A guiding apparatus and a method for cochlear implant are disclosed. In one embodiment, the guiding apparatus for cochlear implant comprises i) an optical tube for transmitting an optical signal, ii) an optical signal emitting module for converting an electrical signal into the optical signal and emitting the optical signal through another end of the optical tube, iii) an optical signal detecting module for receiving the optical signal that is reflected by an obstacle or an inner wall of cochlear through another end of the optical tube and converting the received optical signal into an electrical signal and iv) a central processor for analyzing optical emission energy information and optical detection energy information to generate inserting route information. According to one embodiment, it is possible to decrease injuries to the inner wall of a cochlear canal and optimize the position of an electrode to be inserted into the cochlear canal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a guiding apparatus and a method for cochlear implant, more particularly, for reducing injuries caused by an electrode to an inner wall of the cochlear canal during insertion and enabling the electrode to be properly located.
2. Description of the Related Technology
The cochlear, a human organ for the sense of hearing, looks like a snail-shaped tube having a length of about 3.5 cm and two and half turns.
And the cochlear implant system is a device for electrically stimulating auditory nerves of a patient who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of sensorineural hearing due to the injuries on a Corti organ in the inner ear or a deafness to deliver the signals to the cerebrum. That is, the cochlear implant system for sensorineural hearing loss or deafness converts sound into a weak electrical signal by use of a small-sized computer and provides the electrical signal directly to the auditory nerves according to a magnitude and a tone to deliver the sound to the cerebrum.
In 1967, professor Graeme Clark of Melbourne University started to study a hearing aid, and as many studies executed after 10-channel hearing aid had been transplanted to the first patient in 1978, there are about 50,000 cases until now.
The cochlear implant device has internally-implanted and external portion. The external component, being located at the outside, includes a microphone, a voice processor and an external coil. After processing a voice signal (i.e., sound) received by the microphone at the voice processor, the processed signal and a power for operating internal circuit are sent to the internally-implanted portion through the external coil.
The internally-implanted portion, being transplanted into the body, includes an internal circuit with a circuit and a stimulation chip, a package for sealing to protect the internal circuit from humoral materials and/or ions, an electrode to be inserted into the cochlear, and an internal coil for remotely controlling the stimulation chip and receiving the processed signal from the outside. The internal circuit, the package, the electrode and the internal coil are electrically coupled to each other. The signal from the external coil is received by the internal coil, and separated into a power signal to be used to operate itself and a nerve ganglion cell stimulation signal, which stimulates the nerve ganglion cell in the cochlear though the electrode so that the stimulated cell generates the electrical signal to be delivered to the brain via auditory nerve. By way of this, one who has difficulty in hearing or deafness can hear.
In an operation method for the cochlear implant system, the mastoid of a patient is grinded to expose the oval window of a cochlear canal where the electrode will be inserted and the very thin and long electrode that is about 10 mm in thickness and about 2˜2.5 cm in length is inserted into the cochlear canal.
Hereinafter, the conventional method for inserting the cochlear implant system will be briefly described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the conventional device for inserting the cochlear implant system, and FIG. 2 shows a method for inserting the cochlear implant system.
Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the conventional device comprises an electrode 110 and a guiding wire 120.
In the conventional method, a surgeon inserts the guiding wire 120, so-called stylet, into the electrode at step 150, and then selects a proper position in the cochlear canal based on his operation experiences and tactical sense at step 155. After locating the electrode 110 on the proper position at step 160, the electrode 110 is fixed in the cochlear canal by removing the guiding wire 120 at step 165.
In addition, a subsidiary (not shown) can be inserted into the cochlear canal and then the electrode can be inserted.
In the conventional technique, the electrode 110 has a curved shape in itself (not shown) and is maintained a straight line during insertion by the guiding wire 120 or the subsidiary for easy insertion. And, by removing the guiding wire 120 after inserting the electrode 110, the safe installation of the electrode in the cochlear canal and the easiness of operation can be accomplished.
But, since the conventional method is depending entirely on a surgeon's tactile sense, it is very difficult and complicated to insert the electrode.
Also, in the conventional method, there is a possibility to cause tissue injuries when inserting the cochlear implant system into the cochlear canal.
Furthermore, although the more the electrode is close to the central axis wall of a cochlear the more stimulation is effective in the conventional method, it is impossible to get information about the inserting route and the position of the electrode during the operation.

Guiding apparatus and method for cochlear implant


A plastic capped lock nut includes a metal body having a threaded bore extending axially between transverse opposite end faces and includes an annular wall extending outwardly of one of the end faces to define an open ended cavity for receiving a resilient lock ring mounted in the cavity in coaxial alignment with the threaded bore. An end cap of plastic material including an annular side wall and an outer end engages the lock ring and is sonically welded thereto. The annular wall of the metal body is deflected inwardly tightly against the lock ring to secure the ring in the cavity against rotation relative to the body. The end cap provides protection for exposed threads of a threaded rod or other element extending outwardly of the bore of the lock nut body and ring.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new and improved plastic capped lock nut particularly adapted to protect exposed threads on a threaded element threaded into the bore of the lock nut from one side and projecting outwardly from an opposite side of the nut body and lock ring.
2. Background of the Prior Art
Metal lock nuts having locking rings of resilient material have been used in a variety of applications wherein insurance against loosening of the nut is required on automobiles, trucks and other moving parts. When a lock nut is placed on a threaded element and tightened, oftentimes a portion of the threaded element extends outwardly of the lock nut and leaves exposed threads which can be damaged by contact with external objects, tools and other devices moving in close proximity thereto. In particular, when a lock nut and threaded element engaged therewith is movable relative to other adjacent parts, it is desirable to protect the exposed threads with a strong cap or enclosure so that damage does not occur which may later preclude a ready disassembly of the threaded element from the lock nut when desired.


