The present invention describes an improved process for the preparation, isolation, and purification of the anti-ulcer agent omeprazole whereby the sulfide precursor pyrmetazole is reacted subsurfacely with exactly one molar equivalent of meta-chloroperoxybenzoic acid in a chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbon or aromatic hydrocarbon solvent, such as methylene chloride or toluene; residual organic solvent is removed from the aqueous layer by vacuum distillation; crude product is obtained by reactive crystallization with an alkyl formate or formic acid solution and seeding; and pure product is isolated by recrystallization in methanol-water containing aqueous NaOH by subsurface addition of aqueous acetic acid to pH 9.0, seeding, filtration, washing, and drying. Omeprazole and compositions of omeprazole containing no chromatographically detectable levels of residual non-alcoholic organic reaction solvent and diminished levels of alcoholic solvent are also described.

Omeprazole, the generic name for 5-methoxy-2-[[(4-methoxy-3,5-dimethyl-2-pyridinyl)methyl]sulfinyl]-1H-benz imidazole (denoted as Formula I below) is a well-described gastric proton-pump inhibitor and is on the market as LOSEC.RTM. or PRILOSEC.RTM. for the treatment of gastric and duodenal ulcers, gastritis, duodenitis, and reflux esophagitis (see Merck Index, 12th Ed., entry 6977, and references cited therein). Omeprazole is commercially prepared via a multi-step sequence, the last step of which is oxidation of the sulfide intermediate, 5-methoxy-[[(4-methoxy-3,5-dimethyl-2-pyridinyl)methyl]thiol]-1H-benzimida zole (denoted as Formula II below), known generically as pyrmetazole, which is typically effected with a peroxy acid, such as meta-chloroperoxybenzoic acid (hereinafter referred to as MCPBA) (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,255,431; 5,386,032; and EPO 484,265), magnesium monoperoxyphthalate (MMPP) (U.S. Pat. No. 5,391,752), or peroxyacetic acid (WO 98/09962), in a suitable non-alcoholic organic reaction solvent. ##STR1##
Oxidants other than peroxyacids have also been used for the oxidation of pyrmetazole to omeprazole. EPO 302,720 utilizes aqueous hydrogen peroxide in the presence of a vanadium catalyst, Spanish application No. ES 550,070 discloses periodate as the oxidant, and Spanish applications No. ES 539,793 and ES 540,147 describe iodosobenzene and 3-methyliodosobenzene, respectively. A photooxidative method is disclosed in GB 2,239,453.
Reduction of omeprazole-N-oxide to omeprazole is described in WO 98/40377 and WO 98/40378.
The preferred oxidizing agent is usually MCPBA, and suitable non-alcoholic organic reaction solvents include aromatic hydrocarbon solvents, such as benzene and toluene or a mixture thereof, and chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbon solvents, such as chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethane, and methylene chloride or a mixture thereof, in admixture with an alcoholic solvent, such as methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, or 1-butanol. The preferred non-alcoholic organic reaction solvent is usually chloroform, methylene chloride, or toluene, and the preferred alcoholic solvent is ethanol.
Prior processes to omeprazole have numerous disadvantages that limit both the yield and the purity of the final product.
A significant drawback of such prior methods is incomplete oxidative conversion of pyrmetazole into omeprazole as well as over-oxidation. Two such by-products of over-oxidation are the sulfone of structural formula V and the sulfone-N-oxide of structural formula VI. Incomplete and over-oxidation, characteristic of the previous methods, arise from ineffective control over the amount of the oxidizing agent as well as the manner in which the oxidizing agent is charged into the reaction vessel. Prior methods do not use accurately determined amounts of the oxidizing agent and do not provide for careful control of its addition to the reaction mixture. Incomplete and over-oxidation both contribute to the presence of impurities and loss of yield of the final desired product. ##STR2##

Omerazole process and compositions thereof


Methods and systems are disclosed for the hydrolysis of mixed biomass. The methods include forming a mixture of at least two modified biomass feedstocks to achieve various benefits, such as maximizing sugar yields and minimizing the formation of degradation products.

There has been increasing interest in converting cellulosic biomass to fuels or other chemicals. There are many biomass conversion processes, including acid hydrolysis, enzymatic hydrolysis, and gasification. One biomass conversion process gaining traction is hydrothermal treatment, which typically includes a first step of contacting a biomass with hot compressed water, with or without an acid catalyst. This step typically enables the extraction and hydrolysis of hemicellulosic sugars and, in under certain conditions, the hydrolysis of cellulose to sugars. Depending on the time and temperature of the treatment, and the catalyst loading (if used), the hemicellulosic sugars are either partially or completely extracted. Subsequent steps may include further treatment of the remaining unconverted biomass (e.g., cellulose), as well as transformation of the extracted sugars from the first step into ethanol or other useful chemicals.
In the first step of this process, hemicellulose typically is converted to monomeric and oligomeric sugars, such as xylose, xylo-oligosaccharides, rhamnose, arabinose, galactose, and mannose. The ratio of oligomers-to-monomers varies depending on the severity of the reaction (e.g., the time, pressure and temperature history, and the catalyst amount, if used). The reaction also generates by-products and/or degradation products, such as acetic acid, furfural, hydroxylmethyl furfural (HMF), and organic acids, such as formic acid and levulinic acid.
In the pulp and paper industry, biomass processing methods are designed to extract the hemicellulose and most of the lignin from the lignocellulosic biomass by the addition of chemicals (e.g., using the Kraft process or sulfite process), leaving most of the cellulose behind. Typically no measures are taken to maximize the yield of sugars extracted (e.g., xylose and/or xylo-oligosaccharides), because the focus of these technologies is on producing cellulose for making paper or paper products. Moreover, many processes employ chemicals to facilitate the extraction or recovery of cellulose, but these processes are more expensive than those that do not employ chemicals. Even in situations where it may be desirable to maximize the extraction yield of hemicellulosic sugars, such methods are only optimized for one biomass feedstock.
In order to sustain large production rates of sugars derived from biomass and the subsequent ethanol production, it may be necessary to mix different biomasses for processing. Utilizing mixtures of different biomasses for processing presents a significant challenge for conversion to sugars, especially for hemicelluloses extraction. Different biomasses hydrolyze at different rates, and the hydrolysis rate may depend on a variety of factors. If mixtures of biomass are hydrolyzed without accounting for the large variability in hydrolysis rates of the component biomasses in the mixture, the sugar yields will be lower than the potential maximum yields, and the production of degradation products typically will be increased.
Thus, there is an ongoing need for methods for maximizing sugar yields from mixtures of biomass. The methods of the present invention are directed toward these, as well as other, important ends.
It will be appreciated that this background description has been created by the inventors to aid the reader and is not to be taken as an indication that any of the indicated problems were themselves appreciated in the art. While the described principles can, in some aspects and embodiments, alleviate the problems inherent in other systems, it will be appreciated that the scope of the protected innovation is defined by the attached claims and not by the ability of any disclosed feature to solve any specific problem noted herein.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A chroma subsampling having reduced artifacts is achieved by detecting high contrast areas in a luminance channel of an image to be chroma subsampled so as to partition the image into a first region composed of the high contrast areas and a second region distinct from the first region, with chroma subsampling the image in the first region using a first chroma subsampler and chroma subsampling the image in the second region using a second chroma subsampler, with the first chroma subsampler having a higher edge preserving property than compared to the second chroma subsampler. Thereby, bleeding artifacts may be avoided at least partially, while the saturation of the image may be substantially preserved.

Traditional low dynamic range (LDR) image and video coding schemes utilize color spaces like YCbCr with one luminance and two chrominance channels and subsampling of the chrominance channels to exploit the fact that the human eye is less sensitive to chroma variations than to luminance variations.
For high dynamic range (HDR) video an adaptive LogLuv color space has been proposed in [1]. Here it is possible to subsample the u and v chrominance channels as well.
However, especially in HDR images and video, edges with every high contrast may occur, i.e. areas with very high luminance next to areas with very low luminance. At such edges, artifacts due to the chroma subsampling can become visible.
FIG. A shows a tone map HDR image after a chroma subsampling with filters according to [2] and upsampling with filters according to [3]. Color bleeding artifacts are clearly visible at portions highlighted with a rectangle and indicated in an enlarged manner beside the image, namely at the rim of the flower pot and between the blades of the blind. These artifacts basically occur because chroma values from dark and bright regions get mixed-up during the process of chroma subsampling and upsampling.

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.


Tensile stress is applied to the channel region of an N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor by directly forming a material having a tensile stress, for example, tungsten, in the contact holes on the source region and drain region of the NMOS. Then, the dummy gate layer in the gate stack of the NMOS transistor is removed, so as to further reduce the counter force of the gate stack on the channel region, thereby increasing the tensile stress in the channel region, enhancing the drift mobility of the carrier, and improving the performance of the transistor. The present invention avoids using a separate stress layer to create tensile stress in the channel region of an NMOS transistor, which advantageously simplifies the transistor manufacturing process and improves sizes and performance of the transistor.

