resulting from special events such as concerts and holiday traffic or, as is most often the case, accidents on a roadway resulting in road or lane closures.
Further studies have demonstrated that daily commuters account for over 75% of all car trips. With increasing urban-sprawl, most road travelers are commuters with increasingly significant distances to travel. Combined with the fact that almost 90% of daily commuters in the United States, for example, use private vehicles and therein represent millions of people wanting to move at the same time, road systems in the United States and around the world simply do not have the capacity to handle peak loads of traffic. Traffic congestion has become, unfortunately, a way of life.
Road travelers are, as a result, often vulnerable when making travel plans in that they do not know what to expect in terms of traffic conditions or commute time on any given day. Poor and inconsistent traffic information combined with the road traveler's general inability to process multiple feeds of incoming real time and historical data as it relates to weather, incident reports, time of year, construction road closures, and special events further complicate these problems.
Road travelers are reduced to making inaccurate predictions as to required travel time necessary to traverse from a point of departure to a desired point of arrival. Furthermore, road travelers, due in part to constantly changing weather and traffic conditions, are often unaware that more optimal travel routes might exist both prior to departure and while en route to the desired point of arrival.
Present systems inform the road traveler of actual conditions on a variety of routes, but leave determination of an ultimate travel route and necessary departure time to the road traveler, which inevitably results in the aforementioned inaccurate predictions.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,594,576 to Fan et al. provides a traffic data compilation computer that determines present traffic conditions and a fastest route to a particular location under the aforementioned traffic conditions. Fan et al. also provides estimated travel time based on current traffic conditions. Fan et al. fails, however, to provide a necessary departure time to the road traveler so that they may achieve an on-time arrival. Fan et al. also fails to consider historical traffic data in that present conditions may allow for a given travel time but fails to predict a change in that travel time due to a known forthcoming event such as rush hour or a concert. Furthermore, Fan et al. requires the presence of a collection of data from mobile units—vehicles. Absent large scale cooperation of road travelers to equip their vehicles with such data collection equipment, the data collection network of Fan et al. might also produce inaccurate or, at least, incomplete information.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,933 to Lang is also representative of the lack of a means to inform road travelers of both evolving road conditions, travel routes, and the necessary departure time on any one of those routes in order to achieve on-time arrival. Lang, too, is dependent upon widespread installation of monitoring electronic devices in each road traveler's vehicle.
There is the need for a system that aggregates multiple sources of traffic data and interprets that traffic data to express it as a predictive road speed and not a static route devoid of considerations of constantly evolving traffic conditions. By overlaying predictive road speeds with a road traveler's starting locating, destination, desired arrival time and other optional attributes, a road traveler is offered a much needed system that determines an optimal route and recommended departure time. Such a system would then deliver the information via a desired message delivery method. Such a system should also remain sensitive of privacy concerns of road travelers in that the presence of a monitoring device might be considered invasive and otherwise outweighs any benefits it might offer in providing predictive road speed.

System and method for delivering departure notifications


A clamp assembly may include a first jaw member which may have a selectively inflatable bladder. In addition, the clamp assembly may further include a second jaw member which may have a belt. The first jaw member and the second jaw member may be configured to clamp material between the selectively inflatable bladder and the belt.

Loads have been wrapped with packaging material by dispensing the packaging material with a packaging material dispenser, and providing relative rotation between the load and the packaging material dispenser to cover the load with the packaging material. Semi-automatic wrapping machines exist that require attachment of a leading end portion of the packaging material to the load by an operator prior to wrapping of the load. This is typically accomplished by collapsing the leading end portion into a rope, and then inserting the rope between layers of the load or tying the rope to an edge of a pallet or any suitable outcropping on the load. This attachment must be strong enough to resist a pulling force exerted by the packaging material dispenser on the packaging material during initiation of the relative rotation between the load and the packaging material dispenser. This type of attachment makes removing the packaging material difficult after the load has been shipped to its destination and is being unwrapped. Further, throughput is decreased due to the operator having to attach the leading end portion of the packaging material to each load before wrapping the load. Additionally, collapsing the leading end portion of the packaging material reduces its effective height, thus requiring the use of more packaging material to adequately cover the load.
Automatic wrapping machines typically use packaging material clamps that grip the packaging material between two opposed surfaces and use electrical or pneumatic actuators to open and close the clamps. Such packaging material clamps may be overwrapped by the packaging material during wrapping, and may create a "tenting" effect due to their distance from the load, resulting in wasted packaging material and loosely wrapped loads. Additionally, such clamps are expensive and may require costly maintenance for the electrical and mechanical actuators. Furthermore, such clamps tend to collapse the packaging material or require collapsing of the packaging material prior to clamping, thus reducing the effective height of the packaging material.
Other machines use a vacuum device that uses suction to hold the packaging material. This typically requires that the packaging material be placed in a flat manner against the vacuum device so that the vacuum device can provide its full gripping force on the packaging material. Flat placement of the packaging material is difficult to achieve. Also, the vacuum device may damage the packaging material if the suction generated is too high, while the packaging material may be pulled off the vacuum device if the suction is too low. Furthermore, the vacuum device may have difficulty gripping a roped portion of the packaging material, where the strength of the packaging material is concentrated.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of the above-noted problems.

Bladder clamp and related methods and apparatus for wrapping loads


Provided are a high-quality non-polar/semi-polar semiconductor device with reduced defect density and improved internal quantum efficiency and light extraction efficiency, and a manufacturing method thereof. The manufacturing method is a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, in which a template layer and a semiconductor device structure are formed on a sapphire substrate having a crystal plane for growing a non-polar or semi-polar nitride semiconductor layer. The sapphire substrate is etched to form uneven patterns, and the template layer including a nitride semiconductor layer and a GaN layer is formed on the sapphire substrate in which the uneven patterns are formed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly, to a high-quality non-polar/semi-polar semiconductor device and a manufacturing method thereof. In the high-quality non-polar/semi-polar semiconductor device, a non-polar/semi-polar nitride semiconductor crystal is formed on a sapphire crystal plane, which enables the growth of a non-polar/semi-polar nitride semiconductor layer, in order that a piezoelectric effect generated in a polar nitride semiconductor layer may not occur in a nitride semiconductor layer. In addition, a template layer is formed on the sapphire crystal plane etched in uneven patterns to reduce the defect density of the semiconductor device and improve the internal quantum efficiency and light extraction efficiency thereof.
2. Discussion of the Background
Since group III-V nitride semiconductors (also simply called "nitride semiconductors"), such as GaN, have excellent physical and chemical properties, they have recently been recognized as the essential material for semiconductor optical devices, such as a light emitting diode (LED), a laser diode (LD), and a solar cell. In general, group III-V nitride semiconductors are composed of a semiconductor material having an empirical formula of InxAlyGa1-x-yN (0≦x≦1, 0≦y≦1, 0≦x+y≦1). Such nitride semiconductor optical devices are applied as light sources for a variety of products, such as a keypad of a mobile phone, an electronic display board, and a lighting device.
In particular, as digital products using LEDs or LDs have evolved, there is an increasing demand for nitride semiconductor optical devices having higher brightness and higher reliability. For example, a side view LED used as a backlight of a mobile phone is required to be brighter and thinner as the mobile phone tends to be slimmer. However, if a nitride semiconductor, such as polar GaN, is grown on a sapphire substrate using a C-plane (e.g., (0001) plane) as a sapphire crystal plane, the internal quantum efficiency may be reduced by a piezoelectric effect caused by the formation of a polarization field.
Accordingly, it is necessary to form a non-polar/semi-polar nitride semiconductor on a sapphire substrate. However, crystal defects, such as a line defect and a point defect, may be caused by a lattice mismatch between sapphire, which is suitable for the formation of a template layer using non-polar/semi-polar GaN or the like, and a non-polar/semi-polar nitride semiconductor template layer, which is formed on the sapphire, and a difference in coefficient of thermal expansion between constituent elements. Such crystal defects have a bad influence on the reliability of an optical device, for example, a resistance to electrostatic discharge (ESD), and are also the cause of current leakage within the optical device. As a result, the quantum efficiency of the optical device may be reduced, leading to the performance degradation of the optical device.
A variety of efforts have been made to reduce a crystal defect of a nitride semiconductor layer. One of these efforts is the use of a selective epitaxial growth. However, these efforts require high costs and complicated processes, such as SiO2 mask deposition. In addition, a crystal defect may be reduced by forming a low-temperature buffer layer on a sapphire substrate and then forming GaN thereon. However, this is not enough to solve a crystal defect problem of an optical device. Therefore, it is necessary to solve a problem that degrades the brightness and reliability of an optical device due to a crystal defect.

