The amount of water vapor in natural gas at different levels, including at levels below 10 ppmv, is measured by directing a light from a quantum cascade laser at a frequency in the 5.01 to 5.03 micron or the 5.07 to 50.9 micron wavelength range through natural gas containing water vapor. A detector is configured to detect the intensity of light transmitted through the natural gas from the laser; and an analyzer is coupled to the detector for determining the level of water vapor in the natural gas.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a system and method for measuring low amounts of water in natural gas, and in particular to the use of a single-mode laser, e.g., a quantum cascade laser, emitting light in the 5.01 to 5.03 micron wavelength range, and less preferably in the 5.07 to 5.09 micron wavelength range, capable of measuring water vapor at below 10 ppmv. While the system and method is distinguishable from prior art systems and methods in the capability to measure at these lower volumes, it will be understood that the system and method may also be used to measure water vapor at above 10 ppmv.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Distribution of commercial natural gas (consisting primarily of methane, CH4), requires an extensive network of pipelines through which the gas flows under pressure. Depending on many factors, the gas stream can also contain varying levels of other components such as heavier hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O), among others. Due to the physical size and extent of the distribution pipeline system, custody of the gas can change hands many times between the point of origin and the end customer (typically a municipal utility serving individual homes and businesses). Pipeline networks are owned and managed by dozens of companies in the U.S. (and a similar situation exists anywhere in the world where natural gas is produced and used), and extensive monitoring of the gas quality is performed at most custody transfer points (i.e. the point at which ownership of the pipeline section(s) changes).
In addition to measurements of basic gas quality, it is a requirement to also monitor for levels of certain gases for safety and pipeline integrity reasons. Each of these gases has certain tariff levels which cannot be exceeded. For example, levels of hydrogen cyanide (H2S) cannot exceed 4 parts per million by volume (ppmv) as it is a highly toxic gas (less toxic mercaptons are added to natural gas to create the "rotten egg" smell so that leaks inside a building can be detected by smell). Levels of H2O and CO2 are also controlled because these gases can corrode the interior of the high pressure pipelines either directly, or by forming acids which attack the interior pipeline walls. H2O levels, in particular, must be kept low (typically below 150 ppmv in mid latitude locations, and much lower in colder northern climates) to minimize corrosion potential. Therefore, all natural gas pipeline operators are required to perform continuous measurements of the water vapor content within their pipelines.
H2O is a difficult gas to measure within a natural gas mixture using conventional humidity or moisture monitoring techniques. Most of these sensors are in direct contact with the natural gas stream, and the small levels of contaminates in the natural gas eventually alter the characteristics of the sensor causing it to either fail, or drift unacceptably out of calibration. Therefore, maintenance costs are high and the sensors are unreliable.
In 1999 SpectraSensors, Inc. (San Dimas, Calif.) developed the first laser-based H2O sensors for natural gas which offered a reliable and accurate solution to the problem of H2O monitoring in natural gas for mid-latitude locations where H2O levels cannot exceed 150 ppmv, and lower detection limits are typically 5-10 ppmv. U.S. Pat. No. 6,657,198, issued Dec. 2, 2003, by the present inventor, describes and claims a system for detecting water vapor in natural gas that is comprised of a light source emitting light at a frequency substantially corresponding to an absorption line of water in the 1.877-1.901 .mu.m wavelength range, wherein said light source is positioned to absorb light through the natural gas; a detector configured to detect the intensity of light emitted from the light source; and electronics coupled to the detector for determining the level of water vapor in the natural gas.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,132,661, issued Nov. 7, 2006, also by the present inventor, describes and claims a system comprised of at least one chemical sensor to detect a level of water vapor in natural gas; at least one optical sensor to detect a level of water vapor in natural gas, the optical sensor comprising: a light source emitting light at substantially a single wavelength having a width sufficiently narrow to conduct single line spectroscopy and corresponding to a single absorption line at which water molecules absorb light at a substantially greater level than natural gas molecules; a detector configured to detect the intensity of light emitted from the light source; electronics coupled to the detector for determining the level of water vapor in the natural gas using single line harmonic spectroscopy; and a supply line delivering natural gas to the at least one chemical sensor and the at least one optical sensor for parallel measurements.
The '661 patent claims three specific wavelength regions where H2O could be monitored within a background of primarily CH4 (natural gas consists of 85-98% CH4). These wavelength regions (near 0.95 microns, 1.9 microns, and 2.7 microns) meet the need for mid-latitude tariff levels for H2O monitoring (i.e., below 150 ppmv). However, there are many locations in the U.S., Canada and other regions worldwide where it is necessary to monitor H2O at levels well below 10 ppmv.
Molecular absorption spectra consist of broad features called "bands." Each band, in turn, is composed of up to thousands of individual closely-spaced "lines" that can only be observed with a high resolution spectrometer. Lines have no substructure, so if the resolution of the light source is sufficient to observe a single line without distortion, it is possible to separate an H2O line from a CH4 line in a gas mixture which contains both gases. The trick then is to locate an H2O line that is separated sufficiently from the neighboring CH4 lines so that it can be isolated and monitored.
Molecular spectroscopy involves the detection of specific molecules using their unique absorption spectrum, and related studies of the physics behind such light absorption. This technique has been utilized for over 100 years to monitor gases, and "resolution" is a key concept to understand when comparing various approaches to molecular spectroscopy, and in particular why lasers offer many advantages over more conventional techniques. In all molecular spectroscopy methods, a light source is directed through the sample gas of interest to impinge on a detector. As the light passes through the gas sample, certain wavelengths may be absorbed while others pass through, with each gas producing a unique pattern (spectrum) when the detector signal is analyzed as a function of the wavelength of the light source.
In order to "split" the wavelength of a conventional light source (e.g. the sun, a hot filament, etc.) into components it is necessary to use a dispersive element such as a grating. This is analogous to how a prism separates sunlight into visible colors, but instead of a few colors that the human eye can easily see in the prism rainbow, a grating may split the light into hundreds or even thousands of closely-separated wavelengths. The more wavelengths that can be distinguished, the higher the "resolution" of the system, and gratings can produce this wavelength separation throughout the electromagnetic spectrum (visible, infrared, etc.). In this case the light source itself produces a wide, continuous range of wavelengths, and the dispersive element separates that light into many equally-spaced wavelengths. Similar to the teeth on a comb, the higher the resolution the more teeth on the comb, and the more closely they are spaced. The total width of the comb represents the total wavelength region covered by the light source. A low resolution spectrometer (an instrument that measures a molecular absorption spectrum) would have only a few big teeth on the comb, while a high resolution spectrometer would have many closely spaced teeth on the comb. The higher the resolution of the spectrometer, the greater the ability to separate the absorption spectrum into its fine details. Conventional spectrometers have a limit to how many teeth can be created on the comb analogy, but lasers do not.
When the laser was invented in the 1960s, it changed molecular spectroscopy in a major way because it was finally possible to record an absorption spectrum with "infinite" resolution. The spectral purity of the laser output (i.e., one and only one very precise wavelength) eliminates the need for a grating or dispersive element, and there are many laser sources which are continuously tunable over certain wavelength intervals. This means that the single, pure wavelength that the laser outputs can be smoothly tuned over a small wavelength interval. Such lasers are called continuous wave (CW), tunable, single-mode lasers.
While the systems and methods described in the foregoing patents are useful in measuring water levels at higher and mid-levels, there is a continuing need for a simple and effective system and method that would be useful in the measurement of water levels at below 10 ppmv.

System and method for measuring water vapor in natural gas


As to a packing container, when a corrugated cardboard sheet where metallic foil is stuck on one of its sides is assembled so as to have a box-shape, an edge left for applying paste and a side on which the edge left for applying paste is stuck are connected by metallic foil tape so that metallic foil on the sides inside the box joins along an internal circumferential surface of the box. As a result, since a closed path is formed along the internal circumference of the packing container, partial charging of a packing container is prevented by short-circuiting or shielding charged static electricity, and an electrostatic breakdown of contents, such as a semiconductor device, is prevented.