With the development of the semiconductor technology, integrated circuits with better performance and more powerful functions require a greater element density. Thus, the sizes of the elements and the spaces between the elements need to be scaled further.
However, the scaling of element sizes in an integrated circuit will inevitably impair the constant material properties and physical effects in the operation of the transistor or other components. Therefore, many new inventions have been introduced to the design of transistors so as to maintain the performances of the components at an appropriate level.
A significant effort to maintain performance of a field effect transistor is to enhance carrier mobility. When applying a voltage to a gate isolated from a channel through a very thin gate dielectric, the carrier mobility may affect the current that flows through the channel.
It is known that, based on the type of carriers and the direction of stress, a mechanical stress in a channel region of a field effect transistor (FET) may significantly increase or decrease the drift mobility of carriers. In an FET, a tensile stress may increase the electron drift mobility and decrease the hole drift mobility, which may advantageously improve the performance of an N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS); and, a compressive stress may increase the hole drift mobility and decrease the electron drift mobility, which may advantageously improve the performance of a P-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS). In the existing art, a considerable number of structures and materials have been proposed for including a tensile stress or compressive stress in a semiconductor material. For example, in US2006/0160317, there is provided a solution of increasing the carrier mobility in a channel by depositing a stress layer and selectively etching all or a part of gate layers in a Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET).
However, in the prior art, the drift mobility of carriers is changed generally by providing a separate stress layer or stress interface, which is disadvantageous for the continuous scaling of device sizes and leads to a complex manufacturing process. Furthermore, with the scaling of sizes of a semiconductor device, the size of channel regions is also reduced. Therefore, when a stress material expands, the added stress applied by the stressed material on the source and/or drain regions at opposing sides of the channel region is very limited. As a result, the performance of a MOSFET transistor, particularly of an N-type field effect transistor (N-FET), cannot be improved well, and accordingly, the performance of the complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) circuit is poor. Therefore, it is desired to provide a new method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, which is capable of increasing the carrier mobility in a channel region of an NMOS transistor without using a separate stress layer, and thereby decreasing sizes of the device and simplifying the manufacturing process.

Method for manufacturing an NMOS with improved carrier mobility

Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences


Disclosed are a heterogeneous network switching method, device and system, relating to the technique of communication. When a network-side device such as a base station determines that a UE needs to be switched into a non-3GPP network, switch signaling carrying switch indication information is sent to the UE; the switch indication information is used for instructing the UE to switch some of or all of the bearers from a 3GPP network to a non-3GPP network, so that the UE can switch some of all of the bearers from a 3GPP network to a non-3GPP network according to the switch indication information, thus realizing heterogeneous network switching initiated by a network side.

Along with the growing demands of subscribers and the developing communication technologies, more and more wireless communication technologies and related networks are emerging, e.g., the 2G/3G/4G mobile communication technologies and network capable of providing wide coverage, so there are a large number of emerging scenarios in which different types of communication networks coexist, e.g., a scenario in which the 2G/3G/4G networks coexist the WLAN network.
Methods of a User Equipment (UE) performing switching in various scenarios will be introduced below in details.
1. There is a scenario in which the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UNITS)/Long Term Evolution (LTE) network coexists with the WLAN network.
The Evolved Packet System (EPS) is a system which supports various access technologies and mobility between them. In the multi-access scenario, the UE may be covered jointly by a number of 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and/or non-3GPP access networks. These access networks may operate with different access technologies, may be served by different operators and also may provide accesses to different core networks. FIG. 1 illustrates the scenario in which the UMTS/LTE network coexists with the WLAN network, where there are a number of Access Points (APs) in coverage areas of base stations of the UMTS/LTE networks (a Node B in the UMTS network and an evolved Node B (eNB) in the LTE network), and coverage areas of the access points are smaller than those of the base stations,
FIG. 2 illustrates a currently supported network architecture in which the UMTS/LTE network interoperates with the WLAN network. In this architecture, the network intemperate can be completed via an S2c interface between a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway and the UE. At present the UNITS/LTE network interoperates with the WEAN network generally in a UE-based scheme.
2. There is a scenario in which traffic is offloaded through the WLAN network.
In the existing heterogeneous network scenario, traffic is offloaded for the UMTS/ETE network through the WLAN network, where there are generally two scenarios of seamless offloading and non-seamless offloading.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, seamless offloading refers to that there is a connection between the WLAN network and the 3GPP Core Network (CN), and traffic offloaded via the air interface still accesses the 3GPP (including UMTS/LTE) core network. As illustrated in FIG. 4, non-seamless offloading refers to that there is no connection between the WLAN network and the 3GPP Core Network (CN), and traffic offloaded via the air interface accesses the Internet directly without going through the 3GPP CN.
For offloading through the WLAN, a part of bearers of the UE may be transferred, or all the bearers of the UE may be transferred, and if a part of bearers of the UE are transferred, then the UE will be connected with both the UMTS/LTE network and the WLAN network; or if all the bearers of the UE are transferred, then the UE will be connected with only the WLAN network after they are transferred.
Further to the network scenarios and architecture above, there is an existing network selection mechanism enforced based upon the Access Network Discovery and Selection Function (ANDSF) policy. Here FIG. 5 illustrates the architecture of communication between the ANDSF and the UE, where the UE interacts with the ANDSF via an S14 interface which is an interface based upon the Internet Protocol (IP). The UE communicates with the ANDSF in both a pull mode and a push mode, where the UE pushes a request to the ANDSF on its own initiative in the former mode, and the ANDSF pushes a message on its own initiative in latter mode.
Based upon an operator policy, the ADNSF provides the UE with network discovery and selection related information including an Inter-System Mobility Policy (ISMP), Access Network Discovery Information (ANDI), and an Inter-System Routing Policy (ISRP), where:
The ISMP includes a series of operator defined rules and preferences, and this policy defines whether to allow inter-system mobility, the most appropriate type of access technology to access the Evolved Packet Core (EPC), different priorities of different access technologies, and other information. The ISMP can be preconfigured in the UE or can be transmitted when requested by the UE or can be pushed to the UE by the ANDSF under some trigger. For example the ANDSF can issue a policy with the priority of the WLAN network being higher than that of the LTE network, so that the WLAN system will be selected preferentially for an access when the UE is covered by both of the networks.
The ANDI can provide the UE with a list of available access networks, proximate to the UE, of a requested access type, and related parameters, e.g., access technologies (e.g., WLAN, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, WiMAX, etc.), radio access network identifiers, carrier frequencies, etc.
The ISRP includes some information required for inter-system routing, and for a UE with multiple radio access interfaces, e.g., a UE supporting IP Flow Mobility (IFOM) or Multi-Access PDN Connectivity (MAPCON), the information can be used to determine: a) over which of the available access networks to transmit data when a particular routing condition is satisfied; and b) when to prohibit an access to some access network for a particular IP data flow and/or a particular Access Point Name (APN).
Typically the ANDSF selects the ISMP, the ANDI and the ISRP to be provided to the UE, as required by the operator and according to a roaming protocol, and the ANDSF can provide all these three policies or can provide only a part of the policies. The ANDSF can interact with some database in the operator network, e.g., a Home Subscriber Server (HSS), etc., to retrieve information as required.
When the UE receives information about an available access network with a higher priority than that of the current access network, the UE shall perform a discovery and reselection procedure to the access network with the higher priority if this is allowed by the user. When the UE selects the access network automatically, the UE can not access the EPC through an access network marked in the ISMP as prohibited.
Apparently there is only a UE-based method but no network-based method for switching between the UMTS/LTE and WLAN networks at present. The UE-based solutions generally switch between the networks under a semi-static policy so that the UE may be switched even if the network condition is not appropriate, thus resulting in a degraded experience, and even a dropped call, of the user.

