Provided are polymorphic forms of fluvastatin sodium and processes for their preparation.

Complications of cardiovascular disease, such as myocardial infarction, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease account for half of the deaths in the United States. A high level of low density lipoprotein (LDL) in the bloodstream has been linked to the formation of coronary lesions which obstruct the flow of blood and can rupture and promote thrombosis. Goodman and Gilman, The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics 879 (9th ed. 1996). Reducing plasma LDL levels has been shown to reduce the risk of clinical events in patients with cardiovascular disease and in patients who are free of cardiovascular disease but who have hypercholesterolemia. Scandinavian Simvastatin Survival Study Group, 1994; Lipid Research Clinics Program, 1984a, 1984b.
Statin drugs are currently the most therapeutically effective drugs available for reducing the level of LDL in the blood stream of a patient at risk for cardiovascular disease. This class of drugs includes, inter alia, compactin, lovastatin, simvastatin, pravastatin and fluvastatin. The mechanism of action of statin drugs has been elucidated in some detail. They disrupt the synthesis of cholesterol and other sterols in the liver by competitively inhibiting the 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A reductase enzyme ("HMG-CoA reductase"). HMG-CoA reductase catalyzes the conversion of HMG-CoA to mevalonate, which is the rate determining step in the biosynthesis of cholesterol. Consequently, its inhibition leads to a reduction in the rate of formation of cholesterol in the liver.
[R*,S*-(E)]-(±)-7-[3-(4-fluorophenyl)-1-(1-methylethyl)-1H-indol-2-yl]-3,5-dihydroxy-6-heptenoic acid is a statin drug. It is known by the trivial name fluvastatin and has the molecular formula (I):
depicted in free acid form.
Fluvastatin is commercially available under the trade name Lescol®. Fluvastatin is supplied as a monosodium salt in capsules containing the equivalent of 20 and 40 mg of fluvastatin and in extended-release tablets containing the equivalent of 80 mg of fluvastatin. Fluvastatin and its sodium salt are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,073. In Example 6(a) of the '073 patent, a methyl ester precursor of (±) fluvastatin was hydrolyzed with sodium hydroxide in methanol, which yielded, after evaporation of the methanol, crude fluvastatin sodium. In Example 6(b), the fluvastatin methyl ester was hydrolyzed with sodium hydroxide in ethanol. After evaporation of the ethanol, the residue was taken up in water and lyophilized. The lyophilized product had a melting point range of 194° C.-197° C. In Example 8, the sodium salt was prepared by ring opening of fluvastatin lactone with sodium hydroxide in ethanol as described in Example 6(b). The product of Example 8 produced an infrared spectrum in a KBr pellet with bands at: 3413, 2978, 2936, 1572 and 1216 cm−1.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 6,124,340, lyophilization of fluvastatin sodium as was performed in Examples 6(b) and 8 of the '073 patent yields solid fluvastatin sodium as a mixture of a crystalline form, designated as Form A, and amorphous material. The '340 patent sets forth the spectroscopic properties of another crystal form of fluvastatin sodium which is said to have low hygroscopicity and photostability. This other form is called Form B in the '340 patent. It is characterized by an infrared spectrum with bands at 3343, 2995, 1587, 1536, 1386,1337, 1042 and 1014 cm−1 and by the following powder X-ray diffraction peak positions and intensities.
°2θd (Å)I/IO (%)4.06321.72810011.0567.9962.911.3287.8055.512.2107.24345.212.9656.82334.614.9255.9319.315.2775.7954.515.7505.62218.516.3505.41710.617.7604.99017.618.3204.83914.318.8754.69811.319.3964.5737.019.7014.50313.420.3954.35113.521.3294.1638.521.7854.07615.922.6103.9297.523.8683.7255.424.2813.6633.624.4633.6363.625.4463.4985.625.6553.4703.626.3573.3793.327.0403.2952.828.7473.1033.429.9402.9822.832.1652.7811.635.1732.5491.037.1312.4191.3
Fluvastatin sodium Form A is said to have the following powder X-ray diffraction peak positions and intensities.
°2θd (Å)I/IO (%)3.96522.2651007.93611.1310.910.5548.3751.710.6458.3041.511.9317.41244.512.2157.24014.514.4966.1061.114.8125.9760.815.9165.5640.317.7694.9883.218.6404.7565.319.8564.4685.820.5184.3252.920.9084.2451.221.3894.1511.321.7224.0881.122.6753.9180.824.0893.6911.024.5333.6260.526.5193.3580.227.9733.1870.928.8613.091
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0032666 reports the existence of four crystal forms of fluvastatin monosodium called Forms C, D, E and F. The water content of the forms ranges between 3 and 32%. The new crystal forms of fluvastatin sodium were obtained by storing the samples under atmospheres ranging between 20 and 90% relative humidity.
According to the '666 publication, the PXRD pattern of fluvastatin sodium Form C possesses characteristic peaks at the following d-values and qualitative intensities:
d (Å)Intensity23.8(vs)11.8(w)7.8(vs)7.6(vw)7.4(vw)6.4(vw)6.1(vw)5.90(w)5.00(vw)4.88(w)4.73(m)4.56(w)4.40(vw)4.12(vw)4.03(vw)3.96(vw)3.50(vw)3.36(vw)2.93(vw)wherein (vs)=very strong intensity; (s)=strong intensity; (m)=medium intensity; (w)=weak intensity; and (vw)=very weak intensity.
According to the '666 publication, the PXRD pattern of fluvastatin sodium Form D possesses characteristic peaks at the following d-values and qualitative intensities:
d (Å)Intensity24.6(vs)12.5(w)8.3(vs)7.4(vw)6.2(m)4.97(w)4.85(vw)4.52(vw)4.40(vw)4.14(vw)3.96(vw)3.41(vw)3.10(vw)
According to the '666 publication, the PXRD pattern of fluvastatin sodium Form E possesses characteristic peaks at the following d-values and qualitative intensities:
d (Å)Intensity27.6(m)13.9(vw)9.2(m)8.5(vw)8.1(vw)7.4(vw)6.9(s)6.1(vw)4.98(m)4.77(m)4.63(m)4.15(w)4.03(w)3.97(vw)3.52(vw)3.33(vw)3.08(vw)2.99(vw)
According to the '666 publication, the PXRD pattern of fluvastatin sodium Form F possesses characteristic peaks at the following d-values and qualitative intensities:
d (Å)Intensity29.6(w)14.8(vw)9.9(w)8.6(vw)8.3(vw)7.4(s)6.6(vw)6.2(vw)5.93(w)5.03(m)4.94(m)4.35(vw)4.23(w)3.98(vw)3.54(vw)2.98(vw)
It also deserves mention that International Publication No. WO 02/36563 discloses crystal forms of enantiomerically pure [3R,5S] and [3S,5R] fluvastatin sodium.
The present invention also relates to fluvastatin sodium and the properties that it can exhibit in the condensed phase. The occurrence of different crystal forms (polymorphism) is a property of some molecules and molecular complexes. A single molecule, like the fluvastatin in formula (I) or a salt complex like fluvastatin sodium, may give rise to a variety of solids having distinct physical properties like melting point, X-ray diffraction pattern, infrared absorption fingerprint and NMR spectrum. The crystalline form may give rise to thermal behavior different from that of the amorphous material or another crystalline form. Thermal behavior is measured in the laboratory by such techniques as capillary melting point, thermogravimetric analysis ("TGA") and differential scanning calorimetry ("DSC") and can be used to distinguish some polymorphic forms from others. The differences in the physical properties of different crystalline forms result from the orientation and intermolecular interactions of adjacent molecules (complexes) in the bulk solid. Accordingly, polymorphs are distinct solids sharing the same molecular formula yet having distinct advantageous and/or disadvantageous physical properties compared to other forms in the polymorph family. These properties can be influenced by controlling the conditions under which the salt is obtained in solid form.
Exemplary solid state physical properties include the flowability of the milled solid. Flowability affects the ease with which the material is handled during processing into a pharmaceutical product. When particles of the powdered compound do not flow past each other easily, a formulation specialist must take that fact into account in developing a tablet or capsule formulation, which may necessitate the use of glidants such as colloidal silicon dioxide, talc, starch or tribasic calcium phosphate.
One of the most important physical properties of pharmaceutical polymorphs is their solubility in aqueous solution, particularly their solubility in the gastric juices of a patient. For example, where absorption through the gastrointestinal tract is slow, it is often desirable for a drug that is unstable to conditions in the patient's stomach or intestine to dissolve slowly so that it does not accumulate in a deleterious environment. On the other hand, the method is not advantageous where the effectiveness of a drug correlates with peak bloodstream levels of the drug, as in the case of statin drugs. With a statin drug, provided the drug is rapidly absorbed by the GI system, a more rapidly dissolving form is likely to exhibit increased effectiveness over a comparable amount of a more slowly dissolving form.
It is often the case that the most rapidly dissolving solid state of a compound is amorphous. Amorphous forms are often less stable than crystalline forms because they do not have many of the stabilizing intermolecular interactions that are present in crystalline forms. With an amorphous form, therefore, stabilizing intermolecular interactions do not have to be broken when the compound goes into solution, and so the dissolution rate is not retarded. Although they are more rapidly dissolving than crystalline forms, amorphous forms of a compound can have disadvantages. A compound, when it is in an amorphous state, is frequently more hygroscopic than a crystalline form of the same compound (although exceptions abound, such as when the crystal has wide channels that allow water to enter and leave the crystal in response to changes in moisture density outside the crystal). Water has been implicated in drug stability problems. For instance the decomposition of aspirin which leads to the characteristic smell of vinegar when an old bottle of aspirin is opened is a hydrolysis reaction catalyzed by water. It is thus prudent when selecting a solid state form of a compound that is to be used as a drug, and possibly stored for a long time between packaging and use, to select a form that has low permeability to water. In the case of fluvastatin monosodium, a crystalline form designated Form B has already been discovered that is purportedly less hygroscopic than the partially crystalline/partially amorphous form of the salt that is obtained by following procedures in U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,073.
Although six distinct crystalline forms of racemic fluvastatin sodium have been reported to date, and at least one of them is purported to be less hygroscopic that the solid state form originally reported by the discovers of the compound, the discovery of yet other crystalline forms of fluvastatin sodium is desirable. The discovery of new crystalline forms and solvates of a pharmaceutically useful compound provides a new opportunity to improve the performance characteristics of a pharmaceutical product by enlarging the repertoire of materials that a formulation scientist has available for designing. For example, new crystalline forms can be used to design a pharmaceutical dosage form of a drug with low hygroscopicity, a targeted release profile, consistent dosing (enabled by good flow of the tableting composition into the tableting die), or other desired characteristic. New polymorphic forms and solvates of fluvastatin have now been discovered.