Packaging containers for electronic equipment parts (e.g., electronic components), such as those formed from corrugated cardboard, etc., typically do not shield the parts from static electricity.
When measures are taken to protect packaged electronic parts against static electricity, the parts are typically placed into something like an electrically conductive sack and are then stored in a packing container, such as corrugated cardboard.
However, in the case where a packing container, such as a corrugated cardboard, where measures are not taken to shield the static electricity is used, there arise problems that value of a commodity is lost due to contamination caused by attraction of static electricity for dust in the air and that a circuit of electronic parts which is a content may be broken because static electricity supplied to a packing material of a packing container is discharged.
In addition, when measures are taken against static electricity by using something like an electrically conductive sack, there also arises a problem that expenses are greatly increased due to increase in cost of a packing material, increase in process of packing, etc.


A white ink composition for ink jet recording, substantially not containing a metal oxide or hollow resin particles, contains resin particles having a refractive index of 1.6 or more, and a material (B) including at least one material selected from the group consisting of a first material having a refractive index in the range of 1.5 to less than 1.6, a second material having a refractive index in the range of 1.4 to less than 1.5, and a third material having a refractive index of less than 1.4.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a white ink composition used for ink jet recording.
2. Related Art
An ink jet recording apparatus is known which includes nozzles through which ink is ejected in the form of droplets. For creating desired images using an ink jet recording apparatus, a variety of ink jet recording inks have been used which contain different constituents depending on the applications.
A white ink composition used for recording an white image on a recording medium is one of the ink jet recording inks. In general, a white ink composition contains a white coloring material, such as silica, titanium oxide or any other metal oxide, or hollow resin particles. The white coloring material enables the recorded image to look white. For example, JP-A-2012-25886 and JP-A-2012-25884 each disclose an ink set including an ink composition containing a pigment and a polymer and a white ink composition containing hollow resin particles and a urethane resin. In these ink sets, the refractive indices of the polymer, the hollow resin particles, and the urethane resin are controlled so that the difference between the highest and the lowest refractive index of the three refractive indices is 0.1 or less. Consequently, the ink sets can form images having good fixity with little unevenness in gloss.
On the other hand, a different type of white ink composition is known which contains resin particles having a high refractive index, instead of the above-mentioned white coloring materials such as metal oxides or hollow resin particles. For example, JP-A-2012-251142 discloses a white ink composition in which resin particles whose molecule has a fluorene skeleton are dispersed in water. The use of this white ink composition allows the surface of the recording medium to be covered with a white image without being viewed through the image.
However, when titanium oxide is used as a white coloring material, the titanium oxide is liable to settle during storage due to the difference in specific gravity from the medium of the white ink composition, such as water or an organic solvent. On the other hand, when hollow resin particles as disclosed in the above cited JP-A-2012-25886 and JP-A-2012-25884 are used, the settling of the coloring material during storage is more alleviated, but insufficiently, than when titanium oxide is used.
If the white coloring material settles, the sediment of the coloring material hinders the ink from flowing and causes ejection failure. Also, the concentration of the coloring material in the ink is reduced and, consequently, the whiteness of the recorded image can be reduced undesirably.
If a pressure is applied to the hollow resin particles, the hollows of the particles can be crushed. The hollow resin particles are each defined by a shell, and the difference in refractive index between the shell and the internal hollow enables the recorded image to look white. If the hollows are crashed, the whiteness of the image is reduced.
One of the solutions of those problems is to use resin particles having a high refractive index as disclosed in JP-A-2012-251142 instead of titanium oxide or hollow resin particles. Such resin particles are expected to minimize the above problems.
Unfortunately, resin particles having a high refractive index as disclosed in JP-A-2012-251142 cannot be satisfactorily adhere to the recording medium in some cases, and accordingly, the rub fastness of the recorded image may be insufficient. For this measure, a material capable of increasing the fixity of the resin particles can be added to the ink to enhance the rub fastness. However, the whiteness of the image may be reduced depending on the material added.

White ink composition for ink jet recording


A medical device, configured for insertion into a body, may include an elongate member extending from a proximal end to a distal end, where the distal end may be configured to be positioned inside the body. The medical device may also include an imaging device positioned at the distal end. The medical device may further include a plurality of light sources positioned at the distal end, wherein a characteristic of light delivered through a first light source may be controlled independent of the characteristic of light delivered through a second light source.

An endoscope is a flexible instrument introduced into the body for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes. Typically, these devices are inserted into the body through an opening (a natural opening or an incision), and are delivered to a work site inside the body through a body channel, such as, for example, the esophagus. Imaging devices incorporated in the endoscope allows a surgeon to see the work site from outside the body and remotely operate the endoscope to perform a desired diagnostic/therapeutic procedure at the work site. There are many different types of endoscopes in use today and embodiments of the current disclosure may be applied with any of these different types of endoscopes. In general, embodiments of the current disclosure may be applicable with any type of medical device that can be inserted into a body, and that allows a surgeon outside the body to visualize a region inside the body. For the sake of brevity, however, the novel aspects of the current disclosure will be described with reference to an endoscope.
In a typical application, a distal end of an endoscope may be inserted into the body through an opening in the body. This opening may be a natural anatomic opening, such as, for example, the mouth, rectum, vagina, etc., or an incision made on the body. The endoscope may be pushed into the body such that the distal end of the endoscope proceeds from the point of insertion to a region of interest (work site) within the body by traversing a body channel. The endoscope may include one or more lumens extending longitudinally from the proximal end to the distal end of the endoscope. These lumens may deliver various diagnostic/treatment devices to the work site to assist in the performance of the intended procedure at the work site.
Among others, these lumens may include an illumination lumen that includes an illumination source to illuminate a field of view at the work site, and an imaging lumen that includes an imaging device to capture an image of the work site and deliver the image outside the body. A diffusing lens may be used to attempt to project light evenly over the entire visualization field through the illumination lumen. Due to the differences in proximities, and other light reflecting characteristics of different locations within the field of view of the work site (such as, for example, differences in reflectivity of muscle and tissue), these different locations may appear to be illuminated differently. For instance, some of these locations may appear to be oversaturated with light while other locations may appear to be insufficiently illuminated. This variation in illumination may make visualization of the work site difficult, and may therefore be undesirable. An endoscope with a diffusing lens may, however, be limited to providing uniform light across the entire field of view. Additionally, with small bore endoscopes, the cost of implementing a diffusing lens for even distribution of light may be high. While this cost may be less of an issue with reusable endoscopes where the cost can be amortized due to repeated usage, this cost may be prohibitively high in the case of disposable endoscopes. The current disclosure is directed to systems and methods configured to enable clear visualization of a field of view within the body from outside the body.

Endoscopic system for enhanced visualization


The present invention relates to a process for the preparation and manufacture of 3-amino-substituted glycosylated bile acid derivatives. Intermediates and related compounds are also disclosed. In particular, the present invention permits the conversion of cholic acid esters to the 3-amino-7,12-bis(glucosyl)cholic acid esters via an azide intermediate. Conditions for the purification and isolation of the desired product is also disclosed to provide an overall manufacturing process suitable for large-scale production.

The 3-amino-substituted glycosylated bile acid derivatives are disclosed in International Publication No. WO 93/11772. These and their related compounds are described as permeation enhancers; that is, these compounds enhance the ability of therapeutically significant compounds to penetrate biological or synthetic membranes. This property of permeation enhancement is observed whether the therapeutically significant compound is combined with the permeation enhancer as an admixture or as a conjugate therewith.
Hence, from a commercial point of view, an efficient synthetic scheme for the preparation of such permeation enhancers, particularly the 3-amino-substituted glycosylated bile acid derivatives, would be extremely attractive.
It should further be pointed out that the commercial attractiveness of a large-scale manufacturing process of 3-amino-substituted glycosylated bile acids (and many of their derivatives) would be enhanced by an abundant supply of phenyl 2,3,4,6-tetrabenzylthioglucose, the preferred initial protected form of the sugar moiety used in the glycosylation of the bile acids and their derivatives.
Earlier efforts were directed toward the one-step conversion of commercially available 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-benzyl-D-glucopyranose to the phenyl 2,3,4,6-tetrabenzylthioglucose compound via treatment with tri-n-butylphosphine/diphenyldisulfide (in 46% yield). These starting materials and/or reagents are quite costly. The tetrabenzylglucopyranose alone is priced at ca. $7,000/kg.
Accordingly, a more economical method of preparing the desired phenyl tetrabenzylthioglucose would, likewise, be a welcome advance.

