A method and system performs dynamic online multi-parameter optimization for autonomic computing systems. A simplex is maintained. The system's performance is measured for the particular setting of configuration parameters associated with each point in the simplex. A new sample point is determined using the geometric transformations of the simplex. A current best point in the simplex can be resampled to determine if the environment has changed. If a sufficiently different utility value is obtained from a previously sampled utility value for the point in the simplex, the simplex is expanded. If the difference is not sufficient enough, then contraction of the simplex is performed.

1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed to an improved computing system. More specifically, the present invention is directed to an improved method and system for dynamically determining configuration values for improved performance in an autonomic computing system based on geometrical simplex transformations in the underlying multi-dimensional parameter space.
2. Description of Related Art
The success of service-oriented Information Technology, such as Autonomic Computing, On-demand eBusiness and eCommerce, depends critically on the ability to provide information, goods, and services in a fast, efficient and cost-effective fashion. Unfortunately, the increasing complexity of the computing systems necessary to provide these services is rapidly outstripping human ability for system operation. This is especially true when it comes to optimization of system parameters for these complex computing systems.
The fundamental difficulties in real-time optimization of system parameters in large complex systems arise from a number of sources. In many situations, a good model of the system and the way the system interacts with the world is not available (or may be too expensive to obtain). The lack of such a system model prohibits the use of sophisticated analytical and simulation tools for online (i.e., real-time) or offline optimization of the system parameters.
The problem is further compounded by the fact that there may be multiple parameters that have to be optimized simultaneously to improve system performance. Since a model of the system is not accessible, there is little understanding of the relative importance of the different system parameters (in terms of how each parameter effects the system's performance) and of the potential nonlinear interactions between the different parameters (in terms of their combined effect on the system's performance).
In situations where a model of the system is not at hand, one widely adopted technique is to sparsely sample the multidimensional parameter space (say, in a regular grid-like manner) and adopt the parameter setting that provides the best performance among the sampled points. Unfortunately, due to the curse of dimensionality, the number of necessary samples increases exponentially with the number of parameters to be optimized. Thus, even for a small set of parameters, the cost and time needed for a reasonable sampling of the multidimensional parameter space may be too prohibitive. Moreover, for these reasons, such sampling and optimization cannot be performed dynamically in real-time.
In addition, a system's behavior may be stochastic in nature and/or it may operate in a noisy and dynamic environment, such that similar system configuration parameters may result in very different overall performance measures or utility values. Thus, the ability to use historical data to infer a system model is seriously jeopardized, especially in a dynamic environment where demand or the load that is placed on the system is changing continuously over time.
In spite of all the above difficulties, it is the administrator's job to (re)configure the system parameters and improve the system's performance (as measured by a given metric) while the system is in operation. This calls for new methods and apparatus for dynamic, online, multi-parameter optimization that can automatically and quickly configure and tune system parameters without human intervention. The focus of such methods is not necessarily on determining the provably optimal parameter settings, but on finding reasonably good solutions reasonably quickly. Such methods are likely to play a fundamental role in Autonomic Computing, On-demand eBusiness and eCommerce system where there is a significant benefit in providing superior performance in unpredictable complex environments.
Known mechanisms used to perform off-line multi-parameter optimization include the Direct Search methods, and its variants (e.g., simplex algorithm and pattern search). The popularity of such class of methods exist because (i) they tend to work well in practice, (ii) they can often avoid pitfalls that can afflict more elaborate methods, and (iii) they are simple and straightforward to implement; thus they can be applied almost immediately to many nonlinear optimization problems. These methods do not need to explicitly calculate derivative or gradient information in the parameter space. Typically, these methods maintain a set of points (called the simplex) that is obtained by directly sampling the parameter space. In addition, these methods use a variety of techniques for steep descent (but not necessarily methods of steepest descent) to arrive at near optimal solutions.
Unfortunately, a direct application of the Direct Search method (and its variants) to automatically configure and optimize system parameters in Autonomic Computing systems is likely to fail for a number of reasons. First, Direct Search methods (and its variants) do not work in dynamic environments, where the demand or the load on the system is changing continuously over time, and where the same parameter settings can provide different performance measures at different times. Direct Search methods were designed for static problems and have no built-in mechanism to handle dynamic environments.
Second, Direct Search methods work only for deterministic problems where there is no noise either in measurements of the system's performance on in the system's dynamics. Direct Search methods make the fundamental assumption that the same parameter setting is always going to provide the same performance measure. In noisy or stochastic environments, where such an assumption is not valid, Direct Search methods can fail dramatically in finding good solution regions quickly.
Third, Direct Search methods make certain assumptions about the nature of the parameters being optimized. Typically, Direct Search methods (and the variants) are designed to handle problems with either all real-valued parameters or all integer-valued parameters. In most systems, parameters come in both flavors, and it is necessary to configure and tune both types of parameters simultaneously. In such scenarios, existing Direct Search methods, and the variants, can fail spectacularly since they fail to take the differences in the underlying granularity of the parameter space into account.
Fourth, Direct Search methods, and the variants, cannot handle relational constraints between the parameters being optimized. In many problems of system configuration and optimization, there exist constraints that involve one or more parameters. For example, a set of constraints could indicate that:x1+x2+x3=1.0  constraint #1.0<x1<=1.0  constraint #2.0<=x2 <=1.0  constraint #3.0<=x3 <=1.0  constraint #4where x1, x2, x3 are the system configuration parameters. Direct Search methods, and the variants, were designed for unconstrained problems and are highly inefficient in finding good parameter settings in constrained optimization problems. Thus they have not been employed in online constrained optimization problems.
Finally, Direct Search methods, and the variants, suffer from a number of pathological failure modes that prevent their direct application in many types of optimization problems. For example, in problems with real-valued parameters, the size of the simplex can become infinitesimally small; limiting the Direct Search method's ability to track changes in the optimal parameter settings in dynamic environments. On the other hand, in problems with discrete or integer values, the simplex can easily get stuck in a rut where the Direct Search method is unable to decide on a new point to sample. This pathological failure mode limits Direct Search method's ability to explore promising regions in parameter space.
Therefore, it would be beneficial to have an improved system and method for performing dynamic online multi-parameter optimization for autonomic computing systems that does not suffer from the drawbacks of the Direct Search methods discussed above.

Dynamic online multi-parameter optimization system and method for autonomic computing systems

International Business Machine Corporation


An organic electroluminescent device includes: a substrate; a plurality of first electrodes arranged on the substrate; a plurality of banks arranged on the substrate and the first electrodes to define pixels on the first electrodes, the plurality of banks being of an inorganic material; a plurality of separators arranged in stripe shapes on the plurality of banks between the pixels, the plurality of separators being of an organic material; organic Emitting Material Layers (organic EMLs), each having a predetermined color, the organic EMLs being arranged within each of the pixels; and a plurality of second electrodes arranged on the organic EMLs, the plurality of banks, and the plurality of separators.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic electroluminescent device and its method of manufacture, and more particularly, the present invention relates to an organic electroluminescent device that can prevent leakage current, short circuits, and color mixing between pixels and its method of manufacture.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, organic electroluminescent devices are display devices that realize an image using light emitted by combining holes supplied from an anode electrode with electrons supplied from a cathode electrode in an organic emitting material layer formed between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode. Due to superior display characteristics such as wide viewing angle, rapid response time, low manufacturing costs, and high contrast, organic electroluminescent devices are expected to be the next generation of flat panel display devices.
Organic electroluminescent devices can be divided into Passive Matrix (PM) devices and Active Matrix (AM) devices. A PM organic electroluminescent device has a structure in which anode electrodes and cathode electrodes are arranged in a matrix, and an AM organic electroluminescent device has a structure in which an anode electrode, a plurality of Thin Film Transistors (TFTs), and capacitors are arranged in each pixel. Also, organic electroluminescent devices can be divided into top emission devices and bottom emission devices according to the direction of light emission from an organic emitting material layer.
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a PM organic electroluminescent device, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II′ of FIG. 1.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a plurality of anode electrodes 12 are formed in a stripe shape on a substrate 10. Banks 15 that define pixels by exposing predetermined regions of the anode electrodes 12 are also formed on the substrate 10. The banks 15 are usually formed of an organic material. In the pixels defined by the banks 15, Hole Transporting Layers (HTLs) 21 are formed to contact the anode electrodes 12, and organic Emitting Material Layers (EMLs), each emitting a predetermined color, for example, a red light emitting layer 20R, a green light emitting layer 20G, and a blue light emitting layer 20B, are formed on each upper surface of the HTLs 21. The organic EMLs having the same color are formed along the direction of the anode electrodes 12. The HTLs 21 and the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B can be formed using a spin coating method, a dispensing method, or an ink jet method. A plurality of cathode electrodes 32 are formed in stripe shapes on upper surfaces of the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B and the banks 15. The cathode electrodes 32 cross the anode electrodes 12.
However, in the organic electroluminescent device having the above structure, the banks 15 are formed of an organic material having a large contact angle with respect to materials which form the HTLs 21 and the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B, and thus, the HTLs 21 and the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B are thin at the edges of the pixels. Accordingly, when the cathode electrodes 32 contact the HTLs 21, a leakage current can occur. Furthermore, when the cathode electrodes 32 contact the anode electrodes 12, short circuits can occur. Also, when the HTLs 21 and the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B are formed using a dispensing method, a disconnection of the HTLs 21 or the organic EMLs 20R, 20G, and 20B can occur.