Fluvastatin sodium crystal forms, processes for preparing them, compositions containing them and methods of using them


Implantable medical devices that include a battery to power circuitry utilize a battery connector to electrically interconnect the battery to the circuitry. The battery connector may be mounted directly to a device housing to have the battery connector a fixed position within the device. Battery terminals of the battery are electrically connected to terminals on the battery connector, and the terminals on the battery connector are electrically connected to power terminals of the circuitry. The battery connector may include various features such as mounting grooves formed in a connector body, tapered pins to connect to power terminals on a circuit board, as well as plates to engage the battery terminals. The device housing may provide mounting features that allow the battery connector to be affixed directly to the device housing.

Implantable medical devices that perform active functions such as stimulation therapy or physiological sensing utilize a battery and circuitry that is powered by the battery. The battery and the circuitry are mounted within a housing of the implantable medical device that isolates the circuitry from the body tissues and fluids surrounding the implantable medical device once implanted. The battery has anode and cathode terminals that must be electrically connected to corresponding anode and cathode terminals of the circuitry during device manufacturing.
One manner of electrically connecting the battery and circuitry involves including a battery connector that has electrical connections to both the battery and the terminals on a circuit board that includes the circuitry being powered. This indirect connectivity between the battery and circuit board may provide some benefits during device manufacture. For instance, the battery connector allows the relative positions of the battery and circuit board to be accommodated without requiring the battery to have terminals that extend to the terminals of the circuit board.
However, manufacturing difficulties may still arise when interconnecting the battery and circuit board with a battery connector. For instance, since the battery connector electrically connects to both the battery and to the circuit board, there are multiple electrical connections for a given electrical path that must align and connect correctly which presents a challenging manufacturing scenario. Other difficulties may also occur, such as attempting to bond a wire to a battery housing in order to connect the battery housing to a circuit board, lack of support for such electrical conductors extending between the battery and the circuit board, the inability to solder the battery's pins, and a lack of strain relief.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Battery connectors for implantable medical devices


A wall mount-type evaporative humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a main body mounted on a wall and having an air intake port and an air blower port formed therein, a ventilator disposed within the main body and configured to suck air into the air intake port and blow the air toward the air blower port, a water guide disposed within the main body and having a water channel formed therein, a water tank configured to contain water in order to supply the water to the water guide and seated in the water guide, and a humidification filter configured to absorb water of the water guide and to supply moisture to air flowing toward the ventilator and seated in the water guide. The present invention is advantageous in that it can realize a humidifying effect and a cooling effect at the same time, has the high utilization of space, and can control the humidity of the entire room rapidly and uniformly.

Generally, a humidifier is used to change the humidity of a room and is divided into an ultrasonic humidifier, a heating type humidifier, a combined type humidifier, and so on.
The ultrasonic humidifier uses a method of generating ultrasonic waves at the lower portion of a water tank, splitting water into small particles, and blowing the split water particles to the outside. Here, steam is cool steam.
The heating type humidifier uses a method of boiling water within the humidifier and blowing the boiled water particles as steam. Here, steam is hot steam.
The combined type humidifier uses a combination of the ultrasonic type and the heating type in order to take advantages of the heating type and the ultrasonic type. The combined type humidifier uses a method of raising water temperature in a heating pipe, sterilizing the water, and then blowing the sterilized using ultrasonic waves. In the combined type humidifier, warm steam and cool steam may be selected according to circumstances.
The ultrasonic humidifier, the heating type humidifier, and the combined type humidifier are configured to directly blow steam nearby in order to raise the humidity of a room, and are problematic in that they do not rapidly supply moisture to indoor areas, which are far from the humidifiers. Further, the ultrasonic humidifier, the heating type humidifier, and the combined type humidifier they are problematic that they mainly humidify nearby areas, but do not rapidly humidify areas, which are distant from the humidifiers.