Method of forming a non-polar/semi-polar semiconductor template layer on unevenly patterned substrate

Korea Polytechnic University Industry Academic Cooperation Foundation


Structures with interlocking components include a plurality of interlocking structure sections, each of the interlocking structure sections including at least one tensioning component and a plurality of compression components carried by the at least one tensioning component. The at least one tensioning component secures alternating ones of the plurality of compression components in adjacent ones of the plurality of interlocking structure sections in end-to-end, interlocking compression with each other.

Various structures such as antenna towers, light towers, wind towers, drilling rigs, lifting actuators and the like are typically constructed of rigid materials to ensure the strength and integrity of the structure throughout its use. These structures may require large and heavy equipment such as cranes to erect. Moreover, erection of the structures may be laborious and time-consuming and may require hundreds or thousands of different parts. These considerations render the construction of many types of structures unsatisfactory and time- and cost-prohibitive for their intended purposes.
Accordingly, structures which can be expeditiously deployed using interlocking tension and compression components and which exhibit properties normally associated with a rigid structure may be desirable for some applications.


A display device includes a display panel, a lighting device, at least one light source, a lighting controller, a complex fluoride red phosphor, and a nitride red phosphor. The one light source includes a blue light emitting element and a red phosphor configured to emit red light when excited by the blue light from the blue light emitting element. The lighting controller is configured to control driving of the light source in synchronization with the image display by the display panel so that a one-frame display period in the display panel includes a turn-on period and a turn-off period. The complex fluoride red phosphor constitutes the red phosphor and has a content ratio in a range from 50% to 85% inclusive. The nitride red phosphor constitutes the red phosphor and has a content ratio in a range from 15% to 50% inclusive.

Conventionally, a liquid crystal display device described in Patent Document 1 below has been known as an example of a liquid crystal display device. The liquid crystal display device described in Patent Document 1 includes a control circuit that includes alight source controller configured to output a light emission control signal to each light source power supply circuit in synchronization with a latch pulse signal that is outputted from a gate driver controller to a gate driver. Each light source power supply circuit switches the light emission state of a cold-cathode tube to any of first to third light emission states in accordance with a light emission control signal inputted thereto and illuminates an LCD panel with light from behind a display region. The first stage of light emission state is a turn-off state. The second stage of light emission state is a maximum illuminating state in which a maximum brightness level can be achieved. The third light emission state is an intermediate illuminating state that gives nearly half of the brightness level of the second stage of light emission state.


The present invention relates to a vapor deposition compound capable of thin film deposition through vapor deposition, and particularly to a silicon precursor capable of being applied to ALD or CVD, and specifically, enabling high temperature deposition, and a method of manufacturing a silicon-containing thin film.

A silicon-containing thin film is used as a microelectronic element such as a RAM (memory and logic chip), a flat panel display such as a thin film transistor (TFT), and a semiconductor substrate, a diffusion mask, a passivation layer or a dielectric layer in semiconductor technology such as the field of solar energy.
Particularly, a silicon-containing thin film having various types of performance according to the high integration of a semiconductor device is required, and since an aspect ratio increases due to the high integration of a semiconductor device, there is a problem in that required performance cannot be achieved by the deposition of a silicon-containing thin film using a conventional precursor.
According to the deposition of a thin film using a conventional precursor, it is difficult for a highly-integrated semiconductor device to have excellent step coverage and for a thickness to be controlled, and there is a problem of impurities being contained in the thin film.
Therefore, for deposition of a high-quality silicon-containing thin film, various silicon precursors including an aminosilane as well as conventional silicon precursors such as a silane, a disilane, a halogenated silane, etc. have been studied and developed.
Generally, as aminosilane precursors, butylaminosilane (BAS), bis(tertiary butylamino)silane (BTBAS), dimethylaminosilane (DMAS), bis(dimethyl amino)silane (BDMAS), tris(dimethylamino)silane (3-DMAS), diethylaminosilane (DEAS), bis(diethylamino)silane (BDEAS), dipropylaminosilane (DPAS) and di(isopropylamino)silane (DIPAS) are widely used.
In the manufacture of a silicon-containing thin film, atomic layer deposition (ALD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is widely used.
Among these methods, particularly, when ALD is applied to form a silicon-containing thin film, the thickness uniformity and physical property of a thin film can be improved, thereby improving the characteristics of a semiconductor device, and therefore, ALD application is highly increased in recent years. However, since CVD and ALD have different reaction mechanisms, a precursor suitable for CVD may not produce a thin film with a desired quality with ALD, and thus research and development of precursors applicable to the combination of CVD and ALD are increasing.
Meanwhile, while there is a patent in which one aminosilane precursor, for example, 3-DMAS, is utilized as a precursor, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,593,741, a high-quality thin film was not able to be obtained at a high process temperature even by using 3-DMAS as a precursor. In addition, even when a halogen element-substituted silicon precursor is used, although there was an effect in low temperature deposition, a high-quality thin film was still not obtained at a high process temperature.

Silicon precursor and method of manufacturing silicon-containing thin film using the same


A flood pump includes a pump housing having a pump housing inlet and a pump housing outlet, an impeller housing disposed in fluid communication with the pump housing between the pump housing inlet and the pump housing outlet, an impeller disposed in the impeller housing, a power unit drivingly engaging the impeller, a diversion conduit disposed in fluid communication with the pump housing between the pump housing inlet and the pump housing outlet and a pump housing outlet valve in the pump housing between the diversion conduit and the pump housing outlet.

In many areas around the world, levees are constructed along the bank of a river or other water body which has a tendency to flood periodically. The areas outside the levees may be low-lying areas which have a tendency to flood in heavy precipitation. These flood-prone areas may be used for farming or other purposes which may be hampered by a heavy water load. Therefore, it may be necessary to periodically pump water from a flood-prone low-lying area and discharge the water into a river or other water body. Alternatively, it may be desirable to divert the pumped water to a destination for irrigation and/or other purposes.
Accordingly, a flood pump which is operable to selectively pump water from a flooded area to a river or other outlet or divert the pumped water to one or more alternative destinations for another use is needed.