Heterogeneous network switching method, device and system

China Academy of Telecommunications Technology


In an ADM device, first and second modulators and first and second demodulators are provided as a mod/demod device for radio communication, first to fourth SDH interface circuits and first and second SDH mapping/demapping circuits are provided for processing SDH signals, and path switching is performed by means of first and second signal branch circuits and first and second signal switches to enable simultaneous processing of both modulated signals and SDH signals. This configuration eliminates the need for outside mod/demod devices for radio communication when forming a radio network and therefore reduces the cost of constructing a system. In addition, the ability to simultaneously process modulated signals and SDH signals enables the simultaneous construction of an optical and radio network.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an SDH add-drop multiplexer for adding, dropping, or passing through a signal of any channel of SDH (Synchronous Digital Hierarchy) signals in which signals of a plurality of channels have been multiplexed.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, SDH (Synchronous Digital Hierarchy), which is standardized in ITU-T (International Telecommunications Union-Telecommunication Standardization Sector) and the ITU-R (ITU-Radio Communication sector), has come to be used as the standard of communication networks that are used in, for example, microwave communication systems. However, transmission standards known as PDH (Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy) existed before this SDH was standardized.
In a PDH system in which PDH was used as the communication network standard, a signal that is to be transmitted is transmitted after first being converted to an SDH signal of, for example, an STM (Synchronous Transport Module)-1. In an SDH system in which SDH is used as the standard of a communication network, a signal that is to be transmitted is transmitted after first being converted to a PDH signal such as E1/T1.
STM-1 is one of the transmission units that are defined in SDH, and is a signal having a transmission speed of 155.52 Mbps. An E1 signal is the transmission unit in European hierarchy standards, and is a signal having a transmission speed of 2.048 Mbps. A T1 signal is the transmission unit in the hierarchy standards of North America and Japan and is a signal having a transmission speed of 1.544 Mbps.
An SDH signal that is used in this SDH system is a signal in which a plurality of channels have been multiplexed, and therefore requires the use of a total of two coaxial cables, one for input and one for output, for connecting two digital mod/demod devices. However, because a plurality of channels are multiplexed in a single signal, an SDH Add-Drop Multiplexer (hereinbelow abbreviated as "ADM") device is necessary for adding, dropping, or passing through the signal of any channel when dropping a portion of the channels or adding new channels midway.
The following explanation regards the circuit configuration of such an ADM device of the prior art with reference to FIG. 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, this ADM device is made up from: SDH interface circuits (SPI: SDH Physical Interfaces) 3, 4, 10, and 11; SDH demapping circuits 5 and 9; SDH mapping circuits 6 and 8; cross-connect circuit 7; and PDH interface circuits (LIU: Line Interface Units) 14 and 15.
SDH interface circuit 3 receives as input an SDH signal such as an STM-1 signal from SDH signal input terminal 1; extracts the clock signal from the SDH signal of CMI (Code Mark Inversion) coding format that has been received as input and then converts to data of NRZ (Non Return to Zero) format; and finally supplies the result together with the extracted clock signal as output to SDH demapping circuit 5 of the next stage.
The signal that is received as input from the SDH signal input terminal 1 is in some cases an electrical signal and in other cases an optical signal. This electrical signal and optical signal are signals determined according to the standards of ITU-T, an electrical signal being a signal prescribed by ITU-T G.703, and an optical signal being prescribed by ITU-T G.957.
Thus, when the signal that is received as input from SDH signal input terminal 1 is an optical signal, SDH interface circuit 3 performs optical/electrical conversion instead of CMI code conversion, and supplies the data and clock that are obtained to SDH demapping circuit 5 of the next stage.
SDH demapping circuit 5 receives as input the data signal and clock signal that are supplied from SDH interface circuit 3, separates the signals of the plurality of channels that are multiplexed in this data signal, and supplies output to cross-connect circuit 7. For example, SDH demapping circuit 5 separates the signal from SDH interface circuit 3 into signals of 63 channels having a transmission speed of 2 Mbps and supplies the result to cross-connect circuit 7.
SDH mapping circuit 6 receives as input the clock signal and the digital signal of a plurality of channels that are supplied from cross-connect circuit 7; maps the digital signal of a plurality of channels based on a mapping method that is prescribed by ITU-T G.707; and supplies the result together with the clock signal to SDH interface circuit 4.
SDH interface circuit 4 converts the data signal and clock signal that are supplied from SDH mapping circuits 6 and 8 to an interface format (CMI coding format) that is prescribed by ITU-T G.703 and supplies the result as output from SDH signal output terminal 2. When the signal that is received as input from SDH mapping circuit 6 is an optical signal, SDH interface circuit 4 similarly converts to an optical signal of an interface format prescribed by G.957 and supplies the result as output.
The operations of SDH interface circuits 10 and 11, SDH mapping circuit 8, and SDH demapping circuit 9 are the same as the operations of SDH interface circuits 3 and 4, SDH mapping circuit 6, and SDH demapping circuit 5, respectively, and an explanation of these operations is therefore here omitted.
When SDH signal input terminals 1 and 13 and SDH signal output terminals 2 and 12 are used only for connection between devices, the interface standards may be original.
PDH interface circuit 15 receives a PDH baseband signal from PDH baseband signal input terminal 17 and converts to a digital signal of a format that allows processing in cross-connect circuit 7. More specifically, the PDH baseband signal that is received as input from PDH baseband input terminal 17 is a signal having a bipolar coding format, and PDH interface circuit 15 therefore extracts the clock signal from the PDH baseband signal that is received as input, converts the signal of bipolar format to a signal of unipolar format, and supplies the clock signal and signal that has been converted to unipolar format as output to cross-connect circuit 7.
PDH interface circuit 14 receives as input the unipolar signal and clock signal that are supplied from cross-connect circuit 7, converts the unipolar signal to a bipolar coding format, and supplies the result as output from PDH baseband signal output terminal 16.
Cross-connect circuit 7 is a circuit for switching paths by channel units for a signal of a plurality of channels that is received. More specifically, cross-connect circuit 7 branches (drops) and supplies to PDH interface circuit 14 a signal of a specific channel in signals of a plurality of channels that are received as input from SDH demapping circuits 5 and 9, inserts (adds) the signal that is received as input from PDH interface circuit 15 to the signals of the other channels, and supplies the result to SDH mapping circuits 6 and 8, respectively.
FIG. 2 next shows a system diagram for a case in which the ADM device of the prior art that is shown in FIG.1 is used to make up an optical ring network. As shown in FIG. 2, this optical ring network is configured by connecting the four relay stations A, B, C, and D in a ring by means of optical cables 121-124. Each of stations A, B, C, and D is formed by ADM devices 131-134 of the configuration that is shown in FIG. 1.
ADM devices 131-134 of the configuration that is shown in FIG. 1 are of a configuration that can pass PDH signals through, or add PDH signals to or drop PDH signals from SDH signals that are received as input, and when an optical ring network is to be made up by these ADM devices 131-134, the SDH signal input/output terminals need only be connected by optical cables 121-124.
In a communication network system such as shown in FIG. 2, relay stations are connected together by optical cable, but in some cases, a radio ring network is used in which the relay stations are each connected by radio lines. A communication network that uses such a radio ring network is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-2000-165391.
FIG. 3 shows a system diagram for a case in which ADM devices of the prior art that is shown in FIG. 1 are used to form a radio ring network. As shown in FIG. 3, this radio ring network has a configuration in which the four relay stations A, B, C, and D are connected by radio lines in a ring. Station A is made up from ADM device 131, mod/demod devices (MD) 135 and 136, transmitter-receivers (TR) 105 and 106, and antennas 113 and 114. Station B is made up from ADM device 132, mod/demod devices (MD) 137 and 138, transmitter-receivers (TR) 107 and 108, and antennas 115 and 116. Station C is made up from ADM device 133, mod/demod devices (MD) 139 and 140, transmitter-receivers (TR) 109 and 110, and antennas 117 and 118. Station D is made up from ADM device 134, mod/demod devices (MD) 141 and 142, transmitter-receivers (TR) 111 and 112, and antennas 119 and 120.
In the radio ring network that is shown in FIG. 3, ADM devices 131-134 have a circuit configuration for the relay of SDH signals, and in order to make up a radio network, mod/demod devices 135-142 are necessary for converting the SDH signals from ADM devices 131-134 to modulated signals and supplying these signals to transmitter-receivers 105-112 and for converting the demodulated signals from transmitter-receivers 105-112 to SDH signals. FIG. 4 shows the configuration of these mod/demod devices 135-142.
As shown in FIG. 4, mod/demod devices 135-142 are each made up from: SDH interface circuits (SPI) 53 and 54, SDH demapping circuit 55, SDH mapping circuit 56, signal multiplexer (MUX) 64, signal demultiplexer (DeMUX) 72, transmission digital processing unit (TDPU) 62, reception digital processing unit (RDPU) 70, modulator (MOD) 60, and demodulator (DEM) 68; and each subject an SDH signal that is received as input from SDH signal input terminal 51 to SDH demapping, signal multiplexing, transmission digital processing, and modulation to supply the signal from modulated signal output terminal 58; or subject a modulated signal that is received as input from modulated signal input terminal 66 to demodulation, reception digital processing, signal demultiplexing, and SDH mapping to supply the signal from SDH signal output terminal 52.
The processing in SDH interface circuits 53 and 54, SDH demapping circuit 55, and SDH mapping circuit 56 is the same as the processing in SDH interface circuits 3 and 4, SDH demapping circuit 5, and SDH mapping circuit 6, respectively, that are shown in FIG. 1, and explanation is therefore here omitted.
Signal multiplexer 64 multiplexes a data signal that is received as input from SDH demapping circuit 55 and having a transmission speed of 2 Mbps.
Transmission digital processing unit 62 subjects the multiplexed digital signal that is received as input from signal multiplexer 64 to both speed conversion for adding redundant bits (for example, error correction bits) that are characteristic to a radio interval and row conversion that corresponds to the modulation mode of modulator 60.
Modulator 60 modulates the digital signal that is received as input from transmission digital processing unit 62 and supplies the obtained modulated signal from modulated signal output terminal 58.
Demodulator 68 demodulates the modulated signal that is received as input from modulated signal input terminal 66 to convert the signal to a digital signal and supplies the obtained digital signal to reception digital processing unit 70.
Reception digital processing unit 70 receives the digital signal from demodulator 68 and subjects the signal to digital processing that corresponds to the digital processing that was performed in transmission digital processing unit 62 on the opposite side of the radio link.
Signal demultiplexer 72 demultiplexes the data signal that is received as input from reception digital processing unit 70 into a digital signal of a plurality of rows and supplies the obtained digital signal to SDH mapping circuit 56.
As described in the foregoing explanation, the ADM device of the prior art having the configuration shown in FIG. 1 has only SDH signal input/output terminals 1, 2, 12, and 13 as terminals for receiving and supplying signals that are to be relayed, and therefore, the outside provision of mod/demod devices 135-142 and transmitter-receivers 105-112 is necessary when this ADM device is used to construct a radio network as shown in FIG. 3.
However, as can be seen from a comparison of FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, when SDH signal output terminal 12 and SDH signal input terminal 51 are connected and SDH signal input terminal 11 and SDH signal output terminal 52 are connected, SDH mapping circuit 8, SDH demapping circuit 9, and SDH interface circuits 10 and 11 in the ADM device duplicate the functions of SDH interface circuits 53 and 54, SDH demapping circuit 55, and SDH mapping circuit 56 in the mod/demod device; resulting in the disadvantage of increased cost for configuring the system.
Based on the circuit configuration of the ADM device that is shown in FIG. 1, it is believed that this disadvantage can be prevented by adopting a configuration in which SDH mapping circuit 8, SDH demapping circuit 9, and SDH interface circuits 10 and 11 are independent. However, because the connections between cross-connect circuit 7, and SDH mapping circuit 8 or SDH demapping circuit 9 are signals of a plurality of rows, adopting a device in which SDH mapping circuit 8, SDH demapping circuit 9, and SDH interface circuits 10 and 11 are separate configurations necessitates many cables to interconnect devices and thus has the counterproductive result of increasing costs. In particular, constructing an optical ring network as shown in FIG. 2 results in excessive additional cable connections in each relay station and increases the cost of building the system.
In addition, data back-up may be performed for data of both an optical network and radio network to ensure data transmission even in the event of problems on the network such as disconnection of an optical cable and thus improve the reliability of a system. In an ADM device of the prior art, however, connecting a mod/demod device to SDH input/output terminals prevents the construction of an optical network, and using an ADM device of the prior art when backing up optical and radio networks therefore necessitated completely separate system configurations for each of the optical system and radio system.