Process for the manufacture of 3-amino-substituted glycosylated bile acids


A washer includes an outer cabinet, a washtub disposed in the cabinet, a rotating tub rotating by a driving motor and being disposed in the washtub, a top cover disposed on top of the cabinet, the top cover being provided with an opening for loading and unloading clothes, a control box-receiving portion formed on a portion of the top cover, a control box having a circuit board for controlling the washer, the control box removably received in the control box-receiving portion, and a protecting cover for covering the portion of the top cover where the control box is received.

In recent years, washing machines have been designed to be fully automatic in performing washing processes such as a wash cycle, a rinse cycle, and a spin cycle. Such automatic processes are realized by turning electric Signals on and off and switching electric power supplies. The turning of electric signals and the switching of electric power supplies are controlled by a central process unit formed on a circuit board received in a control box.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional washing machine.
As shown in the drawing, the conventional washing machine comprises an outer cabinet 1, a washtub 2 disposed in the cabinet 1, a rotating tub 3 disposed in the washtub 2, a top cover 4 disposed on a top of the cabinet 1, a lid for opening a portion of the top cover 4, a machinery part disposed on a rear portion of the top cover 4, a water supply part 6 mounted on a rear portion of the washing machine, and a control box 8 disposed on an inner wall of the cabinet 1 to control the operation of the mechanical part 7 and the rotating tub 3.
The mechanical part 7 includes a plurality of electric facilities such as a water level sensor, a power supply switch and the like.
Particularly, the control box 8 is electrically connected to a driving motor for driving the rotating tub 3 and the electric facilities of the mechanical part 7 by a plurality of wires.
Such a conventional washing machine has a problem that a short circuit may be incurred due to water infiltrating the control box. The water infiltration may cause the fire.
Furthermore, since the control box 8 is disposed on the inner wall of the cabinet 1, it is troublesome to install the control box 8 on such a location in the assembling line and repair the same.
In addition, although the control box 8 is disposed on a location that is remote from the mechanical part 7 and the water supply part 6 except for the driving motor for driving the rotating tub 3. As a result, lengthened wires are required to connect the control box 8 to the mechanical part 7 and the water supply part 6, resulting in increasing the manufacturing costs.
Furthermore, since the control box is not exposed to the air, it is likely to contact moisture causing the short circuit.


An alcohol free, low viscosity, and high-water content air freshener composition is provided. The transparent microemulsion system is stable at a broad range of temperatures. The main ingredient of the composition is water. The composition is free of conventionally-used amphiphilic surfactants including ionic and non-ionic surfactants. The composition contains an oil phase, an aqueous phase and at least one glycol ether solvent. The system is compatible for a wide scope of water-immiscible ingredients that are used in fragrances and flavors.

Air care products are increasingly used to scent the ambient air in places like private homes, commercial buildings and public areas. These products take many different formats including candles, wax melts, gels, pump sprays, aerosol sprays, reed diffusers, piezo diffusers, plug-ins, and so on.
Water is often used as the major ingredient in many of these products such as gel cones, pump sprays and scented water beads. However, because most fragrance oils have limited water solubility, a component known as a "solubilizer" allows the dispersal of water-immiscible fragrance oils into the water such that the composition is clear or nearly clear. Ethanol or isopropyl alcohol has often been used to solubilize various levels (1-20%) of oils for different perfume types such as Eau de Toilette (EDT) and Eau de Parfum (EDP). However, because the ethanol content is typically over 50%, such products have a low flash point. In addition to being flammable, these compositions have a high Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) content, prohibiting their uses in certain categories of air care products.
Amphiphilic surfactants are used to decrease the surface tension between oil phase and water phase. Use of such surfactants can lower or eliminate the use of ethanol or other short chain alcohols and create the clear aqueous compositions. When appropriate surfactants are applied, fragrance oils can form oil-in-water (o/w) or bicontinuous microemulsions in water. There have been extensive studies on formation and properties of microemulsions, for example, the ones reviewed in "Nanoemulsions versus Microemulsions: Terminology, Differences, and Similarities" by McClements. Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 1719-1729, incorporated herein by reference. Microemulsions are thermodynamically stable and optically clear. They require low energy to prepare, and sometimes, the formation is spontaneous and instant. The colloidal microstructures typically have a size in the range of 10-100 nm which is less than 25% of the wavelength of visible light. That makes them unable to scatter any visible light, rendering them the crystal-clear appearance. Further, glycol ethers are sometimes used in conjunction with amphiphilic surfactants as co-solvents or solubilizing aids, for example as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,511,165 and "Properties and Applications of Microemulsions" by Klier et al., Advanced Materials, 2000, 12, 1751-1757, incorporated herein by reference.
However, there are quite a few disadvantages using these amphiphilic surfactants. For instance, for air fresheners that use wicks such as reed diffuser and plug-ins, both non-ionic and ionic surfactants clog the wicks and slow the diffusion through wicks, thereby impeding the performance. Indeed, this is a major reason why these air fresheners use organic solvent-based formulas. Further, high amounts of surfactants will often increase the viscosity of the products. Typically, to solubilize one part of a lipophilic fragrance oil, between 2 and 9 parts of surfactants need to be used, depending on the lipophilicity and water solubility of the ingredients. Thus, the product viscosity can increase significantly when incorporating a high level of lipophilic fragrance such as citrus oils. This will prevent the proper use of some formats such as pump spray and aerosol spray which requires the liquid to be thin. Further, foaming is a common character of surfactants. High amounts of surfactants can trap air inside the formula for a long period of time. This presents a potential challenge for both the usage and manufacturing process of some products. For example, aerosol sprays require the formulas to foam minimally for a smooth application. In addition, the manufacturing of water-based air freshener gels needs to remove all the air bubbles before setting. And if there are significant amounts of surfactants in the formula, the manufacturing process sometimes requires a vacuum system to remove air bubbles.
Therefore, there is still a need for a water-based freshener system which does not require a flammable solubilizer or traditional amphiphilic surfactant yet has high diffusibility, low viscosity, and low foaming characteristics not associated with traditional amphiphilic surfactants.

Alcohol free, low viscosity, and high water content air freshener compositions


A safety device (DS) equips a first vehicle (V1) comprising analysis means (MA1-MA2) suitable for analyzing its environment. This device (DS) comprises control means (MC) designed, when the first vehicle (V1) is stationary and has its contact open, and in the presence of a risk of collision of the first vehicle (V1) by a second vehicle (V2) travelling behind it, to determine whether there exists in this analysed environment at least one empty zone (ZV1) accessible by the first vehicle (V1), and, in the affirmative, to determine for the latter (V1) a trajectory in this empty zone (ZV1) suitable at least for limiting the consequences of this collision, and then to trigger a displacement of the first vehicle (V1) according to this determined trajectory. The device considers the presence of a third vehicle (V3) travelling on another lane (VC3), in the environment of the first vehicle.