A liquid crystal display and method that prevents transition of liquid crystals from a bend state to a splay state caused by an external impact by keeping an average pixel voltage above transition voltage Vtr when driven. The liquid crystal display includes a thin film transistor at each intersection part of a plurality of data lines and a plurality of gate lines; a gate driver for supplying a gate high voltage and a gate low voltage during a data input period, and sequentially supply a gate reset voltage to gate lines during a reset period a data driver for supplying data voltages to the data lines in accordance with gate voltages applied to the gate lines; and a timing controller for controlling the data voltages supplied to the data lines and the gate voltages supplied to the gate lines.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display, and more particularly to a liquid crystal display that is adaptive for preventing transition of liquid crystals from a bend state to a splay state caused by an external impact when using a data voltage lower than a transition voltage Vtr while actually driven, and a driving method thereof.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Generally, liquid crystal displays control the light transmittance of liquid crystal cells in accordance with video signals to display a picture. An active matrix liquid crystal display provided with a switching device by liquid crystal cells is suitable for displaying a motion picture. A thin film transistor (hereinafter, referred to as TFT) is mainly used as a switching device in the active matrix liquid crystal display. Because such a liquid crystal display can be made into a smaller device in size than the existing cathode ray tube, it has been widely used for office automation equipment such as a copy machine, etc. and portable equipment such as a cellular phone, a pager etc., as well as a personal computer and a notebook computer.
As shown in FIG. 1, the related art liquid crystal display includes a liquid crystal display panel 2 having liquid crystal cells arranged in a matrix, a gate driver 4 to drive gate lines GL0 to GLn of the liquid crystal display panel 2, a data driver 6 to drive data lines DL1 to DLm of the liquid crystal display panel 2, and a timing controller 8 to control the gate driver 4 and the data driver 6.
The liquid crystal display panel 2 includes liquid crystal cells arranged in a matrix and a TFT formed at each intersection area of an n+1 number of gate lines GL0 to GLn and an m number of data lines DL1 to DLm.
The timing controller 8 controls gate voltages applied to the gate lines GL0 to GLn and data voltages applied to the data lines Dl1 to DLm. The timing controller 8 generates dot clocks (DCLK) and gate start pulses (GSP) in use of horizontal/vertical synchronization signals H, V input from a video card (not shown), thereby controlling the data driver 6 and the gate driver 4. Herein, the dot clocks DCLK are applied to the data driver 6 and gate start pulses GSP are applied to the gate driver 4.
The gate driver 4 includes a shift register to sequentially generate scan pulses in response to the gate start pulse (GSP) input from the timing controller 8, and a level shifter to shift a voltage of the scan pulse to a voltage level suitable for driving the liquid crystal cell. The gate driver 4, as shown in FIG. 2, is supplied with a gate shift clock signal (GSC) having one horizontal period. The gate driver 4, if the gate start pulse (GSP) is applied from the timing controller 8, performs a shifting operation in response to the gate shift clock (GSC). Scan pulses (SP) of one horizontal period, 1H, are sequentially applied to the gate lines GL1 to GLn. The TFT is turned on in response to the scan pulse SP for video data to be charged in the pixel electrode of the liquid crystal cell.
The data driver 6 receives the dot clock (DCLK) from the timing controller 8, together with red R, green G and blue B digital video data. The data driver 6 latches the red R, green G and blue B digital video data in synchronization with the dot clock (DCLK), corrects the latched data in accordance with a gamma voltage V, converts the corrected data into analog data, and then supplies the converted data to the data line DL by lines. Specifically, the data driver 6 converts the corrected data into analog data signal in use of a negative or positive gamma voltage in response to a polarity inversion signal, thereby determining the polarity of the data voltage Vd applied to the data lines DL1 to DLm.
Referring to FIG. 3, a unit pixel of the liquid crystal display includes a TFT formed at an intersection part of the gate line GL and the data line DL, a storage capacitor Cst connected to the previous gate line Gn−1, and a liquid crystal cell Clc connected to the TFT, the storage capacitor Cst and a common voltage source Vcom of an upper plate (not shown).
The TFT supplies data voltages Vd from the data lines DL1 to DLm to the liquid crystal cell Clc in response to the gate high voltage Vgh from the gate lines GL1 to GLn. The liquid crystal cell Clc may be equally indicated as a liquid cell capacitor Clc including a pixel electrode connected to the TFT and the common electrode Vcom that faces the liquid crystal cell Clc with liquid crystals therebetween.
Within the liquid crystal cell, the storage capacitor Cst is formed to sustain the data voltage Vd charged in the liquid crystal cell capacitor Clc until the next data voltage Vd is charged, i.e., while a gate low voltage Vgl is applied. The storage capacitor Cst is formed between the previous gate line and the pixel electrode. Such a liquid crystal cell controls light transmittance by having the liquid crystals with dielectric constant anisotropy changed in an arrangement state in accordance with the data voltage Vd charged through the TFT, thereby implementing gray levels.
In FIG. 4, gate high voltage (Vgh) and gate low voltages (Vgl) are supplied to the gate lines GL1 to GLn. The gate lines GL1 to GLn are supplied with the gate high voltage Vgh for a corresponding horizontal period 1H, and with the gate low voltage Vgl for the remaining period. The gate low voltage Vgl is applied to the gate line formed on the uppermost side for the storage capacitor Cst of the first gate line GL. Scan pulses (SP) with the gate high voltage Vgh turn on the TFT switch, and the liquid crystal cell is charged with video data supplied from the data driver 6 while the TFT is turned on. As the gate high voltage Vgh supplied to the gate lines GL1 to GLn is changed to the gate low voltage Vgl, the TFT is turned off, and the storage capacitor Cst causes the voltage VLC of the liquid crystal cell to be dropped by as much as a feed-through voltage ΔVp at that time. The feed-through voltage is defined as in Formula 1.ΔVp=Cgs(Vgh−Vgl)/(Cgs+Cst+CLC)  [Formula 1]
Herein, ΔVp represents the amount of change of the voltage applied to a liquid crystal cell, Cgs represents a capacitor between a gate electrode G and a source electrode S. Further, Cst represents a storage capacitor, CLc represents a capacitor of the liquid crystal cell, Vgh represents a gate high voltage, and Vgl represents a gate low voltage.
The polarity of a voltage is applied to the liquid crystal cell for each frame. Herein, the voltage applied to the liquid crystal cell is decreased by as much as the feed-through voltage ΔVp in the positive frame, and the voltage applied to the liquid crystal cell is increased by as much as the feed-through voltage ΔVp in the negative frame. The amount of change of the voltage applied to the liquid crystal cell by the feed-through voltage ΔVp is shown as in FIG. 4.
A twisted nematic (TN) mode is generally used in liquid crystals for driving such a liquid crystal display. The liquid crystal cell of TN mode, where a twisted angle of liquid crystal alignment is 90°, changes an alignment state of the liquid crystals in accordance with an application of an electric field, to transmit light. However, using the TN mode for liquid crystals has the problems of a narrow viewing angle and a slow response speed.
To overcome these disadvantages of the TN mode, it has been suggested that liquid crystals can be used with an in-plane switch (IPS) mode or an optically compensated bend (OCB) mode. The OCB mode of the above-mentioned modes has a wider viewing angle and a faster response speed than the TN mode.
Referring to. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the LCD panel of an OCB mode includes an upper substrate 10 sequentially provided with a color filter array (not shown) and an alignment film (not shown); a lower substrate 12 provided with a TFT array (not shown) and an alignment film (not shown); a liquid crystal 18 injected into a designated gap between the upper substrate 10 and the lower substrate 12 defined by a spacer (not shown); upper and lower polarizers 14 and 22 arranged respectively on the outsides of the upper and lower substrates 10 and 12; an upper compensating film 16 arranged between the upper substrate 10 and the upper polarizer 14; and a compensating film 20 arranged between the lower substrate 12 and the lower polarizer 22 to compensate a phase of an incident light for increasing a viewing angle.
The alignment films of the upper substrate 10 and the lower substrate 12 are subjected to an alignment treatment in the same direction. The liquid crystal 18 between the upper substrate 10 and the lower substrate 12 maintains a splay state, which is an initial alignment state in accordance with an alignment treatment direction of the alignment film when the voltage of an electric field between the upper and lower substrate is less than a specified voltage Vtr. In other words, the liquid crystal molecules are arranged at tilt angles of θ° and −θ° at the surfaces of the upper and lower alignment films, respectively. The tilt angles of the liquid crystal molecules decrease towards the center of the liquid crystal cell such that liquid crystal molecules at the center have an angle of 0°. The liquid crystal molecules having such a splay state are changed into a bend state at a voltage more than the specified voltage Vtr. The time required for changing the liquid crystal molecules from the splay state into a bend state is referred to as "transition time".
The tilt angles of the liquid crystal molecules at the surfaces of the upper and lower alignment films when in the bend state are ±θ, wherein θ is usually about 5°˜15°. However, the tilt angles of the liquid crystal molecules increase towards the center of the liquid crystal cell such that liquid crystal molecules at the center have an angle of 90°.
FIG. 7 is a diagram representing light transmittance in accordance with a voltage of an OCB mode liquid crystal cell.
Referring to FIG. 7, liquid crystal molecules in the bend state have a characteristic in which light transmittance linearly decreases as the voltage of the electric field increases between the upper and lower substrates. Therefore, the liquid crystal molecules having a bend state are suitable for implementing a gray scale and thus for realizing a picture in an LCD panel.
However, the liquid crystals in the splay state irregularly transmit light at a voltage less than the transition voltage Vtr, and cause stains or flickers to appear in the LCD panel for a short time. Accordingly, the liquid crystal display, using the OCB mode, has a higher voltage than the transition voltage Vtr to change from the splay state into the bend state.
In this way, the OCB mode liquid crystal cell has the liquid crystal changed from the splay state into the bend state at a higher voltage than the transition voltage Vtr in the initial stage, thereby being stabilized.
However, in a case in which an external impact is applied to the liquid crystal cell while actually driven, a pixel voltage at the liquid crystal cell is less than the transition voltage Vtr, so the liquid crystals in the bend state are changed into the splay state to become unstabilized. Therefore, stains and flickers, which occur when liquid crystals are in the splay state, appear on the LCD panel while actually driven.

Method and apparatus for driving liquid crystal display


An image reader includes a light source that irradiates light to a recording material on which an image is formed, a generation section that receives light reflected from the recording material and generates image information from the received light, and a processing section that extracts information corresponding to a window region of the recording material set in advance, as correction information, from the image information generated by the generation section when light from the light source is irradiated to the recording material on which the image is formed.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image reader, an image forming apparatus, a computer readable medium for image adjustment and an image adjusting method.
2. Related Art
In the related art, a copying machine, a facsimile, a scanner for computer input and the like are used as image readers that read image information from paper on which an image has been formed. In this kind of image reader, an image on the paper is read by irradiating light from a light source disposed on the transport path of the paper and receiving the light reflected from the paper using an image sensor.
Here, an image formed on a recording material may be adjusted on the basis of an image read by an image reader, for example. In this case, if all of the read image information is processed, it may take too long to adjust the image formed on the recording material.

Image reader, image forming apparatus, computer readable medium for image adjustment and image adjusting method


A clean dry glass powder useful as a substitute for Portland cement in concrete, in paints, and for other known uses for glass powder produced conventionally can be produced from unsorted post-consumer waste glass, including a subsatantial fraction of non-glass items, by employing glass pulverizing equipment to reduce waste glass to small fragments, allowing removal of trash, employing a multistep washing process to clean the glass fragments, in the preferred embodiment using aggregate cleaning equipment, drying the fragments, preferably using fluidized bed techniques, and grinding the glass to a desired particle size, preferably using a ball mill, in combination with an air classification step to produce a glass powder of uniform particle size.