SDH add-drop multiplexer that can realize both optical and radio networks by the same device


The reactivity of aromatic copolyamide fiber and film is enhanced by incorporation of small amounts of 4,4'-diaminodiphenic acid units in the polymer chain.

This invention relates to high strength fibers of p-aramids having pendant carboxyl groups. The presence of these pendant groups imparts properties to the polymer and fibers or films thereof such as would enhance their reactivity, improve adhesion to matrix materials in reinforced composite structures or provide other characteristics.
The commercial importance of fiber reinforced composites has long been recognized. While the adhesion between certain reinforcing fibers and matrix polymer is excellent, others require the use of so-called "coupling agents" in order to improve the level of strength achieved through reinforcement. In some instances the use of coupling agents has not been satisfactory. Poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) fiber finds extensive use as a reinforcement in composite structures. In accordance with this invention, the introduction of certain monomeric units in specified proportions in the polymer chain may reduce or eliminate the need for coupling agents in particular applications.

High strength fiber or film of aromatic copolyamide with pendant carboxyl groups


A porous catalyst support which may be used in a catalytic converter for treating automotive exhaust gases. The support comprises a substrate having a multichannel structure of generally thin walls and washcoat particles of colloidal particle size mainly or wholly within the pores of the walls so as to increase open frontal area and reduce back pressure. Substrate is either ceramic or metal. In a ceramic substrate with microcracks in the walls, the washcoat colloidal dispersion is free of soluble inorganic constituents and the particles do not fill the microcracks so as to prevent undesirable increase in thermal expansion and corresponding decrease in thermal shock resistance.

The field of the invention is catalyst devices each of which comprise a multichannel or honeycomb, porous walled, substrate containing a high surface area oxide washcoat as the support for metal catalyst dispersed on and bonded to the washcoat. Such devices with noble metal catalyst are useful for catalytically converting pollutants in the exhaust gas emitted by an internal combustion engine.
In such field it is commonly and commercially known to provide a washcoat layer on the wall surfaces of the porous walled substrate. The surface area of the washcoat is desirably greater than 50 m.sup.2 /g (or more likely 100 m.sup.2 /g) and preferably at least 150 or 200 m.sup.2 /g. Such substrate is usually a porous ceramic material, such as cordierite, but it can also be a porous metal material (in contrast to nonporous metal foil). These porous materials are customarily of relatively low surface area, e.g. less than 10 or 5 m.sup.2 /g (and, for some ceramic materials, less than 2 m.sup.2 /g), and formed by sintering plastically shaped or formed particulate materials that yield the porous ceramic or metal material of the substrate. Usually the substrate is formed by extrusion and sintering of a plasticized mixture, e.g. into a thin walled honeycomb as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,790,654 and 3,824,196. However, the multichannel substrate can be formed in any other useful configuration and by any other suitable process, e.g. as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,112,184. The washcoat is typically applied to the substrate by dipping the substrate in a slurry, usually in water, of oxide particles that will form the washcoat. Such slurry can also include a dissolved catalyst precursor compound, from which the precursor will adsorb and disperse on the particles, and that will decompose and yield the metal catalyst upon calcining or heat treating the washcoat to bind the latter to the substrate. Such heating also causes the metal catalyst to be dispersed and bonded on the washcoat.
Internal combustion engine performance, e.g. in an automobile, is related to the back pressure effect of the catalytic converter in the exhaust gas conduit extending from the combustion chambers of the engine. Such performance generally improves as the back pressure is decreased.
In order to decrease the back pressure and increase engine performance, the open frontal area (OFA) of the support, i.e. the aggregate open transverse cross sectional area of the flow-through channels or cells of the washcoated, multichannel or honeycomb substrate, should be increased. However, this approach until now has been hindered by problems and accommodated by less than the desired solution.
For example, such approach is limited on the one hand by the necessity of applying an adequate amount (i.e. not too thin layer) of washcoat for sufficient catalytic function of the device, and on the other hand by maintaining enough wall thickness for structural integrity of the support. A relatively great amount of high surface area oxide is necessary in order to accommodate a sufficient amount of noble metal catalyst dispersed and bonded thereon, which would not be provided by a decreased quantity of high surface area oxide layer.
A known approach to avoiding the washcoat layer taking up space in the channels or cells of the support is the manufacture of the substrate with the washcoat material mixed with the particulate material for the structural (e.g. ceramic) material so that the formed and sintered product is the catalyst support with the washcoat particles embedded in and distributed through the walls as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,637,995 and 4,657,880. A catalyst may subsequently be deposited on those washcoat particles. Additionally, such washcoat particles may have metal catalyst deposited on them before being mixed with particles of the structural material and embedded in the walls as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,317. In either form, the resulting catalyst device can be characterized as a catalyst-in-wall structure. To date, such a catalytic converter device has been found not to provide catalytic activities as good as catalytic converter devices with the conventional type of washcoat layer on the wall surfaces.
The washcoat materials known or accepted, prior to the new invention described herein, for suitable support of noble metal catalysts yielding desired catalytic activities generally contain substantial amounts of oxide particles having particle diameters greater than 1 .mu.m. As a consequence of such relatively large particles, it has not been possible to cause a substantial amount of the oxide particles of the washcoat to go into the pores of the walls of the flow-through channels of the porous supports so as to leave a thinner surface layer thereof on the walls of the substrate and thereby yield greater OFA. In typical multichannel or honeycomb substrates, the total open porosity, by volume, is in the approximate range of 5-50% (or more likely 5-25% for metal substrates and 30-45% for ceramic), and the average pore size is in the approximate range of 1-50 .mu.m (or more likely 3-10 .mu.m). Such pores are too small to enable adequate amounts of washcoat particles to enter them.
However, in regard to the back pressure problem, commercial efforts have been reasonably successful over the years in successively reducing the thickness of honeycomb substrate walls from about 0.3 mm to about 0.17 mm and recently to some extent to 0.1 mm. Such wall thickness reductions provide correspondingly increased OFA for substantially similar transverse cross sectional cell density in the supports. The latter efforts were made possible with new substrate material of some improved intrinsic strength to approximately offset loss of bulk strength with thickness reduction.
Some ceramic materials, e.g. cordierite and aluminum titanate plus mullite, of substrates are characterized by advantageously having microcracks in their structure. Such microcracks contribute to higher resistance to thermally induced cracking by allowing the thermally expanding material to reduce their widths, which lowers the overall (i.e. average) thermal expansion of the ceramic substrate material, and thereby avoid thermal stresses that otherwise would develop in the material. However, washcoating of such microcracked substrates can cause a serious problem. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,451,517 and 4,532,228 reveal that washcoats fill the microcracks and obstruct their beneficial function during thermal shock conditions. Such obstruction during repeated heating and cooling of the converter causes strains and cracking induced by thermal expansion of the substrate material that is not allowed to reduce the width of the obstructed microcracks. As the solution to this obstruction problem, these patents teach the filling of the microcracks with organic materials before applying the washcoat on the wall surfaces of the substrate, so that the washcoat cannot enter the microcracks, and then burning out the organic binder while calcining or heat treating the washcoat to bind it to the wall surfaces of the substrate.
These prior art teachings indicate that it should not be usefully possible to deposit a washcoat mainly in the pores of the walls of multichannel or honeycomb substrates and support a metal catalyst on the washcoat to effect catalytic activities at least comparable to the activities of conventionally washcoated converters known prior to the invention described herein.
In washcoating porous walled substrates with the prior known slurries of the high surface area oxide particles, where a substantial portion of those particles have particle diameters larger than 1 .mu.m, typical formulations of the slurries have desirably high solids content of spray dried boehmite or calcined gamma alumina and, consequently, are characterized by relatively high viscosity. In some cases the slurries include dissolved noble metal precursors or compounds. Such slurries behave in a conventional slip casting mode, wherein their composition and flow properties significantly change during the coating operation. Such behavior presents a problem. After dipping a number of the substrates in such slurry, a disproportionate amount of water is taken up by the substrates. The slurry remaining after washcoating a number of substrates is depleted of water such that its viscosity is too high for continued use in washcoating. It is often difficult to reclaim such depleted slurry as it is not always easy to add water to it in a manner to reconstitute the necessary uniform slurry composition with uniform viscosity.