The invention deals with securing devices that are mounted on some vehicles, such as cars, and that are designed to prevent collisions with other vehicles as much as possible.
A person skilled in the art knows that some vehicles, typically cars, include security devices (or driving aids) that are designed to have an effect on them, possibly to warn drivers when they move with a risk of collision with a movable obstacle, like a vehicle, a pedestrian or an animal.
These security devices use analyses of the (outer) environment of the vehicle, made by onboard analysis means, to determine one or more actions to initiate in case of collision risk. These environment analysis means may include, for example, ultrasonic sensors and/or at least one camera and/or at least one scanning laser and/or at least one radar or lidar.
Known actions that a security device can decide in case of a risk of collision with a following vehicle include the vehicle changing of traffic lane or increasing the distance between the vehicle and the follower (by way of a short increase of the current speed).
If the vehicle is stationary, the security device can trigger several actions. For example, it can close open windows and the sunroof if there is one, pre-tension the seat belts, move the movable seats to the front and/or increase the pressure inside the brakes so that the vehicle does not move if it is hit and/or trigger a security movement of the head supports to avoid whiplash. All these actions only reduce some consequences of a possible rear collision of the vehicle, but they do not prevent collision.

Device for making safe a stationary vehicle in the presence of a risk of collision from the rear


The present invention relates to an impact tool, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for resetting a fastener that allows a force from an impact member to be transferred to the fastener in order to reset the fastener below a surface plane of a material. The apparatus comprises an impact member connected with a guide member, such that the impact member is freely slideable in relation to the guide member between a retracted position and an extended position. A user may reset the fastener by forcing the impact member from the retracted position to the extended position, where a portion of the impact member is extended beyond the guide member to come into contact with the fastener and thereby reset the fastener below the surface plane of the material.

Impact tools used for resetting fasteners have long been known in prior art. For example, in the process of installing sheetrock, an installer often fails to set a fastener below a surface of the sheetrock, thereby leaving a head of the fastener exposed beyond the surface. This particular problem may occur when installing sheetrock on both walls and ceilings. When the fastener is exposed beyond the surface of the sheetrock, the installer must return to each fastener in order to reset it. When this particular problem occurs on walls, an ordinary impact tool such as a hammer may be used to reset the fastener properly. However, when a fastener in the ceiling needs to be reset, the installer must position a bench or ladder beneath each unset fastener in order to reach the ceiling and the respective fastener. Because an installer must reposition the bench or ladder beneath each unset fastener, utilizing tools currently available for resetting fasteners can be very time consuming. Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a continuing need for a tool allowing a user to reset fasteners on the ceiling from a ground surface without the use of a bench or ladder. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.

Apparatus and method for resetting a fastener


The disclosure describes a disposable moist tissue dispenser applicable to dispensing of moist tissues. The invention includes a center roller, a pair of side panels, a housing, a moist tissue roll, an outlet, and a resealable cover. The side panels are separately attached at opposite ends of the center roller. The housing is disposed about the center roller and is attached to an outer edge along each side panel. The center roller, side panels, and housing form an interior space. The moist tissue roll resides within the interior space and includes a plurality of separable moist tissues. The moist tissue roll is disposed about and rotatable with respect to the center roller. The outlet is disposed along a portion of the housing for dispensing the separable moist tissues from the moist tissue dispenser. The resealable cover is disposed along the housing over the outlet.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a tissue dispenser and more specifically to a disposable moist tissue dispenser which can be used in restaurants, offices, and homes and in particular within bathrooms and washrooms for providing moist tissues.
2. Background
Tissue dispensing devices found in most bathrooms and washrooms include dry tissue rolls. A typical dry tissue roll is attached to a tissue dispenser by sliding the roll onto a spindle within the tissue dispenser. A user dispenses tissues by pulling on a tissue extending from the dry tissue roll which causes the tissue roll to rotate about the spindle thereby unwinding tissues from the dry tissue roll. The cleanliness and comfortability of dry tissues are inferior to moist tissues.
Moist tissues are widely commercialized; however, products are limited in that the moist tissues are packaged in a planar-disposed fashion typically within a box. As such, moist tissues have not been commercialized in a form allowing for attachment to tissue dispensing devices found in most bathrooms and washrooms.
Furthermore, planar-disposed moist tissues are organized in an overlapping fashion. This packaging approach allows a user to pull out a single sheet of moist tissue thereby positioning the next piece within an outlet along the dispenser. A limitation of this packaging approach is that each sheet must be individually pulled from the dispenser. This functionality does not allow a user to quickly, easily, and conveniently dispense multiple sheets via a single, continuous pulling motion. Also, present dispenser designs require a sheet of moist tissue to partially extend from the outlet of the dispenser exposing the sheet to contaminants adjacent to the dispenser and allowing for evaporation of liquid from the exposed sheet, as well as others sheets within the dispenser.
Accordingly, what is required is a disposable moist tissue dispenser capable of quickly, easily, and conveniently dispensing moist tissues via a continuous pulling motion.


A transducer for detecting biomolecules comprises a bottom and a top unit. The bottom unit has a set of parallel electrically conductive transmission lines thereon and probes attached to selected locations along each transmission line for binding with the target molecule. The top unit has thereon a second set of parallel transmission lines transverse to those on the bottom unit. By applying AC signals sequentially to the two sets of transmission lines, each of the probe locations at the intersection of the two transmission lines can be addressed and the response of the probe in an unfilled detector location or a complex formed by the probe and the target in a filled detector location can be measured. If the target has been labelled, than the label at each of the locations may also be detected. The device can also be used for measuring binding constants between the probe and the target and concentrations of target solutions.

The invention relates in general to techniques for detecting substances immobilized to a substrate, and in particular to a method and apparatus employing a sensor array operated at AC frequencies.
With the advent of the human genome project and other gene sequencing technologies, techniques for performing sequencing has been of great interest. There are many other medical, biological and analytical applications for sensor arrays. One sequencing technique involves the detection of fluorescently labelled materials, such as that described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,854. Such devices typically include a microscope and a monochromatic or polychromatic light source for directing light at a substrate. A photon counter detects fluorescence from the substrate, while an x-y translation stage varies the location of the substrate. A computer controls the movement of the x-y translation table and data collection. Light from the light source is focused at a substrate surface by manually adjusting the microscope. Manual adjustment may be time consuming and inconvenient. Furthermore, due to the inherent imperfections present in the x-y translation table and substrate, the substrate may be out of focus when it is moved by the table so that the data collected may be inaccurate.
Other devices for detecting fluorescently labelled materials employ charge coupled devices instead of microscopes. While such devices avoid the need for many adjustments of the microscope, such devices have limited resolution. In some sensor units available commercially, each sensor unit typically has dimensions of 20 microns by 20 microns.
It is therefore desirable to provide an improved technique for detecting immobilized substances on a substrate where the above-described difficulties and limitations are avoided.

