A method and system can display images associated with core threats, associated threats, and/or predictive overflight threats. The images of the weather can be displayed using at least a first color, a second color, and a third color associated with a respective first precipitation rate range, a second respective precipitation rate range, and a third respective precipitation rate range. The first precipitation rate range is less than the second precipitation rate range and the third precipitation rate range is more than the second precipitation rate range. The core threats, associated threats and predictive overflight threats can be displayed using the first, second and third colors, speckled areas, and wedge-shaped symbols.

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of weather display systems. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a weather display system and method configured to display weather threats detected by a weather radar system.
Weather display systems are often used to alert operators of vehicles, such as aircraft pilots, of weather hazards in the area near the vehicle. Conventional weather display systems are configured to display weather data in two dimensions and often operate according to ARINC 453 and 708 standards. A horizontal plan view provides an overview of weather patterns near an aircraft mapped onto a horizontal plane. Generally the horizontal plan provides indications of precipitation rates in the vicinity of the aircraft. Red, yellow, and green colors are used to symbolize areas of respective precipitation rates, and black color symbolizes areas of very little or no precipitation. Each color is associated with radar reflectivity range which corresponds to a respective precipitation rate range. Red indicates the highest rates of precipitation while green represents the lowest (non-zero) rates of precipitation. Certain displays can also utilize a magenta color to indicate regions of turbulence.
A vertical profile view can illustrate weather cells along a plane for a particular set of ranges and altitudes and generally uses the red, yellow, green, black and magenta colors described above. Displays with vertical and/or horizontal views have been proposed which include icons for advanced weather threats that are not readily compatible with conventional displays. For example, conventional displays are not configured to easily display new hazards or threats, such as, the threats associated with predictive or inferential weather sensing systems,
Thus, there is a need for a weather information display that provides more information than a conventional display. Further, there is a need for a threat depiction system and method that is compatible with conventional display platforms, such as the A453 and A661 platforms. There is another need for a weather radar system configured to easily display new hazards or threats, such as, those associated with predictive or inferential weather sensing systems using existing display formats and/or standards. There is also a need for an avionic weather radar system for and a method of displaying a core threat, an associated threat, and a predictive overflight threat using symbology compatible with conventional display platforms.

Weather radar threat depiction system and method


Methods and systems for tracking compliance of personal protection (PP) articles in working environments. Tracking compliance includes providing at least one PP article configured with a smart tag; providing at least one predetermined criterion that governs compliance with respect to the at least one PP article in a particular working environment; tracking the PP article by retrieving smart tag data; and determining whether the smart tag data satisfies at least one predetermined criterion; and storing data relating to results of the determination.

The present disclosure relates to methods and systems for tracking compliance of personal protection (PP) articles for use in working environments.
Maintaining the safety and health of workers is a major concern across many industries. Various rules and regulations have been developed to aid in addressing this concern, which provide sets of requirements to ensure proper administration of personnel health and safety procedures. To help in maintaining worker safety and health, some individuals may be required to don, wear, carry, or otherwise use PPE articles, if the individuals enter or remain in work environments that have hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions. Known types of the PPE articles include, without limitation, respiratory protection article (RPE), e.g., for normal condition use or emergency response, protective eyewear, such as visors, goggles, filters or shields, protective headwear, such as hard hats, hoods or helmets, hearing protection, protective shoes, protective gloves, other protective clothing, such as coveralls and aprons, protective articles, such as sensors, safety tools, detectors, global positioning devices, mining cap lamps and any other suitable gear.
For example, personnel in the nuclear industry may be required to wear radiation protective clothing and personal dosimeter devices. Law enforcement personnel are sometimes required to wear protective vests and helmets. There are numerous situations in the medical field in which healthcare workers must wear protective gowns, masks, face shields, gloves, etc. Workers in the food service industry are often required to wear hair netting, gloves, masks, etc. For example, there are also many industrial manufacturing scenarios in which personnel are required to wear protective or other specially designed articles in order to ensure a "clean" environment. For example, personnel in the micro-electronics manufacturing industry, biotech industry, laboratory/testing industry, are required to wear PPE articles not only to ensure their own safety, but to protect the article and devices which they assemble or perform various procedures with. There are also many industrial manufacturing scenarios in which personnel working in mines, oil refineries, metal grinding facilities, smelting facilities, industrial painting operations or pharmaceutical factories may be required to wear respiratory protection article (RPE).
There are many different kinds of RPE's utilized to prevent or reduce inhalation of hazardous or toxic materials. The RPE's remove specific air contaminants by passing ambient air through their air-purifying element. Their proper use is contingent upon the RPE's being replaced, serviced, maintained, cleaned, or otherwise processed before they fail or that they are properly used in the working environment by appropriate personnel.
Importantly, facilities in which workers wear PPE article are often required to keep detailed records regarding the PPE article as well as the individuals wearing the PPE article. Some such records may include, among other factors, information regarding use of the PPE articles, maintenance of the PPE articles, and training of the workers. In addition, records of certain mandatory regulations and compulsory audit histories must be kept for auditing purposes. For example, in some cases, RPE's require maintenance to be carried out by properly trained personnel or must be used at specific concentration levels.
Compiling records pertaining to compliance with the regulations is relatively laborious and time consuming. Currently, recordkeeping and auditing regarding the use of the PPE articles and components are being performed manually or semi-automatically by safety personnel. The making and keeping of extensive records that contain all of the above-referenced information present a substantial administrative task.
Despite the extensive records required to be kept, adherence to predetermined criteria is typically the responsibility of the wearer. Thus, compliance with the predetermined criteria may become an issue in work environments involving relatively large number of workers and/or respirators because of the relative difficulty in tracking worker habits and diligence. Clearly, when predetermined criteria are not adhered to, workers are at a higher risk of chemical exposure upon breakthrough of hazardous materials. Additionally, concentration levels of hazardous materials used in the reporting process are not necessarily static and may change over time. For example, concentration levels may spike in a particular location. Alternatively, concentration levels may become lower than originally sensed.
Because the concentration levels may subsequently change, the articles may not satisfy the predetermined criteria. For example, subsequently higher concentration levels may result in unsafe exposure conditions since compliance values are based on relatively safer concentration levels. Similarly, lower concentration levels may potentially cause more frequent and thus relatively more expensive changes in article that are actually necessary.
Thus, needs exist for methods and systems for enabling auditing and reporting on conditions, and in some cases, on-going reporting on real-time safety compliance conditions experienced by personal protection articles relative to, for example, occupational health and safety regulations, such as government regulations, insurance requirements as well as other industrial requirements. Needs also exist for methods and systems enabling periodic reporting for purposes of understanding, identifying, and remediating workplace problems. Needs also exist for methods and systems enabling compliance with applicable forms required by various reporting entities. There is also a need for methods and systems that enable being able to quickly and simply provide the records needed for reporting on compliance. There is a need for methods and systems that enable collecting data for compliance reports which reduce the cost and time it takes to meet regulations.

Tracking compliance of personal protection articles


A method for producing an additively manufactured object includes melting and solidifying a filler metal to form weld beads and depositing the weld beads adjoining each other, thereby forming a weld-bead layer, and repeatedly depositing a next weld-bead layer on the formed weld-bead layer to conduct additive manufacturing. The method includes a bead formation step of forming a new weld bead so as to fill a recess formed by at least three of the already formed weld beads, in a cross-section perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the weld beads.

In recent years, there is growing need for shaping with a 3D printer as production means, and researches and developments have been made in order to put the shaping from metallic materials into practical use. A 3D printer for shaping from a metallic material melts a metal powder or a metal wire using a heat source, such as a laser, electron beam, or arc, and deposits the molten metal, thereby producing an additively manufactured object.
For example, in a case of using an arc, a filler metal is melted with the arc and solidified to form weld beads and the weld beads are deposited in a plurality of layers, thereby producing an additively manufactured object. In this case, by depositing adjoining weld beads in a plurality of rows to form a weld-bead layer and depositing such a weld-bead layer multiple times, an additively manufactured object having a larger width than multilayer objects formed by depositing one weld bead can be produced.
With respect to techniques for forming a weld bead, Patent Literature 1 describes a technique for overlay welding in which the contact angle between a weld head that has been deposited and the base metal is measured and the torch is inclined depending on the measured contact angle to conduct overlay welding. Patent Literature 2 describes a technique for a process for producing a three-dimensional shaped object using a weld bead, in which an overlay torch is scanned while being inclined and thus the molten metal is less likely to drop.

Method and apparatus for manufacturing layered model


Edible pet chews are made of one or two layers, each layer comprising a thin slice of sweet potato, and one of the layers being processed to form irregularities, the layers being rolled into a tubular body and treated with heat to form a single- or dual-layered dehydrated tube having the irregularities oriented toward the interior cavity of the tubular body, the interior cavity being fillable with a beneficial material of suitable viscosity to provide a beneficial or therapeutic effect to the animal as the animal chews on the edible pet chew.