A method and apparatus for a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) jet pump inlet mixer support that provides rigid support for inlet mixers. The inlet mixer support attaches to a conventional BWR jet pump assembly to pull the inlet mixer away from the centerline of a riser pipe or maintain the existing inlet mixer position. The inlet mixer support may provide redundant support that may otherwise be provided by set screws of a conventional restrainer assembly. The inlet mixer support may, alternatively, be used in lieu of conventional set screws. The inlet mixer support may also counter-act additional side loading that may be applied to inlet mixers to stabilize inlet mixer movement and vibration when the BWR jet pump assembly is in operation. Optionally, the inlet mixer support may also prevent removal of existing restrainer bracket set screws.

1. Field of the Invention
Example embodiments relate generally to nuclear reactors, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) jet pump inlet mixer support that provide rigid support for inlet mixers. The inlet mixer support may attach to a conventional BWR jet pump assembly to pull the inlet mixer away from the centerline of a riser pipe or support them in there exiting position.
2. Related Art
A reactor pressure vessel (RPV) of a boiling water reactor (BWR) typically has a generally cylindrical shape and is closed at both ends (for example by a bottom head and a removable top head). A top guide typically is spaced above a core plate within the RPV. A core shroud, or shroud, typically surrounds the core and is supported by a shroud support structure. Particularly, the shroud has a generally cylindrical shape and surrounds both the core plate and the top guide. There is a space or annulus between the cylindrical reactor pressure vessel and the cylindrically shaped shroud.
In a BWR, hollow tubular jet pumps positioned within the shroud annulus provide the required reactor core water flow. The upper portion of the jet pump, known as the inlet mixer, is laterally positioned and supported against two opposing rigid contacts within jet pump restrainer brackets by a gravity actuated wedge. The restrainer brackets support the inlet mixer by attaching the inlet mixer to the adjacent jet pump riser pipe.
The jet pump main wedge maintains contact between the inlet mixer and the jet pump restrainer bracket. More specifically, the wedge works in cooperation with two set screws, which are tack welded to the restrainer bracket to maintain contact with the inlet mixer. The flow of water through the jet pumps typically includes pressure fluctuations caused by various sources in the reactor system. The pressure fluctuations may have frequencies close to one or more natural vibration modes of the jet pump piping. The jet pump piping stability depends on the tight fit-up, or contact, of the restrainer brackets and the inlet mixers. However, the set screws may back out of position if the tack welds that hold the set screws in place fail.

Method and apparatus for a BWR jet pump inlet mixer support


A cardioverter or defibrillator employing multiple electrode pairs. The device includes an output stage comprising two capacitors or capacitor banks which are connected in parallel during the discharge of the first pulse between the electrodes in one pair and are thereafter connected in series and discharged between the electrodes in a second electrode pair.

This invention relates generally to the field of electrical stimulators, and more particularly to cardioverters and defibrillators.
The earliest cardioverters and defibrillators generated either a single burst of alternating current or a single pulse for application to the heart to cause cardioversion or defibrillation. However, the use of multiple pulses to accomplish cardioversion or defibrillation has also been extensively researched. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,605,754 issued to Jaros, et al., on Sep. 20, 1971 discloses an early double pulse heart defibrillator employing two capacitors which are successively discharged between a single pair of electrodes. Later, the use of multiple electrode systems, in which defibrillation pulses were delivered successively between different electrode pairs chosen from among the electrodes available was suggested. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,727,877 issued to Kallok on Mar. 1, 1988 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,145 issued to Tacker, Jr. et al., on Nov. 24, 1987, both disclose a variety of implantable, multiple electrode systems adapted for use in conjunction with a sequential pulse defibrillator, in which pulses are applied sequentially to different pairs of electrodes.
The ability to deliver sequential pulses to different pairs of electrodes is incorporated in the Medtronic implantable pacemaker/cardioverter/defibrillators presently in clinical evaluation in the United States. The pulse generation circuitry in these devices corresponds generally to that disclosed in allowed U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,427, issued to Keimel, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In these devices, two capacitor banks are provided which are simultaneously charged and then successively or simultaneously discharged between different pairs of electrodes.
It has also been proposed to apply biphasic pulses to individual or multiple electrode pairs, in which a first pulse is followed by a second pulse of opposite polarity. The second pulse typically has an initial amplitude equal to the trailing edge amplitude of the first pulse, but at a reversed polarity, but may have an initial amplitude greater than or equal to the initial amplitude of the first pulse. Apparatus for delivering such biphasic pulses are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,357 issued to Bach, Jr. on Jul. 25, 1989, U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,551 issued to Mehra et al., on Sep. 4, 1990, and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,883 issued Jan. 31, 1989 to Winstrom, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
Some of the electrode configurations and pulse regimens described in the above-cited patents have all been tested clinically, and in at least some patients, provide a benefit as compared to a monophasic pulse regimen delivered between a single pair of electrodes. Some researchers have found that the use of a biphasic pulse regimen provides a reduction in the energy required to defibrillate, when the biphasic pulse is used in either a two electrode system or a three electrode system as proposed in Mehra, with two electrodes tied together during delivery of the biphasic pulse. Some researchers have also found that sequential delivery of monophasic pulses between two different electrode pairs, as described in the above-cited Kallok and Tacker Jr., references provides a reduction in energy thresholds as compared to sequentially delivered monophasic pulses. Nonetheless, there is still a substantial desire for further reductions in overall energy thresholds associated with defibrillation, in the context of implantable defibrillators. Reduction of energy threshold allows for the use of smaller batteries or provides for increased longevity in these devices, and is an area of ongoing research activities, both within the medical community and by manufacturers of implantable cardioverters and defibrillators.

Multiple pulse cardioversion or defibrillation


A tuning structure of a sound mixer is disclosed to include a switch set, formed of sliding switches with a respective switching lever, a face panel, which has sliding slots arranged in parallel for the passing of the switching levers of the switch set, a track set, which is mounted in between the switch set and the face panel and has pairs of ribs for guiding movement of the switching levers of the sliding switches stably along the sliding slots of the face panel, and tuning keys respectively fastened to the switching levers of the switch set and suspending above the face panel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sound mixer and more specifically, to the tuning structure of a sound mixer.
2. Description of the Related Art
A sound mixer is commonly used in Hi-Fi stereo. A sound mixer generally has a tuning structure. A commercial tuning structure is known having a plurality of sliding switches for tuning. This design of tuning structure is easy to operate. However, when operating the switching lever of one sliding switch, the switching lever may be biased and damaged accidentally. Further, because the sliding switches are exposed to the outer open side, external objects may fall to the inside of the sliding switches accidentally, causing contact failure or damage to the sliding switches.


A first-in, first-out (FIFO) static random access memory (SRAM) device includes EEPROM cells which provide non-volatile backup capability. The sizing of each SRAM cell is such that its associated EEPROM cell is automatically programmed via the output of the SRAM cell. Upon power-up, the EEPROM cell restores the SRAM cell to the inverse of whatever state it was in prior to the most recent EEPROM programming (before a preceding power-down). This provides non-volatility to the SRAM without a significant increase in manufacturing costs or overhead.

This invention relates to static random access memories (SRAMs), and more particularly, to backing up SRAMs with electrically erasable programmable read-only memories (EEPROMs) when SRAMs are used as first-in first-out (FIFO) serial memory devices.
Integrated circuit devices such as programmable logic arrays typically need large numbers of transfer devices for such purposes as (1) multiplexing various signals through a single output, (2) circuit control, and (3) data transfer. These transfer devices are typically controlled through the use of FIFO SRAMs to select or de-select the gates of the devices. SRAMs, by their nature, are volatile devices (i.e., they lose the stored information when the circuit is unpowered). Therefore, the controlling data must be re-written into them on each power-up operation.
Heretofore, circuit designs that require non-volatile serial memory elements (i.e., memory elements that retain the stored information even when the circuit is unpowered) have had to rely on serial electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM). The addition of serial EPROM elements to the programmable logic array (on the same, or on a separate integrated circuit chip) can cause an increase in design complexity and manufacturing costs, as well as an increase in array over head costs.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to utilize EEPROM elements to provide a non-volatile backup to FIFO SRAM elements, thereby eliminating the need for serial EPROM devices. It is a further object of the invention to provide the capability to automatically program each EEPROM cell from its associated SRAM cell, thereby reducing the over head of the additional EEPROM cells.