A signal switch connector set is disposed on a motherboard of a computer system. The signal switch connector set is capable of selectively connecting a USB 3.0 signal terminal of a south bridge chip to a USB 3.0 port located at the rear panel of a casing or connecting the USB 3.0 terminal of the south bridge chip to the USB 3.0 port located at the front panel of the casing.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a signal switch connector set and, more particularly, to a signal switch connector set applied at a motherboard.
2. Description of the Related Art
Universal serial bus (USB) is a serial port bus standard and is also an input/output (I/O) interface technology specification. It is widely used in communication products such as a personal computer and a mobile device.
The main feature of the USB is that it supports hot plug and plug-and-play. When a USB device is inserted into a computer system, a motherboard automatically loads a drive program needed by the USB device. Thus, it is more convenient in usage than other buses such as a peripheral component interconnect (PCI).
Most computer system includes multiple USB ports. FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram showing a front panel of a casing 12 of a conventional computer system 10. The front panel of the casing 12 of the computer system 10 usually includes a power switch 102 and an optical disk drive (ODD) 104 thereon, and it also includes multiple USB ports thereon. As shown in FIG. 1A, the front panel of the casing 12 of the computer system 10 includes two USB ports 106 and 108 thereon.
FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram showing a rear panel of the casing 12 of the conventional computer system 10. Generally, the rear panel of the casing 12 of the computer system 10 usually includes a power socket 114 and various input/output (I/O) ports thereon, such as a network port 116, an earphone port 118, a microphone port 120, a mouse port 122, a keyboard port 124 and two USB ports 126 and 128.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a motherboard disposed at the conventional computer system 10. The motherboard 20 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 202, a north chip 204, the south bridge chip 206, two USB port connectors 210, two USB ports 126 and 128 thereon. The south bridge chip 206 provides four groups of USB signals, two groups of the USB signals are transmitted to the two USB ports 126 and 128, and the other two groups of the USB signals are transmitted to other USB ports outside the motherboard 20 via the two USB port connectors 210.
As shown in FIG. 1B, the USB ports 126 and 128 at the rear panel of the casing 12 are fixed at the margin of the motherboard 20. That is, in FIG. 2, the USB ports 126 and 128 at the margin of the motherboard 20 are fixed at the rear panel of the casing 12 through holes (not shown) at the rear panel of the casing 12 of the computer system 10 in FIG. 1B. Moreover, the two USB port connectors 210 may be connected to two USB ports, as shown in FIG. 2, two USB port connectors 210 may be connected to the USB ports 106 and 108 at the front panel of the casing 12 in FIG. 1A via a USB cable (not shown), and two USB port connectors 210 may be connected to the south bridge chip 206 via layout traces 232 at the motherboard. The USB ports 126 and 128 may be connected to the south bridge chip 206 via layout traces 236 at the motherboard.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a motherboard in a casing of a computer system. As shown in FIG. 3, the USB ports 106 and 108 at the front panel of the casing 12 may be connected to the two USB port connectors 210 via a USB cable 250. Moreover, the USB ports 126 and 128 at the margin of the motherboard 20 are directly fixed at the rear panel of the casing 12 of the computer system 10.
As shown in FIG. 3, a USB device (such as a USB drive which is not shown) inserted into the USB port 106 or 108 can communicate with the south bridge chip 206 via the USB cable 250, two USB port connectors 210 and the motherboard layout traces 232. A USB device (not shown) inserted into the USB port 126 or 128 can communicate with the south bridge chip 206 via motherboard layout traces 236.
The data transmitting speed of USB is continuously improved. The maximum transmitting speed of USB 1.1 is 12 Mbps, and the maximum transmitting speed of USB 2.0 is 480 Mbps. The maximum transmitting speed of USB 3.0 promoted recently exceeds 4.8 Gbps. However, since USB 3.0 is not widely used and its price is relative high, the number of the USB 3.0 ports provided by the south bridge chip 206 at the motherboard is small (such as only two USB 3.0 ports are provided). Thus, the number of the USB ports at the casing may be much larger than that of the USB 3.0 ports disposed at the motherboard.
Taking FIG. 3 as an example, it is assumed that the south bridge chip 206 only provides two USB 3.0 ports, and thus if the two USB 3.0 ports are directly disposed at the rear panel of the casing 12 via the motherboard layout traces 236, the motherboard layout traces 232, the USB port connector 210, and the USB cable 250 are not need to be disposed on the motherboard 20. However, the USB ports at the front panel of the casing 12 cannot communicate with any USB devices. That is, if the user needs to use the USB 3.0 port, he or she needs to connect the USB device to the rear panel of the casing, which is rather inconvenient.

Signal switch connector set applied to motherboard of computer system


The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a hydrocarbon, the method including bringing metal Mg into contact with water and carbon dioxide and reducing the carbon dioxide. In the method, one or more elements selected from the group consisting of Group 8 elements, Group 9 elements, B, C, S, Ca, V, Mn, Ni, Ge, Zr, Nb, Pd, Ag, Sn, Pt, Au, and Ce are used as combination element(s), and the contact is effected under presence of one or more of simple substance(s) of the combination element(s), water-soluble compound(s) of the combination element(s), and ion(s) of the combination element(s).

Conventional methods for obtaining a hydrocarbon such as methane by reducing carbon dioxide include a method described in Patent Document 1 in which hydrogen gas is used as a hydrogen source under the reaction condition of a high temperature (150° C. to 400° C.) and a high pressure (1 MPa to 6 MPa). However, this method requires such a reaction condition of a high temperature and a high pressure, and thus the reaction equipment becomes complicated, leading to high cost, for example.
In contrast, as a method that is conducted under the condition of an ordinary temperature and an ordinary pressure and requires no hydrogen gas as a hydrogen source, Patent Document 2 describes a method that uses iron powder as a catalyst to obtain a hydrocarbon such as methane from carbon dioxide and water.
Although methods described in Patent Documents 3 and 4 produce hydrogen from particulate magnesium and water, these methods are not for obtaining a hydrocarbon such as methane by reducing carbon dioxide.


A BiCMOS logic circuit includes a MOS logic circuit connected between a high voltage supply line and a low voltage supply line and having an input connected to an input terminal, and an output circuit composed of first and second bipolar transistors connected in series between the high and low voltage supply lines. The first bipolar transistor has a base connected to an output of the MOS logic circuit, and a connection node of the first and second bipolar transistors is connected to an output terminal. In addition, a base current supplying circuit having first and second MOS transistors is connected in series between the first voltage supply line and a base of the second bipolar transistor. The first MOS transistor has a gate connected to the output of the MOS logic circuit, and the second MOS transistor has a gate connected to the input terminal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a BiCMOS logic circuit, and more specifically to a BiCMOS logic circuit having a high operation speed.
2. Description of Related Art
In general, BiCMOS logic circuits have been composed of an input MOS logic circuit and an output bipolar circuit. Conventionally, when electric charges on an output of the bipolar circuit is discharged to pull down an output voltage of the bipolar circuit, a base current for a bipolar transistor for extracting the electric charge on the output of the bipolar circuit is supplied by only a MOS transistor whose gate is connected to a logic input of the input MOS logic circuit and whose drain-source path is connected between a collector and the base of the charge extracting bipolar transistor. In this arrangement, if the collector-base voltage of the charge extracting bipolar transistor becomes lowered as a result of the discharge of the electric charge on the output of the bipolar circuit, the drain-source voltage of the base current supplying MOS transistor is correspondingly decreased, so that the MOS transistor will become to operate in a linear region. As a result, a sufficient base current is not supplied to the charge extracting bipolar transistor, so that the voltage falling down speed of the output of the bipolar circuit becomes small. Thus, the BiCMOS logic circuit has a large delay time, and a long signal propagation time.

BiCMOS logic circuit having a rapid output voltage falling-down property


A computer-implemented method for quantifying fluid includes estimating a first volume of a first fluid contained in an item based on a difference between a dry weight and a wet weight of the item, and displaying a graphical representation of a container containing a volume of a second fluid and a second volume of the first fluid, wherein the graphical representation includes a first display element for receiving a first user input indicating the volume of the second fluid in the container, and a second display element for receiving a second user input indicating a total fluid volume in the container, estimating the second volume of the first fluid based on at least one of the first and second user inputs, and estimating a quantity of the first fluid based on the first and second volumes of the first fluid.

Inaccurate estimation of fluid loss (e.g., blood) from a patient, such as during a medical procedure, may put the patient's health at risk. For example, accurate measurement of blood lost by a mother after childbirth may help quickly diagnose a life-threatening instance of postpartum hemorrhage, which is a leading cause of maternal mortality. Underestimation of patient blood loss may lead to delayed resuscitation and transfusion, increased risk of infections, tissue death, or even patient death, such as in the event of hemorrhage. Furthermore, overestimation of patient blood loss may result in the unnecessary consumption of transfusion-grade blood, and may lead to shortages of transfusion-grade blood that is needed for other patients.
Furthermore, inaccurate estimation may be a significant contributor to high operating and medical costs for hospitals, clinics, and other medical facilities. For example, unnecessary blood transfusions, resulting from overestimation of patient blood loss, may lead to higher operating costs for medical institutions. Additionally, delayed blood transfusions, resulting from underestimation of patient blood loss, have been associated with billions of dollars in avoidable patient infections and re-hospitalizations annually. Thus, it is desirable to have more accurate systems and methods for characterizing fluids from a patient.