Glass powder has been produced for years in limited quantities and is available to some extent for industrial applications. At present, glass powder is created from raw material and industrial waste, both of which are available in only selected locations. Increasing transportation costs have made it desirable to use glass that is available locally. This fact, and the glut of post-consumer waste glass available, makes post-consumer waste glass a logical choice for manufacture of glass powder. However, post-consumer waste glass has drawbacks as a feedstock, in particular its tendency to be contaminated with various foodstuffs and chemical residues, and to be mixed with trash, including labels and other paper scraps, as well as ceramic, plastic, and metal items of various sorts. These issues must be addressed and overcome in order to process post-consumer waste glass into usable glass powder in industrial quantities.
More specifically, for some years it has been commonplace for consumers to be expected to sort out empty glass containers for recycling. Ideally, this waste glass would be recycled as new containers. However, post-consumer waste glass is produced in various colors (clear, green, and brown being the most common) and cannot be sorted economically by automated equipment. Moreover, post-consumer waste glass tends to be mixed with plastic and ceramic waste, as well as undifferentiated trash. The difficulty of separating the glass from these other materials and separating the glass into its various colors has precluded efficient recycling of glass into new containers; as a result, most waste glass is now disposed of in landfills, a highly inefficient and undesirable end for this valuable material.
At the same time, it is known that under proper circumstances glass powder can serve as a substitute for some fraction of the Portland cement commonly used in concrete. While large glass particles are undesired as a component in concrete, due to a well-known alkali-silicate reaction (ASR) occurring between the silica of the glass and the alkali of other components of the concrete, which weakens the concrete, it is known that when the glass is powdered it behaves as a pozzolanic material, that is, will exhibit a cementing property when moistened. See, for example, Shayan, Value-Added Utilisation of Waste Glass in Concrete, IABSE Symposium Melbourne 2002; Use of Recycled Glass for Concrete Masonry Blocks, Carver et al, NYSERDA Report 97-15 (1997). At present Portland cement is in short supply. Accordingly it would be desirable if an efficient process for making high-quality, clean, dry powdered glass from post-consumer waste glass could be provided. The powdered glass thus made could be used in partial substitution for Portland cement in concrete and in other applications now known for powdered glass, e.g., paints and fillers for various products and uses.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,296,699 to Jin for "Inorganic binders employing waste glass" discusses using waste glass powder in concrete and "artificial stone". An alkali metal activator, for example, an alkali metal hydroxide, silicate, aluminate, carbonate, sulfate, phosphate or fluoride is mixed with the glass powder and water, and this material cured, in some examples at room temperature. Jin teaches that the waste glass should be cleaned in advance to remove residues such as sugar from the waste glass which can affect the setting and binding of the concrete. He further states that the processes used to create glass powder from waste glass, e.g., ball milling and pulverizing, are well known.
In a report titled "Recycling of Crushed Glass into Coating Products", CWC Report No. GL-96-1 (1998) the authors state that "paint and coating applications are especially sensitive to organic contamination. For example, one unwashed jar of mayonnaise could provide enough residue to bacterially contaminate many gallons of paint."
Vitunac et al U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,350,121 and 5,246,174 show methods for recycling glass, directed primarily to recycling of TV picture tubes, with much attention to removing heavy metals, coatings and the like. Pulverizing, washing, rinsing and further crushing steps are disclosed generally.
Abernathy U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,670 shows a trash recycling system including separation of various sorts of trash. Glass fragments are washed and dried.
Morey et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,067,502 and Morey U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,273 show flotation separation of glass fragments (up to 10 mesh) using amines as beneficiation agents.
Baxter U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,960 shows making glass for concrete reinforcement, while avoiding the alkali-silica reaction (ASR) by mixing a lithium-containing composition with crushed bottle glass. The glass may be provided in powder or fibrous form. Baxter et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,810,921 shows a similar invention using chromium instead of lithium.
Pelot et al U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,344,081 and 6,699,321 show concrete compositions, and emphasize the use of "electric" or "E-glass" powder of between 100 and 325 mesh in concrete. The claims require the glass particles to be no larger than 80-120 mesh, 40-60% between 180 and 220 mesh, and 10-30% less than 325 mesh; the cement used is to be low-alkali. The glass is to comprise up to 25% of the mix.
Bergart U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,950,936 and 6,168,102 show a system for recycling glass from a post-consumer waste glass stream including other sorts of debris. The process steps include various sorting, screening, crushing, presoaking, washing, dewatering, and drying steps. If a glass powder is desired, second crushing and separation steps may be included. The dewatering step can be performed using a rotary screw conveyor (col. 4, line 32 of the '936 patent), and the drying step using a fluidized bed dryer (col. 4, line 44). It is acknowledged that some ceramic content will remain, and it is asserted that if the ceramic content is not acceptable to the end user, a second crushing stage can be performed to form a fine glass powder; the "ceramic particles dispersed throughout the glass powder will dissipate in further processing". Col. 5, lines 48-52.
Kimmel et al U.S. Pat. No. 6,112,903 shows a method for sorting various types of glass from one another. A stream of glass cullet mixed with other items is heated using microwave energy; as different types of glass and items of other materials absorb different amounts of energy, they are differentially heated, and can be differentiated in a digital image made by a thermal imaging camera. A downstream diverter mechanism can then be used to separate out various constituents of the stream. Kimmel et al U.S. Pat. No. 6,464,082 shows a complete system employing this technique.
Harada U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,250,576 and 6,446,884 show a method and system for producing glass sands by crushing and agitating steps.
Sunde U.S. Pat. No. 6,743,287 shows a concrete using relatively large glass particles, requiring addition of a "non-alkali reactive mineral", e.g. granite.
Whaley U.S. Pat. No. 6,770,328 shows a method of making a terrazzo surface using recycled glass in an epoxy matrix. Preparation of the glass is not discussed.
Thus, although the prior art discusses the use of waste glass powder in various applications, in particular as a partial substitute for cement in concrete, notes that post-consumer waste glass is not being efficiently utilized, and provides some suggestions for processes for recycling post-consumer waste glass, the art does not disclose a reliable and efficient process for the production of suitably cleaned and dried glass powder from post-consumer waste glass and the integration of that process into a process for the manufacture of concrete and concrete products, in particular one which does not require the addition of substances intended to suppress the alkali-silica reaction.

Production of glass powder from waste glass, and products made using the same, especially concrete


Compositions of pro-chelator compounds are described herein. The pro-chelators may be activated in reducing conditions, such as in the intracellular space, so as to sequester metals such as iron. The pro-chelators may be used to target malignant cells or in the treatment in a condition associated with metal ion disregulation.

Metal ions play an important role in many biological systems. The proper concentration of certain metal ions can be crucial to the correct functioning of cells, organs, metabolic pathways or reactions in biological settings. Metal ions are regulated to provide the optimal concentrations for life and function. Various disease conditions are associated with metal ion disregulation.
Any feature or combination of features described herein are included within the scope of the present invention provided that the features included in any such combination are not mutually inconsistent as will be apparent from the context, this specification, and the knowledge of one of ordinary skill in the art. Additional advantages and aspects of the present invention are apparent in the following detailed description and claims.

ARIZONA BOARD OF REGENTS ON BEHALF OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA


In some embodiments, a catheter system may include a catheter adapter having a distal end, a proximal end, and a lumen extending there between. In some embodiments, the catheter system may also include a catheter extending distally from the distal end of the catheter adapter, an extension tube, and a connector coupled to a proximal end of the extension tube. In some embodiments, a distal end of the extension tube may be coupled to the proximal end of the catheter adapter. In some embodiments, the connector, the extension tube, the lumen, and the catheter may form a straight pathway for delivery of an instrument to the catheter system. In some embodiments, an extension set for a catheter assembly may include the extension tube, the connector coupled to the proximal end of the extension tube, and another connector coupled to the distal end of the extension tube.

Infusion therapy, a common healthcare procedure, may be facilitated by a vascular access device. Hospitalized, home care, and other patients receive fluids, pharmaceuticals, and blood products via a vascular access device inserted into the vascular system. Blood withdrawal is another common healthcare procedure that may be facilitated by a vascular access device.
A vascular access device may access a peripheral or central vasculature of a patient. A vascular access device may be indwelling for short term (days), moderate term (weeks), or long term (months to years). A vascular access device may be used for continuous infusion therapy or for intermittent therapy.
A common type vascular access device is an over-the-needle peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC). As its name implies, the "over-the-needle" PIVC may be mounted over an introducer needle having a sharp distal tip. The sharp distal tip may be used to pierce skin and the vasculature of the patient. Insertion of the PIVC into the vasculature may follow the piercing of the vasculature by the needle. The needle and the PIVC are generally inserted at a shallow angle through the skin into the vasculature of the patient with a bevel of the needle facing away from the skin of the patient. Once placement of the needle within the vasculature has been confirmed, a clinician may temporarily occlude flow in the vasculature and withdraw the needle, leaving the PIVC in place for future fluid infusion and/or blood withdrawal.
Currently, there may be several limitations to the use of a PIVC for fluid infusion or blood draw. The PIVC may narrow, collapse, or clog with time, leading to failure of the PIVC. Also, blood extracted from PIVCs may often need to be discarded due to concerns regarding sample quality. Further, use of a PIVC to draw blood can be slow and somewhat inefficient, particularly when the patient as difficult intravenous access or veins that are not readily accessed by the clinician.
The subject matter claimed herein is not limited to embodiments that solve any disadvantages or that operate only in environments such as those described above. Rather, this background is only provided to illustrate one example technology area where some implementations described herein may be practiced.

Catheter system with remote instrument delivery


A data receiving circuit includes: a first de-interleave circuit configured to de-interleave first data which is demodulated and is soft-decision-processed; a second de-interleave circuit configured to de-interleave second data which is demodulated and is soft-decision-processed; a memory configured to be shared by the first de-interleave circuit and the second de-interleave circuit and store respective hard decision information and respective soft decision information of the first data and the second data; and a memory control circuit configured to vary a first through fourth number of bits stored in the memory, the first number corresponding to the hard decision information of the first data, the second number corresponding to the soft decision information of the first data, the third number corresponding to the hard decision information of the second data, the fourth number corresponding to the soft decision information of the second data.