Chew toys are widely known and manufactured for the purpose of providing a chewable device that will clean an animal's teeth. That is, the animal finds the biting and chewing of the device a pleasurable activity, while the device scrapes the animal's teeth to provide a cleaning action. Many such chew devices are made of hardened rawhide. Other chew devices are made of combinations of animal-based materials, such as rawhide, and plastic. Other chew devices are substantially made of man-made synthetic materials. These chew devices are purposely made of hardened material that the animal can chew on for an extended period of time. However, such chew devices often chip or break the animal's teeth.
Chew devices made of animal-based materials and/or synthetic materials are intended for consumption by the animal. It is presumed that the animal will chew the device into small enough pieces that the pieces may be swallowed. However, many chew devices are not made of material that naturally breaks into small enough pieces to be swallowed. Rather, many chew devices are hard or rubbery and the animals attempts to swallow the entire chew device because it does not naturally break into small pieces. As a result, severe intestinal damage can occur if the pieces that are swallowed are too large to pass naturally or to degrade. Additionally, the undigested pieces of the pet chews can present a choking hazard, both in the animal's throat and in the digestive system. Such chew devices have also proven to contain materials that are toxic to the animal or cause allergic reactions.
Other chew toys or devices have been made of vegetable-based materials. Some vegetable-based chew devices are made of a single type of plant material, while others are made of two or more plant materials in an admixture. Some vegetable-based chew devices are formulated for providing extended, chewing by the animal, but are not necessarily constructed or devised for being edible in their entirety. Many manufactured vegetable-based chews also contain additional artificial ingredients and preservatives, gluten, wheat, added sugars, fats and other agents that are intended to provide additional nutrition to the animal and/or are intended to increase the shelf life of the chew. Many of the added agents have proven to be toxic, spoiled or otherwise deleterious to the animal's health, and also add undesirable calories to the animal's daily nutritional intake. There has been a recent correlation between consumption of chew treats by dogs and a growing obesity problem.

Edible pet chew for dental care of companion animals


A faucet assembly includes a faucet body, a valve seat, a control shaft, a sealing member, and a control handle. Thus, the control handle is located under the faucet body to facilitate a user operating the control handle, so that the control handle is operated easily and conveniently. In addition, the control handle is located under the faucet body, so that the user can operate the control handle to stop the water flow after use easily and conveniently, thereby saving the water resource.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a faucet assembly, and more particularly to a faucet assembly that can save the water resource.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional faucet comprises a faucet body, and a control handle mounted on a top of the faucet body to control a water flow from the faucet body. However, the control handle is located above the faucet body, so that the control handle cannot be washed easily and conveniently, thereby causing inconvenience to a user in cleaning the control handle. In addition, the water still flows outward from the faucet body when the user operates the control handle to stop the water flow after use, thereby greatly consuming the water resource.


A method for treating dermatological organ disorders and skin lesions in a mammal through the use of directed, pulsed laser light is described.. The dermatological disorders are characterized by an increase in concentration of potential photodynamic chemical compounds like carotenoid compounds, and especially the carotenoid beta-carotene, compared to normal skin. Pulsed dye laser light of a time and duration specific for maximal absorption by a carotenoid compound like beta-carotene is directed at the regions of carotenoid accumulation within a skin disorder. Thermal coagulation necrosis of the carotenoid-accumulating skin region results, though thermal damage to surrounding tissue is limited in amount.

Skin organ disorders such as dermatological acne and xanthomas have traditionally been treated by chronic oral medications and chronic topical applications with medicated creams and by surgical techniques. However, a typical result is extensive scarring of the skin even when surgical treatment to rid the disorder is successful. No non-scarring ablative treatment is currently available.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide an effective method of dermatological treatment for skin disorders like xanthomas and acne that would eliminate the need for chronic therapy and tissue scarring. Such a method should be uncomplicated for the practitioner to use as an inoffice procedure, non-toxic, comfortable for the patient undergoing treatment, and deliverable at low cost.

Method of laser-induced tissue necrosis in carotenoid-containing skin structures


A container transport device includes a drive driving a star wheel mounted on bearings within a hollow column that is part of the machine frame. The star wheel comprises two star wheel elements, one forming the leading flanks and the other forming trailing flanks. The two elements adjust to define an angular offset between them. During transport, the elements rotate synchronously while maintaining the angular offset. The hollow column encloses all function elements for setting or maintaining an angular offset, thus protecting them from exterior influence.

Known devices for transporting containers include transport stars with receptacles for engaging containers. Since containers come in different sizes, it is useful to be able to adjust the sizes of these receptacles to accommodate containers of different sizes.
Known adjustment mechanisms have the disadvantage of having parts that are exposed to outside influence during operation of the transport star. This tends to make it difficult to maintain proper adjustment. In particular, known adjustment, fixing, and/or clamping mechanisms are prone to disruption, for example by being jammed with glass shards.
These components are also located in a hygienic region of a system for filling containers. Unfortunately, they are difficult to clean. As a result, this arrangement is particularly disadvantageous if it is intended that the containers should be filled with microbiologically sensitive and easily contaminated beverages or other foodstuffs.


A method for processing data exactly once using transactional stream writes includes receiving, from a client, a batch of data blocks for storage on memory hardware in communication with the data processing hardware. The batch of data blocks is associated with a corresponding sequence number and represents a number of rows of a table stored on the memory hardware. The method also includes partitioning the batch of data blocks into a plurality of sub-batches of data blocks. For each sub-batch of data blocks, the method further includes assigning the sub-batch of data blocks to a buffered stream; writing, using the assigned buffered stream, the sub-batch of data blocks to the memory hardware; updating a storage log with an intent to commit the sub-batch of data blocks using the assigned buffered stream; and committing the sub-batch of data blocks to the memory hardware.

As distributed storage (i.e., cloud storage) becomes increasingly popular for storing data records, ensuring that every record is processed exactly once (i.e., records are not lost and are not duplicated) has become increasingly important. Exactly-once processing cannot be done unilaterally in a distributed storage system, as there are multiple different systems producing events and consuming those events. This often results in lost records or duplicated computations. Preventing this requires careful coordination between producing and consuming systems.

Scalable exactly-once data processing using transactional streaming writes


Electronic devices may include time-of-flight (ToF) image pixels. Each ToF pixel may include a photodiode, a first capacitor coupled to the photodiode via a first transfer gate, a second capacitor coupled to the photodiode via a second transfer gate, and a third capacitor coupled to the photodiode via a third transfer gate. The first transfer gate may be turned on for a given duration to store a first charge in the first capacitor. The second transfer gate may be turned on for the given duration to store a second charge in the second capacitor. The third transfer gate may be turned on for a duration that is longer than the given duration to store a third charge in the third capacitor. Depth information may be computed based on the first, second, and third stored charges and a corresponding pixel constant.

This-relates generally to imaging devices, and more particularly, to imaging devices that measure the flight time of reflected light pulses.
Image sensors are commonly used in electronic devices such as cellular telephones, cameras, and computers to capture images. In a typical arrangement, an electronic device is provided with an image sensor and a corresponding lens. Some electronic devices use arrays of image sensors and corresponding lenses to gather image data. This type of system, which is sometimes referred to as an array camera, may be used to capture depth information from a scene using a parallax effect based on a known physical offset between image sensors.
Depth information such as information about the distance of an object from an electronic device is also commonly captured using a dedicated range finder such as a radar system. In a typical range finder, light of a known frequency is emitted from the range finder in the direction of an object and is reflected off of the object in the direction of the range finder. Range finders typically have a light sensor that detects the reflected light. Distance information is then determined based on the time-of-flight of the light between the emission and detection of the light and the known speed of light.
Time-of-flight distance information is also sometimes extracted by a range finder from an emitted and reflected pulse of light by synchronizing the emission and the detection of the light. The light sensor is often configured to collect light for a predetermined amount of time alter the emission of the light. Light reflected from a far away object may not return during the light collection period while light reflected from a nearby object may return and be collected during the light collection period. This is because the light reflected from the far away object travels a longer distance and therefore has a longer time-of-flight. However, reflected intensity of emitted light most often is very small compared to natural background scenery intensity. Oftentimes the intrinsic brightness of objects in a typical real-world scene is hundreds or thousands of times more intense than the brightness of the reflected emitter-light pulse. Difficulties that arise in separating background intensity from reflected light pulse intensity can therefore be problematic when capturing images with depth information. In an effort to reduce background interference, some imaging devices operate only in the infrared (IR) range utilizing IR emitters and narrow band IR filters. Operating only in the IR range, however, prevents an imaging device from producing any color information.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved imaging devices for capturing depth information and color image at the same time.