Apparatus and method of detection employing an AC frequency sensor array

Biotechnology Research and Development Corporation


Techniques for designing RF pulses may be configured to produce improved magnitude profiles of the resulting magnetization by relaxing the phase constraint and optimizing the phase profiles. In one embodiment, a spinor-based, optimal control, optimal phase technique may be used to design arbitrary-tip-angle (e.g., large and small tip angle) RF pulses (both parallel transmission and single channel). In another embodiment, small tip angle RF pulses (both parallel transmission and single channel) may be designed using a small-tip-angle (STA) pulse design without phase constraint that is formulated as a parameter optimization problem.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging modality that can create images of the inside of a human body without using x-rays or other ionizing radiation. MRI uses a powerful magnet to create a strong, uniform, static magnetic field (i.e., the "main magnetic field"). When a human body, or part of a human body, is placed in the main magnetic field, the nuclear spins that are associated with the hydrogen nuclei in tissue water become polarized. This means that the magnetic moments that are associated with these spins become preferentially aligned along the direction of the main magnetic field, resulting in a small net tissue magnetization along that axis (the "z axis," by convention). A MRI system also comprises components called gradient coils that produce smaller amplitude, spatially varying magnetic fields when current is applied to them. Typically, gradient coils are designed to produce a magnetic field component that is aligned along the z axis and that varies linearly in amplitude with position along one of the x, y or z axes. The effect of a gradient coil is to create a small ramp on the magnetic field strength, and concomitantly on the resonance frequency of the nuclear spins, along a single axis. Three gradient coils with orthogonal axes are used to "spatially encode" the MR signal by creating a signature resonance frequency at each location in the body. Radio frequency (RF) coils are used to create pulses of RF energy at or near the resonance frequency of the hydrogen nuclei. These coils are used to add energy to the nuclear spin system in a controlled fashion. As the nuclear spins then relax back to their rest energy state, they give up energy in the form of an RF signal. This signal is detected by the MRI system and is transformed into an image using a computer and known reconstruction algorithms.
During a transmit sequence, an MR system will transmit RF pulses of given frequencies having particular amplitude profiles while various magnetic field gradients are being applied. For example, in a spin-echo sequence, an MR system would transmit an excitation pulse at a particular frequency, amplitude and transmit power for a particular time, in order to induce a net transverse magnetization in nuclei of a scan subject. Subsequent pulses transmitted by the system may have the same or similar frequency, but might have different gain, amplitude, and duration attributes to cause a different change in magnetization (or "flip angle") in order to cause spin echoes. Thus, in general, the particular shapes of the RF pulses in a transmit sequence are varied to manipulate the net magnetization in nuclei of the scan subject.
MR systems may transmit RF pulses using a single channel (or coil) or using multiple channels (known as parallel transmission). In parallel transmission, each coil exhibits a spatially different sensitivity pattern and is driven by an independently controlled RF waveform generator with a separate power amplifier. The different spatial sensitivity patterns of the coils provide additional ability of spatial selectivity in addition to the inherent spatial selectivity from RF pulses. The additional spatial selectivity has been used to reduce pulse length or to reduce error in the resulting magnetization. Two primary applications of parallel transmission are reduced field of view (FOV) excitation and B1 inhomogeneity correction.
Many parallel transmission pulse design methods are based on the small-tip-angle (STA) approximation. In the STA approximation, it is assumed that the initial magnetization vector points in +z direction (positive longitudinal direction) and that the flip angle is small (e.g., <30° or at most 90° depending on the error tolerance and the k-space trajectory used). Based on these assumptions, the Bloch equation is reduced to the following linear equation (which ignores relaxation):
                                          p                                      (              r              )                                =                      ⅈ                                                                          γ                                                      ∑                                  l                  =                  1                                L                                                                                s                    l                                                                          (                    r                    )                                                                                ∫                    0                    T                                                                                b                        l                                                                                (                        t                        )                                                                                ⅇ                                              ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                              t                              )                                                                                ·                          r                                                                                ⅆ                      t                                                                                ,                            Eqn        .                                          1
where p(r) is the desired normalized transverse magnetization profile (i.e., p(r)=Mxy,desired(r)/M0) at spatial location r=(x,y,z), γ is gyromagnetic ratio, T is pulse duration, k(t) denotes the chosen excitation k-space trajectory, sl(r) represents the transmit sensitivity of the lth coil, and bl(t) denotes the RF pulse waveform to be designed for the lth coil, l=1, 2, . . . , L. By discretizing the time axis as 0, Δt, 2Δt, . . . , (N−1) Δt (where N is the number of time points and Δt is the step size) and space axes as r1, r2, . . . , rM (where M is the number of voxels), and denoting pm=p(rm), m=1, 2, . . . , M, Eqn. 1 can be converted into a matrix form:
                                                        [                                                                                p                      1                                                                                p                      2                                                                                ⋮                                                                                p                      M                                                                                ]                                      ︸              P                                =                                    ∑                              l                =                1                            L                                                                                ⅈ                                                                                γΔ                                                                                t                                                              [                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                1                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                    0                                    )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  1                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                1                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                                                          Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  1                                                                                …                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                1                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                                                ⅈ                                                                                k                                    [                                                                                (                                                                                N                                          -                                          1                                                                                )                                                                                Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ]                                                            ·                                                              r                                1                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                2                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                    0                                    )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  2                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                2                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                                                          Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  2                                                                                …                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                2                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                                                ⅈ                                                                                k                                    [                                                                                (                                                                                N                                          -                                          1                                                                                )                                                                                Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ]                                                            ·                                                              r                                2                                                                                ⋮                                                                    ⋮                                                                    ⋱                                                                    ⋮                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                M                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                    0                                    )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  M                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                M                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                          ⅈ                                                                                k                                                                                (                                                                          Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ·                                                                  r                                  M                                                                                …                                                                                s                              l                                                                                (                                                              r                                M                                                            )                                                                                ⅇ                                                                                ⅈ                                                                                k                                    [                                                                                (                                                                                N                                          -                                          1                                                                                )                                                                                Δ                                                                                t                                                                        )                                                                                ]                                                            ·                                                              r                                M                                                                                ]                                                  ︸                                      S                    l                                                                                [                                                                                b                            l                                                                                (                            0                            )                                                                                b                            l                                                                                (                                                          Δ                                                                                t                                                        )                                                                                ⋮                                                                                b                            l                                                                                (                                                                                (                                                                  N                                  -                                  1                                                                )                                                                                Δ                                                                                t                                                        )                                                                                ]                                                  ︸                                      b                    l                                                                                Or          ,                                                                in                                                                          short                    ,                                    Eqn        .                                          2                                          p          =          Sb                ,                            Eqn        .                                          3            where p is a length-M vector (a column vector), S=[S1, S2, . . . , SL] is an M×LN matrix, and b=[(b1)T, (b2)T, . . . , (bL)T]T (unitalicized T denotes matrix transpose) is a length-LN vector. To solve Eqn. 3, and RF power-regularized least square formulation is used resulting in:Choose b to minimize ∥Sb−p∥w2+λ∥b∥22,  Eqn. 4The weighted l2 norm ∥Sb−p∥w2=(Sb−p)HW(Sb−p) (H denotes the Hermitian transpose) in Eqn. 4 for a given spatial weighting matrix W=diag{w1, w2, . . . , wM} (wm≧0, ∀m) represents the overall error of the final magnetization profile. The l2 norm ∥b∥22=bHb represents the RF power and λ is a positive scalar (referred to as a regularization parameter) that balances the error and RF power terms. The quadratic objective function in Eqn. 4 can be solved by a standard conjugate gradient (CG) method or by explicit matrix inversion:b*=(SHWS+λI)−1SHWp.  Eqn. 5.
The desired magnetization p in Eqn. 4 contains a desired magnitude profile and a constant phase profile (e.g., zero phase). This is overly constrained because a parallel transmission array does not necessarily favor excitation with flat phase. Therefore, it is generally advantageous to relax the constant phase constraint in Eqn. 4 in parallel transmission RF pulse design when the phase profile of the final magnetization is not of interest, as is the case in most of the MRI applications. In one known phase relaxed parallel transmission pulse design, the phase of one of the eigenmodes of the transmit sensitivities is chosen that has the minimum magnitude error as the initial predetermined target phase profile for p and then the phase profile is iteratively update with the phase of Sb in the CG iterations.
Conventional STA parallel transmission designs can have the following limitations: 1) an un-optimized magnitude profile of the transverse magnetization as a result of enforcing an overly restrictive flat phase profile and 2) only small tip angle pulses can be accurately designed. Various STA based parallel transmission RF pulse designs have been developed to address the first limitation by using a phase relaxed design using predetermined constant or non-constant phase profiles. Methods to design large tip angle or arbitrary tip angle parallel transmission RF pulses have been developed that utilize optimal control design.
It would be desirable to provide a system and method capable of producing accurate parallel transmission (or multi-channel) RF pulse waveforms with an optimal phase profile. It would also be desirable to have embodiments of such system and method which could account for large tip angles, small tip angles or arbitrary tip angles.