Organic electroluminescent device and its method of manufacture


A business development process utilizing a business development database comprises collecting data for ideas from a plurality of sources. One type of collected idea data from said step of collecting is filtered in order to identify potential business opportunities. An opportunity analysis is then performed on said identified potential business opportunities to determine valid business opportunities. Resources are committed to the valid business opportunities, a business proposal is developed. This developed business proposal to a potential buyers. Success of the submission is determined and the business opportunity is executed if the submission is a success.

(1) Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a business development process for assessing new business ideas, identifying risk and reward, opportunity analysis, developing proposals, and submitting the new business ideas to either new or existing customers.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
The current art for business development, particularly in the Department of the Navy, has been virtually nonexistent with the exception of individualized processes that may have been taking place. Accordingly, a need in the art exists for a sound business development process so that decisions can be more easily made while still pursuing new work. With changing times, funding has become more difficult to obtain and the competition for the funding has increased dramatically. With numerous ideas and limited resources, it was determined that a business development process was necessary to identify which ideas were worth pursuing.
The following patents, for example, disclose methods and systems for evaluating a variety of choices, but do not disclose a business development process for evaluating new business ideas within the context of determining the potential business outcome of those ideas.                U.S. Pat. No. 5,627,973 to Armstrong et al.;        U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,305 to Apgar, IV;        U.S. Pat. No. 5,717,865 to Stratmann;        U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,060 to Guinta et al.; and        U.S. Pat. No. 6,195,643 to Maxwell.
Specifically, Armstrong et al. discloses a method and apparatus for evaluating business opportunities for supplying goods and services (such as business forms and services) to potential customers, takes a quantitative approach that allows a user to evaluate a potential customer's needs, and the user's ability to supply those needs, to see what the area of opportunity for the user to supply that need is. Calculations can also be made comparing the user's ability to fulfill the needs to some absolute standard, to also determine an area of emerging technology. A series of questions relating to the customer's level of sophistication for predefined business techniques in a number of different categories are input into a computer, as well as the responses, and weights and values are assigned to the question responses to indicate a level of sophistication for each possible response of each business technique for each separate category. The user's capability of supplying the potential customer's needs are also evaluated and this data is input into a second computer which calculates, taking into account the weights and values, of each separate category, a potential customer's score, the user's score, and the area of opportunity (which is the difference between the customer's score and the user's score). Then, using a computer controlled printer, the calculations are printed out in graphical form on a sheet of paper, along with other human readable indicia, from which an evaluation of the opportunity, as well as a tool to close a business deal, are supplied.
The patent to Apgar, IV provides objective evaluations of a business entity's real estate situation and condition for use by customers including (but not limited to) the business entity. Information is processed to determine indicators of amount, price, area, grade, and risk; and those indicators are combined to provide a total score. The system includes a database for storing a variety of data, such as utilization measures and business information, and data corresponding to businesses that are similar to the business entity. Process actuators process the information to derive the several indicators, the score, and other measures, which is printed or displayed for customers and/or the business entity. Preferably, a report is generated which details information including the score to provide a well-rounded picture of a particular real estate situation.
Stratmann discloses a method for assisting an individual in making a selection amongst a plurality of choice items. The individual selects decision components having a relevance to the selection of a choice item and assigns values to each of the decision components. The user further assigns expected satisfaction scores to each decision component of each choice item indicating the expected satisfaction to be received from the decision components. The reliability of the expected satisfaction scores is indicated by assigned reliability factors. The assigned component values, expected satisfaction values, and reliability factors are then utilized to rank each of the choice items.
Guinta et al. discloses a method and apparatus for computer-aided assessment of an organizational process or system. The method and apparatus are adapted to display computer-displayed questions to an assessor, who then inputs numerical inputs relative to the assessor's perception of the process or system. Filtering techniques inhibit entry of unsupported numerical inputs that may be untrue and/or exaggerated. Sequential questions used in combination provide a more accurate assessment of the system or process, thereby enabling focused audits and/or inspections.
The patent to Maxwell discloses a decision making system whereby a method of performing a detailed level evaluation of one or more products or articles based on a decision maker's response to one or more questions relating to the decision maker's requirements is described. The method includes the decision maker responding to the question relating to the decision maker's functional requirement or requirements taking into account a predefined result type. The response is compared with a product result where the product result reflects a particular functional capability of the article or product in relation to the particular question. This produces an evaluation ratio or series of evaluation ratios that are statistically analyzed to determined how well the product or article meets the decision maker's requirements. The method is particularly suitable for analysis of software packages such as accounting packages and the like and provides a way by which a user may determine, at a highly detailed level, the suitability of various packages to the user's requirements.
It should be understood that the present invention would in fact enhance the functionality of the above patents by providing a business development process that allows innovators to pursue ideas and determine whether the opportunities for any particular idea are real and worth an investment of time and money to those responsible for development. The process allows for a better commitment of resources and effort. This leads to a much better return on investment due to efficient resource allocation and invites more effective strategic planning, commitment of resources and overall planning.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


The invention provides isolated nucleic acids molecules, designated HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecules, which encode novel hydrolase molecules. The invention also provides antisense nucleic acid molecules, recombinant expression vectors containing HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecules, host cells into which the expression vectors have been introduced, and nonhuman transgenic animals in which an HYDL-1 gene has been introduced or disrupted. The invention still further provides isolated HYDL-1 proteins, fusion proteins, antigenic peptides and anti-HYDL-1 antibodies. Diagnostic methods utilizing compositions of the invention are also provided.