Video and 3D time-of-flight image sensors

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC


Methods and apparatus for reducing the average delay associated with sending a packet from one environment to another via a store and forward buffer are disclosed. According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for processing transmission units received over a first network connection includes receiving a first transmission unit on the first network connection, storing the first transmission unit in a buffer, and determining when contents of the buffer meet a plurality of criteria. The method also includes sending a backpressure over the first network connection when it is determined that the contents of the buffer meet the plurality of criteria. In one embodiment, determining when the contents of the buffer meet a plurality of criteria includes determining when the contents of the buffer are of an amount that exceeds a threshold and determining when the contents of the buffer include at least one full packet.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to network systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to effectively reducing the average delay introduced by a store and forward buffer used for mixed-priority traffic.
2. Description of the Related Art
The demand for data communication services is growing at an explosive rate. Much of the increased demand is due to the fact that more residential and business computer users are becoming connected to the Internet. Within an optical network, different networks, or environments, may be in communication with one another. For example, an overall network may include multiple environments which have different timing requirements. In order for packets to be sent between two environments with different timing requirements, buffers may be used between the environments to temporarily hold packets to effectively ensure that entire packets are moved into a receiving environment.
FIG. 1a is a diagrammatic representation of a network which includes a store and forward buffer that temporarily holds packets. A first environment 104, which is arranged to send packets from a network processor or a traffic management chip, is connected by a dedicated bus 106, e.g., a SPI3 bus or a SPI4 bus, to a store and forward buffer 116 that is typically associated with a framer or controller 112. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, a traffic management chip is a chip which provides buffering and queuing for packets. The size of buffer 116 is typically such that buffer 116 is at least one or two times the size of the maximum transmission unit that will be transmitted by first environment 104 or a second environment 108. Packets 120 which are sent from first environment 104 to buffer 116 are generally stored on buffer 116 until such time as buffer 116 may forward packets 120 on a bus 110 to second environment 108 on a first in, first out basis. Second environment 108 has an associated physical layer interface, as for example a synchronous optical network (SONET) interface, an Ethernet interface, or a T1/E1 interface. Second environment 108 typically has different timing requirements than first environment 104, so buffer 116 enables packet underrun to effectively be prevented by storing packets 120 until second environment 108 is ready to receive packets 120.
In many instances, packets 120 may be of mixed priorities. By way of example, first environment 104 may attempt to forward both low priority traffic and high priority traffic such as real-time traffic. When first environment 104 is providing packets 120 to buffer 116 faster than second environment 108 may receive them, i.e., when the exit rate from buffer 116 is insufficient to effectively support the entry rate into buffer 116, or when buffer 116 is nearly full, framer or controller 112 may send a per port backpressure 124 to first environment 104. In general, backpressure may either be sent over bus 106 or over separate lines (not shown). Backpressure 124 is effectively a jamming or a blocking technique which serves to enable frame losses to be reduced when one or more ports associated with framer or controller 112 are considered to be saturated. The use of backpressure 124 may prevent a deadlock situation between first environment 104 and framer or controller 112. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, when backpressure 124 is sent to first environment 104, first environment 104 may delay sending further packets 120 to buffer 116 until such time as it is appropriate to continue sending packets 120. A backpressure threshold which, when reached, causes a backpressure to be sent is restricted to being larger than a maximum packet size in order to avoid a deadlock condition. Restricting the backpressure threshold to be larger than the maximum packet size is needed to prevent a deadlock condition from being reached because the start of a packet transfer from buffer 116 to second environment 108 would not occur until an entire packet was received by buffer 116, but the receipt of the packet by buffer 116 would be stalled prior to completion until after packet transfer out of buffer 116 lowers the fill level of the buffer 116.
The relative packet transfer speed of first environment 104 will typically vary from the relative packet transfer speed of second environment 108. Either first environment 104 or second environment 108 may have a faster relative packet transfer speed. As such, buffer 116 must be designed to accommodate either condition, i.e., buffer 116 must be arranged to support first environment 104 having a higher relative packet transfer speed and second environment 108 having a higher relative packet transfer speed. When first environment 104 has a slower packet transfer speed than second environment 108, to prevent underrun of buffer 116, all of a packet must be buffered in buffer 116 before the packet begins to be sent to second environment 108. When first environment 104 has a faster packet transfer speed than second environment 108, to prevent overrun, backpressure is asserted from buffer 116 before buffer 116 is completely full, since buffer 116 must account for additional packet data sent before first environment 104 may fully respond to the backpressure request
When buffer 116 is full, e.g., full of low priority packets, when a high priority packet is to be sent by first environment 104 to second environment 108, there will generally be a delay before the high priority packet is received by second environment 108 since substantially all packets 120 already waiting in buffer 116 will need to be sent to second environment 108 before the high priority packet may reach second environment 108. The delay generally increases as the size of buffer 116 increases, and also as the speed associated with second environment 108 or, more specifically, a physical layer interface of second environment 108 decreases.
With reference to FIGS. 1b and 1c, the forwarding of a high priority packet through a substantially full store and forward buffer such as buffer 116 of FIG. 1a will be described. Buffer 116 contains low priority packets 120b-e which are to be forwarded out of buffer 116, e.g., after low priority packet 120a is forwarded out of buffer 116 and received by a receiving environment such as second environment 108 of FIG. 1a. A sorter 140 within first environment 104 sorts packets, as for example packets 120h-1, and substantially identifies high priority packets and low priority packets. As shown, since buffer 116 is relatively full, a high priority packet 120g is effectively queued to be sent to buffer 116 as soon as space is available in buffer 116, while a low priority packet 120f is effectively queued to be sent to buffer 116 after high priority packet 120g is sent.
Typically, high priority packets such as high priority packet 120g are expected to be transferred through buffer 116 with a low average latency, and low latency jitter. High priority packet 120g is delayed from reaching a receiving environment such as environment 108 of FIG. 1a because high priority packet 120g may not reach the receiving environment until substantially all packets which are already in buffer 116 reach the receiving environment. While high priority packet 120g may be forwarded to buffer 116 such that high priority packet 120g is queued in buffer 116 after low priority packet 120e, as shown in FIG. 1c, the delay between when high priority packet 120g is provided to buffer 116 and when high priority packet 120g is received by the receiving environment is essentially equal to the amount of time it takes to "drain" low priority packets 120b-e from buffer 116. For example, if buffer 116 is arranged to store approximately sixteen thousand bytes and is drained by a T1 line, the draining process may take approximately 85 milliseconds (ms), which may be an unacceptable delay for high priority packet 120g.
As interface speeds increase, maximum packet size requirements and real-time traffic requirements also increase, thereby rendering the use of a single buffer to be ineffective. In addition, increased demands for systems which may accommodate a wide range of interface speeds further increase the difficulty of using a single buffer. In order to reduce the potential delays associated with sending high priority packets through a buffer which may be used for mixed-priority traffic, some framers or controllers may utilize two store and forward buffers, namely a store and forward buffer which is arranged to buffer low priority traffic and a store and forward buffer which is arranged to buffer high priority traffic FIG. 2a is a diagrammatic representation of a network that includes two store and forward buffers that are arranged to store packets. A first environment 204 is arranged to forward mixed priority traffic in the form of packets 220 to a second environment 208 through a framer or controller 212 which includes a first store and forward buffer 216a and a second store and forward buffer 216b. A dedicated bus 206 may be used to carry packets between first environment 204 and framer or controller 212, while a bus 210 may be used to carry packets between framer or controller 212 and second environment 208. Buffer 216a is arranged to effectively hold low priority packets received from first environment 204 until second environment 208 may receive the low priority packets, while buffer 216b is arranged to effectively hold high priority packets received from first environment 204 until second environment 208 may receive the high priority packet.
Framer or controller 212 may send a backpressure 224a which indicates that buffer 216a is full, and a backpressure 224b which indicates that buffer 216b is full. Hence, when buffer 216a is full, first environment 204 may continue to send high priority packets to buffer 216b, and when buffer 216b is full, first environment 204 may continue to send low priority packets to buffer 216a.
The use of separate buffers 216a, 216b to hold low priority packets and high priority packets, respectively, may reduce delays associated with sending high priority packets to environment 208, as the need to effectively wait for low priority packets in a buffer, e.g., buffer 216a, to be drained before sending high priority packets may be substantially eliminated. Framer or controller 212 may be arranged to drain buffer 216a substantially only when buffer 216b has already been drained or is otherwise empty. As shown in FIG. 2b, a packet sorter or environment 204 may sort packets 220 and provide the sorted packets to buffers 216. When buffer 216b is empty, and buffer 216a contains low priority packets 220b-e, buffer 216a will forward low priority packets 220b-e to a receiving environment, as for example second environment 208 of FIG. 2a, after low priority packet 220a is received by the receiving environment.
When buffer 216b has any contents, as for example high priority packets 220h-k as shown in FIG. 2c, buffer 216b generally must effectively be drained before low priority packets 220b-e may be sent to a receiving environment. Further, substantially all high priority packets identified in first environment 204, e.g., high priority packet 2201, must also be sent to a receiving environment through buffer 216b before low priority packets 220b-e may be sent to the receiving environment. By way of example, high priority packets 220h-k, as well as high priority packet 2201 and other high priority packets currently identified in first environment 204, are sent to a receiving environment after high priority packet 220g before the first low priority packet in buffer 216a, namely low priority packet 220b, may be sent to the receiving environment. It should be understood that in some situations, the sending of packets 220 to a receiving environment may further be delayed when a backpressure is sent to first environment 204 to indicate that the transmission of packets between first environment 204 to buffers 216a, 216b should be slowed or delayed.
In general, the use of a separate high priority store and forward buffer in addition to a separate low priority store and forward buffer is effective for reducing the amount by which a high priority packet may be delayed or the latency associated with reaching a destination such as a receiving environment. The maximum latency and latency jitter associated with a high priority packet in a system which includes separate high priority and low priority store and forward buffers is not more than the time required to transfer a low priority packet that is in the process of being sent, i.e., no more than the amount of time required to transfer a large low priority packet to a receiving environment. In a best case, the latency would be approximately zero, so the maximum latency jitter is also relatively low. However, the use of two buffers to store and to forward mixed-priority traffic is both relatively expensive and relatively complex to implement, which may make the use of two buffers to reduce maximum latency and latency jitter inefficient and impractical.
Therefore, what is desired is a method and an apparatus for enabling potential delays associated with sending high priority packets in mixed-priority traffic to be efficiently reduced. More specifically, what is needed is a system which enables the number of packets stored in a store-and-forward buffer to be controlled such that the maximum amount by which a high priority packet may be delayed from reaching a destination may effectively be reduced.