1. Field
The embodiments discussed herein relate to a receiving circuit.
2. Description of Related Art
In an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) method used for transmitting a digital signal, data may be allocated to a plurality of mutually orthogonal carriers. At a transmitting side, data may be modulated by using inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT). Then, at a receiving side, data may be demodulated by using fast fourier transform (FFT). Since the OFDM method has high frequency usage efficiency, the OFDM method may be adopted for Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting-Terrestrial (ISDB-T), a standard for terrestrial digital broadcasting.
Related techniques are disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2007-68038, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-274696, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2005-318374, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-320345, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2003-101505, and Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2007-318330.


A twin headed, electrostatic powder coating gun assembly in a lightweight, hollow housing readily mounted on a programmable robot so that the shape of the powder spray pattern can be controlled. The powder coating guns can be mounted in an adjustable housing and/or adjustably mounted in an unadjustable housing. The powder coating guns include an air purge system to clean the nozzles of coating powder.

Coating guns are typically mounted on programmable industrial robots for use in automated production lines. The robots are advantageous for applying an even coating of powder to irregular shaped articles. The robots can be programmed to coat articles with different configurations and to coat successive articles different from previously coated articles. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,341, discloses an improved coating gun for mounting on a programmable industrial robot. This patent is directed to the application of a liquid spray by a single coating gun.
Normally, a wrist component is attached to the end of the robot arm for mounting the coating gun. The arm moves to position the coating gun in space and the wrist component provides two or three axes of motion for aiming the coating gun relative to the end of the robot arm. However, there is a limit to the weight which can be mounted to the end of the robot arm without interfering with the operation of the robot. Also, the robot mounted guns are typically not easily removed from the robot and sometimes require excessive system downtime for repairs.
In certain powder coating applications, it is desirable to provide two coating guns within a single housing so that the desired spray pattern is formed with a desired direction and/or shape. While the provision of twin guns in a single housing is known, the guns have typically been secured within the housing in a single position. When an operator desires to change the direction or adjust the shape of the spray pattern, the housing is typically removed from the robot arm and replaced with a different housing wherein the two guns are repositioned to direct the spray in a different direction or to form a desired spray pattern shape. This procedure can be expensive because it requires stocking a number of different coating guns housings, each locating the guns in a different position. Alternatively, one set of coating guns can be removed from one housing and assembled in a different position in another housing. While there is a financial savings in reducing the number of guns carried in inventory, the disassembly and replacement is a time consuming operation which can still be expensive because of excessive system downtime.
Another problem in assembling or replacing guns within a housing is that the powder and electrical connections between the robot and the coating guns are typically provided by rigid tubes which are shaped to accommodate a specific mounting position. Therefore, if the position of the coating guns in the housing is changed, the connecting tubes may also have to replaced or bent to a different configuration to accommodate the repositioned powder guns. Both of these possibilities are expensive because they require a larger parts inventory and can be a time consuming activity which causes excessive system downtime.
An electrostatic powder coating gun periodically requires cleaning to remove powder which builds up within the gun, primarily within the nozzle of the gun. Cleaning the nozzle is also required whenever the powder color is changed. Cleaning the gun can be time consuming for the operator and result in excessive system downtime.

Robot mounted twin headed adjustable powder coating system with spray pattern direction control


Door stop assemblies are disclosed, which generally include a door stop that includes a stem portion, a distal side that includes a first magnetic element, and a proximal side. The door stop further includes at least one hinge located between the distal side and proximal side thereof. In addition, the assemblies further include a door stop receiving element that is equipped with a spring and a second magnetic element that is magnetically attracted to the first magnetic element.

Over the years, a variety of different door stops have been developed and placed into use, ranging from the very simple door stop (consisting of a basic coiled spring with a rubber tip) to more complex magnetic door stops. Despite the existence of a large variety of door stops, there continues to be a need for a magnetic door stop that is effective to not only hold a door in an open state, but also allow a door to be pushed (and held in an open position) that is closer to a wall (e.g., in order to maximize the entry space of a doorway).
The present invention addresses such demands, and provides other benefits that are not provided by currently-available door stop assemblies.


A power amplifier includes amplifier stages. An amplifier stage includes a transistor, and at least one amplifier stage comprises a driver stage. The amplifier stages include a first amplifier stage having a first transistor and associated with a first output power, and a second amplifier stage having a second transistor and associated with a second output power. A current sharing coupling couples the first amplifier stage and the second amplifier stage. The first amplifier stage and the second amplifier stage share a current through the current sharing coupling. The current sharing coupling facilitates scaling of the first output power and the second output power.

A power amplifier includes driver stages, where each driver stage supplies excitation to a next driver stage. Each driver stage consumes power to operate. The power consumed by the driver stages, however, reduces the power added efficiency of the power amplifier.
There are known techniques for improving the power added efficiency of a power amplifier. According to one known technique, the bias point, output matching network, or harmonic terminations of a power amplifier may be adjusted to decrease the DC power of the output stage of the amplifier. Decreasing the output stage DC power by matching to an efficiency load target may increase power added efficiency. According to another technique, the size of the driver stages may be reduced to minimize the power consumed by the driver stages. Minimizing power consumption by the driver stages may increase power added efficiency. Reducing the drive stage size, however, may not work for low output power amplifiers. The input stage for a low output power amplifier may be required to be extremely small, and extremely small stages are difficult to match.

Amplifying a signal using a current shared power amplifier


The invention relates to a device for magnetic field therapy which is preferably adapted for producing nuclear magnetic resonances in the tissue to be treated. The device comprises a base and two side parts having coils integrated therein.

Methods for magnetic field therapy and associated devices for performing same are known.
A method for magnetic field therapy in which the therapeutic effect relies on the effect of nuclear magnetic resonance is described in European patent document EP 1 089 792 B1 (patent holder Axel Muntermann).
This method uses a device in which a substantially static magnetic field is superimposed by an alternating magnetic field perpendicular thereto.
A requirement for achieving nuclear magnetic resonance is that at least the static magnetic field in the treatment zone has a field strength as homogenous as possible, since otherwise nuclear magnetic resonance only occurs in a part of the treatment zone.
In practice, for generating alternating magnetic fields a Helmholtz coil is used, for example, i.e. an arrangement of two annular or cylindrical coils spaced from each other.
A disadvantage of such a coil arrangement or an annular coil in general is that the patient has to lie down in the coil during treatment. This is not comfortable, in particular for older or adipose persons. Moreover, the annular arrangement extending around the patient may cause claustrophobia.
When treating animals the handling of an annular coil is also impractical, since the animal has to be driven in, e.g. on a carriage, and so would have to be fixed in many cases, or since the air coil required for treatment has to be slid onto the joint to be treated or the area to be treated.


A blood sampling device is provided with a housing, a lancet assembly, a lancet holder which is movable in a lancing direction between a cocked position and a puncture position, and an actuator mechanism disposed in the housing for causing the lancet holder to move from the cocked position to the puncture position. The lancet assembly has a lancet with a sharp tip, a lancet body having at least two angularly spaced ribs which extend outwardly from a central portion of the lancet body, and a protective cap covering the sharp tip of the lancet, the protective cap being attached to the lancet body so that the protective cap is twistably removable from the lancet body. The lancet holder has an aperture formed therein, the aperture having a cylindrical shape and being substantially unobstructed so that the lancet body may be inserted into the aperture in any angular orientation relative to the lancet holder, and the blood sampling device includes a mechanism for preventing significant rotational movement of the lancet body relative to the lancet holder when the lancet body is disposed in the aperture formed in the lancet holder and when the protective cap is subject to an angular force sufficient to twist the protective cap off of the lancet body.

The present invention relates to a blood sampling device that incorporates a lancet assembly for piercing the skin, and more particularly to a blood sampling device having a particular type of lancet holder for holding the lancet assembly.
A conventional blood sampling device has a lancet assembly in the form of a generally cylindrical plastic body in which a needle-like lancet is disposed. A portion of the plastic body has a number of outwardly extending ribs disposed thereon. A conventional lancet assembly is shown, for example, in FIG. 6 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,976,724 to Nieto, et al. The lancet assembly is held within a generally cup-shaped lancet holder by an interference fit. The lancet holder is typically disposed within a housing along with an actuator mechanism for moving the lancet holder between a cocked position, a puncture position, and a resting position intermediate the cocked and puncture positions.
A conventional lancet assembly also includes a plastic protective cap that covers the sharp tip of the lancet to prevent inadvertent skin puncture prior to use of the blood sampling device. When a blood sample is to be taken, the lancet assembly is forced into the cylindrical opening formed in the cup-shaped lancet holder, and the protective cap is twisted off the lancet assembly so that the tip of the lancet is exposed. To prevent the lancet assembly from turning within the lancet holder when the protective cap is twisted off (the interference fit is typically not strong enough to prevent such turning), the interior of a conventional, industry standard lancet holder is provided with a plurality of angularly spaced ribs which prevent rotation of the lancet assembly by making contact with the outwardly extending ridges of the lancet body. Although such ribs are useful in preventing unintended rotation of the lancet assembly relative to the lancet holder when the protective cap is twisted off, they may hinder the insertion of the lancet assembly into the lancet holder if the lancet assembly is not properly oriented relative to the lancet holder. This may cause frustration to the user of the blood sampling device and/or improper seating of the lancet assembly within the lancet holder.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,442,836 to Meinecke, et al. discloses a blood lancet device having a lancet holder of the type described above which is adapted to be inserted into a lancet holder having a hexahedral-shaped aperture with a square cross-section, as shown in FIG. 6 of the patent. The Nieto, et al. patent referred to above discloses a blood sampling device in which a lancet assembly having a protective cap is inserted into a collar-shaped lancet-holding mechanism having a tubular chamber, with an interference fit between the lancet assembly and the lancet holding mechanism.