The hydrolysis of chemical bonds within molecules is of critical importance in most metabolic (e.g., catabolic and anabolic) pathways in cells. A large family of enzymes which catalyze the cleavage of a bond with the addition of water, termed hydrolases, has been identified. Members of the hydrolase family are found in nearly all organisms, from microbes to plants to humans. Different classes of hydrolases are specific for an array of biological and chemical substrates. Members of the hydrolase family of enzymes include enzymes that hydrolyze ester bonds (e.g., phosphatases, sulfatases, exonucleases, and endonucleases), glycosidases, enzymes that act on ether bonds, peptidases (e.g., exopeptidases and endopeptidases), as well as enzymes that hydrolyze carbon-nitrogen bonds, acid anhydrides, carbon-carbon bonds, halide bonds, phosphorous-nitrogen bonds, sulfur-nitrogen bonds, carbon-phosphorous bonds, and sulfur-sulfur bonds (E. C. Webb ed., Enzyme Nomenclature, pp. 306-450, (copyright)1992 Academic Press, Inc. San Diego, Calif.).
Hydrolases vary widely in primary sequence, substrate specificity, and physical properties. However, despite the lack of sequence homology, hydrolase family members display structural similarities, e.g., conservation of a catalytic site framework. For example, the alpha/beta hydrolase fold is a structural motif that is common to a variety of hydrolytic enzymes including, lipases, e.g., fungal, bacterial and pancreatic lipase, acetylcholinesterases, serine carboxypeptidases, haloalkane dehalogenases, dienelactone hydrolases, A2 bromoperoxidases, and thioesterases (Schrag, J. et al. (1997) Meth. Enzymol. 284:85-107). Enzymes possessing the alpha/beta hydrolase fold have diverged from a common ancestor so as to preserve the arrangement of the catalytic residues (Ollis, D. et al. (1992) Protein Eng. 5:197-211). In particular, one conserved feature of the alpha/beta hydrolase fold is a nucleophile-histidine-acid catalytic triad. The identities of the triad residues in alpha/beta hydrolase fold enzymes are quite variable in that serine, aspartate, and cysteine have all been identified as catalytic nucleophiles (Schrag, J. et al. supra).
Hydrolases play important roles in the synthesis and breakdown of nearly all major metabolic intermediates, including polypeptides, nucleic acids, and lipids. As such, their activity contributes to the ability of the cell to grow and differentiate, to proliferate, to adhere and move, and to interact and communicate with other cells. Hydrolases also are important in the conversion of pro-proteins and pro-hormones to their active forms, the inactivation of peptides, the biotransformation of compounds (e.g., a toxin or carcinogen), antigen presentation, and the regulation of synaptic transmission.
The present invention is based, at least in part, on the discovery of novel members of the family of hydrolase molecules, referred to herein as xe2x80x9chydrolase-1xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cHYDL-1xe2x80x9d nucleic acid and protein molecules. The HYDL-1 nucleic acid and protein molecules of the present invention are useful as modulating agents in regulating a variety of cellular processes, e.g., cellular proliferation, growth, differentiation, or migration. Accordingly, in one aspect, this invention provides isolated nucleic acid molecules encoding HYDL-1 proteins or biologically active portions thereof, as well as nucleic acid fragments suitable as primers or hybridization probes for the detection of HYDL-1-encoding nucleic acids.
In one embodiment, an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule of the invention is at least 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 74%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 89%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or more identical to the nucleotide sequence (e.g., to the entire length of the nucleotide sequence) shown in SEQ ID NO:1 or 3.
In a preferred embodiment, the isolated nucleic acid molecule includes the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:1 or 3, or a complement thereof. In another embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule includes SEQ ID NO:3 and nucleotides 1-46 of SEQ ID NO:1. In yet a further embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule includes SEQ ID NO:3 and nucleotides 995-1332 of SEQ ID NO:1. In another preferred embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule consists of the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1 or 3.
In another embodiment, an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule includes a nucleotide sequence encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence sufficiently identical to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2. In a preferred embodiment, an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule includes a nucleotide sequence encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence at least 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 74%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 89%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or more identical to the entire length of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2.
In another preferred embodiment, an isolated nucleic acid molecule encodes the amino acid sequence of human HYDL- 1. In yet another preferred embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule includes a nucleotide sequence encoding a protein having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2. In yet another preferred embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule is at least 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, 653, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 950, 1000, 1100, 1200, 1300 or more nucleotides in length. In a further preferred embodiment, the nucleic acid molecule is at least 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, 653, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 950, 1000, 1100, 1200, 1300 or more nucleotides in length and encodes a protein having an HYDL-1 activity (as described herein).
Another embodiment of the invention features nucleic acid molecules, preferably HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecules, which specifically detect HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecules relative to nucleic acid molecules encoding non-HYDL-1 proteins. For example, in one embodiment, such a nucleic acid molecule is at least 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, 653, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 950, 1000, 1100, 1200, 1300 or more nucleotides in length and hybridizes under stringent conditions to a nucleic acid molecule comprising the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:1 or 3.
In preferred embodiments, the nucleic acid molecules are at least 15 nucleotides (e.g., 15 contiguous nucleotides) in length and hybridize under stringent conditions to the nucleotide molecules set forth in SEQ ID NO:1 or 3 or a complement thereof. In certain embodiments, the nucleic acid molecules are at least 15 nucleotides in length and hybridize under stringent conditions to nucleotides 1-23 and 1002-1332 of SEQ ID NO:1. In another embodiment, the nucleic acid molecules comprise nucleotides 1-23 and 1002-1332 of SEQ ID NO:1. In yet another embodiment, the nucleic acid molecules consist of nucleotides 1-23 and 1002-1332 of SEQ ID NO:1.
In other preferred embodiments, the nucleic acid molecule encodes a naturally occurring allelic variant of a polypeptide comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2., wherein the nucleic acid molecule hybridizes to a nucleic acid molecule comprising SEQ ID NO:1 or 3 under stringent conditions.
Another embodiment of the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule which is antisense to a HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule, e.g., the coding strand of an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule.
Another aspect of the invention provides a vector comprising an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule. In certain embodiments, the vector is a recombinant expression vector. In another embodiment, the invention provides a host cell containing a vector of the invention. In yet another embodiment, the invention provides a host cell containing a nucleic acid molecule of the invention. The invention also provides a method for producing a protein, preferably an HYDL-1 protein, by culturing in a suitable medium, a host cell, e.g., a mammalian host cell such as a non-human mammalian cell, of the invention containing a recombinant expression vector, such that the protein is produced.
Another aspect of this invention features isolated or recombinant HYDL-1 proteins and polypeptides. In one embodiment, an isolated HYDL-1 protein includes at least one or more of the following domains: an alpha/beta hydrolase fold, a transmembrane domain, or a signal peptide. In a preferred embodiment, an isolated HYDL-1 protein includes at least one alpha/beta hydrolase fold.
In a preferred embodiment, an HYDL-1 protein includes at least one or more of the following domains: an alpha/beta hydrolase fold, a transmembrane domain, or a signal peptide, and has an amino acid sequence at least about 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 67%, 68%, 70%, 72%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 87%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or more identical to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2. In another preferred embodiment, an HYDL-1 protein includes at least one or more of the following domains: an alpha/beta hydrolase fold, a transmembrane domain, or a signal peptide, and has an HYDL-1 activity (as described herein).
In yet another preferred embodiment, an HYDL-1 protein includes at least one or more of the following domains: an alpha/beta hydrolase fold, a transmembrane domain, or a signal peptide, and is encoded by a nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence which hybridizes under stringent hybridization conditions to a nucleic acid molecule comprising the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 or 3.
In another embodiment, the invention features fragments of the protein having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2, wherein the fragment comprises at least 15 amino acids (e.g., contiguous amino acids) of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2. In another embodiment, an HYDL-1 protein has the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2.
In another embodiment, the invention features an HYDL-1 protein which is encoded by a nucleic acid molecule consisting of a nucleotide sequence at least about 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 72%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 87%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or more identical to a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 or 3, or a complement thereof. This invention further features an HYDL-1 protein which is encoded by a nucleic acid molecule consisting of a nucleotide sequence which hybridizes under stringent hybridization conditions to a nucleic acid molecule comprising the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 or 3, or a complement thereof.
The proteins of the present invention or portions thereof, e.g., biologically active portions thereof, can be operatively linked to a non-HYDL-1 polypeptide (e.g., heterologous amino acid sequences) to form fusion proteins. The invention further features antibodies, such as monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies, that specifically bind proteins of the invention, preferably HYDL-1 proteins. In addition, the HYDL-1 proteins or biologically active portions thereof can be incorporated into pharmaceutical compositions, which optionally include pharmaceutically acceptable carriers.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for detecting the presence of an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule, protein, or polypeptide in a biological sample by contacting the biological sample with an agent capable of detecting an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule, protein, or polypeptide such that the presence of an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule, protein or polypeptide is detected in the biological sample.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for detecting the presence of HYDL-1 activity in a biological sample by contacting the biological sample with an agent capable of detecting an indicator of HYDL-1 activity such that the presence of HYDL-1 activity is detected in the biological sample.
In another aspect, the invention provides a method for modulating HYDL-1 activity comprising contacting a cell capable of expressing HYDL-1 with an agent that modulates HYDL-1 activity such that HYDL-1 activity in the cell is modulated. In one embodiment, the agent inhibits HYDL-1 activity. In another embodiment, the agent stimulates HYDL-1 activity. In one embodiment, the agent is an antibody that specifically binds to an HYDL-1 protein. In another embodiment, the agent modulates expression of HYDL-1 by modulating transcription of an HYDL-1 gene or translation of an HYDL-1 mRNA. In yet another embodiment, the agent is a nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence that is antisense to the coding strand of an HYDL-1 mRNA or a HYDL-1 gene.
In one embodiment, the methods of the present invention are used to treat a subject having a disorder characterized by aberrant or unwanted HYDL-1 protein or nucleic acid expression or activity by administering an agent which is an HYDL-1 modulator to the subject. In one embodiment, the HYDL-1 modulator is an HYDL-1 protein. In another embodiment the HYDL-1 modulator is an HYDL-1 nucleic acid molecule. In yet another embodiment, the HYDL-1 modulator is a peptide, peptidomimetic, or other small molecule. In a preferred embodiment, the disorder characterized by aberrant or unwanted HYDL-1 protein or nucleic acid expression is a hydrolase-associated disorder, e.g., a central nervous system (CNS) disorder, a cardiovascular disorder, a muscular disorder, a hormonal disorder, a gastrointestinal disorder, a metabolic disorder, an inflammatory or immune system disorder, or a cell proliferation, growth, differentiation, or migration disorder. In another preferred embodiment, the disorder characterized by aberrant or unwanted HYDL-1 protein or nucleic acid expression is a cancer, e.g., lung cancer.
The present invention also provides diagnostic assays for identifying the presence or absence of a genetic alteration characterized by at least one of (i) aberrant modification or mutation of a gene encoding an HYDL-1 protein; (ii) mis-regulation of the gene; and (iii) aberrant post-translational modification of an HYDL-1 protein, wherein a wild-type form of the gene encodes a protein with an HYDL-1 activity.
In another aspect the invention provides methods for identifying a compound that binds to or modulates the activity of an HYDL-1 protein, by providing an indicator composition comprising an HYDL-1 protein having HYDL-1 activity, contacting the indicator composition with a test compound, and determining the effect of the test compound on HYDL-1 activity in the indicator composition to identify a compound that modulates the activity of a HYDL-1 protein.
Accordingly, the present invention provides methods and compositions for the diagnosis and treatment of cellular proliferative disorders, including but not limited to cancer, e.g., lung, colon and breast cancer.
Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description and claims.