Reducing latency jitter in a store-and-forward buffer for mixed-priority traffic


Interactive data, audio data, and video data are respectively encoded and packaged, and then an interactive television program is produced by multiplexing them. A receiving terminal receives the interactive television program and performs unpacking and decoding. The unpacked interactive data are transmitted by a near field communication module. An operating terminal receives the unpacked interactive data by a near field communication module thereof, parses out corresponding participatory information, and carries out the interaction with the content of the present television program.

A traditional broadcast television (TV) delivers news, entertainment and a variety of special programs to viewers in the form of one-way broadcast. In recent years, with the popularity of a digital television and an internet protocol television (IPTV), some interactive features, such as catch-up TV, video on demand, information functions, etc. have been provided for the audience. However, these interactive features are basically irrelevant to the content of TV programs; they cannot let the audience interact with the present content of the watched TV program.
Thus, there is a requirement to improve and enhance the prior art.

Method and system for implementing interactive televisions through near field communication technologies

HUIZHOU TCL MOBILE COMMUNICATION CO., LTD.


A three-dimensional printing apparatus including a chassis, a tank, an outer cover and a shielding module is provided. The tank is disposed at the chassis and adapted to be filled with a liquid forming material. The outer cover is pivoted on the chassis. The shielding module includes a pivot and a mask. The pivot is disposed on the chassis and beside the tank. The mask is winding on the pivot and connected with the outer cover. When the outer cover rotates to a first position and covers the tank, the mask is winding on the pivot. When the outer cover rotates to a second and exposes the tank, the outer cover pulls the mask out of the pivot, so that the mask covers the tank in order to shield the liquid forming material filled in the tank.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates to a printing apparatus. More particularly, the disclosure relates to a three-dimensional printing apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
There are many different technologies currently used to build physical three-dimensional (3-D) models using additive manufacturing technology, for example, building a model layer by layer. Typically, a virtual design of the 3-D model using additive manufacturing technology, for example, represented through computer-aided design (CAD) software or the like, is transformed into a plurality of thin (quasi-two-dimensional) cross-sectional layers which are built on one another in succession. At the same time, various technologies which can form a plurality of thin cross-sectional layers are carried out progressively. For instance, the thin cross-sectional layers may be formed, wherein a printing module of a printing apparatus usually can be moved along the X-Y plane above a base in the XYZ coordinate system which is constructed according to the virtual design data of the three-dimensional model, so as to extrude or deposit material in correct shape of the cross-sectional layer. The deposited material may then harden naturally or be cured by, for example, powerful light source, to form the desired cross-sectional layer. Therefore, by the printing module gradually moves along the Z axis layer by layer, a plurality of cross-sectional layers are stacked gradually along the Z axis, and a 3-D object is formed under the condition of the deposited material further being cured gradually and layer by layer.
Taking the technology of forming a 3-D object by curing the deposited material through light source as an example, a moving stage of the printing apparatus is adapted to be submerged in the liquid forming material which is filled in the tank, and the light source module illuminates the liquid forming material on the X-Y plane, so that the liquid forming material is cured and stacked on the moving stage. As such, by moving the moving stage of the printing apparatus along the Z axis gradually and layer by layer, the liquid forming material may be gradually cured layer by layer and stacked to form the 3-D object. During the forming process of the 3-D object, the printing apparatus usually shields the tank with an outer cover so that the liquid forming material can be cured by the illuminating of the light source of the printing apparatus. However, when a user opens the outer cover and picks up the 3-D object after the 3-D object is completed, the rest of the liquid forming material which has not been cured may be illuminated by the external light source and induce undesired or unexpected solidification. Furthermore, the user may happen to accidently touch the liquid forming material when he/she picks up the 3-D object, or the liquid forming material may spill if the 3-D object accidently falls. Thus, if the liquid forming material is exposed, the operating function of the printing apparatus may be affected.

Cal-Comp Electronics & Communications Company Limited


An orbital rotary blade sharpener for sharpening rotary cutter blades and other rotary blades includes a bottom blade holding portion having a center and a perimeter edge, a top blade holding portion rotatably connectable to said bottom blade holding portion, having a perimeter and a center, a central shaft portion extending from said bottom blade holding portion through said top blade holding portion over which a rotary blade can be fitted, a radial shaft portion extending through said top blade holding portion positioned between the perimeter and the center of the top blade holding portion, and grinding portion connected to said radial shaft portion, and within said top blade holding portion, positioned to be orbitally revolvable around said bottom blade holding portion center and contactable with a blade held between said top and bottom blade holding portions.