Fluid loss estimation based on weight of medical items


A miner communication and locating system is disclosed. Two technologies used in the system include a communicator, and a locator array that may be used with a computer. The communicator portion allows trapped miners to continually signal without physical effort that they have survived a cave-in or explosion in a direct, mechanical, and reliable manner. The locator array receives the communicator signal for use to accurately identify where the survivors are underground, and facilitate their rescue; a computer can be used to calculate the position of the communicator from information provided by a plurality of locators: global positioning system receivers may be used with the locator array.

The tragic loss of over 250 lives in underground mine fires in West Virginia, Kentucky, Mexico, and China in late 2005 and the first half of 2006, has revealed a serious deficiency in terms of emergency response.
Typically when a mine accident occurs, there is a failure to locate and rescue underground miners surviving an explosive accident in time. Days, not hours have been necessary to get rescue teams to the scene, locate any survivors, develop a safe plan, and save the survivors. To mine survivors, awaiting rescue is a life-threatening ordeal, especially when they cannot communicate with the surface that they are alive and where they have taken refuge. After underground mine collapses from explosions, seismic activity or other causes, escape paths are probably blocked. Miners are trained to barricade themselves in a habitable atmosphere available while awaiting rescue. Once safe, survivors attempt to communicate with the surface about their location, number of persons, and status. Often, hardwired mine communication phones are knocked out, or are unreachable, because of the presence of deadly gases in the post-explosion atmosphere, or because of blocked passages by rock debris. When denied or separated from communication equipment, miners resort to desperate, archaic communication techniques, namely, pounding on steel structures (plates or rails) with hammers to attempt to send acoustic signals to rescuers within audible range above. However, all too often, mine rescue teams are not within this range because these signals are usually too weak to be detected on the surface.
Two-way wireless electronic communications systems are being considered as upgrades to existing hardwire mine communication phones. However, these advanced systems have similar problems associated with hard wired systems. They also need to be interconnected to the surface from the miner locations underground via mine passages, which are now blocked. More failsafe, alternative communications devices are urgently needed that communicate form the underground to the surface after the collapse of the mine passages.

Miner acoustic communication and location system


The present invention relates to novel agents that are useful for modulating transcription factor activity. In particular, the present invention relates to a transcription factor modulator comprising (i) a pharmaceutically-effective amount of a HLS-5 polypeptide, isoform thereof, functional fragment thereof or pharmaceutical composition thereof or (ii) a compound or composition capable of regulating the endogenous levels of HLS-5 or its activity; or (iii) combinations thereof.