Blood sampling device with anti-twist lancet holder


An arrangement whereby a passive line concentrator (100) can be connected in a managed token ring network includes a special concentrator port (200) in an active concentrator (10) which is adapted to have inserted the ring-in port (130) of the passive line concentrator. The special concentrator port of the active concentrator supplies a small phantom current to the passive concentrator, which returns the phantom current only if it has at least one active port. Detection of the returned phantom current controls insertion of the special concentrator port into the network.

This invention relates to ring communications networks and, more particularly, to an arrangement whereby a passive line concentrator can be connected in a managed token ring network.
A token ring network is a well defined and standardized type of network arranged so that computers connected to the network may communicate with each other. Such a network includes a trunk which forms part of a normally closed ring and further includes at least one token ring concentrator having a number of input/output ports through which, by means of relay switching, computers may be inserted into the network. A standard governing token ring networks is the IEEE Standard 802.5, wherein each of the input/output ports is referred to as a trunk coupling unit. According to this standard, insertion of a computer into the ring is controlled by the computer itself, with the mechanism for effecting the insertion or bypass of the computer residing in the respective input/output port of the concentrator. Each computer is connected to a respective input/output port of the concentrator via a medium interface cable (MIC) and the computer exercises control of the insertion/bypass mechanism via the MIC using a phantom circuit technique. The phantom circuit impresses a DC voltage on the MIC. This DC voltage is transparent to the passage of computer-transmitted symbols, hence the name "phantom". The impressed voltage is used within the input/output port of the concentrator to effect the transfer of the switching action to cause the serial insertion of the computer in the ring. Cessation of the phantom drive causes a switching action which will bypass the computer and cause the computer to be put into a looped (wrapped) state. This loop may be used by the computer for off-line self-testing functions. The IEEE Standard 802.5 illustrates relay contacts for effecting the switching action to bypass/insert the computer. Typically, a latching relay is used because the impressed phantom voltage, and the resulting phantom current, is not sufficient to continuously power a relay.
Depending upon the particular network, there are two types of concentrators which may be utilized. The first type of concentrator may be referred to as a "passive" concentrator. This type of concentrator is used in a network which is not managed. Thus, there is no provision in this type of network for fault detection or reconfiguration of the network in the event of a fault. Each passive concentrator merely includes a plurality of input/output ports for connection to computers, as well as a ring-in port and a ring-out port for interfacing with a trunk cable connected between adjacent concentrators in the ring. Thus, the passive concentrator is unpowered and derives power for the switching functions from the computers to which it is connected.
The second type of concentrator may be termed an "active" concentrator. One use of an active concentrator is in a managed network. There are at least three aspects of network management. The first aspect is the collection of network statistics. The second aspect is fault tolerance wherein the network can be reconfigured in the event of a cable fault. The third aspect is topology management wherein unused portions may be removed from the ring to keep the ring as short as possible. An active concentrator will thus have some logic circuits and will have a source of power, but its input/output ports still rely on phantom current from a computer for inserting the computer in the ring.
There are circumstances where it would be desirable to use a passive concentrator in a managed network. In this way, the entire passive concentrator can be isolated in the event of a malfunction. It is therefore a primary object of this invention to provide an arrangement whereby a passive concentrator can be connected in a managed token ring network.

Arrangement for utilizing a passive line concentrator in a managed token ring network


A snare injection device for performing endoscopic transection procedures is disclosed. The device includes a snare system and a needle system, each containing actuator components separately routed in one of two channels of an elongated dual lumen. Deployment of the snare and needle are independently operated by two separate handle controls. The device includes needle travel stop and anti-puncture features for safety and ease of use.

Endoscopes are well-known in the art and are commonly used for numerous medical procedures. One such procedure is removing polyps, lesions or other types of targeted tissue from the gastrointestinal mucosal wall of a human subject.
Several drawbacks exist with conventional polypectomy removal techniques. Various cauterization devices have been developed to remove polyps. However, these devices sometimes cause serious thermal injury to the gastrointestinal wall, fail to remove the entire targeted tissue, or do not completely cauterize blood vessels which lead to excessive bleeding. Snare devices designed to encircle and remove polyps may not capture all the targeted tissue. Further, a physician may experience difficulty in securing the targeted tissue with the snare. Snaring only the minimal tissue required from the three layer wall, i.e., mucosa, submucosa, and muscularis, is also important. More specifically, to prevent complications, the muscularis tissue should be avoided in this type of procedure. In an effort to solve these and other problems, one technique used is sub-mucosal lift polypectomy which involves injecting the tissue with, for example a saline solution, to lift the tissue to a more favorable position. This technique improves complete transection. The injected fluid separation also insulates the outer muscle from cautery or thermal injury.
Various other procedures require a needle and a snare, including use of a needle to wash the site, applying dies for the purpose of highlighting diseased or abnormal tissue, for injecting tattoo medium for post-transection surveillance purposes, and hemostatic injection therapy for post-polypectomy bleeding. In these and other procedures requiring a snare and a needle, a physician must use two separate auxiliary instruments, and one at a time feed them in and out of the instrument channel, which increases the overall procedure time. Therefore, a need exists in the art for a snare injection device that offers an improvement over prior art designs.
The present invention is a device that includes a snare and a needle, each separately routed in one channel of a dual channel lumen. The needle may perform several functions during the procedure, including pre-procedure and post-procedure injections, and lifting the tissue during the procedure. The present invention also allows for immediate repeat injections which may be required due to absorption of the lift fluid by the gastrointestinal wall, without removal of the snare.
The present invention offers numerous other improvements over prior art needle devices including a needle limit mechanism, consistent 1:1 handle/needle axial movement in a variety of endoscope configurations, and puncture prevention features. In certain prior art designs, a needle could injure a patient by puncturing the sidewall of a device or deploying beyond a desired length to cause harm to a patient. As such, the present invention offers improvements in patient safety and ease of use for the physician.


A pluggable electrical unit with module electronics has a bus access unit for electrical connection of the pluggable unit to an electrical base unit. The base unit comprises a power supply, a signal processing means and signal lines for identification, control lines, address lines and data lines, which are connected in the manner of a bus to a plurality of contact devices. The bus access unit has a variable resistor and switches for isolation. The variable resistor and the switches for isolating signal lines for identification, control lines address lines and data lines in the pluggable electrical unit are linked to one another in a causal chain.