33167, a novel human hydrolase and uses therefor


A controller for controlling a power converter to output constant power includes a current sensing module, a voltage generation module, and a voltage regulation module. The current sensing module generates a sensing current according to an output current flowing through a secondary side of the power converter. The voltage generation module generates a set voltage corresponding to a reciprocal of the sensing current according to the sensing current. The voltage regulation module generates a regulation voltage to a feedback circuit of the secondary side of the power converter according to the set voltage and a sensing voltage corresponding to an output voltage of the secondary side of the power converter. The feedback circuit and a primary side of the power converter regulate the output voltage according to the regulation voltage, where a product of the output voltage and the output current is a constant value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a controller for controlling a power converter to output constant power and a related method thereof, and particularly to a controller and a related method thereof that can control a power converter to output constant power through a secondary side of the power converter.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, when a secondary side of a power converter is overload, an output current of the secondary side of the power converter can be increased to respond to overload of the secondary side of the power converter. Meanwhile, because the output current of the secondary side of the power converter is increased, a feedback current generated by a feedback circuit (e.g. a photo coupler) of the secondary side of the power converter is decreased, resulting in a power switch controller of a primary side of the power convertor increasing a duty cycle of a power switch of the primary side of the power convertor. Meanwhile, although the power switch controller of the primary side of the power convertor has entered a deep continuous current mode (CCM), because the duty cycle of the power switch of the primary side of the power convertor can not be increased infinitely in an over-current protection mode, the secondary side of the power converter cannot maintain a fixed output voltage, resulting in output power of the secondary side of the power converter being gradually decreased. In addition, the prior art can simultaneously control the output current and the output voltage of the secondary side of the power converter through a primary-side regulation constant current/constant voltage technology. However, in the primary-side regulation constant current/constant voltage technology, if the output current of the secondary side of the power converter exceeds a fixed current value, the output current of the secondary side of the power converter is still limited to the fixed current value, resulting in the output power of the secondary side of the power converter being still not maintained at a constant value. Therefore, when the secondary side of the power converter is overload, the output power of the secondary side of the power converter can not be maintained at a constant value, so a next stage circuit coupled to the secondary side of the power converter may not operate normally.

Controller for controlling a power converter to output constant power and related method thereof


A precursor fiber sheet includes short carbon fibers having an average length of 3 to 10 mm, natural pulp having an ash content of 0.15 mass % or less, and a heat-carbonizable resin, and a porous carbon sheet is obtained by carbonizing the precursor fiber sheet. This enhances gas diffusibility and water removal properties of the porous carbon sheet and has high mechanical strength and few appearance defects even when the bulk density of the porous carbon sheet is lowered.

In a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, a fuel gas containing hydrogen is supplied to an anode and an oxidizing gas containing oxygen is supplied to a cathode to produce an electromotive force by an electrochemical reaction occurring at both the electrodes. A porous carbon sheet used as a gas diffusion layer of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell is required to have high gas diffusibility to diffuse a gas supplied from a separator to a catalyst layer, high water removal properties to remove water generated by an electrochemical reaction to the separator, and high electrical conductivity to extract the generated current. A porous carbon sheet made of a carbon fiber is widely used.
To enhance power generation performance of a fuel cell in a wide range of environmental conditions, gas diffusibility in the thickness direction and water removal properties of the porous carbon sheet should be improved. For this improvement, a method of lowering the bulk density of the porous carbon sheet has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2010-192379). However, such a porous carbon sheet has a low mechanical strength because it has a low rate of bonding carbide, and also has a problem in structure feasibility, durability, and productivity.
Besides, to improve mechanical strength and electrical conductivity, there is also disclosed a porous electrode substrate that includes a precursor fiber sheet mixed with fibrillated synthetic pulp or natural pulp (Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2000-136493 and Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2011-195374).
However, use of fibrillated synthetic pulp may unfavorably inhibit mass transfer inside the fuel cell. In contrast, use of not so fibrillated natural pulp prevents inhibition of mass transfer inside the fuel cell to some extent. However, use of generally used natural pulp may cause a large number of appearance defects of unknown cause such as holes and foreign matter, in the porous carbon sheet, and thus may cause reduction in yield and reduction in production efficiency due to an increase in the inspection man-hours in the production of a porous carbon sheet.
It could therefore be helpful to enhance gas diffusibility and water removal properties of a porous carbon sheet by providing a porous carbon sheet having high mechanical strength and few appearance defects even when the bulk density of the porous carbon sheet is lowered, and a precursor fiber sheet to obtain the porous carbon sheet.

Porous carbon sheet and precursor fiber sheet thereof


The snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device is designed to provide the user with a device that supports the ankle joint, improves heel hold down and provides a more precise connection to the snowboard binding. The device is comprised of a single piece of resilient material that is shaped in a design having a base section and two side areas. The two side pieces are crossed which creates a single pivot point above the heel opening that allows the unit to articulate the movements of the user's ankle motions. The pivot point may be fixed by connection devices in such a way to fix the forward lean or limit the range of motion. The user places the snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device is his or her snowboarding boot with the base portion at the heel of the boot and the sides positioned on either side of the ankle with the pivot point above and behind the heel.

This invention pertains to snowboarding devices and, in particular, to a snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device for use with snowboarding and other boots in order to provide articulated support for the ankle joint, improve the ability of the individual to hold his or her heel in position in the boot and provide a more precise connection to the binding of the snowboard.
A snowboard is a single ski wide enough to allow the rider to place his or her feet nearly perpendicular to the direction of travel. The board is manipulated more like a surfboard than a ski. It is therefor desirable to have a soft, flexible footware. Turning is done by balancing on both the heel end and the toe end. It is desirable to have calf support. Calf support is lacking in most current boots but when added enhances heel end performance. There are a number of reasons for using a device to improve control and improve the comfort for the individual that will enable individuals using the device to increase their personal performance.
There have been a number of attempts to improve support in ski boots and the like. Examples of these devices include the U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,875 issued to James Johnson on 13 Jul., 1993 for a Athletic Footware With Integral Ankle Support which does not account for ankle movement and the U.S. Pat. No. 5,449,005 issued to Tony R. Echols on 12 Sep., 1995 for a Removable, Shoe Interior Ankle Brace. These devices do provide ankle support for their users, but they do not provide the user the heel and calf control and the precise connection to the binding that is necessary when using skis or snowboards.
What is needed is a snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device that provides articulating support for the ankle and calf of the individual using the device. What is also needed is a device that improves heel hold down for the user. Also, what is needed is a device that provides a more precise connection to the binding of the snowboard.
It is the object of this invention to teach a snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device which avoids the disadvantages and limitations, recited above in previous support devices. Another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus that is cost effective, can be provided integrally in the boot or can be easy to install and use and, at the same time, be safe and effective.

Snowboarding boot support piece and performance enhancement device


In a system that provides CAD layout-design information, by having the user acquire information such as circuit design or CAD layout data registered in a database, the user can analyze the acquired information, so there is a possibility that circuit-design or circuit-board-design know-how could be leaked. With this invention, a characteristic-parameter-extraction means extracts characteristic parameters from a position where there is a possibility of the occurrence of poor electrical characteristics due to an influence of the CAD layout of the input CAD layout data. A correction-determination means determines whether or not it is necessary to correct the layout by comparing the characteristic parameters and correction-determination standards that correspond to poor electrical characteristics read from a database. This makes it possible to check the electrical characteristics of the CAD layout without making available to the user the correction-determination standards or determination method.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to CAD (Computer Aided Design), and more particularly to a design-check system, design-check method and design-check program that checks the electrical characteristics of CAD layout data for a printed circuit board.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, digitization and increased performance of AV equipment has been advancing, as well as the digitization, speed and high integration of the LSI inside the AV equipment is advancing. Together with this, the radiated noise that is radiated from the circuit boards on which LSI are mounted is becoming a problem, and thus circuit-board design technology for reducing radiated noise is becoming very important.
Also, as AV equipment has become smaller and more compact, the miniaturization of the circuit boards inside the equipment has advanced, and in order to make them even smaller, build-up boards made from new materials that differ from the conventionally used glass-epoxy material is becoming widely used. In boards made from this kind of new material, the radiation characteristics of the radiated noise differs from the characteristics from a conventional board, so it is necessary to change the design standards and design method according to the board material.
In regards to this, a system has been proposed in which a designer (registrant) that can provide information related to board design and countermeasure examples for suppressing radiated noise in a database via the Internet, and a designer (user) that needs information related to suppressing radiated noise can acquire information by searching the database (for example, Japanese patent unexamined publication No. 2002-157280(Pgs. 4 to 7, FIG. 1)).
In the prior art described above, the registrant registers detail circuit design and board layout in the database as design and countermeasure examples, so by searching the database, the user is able to acquire the detail circuit design and board layout. Therefore, by analyzing the acquired circuit design and board layout, the user not only is able to acquire information related to suppressing radiated noise, but is also able to acquire detail information related to circuit design and board layout.
For the registrant, acquisition of detail information related to the circuit design and board layout by the user is not preferable since it is connected to leaking know-how. Furthermore, there is the danger that the circuit design and board layout acquired by the user will be distributed to a third party free of charge.