An illuminating driving tool includes an elongated hollow handle having an accommodating space for receiving a power source therein, an illuminating device disposed at one end of the handle and adapted to be connected electrically to the power source inside the accommodating space, an adapter made of a light-transmittable material and mounted on the handle, the adapter having an receiving chamber for receiving the illuminating device, and an elongated tool member having a bit operating end for driving a screw and a mounting plug for coupling detachably and non-rotatably to the adapter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driving tool, more particularly to a driving tool with illuminating capability.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional driving tool is commonly used in computers, eyeglasses, and precision machinery for turning screws. An example of the prior art driving tool is shown in FIG. 1. The prior art driving tool includes a shank 1a, a driving head 1b connected axially to the shank 1a, and a rotary knob 1c of a hexagonal cross section mounted on the shank 1a. In use, the driving tool 1 is turned clockwise or counterclockwise for tightening or loosening a screw with the thumb and the middle finger of a hand cooperatively holding and rotating the shank 1a while the index finger of the same hand presses the knob 1c from above to keep the driving tool 1 in position.
When the conventional driving tool 1 is used in the dark, however, a problem arises. The operator has to use his other hand to hold a lighting apparatus, such as a flashlight, so as to make it possible to perform the driving operation in the dark. As such, the operation of the driving tool is adversely affected and becomes troublesome.


A valve block may be assembled, in a controlled environment, a valve block to be modular and purpose built for a specific application. The specific application may be an operation to be performed at a well site. The modular purpose built valve block may be function tested, in the controlled environment. Additionally, the modular purpose built valve block may be pre-packaged, in the controlled environment, to have a digital system to operate and automate the modular purpose built valve block. Further, the modular pre-packaged purpose built valve block may be deployed to the well site, and the modular pre-packaged purpose built valve block may be fluidly coupled to a wellhead. The modular pre-packaged purpose built valve block may be operated to perform the operation at the well site.

A wide variety of hydraulic fracturing equipment is used in oil and natural gas fields such as a slurry blender, one or more high-pressure, high-volume fracturing pumps and a monitoring unit. Additionally, associated equipment includes fracturing tanks, one or more units for storage and handling of proppant, high-pressure treating iron, a chemical additive unit (used to accurately monitor chemical addition), low-pressure flexible hoses, and many gauges and meters for flow rate, fluid density, and treating pressure. Fracturing equipment operates over a range of pressures and injection rates, and can reach up to 100 megapascals (15,000 psi) and 265 litres per second (9.4 cu ft/s) (100 barrels per minute). Additionally, production and fracturing equipment is often connected to wellheads used for the extraction of hydrocarbons from subterranean/subsea formations. Production equipment connected to a wellhead may include a production Christmas tree connected to the upper end of the wellhead housing. The Christmas tree controls and distributes the fluids produced from the wellbore. Valves are typically provided within Christmas trees for controlling the flow of oil or gas from a wellhead and/or for controlling circulating fluid flow in and out of a wellhead. The Christmas tree may control the flow of the hydrocarbons to production equipment disposed at a distance from the wellhead, such as a flowline hub. Similarly, frac trees may be used to control the flow of fluids into and from the wellbore during fracturing operations.
Conventional trees comprise an assembly of valves and piping components. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a tree 1 may include one or more swab valves 10, one or more main valves 15, and one or more cross blocks 20 (cross-flow piping components). Each valve and piping component is provided as a separate piece, to be attached to the pieces disposed above and below it via flanged piping spools 25. A typical spool piece 25 may include six, eight, or more bolts per flange connecting adjacent valves or blocks. To assemble, perform maintenance, or otherwise access the components, each bolt may have to be torqued, and each connection may have to be tested whenever a tree is assembled or reassembled, which may require significant time, personnel, equipment, and cost. The spool pieces additionally increase the overall height of the tree.
Composite trees represent an alternative to the conventional trees as shown in FIG. 1. Composite trees may include a single body of material in which all of the necessary valves and cross-flow components are formed. Composite trees require significantly less assembly time than conventional trees. However, composite trees are difficult and time-consuming to repair, as individual components cannot be removed therefrom. In other words, it is not possible to replace one piece of a composite tree because all of the pieces are formed within or as a single body. Additionally, in convention methods, a frac and drill out tree are one in the same. By having the frac and drill out tree combined, the tree is tied up for long periods of time, even though their actual utilization on site may be low.

Plug-and-play, pre-packaged, and purpose built valve block


A receptacle type ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) device adapted for connecting to input lines, which includes a pair of input terminals for connecting to the input lines, a pair of receptacle outlets, a ground-fault current detector for detecting a ground fault condition on the input lines, a reset and trip device, and a self detecting and testing structure. The device further includes a normal working condition indicator and an end-of-life indicator. When the GFCI device is correctly wired and working properly, the device can be properly reset by a reset button. When the ground-fault is detected, the GFCI is put in a normal tripped state with no power output. When the input terminals and the output terminals are reversely wired, no power is output. If an input line is broken, no power is output.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a receptacle type ground-fault circuit interrupter.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional receptacle type reground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) device typically includes a faceplate, a middle frame, a bottom case, a grounding frame assembly, input terminals, output terminals, copper outlets, a ground-fault current detector, a reset and trip device, a reset button assembly and a test button assembly. The input terminals and copper outlets are integrally made and electrically connected. The reset and trip device includes an electromagnetic coil, an iron core, dynamic contact sheets, static contact sheets, a dynamic contact bridge, an L-shape retaining plate, reverse dynamic contact sheets and reverse static contact sheets. The reset button assembly includes a reset button, a button shaft and a reset spring, where one end of the button shaft has a thin shaft with a convex stage. The long edge of the L-type retaining plate has a through-hole and is inserted into an insertion hole in the horizontal direction of the dynamic contact bridge. The reverse dynamic contact sheets and the pair of reverse static contact sheets are on the lower side of the dynamic contact bridge.
Conventional GFCI devices of this structure have the following shortcomings. a) The reset button can reset the GFCI when the input and output terminals of GFCI are correctly wired, and cannot reset it when the terminals are reversely wired, thereby indicating that there is a mistake with the wiring. However, although it provides certain degree of reverse-wiring protection by preventing the reset, it only provides an indicating, and the output terminals are still powered and thus the user is still in danger of electrical shock. b) If a wire of the input terminal breaks or falls off from the input conductors when the GFCI is in normal use, the GFCI will not trip automatically, and thus remains in the reset state. There would be no great harm if it is a phase line that is broken or loose, but if it is the neutral line that is broken or loose, the electric potential at the output terminal or the copper outlets is equal to that of the input terminal, which will form an electric path through a human body. If a person gets electric shock on the copper outlets or the output terminal in this instance, the GFCI will not provide a protection function. c) There is no indication when the GFCI is damaged, causing users to continue to use it without being aware of the defect, therefore exposing themselves to the danger of electrical shock.