The invention relates to a bus access unit for a pluggable electrical unit for the electrical connection of this pluggable electrical unit to an electrical base unit.
Complex electrical engineering systems, in particular in measuring and control technology and in telecommunications, are often of a modular construction. This involves a large number of electrical units being accommodated in an enclosure of an electrical base unit in a pluggable manner. The pluggable electrical units are mechanically of an identical construction but electrically different according to their intended function.
When a complex system of this type is expanded by adding further pluggable electrical units while operation is in progress or when one of the pluggable electrical units is exchanged, there is the risk of electrical components of the pluggable electrical unit and/or of the base unit being damaged or destroyed if an electrical unit which, though mechanically able to be inserted into the slot, is not electrically and functionally intended for this slot is inserted into the slot.
DE 196 10 556 discloses a bus access unit for connecting a subassembly of a programmable controller to a bus, which subassembly is spatially arranged in the base unit and is tested by means of a test contact and an evaluation circuit to ascertain that it is a plug-in module and, if it is a plug-in module, a variable resistor fitted into the feed line of the plug-in module is switched to low resistance after a predetermined waiting time.
Furthermore, EP 888 589 discloses a bus access unit for connecting a subassembly of a programmable controller to a bus, which subassembly is spatially arranged in the base unit and for which the bus lines of the control bus are connected via bidirectional inhibitable drivers to the terminals of the plug-in module which correspond to the bus lines. The bidirectional inhibitable drivers can be activated individually and in groups.
WO 97/07465 discloses a bus access unit with an adaptor plug, which for each slot is fitted between the base unit and the plug-in module, and has means for isolating the plug-in module from the base unit.
All the known bus access units have the common feature that the electrical interfaces of all the slots for receiving plug-in modules are uniform. Consequently, the electrical interfaces of electrically and functionally different plug-in modules have to be of an identical configuration.
Such uniform interfaces no longer allow individualizing of the electrical interface of the pluggable electrical units that is designed for the plug-in contact device, since plug-in contacts of the same name would be wired to different types of signals, which may also differ in the direction of signal transmission. If the free choice of slots is maintained for all the pluggable electrical units, the number of necessary plug-in contacts increases in proportion to the degree of individualization of the pluggable electrical units, and so does the complexity of the backplane wiring and of the bus access units. This additional complexity is felt to be disadvantageous. In addition, the overall size of the plug-in connector increases with the number of pins. Plug-in connectors of a larger overall size are at odds with the miniaturization of pluggable electrical units.
The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a bus access unit which is suitable for managing electrical interfaces of different types for electrically and functionally different plug-in modules while maintaining the free choice of slots in such a way that disruptions to units already in operation and damage to the unit to be inserted are avoided.
The invention is based on a bus access unit for a pluggable electrical unit for the electrical connection of this pluggable electrical unit to an electrical base unit, the base unit having a processing unit, and the bus access unit comprising a multipin plug-in contact device for the connection of the pluggable electrical unit to the base unit, a variable resistor, which is arranged in the feed line to the power supply of the pluggable electrical unit from the base unit, with a control input and with a high-resistance and a low-resistance state and means connected to the plug-in contact device for isolating control lines, data lines and address lines of the pluggable electrical unit from the base unit.
The essence of the invention is to arrange the variable resistor and the means for isolating control lines, data lines and address lines in the pluggable electrical unit and link them to one another in a causal chain.
It is specifically provided that the pluggable electrical unit has a first bus switch arrangement with a first control input for isolating a first group of control lines and for isolating signal lines for the identification of the pluggable electrical unit, the first control input of which is connected via a trigger circuit to the controlled terminal of the variable resistor.
The pluggable electrical unit additionally has a second bus switch arrangement with a second control input for isolating a second group of control lines, the second control input of which is connected to an isolated control line from the first group of control lines, a third bus switch arrangement with a third control input for isolating address lines, the third control input of which is connected to an isolated control line from the second group of control lines, and a fourth bus switch arrangement with a fourth control input for isolating data lines, the fourth control input of which is connected to an isolated control line from the second group of control lines.
This has the inevitable result that only when the plug-in contacts of the base unit leading to the supply voltage meet the corresponding mating plug-in contacts of the pluggable electrical unit can the pluggable electrical unit be supplied with power and the variable resistor can be brought into the low-resistance state.
Only in the low-resistance state of the variable resistor can the first bus switch arrangement be activated, after a predeterminable time period with an internal supply voltage present has elapsed, and the first group of control lines and the signal lines for the identification of the pluggable electrical unit can be switched through at low resistance by the plug-in contact device to further switching means of the pluggable electrical unit.
Only when the first bus switch arrangement has been successfully activated can the second bus switch arrangement be activated and the second group of control lines can be switched through at low resistance by the plug-in contact device to further switching means of the pluggable electrical unit.
Finally, only when the second bus switch arrangement has been successfully activated can the third and fourth bus switch arrangements be activated and consequently the address lines and the data lines can be switched through at low resistance by the plug-in contact device to further switching means of the pluggable electrical unit.
If the conditions mentioned are not satisfied, the respective bus switch arrangement remains at high resistance and the switching means of the pluggable electrical unit remain disconnected from those of the base unit. Because of this causal interrelationship, every pluggable electrical unit which, though it mechanically fits, is electrically incompatible remains isolated from the signal lines of the base unit. Consequently, disruptions to units already in operation and damage to the unit to be inserted are avoided.
According to a further feature of the invention, it is provided that the control input of the variable resistor is connected via contacts of the plug-in connection to the processing unit of the base unit. This achieves the effect that the power supply of a pluggable electrical unit identified as incompatible for the respective slots can be switched off.
A further advantage of the bus access unit according to the invention is that only the signal lines actually used in the pluggable electrical unit are isolated from those of the base unit. It is possible to dispense with the bus switches for the signal lines which, though routed from slot to slot in the base unit, are unused by the respective pluggable electrical unit. This reduces the complexity for the isolation of control lines, data lines and address lines of the pluggable electrical unit from the base unit.
In addition, by dispensing with unnecessary bus switches, the capacitive loading of the signal lines is reduced. While retaining the drive power, the signal-to-noise ratio for the signal lines is consequently improved. Further details and advantages of the invention are explained in more detail below on the basis of an exemplary embodiment.

Bus access unit for a pluggable electrical unit


The present invention is a side access hinging truck bed rack. The device pertains primarily to a pickup truck bed rack that allows for easy loading, unloading, and securing of cargo at shoulder level through a rotating hinge mechanism. In the present invention a pair of stationary side rails, both having an inverted U-shape, are fixed parallel to each other upon the upper rims of the longitudinal sidewalls of the truck bed, so that that one of the stationary side rails is above the front wall while the second stationary side rail is above the back tailgate. A hinge at each end of the two stationary side rails pivotally attaches two inverted U-shaped side arm rails. Attached to each of the side arm rails are shelf rack rails. The shelf rack rails rest flatly upon the top of both stationary side rails when in a closed secure position. When the present invention is in this position the side arm rails rest in an upward pointing stance alongside the stationary side rails.

Utility pick up trucks have been traditionally used by plumbers, electricians, painters, roofers, lumberjacks, and similar artisans to hold and transport long materials, such as pipes, ladders, sheets of plywood, etc. A typical pickup truck includes a cab with a cargo flat bed rearward of the cab. The truck bed consists of a floor, front wall, two parallel longitudinal sidewalls, and a back tailgate that forms a cargo holding area. Although large cargo may be stored in a flat bed of such design, more cargo carrying space can be utilized if an overhead truck bed rack is employed to support cargo in a raised position above the truck bed.
Using a truck rack enables users to store items in the truck bed in addition to on top of the rack, as well as to stow long objects, such as lumber, which may be longer than the truck bed, and thus not being suitable to be hauled in the truck bed. Unfortunately, using a truck rack means that the user must be capable of reaching the level of a truck rack, which is typically well above the shoulder height of the user. Lifting heavy objects onto a truck rack is oftentimes too difficult for the user.
Moreover, pickup trucks are much more common on the road than in past years. Pickup trucks have traditionally been viewed as rugged utility vehicles capable of conquering any rough terrain and have been employed by craftsmen for some type of utility function; yet, in recent years, pickup trucks have experienced a surge in popularity and have become acceptable as passenger vehicles as well as utility vehicles. Pickup trucks account for over 20% of all vehicles sold in the US. Trucks have even become family vehicles; some complete with four doors and rear seats. Although once rugged, pickup trucks have been transformed into stylish vehicles for general use and, as a result, a need for increased carrying space has become just as important as retaining the capability of a utility truck function. Families find that they need more than just the space within a truck bed floor to place items. Running boards, tailgate protectors, attractive grilles, and mud flaps help to make a pickup truck more friendly for the average driver; and similarly, truck racks make packing in a truck that much more space effective for the average driver.
The relevant art shows an assortment of truck bed racks created in attempts to provide users with more space aside from that which the truck bed offers. However, these devices do not offer versatility, quick shoulder-level loading and unloading, auto folding, nor the ability to increase storage capacity beyond the length and width of the truck bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,472 that issued to Ronald G. Coffland on Jul. 11, 1995, shows a truck rack with foldable side rails for truck beds. Unlike the present invention, Coffland's device contains supporting cross bars disposed above the truck that do not provide a surface for resting luggage upon. In addition, Coffland's device cannot automatically raise stored goods as weight is disposed upon it.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,585,264 that issued to Roger Miller on Apr. 29, 1986, is merely a fence type structure that follows the four sides of a truck bed. Unlike the present invention, Miller's device is incapable of shifting stored goods from an accessible loading position to a higher storage position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,458 that issued to Steven R. Burke on Sep. 13, 1988, shows a device unlike the present invention that is of a bulky configuration. Such a bulky configuration, resembling pigpen structures when attached to a pickup truck, cannot be removed without significant difficulty. Also, unlike the present invention, Miller's device is incapable of shifting stored goods from an accessible loading position to a higher storage position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,152,020 that issued to William D. Brown on May 1, 1979, shows a rack for a pickup truck with four corner posts supported by steel angled bed rails stretching the full length of the truck bed and U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,630 that issued to Ron S. Berkich on Dec. 19, 1995, shows a truck rack that mounts to the bed of a truck, which includes components for adjusting the height and extent for supporting loads. Yet, unlike the present invention, these devices lack a hinge component, which will enable easy loading and unloading of cargo at a shoulder level.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,378,127 that issued to Benedict A. Rossi, Sr. on Mar. 29, 1983, shows a rack comprising a set of upright posts supported by a horizontal base plate, yet unlike the present invention, this device is adapted to be installed solely in combination with a shell in the bed of a pickup truck.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,628,540 that issued to William L. James on May 13, 1997, shows an adjustable rack mounted on small or midsize pickup trucks, yet unlike the present invention, this device contains a telescoping component that allows the rack to expand and elevate. Such racks utilizing a telescoping adjustment system often are less sturdy than racks containing single-pieced rigid members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,858 that issued to Brent A. Price on Apr. 19, 1994, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,945, show truck racks to be mounted on the top of truck beds; yet unlike the present invention, these devices are designed solely for holding bicycles above truck beds, and would not serve any function for stowing other larger objects such as lumber, pipes, etc.
Thus, there is a need for an invention that provides a truck bed rack that is convenient for loading, unloading, and securing cargo by providing side access at shoulder level. Further, there is a need for a device that moves loaded cargo to a higher position above the truck bed.

Abstract: The racking system provides access into the bed area of the truck without having to reach below the plane of the side walls of the truck bed. Making the system more efficient as well as safer by the fact it is ergonomically correct.