Design check system, design check method and design check program

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A chromogenic absorbent material and related chromogenic solution, use, process and application for an animal litter. The chromogenic absorbent material includes an absorptive material for absorbing an animal excretion; an oxidizing agent responsive to peroxidatic/pseudoperoxidatic activity in the animal excretion to provide oxidizing activity; and an inclusion complex including a host compound and a guest compound, the guest compound being a chromogenic indicator associated with the host compound and being chromogenically responsive to the oxidizing activity of the oxidizing agent. The chromogenic absorbent material may be prepared from the chromogenic solution including the oxidizing agent and the inclusion complex. The chromogenic absorbent material may be used as particles combined with animal litter for detection of peroxidatic/pseudoperoxidatic activity in the animal excretion. The chromogenic material or solution may include a buffering agent, a colour enhancer, a stabilizer or a metal-scavenger agent or a combination thereof.

Domestic animals such as cats are susceptible to various diseases, ailments and conditions, which are not only arduous and painful for the animal itself but also a source of concern and stress for animal owners. While animal owners nurture, watch over and bestow affection on their pets, they must balance this attention with other responsibilities. Convenience is thus an important factor when taking care of a domestic animal. While owners may be devoted and considerate to their pets, they may lack the sophistication to diagnose animal diseases, ailments and conditions. Convenient, simple and effective means to inform pet owners of the presence of diseases, such as urinary infections, are desired so that appropriate steps can be taken to reverse, mitigate or avoid serious illness in the animal.
For example, feline urinary tract disease can be a serious condition for cats. In feline urinary tract disease, crystals of magnesium ammonium phosphate can precipitate in the cat's urinary tract and cause obstruction. If untreated, the obstruction can lead to intense pain and can often be fatal within days. In some cases, upon observing feline urinary tract disease symptoms—such as bloody urine and urination discomfort and straining—cat owners often consult their veterinarian who may be able to provide treatments, which may be expensive. However, many cats with feline urinary tract disease do not show any obvious symptoms, which is why this disease has been referred to as a "silent killer".
Early detection of feline urinary tract disease is therefore of paramount importance in facilitating treatment, lessening the likelihood of severe complications or aggravations, and reducing the cost of treatment.
Some methods of early detection are known. Early detection may be possible by occult blood testing, allowing animal owners to treat the problem of urinary tract disease by changing the animals' diets. However, some known occult blood testing techniques present various disadvantages concerning the complexity and inconvenience of the tests. For instance, animals will often resist urine sample gathering.
It is known to use diagnostic agents, incorporated into test strips, beads or particles, for detection purposes. Usually, such test strips consist of an absorbent carrier made from fibrous or non-woven material, in the simplest case filter paper, which is coated or impregnated with the detection reagents. Components of the detection reagent may be a chromogen as an indicator, an oxidizing agent such as a hydroperoxide as an oxidizer of the indicator. The oxidizing agent is sometimes also called a sensitizer or an accelerator. Standard additional components are, apart from a surface-active agent (wetting agent), thickening agents which prevent the bleeding of the wetted test field, pigments, complex-forming agents and/or other stabilizers for the chromogen and/or the hydroperoxide.
Similarly, various analytical methods are presently available for detecting the presence of "peroxidatively active substances" in samples such as urine, fecal suspensions, and gastrointestinal contents. According to U.S. Pat. No. 4,460,684, hemoglobin and its derivatives are typical of such peroxidatively active substances because they behave in a manner similar to the enzyme peroxidase. Such substances are also referred to as pseudoperoxidases. Peroxidatively active substances are enzyme-like in that they catalyze the redox reaction between peroxides and benzidine, o-tolidine, 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine, 2,7-diaminofluorene or similar benzidine-type indicator substances, thereby producing a detectable response such as a color change. Most methods for determining the presence of occult blood in test samples rely on this pseudoperoxidatic activity. A benzidine-type indicator responds in the presence of hydroperoxide and peroxidase by changing its light absorptive capability.
Providing a reliable occult blood detection system in animal litter itself also has many problems and challenges. For example, the test indicator material should be stable when exposed to a wide variety of ambient conditions, be they dry or humid, and over a wide range of temperatures. Such stability is quite often difficult to achieve.
A further problem with many known test indicators is that pet owners are insufficiently observant or sophisticated to appreciate the positive indication, such as a color change, before the indicator decays. Many known indicators do not stay at the changed color for a sufficient period of time to allow pet owners to reliably recognize the indicated health issue.
An additional problem with various detection reagents mixed with animal litter is that the test reagents give off sufficient scent such that cats, which have an extraordinary sense of smell, recognize the odor change in their litter and thus tend to shy away from the litter. As will be appreciated, this not only defeats the purpose of a convenient detector but can also cause unwanted excretory mishaps. Thus, test reagents with significant, offensive or upsetting odors—both to the user and the cat—have many disadvantages.
A further problem with known detection reagents is poor shelf life stability, particularly if combined with an animal litter for storage as a single mixture. Poor stability leads to disadvantages in the ability to store, transport, display, purchase and use the detection-litter combination.
Detection materials that are merely coated over the surface of a carrier material also have various disadvantages that may relate to poor shelf-life stability, low in-use stability and lifetime, and insufficient color change visibility.
Known materials and methods for detection of animal excretion tract disease have involved one or more of the above deficiencies.
Some detection methods are disclosed in WO 2010133001 (Jollez et al.) which describes a chromogenic composite material for use with animal litter. The composite material can include an absorptive polymer material; clay; a chromogenic indicator; and an oxidizing agent that is available and responsive to peroxidase or pseudoperoxidase activity in the feline urine to activate the chromogenic indicator. The chromogenic indicator may be 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine, also referred to as TMB.
As for TMB, it is an electron donor that can reduce hydrogen peroxide in presence of peroxidase enzyme. In ambient conditions, TMB may be present as a white crystal powder that is only slightly soluble in aqueous solutions. Organic solvents may therefore have been preferred to solubilize TMB for applications.
Despite the developments in detection methods for animal excretion tract disease, there is still a need for an improved technology. In order to improve solubility of TMB in water, water soluble inclusion complexes have been employed in certain fields.

Chromogenic absorbent material for animal litter and related chromogenic solution


The present invention provides apparatus and methods for a conduit, such as an implantable conduit for a vessel. The conduit may comprise a main member and a side branch member. The conduit may be implanted with the side-branch member initially disposed within the main member. When positioned, the side-branch member may then be extended from within the main member and into a vessel side-branch, The materials for the conduit may include circumferentially distensible and/or low recoil materials.

Vascular disease, the disease of blood vessels, is one of the leading causes of death in the western world. There are two main categories of vascular disease, aneurysmal and occlusive. Aneurysmal disease results in the weakening of blood vessels causing them to dilate excessively and in some instances ultimately rupture. Occlusive disease results in blockage of blood vessels, limiting the conveyance of blood.
Stents and stent-grafts are commonly used to treat diseased blood vessels and other tubular structures within the body. Stents and stent-grafts have been employed successfully to either reinforce afflicted blood vessels in the case of aneurysmal disease, or to radially open and support blood vessels for the purpose of restoring blood flow in the case of occlusive disease. To such ends, stents and stent-grafts have been implanted in the coronary as well as peripheral vasculature. Additionally, stents have been implanted within the neurovasculature, and in other bodily conduits such as the urinary tract, the bile duct, and the tracheo-bronchial tree.
Current stent-grafts intended for the treatment of aneurysmal disease are generally available in various diameters. Several devices are available in bifurcated configurations. These bifurcated devices are typically designed for use within the aortic bifurcation, where the abdominal aorta branches into the right and left common iliac arteries. Frequently, this anatomic region is riddled by aneurysmal disease, causing a potentially life-threatening situation. In an effort to treat the potentially life-threatening situation, bifurcated stent-grafts are implanted within the aneurysmal regions of the afflicted vessels, essentially forming a new blood flow conduit within the aneurysm, and isolating the aneurysm from blood flow and the associated blood pressure. This is referred to as excluding the aneurysm. Similarly, aneurysms of the aortic arch and the thoracic aorta are also common.
Conventional stent-grafts, however, do not accommodate side-branches of the aorta. Once an aneurysm has been excluded, the entire diseased section of the afflicted vessel is isolated from normal blood flow. This isolation includes any side-branches emanating from the aorta within the afflicted region. While this may be a good outcome from the perspective of managing a potentially life-threatening situation, such isolation from blood flow can lead to ischemic complications in certain areas of the body. For example, emanating from the abdominal aorta distal to the renal arteries are lumbar arteries, testicular/ovarian arteries, and the inferior mesenteric artery, which provides blood to the left transverse colon, descending and sigmoid colons, and rectum. Many aneurysms of the abdominal aorta include the origin of the inferior mesenteric artery. After successful exclusion of these aneurysms, the left transverse colon, descending and sigmoid colons, and rectum rely on collateral circulation for their blood supply. For many patients, the collateral circulation is sufficient, but for others it is not, resulting in complications involving the various organs.
Additionally, many aorto-iliac aneurysms involve the abdominal aorta as well as substantial portions of either (or both) of the common iliac arteries. In many cases, the disease extends along the common iliac artery past the bifurcation point where the common iliac branches into the external and the internal iliac arteries. In such cases, the endoluminal treatment of the aneurysm may require extending the stent-graft device into the external iliac artery, isolating the internal iliac artery from normal blood supply and leaving large portions of the pelvic area and leg reliant on collateral circulation for their blood supply. For example, the hypogastric artery, which supplies blood to the pelvic area, branches from the internal iliac artery. Isolation of the hypogastric artery from normal blood flow can result in buttock claudication, impotence, and colon ischemia.
Aneurysms of the aortic arch, for example, can be especially difficult to treat using currently available stent-graft devices. Three major vessels originate from the aortic arch: the brachiocephalic, the left common carotid, and the subclavian artery. These vessels provide critical blood flow to the head, neck and arms. If a stent-graft device is endoluminally implanted to treat aortic arch aneurysms, adjunctive measures must be taken to ensure adequate blood supply to the body parts (especially the brain) that receive their blood supply from the affected vessels.
On the other hand, while in some instances isolation of a side-branch vessel via aneurysm exclusion results in compromised blood supply due to inadequate collateral circulation, in situations of abundant collateral circulation, the presence of a side-branch vessel can actually hinder aneurysm exclusion. Retrograde blood flow from side-branches emanating within the aneurysmal region can maintain blood pressure within the aneurysm, often resulting in leakage between the stent-graft device and the afflicted vessel.
Like stent-grafts intended for the treatment of aneurysmal disease, stent-grafts intended for the treatment of occlusive disease are generally tubular and available in various diameters. Such stent-graft devices offer the advantage of providing a physical barrier, which impedes reproliferation of the disease through the wall of the implanted device. The treatment of vessels aftlicted by occlusive disease at points of bifurcations, however, can be problematic due to the unpredictability of the vascular remodeling associated with balloon angioplasty and stent-graft implantation. In many instances, side-branches can be compromised as a result of plaque redistribution from the main vessel into the origin of the side-branch, resulting in stenosis of the side-branch.