Disregulation of the immune system is involved in numerous pathologies, and may be a factor that favours the establishment, maintenance or progression of disease. Deficient immune responses or immune suppression are known to enhance an animal's susceptibility to infection or to the development of cancer. Conversely, excessive or inappropriate immune responses are involved in the establishment or progression of unwanted inflammation or autoimmune conditions. It would thus be advantageous to be able to utilize agents that modulate immune responses, and to at least partially reverse-immune dysfunction when such dysfunction is a component of a given pathological condition.
The tumor suppressor protein p53 functions as a transcriptional factor that activates genes controlling cell cycle arrest and apoptosis (see, for example, Agarwal et al., 1998, J Biol Chem, 273(1): p1-4; Lakin & Jackson, 1999, Oncogene, 18(53): p7644-55; Sionov & Haupt, 1999, Oncogene, 18(45): p6145-6157). The activity of the p53 tumor suppressor protein and the c-Jun proto-oncogene are regulated by posttranslational modifications, such as phosphorylation or ubiquitination (Meek, 1999, Oncogene, 18(53): p7666-75). Specifically, covalent attachment of the ubiquitin-like modifier SUMO appears to modulate their transcriptional activity Rodriguez et al., 1999, Embo J, 18(22): p6455-61; Muller et al., 2000, J Biol Chem, 275(18): p13321-9).
Sumoylation proceeds via an enzymatic pathway that is mechanistically analogous to ubiquitination, but requires a different E1-activating enzyme and Ubc9, a SUMO-specific E2-conjugating enzyme (Lin et al., 2004, FEBS Lett, 573(1-3): p15-8). PIAS1 act as specific E3-like ligase that promotes sumoylation of p53 and c-Jun in vitro and in vivo. The PTAS proteins physically interact with both p53 and c-Jun and PIAS1 interacts with the tetramerization and C-terminal regulatory domains of p53 in yeast two-hybrid analyses (Megidish et al., 2002, J Biol Chem, 277(10): p8255-9). In addition, they bind to Ubc9, suggesting that they recruit the E2 enzyme to their respective substrate. The SUMO ligase activity requires the conserved zinc-finger domain, which is distantly related to the essential RING-finger motif, found in a subset of ubiquitin ligases.
PIAS proteins strongly repress the transcriptional activity of p53, suggesting that the PIAS-SUMO pathway plays a crucial role in the regulation of p53 and other transcription factors (Schmidt & Muller, 2002, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 99(5): p2872-7).
The STAT-1 transcription factor has been implicated as a tumor suppressor by virtue of its ability to inhibit cell growth and promotion of apoptosis. STAT-1 is required for optimal DNA damage-induced apoptosis. The basal level of the p53 inhibitor Mdm2 is increased in STAT-1(−/−) cells, suggesting that STAT-1 is a negative regulator of Mdm2 expression. STAT-1 interacts directly with p53, an association, which is enhanced following DNA damage. Therefore, in addition to negatively regulating Mdm2, STAT-1 also acts as a co-activator for p53. Hence STAT-1 is another member of a growing family of protein partners able to modulate the p53-activated apoptotic pathway (Townsend et al., 2004, J Biol Chem, 279(7): p5811-20).
Signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) mediates gene expression in response to cytokines and growth factors. Activation of STAT1 is achieved through its tyrosine phosphorylation, a process that involves Jak tyrosine kinases. One of these cytokines, IFN-gamma, induces STAT1 phosphorylation and leads to expression of multiple genes and apoptosis.
Viruses can evade the host immune system by inactivating different components of the IFN-activated JAK-STAT pathway. As described earlier, members of the Paramyxovirus family of RNA viruses target STATs for degradation. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) inhibits the expression of IFN-receptor through the action of the EBV immediate-early protein, BZLF1 (Morrison et al., 2001, Immunity, 15(5): p787-99). Human cytomegalovirus inhibits IFN-induced expression of MHC class II molecules by selectively targeting JAK1 for degradation (Miller et al., 1998, J Exp Med, 187(5): p675-83). By contrast, infection with varicella-zoster virus inhibits the expression of STAT1 and JAK2, but not JAK1 (Abendroth et al., 2000, J Virol, 74(4): p1900-7). Individuals with defects in the IFN-JAK-STAT pathway show increased susceptibility to viruses and intracellular bacteria. Patients with mutations in the IFN-receptor chains are susceptible to infection with mycobacteria (Dupuis et al., 2000, Immunol Rev, 178: p129-37). Recently, patients with STAT1 deficiency have been reported (Dupuis et al., 2003, NatGenet, 33(3): p388-91). These individuals suffered from mycobacterial infection and died of lethal viral disease.
The aetiopathology of Crohn's disease—a chronic inflammatory bowel disease—is poorly understood. Mice with tissue-specific disruption of Stat3 during haematopoiesis show Crohn's disease-like pathogenesis (Welte et al., 2003, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 100(4): p1879-84). In addition, constitutively tyrosine phosphorylated STAT3 is found in intestinal T cells from patients with Crohn's disease (Lovato et al., 2003, J Biol Chem, 278(19): p16777-81). These results indicate that the dysregulation of STAT3 signaling might be involved in the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease. However, the exact role of STAT3 in the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease is not understood.
Apart from its affect on the JAK/STAT pathway, PIAS1 has been shown to be a negative regulator of the NF-KB signaling (Liu et al., 2005, Mol Cell Biol, 25(3): p1113-23). The NF-KB family of transcription factors is activated by a wide variety of signals to regulate a spectrum of cellular processes. The proper regulation of NF-KB activity is critical, since abnormal NF-KB signaling is associated with a number of human illnesses, such as chronic inflammatory diseases and cancer. Upon cytokine stimulation, the p65 subunit of NF-KB translocates into the nucleus, where it interacts with PIAS1. The binding of PIAS1 to p65 inhibits cytokine-induced NF-KB-dependent gene activation. PIAS1 blocks the DNA binding activity of p65 both in vitro and in vivo.
The ubiquitin-proteolysis system, which was discovered a little over 20 years ago by Hershko and Ciechanover, was originally thought to eliminate "old", damaged, misfolded or misassembled proteins (Hershko & Ciechanover, 1998, Annu Rev Biochem, 67: p425-79; Hershko et al., 2000, Nat Med, 6(10): p1073-81). The system acquired its name from a 76-amino acid (aa) ubiquitously expressed protein, which is highly conserved in all eukaryotes. The ubiquitin pathway consists of several components that act sequentially in a hierarchical mode: a concerted two-step reaction that results in a high-energy thioester linkage between ubiquitin and a single conserved ubiquitin-activating enzyme (E1) and ubiquitin transfer through trans-acylation to one of several ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes (Ubcs or E2s). The latter collaborate with a large series of E3s (protein-ubiquitin ligases) in attaching ubiquitin molecules to the ε-amino group of the substrate's lysine residues, thus creating a reversible isopeptide bond. Pathways critical to cancer and immune regulation are regulated at several steps by polyubiquitination (Hershko & Ciechanover, 1998, supra; Ciechanover et al., 2000, J Cell Biochem Suppl, 34: p40-51; Schwartz & Hochstrasser, 2003, Trends Biochem Sci, 28(6): p321-8; Ben-Neriah, 2002, Nat Immunol, 3(1): p20-6).
Recent focus on the system has emphasized its role in controlling cellular processes via two modes of action. These are proteolysis-associated polyubiquitination for controlling the abundance of regulatory proteins and proteolysis-independent ubiquitination: mono-, multi- or polyubiquitination of regulatory proteins (Ciechanover et al., 2000, Bioessays, 22(5): p442-51). When the ubiquitins are linked to each other through the lysine amino acid found at position 48 of each ubiquitin, the target protein is directed to the cellular waste-disposal unit, the proteasome (Amit & Ben-Neriah, 2003, Semin Cancer Biol, 13(1):p15-28). If lysine 63 is used instead, it can serve as a signal for the target to assemble with other proteins (Wang et al., 2001, Nature, 412(6844): p346-51; Deng et al., 2000, Cell, 103(2): p351-61).
For proteolysis-associated ubiquitination, a further, poorly characterized, catalytic step is required: polymerization of a ubiquitin chain, which is facilitated by the same E2-E3 pair that attached the first ubiquitin molecule to the substrate or by additional enzymatic components. The polyubiquitin chain then serves as a recognition marker for the substrate-degrading 26S protein complex, the proteasome.
Parallel to the "classical" ubiquitination systems, there are other related enzymatic pathways that covalently attach ubiquitin-like molecules (Ubls) to target proteins for diverse purposes (Hochstrasser, 2000, Nat Cell Biol, 2(8): pE153-7; Jentsch & Pyrowolakis, 2000, Trends Cell Biol, 10(8): p335-42). Ubls are not only structurally related to ubiquitin, but conjugate to their protein targets through a ubiquitination-like enzymatic process, that is, formation of an isopeptide bond between the Ubl COOH-terminal glycine and an amino group of a target protein lysine. In addition, Ubl conjugation is done by enzymes that are related to ubiquitin pathway E1 and E2s (Hochstrasser, 2000, supra; Jentsch & Pyrowolakis, 2000, supra). Certain Ubl modifications may support protein ubiquitination: an example is the attachment of the Nedd8 Ubl to a subunit of the IB E3 protein that results in enhanced IB ubiquitination (Read et al., 2000, Mol Cell Biol, 20(7): p2326-33; Kawakami et al., 2001, Embo J, 20(15): p4003-12). Other Ubl modifications may interfere with protein ubiquitination, for example, the attachment of SUMO (small ubiquitin modifier) Ubl to IB, which suppresses its ubiquitination (Hay, 2001, Trends Biochem Sci, 26(5): p. 332-3), or have ubiquitination-unrelated functions, such as regulating nuclear protein export (Mahajan et al., 1997, Cell, 88(1): p97-107).
Whereas a single E1 activates ubiquitin, many (at least 25 in mammals) E2 species have been characterized in every eukaryotic organism. The multitude of E2 enzymes indicates that they specialize in distinct ubiquitination processes; however, the biochemical basis for this putative specialization is mostly unknown. Whereas E2 proteins are identified by their homology, the E3s constitute a highly heterogeneous class of proteins, which nevertheless can be classified into three groups: HECT (homologous to E6-AP COOH-terminus), RING and Ufd2-related (U-box) E3s (Weissman, 2001, Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol, 2(3): p169-78; Jackson et al., 2000, Trends Cell Biol, 10(10): p429-39). The HECT E3s are related to E6-associated protein (E6-AP)-the E3 that targets p53 in complex with papillomavirus E6 protein-and share a 350-aa HECT domain. HECT E3s have a unique mode of action: they catalyze ubiquitin transfer to the substrate through an intermediate thiol-ester between ubiquitin and a conserved cysteine in the HECT domain, In contrast, it appears that the RING E3s do not directly participate in the chemical transfer of ubiquitin to the substrate, but merely coordinate the activity of their associated E2s (Meroni & Diez-Roux, 2005, Bioessays, 27(11): p1147-57).
RING E3s are distinguished by the metal-coordinated RING-finger motif. The RING E3s are either single proteins with a substrate-targeting motif, such as an SH2 domain, or multi-subunit protein complexes in which substrate-targeting and the RING function are carried out by different proteins. Some of the most remarkable recent advances in the ubiquitin field have been made in characterizing the composition, partial structure and mode of substrate-recognition of three large multisubunit RING E3s: APC/C (anaphase-promoting complex-cyclosome), SCF (Skp1-cullin-1-F-box protein) and VCB (VHL-elongin C-elongin B complex) (Jackson et al., 2000, Trends Cell Biol, 10(10): p429-39; Deshaies et al., 1999, Annu Rev Cell Dev Biol, 15: p435-67; Zachariae & Nasmyth, 1999, Genes Dev, 13(16): p2039-58; Kondo & Kaelin, 2001, Exp Cell Res, 264(1): p117-25). U-box E3s constitute a newly identified class, some of which may mediate the assembly of polyubiquitin chains on proteins ubiquitinated by other E3s (Hatakeyama et al., 2001, J Biol Chem, 276(35): p33111-20).
Having a fundamental regulatory role in every eukaryotic organism, it is not surprising that proteolysis-associated ubiquitination also fulfills an important role in the immune system. Proteolysis-associated ubiquitination drives a variety of immunity-related regulatory events, from transcriptional activation to apoptosis (Shmueli & Oren, 2005, Cell, 121(7): p963-5). Parallel to well established proteolysis-associated ubiquitination, there are important proteosome-mediated degradation events in which the precise role of ubiquitination is still unclear; among the latter, antigen-processing is a prominent example (Kloetzel, 2001, Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol, 2(3): p179-87; Yewdell, 2001, Trends Cell Biol, 11(7): p294-7).
Ubiquitination of transcription factors can control their activity independently of proteosomal degradation. For example, Met4, a bZIP factor that regulates a large number of genes predominantly involved in methionine biosynthesis, is ubiquitinated but not degraded in the presence of high intracellular levels of S-adenosylmethionine (Kaiser et al., 2000, Cell, 102(3): p303-14). Ubiquitination inactivates Met4 at least in part because it precludes recruitment of the coactivator, Cbfl (Kaiser et al., 2000, supra); in addition, binding of Met4 to a subclass of its target promoters is compromised by ubiquitination (Kuras et al., 2002, Mol Cell, 10(1): p69-80). Ubiquitination does not necessarily inhibit transcription factors since ubiquitination of the HIVTat protein by Mdm2 augments its ability to activate transcription (Bres et al., 2003, Nat Cell Biol, 5(8): p754-61). Similarly, ubiquitination of Myc by Skp2 contributes to transcriptional activation, potentially by allowing Myc to recruit proteasomal subunits that have a proteolysis-independent role in transcriptional activation (Ferdous et al., 2001, Mol Cell, 7(5): p981-91). Two signals are known to determine whether ubiquitination leads to degradation. Proteolytic substrates are modified by polyubiquitin chains, and a minimum chain length of about four ubiquitin residues appears to be required to target the attached protein to the proteasome (Flick et al., 2004, Nat Cell Biol, 6(7): p634-41). The lysine residue of ubiquitin, used for polyubiquitin chain formation, specifies the second signal. Whereas chains linked through lysine 48 usually lead to proteasomal degradation, those linked through lysine-63 of ubiquitin do not target proteins to the proteasome (Bres et al., 2003, supra).
The TRIM/RBCC proteins are defined by the presence of the tripartite motif composed of a RING domain, one or two B-box motifs and a coiled-coil region (Reymond et al., 2001, Embo J, 20(9): p2140-51). These proteins are involved in a plethora of cellular processes such as apoptosis, cell cycle regulation and viral response. Consistently, their alteration results in many diverse pathological conditions. The highly conserved structure of these proteins suggests that a common biochemical function may underlie their assorted cellular roles. Some TRIM/RBCC proteins are implicated in ubiquitination and propose that this large protein family represents a novel class of 'single protein RING finger' ubiquitin E3 ligases (Meroni & Diez-Roux, 2005, supra).
Ubiquitin ligases play a key role in protein localization, transcriptional modulation and protein turnover within the cell. Modulation of these targets presents a novel approach to treating diseases where the normal cell processes are out of balance, such as in cancer where the cell cycling is abnormal. Ubiquitin ligase cancer targets play a role in the regulation of stability, localization, and activity of key proteins such as oncoproteins and tumour suppressor genes. Ubiquitin ligase targets are numerous and modular. This provides the potential for intervening in a highly specific fashion in a disease, potentially improving efficacy and minimizing side-effects.
It can be seen that transcription factors play a major role in homeostasis, especially with respect to the immune system. Accordingly, if modulators or regulators of transcription factors like those discussed above can be identified it might be possible to regulate cell proliferation, migration, and/or differentiation.