The disclosed embodiments relate to a system for communicating packets through a network switch fabric. During operation, at an aggregation point in the network switch fabric, the system segregates packet flows from multiple sources into a set of quality-of-service (QoS) buckets. Next, the system monitors traffic rates for each QoS bucket. The system then determines a state for each QoS bucket by comparing a traffic rate for the QoS bucket with one or more state-specific thresholds. When a packet is subsequently received for a given QoS bucket, the system performs an action based on a state of the given QoS bucket.

High-performance computing systems often include large numbers of servers interconnected by a network switch fabric that is responsible for communicating packets to and from the servers. Each of these servers can potentially run multiple virtual machines (VMs) and associated virtualized applications, and the network packet streams generated by these servers are typically directed to different resources that the VMs and associated virtualized applications need to access. Hot spots and associated network congestion frequently arise in such network switch fabrics depending on the patterns of the packet streams and how the switch fabric is configured.
In an exemplary configuration, a high-performance Infiniband™ network switch fabric can be used to connect a large number of servers with an Ethernet™ gateway. In this configuration, traffic through the Ethernet gateway comprises virtualized traffic streams associated with VMs that execute on various servers in the data center. In general, traffic streams to and from the VMs have stringent requirements for traffic isolation and independent policy enforcement. For example, some of these policies could be related to traffic management, firewalls, and L3-L7 packet-processing.
In a network switch fabric, hot spots frequently arise at points in the network hierarchy where traffic from multiple sources tends to aggregate. For example, a virtual switch (vSwitch) uplink node aggregates traffic from multiple VMs, a NIC port aggregates traffic from multiple vSwitches, a network tier uplink node aggregates traffic from multiple NIC ports, and so on. These hot spots can adversely affect the performance of the VMs and virtualized applications running in the network hierarchy.
Hence, what is needed is a technique for managing hot spots and associated network congestion in a network switch fabric.

Facilitating congestion control in a network switch fabric based on group traffic rates


Provided herein are kits, compositions and methods for biomarker detection, and the use of relative or absolute levels of these markers for non-invasive detection of stress and/or relaxation levels in human subjects. In particular, the present invention relates to cortisol, isomer and metabolite markers for stress and/or relaxation levels.

Cortisol, the adrenal glands' principle stress hormone, is a small steroid hormone (MW: 362.46) that plays many important roles in physiological and psychological processes. It is secreted by the adrenal glands, as an end product of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis mainly in response to stress. Cortisol is crucial for homeostatic maintenance, by means of modulating, regulating or influencing vital systems including neural, immune, cardiovascular, metabolic, and endocrine systems. Abnormal circulating cortisol levels lead to illness. Prolonged elevated levels can cause impaired cognitive performance, hyperglycemia, sleep disruption, elevated blood pressure, suppressed immune function, obesity, fatigue; and are reported to contribute to the development of Cushing's disease. Chronically lower levels (adrenal fatigue) have been associated with fatigue, low blood pressure and inflammation.
A variety of analytical techniques have been employed for cortisol analysis in biofluids, including radio immunoassay (RIA), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA), capillary electrophoresis-based immunoassay (CE-IA), miniaturized immunosensors, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Although still widely adopted in biomedical and clinical studies, immunoassays of cortisol are known to suffer from specificity problems due to antibody cross-reaction with other unidentified endogenous steroids, administered drugs as well as their markers, which lead to false positive results that could invalidate clinical test results.
Cortisol has been routinely measured in human blood, urine and saliva in clinical labs. It has also been detected in interstitial fluid (ISF) and hair. Among these, blood and ISF samplings are invasive, which can alter the stress level of patients, and thereby introduce artifacts and erroneous results. Although collection of urine and saliva are non-invasive, these have potential reliability problems as a source biofluid for cortisol detection.
Based on the above background, a simple, sensitive, and specific analytical method for accurate quantification of cortisol, isomer and metabolite markers in human eccrine sweat is needed to non-invasively measure this important stress hormone in settings where collection of blood is unfeasible or undesirable.

Stress biomarkers and related non-invasive detection methods


A process for the deoxidation of a refractory metal containing minor concentrations of oxygen is disclosed. In this process the refractory metal is contacted with a metallic deoxidant in a dry, inert atmosphere. The metallic deoxidant and the refractory metal are heated to at least liquefy the metallic deoxidant and at least partially deoxidize the refractory metal. The refractory metal is thereafter cooled and contaminants on its surface are removed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a process for removing oxygen from a refractory metal. More particularly, the present invention describes a process for removing oxygen from a refractory metal by treatment with a metallic deoxidant.
2. Background of the Prior Art
It should be understood that the invention concerns a process for the deoxidation of refractory metal and metal alloys which contain only minor amounts of oxygen, as contrasted with processes for the reduction of ores to produce metal. Processes to reduce ores or metal oxides to metal usually require extreme temperatures, as shown in several disclosures. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,834,667 to Rostron teaches direct thermal reduction of titanium dioxide by using metallic magnesium at a temperature not substantially less than 1000.degree. C. U.S. Pat. No. 2,537,068 to Lilliendahl et al. shows the reduction of zirconium oxide or double chloride with calcium at temperatures between 1100.degree. C and 1200.degree. C. U.S. Pat. No. 2,653,869 to Gregory et al. which discusses the manufacture of vanadium powder from vanadium trioxide mixed with calcium and calcium chloride at a temperature between 900.degree. C. and 1350.degree. C. U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,837 to Downs describes a method of reducing metal oxide powders at 600.degree. C. using molten lithium and magnesium or molten lithium and calcium metals.
A pure metal or alloy can become contaminated with oxygen by the various cutting, machining, rolling, forging and heating processes used to shape and work the metal. Although processes are known which remove surface oxide scale from metal e.g., washing with detergents, acid pickling, shot blasting and grinding, no practical commercial method has yet been developed to remove oxygen which has diffused into the lattice structure of the metal itself.
The use of calcium to reduce refractory metal oxides, in distinction to the removal of minor concentrations of oxygen, is well known. However, the use of calcium to deoxidize superficially oxidized metal, i.e. minor concentrations of oxygen, has been less successful. Prior art methods require high temperatures and an excess of pure, expensive calcium for this purpose. Generally these methods use multiple reductions or treatments to completely remove oxygen from the final metal. As suggested in the Rostrom '667 patent, calcium could be dispersed in a fused calcium chloride bath, maintained at about 1000.degree. C. or higher, and used to deoxidize titanium scrap metal. However, large excesses of calcium and calcium chloride are required.


A system and method of performing a multi-party computation by determining a function for use in the multi-party computation, receiving a plurality of input values for the function, evaluating the function based at least in part on the plurality of input values to generate a result wherein the result is not usable to determine an input of the plurality of input values, and providing an output based at least in part on the result.

Multi-party computation is a field of cryptographic research with a goal to allow multiple mutually-distrustful parties to compute a function while simultaneously keeping the input values private. The aim of multi-party computation is to enable the design of systems with the best balance of utility and user privacy without the use of a trusted third party. However, current protocols are more time-consuming than performing the computation using trusted third parties and require costly computer hardware.


A method and apparatus are present for manufacturing a part. The part is comprised of a metal alloy and is positioned to form a positioned part. An electromagnetic field is generated that heats the positioned part. A surface of the positioned part is exposed to an inert gas, while the electromagnetic field is generated to create an inverse thermal gradient between an exterior of the positioned part and an interior section of the positioned part to form a heat treated part.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to manufacturing parts and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for manufacturing hardened metallic structures. Still more particularly, the present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for manufacturing a precipitation hardened metal alloy structure for transmission gear applications.
2. Background
A gear is a component that may be found within a transmission system that may transmit rotational force to another gear and/or device. A gear may take the form of a rounded wheel with teeth. The teeth may engage and/or mesh with other teeth on another gear and/or device. This engagement may allow for force to be transferred from one gear to another gear and/or device without slippage.
Gears are commonly found in various vehicles, such as an aircraft. In particular, a helicopter has a number of different transmission systems in which gears are used. For example, without limitation, a helicopter has one or more of an engine nose transmission box, an intermediate gear transmission box, a main transmission gear box, a tail rotor transmission box, or some other suitable gear system.
Gears for industrial and/or aerospace applications typically have a strong, tough core. This core is designed to be resistant to crack propagation and roller fatigue failure. The surface of a gear typically has a strong, hard layer that forms the teeth for the gear. This surface is designed to be resistant to wear that can occur from the surface of the teeth of the gear sliding against teeth on another gear and/or device.
These properties for gears are achieved using various types of metals and/or metal alloys. For example, without limitation, steel alloys are processed by quenching and tempering steel alloys followed by nitrating of the alloys. In addition to having these types of properties, it also is desirable to decrease the weight of gears, especially for use in aerospace applications. For example, without limitation, gears in a helicopter transmission may form around one third of the weight of the systems.
One solution is to use a titanium gear. A titanium gear has a lower density as compared to steel alloys, resulting in a lower weight. Currently available titanium alloy gears, however, have a lower strength than a steel alloy gear with similar dimensions. For example, without limitation, gears made from widely available titanium alpha-beta alloys, such as Ti-6Al-4V or Ti-6Al-2Sn-4V-2Zr, have a strength that is one third less than a steel alloy gear.
To compensate for this type of strength difference, a titanium alloy gear may be thicker to compensate for the lower strength. This compensation, however, often reduces the weight savings enabled by the lower density of titanium alloys, to near zero. Further, titanium alloy gears also have surfaces that are not as hard as the surfaces of steel alloy gears with respect to resisting sliding wear when engaging other gears.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a method and apparatus that takes into account one or more of the issues discussed above, as well as possibly other issues.