Apparatus and methods for conduits and materials


A hydraulic apparatus is provided with a return to neutral mechanism for returning a trunnion control bracket arm to a neutral position. The return to neutral mechanism comprises a pair of springs, one spring connecting a fixed bracket to a first rotatable bracket and the other spring connecting the fixed bracket to a second rotatable bracket. The mechanism uses springs with different spring constants and the springs are attached to the brackets in a single plane.

Many hydraulic apparatuses, such as pumps or motors, include a device that is rotatable for varying the displacement of the apparatus. For example, on a hydraulic pump, such as an axial piston pump, a swash plate is connected to a trunnion arm that is rotatable for varying the displacement of the pump. More specifically, rotation of the trunnion arm rotates the swash plate to vary the displacement of a pumping unit of the hydraulic pump. When the swash plate is in a predetermined location, there is no displacement from the hydraulic pump. The position of the trunnion arm associated with this predetermined location of the swash plate is commonly referred to as the neutral position. Thus, when the trunnion arm is in the neutral position, there is no fluid displacement from the hydraulic pump. When the trunnion arm is rotated in a first direction from the neutral position, the swash plate rotates away from the predetermined location in a first direction and hydraulic fluid flows out of a first system port of the pump. Similarly, when the trunnion arm is rotated in a second direction, opposite the first direction, the swash plate is rotated away from the predetermined location in a second direction, opposite the first direction, and hydraulic fluid flows out of a second system port of the pump.
Mechanisms are associated with such hydraulic apparatuses for acting upon the trunnion to bias the trunnion into the neutral position. One such mechanism is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,968,687, hereby incorporated by reference.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Hydraulic apparatus return to neutral mechanism


Various embodiments of the present invention provide methods for designing multilayer nanowire crossbars that are functionally equivalent to two-layer nanowire-crossbar designs. Given a two-layer nanowire-crossbar design having two or more columns of microregions, in certain embodiments, the method conceptually folds the two-layer nanowire crossbar between columns of microregions. The folded nanowires, located in the conceptually folded, two-layer nanowire-crossbar design, are collapsed into shorter length nanowires to give a multilayer nanowire-crossbar design that includes the same number of nanowire junctions as in the two-layer nanowire-crossbar design.

During the past fifty years, the electronics and computing industries have been relentlessly propelled forward by the ever decreasing sizes of basic electronic components, such as transistors and signal lines, and by the correspondingly ever increasing component densities of integrated circuits, including processors and electronic memory chips. Eventually, however, it is expected that fundamental component-size limits will be reached in semiconductor-circuit-fabrication technologies based on photolithographic methods. As the size of components decreases below the resolution limit of ultraviolet light, for example, far more technically demanding and expensive higher-energy-radiation-based technologies need to be employed to create smaller components using photolithographic techniques. Not only must expensive semiconductor fabrication facilities be rebuilt in order to use the new techniques, many new obstacles are expected to be encountered. For example, it is necessary to construct semiconductor devices through a series of photolithographic steps, with precise alignment of the masks used in each step with respect to the components already fabricated on the surface of a nascent semiconductor. As the component sizes decrease, precise alignment becomes more and more difficult and expensive. As another example, the probabilities that certain types of randomly distributed defects in semiconductor surfaces result in defective semiconductor devices may increase as the sizes of components manufactured on the semiconductor services decrease, resulting in an increasing proportion of defective devices during manufacture, and a correspondingly lower yield of useful product. Ultimately, various quantum effects that arise only at molecular-scale distances may altogether overwhelm current approaches to component construction in semiconductors.
In view of these problems, researchers and developers have expended considerable research effort in fabricating microscale and nanoscale electronic devices using alternative technologies. Nanoscale electronic devices generally employ nanoscale signal lines having widths, and nanoscale components having dimensions, of less than 100 nanometers. More densely fabricated nanoscale electronic devices may employ nanoscale signal lines having widths, and nanoscale components having dimensions, of less than 50 nanometers.
Although general nanowire technologies have been developed, it is not necessarily straightforward to employ nanowire technologies to miniaturize existing types of circuits and structures. While it may be possible to tediously construct miniaturized, nanowire circuits similar to the much larger, current circuits, it is impractical, and often impossible, to manufacture such miniaturized circuits using current technologies. Even were such straightforwardly miniaturized circuits able to be feasibly manufactured, the much higher component densities that ensue from combining together nanoscale components necessitate much different strategies related to removing waste heat produced by the circuits. In addition, the electronic properties of substances may change dramatically at nanoscale dimensions, so that different types of approaches and substances may need to be employed for fabricating even relatively simple, well-known circuits and subsystems at nanoscale dimensions. Thus, new implementation strategies and techniques need to be employed to develop and manufacture useful circuits and structures at nanoscale dimensions using nanowires.
Nanoscale electronic devices can be constructed by selectively fabricating simple electronic components, such as conductors, transistors, resistors, and diodes, and other simple components, at nanowire crossing points. However, it remains desirable, as with many hardware implementations, to further reduce the overall size, and to increase the speed, of nanoscale electronic devices and integrated circuits that employ these simple electronic components at nanowire crossing points. Unfortunately, the current methods by which nanowire circuitry is manufactured are not amenable to simple miniaturization. Instead, designers, manufacturers, and users of nanoscale electronic devices that include nanowire circuitry have recognized the need for new methods of fabricating smaller and faster nanoscale hardware.

Method for reducing the size and nanowire length used in nanowire crossbars without reducing the number of nanowire junctions

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A catheter adapted for mapping near a tubular region of a heart, has an elongated tubular catheter body having proximal and distal ends, an intermediate section distal of the catheter body, and a mapping assembly at the distal end of the intermediate section. The electrode-carrying mapping assembly has a generally circular main segment with a support member having shape-memory, and a generally linear proximal segment which has greater flexibility than either the intermediate section or the generally circular main segment. The generally circular main segment is adapted to releasably anchor itself in the tubular region and to map circumferentially around the tubular region and the generally linear segment is adapted to contact generally along its length heart wall tissue near an ostium of the tubular region. In another embodiment of the present invention, the mapping assembly extends from the distal end of the catheter body, where the generally linear proximal segment of the mapping assembly has greater flexibility than either the catheter body or the generally circular main segment.