An educational toy telephone is provided and includes a telephone base and a removable handset. A numerical keypad is provided by which an input telephone number may be entered into said telephone. The telephone further includes a microprocessor and memory associated therewith for controlling the various functions of the toy telephone and storing a user-defined programmed telephone number. A message controller is provided, responsive to an output signal from the microprocessor. The message controller stores at least one pre-recorded message consisting of at least one of individual tones, patterns of tones, and a voice message. The microprocessor compares telephone numbers entered into the keypad against the pre-defined telephone numbers. The message controller, responsive to the microprocessor, audibly reproduces the at least one pre-recorded message when the comparison performed by the microprocessor determines that the input telephone number matches the pre-defined telephone number.

The present invention relates to toy telephones for use by children. Such toys are well known in the art and many examples may be found in toy stores. Most models include a base and a removable handset connected to the base by a cord or segment of rope. A number of buttons are generally located on the face of the telephone and a child playing with the telephone may press the various buttons while pretending to use the telephone. The base may also include a cradle for receiving the handset when the phone is not in use, mimicking an actual telephone when the receiver is "on the hook". The cradle may further include a switch which is actuated when the handset is placed in or removed from the cradle.
In some cases, a toy telephone will produce sounds such as individual musical notes, simple melodies, or even animal sounds, in response to a child pressing the various buttons on the telephone. Furthermore, the switch in the cradle may disable the buttons and sounds when the handset is placed in the cradle, or the cradle switch may cause alternate noises to be sounded when the child presses the buttons with the handset in the cradle. Brief phrases such as "Hello Let's Play!" may be repeated when the toy is turned on, or when the handset is removed from the cradle.
In general, prior art toy phones are just that, toys. They serve no other purpose than to occupy and entertain a child. There is no close correlation between the manner of playing with the toy telephone and the manner of using a real telephone. Thus, the typical toy telephone according the present state of the art does little to educate a child in how to use a telephone.
It is prudent to teach children the rudimentary aspects of using a telephone at an early age not only for educational purposes, but also for safety reasons. News stories abound wherein a child calls 911 in response to a domestic emergency and a family tragedy is averted thanks to the child's knowledge of how to call for emergency assistance. It is also important for children to learn their own telephone number, or that of a relative, at as early an age as possible so that parents or relatives can be contacted in case a problem occurs while the child is away from the home. Unfortunately, toy telephones according to the present state of the toy telephone art do not address these concerns.
Because play serves an important role in child development and learning, a toy telephone represents the ideal platform for educating children how to use a telephone. It would be desirable to introduce through a toy telephone fundamental telephone skills such as dialing 911 or a child's home telephone number, as well as to familiarize a child with other telephone concepts such as dial tone, the busy signal, and a ringing telephone. To achieve these early educational goals, a toy telephone that mimics the operation of a real telephone is required. Such an educational telephone should include a standard numbered keypad similar to that found on most phones and should operate on similar principles. For example, the keypad should be functional only when the handset is removed from the cradle and the phone should be responsive when proper emergency numbers and/or a child's home telephone number is entered. An appropriate positive response from the telephone when these various important numbers are correctly entered into the keypad will help to ingrain these numbers in the child's memory and will enhance the child's enjoyment of the toy. Further, if the numbers entered into the keypad are displayed as they are entered, a child will learn to associate the pressing of a particular button with a certain positive result. As the child's skill in using a telephone increases, the child will soon associate entire strings of numbers entered into the keypad as complete telephone numbers viewed on the display.


A process including: providing an electrically powered imaging system including a flexible electrostatographic imaging member belt including at least one layer including a thermoplastic polymer matrix, an imaging surface and a back surface, and at least two rotatable belt support members, each support member having an arcuate contacting surface in contact with the back surface of the imaging belt; providing electrical power to the imaging system, the imaging system having operating modes including a copying mode and at least one non-copying mode; and cycling the belt at low speed around the belt support members after the imaging system has continuously been in the at least one non-copying mode for at least about 1.5 hours.