System and method for phase relaxed RF pulse design


Disclosed is a box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus capable of forming, at low temperature, a compound thin film of high quality while causing minimal damage to an underlying layer. The box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus includes a box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit and a vacuum chamber, the sputtering unit including a rectangular parallelepiped frame having six faces, one of which serves as an opening face, and a pair of facing target units, each including a target and magnetic-field generation means formed of a permanent magnet which is provided so as to surround the target, which means generates a facing-mode magnetic field extending in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the target and a magnetron-mode magnetic field extending in a direction parallel to the target surface, in which the target units are provided on first opposing faces of the frame which are located adjacent to the opening face, and second opposing faces and the remaining one face of the frame are shutted, wherein the sputtering unit is provided on the vacuum chamber such that the opening face faces the vacuum chamber and a substrate on which a thin film is to be formed, the substrate being disposed in the vacuum chamber, which sputtering apparatus further includes, in a plasma confinement space, an auxiliary electrode which absorbs electrons, the plasma confinement space being provided in the interior of the sputtering unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improvement in a box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus including a box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit and a vacuum chamber, the sputtering unit including a rectangular parallelepiped frame having six faces, one of which serves as an opening face, and a pair of facing target units, each including a target and magnetic-field generation means formed of a permanent magnet which is provided so as to surround the target, which means generates a facing-mode magnetic field extending in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the target and a magnetron-mode magnetic field extending in a direction parallel to the target surface, in which the target units are provided on first opposing faces of the frame which are located adjacent to the opening face, and second opposing faces and the remaining one face of the frame are shutted, wherein the sputtering unit is provided on the vacuum chamber such that the opening face faces the vacuum chamber and a substrate on which a thin film is to be formed, the substrate being disposed in the vacuum chamber. The present invention also relates to a method for producing a compound thin film by use of the thus-improved sputtering apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
The aforementioned box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus including the box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit, which has been disclosed by the present inventor in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 10-330936, is configured as described below.
As shown in FIG. 7, a box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit 70 is configured such that facing target units 100a and 100b are mounted on opposing faces 71a and 71b of four faces 71a through 71d (among five faces 71a through 71e) which are provided adjacent to an opening face 71f, which serves as an opening of a rectangular parallelepiped frame 71, and such that the three faces 71c through 71e are covered by closure plates 72c through 72e, respectively. The target unit 100a includes a target 110a and magnetic-field generation means formed of a permanent magnet which is provided so as to surround the target 110a, and the target unit 100b includes a target 110b (not illustrated) and magnetic-field generation means formed of a permanent magnet which is provided so as to surround the target 110b. The entirety of the sputtering unit 70 assumes a rectangular parallelepiped box shape, which may be cubic. The box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus has a configuration as described below. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit is connected to a vacuum chamber such that the opening face 71f of the sputtering unit faces the vacuum chamber, and a substrate on which a thin film is to be formed is placed within the vacuum chamber so as to face the opening face 71f.
In the sputtering apparatus having the above-described configuration, a magnetic field for generating and confining sputtering plasma is formed as in the case of a conventional facing-targets sputtering apparatus disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 10-8246. Specifically, within a space provided between the facing targets of the facing target units including magnetic-field generation means (the space is hereinafter called a "(plasma) confinement space"), a facing-mode magnetic field extending in the direction perpendicular to the targets is formed throughout the targets, and, in addition, a magnetron-mode magnetic field extending in the direction parallel to the surfaces of the targets is formed in the vicinity of the target surfaces so as to surround the peripheral edges of the targets. As a result, high-density plasma is generated over the entire surfaces of the targets.
Therefore, in the box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus including the box-shaped facing-targets sputtering unit, in which the five faces other than the opening face are shielded, sputtered particles fly, via the opening face, to the highly evacuated vacuum chamber in which the substrate is placed, and are deposited onto the substrate, to thereby form a thin film.
The aforementioned conventional box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus has a compact configuration, and enables formation of a thin film of high quality at low temperature. Therefore, the sputtering apparatus has been applied to formation of various films. For example, the sputtering apparatus has been applied to formation of electrodes of organic EL devices, which have recently become of interest and have been increasingly developed for commercialization, and various studies have been performed on application of the sputtering apparatus to formation of the electrodes.
Such an electrode must be formed on an organic layer. Therefore, the electrode must be formed so as not to cause any damage to the organic layer serving as an underlying layer. In addition, the electrode must be in the form of a thin film of high quality (e.g., a thin film of low resistance), and, in some cases, the electrode must be in the form of a thin film exhibiting excellent transparency. Meanwhile, in the case where a protective layer is formed on an organic layer, the protective layer must be formed so as not to cause any damage to the organic layer serving as an underlying layer, and the protective layer must be in the form of a thin film exhibiting excellent protective properties (e.g., damp-proof property) and transparency.
Similar to the above case, in the case of production of a high-performance film such as a transparent heat-insulating film, when a compound thin film (e.g., a metal oxide thin film or a metal nitride thin film) is formed on an underlying layer, a thin film of high quality exhibiting intended characteristics must be formed so as not to cause any damage to the underlying layer.
Therefore, instead of being formed by means of conventional vacuum deposition, such a thin film must be formed by means of sputtering, which can form a film of high density exhibiting excellent uniformity.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Box-shaped facing-targets sputtering apparatus and method for producing compound thin film


A rechargeable spin-on filter includes a cover, a housing threadably joined with the housing, and a filter element can be replaced with another filter element relative thereto. The cover and/or housing can be plastic. The cover can include a bottom plate having inlet ports and an outlet port. The bottom plate can be reinforced with an optionally metal reinforcing plate that registers and locks relative to the bottom plate via locking elements, in the form of corresponding apertures and projections or tabs that interfit with one another. A related method is provided.

The present invention relates to spin on filters, and more particularly to a spin on filter and replaceable filter element.
Many complex mechanical devices, such as internal combustion engines, motors and hydraulic equipment, require lubrication via the circulation of oil or hydraulic fluid. During circulation in an engine, oil typically becomes contaminated with environmental dirt, dust and debris, as well as metal pieces resulting from wear on mechanical components in the engine. As contaminants build up in the circulating oil, mechanical failures can occur through loss of lubricity. Accordingly, most engines are outfitted with a filtration circuit, typically including a filter.
A common type of oil filter is a spin on filter, which threads onto a corresponding threaded adaptor of the filtration circuit associated with the engine. The filter is thus rotated, or spun on to the adaptor. A typical spin on filter includes among other things, a housing, filter media inside the housing and a cover plate, which typically includes the threads for attachment to the adaptor. These components of the filter frequently are constructed from metal for strength and to withstand the pressure of the oil flowing through the filter, and are welded or crimped together as a single piece unit. When the filter reaches the end of its service life, it can be spun off the adaptor, discarded and replaced with a new filter. Where the components are constructed from metal, however, this can require a robust recycling protocol to ensure the metal is separated, recovered and put to good use. The use of metal for the filter components also can add undesirable weight to the filter. Accordingly, some manufacturers construct parts of the filter housing from plastic, however, this has shortcomings as well because the plastic can have less strength than metal, and can be prone to cracking and/or breakage, particularly in areas of high stress, such as the threads.
Most oil filters also include an internal filtration element. The filtration element is retained in a housing. Dirty oil enters the filter from the engine, circulates through the housing and through the filtration element, which filters or removes contaminants from the dirty oil. The filtered oil then flows back to the engine. Over time, the filtration element can become fouled with the removed contaminants, which can impair the filtering function of the filter as well as affect the flow through the filter and in some cases, through the engine. Some manufacturers construct their filters to include a removable housing, so the filtration element and its media can be accessed and replaced with a new one, rather than replacing the entire oil filter. Such replaceable filtration elements, however, typically include an internal support tube and bypass valve coupled to the filtration media, so those components must be replaced as well. This can consume extra resources as well. Further, these constructions can be fairly complex, requiring extended service time to disassemble, replace, and reinstall the filter elements.
Lastly, for those spin on filters that include a replaceable filtration media, it can be difficult to ensure that high quality, authorized or original equipment manufacturer filter elements are properly used when replacement occurs. Sometimes, lesser quality or inferior aftermarket filter elements can be offered and used instead of authorized or original filter elements. In some cases, this can reduce the efficiency and function of the oil filter, which can be detrimental to its filtering function, and ultimately can cause damage to the engine or oil circulation system.
Accordingly, there remains room for improvement in the field of spin on filters for use with internal combustion engines, motors and hydraulic equipment, particularly to simplify the process for servicing a filter element, to improve strength of the filter and/or to ensure authorized or original filter elements are used with the filters.