Atrial fibrillation is a common sustained cardiac arrhythmia and a major cause of stroke. Atrial fibrillation results in a fast and irregular cardiac rhythm which often leads to palpitations and a deterioration of cardiac function with cardiac output decreasing by an average of 30%. There is also an increased incidence of intra cardiac thrombosis (blood clotting) which can potentially lead to embolic events such as strokes. Consequently, 20 to 35% of cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs) are related to paroxysmal or chronic atrial fibrillation.
This condition is perpetuated by reentrant wavelets propagating in an abnormal atrial-tissue substrate. Various approaches have been developed to interrupt wavelets, including surgical or catheter-mediated atriotomy. Atrial fibrillations can also be treated by pulmonary vein isolation which proves to be insufficient in 30 to 50% of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation patients and 90% of permanent atrial fibrillation. In such cases, it may be necessary to ablate and perform linear lesions in addition to pulmonary vein isolation, in the right and left atriums. These linear lesions have been done using RF ablation catheters for about a decade. Each lesion should ideally be transmural and continued with adjacent lesions so as to obtain a final linear lesion blocking electrical activity between two natural areas of block. The most common locations of these lines are the mitral isthmus in the left atrium, with a lesion extending from the mitral annulus to the left inferior pulmonary vein. Other possible locations include the roof of the left atrium, with a lesion connecting the ostium of the superior right pulmonary vein to the left superior vein. However, because conventional catheters generally treat tissue in a localized manner, numerous repeated applications of the catheter are typically needed to form a linear lesion. Thus, while the formation of linear lesions is possible, it can be a time-consuming, labor-intensive procedure.
Prior to treating the condition, one has to first determine the location of the wavelets. Various techniques have been proposed for making such a determination. None of the proposed techniques, however, provide sufficient assistance in guiding the formation of the linear lesion or easing the linear line assessment process, particularly for regions of the mistral isthmus and the left atrium roof.

Soft linear mapping catheter with stabilizing tip


A salad spinner for drying food articles and household items includes a transparent bowl and a perforated basket disposed in the bowl. The basket further includes a cylindrical wall connected to a bottom wall of the basket and disposed at its center. The salad spinner further includes a drive assembly attachable to the cylindrical wall of the basket for spinning the basket relative to the bowl whereby water on the food articles is passed through the perforated wall of the basket and displaced to the bowl.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to food appliances and more specifically to food appliances for removing excess water from food articles. In particular, the present invention relates to a salad spinner having a drive assembly separate from a spinner cover and attached to a basket for causing rotation of the basket and a braking system in the spinner cover for stopping basket rotation.
2. Description of Related Art
Salad spinners are well known in the art and are primarily designed for food preparation, particularly in the cleaning and drying of certain food articles. Typically, an individual washes the food articles by immersion in a water bath or by directing a stream of water onto the food articles. In many situations, it is desirable to dry the washed food articles.
Salad spinners in the prior art typically consist of an outer bowl with solid walls and an inner perforated basket adapted to nest and spin within the outer bowl. Food articles are placed in the inner basket and a lid is provided to cover the food articles. A drive assembly is provided in the lid for spinning the inner bowl relative to the outer bowl whereby water on the food articles can be passed through the perforated wall of the inner basket and displaced to collect in the bottom of the outer bowl. A handle for operating the drive assembly is associated with the lid placed over the bowl.
Moreover, due to the drive assembly being provided in the lid, the salad spinner operates to spin only when the lid is placed over the bowl. Additionally, since the drive assembly is provided in the lid, cleaning of the lid becomes a more complicated task.
Therefore, there is a need not only for a salad spinner which removes excess water from food articles, but also provides an improved drive assembly, wherein the drive assembly is associated with a bottom portion of the inner basket of the salad spinner.

Salad spinner with improved drive assembly


Apparatus for controlling the temperature of a cooking location of a cooking unit includes a temperature sensor having an outer tube and an inner rod received within the tube and having a different coefficient of expansion, a switch base operatively connected to the temperature sensor and carrying electric contacts actuated by the temperature sensor, and an igniter connected to the temperature sensor and/or switch base.

The present invention refers to an apparatus for controlling the temperature of a cooking location of a cooking unit. More specifically, the present invention refers to a temperature limiter of a type having a temperature sensor including an outer tube and an inner rod accommodated in the outer tube and having a different coefficient of expansion, and a switch base connected to the temperature sensor and carrying contacts actuated by the temperature sensor.
Cooking units or cooktops have typically one or more cooking locations which serve as placement area for cooking utensils and are formed by a plate of ceramic glass and an underlying housing which defines with the plate a heating chamber. Such cooking locations can be heated in a wide variety of ways, e.g. by electric thermal resistors, halogen lights, gas or the like. Regardless of the type of heating element, overheating should be avoided to prevent a destruction of the glass ceramic plate. Typically, temperature limiters are employed to control and limit the temperature of the cooking location.
When using gas to heat the cooking location, it is necessary to provide within the heating chamber a gas igniter in addition to the temperature limiter. Thus, the housing wall must be formed with a passageway for the temperature sensor of the temperature limiter and with a passageway for the igniter so as to be disposed in the heating chamber, and moreover, when assembling the cooking location, both these structural components must be installed separately from one another, rendering the construction relative complicated and the overall assembly time-consuming.

Combined temperature limiter and igniter

Electrovac, Fabrikation elektrotechnischer Spezial-artikel Gesellschaft m.b.H.


In order to provide a plain bearing excellent in the anti-seizure property, a bearing metal layer is provided with a plurality of recesses different in depth on the inner surface thereof so as to form an uneven textured portion thereon, the recesses being filled with a soft overlay layer. At the beginning of the use, the overlay layer develops the conformability. When the wear proceeds to the wear level I so that the shallow recesses disappear, an intermediate layer or the bearing metal layer forming protrusions is exposed and form a condition in which the overlay is mixed. Furthermore, when the wear proceeds to the wear level II, the shallow recesses disappear while the deep recesses remain, so that the condition hardly to cause the seizure is maintained.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a plain bearing, and more particularly to a plain bearing comprising a bearing metal layer having an uneven textured portion formed on the inner surface thereof, and an overlay layer provided on the inner surface of the bearing metal layer to cover the uneven textured potion.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is known a plain bearing comprising a back metal layer and a bearing metal layer bonded to the back metal layer, which is further provided with an overlay layer made of a soft material such as a Pbxe2x80x94Sn alloy on the surface of the bearing metal layer so as to enhance the conformability and the foreign matter embeddability of the bearing. Moreover, there is also known the above plain bearing further comprising an intermediate layer made from Ni or the like provided between the bearing metal layer and the overlay layer so as to prevent components of the overlay layer from diffusing into the bearing metal layer and improve the adhesiveness of the overlay layer.
In case of the bearings, when the overlay layer wears to expose the hard bearing metal layer or the harder intermediate layer over a wide area, an associated shaft slides directly on the hard layers over the wide area, so that the bearings readily cause the seizure. For the purpose of preventing this, there is also known a plain bearing having groove-like recesses 64 formed on the inner surface of the bearing metal layer 61 by boring in the axial direction, and the intermediate layer 62 and the overlay layer 63 provided on the recesses 64, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, so that even when the overlay layer 63 wears to the level M shown in FIG. 7, the soft overlay layer 63 provided in the recesses 64 still exists together with the intermediate layer 62 and the bearing metal layer 61 and form a mixing condition so as not to expose the intermediate layer 62 and the bearing metal layer 61 over a wide area, whereby maintaining the anti-seizure property.
In case of the bearing, if the overlay layer is exposed widely, the fatigue resistance and the wear resistance are deteriorated, while the conformability and the foreign matter embeddability are enhanced. On the contrary, if the bearing metal layer is exposed widely, the conformability and the foreign matter embeddability are deteriorated, namely the anti-seizure property is deteriorated, while the fatigue resistance and the wear resistance are enhanced.
Since the recesses of the conventional plain bearing have the same depth with each other, when the inner surface of the bearing wears to the bottoms of the recesses especially in a load carrying region, the hard bearing metal layer suddenly becomes exposed in a wide area, so that the bearing readily causes the seizure. Particularly in recent years, there are tendencies to avoid using lead in view of an environmental problem and to harden the bearing metal layer, and thus it has been worried that the seizure is readily caused.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to enhance the anti-seizure property of a plain bearing by providing a plurality of recesses different in depth so as to prevent the bearing metal layer and the overlay layer from being exposed in a wide area suddenly.
According to the invention, there is provided a plain bearing comprising a back metal layer; a bearing metal layer provided on the inner surface of the back metal layer, which has an uneven textured portion formed on the inner surface thereof; and a soft overlay layer provided on the inner surface of the bearing metal layer to fill recesses of the uneven textured portion; wherein the recesses comprise at least two kinds of recesses different in depth.
According to the above feature, the overlay layer covering the uneven textured portion develops the conformability at the beginning of the use. Then, when the inner surface of the plain bearing wears to expose the bearing metal forming protrusions of the uneven textured portion, the overlay layer and the bearing metal layer appear and form a mixing condition. Further, even when those layers wear to the bottoms of the shallower recesses, the deeper recesses remain so that those layers still appear and form a mixing condition. As a result, the bearing metal layer is not exposed over a wide area in a load carrying region, and thus the preferred condition hardly to cause the seizure is maintained.
Typically, the bearing metal layer is made from a Cu or an Al alloy. The overlay layer material may be optionally selected from the group of Pb, a Pb alloy, Sn, a Sn alloy, and a resin suitable for a sliding-contact application, e.g. PTFE and PFA.
Moreover, although the overlay layer may be directly provided on the bearing metal layer, it also may be possible to provide an intermediate layer between the bearing metal layer and the overlay layer so as to enhance the adhesiveness and prevent components of the overlay layer from diffusing into the bearing metal layer. The intermediate layer material may be optionally selected from the group of Ni, Ag, a Ni alloy, an Ag alloy, Cu, a Cu alloy, Co, a Co alloy, Sn, a Sn alloy, Zn and a Zn alloy, for example.
Typically, the overlay layer is made from a lead-tin alloy. However, the overlay layer may be made from another soft material, which does not include lead, such as a resin or a tin base alloy.
According to the invention, it is possible to provide a plain bearing excellent in the anti-seizure property.
With reference to the attached drawings, preferred embodiments of the plain bearing according to the invention will be described herein below.