This invention relates in general to electrostatography, and more specifically, to a process for preventing imaging member belt set in an imaging machine environment.
Flexible electrostatographic belt imaging members are well known in the art. Typical electrostatographic flexible belt imaging members include, for example, photoreceptors for electrophotographic imaging systems, electroreceptors such as ionographic imaging members for electrographic imaging systems, and intermediate image transfer belts for transferring toner images in electrophotographic and electrographic imaging systems. These belts are usually formed by cutting a rectangular sheet from a web containing at least one layer of thermoplastic polymeric material, overlapping opposite ends of the sheet, and welding the overlapped ends together to form a welded seam. The seam extends from one edge of the belt to the opposite edge. Generally, these belts comprise at least a supporting substrate layer and at least one imaging layer comprising thermoplastic polymeric matrix material. The "imaging layer" as employed herein is defined as the dielectric imaging layer of an electroreceptor belt, the transfer layer of an intermediate image transfer belt and, the charge transport layer of an electrophotographic belt. Thus, the thermoplastic polymeric matrix material in the imaging layer is located in the upper portion of a cross section of an electrostatographic imaging member belt, the substrate layer being in the lower portion of the cross section of the electrostatographic imaging member belt.
Flexible electrophotographic imaging member belts are usually multilayered photoreceptors that comprise a substrate, an electrically conductive layer, an optional hole blocking layer, an adhesive layer, a charge generating layer, and a charge transport layer and, in some embodiments, an anti-curl backing layer is desirable for imaging member flatness. Optionally, an overcoating layer may also be formed over the charge transport layer to provide wear protection. One type of multilayered photoreceptor comprises a layer of finely divided particles of a photoconductive inorganic compound dispersed in an electrically insulating organic resin binder. A typical layered photoreceptor having separate charge generating (photogenerating) and charge transport layers is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,265,990, the entire disclosure thereof being incorporated herein by reference. In one embodiment, the charge transport layer is located at the top and over the charge generating layer of the imaging member. In an alternative embodiment, the charge generating layer is positioned on top of the charge transport layer. The charge generating layer is capable of photogenerating charge and injecting the photogenerated charge into the charge transport layer.
Although excellent toner images may be obtained utilizing multilayered seamed belt photoreceptors, it has been found that as more advanced, higher speed electrophotographic copiers, duplicators and printers were developed, fatigue induced cracking of the charge transport layer and cracking initiation at the welded seam area were frequently encountered during photoreceptor belt cycling. Seam cracking initiation has also been found to rapidly propagate into catastrophic seam delamination as a result of continuing imaging belt fatigue which shortens belt service life. Dynamic fatigue induced imaging layer cracking and seam cracking and delamination may also occur in ionographic imaging member belts and intermediate image transfer belts.
The seamed flexible electrostatographic imaging member belt is usually fabricated from a sheet cut from a web. The sheets are generally rectangular in shape. All edges may be of the same length or one pair of parallel edges may be longer than the other pair of parallel edges. The sheets are formed into a belt by joining overlapping opposite marginal end regions of the sheet. A seam is typically produced in the overlapping marginal end regions at the point of joining. Joining may be effected by any suitable means. Typical joining techniques include welding (including ultrasonic), gluing, taping, pressure heat fusing, and the like. Ultrasonic seam welding is generally the preferred method for joining imaging member belts because it is rapid, clean (no solvents) and produces a thin and narrow seam. Another reason that the ultrasonic seam welding process is preferred is because it causes generation of heat at the contiguous overlapping end marginal regions of the sheet to maximize melting of one or more layers in the contacting overlapped ends of the imaging member sheet, which facilitates direct substrate to substrate fusing at the overlapped ends to form a seam having strong bond strength. For reason of simplicity, the discussion hereinafter will focus primarily on electrophotographic imaging members as a representation of electrostatographic imaging members.
When the overlapped ends of the cut sheet are ultrasonically welded to form a belt, the seam of the flexible multilayered electrophotographic imaging member, due to material discontinuity and excess localized seam thickness, can initiate crack formation and eventually delaminate during extended bending and flexing over small diameter belt support rollers of an imaging machine or when subjected to lateral forces caused by rubbing contact with stationary web edge guides of a belt support module during cycling. Mechanical failure due to seam cracking and delamination is further aggravated when the belt is employed in an electrophotographic imaging system utilizing a cleaning device such as a cleaning blade. Alteration of materials in the various photoreceptor belt layers such as the conductive layer, hole blocking layer, adhesive layer, charge generating layer, and/or charge transport layer to suppress cracking and delamination problems is not easily accomplished because alteration may adversely affect the overall electrical, mechanical and other properties of the belt such as residual voltage, background, dark decay, flexibility, and the like.
For example, when a flexible imaging member in an electrophotographic machine is a photoreceptor belt fabricated by ultrasonic welding of overlapped opposite ends of a sheet, the ultrasonic energy transmitted to the overlapped ends melts the thermoplastic sheet components in the overlap region to form a seam. The ultrasonic welded seam of a multilayered photoreceptor belt is relatively brittle and low in strength and toughness. The joining techniques, particularly the welding process, can result in the formation of a splashing that projects out from each side of the seam in the overlap region of the belt. Because of the seam overlapping and the seam splashing, a typical flexible imaging member belt is about 1.6 times thicker in the seam region than that of the remainder of the belt for example, a typical belt thickness is about 116 micrometers, reference Example I, whereas the overlapping seam region can be about 186 micrometers.
The photoreceptor belt in an electrophotographic imaging apparatus undergoes bending strain as the belt is cycled over a plurality of support and drive rollers. The excessive thickness of the photoreceptor belt in the seam region due to the presence of the splashing results in a large induced bending strain as the seam travels over each roller. Generally, small diameter support rollers are highly desirable for simple, reliable copy paper stripping systems in electrophotographic imaging apparatus utilizing a photoreceptor belt system operating in a very confined space. Unfortunately, small diameter rollers, e.g., diameter less than about 0.75 inch (19 millimeters), raise the threshold of mechanical performance criteria to such a high level that photoreceptor belt seam failure can become unacceptable for seamed multilayered belt photoreceptors. For example, when bending over a 19 millimeter diameter roller, a typical photoreceptor belt seam splashing may develop a 0.96 percent tensile strain due to bending. This is 1.63 times greater than a 0.59 percent induced bending strain that develops within the rest of the photoreceptor belt. Since the 0.96 percent tensile strain in the seam splashing region of the belt represents a 63 percent increase in stress placed upon the seam splashing region of the belt, seam cracking and delamination will occur prior to the onset of other photoreceptor belt mechanical failures and become limiting factors that determines the functional life of the belt. Under dynamic fatiguing conditions, the seam provides a focal point for stress concentration and becomes the initiation site for premature material failure, which adversely affect the mechanical integrity of the belt. Thus, the seam overlapped thickness plus the splashing tend to shorten the mechanical life of the seam and service life of the flexible member belt in copiers, duplicators, and printers. In addition to the seam cracking and delamination problems, a negatively charged photoreceptor belt has also been observed to exhibit charge transport layer fatigue cracking failure as a result of repeating tension stress in the charge transport layer when the belt bends and flexes over each belt module support roller during dynamic belt cycling.
In addition to all the above-mentioned mechanical failures, seamed electrophotographic imaging member belts have been found to encounter still another major physical and mechanical shortfall under actual machine operating conditions. This shortfall is manifested as localized imaging member belt set corresponding to each location where the belt makes parking contact with belt module support rollers after each prolonged machine idle period. In a service environment, an imaging member belt mounted on a belt support module is frequently activated into cyclic motion whenever the electrophotographic imaging process is initiated during the working hours of a work week. In reality, these imaging machines are rarely continuously in copying use. It is common for them to sit idle for relatively long periods of time in a ready mode (awaiting next instruction to print an image) and a power saving mode where most of the machine stations are inactivated or otherwise turned down to reduce power consumption. For example, corona generators are generally disabled, and the fuser station in some machines is disabled (i.e., power is cut off and the fuser station cools), while in others the power is reduced to lower the fuser station temperature to a standby temperature to enable relatively rapid return to process temperature. However, during the majority of the time, the machine is idle. While the machine is idle, the belt is stationary and parked over the belt support module rollers. Prolonged stationary parking of the belt while the machine is idle causes development of belt set sites. The time period of idle belt parking can often be extensive, particularly at night, on holidays, and over each week end. Since the imaging member belt comprises layers of thermoplastic polymer materials, it has an inherent propensity to exhibit creep compliance in response to any externally imposed stresses induced by the bending tension and compression effects on the top region and bottom region, respectively, of a segment of the belt while the belt is directly parked over each belt module support roller. After extended periods of machine idle time, each belt segment parked over a support roller develops a set.
A photoreceptor belt set is defined as a characteristic exhibition of localized permanent material deformation caused by an irreversible process of molecular chain slippage in chain entanglement sites which thereby reduces the degree of entanglement in response to the direction of induced bending stress of the affected segment of the belt. The direction of induced bending stress is in conformance to the surface curvature of the belt support roller over which the segment of the belt is bent. The sites are manifestations of physical deviations from the required photoreceptor surface flatness. Belt set in the electrophotographic imaging zone is undesirable because each set creates a small surface protrusion mound or ridge with two adjacent valleys which adversely affect photoreceptor charging uniformity as well as the efficiency of transfer of toner image to paper due to an inability of the photoreceptor to make even and intimate surface contact with the paper. Therefore, the sites of belt set degrade final copy print quality. Since reduction of localized polymer chain entanglement density within a set is a result of irreversible inter polymer chain motion, the sites of belt set induced in the imaging zones affect the belt surface uniformity and also cause early onset of fatigue charge transport layer cracking, as a consequence of interchain separation or total disentanglement which appears as cracks in the coating layer under repeated tension stress. Moreover, if a set is present in the seam region, it hastens the development of seam cracking initiation and seam cracking propagation leading to catastrophic seam delamination during photoreceptor belt machine cycling. Furthermore, the sites of photoreceptor belt set adversely impact belt transporting motion quality, interfere with cleaning blade functions, reduce the critical gap dimension between the belt imaging surface and subsystems such as closely spaced developer applicators, and adversely affect the driving efficiency of a drive roller or rollers for the photoreceptor belt.
Electrophotographic imaging devices also comprise subsystems which generate contaminants which degrade the life of photoconductive imaging members having a surface adjacent to the subsystems. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,990, a printing machine is described which includes a second driving mechanism to further drive the imaging member during power down and standby modes, and other critical periods, so as to extend the life of the imaging member by providing a uniform aging effect to the belt. The driving of the photoreceptor is conducted for a preselected duration of time following power off or power saver modes to allow the contaminants, e.g., ozone, nitrous oxide, heat, etc., generated by the subsystems to dissipate whereby the photoreceptor is uniformly aged. Fifteen minutes is generally sufficient time for driving according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,990 and ten minutes is preferred. The entire disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,990 is incorporated herein by reference. Driving of the photoreceptor belt for a predetermined period of time until contaminants, e.g., ozone, nitrous oxide, heat, etc., generated by the subsystems to dissipate, e.g. 15 minutes, following power off or power saver does not take into consideration the fact that the belt remains stationary on support members such as rollers for many hours after the contaminants generated by the subsystems have dissipated and after the predetermined period of time has expired. The objective of U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,990 is to drive the belt for a pre-selected period of time during machine idling to facilitate uniform imaging member belt aging caused by chemical effects. For example, if a machine is shut down overnight from 6:00 PM to 7:00 AM (13 hours) and the belt is driven for 15 minutes after shut down, the belt would have been stationary for 12 hours and 45 minutes, a time 5,100 percent greater than the brief predetermined driving period after shut down. If shut down extends over a weekend for a period from 6:00 PM Friday evening to 7:00 AM Monday morning, the belt would have been stationary for 54 hours and 45 minutes, a time 29,900 percent greater than the brief predetermined driving period after shut down. The belt photoreceptor will form a set during these long periods of machine shut down.
Under a typical ambient room temperature of about 25.degree. C. and about 37 percent relative humidity, a belt will form an undesirable permanent set when the given segmental area remains parked over a belt support roller for approximately 48 hours (2,880 minutes). This permanent set conforms, to a notable degree, to the shape of the roller on which the belt segment is parked. Since a small roller such as a 19 millimeter diameter roller induces large bending strain/stress in a belt, prolonged belt parking while a machine is idle will exacerbate belt set. Other crucial environmental conditions that have a strong impact on belt set during prolonged belt parking while an imaging machine is idle are factors such as elevated temperature and high humidity. It has been found that a set which exhibits a diameter of curvature of more than about 3 inches does not normally manifest itself into copy print out defects, change the belt surface, alter machine subsystems tolerance, or interfere with cleaning blade functions because the set will effectively be pulled straight under an applied tension of one pound per inch width of belt. However, an imaging member belt with a set having a diameter of curvature of less than about 3 inches can impose problems because the set will exhibit a conspicuous projecting it rounded ridge with adjacent valleys at either side of the mound in the belt surface, all traversing the full width of the belt, when supported in a flat configuration for electrical charging and toner image to paper transfer during electrophotographic imaging processes. Since imaging belt set is a characteristic of interpolymer chain slippage under imposed stress, it is an irreversible process of chain disentanglement which reduces chain entanglement density. Thus, the belt segment location of the set becomes the site for early development of fatigue induced surface cracking.
Therefore, there is an urgent need for improving the physical and mechanical characteristics of seamed flexible imaging member belts to prevent the development of belt set and its associated problems, withstand greater dynamic fatiguing conditions, extend belt service life, as well as overcome any of the previously described shortfalls.

Flexible imaging member belt set prevention


As an embodiment of the present invention, a data processing apparatus stores as cache data, in a RAM, data included in a predetermined fixed length area of a stored file. The PC sends a transfer request for cache data to the data processing apparatus, and the data processing apparatus sends the cache data to the PC. The PC extracts thumbnail images and EXIF data from the received cache data. Therefore, the data processing apparatus does not need to extract thumbnail images, etc.