Receptacle type ground-fault circuit interrupter


An apparatus includes a plurality of wirings, a first power supply to provide a first power to at least one of the wirings, the first power supply being connected to the at least one of the wirings, and a second power supply to provide a second power to at least one of the wirings except that which is connected to the first power supply.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a circuit for providing a power to a circuit block, e.g., a clock circuit and logic circuit.
2. Description of Related Art
In a semiconductor integrated circuit, accompanied by a high velocity of a clock, an improvement of a clock skew is required. Causes of the clock skew include, an error caused when the semiconductor integrated circuit is designed, a uniformity in a manufacturing process of the semiconductor integrated circuit, a clock jitter, or the like. Especially, the clock jitter due to a noise caused by a power supply may be a large part of the cause of the clock skew. By preventing a transmission of the noise caused by the power supply for a logic circuit to a clock circuit, the clock jitter may be reduced. However, when it is attempted to separate the power supply of the clock circuit from the power supply of the logic circuit, manufacturing processes and a circuit space may be increased because of the separation of the power supplies.
A clock distribution circuit of the semiconductor integrated circuit has often been designed by using a design tool popularly known as CTS (Clock Tree Synthesis). In this case, since the clock circuit is disposed in a same area for a standard cell (SC) of the logic circuit, it is impossible to separate the power supply of the clock circuit and the power supply of the logic circuit.
Further, to separate the power supply of the clock circuit from the power supply of the logic circuit, the clock circuit is designed as a specific circuit block (e.g., macro block) rather than the standard cell of the logic circuit, the specific block is located so as not to intervene in the standard cell, and then the power supply and a ground for the clock circuit are separated from those of the standard cell of the logic circuit. However, the specific block of the clock circuit is not able to be located in an area for the standard cell of the logic circuit.
Further, since the ground of the clock circuit and the ground of the logic circuit are separated and a resistor is added for connecting the ground and the clock circuit, a potential difference is generated between the ground for the clock circuit and the ground for the logic circuit by the noise of the power supply. By the potential difference, a discrepancy is caused between a threshold voltage of a transistor for the clock circuit and a threshold voltage of a transistor for the logic circuit, thereby to cause a skew.
In a semiconductor integrated circuit, when the standard cells of the clock circuit and the logic circuit are disposed without distinction, the clock skew is generated by the noise caused by the power supply of the logic circuit.
As clock frequency becomes higher, the clock skew becomes larger. Therefore, the technique for separating the power supply of the clock circuit from the power supply of the logic circuit is used for reducing the clock skew.
FIG. 6 shows a related art for separating the power supply of the clock circuit from the power supply of the logic circuit. In the related art, the power supply of the logic circuit is eliminated partially, and the macro block of the clock circuit is placed at the partially eliminated region.
In FIG. 6, reference numeral 41 shows the eliminated region, and reference numeral 42 shows the macro block of the clock circuit disposed at the eliminated region 41.
In the related art, since the macro block of the clock circuit needs to be designed, a design process of the semiconductor integrated circuit increases. Also, since it is required to eliminate the region, the design process of the semiconductor integrated circuit increases. Further, since a process for connecting the macro block and the power supply is required, the design process of the semiconductor integrated circuit increases.
The eliminated region needs to be larger than a size of the macro block of the clock circuit. As a result, in the eliminated region, there may be a region that a circuit element cannot be placed. Therefore, as the clock circuit size increases, the eliminated region of the power supply of the logic circuit increases, and then it becomes difficult to provide the power to the logic circuit.
Patent Document 1 discloses the technique for separating the power supply line. The drain side power supply lines between a circuit block A and a circuit block B which are separated in the power supply are connected by a plurality of resistors R. The source side power supply lines between the circuit block A and the circuit block B are connected by a plurality of resistors R. Signal propagation elements B1 and B2 are disposed by corresponding to the connecting points of each resistor R. A signal transmitted between the circuit block A and the circuit block B is transmitted through the signal propagation elements B1 and B2.
In the Patent Document 1, a malfunction caused by the power supply noise may be reduced independently of the frequency of the signal propagated between the circuit block A and the circuit block B. The signal propagated between the circuit block A and the circuit block B may be stable without installing a specific circuit, such as a low pass filter and a high frequency clock generating circuit, into an LSI.
In the Patent Document 1, the power supply of the clock circuit is connected to the power supply of the logic circuit. Therefore, in the Patent Document 1, the power supply of the clock circuit is not separated from the power supply of the logic circuit.
In Patent Document 2, a capacitor for a power supply and a clock driver are installed at a region under a wiring for supplying power. Therefore, the power is stably supplied from the power supply.
In Patent Document 3, a first wiring for supplying power to a logic circuit and a second wiring for supplying power to a clock circuit are installed in an LSI. A power supply for supplying the power to the first and the second wirings are installed on a first layer, the first layer being different from the second layer on which the first or second wiring is installed. Therefore, a power supply noise caused by the logic circuit is reduced, and thus a clock jitter is reduced.
In Patent Document 4, a design process of a clock circuit is disclosed. In the design process, re-design of a layout of the clock circuit is not required each time when a layout of a circuit other than the clock circuit is re-designed. Therefore, since re-design for laying-out the clock circuit is not required, factors affecting performance of the LSI, such as a clock jitter, are easily predictable.
In Patent Document 5, a power supply for a clock buffer cell which provides a clock signal and a power supply for a sub-clock buffer cell which provides a clock signal, are separated with each other. Each power supply is connected to another power source. Therefore, an influence caused by a power supply noise is dispersed, and thus a delay of the clock buffer cell and the sub-clock buffer cell is decreased.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-054235
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-245384
[Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-318967
[Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-213887
[Patent Document 5] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-204649

Apparatus, circuit and method of wiring for supplying power


A digital-to-analog converter includes a first current source module configured to supply a current I1 to the digital-to-analog converter, a first switch control module configured to control connection or disconnection between each branch and a trans-impedance amplifier in the digital-to-analog converter based on a to-be-converted digital signal, where the current I1 supplied by the first current source module flows to the trans-impedance amplifier through a connected branch, and the trans-impedance amplifier is configured to convert the current I1 supplied by the first current source module into an analog voltage and output the analog voltage.

A digital-to-analog converter can convert a discrete digital parameter into a continuously varying analog parameter, and is a component widely applied to the computer field, the communications field, and the like.
In a current technology, to achieve a relatively high analog signal output bandwidth and meet a requirement of low power consumption and a small area, a digital-to-analog converter based on a current steering structure has become a mainstream product.
Existing current steering structures are classified into structures of two types: a double-side switch type and a single-side switch type. In a structure of the double-side switch type, due to a relatively large quantity of switches, there is a mismatch between switch delays, causing dynamic performance degradation. In a structure of the single-side switch type, the switch delay problem is avoided, and power consumption is reduced. However, in the structure of the single-side switch type, there is a transfer switch only on a charging current (or a discharging current), the other side is two fixed quiescent discharging current sinks (or charging current sources), and a sum of two quiescent currents is equal to the current with the transfer switch. In an embodiment, to achieve an output signal amplitude the same as that in the structure of the double-side switch type, double quiescent current overheads are needed, and noise also exponentially increases.

Digital-to-analog converter to reduce noise generated by a quiescent current


A paraffin inhibitor composition that exhibits stable properties at low temperature is provided. The composition may contain, for instance, an alkylphenol copolymer having the following repeating units (A) and (B):

Crude oil products are often obtained from subterranean reservoirs using various techniques, such as drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Transportation of crude oil products from a subterranean reservoir is accomplished by moving the crude oil through pipes and into storage/transportation mechanisms, such as rail cars, tanks, etc. During transport, production, and/or storage, the crude is often subjected to low temperatures, such as 0° C. to −40° C. Unfortunately, crude oil products generally include long-chain alkane fractions having a relatively high melting point (e.g., nonadecane). At low temperatures (or at temperatures below the melting point), the long-chained alkanes are known to crystallize and form large wax crystals having a networked-type structure (gelled-structure). Other constituents of the paraffin-containing fluid may also be trapped in the extended structure, which may lead to a faster growth of the wax network. The wax crystals may agglomerate or mass together, which may finally lead to the deposition of the paraffins on the surface of pipes, storage vessels, and transportation vessels (rail cars, ocean tankers, etc.). Furthermore, the formation of a solid wax phase may lead to an increased viscosity, which means that the paraffin-containing fluid may become significantly more difficult to handle. Various attempts have been made to reduce the formation of paraffin wax deposits and gels through the use of paraffin inhibitors that interfere with the crystallization process of wax and/or suspend wax crystals in the oil. While somewhat effective, commercially available paraffin inhibitors tend to exhibit relatively poor performance when they are used at very low temperatures, such as below −20° C. At lower environmental temperatures, the current formulation of certain types of commercially available paraffin inhibitors will solidify and gel, preventing use. As such, a need continues to exist for a paraffin inhibitor composition that can remain effective while still remaining stable at low temperatures.