Rotary cutting blades are used for cutting fabric in quilt making, among other uses. Rotary cutting blades typically come in two standard sizes, the 45 mm diameter rotary cutting blade and the 60 mm diameter rotary cutting blade. An existing problem in the use of rotary cutting blades is the current high replacement cost of the blades for this popular fabric, craft and hobby cutting tool. Moreover, typical rotary cutting blades lack perfect roundness, wavering in radius as much as 2 mm out of perfect roundness. Existing products induce warping into the rotary cutter blade and therefore only sharpened quadrants of the blade's circumference. In addition, the abrasive strips intended to sharpen the cutting edge of the blade were actually falling off in the package because the adhesive had failed and this was before it was taken out of the package and used. In use, the blade cutting edge contact surface of the abrasive strip, to not be very robust and a groove quickly wore into it removing the abrasive particles thus creating a very short product life.
Existing products include large commercial circular blade sharpeners for meat slicing and the like. Also included were motorized commercial motor driven fabric cutters of various descriptions, and only the one manual sharpener for hand held rotary cutters mentioned herein.
The following represents a list of known related art:
Reference:Issued to:Date of Issue:U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,582TerrisAug. 26, 1997U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,943TerrisMar. 19, 1996U.S. Pat. No. 889,830Van BerkelJun. 2, 1908U.S. Pat. No. 1,051,646StukartJan. 28, 1913U.S. Pat. No. 1,165,342PetersonDec. 21, 1915U.S. Pat. No. 1,957,776GuryMay 8, 1934U.S. Pat. No. 1,310,700Hood et al.Jul. 22, 1919U.S. Pat. No. 1,977,418WinklerOct. 16, 1934U.S. Pat. No. 2,694,887Green et al.Nov. 23, 1954U.S. Pat. No. 2,721,430Green et al.Oct. 25, 1955U.S. Pat. No. 3,349,485BetcherOct. 31, 1967U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,302DarbyFeb. 15, 1983
The teachings of each of the above-listed citations (which does not itself incorporate essential material by reference) are herein incorporated by reference. None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.
Existing art has a number of disadvantages, including the inability to adjust to accept rotary cutter blades of various small sizes for use in hand held rotary cutter tools. In addition, other prior art reviewed, does not maintain a precision alignment and support between the rotary cutter blade and the abrasive element, and in its current configuration, is incapable of creating a razor sharp edge consistently around the total circumference of a rotary cutter blade's cutting peripheral edge.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,943 discloses a rotary cutter blade sharpener where the rotary cutter blade is sandwiched between two clamping elements, which if they are not precisely flat and co-plainer could induce an out of flat condition onto a thin (approx. 0.020 thick rotary cutter blade) and create a shape not unlike a potato chip having high and low edges on the same side of the blade's peripheral circumference, making it impossible to sharpen with a rigid, angled, abrasive surface as shown. The isometric view (FIG. 4) is showing this prior art's radial, tapered, conical surface, having an abrasive strip affixed to it for the purpose of sharpening the rotary blade cutting edge, with no provision for replacement of this abrasive strip except by the purchase of a new device. Continued use of this device and its abrasive strip will shortly abrade it into an uneven, ringed, shape unable to support the sharpening process of the rotary blade's cutting edge. The rotary blade wears down through the abrasive material and it's adhesive backing, leaving no abrasive material available to sharpen the rotary blade's cutting edge, thus leaving the blade dull. In addition, my tests have concluded that the use of abrasive material such as claimed in this prior art, will breakdown very quickly after repeated use on the same contact point. Thus preventing the creation of a clean, sharp, burr free cutting edge on the rotary blade's cutting edge along with a very short usable product life span.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,582 discloses a radial, tapered, conical surface, having an abrasive strip affixed to it for the purpose of sharpening a rotary blade cutting edge, with no provision for replacement of the abrasive strip except by the purchase of a new device. Consistent and frequent sharpening of rotary blades of the same diameter, contacting this abrasive strip will create a groove at the point of contact with the rotary blade's cutting edge, and create a deformed area which will in turn create this same deformed shape onto the cutting edge of subsequent blades as they are rubbed in this distorted groove in the abrasive strip. Thus, creating a rounded, distorted, dull cutting edge, rather than maintaining the factory created cutting angle, shape, and sharp edge as with the present art. Additionally, the razor sharp edges are totally exposed to the operator while it is clamped into a blade handling device (FIGS. 6, 7, and 16). The risk is, if the clamped blade is dropped during use, that not only will the unprotected blade be possibly bent or chipped, and further dulled beyond repair. But it could cut the users shoe, bare foot, and expensive hardwood, tiled or carpeted floor. In use, user fingers can be cut on the rotary blade edge while trying to sharpen a blade per the user instructions included with the device. Also, it will be noted that the design and intended use of this prior art is as a hand held devise only, it can not be operated or used on a stable tabletop or work bench as with the present art. Also the clamping elements are shown with the surfaces for clamping the rotary cutter blade whereby the blade is sandwiched between these two clamping elements, which if they are not precisely flat and co-plainer could induce an out of flat condition onto a thin (approx. 0.020 thick rotary cutter blade) and create a shape not unlike a potato chip having high and low edges on the same side of the blade's peripheral circumference, making it impossible to sharpen with a rigid, angled, abrasive surface as shown. If the molding process and selected plastic materials are unable to produce a flat molded surface then it will not have the ability to clamp the rotary blade flat between them, which is the case with this prior art. The abrasive element shown is one of the critical components to the design of this prior art and its success as a viable and useful product. However, this prior art's radial, tapered, conical surface, having an abrasive strip affixed to it for the purpose of sharpening the rotary blade cutting edge, with no provision for replacement of this abrasive strip except by the purchase of a new device reduces its useful life and value to the customer. Continued use of this device and its abrasive strip will shortly abrade it into an uneven, ringed, shape unable to support the sharpening process of the rotary blade's cutting edge. The rotary blade wears down through the abrasive material and it's adhesive backing, leaving no abrasive material available to sharpen the rotary blade's cutting edge, thus leaving the blade dull. In addition, my tests have concluded that the use of abrasive material such as claimed in this prior art, will breakdown very quickly after repeated use on the same contact point. Thus preventing the creation of a clean, sharp, burr free cutting edge on the rotary blade's cutting edge along with a very short usable product life span.
Existing art has a number of other drawbacks, including the limited ability of these devices to adjust to accept rotary cutter blades of various smaller sizes for use in hand held rotary cutter tools. In addition, the need for a stationary, non-rotating, rotary cutter blade sharpener with a safety guard covering the blade and an abrasive element that is replaceable and capable of maintaining a precision alignment and support between the rotary cutter blade and the abrasive element, thus creating a razor sharp edge consistently around the total circumference of a rotary blade's cutting edge periphery, whereby the abrasive element is manually moved upon or around the stationary rotary blades cutting edge periphery to sharpen it. Reviewing prior art with these requirements in mind
U.S. Pat. No. 889,830 shows a device that is very complicated, and designed for large meat slicing machines whereby the large rotary blade is rotated against a sharpening element located in a fixed position and having no safety shield.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,051,646 is a sharpening device that rotates the large rotary cutter blade used in meat slicing, and sharpens the blade using two stationary held abrasive elements. The device is not adjustable for small rotary cutter blades and does not have a safety guard as an integral part of its design.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,165,342 is a sharpener for rotary blades that is not adjustable for small rotary cutter blades and has no safety shield while it rotates the large rotary cutter blade for sharpening as it holds the abrasive elements in a fixed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,957,776 discloses a cloth cutting electric powered rotary cutter that is intended for use as an attachment to an electric cloth cutting machine and in this application again rotates the rotary blade against a stationary mounted abrasive element and is not adjustable for various size manual rotary cutter blades, although it does have a blade guard.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,310,700 discloses a sharpener for slicing machine knives is shown and in this case the rotary blade is rotated to sharpen it as well, while the single wheel abrasive device is held in a stationary position. This device is also not intended for the smaller type rotary cutter blades and has no safety guard.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,977,418 discloses a knife sharpener device of a complicated nature that is intended for attachment to an existing cutting machine of some design and application. The device uses one abrasive element and one burr removing element that are affixed in a stationary location while the rotary blade is rotated in contact with these two elements to facilitate the blades sharpening. The nature of this prior art design dose not lend its self to the sharpening of the smaller type rotary cutter blades.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,694,887 discloses a deburring device for the sharpening of a rotary-slicing blade. It is also a device intended to be added onto an existing slicing machine or included in its design. In operation, the rotary blade is rotated while the deburring element is held stationary in order to facilitate the removal of burrs during the sharpening of a rotary blade.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,721,430 discloses a sharpener device for slicing blades that relates to an attachment to be adapted to a machine that uses a large size rotary cutting blade, in order to make easy the sharpening of the blade thereof. Again, the abrasive element is held stationary and the rotary cutter blade is rotated as it is in contact with said abrasive element, thus abrading the blade and sharpening it.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,349,485 discloses a combination of a rotary knife with sharpener wherein the described band type blade of the hand held rotary knife cutter has an included fixed position blade sharpening element which comes in contact with the blade while it is being rotated to sharpen said band type blade. The sharpening element however is not easily removable to change to different grits or for its replacement. This prior art design dose not lend its self to the sharpening of the smaller, disc type, rotary cutter blades.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,302 discloses a sharpening apparatus for circular blades, This is a commercial bench mounted device for large diameter circular blades and can not be adjusted for smaller diameter rotary cutter blades for hand held devices. The rotary blades are rotated against a stationary positioned power driven sharpening element for sharpening of the cutting edge. This design is not intended for being adapted to a hand held device as with the present art.
In summary, the reviewed prior art commented on herein, employs designs and materials that limit there application to devices for large diameter rotary blades that are table mounted and not adaptable for hand use on smaller size hand held rotary cutter knife blade sharpening. In some cases, because of design and material selection, the device's performance and operation is marginal at best and in some cases shortens the useful product life. In other cases the materials available at the time or selected, along with the manufacturing methods chosen, were not a good match for the device, or the design was limited by the knowledge and experience of the inventor. The wrong materials for the application, over complexity, weakness or flexibility of components, or poor choice of mechanical design for the desired application can make a product undesirable for manufacturing because of cost, design appearance, and esthetics. The application of state of the art materials, engineering methods and improved manufacturing methods as applied to the present invention, and described herein will overcome the failings of the reviewed prior art, to create an improved design of a device and methods of manufacture for an orbital, multi-size, rotary cutter blade sharpener having changeable, multi-grit, diamond coated abrasive elements as described herein.


The present invention provides a method and device for restoring individual patient joint kinematics using minimally invasive surgical procedures. The instrumentation of the invention sculpts the articular surface of a first bone that normally articulates in a predetermined manner with a second bone. The instrumentation includes a bone sculpting tool and a mount for attaching the tool to the second bone. The implant system is comprised of implants that provide intraoperative surgical options for articular constraint and facilitate proper alignment and orientation of the joint to restore kinematics as defined by the individual patient anatomy.