There is known a technology of transferring images from a data processing apparatus such as a digital camera to an information processing apparatus such as a PC (personal computer). In order to show data concerning the survey of images stored in a digital camera to a user, there is known a technique of displaying on a PC, in thumbnail format, images stored on the digital camera. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-123928 discloses a digital camera which extracts only thumbnail images from stored images and transfers them.
In order for a PC to acquire thumbnail images from a digital camera, it is necessary for the following four steps to be carried out according to a PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol).
(1) The digital camera generates a list containing directory and file information of a storage medium containing stored images. A file refers mainly to an image file, but other file types (e.g., audio files) may be included.
(2) The PC refers to the list and sends a request to the digital camera to transfer the necessary thumbnail images.
(3) The digital camera extracts thumbnail images from image files in response to receiving the transfer request from the PC, and sends the thumbnail images to the PC.
(4) The number of times the above processes (2) and (3) are repeated equals the number of thumbnail images required by the PC.
However, if a PC attempts to acquire a thumbnail image by conventional methods, there arises the problem of large overhead involved in transmission. For example, if 1000 thumbnail images are to be acquired, it is necessary for a PC and a digital camera to repeat the above processes (2) and (3) 1,000 times. This requires a long period of time.
In addition, computing units of a digital camera are often configured to be relatively slow in order to limit power consumption and costs. Consequently, it takes a relatively long time for such a digital camera to extract thumbnail images from image files.
As a result, there is the problem that a long period of time is required for all thumbnail images required by a PC to be extracted and displayed to a user.
Thus, it takes a long period of time for a portable data processing apparatus such as a digital camera to extract specific data from files. Consequently, there is a considerable delay until the data is displayed to a user.
The present invention is provided in view of this situation, and provides a technology for reducing the amount of time required for an information processing apparatus to acquire thumbnail images from a data processing apparatus and display them to a user.

Data processing apparatus and method thereof, and information processing apparatus and method thereof


Small molecules comprised of azacyclic constrained sphingolipid-like compounds and methods of their synthesis are provided. Formulations and medicaments are also provided that are directed to the treatment of disease, such as, for example, neoplasms, cancers, and other diseases. Therapeutics are also provided containing a therapeutically effective dose of one or more small molecule compounds, present either as pharmaceutically effective salt or in pure form, including, but not limited to, formulations for oral, intravenous, or intramuscular administration.

Sphingolipids are a class of molecules that are fatty acid derivatives of sphingosine. These molecules are typically found in the membranes of cells and can trigger many different signaling cascades. One common sphingolipid is sphingosine, which can be phosphorylated to form sphingosine-1 phosphate (S1P), the chemical structure of which is provided in FIG. 1.
S1P receptors are found on the surface of many cell types. S1P receptors are activated by S1P binding. There are five types of S1P receptors, each of which triggers distinct signal transduction pathways. S1P binding to S1P receptors may activate different cellular functions, including cell proliferation and differentiation, cell survival, cell invasion, lymphocyte trafficking, and cell migration.
FTY720, the chemical structure of which is provided in FIG. 2, is an immunosuppressant prodrug that functions by stimulating S1P receptors. In its active, phosphorylated state, FTY720 binds four of the five S1P receptors. The binding of FTY720-phosphate to S1P1 causes receptor activation followed by persistent down-regulation of the receptor and subsequent sequestering of lymphocytes in secondary lymphoid organs. Currently, FTY720 is marketed to treat relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). Previous publications describe broad classes of FTY720 analogs for use in selectively binding different S1P receptor isoforms.

Synthetic sphingolipid-like molecules, drugs, methods of their synthesis and methods of treatment

The Regents of the University of California


A light-emitting device (10) includes a first light-emitting region (100) and a second light-emitting region (200). The first light-emitting region (100) emits a light ray having a first color by making a first light-emitting layer group including at least two or more kinds of light-emitting layers emit light. In addition, the second light-emitting region (200) emits a light ray having the first color (for example, daylight color, natural white color, white color, warm white color, or incandescent color) by making a second light-emitting layer group including at least two or more kinds of light-emitting layers emit light. In addition, at least one kind of light-emitting layer included in the second light-emitting layer group emits a light ray having a different spectrum peak from all of the light-emitting layers included in the first light-emitting layer group. Therefore, the color-rendering properties of light emitted from the light-emitting device (10) are improved.

Recently, studies have been conducted to use a light-emitting element such as an organic electro-luminescent element as a light source for lighting apparatuses. One of the characteristics required of the lighting apparatuses is the emission of white light. For example, Patent Document 1 describes that, as shown in FIG. 1, regions 520 emitting red light, regions 530 emitting green light, and regions 540 emitting blue light are formed on a single substrate, and the regions are made to emit light at the same time, whereby white light is emitted.
Patent Document 2 describes a lighting apparatus including multiple panel-shaped organic light-emitting sources.
In addition, Patent Documents 3 and 4 describe the lamination of multiple organic EL light-emitting layers between an anode and a cathode. These documents describe that a charge-generating layer is provided between each of the multiple organic EL light-emitting layers.


The present invention relates to coated binary and ternary chalcogenide nanoparticle compositions that can be used as copper zinc tin chalcogenide precursor inks. In addition, this invention relates to coated substrates comprising binary and ternary chalcogenide nanoparticle compositions and provides processes for manufacturing these coated substrates. This invention also relates to compositions of copper zinc tin chalcogenide thin films and photovoltaic cells comprising such films. In addition, this invention provides processes for manufacturing copper zinc tin chalcogenide thin films, as well as processes for manufacturing photovoltaic cells incorporating such films.

Thin-film photovoltaic cells typically use semiconductors such as CdTe or copper indium gallium sulfide/selenide (CIGS) as an energy absorber material. Due to the limited availability of indium, alternatives to CIGS are sought. Kesterite (Cu2ZnSnS4 or "CZTS") possesses a band gap energy of about 1.5 eV and a large absorption coefficient (approx. 104 cm−1), making it a promising CIGS replacement. In addition, CZTS contains only non-toxic and abundant elements.
Current techniques to make CZTS thin films (e.g., thermal evaporation, sputtering, hybrid sputtering, pulsed laser deposition and electron beam evaporation) require complicated equipment and therefore tend to be expensive. Electrochemical deposition is an inexpensive process, but compositional non-uniformity and/or the presence of secondary phases prevents this method from generating high quality CZTS thin films. CZTS thin films can also be made by the spray pyrolysis of a solution containing metal salts, typically CuCl, ZnCl2, SnCl4, and thiourea as the sulfur source. This method tends to yield films of poor morphology, density and grain size. Photochemical deposition has also been shown to generate p-type CZTS thin films. However, the composition of the product is not well controlled, and it is difficult to avoid the formation of impurities such as hydroxides. Quaternary CZTS precursor powders can be prepared and deposited on a substrate by standard printing techniques. Subsequent annealing in a nitrogen and sulfur atmosphere leads to the formation of CZTS films. However, it is difficult to control the molar ratio of elements in the CZTS powder, which limits the ultimate performance of the CZTS thin film.
The formation of kesterite from uncoated binary and ternary sulfides has also been disclosed.
However, there still exists a need for a process that provides high quality CZTS thin films at a low cost.

CZTS/Se precursor inks and methods for preparing CZTS/Se thin films and CZTS/Se-based photovoltaic cells


An arbitrary modulation frequency of a modulating signal is selected. The modulating signal is applied to an information-bearing signal, where such modulation is carried out through digital signal processing operations. The digitally modulated signal is resolution-reduced and the quantization noise introduced by such is shaped to locate a spectral null in the noise transfer function of the resolution reducing modulator at the modulation frequency. Thus, the modulation frequency can be selected independently of the clock frequency at which the resolution-reduced samples are converted to an analog signal.

Continued developments in integrated circuit (IC) design, fabrication and packaging has afforded ever denser and faster circuits. Indeed, developments in complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technologies have allowed digital circuits to implement functionality that was once only achievable through purely analog circuits. By way of high-performance CMOS processes, such modulation may be performed entirely in the digital domain, including the final tuning.
Converting a digitally modulated signal into a corresponding modulated analog signal typically requires a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) that can perform signal conversions at a very high sampling rate so that spectral replicas are removed from the desired spectral band of the reconstructed signal. Practically, such high sampling rate is easy to achieve on the DAC, which allows a reduction sample resolution for a given signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) due to quantization noise spreading (oversampling). This reduced resolution simplifies the analog design and improves its performance, e.g., for a given area and power, bigger devices with better matching can be used, improving the overall linearity.
The ability of the modulator to support multiple output carrier frequencies from an arbitrary clock source is considered advantageous, often a must have, in that the clock frequency is very likely to be constrained by other factors. Multiple modulation frequencies have, in the past, been achieved by a fractional-N synthesizer and a sample rate converter. A classical solution consists in clocking the DAC at four times the carrier frequency resulting in a very simple digital sequence (1,1, −1, −1) for the oscillator signal by which the carrier modulation is achieved. However, the need has been felt for modulation techniques by which an information-bearing signal may be digitally modulated by a signal that is independent of the clock frequency while avoiding the use of multiple asynchronous clocks.

Digital modulation with arbitrary input sampling and output modulation frequencies