Paraffin inhibitor composition for use at low temperatures

Abstract: wherein,                x is an integer from 1 to 200;        y is an integer from 2 to 200;        R1 is a straight or branched C1-C15 alkyl; and        R2 is a straight or branched C16-C40 alkyl.


An image forming apparatus that ensures high-quality power supply to an AFE (analog front-end) and reduces the amount of power consumed by the AFE in sleep mode. The AFE, which converts an analog signal into a digital signal, and another circuit different from the AFE are incorporated in an SOC (system-on-a-chip). A switch circuit switches power to the AFE between first DC power supply from a 5-V/3.3-V_LDO and second DC power from a 24-V/3.3-V_DC-DC converter. When the AFE is in use, the switch circuit is controlled such that the first DC power is supplied from the 5-V/3.3-V_LDO to the AFE, and when the AFE is not in use, the switch circuit is controlled such that the second DC power is supplied from the 24-V/3.3-V_DC-DC converter to the AFE.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and in particular to a technique for controlling power supply to an integrated circuit constituting an image forming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, controller systems that use an integrated circuit called a system-on-a-chip (SOC) to control overall operation of an image forming apparatus have become widespread. As the SOC, one which incorporates an analog front-end (AFE) that converts an analog image signal into a digital signal is becoming common. The AFE has a filter circuit that removes noise from a read analog signal, an amplification circuit that amplifies an analog signal, and an A/D converter that converts an analog signal into a digital signal.
Power to a reading unit, which is comprised of an AFE and a reading sensor such as a CIS or a CCD, is supplied from an accurate series path regulator (see, for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. H10-304134). A DC-DC converter is a power supply that has higher power conversion efficiency than that of the series path type regulator, but use of the DC-DC converter may cause ripple noise in output from the DC-DC converter due to the effect of switching. For example, when power is supplied from the DC-DC converter to the reading unit, noise may affect an image in, for example, a mode where a low-intensity halftone image is read, causing image quality to deteriorate.
An AFE and a reading sensor are usually connected together using a long cable since they are placed away from each other. Thus, there is concern that the ripple noise could make radiation noise worse. Further, in an image forming apparatus that carries out facsimile communications through an analog public line, undesired noise may propagate to the analog public line. On the other hand, from the standpoint of saving energy for an image forming apparatus, a DC-DC converter is more advantageous than a series path regulator.
An SOC with a built-in AFE is subjected to the constraint that power to the AFE cannot be turned off while an image forming apparatus is in energy-saving mode (sleep mode). On the other hand, the SOC has an IO circuit or the like as well as the AFE, and hence, for example, an interrupt signal for returning from a sleep state is input to the SOC. To make this interrupt signal valid, it is necessary to supply power to the IO circuit in the SOC when the image forming apparatus is in sleep mode. When power to the AFE is turned off in sleep mode, a potential difference occurs between a circuit to which power is being supplied and the AFE. As a result, current flows from the circuit to which power is being supplied to the AFE to which no power is being supplied, and this causes a latch-up phenomenon or the like and may damage a device.
As described above, when an image forming apparatus is in sleep mode, power must be supplied to an AFE. Also, from the standpoint of ensuring image quality, power to an AFE needs to be supplied from a series path regulator. The series path regulator lowers voltage using a transistor or a field-effect transistor (FET) and obtains desired output voltage with respect to input voltage.
For this reason, the series path regulator does not perform switching as distinct from a DC-DC converter, and hence it is less affected by noise. On the other hand, the series path regulator basically matches output voltage to desired output voltage by consuming power with a transistor or an FET and is thus inefficient in power conversion and not suitable for energy saving.

Image forming apparatus using technique for controlling power supply


A solid electrolytic capacitor which includes a capacitor element in which a dielectric coating layer and a cathode layer are sequentially formed on a surface of an anode element having an anode lead member planted on one end surface thereof, an anode terminal connected with the anode lead member, a platy cathode terminal mounting the capacitor element thereon and connected with the cathode layer, and an enclosure resin coating the capacitor element, a part of the cathode terminal and a part of the anode terminal being exposed on a same plane from the enclosure resin. The cathode terminal is provided with a cathode exposed portion exposed from the enclosure resin in at least two locations on the same plane.

Conventionally, a solid electrolytic capacitor of a structure shown in FIG. 6 is known. This solid electrolytic capacitor includes a capacitor element 6 including an anode element 3 including a sintered body of a valve-action metal (tantalum, niobium, titanium, aluminum, etc.), a dielectric coating layer 4 formed on a surface of the anode element 3 by oxidizing the surface, and a cathode layer 5 in which a solid electrolyte layer 5a made of a conductive inorganic material such as manganese dioxide or conductive organic material such as TCNQ complex salt and a conductive polymer and a cathode lead layer 5b made of carbon, silver, etc. are sequentially formed. An anode lead frame 11 is connected to an anode lead member 7 planted on one end surface of the anode element 3 while a cathode lead frame 12 is connected to the cathode layer 5. An enclosure resin 8 made of epoxy resin etc. coats the capacitor element 6 to seal the capacitor. The anode lead frame 11 and the cathode lead frame 12 are bent along the enclosure resin 8 (see JP 10-64761 A).
In the solid electrolytic capacitor of the above-described structure, because both an upper face and a lower face of the capacitor element need be coated with the enclosure resin, there is a problem that a size of the capacitor element cannot be sufficiently large relative to an overall size as a solid electrolytic capacitor finished product.
Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 7, the present applicant has proposed a technique in which a capacitor element 6 is mounted on a platy anode terminal 1 and a cathode terminal 2 to make a gap between the capacitor element 6 and an outer periphery of an enclosure resin 8 as small as possible, so that the capacitor element 6 with a large occupied volume relative to an overall size of a solid electrolytic capacitor finished product can be incorporated (JP 2001-244145 A).
In this solid electrolytic capacitor, because the lead terminal is in direct contact with a circuit board etc., a lead frame need not be bent along the enclosure resin as conventionally, so that a current path from the capacitor element to the circuit board can be shortened to reduce an ESR and ESL in the solid electrolytic capacitor finished product.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, a distance between current paths of each of an anode and a cathode to an external circuit board can be shortened by extending the cathode terminal 2 of the solid electrolytic capacitor to a vicinity of the anode terminal 1, so that an ESL in a high-frequency area can be further reduced.
When the above-described solid electrolytic capacitor proposed by the present applicant is connected to a circuit board etc., as shown in FIG. 9(a), a solder 50 is pasted on a land 40 formed on the circuit board 30, and then the solid electrolytic capacitor is mounted thereon.
However, in the solid electrolytic capacitor, a difference in area between an anode exposed portion of the anode terminal 1 exposed from the enclosure resin 8 and a cathode exposed portion of the cathode terminal 2 exposed from the enclosure resin 8 is greater than that in the conventional capacitor. Therefore, there is a problem that as shown in FIG. 9(b), the solder 50 pasted on the land 40 with a larger area corresponding to the cathode exposed portion shrinks by surface tension and pushes up the solid electrolytic capacitor mounted on the solder 50 to cause displacement, resulting in a defective appearance and disconnection in the anode terminal.
The present invention provides, in view of the above-described problem, a solid electrolytic capacitor capable of being soldered well to a circuit board etc. while maintaining an ESL reduction effect previously proposed by the present applicant.