A joint generally consists of two relatively rigid bony structures that maintain a relationship with each other. Soft tissue structures spanning the bony structures hold the bony structures together and aid in defining the motion of one bony structure to the other. In the knee, for example, the bony structures are the tibia and the femur. Soft tissue such as ligaments, tendons, menisci, and capsule provide support to the tibia and femur. A smooth and resilient surface consisting of articular cartilage covers the bony structures. The articular surfaces of the bony structures work in concert with the soft tissue structures to form a mechanism that defines the envelop of motion between the structures. Within a typical envelop of motion, the bony structures move in a predetermined pattern with respect to one another. When fully articulated, the motion defines a total envelop of motion between the bony structures. The soft tissue structures spanning the knee joint tend to stabilize the knee in a transverse plane. This transverse stability enables the bony structures to slide and rotate on one another in an orderly fashion.
The articular surfaces are subject to a variety of diseases, accidents and the like that cause the surfaces to be damaged. A common disorder of joints is degenerative arthritis. Degenerative arthritis causes progressive pain, swelling, and stiffness of the joints. As the arthritic process develops, the joint surfaces wear away, resulting in contractures of the surrounding soft tissues that provide stability to the joint. Changes in the articular surfaces resulting from arthritis decrease stability and increase the translation of the joint.
Treatment of the afflicted articular bone surfaces depends, among other things, upon the severity of the damage to the articular surface and the age and general physical robustness of the patient. The end result commonly necessitates joint replacement surgery wherein the articulating elements of the joint are replaced with artificial elements commonly consisting of a part made of metal articulating with a part made of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE).
A relatively young patient with moderate to severe degeneration of the knee joint is often treated with drug therapies. While drug therapies may temporarily provide relief of pain, progression of the disease, with resulting deformity and reduced function, ultimately necessitates surgery. Alternative treatments such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone injections, and arthroscopic debridement similarly provide only temporary relief of symptoms.
In severe situations, the entire articular surface of a bone may be replaced with an artificial surface, as, for example, when condyles at the distal end of the femur are largely replaced with a prosthetic device having polished metal condyles and the tibial plateau is replaced with a plastic bearing that may be supported by a metal component. Joint replacement surgery has become a proven and efficacious method of alleviating pain and restoring function of the joint.
Current methods of preparing the intraarticular rigid elements of a joint to receive components as in joint replacement surgery involve an extensive surgical exposure. The exposure must be sufficient to permit the introduction of guides that are placed on, in, or attach to the joint, along with cutting blocks to guide the use of saws, burrs and other milling devices, and other instruments for cutting or removing cartilage and bone that subsequently is replaced with artificial surfaces. The distal end of the femur may be sculpted to have flat anterior and posterior surfaces generally parallel to the length of the femur, a flat end surface normal to the anterior and posterior surfaces, and angled flat surfaces joining the above mentioned surfaces, all for the purpose of receiving a prosthetic device.
A full joint replacement, using the example of the knee joint, also requires the proximal end of the tibia to be sculpted to receive a prosthesis having a generally upwardly facing bearing surface mimicking the normal tibial bearing surface and designed to articulate with the condylar surfaces of the femoral prosthesis. Typically, this surgery is performed with instruments or guides to orient cutting blocks, such that the preparation of the bone is in concordance with the correct alignment of the limb and the parts are correctly oriented in both coronal and sagittal positions. The guides are placed on exposed bones and generally reference anatomical points on that bone to establish a resection plane. For instance, with total knee replacement, arthroplasty guides are used by referencing, for example, the intramedullary cavity and the epicondylar and posterior condylar axes.
Knee joint prosthesis of the type referred to above are well known, and are described, for example, in Caspari et. al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,171,244, 5,171,276 and 5,336,266, Brown, U.S. Pat. No. 4,892,547, Burstein et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,992, and Insall et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,068,658.
Substantial effort has been made to provide appropriate degrees of curvature to the condyles. For example, the earlier mentioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,171,276, 4,298,992 and 6,068,658 show that the radius of curvature in the anterior-posterior direction of the condyle of a femoral prosthesis may be somewhat greater near the anterior portion of the condyle than near the posterior portion. Kester et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,824,100 teaches that a portion of this curvature of the condyle may be formed about a constant radius having its origin along a line between the lateral and medial collateral ligament attachment points on the femur.
Historically, a variety of modular prosthetic joint implants have been developed. The following descriptions of modular implants relate specifically to the knee. Early designs for knee implants, called polycentric knee implants, were developed with separate components for the medial and lateral compartments. Additionally, modular fixed-bearing knee implants having a polyethylene insert that is held relatively rigidly in place have been developed. Alternately, there are mobile bearing knee implants wherein the polyethylene bearing is designed to slide or move with minimal or no constraint on a tibial baseplate. Furthermore, both meniscal bearing and fixed bearing knee implants have been developed including either separate polyethylene bearings or a single polyethylene bearing that resides on a metallic tibial baseplate. While implant systems have been developed with fixed bearing elements or mobile bearing elements on the medial and lateral sides of the tibiofemoral joint, systems have not been developed having a combination of a fixed bearing on one side and a mobile bearing on the other side of the tibiofemoral joint.
Mobile bearing tibial implants may be configured to be more congruent with the femoral side of a knee arthroplasty, yielding lower contact stress. The resultant lower contact stress reduces the possibility of damage sometimes encountered with some fixed bearing designs wherein the yield strength of the bearing material is exceeded. In general, fixed bearing implant designs are less difficult to properly align and balance than mobile bearing designs. Mobile bearing designs are frequently desirable to reduce contact stress and the resulting wear of the bearing surface. However, with mobile bearing designs, there is the possibility of the bearing becoming dislodged from the implant. Additionally, mobile bearing knee designs are more surgically demanding to implant then fixed bearing designs.
The combination of a fixed bearing insert for the medial compartment and a mobile bearing insert for the lateral compartment is particularly attractive because the lateral femoral condyle rolls backward on the lateral tibial plateau as much as 10 to 20 mm whereas the medial condyle moves only a few millimeters. A mobile bearing insert is able to accommodate the rollback of the lateral condyle but would not be necessary for the medial condyle.
Two primary difficulties exist with current joint replacement surgeries. These relate to the invasiveness of the procedure and achieving proper alignment of the bony structures and the prostheses thereupon.
Alignment. A difficulty with implanting both modular and non-modular knee implants having either separate femoral and/or tibial components has been achieving a correct relationship between the components. Surgical instruments available to date have not provided trouble free use in implanting multi-part implants wherein the femur and tibia are prepared for precise component-to-component orientation. While alignment guides aid in accurate orientation of the components relative to the axis of the long bones to achieve a restoration of a correct tibiofemoral alignment (usually 4–7 degrees valgus), they provide limited positioning or guidance relevant to correct component-to-component alignment and/or ligament tension to restore alignment.
It is preferable to orient implants normal to the resultant forces through the joint to subject bearing surfaces to compressive rather than shear forces. Moreover, the components of the implant are preferably oriented one to the other to minimize wear. Complications may result if the implant is not correctly oriented with respect to the supporting bone. If the implant is not placed normal to the mechanical axis, a shearing force results between the implant and bone that may lead to implant loosening.
In a properly aligned knee, the mechanical axis of the leg (a straight line drawn from the center of the hip joint to the center of the ankle) passes slightly medial to the center of the knee. This alignment is generally called the gross alignment of the leg. The alignment of the implants impacts the gross alignment of the leg. If the implants are malaligned, the resulting mechanical axis may be shifted medially or laterally, resulting in an imbalance in the loads carried by the medial or lateral condyles. This imbalance, if severe, may lead to early failure of the implant.
In addition, the orientation of the components to each other, for example the orientation of the femoral to the tibial component, with unicondylar and bicondylar implants has largely not been addressed. This may account for the high failure rates of early bicondylar designs and as well as for the higher failure rate of unicondylar implants relative to total knee implants as demonstrated in some clinical studies. When considering bicondylar and unicondylar designs, alignment of each part relative to the other parts is critical to avoid accelerated wear with a mal-articulation of the components.
Although various prosthetic devices have been successfully used with patients, the configuration and position of the articulating surfaces of the prosthesis, that is, for example, the condyles in a knee joint are predetermined based upon the prosthesis that is selected. While efforts are made to tailor the prosthesis to the needs of each patient by suitable prosthesis choice and size, this in fact is problematical inasmuch as the joint physiology of patients can vary substantially from one patient to another.
Invasiveness. In order to appropriately sculpt the articulating surface of a bone, it is often necessary to surgically expose the joint. In the case of the femur, the patellar tendon of the knee joint is surgically exposed and is moved to one side of the joint to enable a substantially full anterior access to the joint. Surgical exposure is necessary to accommodate the bulk and geometry of the components as well as the instruments for bone preparation. Such surgical exposure increases bleeding, pain, and muscle inhibition; all of which contribute to a longer hospitalization before the patient can be safely discharged to home or an intermediate care facility.
Desirably, in the case of knee replacement surgery, neither the collateral ligaments nor the cruciate ligaments are disturbed, although it is often necessary to remove or release cruciate ligaments in the event a substantial joint replacement is to be performed. Collateral ligaments can be partially taken down or released to provide appropriate tension adjustment to the patient's knee in concert with joint replacement surgery. In most instances, such releases can be accomplished through smaller incisions than the standard midline or medial parapatellar incisions historically used for knee arthroplasty.
Arthroscopic surgery is available, and beneficial, for removing and repairing damaged intraarticular tissues. Although arthroscopic procedures are far less invasive and are often successful for minor surgical repairs, (as when an articular surface is to be smoothed, for example, or cartilage is to be repaired), such procedures generally are not appropriate for substantial joint replacement. They are generally inadequate for replacing joint surfaces with artificial implants.
Conventional surgical procedures including unicompartmental and total joint replacement historically require extensive surgical exposure and prolonged hospital stays and rehabilitation. More recently unicondylar procedures have been performed through smaller incisions that do not necessitate dislocation of the patella. The reduction in pain and more rapid recovery of knee function has reduced the length of hospital stay and the need for strong narcotic medications. It is desirable to realize such benefits for patients with bicompartmental and tricompartmental knee arthroplasty.
For patients who require articular surface replacement, including patients whose joints are not so damaged or diseased as to require whole joint replacement, it would be desirable to provide surgical methods and apparatuses that could be employed to gain surgical access to articulating joint surfaces, to appropriately sculpt the surfaces, to provide artificial, e.g., metal or plastic, articular bearing surfaces, and then to close the surgical site, all without substantial damage or trauma to associated ligaments and tendons. To reach this goal, of course, a procedure must be provided to enable articulating surfaces of the joints to be appropriately sculpted using minimally invasive apparatuses and procedures.