An approach is provided for mapping vulnerable road users. The approach, for example, involves receiving sensor data from at least one vehicle indicating a presence of at least one vulnerable road user. The sensor data indicates a detected location of the at least one vulnerable road user. The approach also involves map matching the detected location of the at least one vulnerable road user to at least one road node, link, and/or a segment thereof of a geographic database. The approach further involves generating a vulnerable road user attribute to indicate a probability of the presence of the at least one vulnerable road user based on the sensor data. The approach further involves storing the vulnerable road user attribute in the geographic database as an attribute of the at least one road node, link, and/or segment.

Providing environmental awareness for vehicle safety, particularly in autonomous driving, has been a primary concern for automobile manufacturers and related service providers. For example, having data on where vulnerable road users (VRUs) (e.g., pedestrians, other non-vehicular road users/objects, etc.) are in a road network can potentially enable autonomous and/or other vehicles to take actions to decrease the potential for collisions with VRUs, thereby increasing road safety. However, mapping VRUs over a wide geographic area has historically been resource-intensive. Accordingly, service providers face significant technical challenges to more efficiently detect and map VRUs on road segments or links of digital maps (e.g., geographic databases).

Method, apparatus, and system for mapping vulnerable road users


A spring plate includes an engaging portion, a connecting portion, a first elastic portion, a second elastic portion, a first fixing portion, and a second fixing portion. The first elastic portion and the second elastic portion are connected to the engaging portion and the connecting portion, the first fixing portion and the second fixing portion are formed on opposite ends of the connecting portion. The engaging portion defines a recess. The present disclosure further provides a voice coil motor using the spring plate.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure generally relates to a spring plate, and more particularly, relates to a voice coil motor using the spring plate.
2. Description of Related Art
As digital technology develops, the volume and weight of digital cameras become smaller, thus the cameras are portable for users. However, with the reduced volume and weight, camera shake happens easily when the user holds the camera to take photos. Therefore, fuzzy images are taken.
Therefore, there is room for improvement within the art.

Spring plate and voice coil motor using the same


A hybrid bicycle is provided which can be manually propelled, but which includes a motor unit for also causing forward propulsion of the bicycle. The bicycle comprises manually operable pedals fixed for rotation with a pedal spindle for receiving a manually provided driving force and a motor having a shaft for receiving a motor provided driving force. A first torque transmission path is provided for transferring the manually provided driving force to a sprocket of the pedal driven apparatus and a second torque transmission path is provided for transferring the motor provided driving force to said sprocket of the pedal driven apparatus. A first one way drive means is also provided. This is provided in the first torque transmission path between the pedal spindle and the sprocket such that when the sprocket is being driven by the motor provided driving force through the second torque transmission path, the pedal spindle is able to freewheel. The second torque transmission path may include a gear mechanism mechanically coupling the motor shaft to the sprocket of the pedal driven apparatus. The gear mechanism has a reduction gear ratio and operates to transfer the motor provided driving force from the motor shaft to the sprocket at said reduction gear ratio. The motor may be arranged concentrically around a pedal spindle of the pedal driven apparatus such that the pedal spindle is freely accommodated through a hollow bore of the motor shaft and such that their axes of rotation are parallel and preferably co-incident.

It is known to provide some manually propellable wheeled vehicles or apparatuses such as bicycles with a motor unit to assist a user in powering the apparatus, especially up sloping terrain, e.g. hills, although the motor unit may sometimes used by itself to power the bicycle over any terrain.
It is also known to utilize an in-wheel motor in an electric motor assisted bicycle such that a transmission can be omitted and the resulting apparatus is easy and simple to manufacture. For such a known electric motor assisted bicycle using an in-wheel motor, it can be manufactured by simply replacing a hub of one wheel with an in-wheel motor, while the pedals drive the rear wheel through a sprocket and a chain in a generally conventional manner. In such an arrangement, no motor drive force need be transferred through the bicycle chain. Therefore, a pedal driving force and a motor driving force are delivered quite separately from each other.
One consequence of the known in-wheel motor arrangement is that it is not feasible for an in-wheel electric motor assisted bicycle to be developed with additional functions such as gear shifting, operating with a clutch, functioning as an exercise bicycle, or using the motor to generate power, i.e. it does not afford easy expansion of its functions. It also creates production and assembly problems as well as replacement parts problems. Where an in-wheel motor fails or requires maintenance, for example, it requires the wheel to be removed thus disabling the bicycle. Under some motor failure or maintenance conditions, it may no longer be possible to rotate the wheel accommodating the in-wheel motor such that it is not even possible to propel the bicycle under manually applied pedal power.
In addition to the known electric bicycle using an in-wheel motor, there is at least one other type of electric bicycle which uses a wheel-driving motor. However, in this type of electric bicycle, a motor driving force and a pedal driving force are also separately delivered from each other. This type of electric bicycle has similar disadvantages in that gear shifting can not be easily realized using a rear wheel transmission when the electric bicycle is being propelled using the wheel-driving motor.
The foregoing are just some of the common problems encountered with conventional hybrid motor assisted pedal driven apparatuses such as bicycles.