Solid electrolytic capacitor and mounting method therefor


An RGB display of a transcoded serial digital video signal is produced by converting the serial digital video signal to a parallel digital video signal, separating the digital luminance component signal and the two digital difference component signals from the parallel digital video signal, converting the digital luminance and color difference component signals into analog encoded color component signals, transcoding the analog encoded color component signals into RGB component signals, and routing the RGB component signals to a waveform display device. The RGB component signals also are routed to a gamut detection circuit where each component is compared with nominal plus and minus limit levels to determine if there is a gamut error. Color gamut for each RGB component signal may be determined visually from the display, either from the screen graticules or from voltage cursors, or may be determined automatically by varying the plus and minus limit levels from nominal levels for each RGB component signal which has a color gamut error until the gamut error is extinguished. The differences between the final limit levels and the nominal limit levels for each RGB component signal are a measure of the amount of gamut errors.

The present invention relates to waveform display instruments, and more particularly to an RGB display of a transcoded serial digital signal for the purpose of quantifying color gamut errors.
In a color display device, such as a shadow mask cathode ray tube (CRT) display, a video signal for display has three primary color components, such as red, green and blue (RGB). The display device is adjusted so that a minimum valid value of any one of the three components drives the corresponding electron gun to a minimum, or perceived off, condition and a maximum valid value drives the corresponding electron gun to maximum brightness. These valid values typically range between zero and 0.7 volts, and may be normalized arbitrarily to be between zero and 1.0. The primary color components (RGB) generally are derived from encoded luminance and color difference components (Y, P.sub.b, P.sub.r) using a resistive network. The encoded components are in turn derived from a composite video signal, such as a signal in accordance with the analog NTSC or PAL formats or the serial digital CCIR-601 format. In a digital suite digital is commonly used to reduce the number of wires required to route the video signal from one piece of equipment to another.
For many years the only significant source of a video signal was a video camera that provided the primary color components RGB. The RGB was then encoded into the color component signals Y, P.sub.b, P.sub.r and combined to produce the composite video signal in NTSC or PAL formats. However it is now common to generate the composite video signals from other sources than the primary color components RGB. Such sources, such as television graphics systems, may generate signals directly in the encoded color component domain. Also these encoded color components are the form in which video signal processing commonly is performed. The result is that when these encoded color components are transformed into the primary color component domain, the range or gamut of the individual primary colors may exceed the voltage range of zero to 0.7 volts. Values of the primary colors that are outside of the gamut may not be faithfully reproduced on the color display device, resulting in color distortion on the display.
One method of detecting this out-of-gamut condition, or gamut error, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,727 issued Nov. 17, 1987 to Bruce J. Penney entitled "Apparatus for Providing an Indication That a Color Represented by a Y, R-Y, B-Y Color Television Signal is Validly Reproducible on an RGB Color Display Device" and incorporated into the WFM-300 Component Television Waveform Monitor manufactured by Tektronix, Inc. of Wilsonville, Oreg. The encoded color components are transformed into the primary color components and input to two sets of comparators, one set having as a reference level the maximum value and the other set having as a reference level the minimum value. The outputs of the comparators are input to an OR gate so that, if any one of the primary color components are above or below the maximum or minimum values, a gamut error signal is produced. The 500 Series Waveform Monitors/Vectorscopes manufactured by Magni Systems, Inc. of Beaverton, Oreg. provides a separate output for each comparator for display so that the primary color component and direction (plus or minus) of the gamut error is displayed.
Although the WFM-300 does display RGB component signals when the input is in that form, the WFM-300 does not display RGB component signals after being transformed from a video signal input in the encoded color component format. The WFM-300 does provide RGB output for a television monitor regardless of the input format. The problem is further compounded when the input video signal is in the CCIR-601 serial digital format. In order to display the digital input video signal, it is first transcoded into the encoded color component format. Once in the encoded color component format the video signal may be displayed as in the WFM-300.
What is desired is an RGB display of a transcoded serial digital video signal from which quantifiable gamut error may be derived.


A turbine blade for use in a gas turbine engine having an internal serpentine flow cooling circuit with pin fins and trip strips to promote heat transfer for obtaining a thermally balanced blade sectional temperature distribution. The serpentine flow cooling circuit forms a 7-pass serpentine flow circuit from the leading edge, along the pressure side, through the trailing edge region, and then along the suction side. The serpentine flow circuit of the present invention is formed by a printing process without the need for a ceramic core and casting, and where the pin fins for all of the channels can be aligned perpendicular to the airfoil surface. The metallic and ceramic printing process can be used to form a single piece airfoil with all of the internal cooling passages and features as a single piece.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a gas turbine engine, and more specifically to an air cooled turbine airfoil having non-parallel pin fins.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
A gas turbine engine has a turbine section with a multiple stages of stationary vanes or nozzles and rotary blades or buckets exposed to extremely high temperature flow. The first stage vanes and blades are exposed to the highest temperature since the gas flow temperature progressively decreases through the turbine due to the extraction of energy. Especially in an industrial gas turbine engine, efficiency is the prime objective. In order to increase the efficiency of the engine, a higher gas flow temperature can be used in the turbine. However, the highest temperature that can be used depends upon the properties of the materials used in the turbine parts. For this reason, providing internal air cooling of the blades and vanes allows for a temperature higher than the material properties can withstand alone.
Another method of increasing the efficiency of the engine, for efficient use of the cooling air passing through the cooled airfoils is desired. Since the cooling air is generally bleed air from the compressor, maximizing the cooling effect while minimizing the amount of cooling air bled off from the compressor will increase the engine efficiency as well. Blade designers have proposed complex air cooling passages to maximize cooling efficiency while minimizing cooling volume. On a typical first stage turbine blade, the hottest surfaces occur at the airfoil leading edge, on the suction side immediately downstream from the leading edge, and on the pressure side of the airfoil at the trailing edge region. A showerhead arrangement is generally used to provide cooling for the leading edge of the airfoil. One problem blade designers are challenged with is that the hottest section on the suction side is also at a lower pressure than on the pressure side. A serpentine flow cooling circuit of the prior art that provides cooling for both the pressure side and the suction side will provide adequate cooling for the airfoil, but uses more cooling air that needed. Film cooling holes opening onto the pressure side and the suction side that are supplied with cooling air from the same cooling channel will both be discharging cooling air at the same pressure. Since the hot gas flow pressure on the suction side is lower than the pressure side, more cooling air will be discharged onto the suction side than is needed.
In a turbine airfoil with a serpentine flow cooling circuit, the cross sectional area of the passages must be sized in order than the airfoil walls will not be too thick. In many situations such as in open serpentine flow channels, some of the passages have cross sectional areas that are too large and result in low levels of heat transfer from the hot metal surface of the passage to the cooling air because the cooling air velocity is too low.
Turbine airfoils (which include blades and vanes) are typically cast as a single piece with the cooling passages cast within the airfoil. Ceramic cores having the cooling passage shape is used to form the airfoil. One problem with the prior art investment casting process that is used to produce a turbine airfoil is that the cooling passages within the airfoil have pin fins that are formed parallel to each other within the common passage or passages formed from a single ceramic core. Because of the die pulling direction in the die that is used to cast the ceramic core, the pin fins are limited to being in the pulling direction of the mold and thus are all parallel to each other. In some cast turbine airfoils, more than one ceramic core is sued. In this type, pin fins produced by one core are not required to be parallel to pin fins produced form a second core.
In a ceramic core used to form the inner cooling circuit of a turbine airfoil, the ceramic core includes pin fins forming projection that are arranged in parallel to each other and in a pulling direction of the mold used to cast the ceramic core. In the turbine airfoil of the present invention that has a 7-pass serpentine flow circuit; two ceramic cores are required to form the serpentine circuit. Each of the pin fin forming projections on a ceramic core must be formed parallel because of the pulling direction of the mold. For a two-core assembly, two different directions of pin fins can be formed because two molds are used to form the two cores.
In an investment casting process, there are minimum wall thicknesses that can be cast because of the viscosity of the molten metal and its capacity to flow through the mold and around the ceramic cores or through small holes or spaced. Also, with investment casting only a single metal or alloy can be poured into the mold. Thus, producing a single metallic piece of composite metal materials is not possible with this process.
Another problem with the prior art turbine blades produced using the investment casting process is that the blade root is cast without the fir tree configuration for mounting within the slots of the rotor disk. in this process, the blade is cast first and then the fir tree configuration is machined into the root portion. This adds further expense and complexity to the production of a turbine rotor blade.