Apparatus and method for sculpting the surface of a joint


A treatment tool of an endoscope including: a movable tip end portion that performs a treatment on a living body; a flexible first coil sheath into which a wire is spirally wound; a flexible second coil sheath into which a wire is spirally wound and which is concentrically fitted onto or into the first coil sheath; a flexible operation wire that is formed into an elongated thin shape, a tip end thereof being connected to the movable tip end portion, and the operation wire being movably inserted into the first coil sheath; and an operation portion for advancing and retracting the operation wire, in which a tip end of the second coil sheath is fixed to the movable tip end and a base end thereof is fixed to the operation portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a treatment tool for an endoscope.
Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-029052, filed on Feb. 8, 2007, and Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-119384, filed on Apr. 27, 2007, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of Related Art
A treatment tool for an endoscope, such as grasping forceps, for use together with a flexible endoscope, is provided with a coil sheath into which a wire is wound. It is inserted into a body cavity via a treatment tool insertion channel of the endoscope. In this state, in order to revolve the tip end portion of the treatment tool for the endoscope about the axis, an operation portion on the proximal side of the treatment tool for the endoscope is rotated in most cases. Accordingly, treatment tools are known in which a multi wire coil sheath with high rotation transmissibility is arranged so as to improve the rotation following capability of the movable tip end portion.
Here, in the case of a treatment tool such as forceps that is opened and closed by pulling an operation wire from the operation portion, a compression force is loaded in the axis direction of the coil sheath in accordance with the opening and closing. At this time, a multi wire coil sheath into which a plurality of wires are wound has a higher rotation transmissibility compared to a single wire coil sheath into which a single wire is wound, but is more likely to be compressed in the axis direction. As a result, the coil sheath is compressed in the axis direction, which decreases the axial force to be transmitted to the tip end portion. This prevents sufficient treatment, leading to a complicated manipulation. Consequently, there is proposed a treatment tool in which single wire coil sheaths are arranged in multiple layers (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication, First Publication No. 2000-229084).

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


An improved tiller restraining device is provided for attachment to the underside of a boat's tiller to selectively control the position of the tiller and rudder. The device features a specialized mechanical clutch that grips or releases a control rope, which runs through the clutch and is secured across the cockpit. The device is operated with one hand by moving an integrated clutch lever upward to release the rope and allow free tiller movement, or downward to engage the rope and restrict tiller movement. Inside the device, a spring acts on the lever to pinch and bind the rope against the openings where the rope passes through the clutch housing. The spring and lever are aligned so they toggle, enabling the clutch to remain either engaged or disengaged with no additional controls.

1. Field of Invention
This invention generally relates to the steering of boats, specifically to an improved mechanical device that allows a single-handed pilot to quickly and easily restrain the position of the tiller and rudder at the stern of a boat.
2. Prior Art
Most smaller boats, especially sailboats, are steered with a rudder at the stern that is pivoted by a long arm called a tiller. The tiller extends into the steering area, or cockpit, for the sailor or pilot to use.
When steering a boat single handedly, a sailor often needs to momentarily release the tiller to attend to other critical tasks, including changing sails, adjusting lines, preparing anchors, and retrieving needed articles from elsewhere on the boat. Without some method of restricting tiller movement, the rudder can quickly swing to one side or the other, causing the boat to veer off course with undesirable results. Conversely, with the tiller fixed in position, the boat may remain on course long enough for the sailor to complete a necessary task.
Sailors have addressed this problem in the past with varying degrees of success. Numerous solutions have been tried, ranging from elaborately-tied ropes or elastic cords to rods and clamps. A few simple cord-based devices have been patented as shown by U.S. Pat. No. 4,480,572 to Lauterbach (1984) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,616 to Tiesler (1994). The difficulty with these devices is that they occupy two hands for set-up or adjustment, and they cannot be released quickly or intuitively when necessary. Unfortunately, in windy, foul-weather or crowded conditions the ability to make a quick-steering adjustment can be crucial.
A number of rigid tiller restraining designs have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,846,896 to Allen (1958), U.S. Pat. No. 3,279,410 to Young (1966), U.S. Pat. No. 4,178,869 to Turrentine (1979), U.S. Pat. No. 4,188,904 to Childress (1980), U.S. Pat. No. 4,476,800 to Gage (1984), U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,321 to Toniatti (1991), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,274 to Grant (1992). These devices employ a rod or wooden stick with one end mounted to a side of the boat and the other end adjustably attached to the tiller to hold it in position. Though somewhat effective, each of these contraptions would prove cumbersome and awkward to use within the crowded confines of smaller-sized boats that typically use tillers for steering. In particular, they can obstruct the use of several important ropes that require frequent monitoring within the cockpit. Additionally, when not in use, these awkward devices consume precious cockpit storage space, and they present an unsightly, incongruent effect on the neat lines of a sailing craft.
The more practical tiller control solutions employ a more compact mechanical device that is attached to the tiller and engages a small control rope strung across the steering area. The control rope is positioned so that the tiller glides along it when steering. The device restricts tiller movement by gripping the control rope at any chosen location along the arc of the tiller. Several such devices have been developed by others, but each has its shortcomings.
The majority of these products employ a tensioning spring-and-screw combination that applies friction directly to the control rope as it winds its way through the device. A few versions of similar design appear to be in the public domain including the Tiller-Tamer™ by Davis Instruments Corp (www.davisnet.com). Such a device can be useful, but has several disadvantages. First, it takes time to activate, as the knob must be rotated several turns to engage or disengage the control rope. For unrestricted steering, the user must fully unscrew the knob, thereby loosing any desired friction on the control rope. Often frustrated by this operational requirement, the user tends to leave the knob partially tightened and simply overpowers it for every steering adjustment. This use tends to wear on the control rope and allow the device to slip under normal water pressures acting upon the rudder. Even with the screw fully loosened, significant friction remains on the control rope as it rounds the three bends required by the tensioning apparatus. This friction detracts from the pleasurable feel of freely steering the boat. It also masks the natural feedback that the sailor feels from rudder pressures. This feedback is important for the sailor when trimming sails for varying conditions. Furthermore, the tensioning knob protrudes from the top of the device, where it has been known to dangerously snag critical ropes during quick sailing maneuvers.
To address some of these issues, U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,918 to Bonhard (1978) shows a device which uses a hinged clamp to grip the control rope as it passes directly through it. This improved simple mechanism allows for faster engaging and complete releasing of the control rope, and it retains a pre-determined rope friction when disengaged. However, this product also falls short. The pilot must use one hand to engage it, while using the other hand to steer. Therefore, two hands and visual attention are required when attempting quick steering adjustments. This requirement can detract from the pilot's focus on boat direction, sails, etc. at a time when all are impacted by the steering action taken. Additionally, when disengaged, the hinged clamp part swings awkwardly away from the tiller, where it can snag the main sheet rope as with the previously mentioned device. This extended part can present a scraping hazard to the user, and can badly pinch a finger when closed in a hurry.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,684 to Davis (1980) discloses a device that addresses some of these issues in a unique, though problematic way. This device employs a set of opposing friction-operated cams to engage the control rope. One of the cams can tighten on the control rope in opposition to rope tension from the other side. The other cam performs the reverse action, so that the rope is restrained in both directions. A remotely located bicycle brake-type lever is provided with a cable to release the cams and free the control rope. Conceptually, this appears to be an improvement, since little effort is needed to engage the rope and the rope cannot slip from increased pressure on the tiller. However, in practice, this increasing grip could be hazardous because the cams would not yield to excessive rudder forces that could cause rudder failure. Likewise, a pilot could not overpower the device in an emergency. Furthermore, increasing tension on the control rope would make the cams increasingly difficult for the lever to disengage. To counter this release problem, the pilot would have to carefully offset any significant rudder load on the tiller before using the release lever. This requirement would diminish the convenience of the device and could slow steering reaction time. Finally, installation of the product onto the tiller is complicated by the attachment of the two separate components that require careful alignment for proper operation.
Other previous mechanical tiller restraining devices were not included in this discussion, but each of them attempts to provide a useful means of restraining the tiller while it is momentarily unattended. Nevertheless, each previous device fails to provide a fully satisfactory solution with regard to efficiency, convenience and safety, having several of the following disadvantages:
(a) Both hands are occupied to operate the device while steering.
(b) The operator must focus attention on the device to locate it and to operate it effectively.
(c) The device does not lend itself to one-handed, minor steering corrections while in use.
(d) Working the device requires repeated or complex hand motions to rotate an adjustment knob or work a clamp.
(e) The device restrains the tiller too securely, so the tiller cannot be forced by hand pressure, and will not yield to excessive underwater rudder pressure.
(f) An upwardly-protruding part of the device can entangle operating lines on the boat, and can present a hazard to the user.
(g) Residual friction in the control rope effects steering feel when the device is disengaged.
(h) Rigid poles or rods of the device are cumbersome and consume limited storage space when not in use.
(i) The mechanism presents a pinching hazard to the user.
(j) The device is ungainly and unpleasing to the eye.
Some of these disadvantages represent inconveniences, while others can slow reaction time and hinder boat operation, or become hazardous in rough conditions.
3. Objects and Advantages
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:
(a) To provide a tiller restraining device that is integrated into the normal steering position for one-handed operation, so that the pilot can grip the tiller handle and simultaneously restrict or un-restrict tiller movement;
(b) To provide a tiller restraining device that is intuitive in use, not requiring extra thought or wasted motion;
(c) To provide a tiller restraining device that allows one-handed, momentary release the for minor steering corrections;
(d) To provide a tiller restraining device that will instantly engage or release the control rope with a small motion of the fingers, even under load;
(e) To provide a tiller restraining device that can be predictably overpowered for emergencies, yet will not slip under normal working loads;
(f) To provide a tiller restraining device with a low profile that is secured beneath the tiller without upwardly protruding parts that could otherwise snag important sailboat lines, or cause a safety hazard;
(g) To provide a tiller restraining device that allows nearly frictionless steering when disengaged;
(h) To provide a tiller restraining device that is compact and can be permanently installed without taking up valuable space during use or storage;
(i) To provide a tiller restraining device that will not pinch the user's hand with normal use.
(j) To provide a tiller restraining device that is unobtrusive and aesthetically pleasing.
Further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of subsequent description and drawings.