A cup tool includes a cup tool tube having a threaded upper end for connection to a high-pressure mandrel, an outer surface over which an elastomeric cup is slidably mounted for reciprocal movement from an unset position for entry into a wellbore to a set position in which an annular gap is obstructed to contain fluid pressure below the elastomeric cup. The outer surface of the cup tool tube has a lower portion of a first diameter and an upper portion with a second, larger diameter and a tapered region between the upper portion and the lower portion. The elastomeric cup includes a lip seal that rides against the outer surface of the cup tool tube, and seals against the tapered region of the cup tool tube to provide a high pressure seal between the cup tool tube and the elastomeric cup in the set position.

Most oil and gas wells require stimulation to enhance hydrocarbon flow to make or keep them economically viable. The servicing of oil and gas wells to stimulate production requires the pumping of fluids into the well under high pressure. The fluids are generally corrosive and/or abrasive because they are laden with corrosive acids and/or abrasive proppants, such as sharp sand.
In order to protect components that make up the wellhead, such as the valves, tubing hanger, casing hanger, casing head and blowout preventer equipment, wellhead isolation equipment, such as a wellhead isolation tool, a casing saver or a blowout preventer protector is used during well fracturing and well stimulation procedures. The wellhead isolation equipment generally includes a high pressure mandrel that is inserted through wellhead components to isolate the wellhead components from elevated fluid pressures and from the corrosive/abrasive fluids used in the well treatment to stimulate production. A sealing mechanism, generally referred to as a sealing nipple or a cup tool, connected to a bottom of the high pressure mandrel is used to isolate the wellhead components from high fluid pressures used for well stimulation treatments.
Various sealing mechanisms provided for wellhead isolation equipment are described in prior art patents, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,023,814, entitled A TREE SAVER PACKER CUP, which issued to Pitts on May 17, 1977; U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,261, entitled A WELLHEAD ISOLATION TOOL, which issued to Oliver on Sep. 5, 1978; U.S. Pat. No. 4,601,494, entitled A NIPPLE INSERT, which issued to McLeod et al. on Jul. 22, 1986; Canadian Patent 1,272,684, entitled A WELLHEAD ISOLATION TOOL NIPPLE, which issued to Sutherland-Wenger on Aug. 14, 1990; U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,487 entitled PACKOFF NIPPLE, which issued to McLeod et al. on Nov. 16, 1993; and Applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 6,261,487 entitled CUP TOOL FOR HIGH PRESSURE MANDREL, published Mar. 25, 2001 which issued Jul. 19, 2005. These sealing mechanisms include an elastomeric cup that radially expands under high fluid pressures to seal against an inside wall of a production tubing or casing.
The elastomeric cups are commonly bonded to a steel ring, sleeve or mandrel. In the most common construction, the elastomeric cup is bonded to a steel ring that sides over a cup tool tube, also referred to as a cup tool mandrel. An O-ring seal carried by the steel ring provides a fluid seal between the elastomeric cup and the cup tool tube.
In spite of all the known cup tools, there still exists a need for an improved cup tool that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and provides a reliable seal at very high fluid pressures.

Cup tool, cup tool cup and method of using the cup tool


Provided is a method for forming fine pattern free from shear of pattern caused by charging and high in dry etch resistance by using a high molecular organic film containing an organometallic complex or a metallic salt in single-layer or multi-layer resist process and treating the surface of this film with a reducing agent to form a metallic layer on the surface.

The present invention relates to a fine pattern forming method according to which an optional resist pattern for high accuracy fine processing is formed on a semiconductor substrate by direct writing with electrically charged beams such as electron beam and focused beam using single-layer or multi-layer resist method and more particularly to a fine pattern forming method which is carried out using a high molecular organic film in which an organometallic complex or a metallic salt is incorporated.
Hitherto, in production of IC and LSI, formation of pattern has been carried out by photolithography using ultraviolet rays. With elements becoming finer, it has been tried to enhance NA of stepper lens or to use a light source of short wavelength, but there is the defect that focus depth becomes smaller. Furthermore, for fining of pattern size of LSI device and production of ASIC, electron beam lithography is used. For fine pattern formation by this electron beam lithography, positive type electron beam resists are essential. Among them, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) has been known to be highest in resolution, but this has the defect of low sensitivity. Therefore, recently, there have been made many reports to enhance the sensitivity of positive type electron beam resists and there have been proposed positive type electron resists such as, for example, polybutyl methacrylate, a copolymer of methyl methacrylate and methacrylic acid, a copolymer of methacrylic acid and acrylonitrile, a copolymer of methyl methacrylate and isobutylene, polybutene-1-sulfone, polyisopropenyl ketone, and fluoro polymethacrylate. In these resists, scission of principal chain by electron beam can be easily conducted by introducing electron withdrawing group into side chain or by introducing easily decomposable bond into principal chain and thus enhancement of sensitivity is aimed at, but they still do not fully satisfy both the resolution and sensitivity.
Furthermore, electron beam lithography suffers from the problems such as low dry etch resistance of electron beam resists, influence on the pattern accuracy by proximity effect caused by forward scattering and back scattering of electron and influence on pattern writing due to charging of incident electron. For solving these problems, multi-layer resist method according to which action of resist is divided to pattern forming layer and planerizing layer is very effective method. FIG. 6 is a flow sheet which explains tri-layer resist process in electron beam lithography. On a semiconductor substrate 1, an organic film of 2-3 .mu.m is coated as bottom layer 41 for inhibiting proximity effect, then an inorganic film such as SiO.sub.2 or SOG (spin on glass) is coated thereon as intermediate layer 42, electron beam resist 43 is coated as a top layer and furthermore, aluminum film 44 is vapor deposited thereon at a thickness of about 100 .ANG. for inhibiting charging [FIG. 6A]. After exposure, aluminum layer 44 is removed with an aqueous alkaline solution, followed by development [FIG. 6B]. Then, dry etching of intermediate layer 42 is performed using the resulting resist pattern as a mask [FIG. 6C]. Then, dry etching of bottom layer 41 is performed using the intermediate layer as a mask [FIG. 6D]. By using the above-mentioned tri-resist process, fine pattern of high aspect ration can be formed. It is possible to carry out a simple double-layer resist process by using a resist possessing the actions of both the top layer and the intermediate layer of the above tri-layer resist. FIGS. 7A-7D are a flow chart which explains the double-layer resist process. An organic film is formed as bottom film 51 and a silicon-containing resist 52 high in dry etch resistance is formed as a top layer [FIG. 7A]. After exposure and development [FIG. 7B], the bottom layer is subjected to dry etching using the top layer resist pattern as a mask [FIG. 7C]. In this way, the double-layer resist process can form fine pattern with higher through-put as compared with tri-layer resist process.
However, the silicon-containing resist high in dry etch resistance which is used in the double-layer resist is mainly negative type and is inferior in resolution owing to swelling caused by development and besides is low in sensitivity and hence cannot be practically used. Especially, due to charging effect, as shown by the surface SEM photograph of FIG. 7D, field butting error occurs to cause breaking of pattern. Such breaking of pattern also occurs in the tri-layer resist if the aluminum thin film is not present. That is, according to the electron beam exposure, area A is scanned with electron beam in the manner as shown by arrow O and then area B is scanned in the manner as shown by arrow P. In this case, if charging occurs, the resist pattern after development is broken (field butting error) between areas A and B. The resist patterns in areas A ad B must essentially be in connected state. Moreover, the tri-layer resist process is much complicated in steps and have many problems such as defect and difficulty in control of pattern size and is difficult to put to practice.
Furthermore, in electron beam lithography, it becomes important to form an image reversal pattern. Therefore, at present, image reversal image is formed by using a negative type electron beam resist or by baking or treatment with ammonia vapor after exposure.
However, negative type resist is low in resolution and it is difficult to form fine resist pattern. Further, formation of image reversal pattern by post-treatment after exposure is apt to be affected by the conditions of the post-treatment and control of pattern size is difficult.
As explained above, the double-layer resist process is a very effective method, but has problems in the resists used. That is, the materials must be high in dry etch resistance and act as a resist. Resists used at present as top layer of double-layer resist include organopolysiloxane or organopolysilane type silicon-containing resists. However, these resists are not so high in both the sensitivity and the resolution and besides are not sufficiently high in dry etch resistance.
When image reversal pattern is formed by electron beam lithography, negative type resist is inferior in resolution due to swelling or formation of whisker during development treatment and sensitivity is also not so high. Formation of reversal pattern by the post-treatment after exposure is affected by the conditions of the post-treatment and control of size of pattern is difficult and besides this reversal pattern can be formed only with specific resists. Furthermore, dry etch resistance of positive type electron beam resist is extremely low and etching of substrate cannot be performed with single-layer electron beam resist.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A food processor includes a base and a bowl with a removable lid. Food items are advanced into the bowl through a feed tube formed in the lid where they are cut by a cutting assembly driven by a motor. The cutting assembly is adjustable to vary the thickness of the cut food items. The food processor includes an adjustment assembly that is operable to adjust the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly while the cutting assembly is driven by the motor.