Turbine airfoil with non-parallel pin fins


A method of fabricating a polarizing plate includes: providing a polarizing roll film having transmission axes; and cutting the polarizing roll film with a knife having a plurality of openings each having a rectangular shape to form a plurality of polarizing plates, the plurality of openings parallel to the transmission axes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display (LCD) device, and more particularly, to a method of fabricating a polarizing plate for an LCD device.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Until recently, display devices have typically used cathode-ray tubes (CRTs). More recently, considerable effort has been expended to research and develop thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) devices having thin profiles, light-in-weight and have low power consumption as substitutes for CRTs.
Liquid crystal display (LCD) devices use the optical anisotropy and polarization properties of liquid crystal molecules to produce an image. The liquid crystal molecules have long, thin, shapes and have an initial alignment direction including initial pretilt angles. The alignment direction can be controlled by applying an electric field to influence the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules. Due to the optical anisotropy property of liquid crystal, the refraction of incident light depends on the alignment direction of the liquid crystal molecules. Thus, by properly controlling the applied electric field, an image having a desired brightness can be produced.
The LCD devices include first and second substrates spaced apart and facing each other, and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first and second substrates. Further, a polarizing plate is formed on an outer surface of each of the first and second substrates. A polarization component of light parallel to a transmission axis of the polarizing plate passes through the polarizing plate and the other polarization component of the light is shielded by the polarizing plate. As a result, transmittance of light is determined by the arrangement of the polarization axes of the two polarizing plates and the alignment of the liquid crystal layer.
The polarizing plate includes a polarizing layer and transparent films on both surfaces of the polarizing layer. The polarizing plate is formed by cutting a polarizing roll film into polarizing layers and forming first and second support layers of a cellulose material such as tri-acetate cellulose (TAC), an anti-glare layer and an adhesive layer on each of the polarizing layers. In addition, the polarizing roll film is formed by dyeing a raw film with one of iodine (I2) and dichroic dye.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a polarizing plate according to the related art. In FIG. 1, a polarizing plate 10 includes a polarizing layer 11, a first support layer 13a on one surface of the polarizing layer 10, a second support layer 13b on the other surface of the polarizing layer 11, an anti-glare layer 15 on the first support layer 13a and an adhesive layer 17 on the second support layer 13b. Although not shown in FIG. 1, a hard coating layer for protecting the polarizing plate 10 and a sticking prevention layer for preventing sticking to adjacent layers may be formed on the anti-glare layer 15.
The process of forming the polarizing layer 11 is the subject of significant research and development to obtain a uniform polarization property for a higher display quality. In the process of forming the polarizing layer 11, a raw film (not shown) of large molecules is dyed by dipping in a solution of iodine (I2) or dichroic dye, and the dyed raw film is stretched to arrange the iodine (I2) molecule or the dichroic dye molecule parallel to a stretch direction. For the stretch step, the raw film is wound on a roller (not shown) in a bath of the solution of iodine (I2) or dichroic dye.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a transmission axis of a polarizing roll film according to the related art. In FIG. 2, a polarizing roll film 20 has a plurality of polarizing plate areas 11a disposed in central (A), left (B) and right (C) regions. Since the polarizing roll film 20 is stretched and wound, transmission axes 22 of the polarizing roll film 20 are distorted and deformed due to a stress generated in the stretch process. As a result, the transmission axes 22 are not uniformly aligned along a stretch direction. Instead, the polarizing roll film 20 has a deviation in the direction of the transmission axes 22.
The polarizing roll film 20 is cut into polarizing plates 11 (of FIG. 1) along the plurality of polarizing plate areas 11a and polarizing plates 10 (of FIG. 1) are completed by forming the first support layer 13a (of FIG. 1), the anti-glare layer 15 (of FIG. 1), the second support layer 13b (of FIG. 1) and the adhesive layer 17 (of FIG. 1). The plurality of polarizing areas 11a are disposed such that two opposite sides of each polarizing area 11a are parallel to two opposite sides of the polarizing roll film 20. Since the transmission axes 22 of the polarizing roll film 20 are distorted, the polarizing plates 10 (of FIG. 1) have a deviation in the direction of the transmission axes 22. The deviation in the direction of the transmission axes 22 causes a color stain or a decoloration in an LCD device including the polarizing plate 10 (of FIG. 1). Further, the deviation in the direction of the transmission axes 22 causes deterioration of the polarization property, thereby reducing the contrast ratio of an LCD device including the polarizing plate 10 (of FIG. 1).
FIG. 3 is a histogram showing deviation in direction of transmission axes of polarizing plates according to the related art. In FIG. 3, transmission axes of polarizing plates are measured according to central, left and right regions A, B and C (of FIG. 2) of a polarizing roll film 20 (of FIG. 2). The x-axis of the histogram represents an angle between a transmission axis of a polarizing plate and a reference direction and the y-axis of the histogram represents the numbers of polarizing plates having the corresponding angle. The reference direction is determined as a lengthwise direction of the polarizing plates, which is the same as a lengthwise direction of the polarizing roll film 20. As shown in FIG. 3, the polarizing plates in the central region A have the transmission axes of an angle between about −0.075° to about −0.05°. In addition, the polarizing plates in the left region B have the transmission axes of an angle between about −0.3° to about −0.275°, and the polarizing plates in the right region C have the transmission axes of an angle of about 0.075°. As a result, the transmission axes of the polarizing plates have an angle between about −0.3 to about 0.075 with respect to the reference direction, and the polarizing plates have relatively great deviation, a range width of about 0.375°, in the direction of the transmission axes.
Recently, a polarizing plate using a discotic liquid crystal molecule has been researched and developed for improving viewing angle. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a polarizing plate using a discotic liquid crystal molecule according to the related art. In FIG. 4, a polarizing plate 30 includes a polarizing layer 31, a first support layer 33a on one surface of the polarizing layer 30, a second support layer 33b on the other surface of the polarizing layer 31, an anti-glare layer 35 on the first support layer 33a and an adhesive layer 37 on the second support layer 33b. Although not shown in FIG. 4, a hard coating layer for protecting the polarizing plate 30 and a sticking prevention layer for preventing stick to adjacent layers may be further formed on the anti-glare layer 35.
The second support layer 33b includes discotic liquid crystal molecules 41 arranged in a hybrid type for improving viewing angle. The second support layer 33b of a tri-acetate cellulose (TAC) including discotic liquid crystal molecules 41 may be referred to as a WA (wide view)-TAC film and function as a retardation film.
The polarizing plate 30 is applied to an LCD device such that the adhesive layer 37 is attached to a liquid crystal panel (not shown). After the polarizing plate 30 is attached to a liquid crystal panel, the polarizing plate 30 may be heated by an environmental heat source such as a backlight unit. When the polarizing plate 30 is heated, the first and second support layers 33a and 33b expand because of heat. On the contrary, since a contractile force is accumulated in the polarizing layer 31 as a tension during the stretch step for the raw film, the polarizing layer 31 contracts with heat. Accordingly, when the polarizing plate 30 is heated, a stress is generated between the polarizing layer 31 and each of the first and second support layers 33a and 33b due to the difference in response to heat. The stress may deteriorate properties of the polarizing plate 30, thereby degrading the display quality of an LCD device.
Specifically, the stress between the polarizing layer 31 and the second support layer 33b may cause distortion in the arrangement of the discotic liquid crystal molecules 41. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing distortion in arrangement of discotic liquid crystal molecules in a polarizing plate according to the related art. In FIG. 5, when a heat is applied to a polarizing plate 30 (of FIG. 4), the arrangement of the discotic liquid crystal molecules 41 is distorted due to the stress generated by contraction of the polarizing layer 31 and expansion of the second support layer 33b. The degree of distortion in the arrangement of the discotic liquid crystal molecules 41 is proportional to the difference between the contractile force of the polarizing layer 31 and the expansive force of the second support layer 33b. Since the difference between contractile force of the polarizing layer 31 and expansive force of the second support layer 33b is maximized in edge portions of the polarizing plate 30, the distortion in the arrangement of the discotic liquid crystal molecules 41 is maximized in the edge portions. Accordingly, the polarizing plate 30 has a non-uniform polarization property throughout the whole display area, and degradation in the polarization property of the polarizing plate 30 is maximized in the edge portions of an LCD device.