A server facilitates communication between a calling party and a called party. The server includes a communications interface for enabling communications with the calling party. The server also includes a processing device that receives a telephone call from the calling party and identifies the calling party. The processing device then determines whether the calling party is a predetermined party and transmits a notification to the called party when the calling party is the predetermined party.

The present invention relates generally to telecommunications and, more particularly, to systems and methods for capturing information from telephone callers.
A typical business often has a number of telephone lines for receiving and placing telephone calls. Often, the number of calls originating and terminating at the business exceeds the number of telephone lines available. When this occurs, a caller trying to reach the business, such as a customer or a vendor, receives a busy signal.
The business may subscribe to a conventional off-premises voice mail system offered by a local exchange carrier (LEC). The voice mail system typically enables a caller to leave a message that can be retrieved by the business at a later time. To retrieve the message, the business must typically access their voice mailbox, enter an access code and retrieve the messages in the order in which they were left.
Retrieving messages in this manner is time-consuming and inefficient. Additionally, the business may be unaware of the received messages for a long period of time. Therefore, a need exists to overcome the deficiencies of conventional off-premises voice mail systems.
The business may also request that the local phone company analyze the frequency of busy signals being offered to incoming calls. Even when such an analysis is available, the analysis is typically devoid of specific identifying information, such as who called, which is vital to the business when making an overall determination of whether it is using its existing phone lines efficiently.
Systems and methods consistent with the present invention address this need by permitting a user to automatically receive messages left by callers. The messages may be received via a number of different communication devices, including a computer or a pager. Systems and methods consistent with the present invention also provide both the business and the LEC with relevant information to enable them to determine, individually or together, how efficiently the business is using its telephone line capacity and how to efficiently manage this resource to meet the business""s goals.
In accordance with the purpose of the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, a server consistent with the present invention includes a communications interface configured to enable communications with a calling party. The server also includes a processing device configured to receive a telephone call from a calling party for a called party, identify the calling party, determine whether the calling party is a predetermined party, and transmit a notification to the called party when the calling party is the predetermined party.
In another implementation consistent with the present invention a computer-readable medium stores sequences of instructions that are executed by a processor. The instructions cause the processor to store a message of a calling party for a called party. The instructions further cause the processor to identify the calling party, determine whether the calling party is a predetermined party and transmit a notification to the called party when the calling party is the predetermined party.

Method and system for capturing telephone calls


A manner of reducing the power consumption is utilized in a tablet terminal equipped with a digitizer for inputting with an electronic pen. When another tablet terminal or a smartphone approaches the tablet terminal, each digitizer detects input. When the digitizer detects the input, it is determined whether the input is electronic pen input from the electronic pen or proximity input caused by the proximity of the other tablet terminal or the smartphone. In the case of electronic pen input, coordinate information is transferred to a system, while in the case of proximity input, the system takes an action such as shifting a tablet terminal to a sleep state.

Electronic devices such as tablet terminals, smartphones, and certain types of laptop personal computers (laptop PC) are equipped with a touch screen as an input unit made up by combining a touch panel and a display. Since control of the screen is operated with a finger, the touch screen can be operated more easily and intuitively than the case where a mouse cursor is operated using a mouse or a track point.
Although these electronic devices are generally equipped with a single touch screen, dual screen computers equipped with two touch screens are beginning to appear. There is also a digitizer display made up by combining a digitizer and a display as an input unit for a computer. Since the screen of the digitizer display is operated with an electronic pen, it is convenient to point out a small object. When the digitizer is embedded in the touch screen, since the input method of either a finger or an electronic pen can be selected depending on the work, the operability is improved.

Control of an electronic device equipped with coordinate input device for inputting with an electronic pen


A process for forming a crystalline semiconductor film by crystallization through solid phase growth of an amorphous semiconductor film on a base material comprises implanting ions of an element constituting the amorphous semiconductor film into the amorphous semiconductor film except a fine region therein, then heat-treating the amorphous semiconductor film at a temperature not higher than the melting point of the amorphous semiconductor film, thereby generating a crystal nucleus in the fine region, and making a crystal grow at the crystal nucleus as growth point.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process for forming a crystalline semiconductor film and more particularly to a process for forming semiconductor film with large grain sizes and controlled grain boundary position, capable of forming semiconductor devices such as a thin film transistor (TFT) of high performance.
2. Related Background Art
Heretofore, a process for solid phase growth of a crystalline film by annealing an amorphous thin film formed in advance on a substrate at a lower temperature than the melting point has been proposed as one of processes in the field of crystal formation technology to make a crystalline film grow on a substrate such as an amorphous substrate. For example, a process for formation of crystal by annealing an amorphous Si film having thickness of about 100 nm formed on the surface of amorphous SiO.sub.2 in a N.sub.2 atmosphere at 600.degree. C., thereby crystallizing the amorphous Si thin film to obtain a polycrystalline film having grain sizes of about 5 pm is reported [T. Noguchi, H. Hayashi and H. Ohshima, 1987, Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc., 106, Polysilicon and Interfaces, 293, (Elsevier Science Publishing, New York 1988)]. Since the surface of the polycrystalline film obtained by the process remains flat, it is possible to form electronic devices such as MOS transistors or diodes thereon. Furthermore, the average grain sizes of the polycrystalline film are larger than those of ordinary polycrystalline film obtained by LPCVD process, thus the devices formed with the polycrystalline film have a relatively high performance.
However, the polycrystalline film obtained by the above-mentioned process for formation of crystal has relatively large crystal grain sizes, but the distribution of grain sizes and the position of crystal grain boundary are not controlled, because the crystallization of amorphous Si film is based on solid phase growth of crystal nuclei generated at random in the amorphous Si film by the annealing in that case. That is, generation of crystal nuclei at random leads to random positioning of grain boundary, resulting in distribution of grain sizes in a broad range. In spite of merely large average crystal grain size, the above-mentioned process still has the following problems.
For example, in the case of MOS transistors, generally the gate size is as large as or less than the average crystal grain size and thus the gate region has a part containing no grain boundary and a part containing a few crystal grains. Electrical characteristics naturally change between the part containing no grain boundary and the part containing a few crystal grains. Thus, a large fluctuation develops in the characteristics between a plurality of devices, and when an integrated circuit or the like is to be formed, the fluctuation in the crystal grain size has been a considerable bar to the improvement of integrated circuit performance.
As to the fluctuation in the grain size among the problems encountered in the polycrystalline film of large grain size by the solid phase crystallization, a process for controlling it is proposed in Japanese Patent Application Kokai (Laid-Open) No. 58-56406, as will be explained below, referring is FIG. 9. As shown in FIG. 9A, an amorphous Si film 42 is formed on a substrate 41 of Si single crystal having a heat oxidation film on the surface. Then, thin film pieces 44 of a different material from that of the amorphous Si film 42, for example, SiO.sub.2, are periodically provided on the amorphous Si film. Then, the entire substrate is annealed in an ordinary heating furnace, whereby crystal nuclei 43 are preferentially formed at positions of amorphous Si film 42 in contact with the peripheral parts of thin film pieces 44. By making the crystal nuclei further grow, the amorphous Si film 42 is crystallized throughout the entire area, and a polycrystalline film composed of a group of crystal grains 45 with larger grain size, as shown in FIG. 9B can be obtained.
However, it is the current situation that the positions of crystal grain boundaries are not satisfactorily controlled even by the above-mentioned process, because in the above-mentioned process preferential formation of nuclei takes place at the peripheral parts of the thin film pieces 44 due to local effect of elastic energy at positions of amorphous Si film 42 in contact with the peripheral parts of the film pieces 44. Consequently, a plurality of nuclei generate along the peripheral parts, but it is difficult to control the number of nuclei.
Furthermore, in order to obtain a polycrystalline film in the above-mentioned process, annealing is carried out after the thin film pieces 44 of a different material from that of amorphous Si film 42 are brought into contact with the amorphous Si film 42, and this procedure sometimes leads to contamination of polycrystalline film with the constituent element of thin film pieces 44 as an impurity, which is a problem in the production of a polycrystalline film of high quality.
Control of positions for formation of nuclei in the solid phase growth of amorphous Si film is also proposed in Japanese Patent Application Kokai (Laid-Open) No. 63-253616, as will be explained below, referring to FIG. 10. N.sup.+ ions 53 are locally implanted in an amorphous Si thin film 52 on an insulating substrate 51 to form ion-implanted regions 54. Then, crystal nuclei are preferentially generated in other region than the ion-implanted regions 54, that is, region 52, by annealing.
However, in the above-mentioned process, the annealing is carried out after a different material from the amorphous Si, that is N.sup.+ ions, has been implanted, and thus N atoms sometimes remain in the crystalline Si as an impurity. In that case, N atoms act as an electrically active impurity and sometimes inhibit formation of devices of high performance.

Process for forming crystalline semiconductor film