Facilitating identification of star schemas in database environments. In an embodiment, queries directed to relational database tables (organized according to normalized schema) are examined to determine the relationships specified in the queries. A star schema is then generated by including the specified relationships. A data warehouse may be organized according to the generated star schema and the data previously stored in the database tables may be copied to the data warehouse.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to data management systems, and more specifically for facilitating identification of star schemas in database environments.
2. Related Art
A database generally refers to a collection of data that is organized to facilitate easy access, update and management of the data using queries. In case of relational databases, the queries are specified in a language such as Structured Query Language (SQL). The data of interest is generally organized in the form of tables, and the definition of the structure (i.e., columns, the type of data that can be stored in each column) of all such tables is referred to as a schema.
Processing queries often requires joins of multiple tables at least in contexts when the required data is stored in different tables. In general, there is overhead (example, processing and/or retrieval) associated with joins, which could be of particular concern when the database is to be used for large number of retrievals.
Star schema (also known as a star join schema) refers to a type of schema in which tables are designed with redundancy of data. Star schemas organize data in terms of fact tables and dimension tables, with fact tables containing detailed data of interest (e.g., aggregated information or detailed counts, etc.). Due to such organization as fact tables and dimension tables, later retrieval of related data is simplified, thereby making star schemas suitable for environments requiring analysis of data.
In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements. The drawing in which an element first appears is indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the corresponding reference number.


A method and a system for resolution conversion of textual content or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) content in an image are provided. The method includes receiving image data of the image, the image data having a plurality of image planes having essentially the same resolution, wherein at least one of the plurality of image planes includes textual image data configured to be rendered by a print engine with an output resolution different from the remaining image planes; processing the at least one of the plurality of image planes to identify one or more characters contained therein and to obtain character encoding data and positional information for the one or more identified characters; and processing the obtained character encoding data and the obtained positional information to generate an output data at the output resolution for the at least one of the plurality of image planes.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to a system and a method for resolution conversion of textual content or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) content in an image.
2. Description of Related Art
In image printing systems (e.g., inkjet image printing systems), there is a need to have different resolutions for different primary ink colors. This is a problem for most Page Description Language (PDL) imaging technologies because they render each primary ink color at the same resolution. Common interpolation methods from one resolution to another resolution do not produce optimal output at the new resolution.
One example where this is a problem is high resolution text printing in which a higher resolution is used for printing text so as to improve rendering of small text. As text is most often rendered using black color ink, black color image plane can be imaged at a higher resolution than the image planes of the other primary ink colors.
Another example where this is a problem is MICR printing using different heads or different print stations at different resolutions for printing the MICR ink.
MICR technology is generally well-known. MICR inks contain a magnetic pigment or a magnetic component in an amount sufficient to generate a magnetic signal strong enough to be readable via a MICR reader device. Generally, the ink is used to print all or a portion of a document, such as checks, bonds, security cards, etc. For example, most checks exhibit an identification code area, usually at the bottom of the check. The characters of this identification code are usually MICR encoded. The document may be printed with a combination of MICR-readable ink and non-MICR-readable ink, or with just MICR-readable ink. The document thus printed is then exposed to an appropriate source or field of magnetization, at which time the magnetic particles become aligned as they accept and retain a magnetic signal. The document can then be read by passing it through a reader device, which detects or "reads" the magnetic signal of the MICR imprinted characters. MICR readers have strict tolerances on character shape and the resulting signal strength.
The architecture of continuous feed (CF) direct marking (DM) printing systems includes the use of multiple print heads (or marking stations) distributed into several color print head modules along the printing path. These multiple print heads are distributed over a long print zone to print the desired image. An exemplary continuous feed printing system may have as many as six color modules with four print units per color module incorporating fourteen print heads. Also, the continuous feed printing system prints on a band, a web or a roll of paper/media as compared to a sheet printing system which prints on discrete sheets of media.
In one MICR implementation for the continuous feed printing system, a set of aqueous ink print heads are added to an otherwise solid inkjet printing engine having solid inkjet print heads. The aqueous ink print head technology can be different from the solid inkjet print head technology. For example, the solid inkjet print heads may be clocked at a fixed frequency no matter how fast the web moves while the MICR print heads are clocked at a rate proportional to the web speed. In another example, the solid inkjet print heads may be manufactured with a different number of nozzles per inch than the MICR print heads. Due to these differences in the print head technologies involved, the aqueous ink print heads operate at a different resolution than that of the solid inkjet print heads. Additionally, for each unique web speed, images printed with the solid inkjet print heads change resolution but those printed with the aqueous ink print heads do not. The web speed, as used herein, refers to the speed at which a roll (or a web) of media (or paper) is being fed into a continuous feed printing system.

Method and system for resolution conversion of textual content or magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) content


Using various embodiments, systems, methods and techniques to determine a geometrical area of projection of a multidimensional object are described. This includes determining, by a computer system, a set of visible faces projected by a camera on a viewport space displayed on a graphical user interface, where the multidimensional object is presented in an electronically generated multidimensional environment, projecting vertices of each face in the set of visible faces that are visible on the viewport space, determining a set of polygons of each face based on the projected vertices of each respective face, and calculating an area of each polygon in the set of polygons. Thereafter, a summation of the area of each polygon in the set of polygons is performed to determine the geometrical area of projection of the multidimensional object.

Multi-dimensional computer generated or simulated environments are utilized in many different fields that use computer aided visualization techniques. These techniques require calculation of a GAP to determine the area a virtual object projects in a viewport space.
However, currently known techniques are inefficient or inaccurately determine the geometric area of projection of an object. Therefore, what is needed are systems, methods, and techniques that can overcome the above identified limitations and efficiently determine a GAP of a multidimensional digital object within the multidimensional environment.

Geometric area of projection of a multidimensional object in a viewport space


A process of forming a capacitor structure includes providing a substrate. Next, a first electrode is deposited onto the substrate. Later, a water-based ALD process is performed to deposit a transitional amorphous TiO2 layer on the first electrode. Subsequently, the transitional amorphous TiO2 layer is treated by oxygen plasma to transform the entire transitional amorphous TiO2 layer into a rutile TiO2 layer. Finally, a second electrode is deposited on the rutile TiO2 layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor devices and more particularly, to an improved high-k dielectric layer, a capacitor structure using the same, and an exemplary fabrication method thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As known in the art, downscaling of the metal-insulator-metal capacitor for dynamic random access memory (DRAM) devices has required the introduction of high permittivity dielectrics, for example, titanium oxide (TiO2). It is well known that titanium oxide has multiple phases which have different dielectric constants. Two known phases of titanium oxide are anatase and rutile. It is often desirable to increase rutile TiO2 in the capacitor dielectric film because it has a much higher dielectric constant (k>90) than anatase TiO2.
Typically, TiO2 dielectric layer is deposited by using an atomic layer deposition (ALD) method. However, TiO2 is inherently formed in the anatase phase during the ALD process. To form a TiO2 dielectric layer with the rutile phase and low leakage as well, methods such as impurity doping, post annealing (600° C. or higher) and/or ozone-based ALD in combination with template layers are employed. However, the impurity doping method has problems such as high cost, low throughput and is hard to control its distribution. The drawback of the post annealing method is the additional thermal budget and mechanical stress, which may seriously degrade the MOS devices. The problems of the ozone-based ALD/template layer method include low deposition rate (˜0.4 Å per ALD cycle) and the risk of etching or oxidizing the underlying layer.
Water-based ALD method, which uses water vapor as oxidant in the ALD cycles, is also employed to deposit the TiO2 dielectric layer. The water-based ALD method has a much higher deposition rate than the ozone-based ALD method, meaning higher throughput. However, TiO2 deposited using the water-based ALD method is inherently in the anatase phase. To form rutile TiO2 in the water-based ALD process, a 10 nm thick TiO2 film or a relatively higher process temperature is typically required.
There is a need in this industry to provide an improved method for depositing a high-k dielectric material such as rutile TiO2 with a higher deposition/growth rate and a low leakage and without introducing the aforesaid prior art shortcomings.

Process for forming a capacitor structure with rutile titanium oxide dielectric film