Hardened titanium structure for transmission gear applications


An adaptive sheet structure with distributed strain actuators is controlled by a dynamic compensator that implements multiple input, multiple output control laws derived by model-based, e.g., Linear Quadratic Gaussian (LQG) control methodologies. An adaptive lifting surface is controlled for maneuver enhancement, flutter and vibration suppression and gust and load alleviation with piezoceramic elements located within, or enclosed by sheets of composite material at a particular height above the structure's neutral axis. Sensors detect the amplitudes of lower order structural modes, and distributed actuators drive or damp these and other modes. The controller is constructed from an experimental and theoretical model using conventional control software, with a number of event recognition patterns and control algorithms programmed for regulating the surface to avoid instabilities. The number of control states of the compensator is then reduced by removing states having negligible effects on the plant, and a smaller set of control laws are optimized and then adjusted based on analytical models bench and wind-tunnel testing.

The present invention relates to the behavior of plate or sheet structures in changing conditions, for example, in a fluid flow, and control of such behavior. Perhaps the most developed body of related art is the study of aerodynamic structures such as aircraft wings, for which detailed models of lifts, loading, flutter control, gust alleviation and the like have been developed for a variety of wing shapes and articulated control systems under a commonly experienced range of conditions. Aileron-controlled wings, however are relatively heavy and unresponsive structures with rather low-bandwidth control systems.
Some current and many future space vehicle and aircraft performance criteria demand light weight flexible structures, such as solar arrays, signal collectors, antennae, mirrors, and lifting surfaces, formed of generally plate-like structures. Structural integrity and mission requirements of these plate-like components of aerospace vehicles also demand low vibration and load levels. Due to these conflicting specifications there exists a need for high-authority, high-bandwidth control systems to be incorporated into and implemented on such plate-like structures.
In the past, it has been suggested that certain structural elements, such as plates or trusses, may incorporate piezoelectric elements actuated to alter the stiffness and suppress an unwanted resonance.
More recently, applicants and others have made various measurements or models relating the performance or weight penalties of distributed actuators for achieving desirable structural properties, for example, induced bending or twisting, of a wing. Thus, at this point it is well recognized that the inclusion of piezoelectric elements in a wing surface is feasible, and the effects of including such elements on basic mechanical properties such as length, stiffness or the like can be quantified. However, there does not appear to have been constructed a control system for performing complete control of a plate structure in a real environment.
It would be desirable to have an effective compensator for controlling an adaptive surface structure such as a lifting surface.


An system-on-a-chip integrated circuit has a field programmable gate array core having logic clusters, static random access memory modules, and routing resources, a field programmable gate array virtual component interface translator having inputs and outputs, wherein the inputs are connected to the field programmable gate array core, a microcontroller, a microcontroller virtual component interface translator having input and outputs, wherein the inputs are connected to the microcontroller, a system bus connected to the outputs of the field programmable gate array virtual component interface translator and also to the outputs of said microcontroller virtual component interface translator, and direct connections between the microcontroller and the routing resources of the field programmable gate array core.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to system-on-a-chip architecture . More particularly, the present invention relates to an field programmable gate array and a microcontroller in a system-on-a-chip architecture.
2. The Background Art
An integrated circuit uses a network of metal interconnects between individual semiconductor components which are patterned with standard photolithographic processes during wafer fabrication. Multiple levels of metallized patterns may be used to increase the flexibility of the interconnects.
It has long been recognized that a user-programmable interconnect technique would allow lower tooling costs, and faster delivery time. To such an end, field programmable gate array (FPGA) circuits were developed. An FPGA is an array of uncommitted gates with uncommitted wiring channels. To implement a particular circuit function, the circuit is mapped into the array and the wiring channels and appropriate connections are programmed to implement the necessary wiring connections that form the circuit function.
A gate array circuit can be programmed to implement virtually any set of functions. Input signals are processed by the programmed circuit to produce the desired set of outputs. Such inputs flow from the user""s system, through input buffers, then through the circuit, and finally back out to the user""s system via output buffers. Such buffers provide any or all of the following input/output (I/O) functions: voltage gain, current gain, level translation, delay, signal isolation, or hysteresis.
There are essentially two configurations of programmable circuit elements used to provide flexibility to the user for programming the FPGA. In the first configuration, example of which is disclosed by El Gamal, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,745, the FPGA can be permanently programmed by the user. In the second configuration, an example of which is disclosed by Freeman in U.S. Pat. No. 4,870,302, the FPGA can be changeably programmed by the user.
An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), such as a microcontroller is a mask-programmable gate array offers higher functionality and performance and more efficient use of space than an FPGA which offers lower design costs and greater user flexibility. Also, an ASIC can implement any variety of I/O function and often at a higher speed than an FPGA. Other dedicated functional circuitry may also offer higher functionality and performance than its equivalent configured from FPGA components.
In a system-on-a-chip (SOC) with both an FPGA and an ASIC portion provides some portion of the advantages of both designs. Of major concern in designing an SOC is providing a suitable interface between the FPGA and ASIC portions. In order for the IC to perform its tasks properly, the FPGA and ASIC portions must be able to communicate effectively with each other.
In the present invention, an FPGA core tile may be employed as a stand alone FPGA, repeated in a rectangular array of core tiles, or included with other devices in a system-on-a-chip (SOC). The core tile includes a rectangular array of logic clusters, a column of random access memory (RAM) modules, and I/O clusters. Horizontal and vertical routing channels as well as clocking resources provide interconnection between the logic clusters, the RAM modules and the I/O clusters.
The horizontal routing resources include a horizontal routing channel, output routing tracks, and horizontal highway routing channels. The vertical routing resources include vertical routing channel and vertical highway routing channels. The horizontal routing channels and vertical routing channels each include sub-channels having various numbers of tracks, and are segmented with programmable elements at various lengths. Each of the horizontal and vertical highway routing channels spans the entire length of a core tile. The clocking resources include routed and hardwired clocks that run the width and length of a core tile, respectively.
The horizontal routing resources and routed clock pairs extend into the columns of I/O clusters and the RAM modules, and the vertical routing resources and hardwired clocks extend into the rows of I/O clusters. Each of the columns of I/O clusters and RAM modules have their own vertical routing resources and hardwired clocks, and each of the rows of I/O clusters have their own horizontal routing resources, routed clock. Included at the uppermost edge of the rows of logic clusters is a channel that includes a horizontal routing channel and a routed clock pair. Programmable connections are provided by programmable elements between the routing resources. Preferably, the programmable elements are antifuses.
The unit of segment length for the horizontal routing channel is one-half a column of logic clusters, and the tracks in the horizontal routing channel are segmented in a pattern that repeats itself in every column of logic clusters. The unit of segment length for the vertical routing channel is one row of logic clusters, and the tracks in the vertical routing channel are segmented in a pattern which repeats itself after every two rows of logic clusters.
A logic cluster includes logic modules, flip-flop modules, a buffer module, transmitter modules, and receiver modules. A logic module is a combinatorial logic unit and includes first, second, third and fourth multiplexors each having first and second data inputs, an output, and a select input. A FF module is sequential logic unit that includes a four-input multiplexor having first and second select inputs, first, second, and three two-input multiplexors having a single select input, and a D-type flip-flop. The buffer, transmitter and receiver modules include buffers that may be programmably to connected routing resources.
The RAM blocks are dual ported for simultaneous read and write operations and may be configured as 128 36-bit wide words, 256 18-bit wide words, 512 9-bit wide words, 1K for 4-bit wide words, or 4K 1-bit wide words. The RAM blocks can be selected to include collision detection and parity generation and check, and may be synchronous or asynchronous.
An I/O cluster includes I/O modules, a buffer module, transmitter modules, and receiver modules. The I/O module includes a FIFO, an input flip-flop, an output flip-flop, and an enable flip-flop, and is coupled to an I/O pad, by a boundary scan register module and input and output buffers. The I/O pad may be programmed with different options by an I/O options module. The input flip-flop, an output flip-flop, and an enable flip-flop include a four-input multiplexor, first, second and third two-input multiplexors and a D-type flip-flop.
An LVDS core can be employed to input and output signals between the I/O pads and a FIFO. The LVDS core includes circuits for receiving data, and circuits for transmitting data.
In another aspect of the present invention a system on a chip (SOC) architecture includes an FPGA core tile and associated virtual component interface (VCI) logic, a micro-controller and associated VCI logic, external interface circuits JTAG and UART and associated VCI logic and, respectively, and system/peripheral bus and bridge and associated VCI logic.
The VCI logic associated with various components is designed to translate the signals of each of the components with which they are associated into universal signals that form a standard protocol which is understood by the remaining components in the SOC. Communication of the signals from a first component to a second component requires that certain of the signals from the first component be first translated to universal signals by the VCI associated with the first component. These universal signals are the translated by the VCI associated by the second component to signals on which the second component normally operates. Others of the signals from a first component will be directly connected to the second component. When the system/peripheral bus is employed in the communication of translated signals from a first component to a second component using a bus, the communication may also require translation of the universal signals onto and off of the system/peripheral bus.

Field programmable gate array and microcontroller system-on-a-chip