A food processing device is a motorized domestic appliance for manipulating (e.g., chopping, slicing, dicing, shredding, grating, or blending) food items. Such an appliance includes a bowl with a removable lid. Food items are inserted into the bowl through a feed tube formed in the lid where they are cut by motor-driven cutting tool and collected in the bottom of the bowl. Some food processors also include an outlet on the bowl that guides the processed food items into an outside bin, container, or other bowl.
Food processors typically come equipped with a number of interchangeable cutting tools for slicing, shredding, or other food processing operations. One common cutting tool is a rotating disk-type cutter. Such a cutting tool includes a rotating disk and a cutting blade that are driven by the motor. The cutting blade is secured to the rotating disk at a location adjacent to an aperture formed in the disk so that processed food items cut by the blade fall through the aperture.

Food processing device with lid mounted adjustment mechanism


In some embodiments, an image manipulation application receives a two-dimensional background image and projects the background image onto a sphere to generate a sphere image. Based on the sphere image, an unfilled environment map containing a hole area lacking image content can be generated. A portion of the unfilled environment map can be projected to an unfilled projection image using a map projection. The unfilled projection image contains the hole area. A hole filling model is applied to the unfilled projection image to generate a filled projection image containing image content for the hole area. A filled environment map can be generated by applying an inverse projection of the map projection on the filled projection image and by combining the unfilled environment map with the generated image content for the hole area of the environment map.

Some image manipulation applications provide functions that allow a user to combine a two-dimensional ("2D") background image with three-dimensional ("3D") objects to generate a composed image showing the 3D objects positioned in an environment illustrated by the 2D background image. To create photorealistic composed images, a spherical environment can be created to provide a visual impression that the 3D objects are surrounded by a realistic environment. A 360-degree panoramic image depicting the spherical environment surrounding the 3D objects is referred to herein as an "environment map."
Creating an environment map, however, is challenging. One of the reasons is that the input 2D background image, based on which the environment map is to be generated, typically contains much less information than an ideal environment map would require. For example, the input 2D background image is typically taken by a camera with a limited field of view, from a particular angle, and at a certain aspect ratio. As a result, the 2D background image contains only a small portion of the actual environment surrounding the camera. Generating the environment map based on such a 2D background image would require extrapolating or creating image content that cannot be observed from the input 2D background image.

Environment map generation and hole filling


A mobile terminal including a touch screen and a proximity sensor and a method of controlling the mobile terminal are provided. The method includes displaying an image on the touch screen; if a touch signal for the image is received, displaying an image-editing menu; choosing one of a plurality of image-editing functions from the image-editing menu; and selecting a ‘detailed settings’ mode for the chosen image-editing function in response to a proximity signal output by the proximity sensor and performing the chosen image-editing function on the image. Accordingly, it is possible to perform various image-editing control operations using the proximity sensor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and a method of controlling the mobile terminal, and more particularly, to a mobile terminal using a proximity sensor and a method of controlling the mobile terminal in which various image-editing operations can be effectively controlled using the proximity sensor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile terminals are portable devices, which can provide users with various services such as a voice calling service, a video calling service, an information input/output service, and a data storage service.
As the types of services provided by mobile terminals diversify, an increasing number of mobile terminals have been equipped with various complicated functions such as capturing photos or moving pictures, playing music files or moving image files, providing game programs, receiving broadcast programs and providing wireless internet services and have thus evolved into multimedia players.
Various attempts have been made to realize such complicated functions as hardware devices or software programs. For example, various user interface (UI) environments, in which users are allowed to easily search for and choose desired functions, have been developed. In addition, the demand for various designs for mobile terminals such as a double-sided liquid crystal display (LCD) or a full touch screen has steadily grown due to a growing tendency of considering mobile terminals as personal items that can represent personal individuality.
However, there is a restriction in allocating sufficient space for a UI (such as a display device or a keypad) of a mobile terminal without compromising the mobility and the portability of a mobile terminal. Therefore, in order to efficiently use various functions provided by a mobile terminal, it is necessary to develop new data input methods that can replace existing complicated menu-based data input methods and thus to effectively control the operation of a mobile terminal.

Mobile terminal using proximity sensor and method of controlling the mobile terminal


A host device is connected via universal serial bus (USB) connections to one or more external devices with respective speakers. The host device synchronizes playback of audio through the speakers of the USB-connected external devices by requiring devices to implement a deterministic latency between receipt of a start playback request, and requiring devices to slave their audio clocks to USB start-of-frame tokens, and determining a buffered start time for starting data transmission to the respective USB devices. The buffered time equates to the current time of the USB host plus an additional time buffer. The host device waits until the buffered start time, and then starts transmitting the audio stream to the external devices, which, in turn, begin playing the audio data on the next available clock cycle, frame, or microframe.

Speakers are being included in more and more devices in the personal computing era. When a user has multiple audio speakers attached to a single audio source, such as a personal computer (PC), the user typically only selects one group speakers to be used, either by default or for specific applications. For example, a user's computer may be connected to internal computer speakers, external wireless speakers, television speakers, stereo speakers, and a whole host of external speakers. Today, computers are equipped with several input/output ports for wired connections and drivers for wireless connections (e.g., BLUETOOTH®, ZIGBEE®, and the like), extending the capability of conventional computers to easily connect with external speaker systems that facilitate various needs. A user may wish to hear audio for a video chat out of the PC's speakers, listen to music through a separate wireless speaker, and listen to television through television speakers—while all of these speaker systems are connected to the user's PC.
As device form factors change in the computing industry, next-generation technology has started moving applications off of the PC and onto larger monitor-like displays (e.g., the SURFACE HUB™ manufactured by the MICROSOFT CORPORATION® headquartered in Redmond, Wash.). These intelligent monitors include a host of multimedia applications and their own set of stereo speakers, and the monitors can typically be connected to each other to create an immersive user experience. Several monitors may be connected together along a wall, and video may be across all of the interconnected monitors to resemble a single, larger screen. With each interconnected monitor having its own speakers, creating an immersive audio experience for the corresponding video extended across interconnected monitors becomes challenging.
Management of large arrays of speakers are typically only found in the professional audio space. But such configurations typically have specialized hardware that distributes a clock source from a single point out to each speaker/amplifier/device that is part of a signal chain. Conventionally, the clock is distributed using digital data transmission methods that embed clock signals in a master-slave configuration such as Integrated Inter-IC Sound Bus (I2S), Sony/Phillips Digital Interface (SPDIF), or the like. Traditionally, these configurations use timecodes (e.g., Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) timecodes) to control a clock across multiple speakers. These techniques require specialized hardware that is both expensive and requires a skilled installer/operator, making them impractical and non-intelligent for the masses. As such, these approaches are typically limited to commercial or other high-cost venues.

Architecture for USB-synchronized array of speakers