Reinforced spin on rechargeable filter and related method of manufacture


An ergonomic support pad for supporting the forearm and wrist of a person operating a computer's in-out device may comprise bottom, middle, and top layers of open celled polyurethane foam material of substantially uniform thickness, preferably of the type which softens on contact with a warm surface thereby providing uniform pressure distribution and firm, yet fluid, support. The bottom layer has a bottom surface for resting on a supporting surface and the top layer has a top surface for engageably receiving the forearm and wrist of the person. Each layer exhibits different indentation force deflections, the bottom layer being firmest and the top layer being most supple. The support pad is approximately one to two inches thick, preferably four sided, and may be round or oval or of other shapes as viewed in plan. When multi-sided, it may have biased corner surfaces joining adjoining pairs of longitudinal and lateral edge surfaces. Longitudinal and lateral edge surfaces of the top layer are substantially perpendicular to the top surface and longitudinal and lateral edge surfaces of the middle and bottom layers are respectively uniformly angularly disposed with respect to the bottom surface, the bottom surface area being smaller than the top surface area. The support pad may have only two layers or more than three layers and may also be of one or more layers with each layer exhibiting a continuous gradient of values of indentation force deflections.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of computer accessories and peripheral equipment for use by computer operators and, more particularly, to an ergonomic support pad for receiving and supporting the forearm and wrist of a person operating an in-out device for a computer such as a keyboard or a mouse.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous appliances are known which are pertinent to the invention at hand. One early instance is presented in U.S. Pat. No. 3,300,250 issued Jan. 24, 1967 to Dollgener et al. which discloses a cushioned arm rest for individuals whose occupations require a continuous use of their hands along the depending edge of work tables, benches, desks and the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,971 issued Dec. 15, 1992 to Schaeffer et al. discloses a wrist supporter made of polyurethane foam having an L-shape cross section which is adapted for installation along an edge of a work surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,705 issued Mar. 23, 1993 to Kline et al. discloses a microscope stand and armrest system for placement on a conventional desktop. Height adjustment and leveling feet are provided at each corner of a base plate and a top surface is hinged to the base plate for receiving a microscope and for tilting the microscope rearward toward the user to a position that allows the user to look directly forward when operating the microscope. Left and right sloping armrests which may be of polyurethane foam material are provided for placement on the desktop at each side of the microscope stand to support the user's forearms in natural positions while operating the microscope.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,342,005 issued Aug. 30, 1994 to Szmanda et al. discloses a forearm support apparatus for a keyboard operator which utilizes first and second forearm support units, each including a relatively firm base member having a tapered wall and a flat bottom wall. A complementing upper member has a similar taper and is secured to upper wall and an inverse orientation to raise the tapered wall to a top surface. The top member is formed of a highly resilient compressible material to receive the forearm which depresses the material and supports the forearm. The support units are mounted in laterally spaced relation with the tapered upper walls extending inwardly and downwardly toward each other such that the forearms are biased inwardly toward each other to restrict outward displacement. The members are formed symmetrically about a transverse plane generally parallel to the keyboard.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,492,298 issued Feb. 20, 1996 to Walker discloses an inclined mouse pad configured as a wedge, preferably molded of dense neoprene or the like, and equipped with working and decorative surfaces. When not in use, the working surface can be oriented downwardly against a table to expose the non-working surfaces to view. This protects the working surface from dust and damage from dropped objects and spills. The inclined mouse pad provides a gravity gradient in one direction, preferably the "Y" direction to give normal physiological feed back on the position of the mouse on the pad. Other advantages include ergonomic compatibility, elevation of the arm, and better control since the user pushes upward and pulls the mouse downward.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,218 issued Jan. 28, 1997 to Lechman discloses a wedge-like structure which is interposable between an object and its supporting substrate surface and whose thickness is adjustable for purposes of adjusting the tilt angle of the object relative to the substrate surface. The structure is comprised of a stack of generally flattened component members wherein a layer of a releasable adhesive composition is located between and bonded to adjacent component members that can have various configurations and be of a variety of compositions including rigid organic polymer foam. The wedgelike structure is said to be particularly well adapted for incorporation into a monitor support assembly that is located under a transparent window in the top portion of a work station so that the monitor tilt angle is adjustable relative to the assembly by the wedge-like structure.
It was with knowledge of the foregoing disclosures representative of the state of the art that the present invention was conceived and has now been reduced to practice.


Damping valve comprising a damping valve body with a through-channel system, which is covered on at least one outlet side by a number of valve disks, where a nonreturn valve disk releases an advance cross section when the damping medium is flowing in one direction and closes off that cross section when the damping medium is flowing in the other flow direction, and where a cover disk with at least one cross section which can be actuated by the nonreturn valve disk limits the lifting movement of the nonreturn valve disk, and where a second cover disk limits the lifting movement of the nonreturn valve disk in the direction opposite that in which the first cover disk works.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to a damping valve with a directionally-dependent cross section including a damping valve body with an outlet side and at least one through channel; a first cover disk loaded toward the outlet side and having at least one hole aligned with the at least one channel; and a nonreturn valve disk which enables flow of damping medium in one direction through the at least one hole and blocks flow of damping medium in the opposite direction through the at least one hole.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the design of damping valves for vibration dampers, it can be advisable, especially for reasons of comfort, to provide differently sized cross sections, also called advance cross sections for the different flow directions of the damping valve. Several design variants of a damping valve are disclosed in GB 2,113,355. In the variant according to FIG. 2, a nonreturn valve disk with a C-shaped cutout is used, the inside diameter of this disk being held firmly under tension against a piston. An outer ring-shaped part of the nonreturn valve disk can undergo elastic deformation with respect to the central, circular ring-shaped clamping surface. A sealing disk is located concentric to and radially outside of the outer ring-shaped part of the nonreturn valve disk. When damping medium arrives at the outer ring-shaped part of the nonreturn valve disk from the direction of the channels, which open out into a ring-shaped channel, the outer ring-shaped part is pressed against a cover disk, which blocks the flow connection with the working space. When the damping medium arrives from the direction of the cover disk, the outer ring-shaped part is lifted from the cover disk and releases an advance cross section. This design of a directionally dependent advance cross section, which appears quite simple at first glance, turns out to have some problems in practice. For example, there must be a gap between the outer ring-shaped part and the sealing disk radially outside it. Because of its radial area, this gap has a significant effect on the functionality of the advance cross section. In addition, the outer sealing disk is made of thicker material than the valve disk. As a result, the cover disk is deformed at least slightly in the manner of a disk spring, so that the nonreturn valve disk must undergo a comparatively large amount of deformation, which in turn demands a larger gap between it and the radially outer sealing disk. The nonreturn valve disk is subjected to considerable compressive forces in the opening direction, that is, in the direction toward the ring-shaped channel, but forces are not absorbed in any way by the piston or by the radially outer sealing disk. The service life of the nonreturn valve disk therefore tends to be limited.
In the variant according to FIG. 7 of GB 2,113,355, a simple closed nonreturn valve disk (without a cutout) is used, which is supported on a sealing disk, which has three arc-shaped openings. The sealing disk is pretensioned toward the piston on its inner and outer diameters; whenever it is desired to achieve a degressive characteristic according to FIG. 5, the surface of the piston will have a certain height offset, i.e., areas at two different heights, so that the outer diameter will be tensioned firmly against the piston. As a result, an undefined gap is formed between the bottom surface of the sealing disk and the nonreturn valve disk; this gap also has an effect on the advance cross section. In this variant, furthermore, there is no stop surface present to limit how far the nonreturn valve disk can travel in the opening direction.

Damping valve with a directionally-dependent cross section


A separator or foot to be inserted between the flat base of a piece of furniture, such as a credenza, file cabinet or china closet, and the supporting floor. The plastic foot is shaped to fit about the corners of the furniture and has a nonuniform bottom surface. The nonuniform surface allows air circulation between the furniture and the floor to prevent formation of deposits, stains and distortion of the of the flooring surface.

In most commercial buildings and in some homes there are many offices or work areas which have one or more heavy pieces of furniture which rest directly on the floor without benefit of legs or rollers. For example, bookcases, credenzas, file cabinets, china closets are quite heavy when filled with paper or various objects. The base of these pieces usually has a flat surface which rests on the floor and is supported thereby.
Most offices and work areas, as well as homes, are subjected to regular cleaning for hygienic and/or safety purposes. During some cleanings, liquids are applied and removed from the floor surface. This is true whether the floor is unfinished or covered by tile or covered by wood or covered by carpet. Some of the applied liquid will seep beneath the edges of the bases of the furniture pieces and the floor. Because the bases of these pieces are flat, the residual liquid is trapped under the piece. Exposure of the furniture to the dampness results in stains and/or rust due to the chemical reaction between the furniture, the floor and the liquids.
The result of this seepage is found when the piece is moved. In some instances, the floor covering may be stuck to the furniture so tightly that it separates from the floor. In less severe cases the floor or floor covering may be permanently stained and/or deformed by the furniture.


An apparatus for installing carpeting, such apparatus comprises a substantially flat member having a plurality of teeth disposed on an underside thereof for biting into carpeting to be stretched. A handle member attached to such flat member on one end and to an elongated transmission means on another end. There is a connecting means that is engageable on one end to the handle and on the other end with the power transmission means for causing said power transmission means to force such apparatus to stretch such carpeting. The apparatus has an attachment means engageable with the transmission means on one end and with carpeting, wood or concrete on a second end for assisting in stretching such carpet when the apparatus is in use.

Those workers who install carpet know the stress this activity can cause on the body. Installing carpeting on stairs is especially hard on the knees particularly as most installers use the knees to assist in stretching the carpet in place. Many installers also find it difficult to apply carpeting beginning at the bottom of the stairs. Without the assistance of a helper, it is very difficult for a carpet installer to perform this task to the best of his ability. Stretching the carpeting so as to have a nice flat carpet without any bumps on a set of stairs is not an easy undertaking.
Thus, it would be advantageous if there were a simple and effective means of a tool that could assist the installer in stretching the carpeting from the bottom of the stairs and going up since this provides the installer to not only match patterns more easily but with the steps already done behind the installer it provides an easier and a better angle to stretch the carpet.


Systems and methods for coordinating the interoperability of devices in a network are disclosed. Embodiments of the present invention may provide the ability for a host device in a storage network to inquire as to the capabilities of a storage device in a storage network. A routing device between the host and the storage device may receive a response, and if the routing device has a higher capability than the storage device the routing device may convert the response to a response that reflects the higher capabilities of the routing device before sending the response on to the host. However, if the storage device has a higher capability than the routing device, the routing device may pass the response through to the host unaltered.

The small computer system interface ("SCSI") protocol has become a ubiquitous protocol for formatting commands. Versions of the SCSI standard (e.g., SCSI-1, SCSI-2, SCSI-3) define both a command set with defined commands ("SCSI commands") and responses, a data transport protocol (the "SCSI transport protocol") for encapsulating the commands and responses, and a SCSI physical interface. SCSI commands can be encapsulated according to a variety of data transport protocols without using the SCSI data transport protocol or SCSI physical interface. Example data transport protocols include fibre channel, serial storage architecture, serial bus protocol, iSCSI, advanced technology attachment ("ATA"), serial ATA ("SATA"), serial attached SCSI ("SAS") and others. Thus, the SCSI standard separates the SCSI physical interface, SCSI command sets and the SCSI data transport protocol.
As the SCSI standard has evolved, operability issues have arisen between devices that use different versions of the SCSI standard or implement different versions of the SCSI command sets. Legacy devices that support the SCSI-1 or SCSI-2 standard may not support all the commands of the SCSI-3 standard. Additionally, various versions of SCSI primary commands ("SPC") have been developed, such that a device supporting SPC-2 commands may not support SCSI-2 formatted commands. The discrepancy of abilities between the various devices may become problematic, as the capabilities of certain device may lag far behind the capabilities of newer devices.
More particularly, the commands utilized in any chain of devices must be tailored to the capabilities of the intended target, regardless of the capabilities of the target or other devices in communication chain between the initiator and the target. This situation arises as a result of the method by which an initiator determines the ability of a target device.
Typically, before interacting with a target, an initiator sends a SCSI INQUIRY commands to an intended target to determine the capabilities of the target. In response, the target sends an INQUIRY response to the initiator. This INQUIRY response is in the format dictated by the commands set implemented by the target. Thus, an initiator determines the capabilities of a target by evaluating the format of the target's response to the SCSI INQUIRY command.
This methodology, however, does not allow the initiator to take advantage of the capabilities of any intervening devices in the communication chain between the initiator and the target, as the initiator is only aware of the capabilities of the target itself. For example, a router interposed between the initiator and the target, and used to route communications between the initiator and target, may be more capable than the target device. The initiator cannot take advantage of the capabilities of the router, however, as the initiator sends commands based only on the capabilities of the target.
One solution to this problem is to replace the legacy devices. This solution is non-ideal, however, as it is expensive and requires the migration of data to new devices.
Thus, a need exists for a method and system to coordinate the interoperability of device which takes advantage of the resources of the most capable device in the chain of communication.

Method and system for coordinating interoperability between devices of varying functionality in a network


A new and distinct variety of nectarine tree (Prunus persica), and which is denominated varietally as xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99 and which produces an attractively colored yellow-fleshed clingstone nectarine which is mature for harvesting and shipment approximately May 15, to May 23 under ecological conditions prevailing in the San Joaquin Valley of Central California.

Botanical classification: Prunus persica.
Variety denomination: xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99.
The present invention relates to a new, novel and distinct variety of nectarine tree, Prunus persica var (nucipersica), which has been denominated varietally as xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99. The present variety of nectarine tree resulted from an on-going program of fruit and nut tree breeding. The purposes of this program is to improve the commercial quality of deciduous fruit and nut varieties and rootstocks by creating and releasing promising selections of prunus, malus and regia species. To this end we make both controlled and hybrid cross pollinations each year in order to produce seedling populations from which improved progenies are evaluated and selected.
The seedling xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99 was originated by us from a population of seedlings grown in our experimental orchards located near Fowler, Calif. The seedlings, grown on their own roots, were the result of an open pollinated cross of the nectarine tree xe2x80x98Mayfirexe2x80x99 (non-patented) which was used as the seed parent. The pollen parent is an unknown nectarine variety. One seedling, which is the present variety, exhibited especially desirable characteristics, and was marked for subsequent observation. After the 1997 growing season, the new, variety was selected for advanced evaluation and repropagation.
Asexual reproduction of the new and distinct variety of nectarine tree was achieved by budding same to xe2x80x98Nemaguardxe2x80x99 Rootstock (non-patented). This was performed by us in our experimental orchard located near Fowler, Calif. Subsequent evaluations have shown that those asexual reproductions run true to the original tree. All characteristics of the original tree, and its fruit were established, and appeared to be transmitted through succeeding asexual propagations.
xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99 is a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which is of medium to large size, has vigorous growth, and is a regular and productive bearer of large, firm, yellow flesh, semi-freestone fruit with good flavor and eating quality. The tree has a medium-chilling requirement of approximately 550 hours. The tree also produces relatively uniformly sized fruit throughout the tree, with a high degree of red skin color, and firm flesh. The fruit appears to have good handling and shipping quality. The xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99 nectarine tree bears fruit that is ripe for commercial harvesting and shipment on approximately May 15 to May 25 under ecological conditions prevailing in Central California. In comparison to the seed parent xe2x80x98Mayfirexe2x80x99 Nectarine, the new variety ripens about 12 or more days later.

Nectarine tree named xe2x80x98Burnectfivexe2x80x99