An illumination apparatus includes a transparent substrate, a phosphor layer, an optical wavelength selection filter layer, and a light-emitting device. The transparent substrate includes a first surface and a second surface opposing each other. The phosphor layer is disposed on the first surface side of the transparent substrate. The optical wavelength selection filter layer is disposed on the second surface side of the transparent substrate and configured to transmit light of a first wavelength therethrough and reflect light of a second wavelength that is emitted from the phosphor layer by being excited by the light of the first wavelength. The light-emitting device is configured to emit the light of the first wavelength from the optical wavelength selection filter layer side thereof toward the optical wavelength selection filter layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an illumination apparatus used in, for example, a display apparatus such as a liquid crystal display, a color conversion device used in the illumination apparatus, and a display apparatus that uses the illumination apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a light source of illumination apparatuses used in display apparatuses such as a liquid crystal display, EL and a cold cathode tube (CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent lamp)), for example, are used, and emission colors of those illumination apparatuses are mostly white.
Meanwhile, light-emitting diodes are now starting to be used as the light sources for illumination apparatuses. For example, as the illumination apparatus that uses the light-emitting diode as the light source, there is an illumination apparatus that uses a blue-light-emitting diode as the light source and is provided with a scattering layer on one surface of a light guide plate and a phosphor layer constituted of a phosphor on the other surface of the light guide plate (see, for example, Japanese Patent No. 3116727 (paragraphs [0006] to [0018], FIG. 2)). In this illumination apparatus, light emitted from the blue-light-emitting diode is scattered inside the light guide plate by the scattering layer so as to make surface luminance of the light guide plate uniform, and an emission color of light from the blue-light-emitting diode is combined with that of light from the phosphor, thus obtaining a white light emission.

Illumination apparatus, color conversion device, and display apparatus


A rotary piston for use in pumps or motors, the piston having a radially movable vanes seated within the pumps rotor. The vanes are biased outwardly and forced inwardly by a cam action of the interior wall of the housing of the piston. Operation of the piston may be facilitated by the use of peripherally mounted drive gears. The rotary piston according to the present invention is particularly useful in pumping fluids and provides a system that can operate at both high and low speeds for a wide range of liquid viscosities.

Rotary pistons, in the nature of encased rotors with radially extending vanes which move in and out of the rotors, depending upon their location within the casing used, for example, as pumps or turbines, are known. One such device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,554,596 of Albert and David Patterson issued Apr. 29, 2003, in which the vane movement, in and out of the rotor, is achieved by cam surfaces within the casing which act on both inner and outer edges of the vanes.
In my co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/680,236 entitled rotary pistons, the outward movement of the vanes is achieved by upward extensions of shoulders at the sides of each vane, which upward extensions contain pins which are seated in races continuously extending in portions of the interior side wall of the casing and positioned so that as the pins move about the races, they draw their respective vanes outwardly.
Other known constructions of such vane "motors" require centrifugal force, through rotation of the rotor, to force the vanes out.
Problems with such arrangements, if applied to hydraulics, include leakage of fluid between the vanes and consequent inability to effectively and efficiently handle fluids under high pressure. Of necessity, such devices have conventionally been of relatively small size, and, while they have been able to operate at fast speeds, they have been able to move only relatively low volumes of fluid.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a hydraulic pump for liquid or air which will operate efficiently and effectively at medium or high pressures and handle high fluid volumes and high torque at low, medium or high fluid pressure. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a simpler construction of rotary piston which provides for outward vane movement, from the rotor, at lower rotor speeds and without the need for cam surfaces or races within the casing, thereby providing a simpler and more economical construction for rotary pistons.


A stand-up, book-like jewelry display device has a rectangular frame mounted upright on a horizontal bracket. Product panels that hold jewelry and graphics panels that depict the jewelry in use are rotatably mounted within the frame so that each panel swings about one of its edges, thereby giving the display the appearance of a book with pages to turn. Preferably, the product panels are alternated within the frame. In addition, the graphics panels are preferably narrower than the product panels such that, other than the graphics panel within the "leaf" being viewed, each graphics panel is obscured by the product panel above it so that it does not block from view any jewelry displayed on the product panel below it. In addition, the upright frame may be rotatably mounted to the horizontal bracket such that the frame can be rotated to allow the salesperson to change the displays without having to turn the bracket. The frame may be locked in place by a peg that extends downward through the bottom portion of one side of the frame into a recess in the bracket.

This invention relates to jewelry display devices and, more particularly, to jewelry display devices that have swinging display panels.
Retail jewelry vendors have long searched for better ways to display jewelry to their customers. One common device for displaying jewelry for sale is a book-like display, either of the type that lays flat or of the type that stands erect. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,585 (Snyder) shows a jewelry storage case that has several trays for holding jewelry items, wherein each tray has a plurality of apertures for securing jewelry thereto or a plurality of hooks for hanging jewelry therefrom. The trays are hingedly attached to each other and allow the case to be opened and stood in a vertical orientation or to be closed for storage. This device is also shown in U.S. Design Pat. No. Des. 317,380 (Snyder). In addition, U.S. Design Pat. Nos. Des. 266,115 (Glenn, Sr. et al.) and 348,155 (McCreary et al.) both show book-like jewelry cases in which "pages" for holding jewelry are hingedly attached to one another and which may be closed for storage. U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,012 (Dufour) shows a book-like jewelry case having pages of mesh material onto which jewelry may be hung. Separator pages, each having cushioning on both sides, are bound between the mesh pages, and the front and rear covers also contain cushioning on the inside of each. This device also has a closure means to allow this jewelry display "notebook" to be closed for storage.
Each of the aforementioned jewelry display cases is structured to allow the user to open the display case and display the jewelry by turning the "pages" of the book onto which the jewelry is secured. The case may, in some cases, be stood up vertically to display the jewelry by resting on the bottom edges of the cover or pages of the book when open. Each of these cases may also be closed to allow the jewelry to be stored inside and to allow the jewelry case to be portable. These jewelry cases, however, are structured for portable displays and not for a larger retail display that can be attached to a counter top. In addition, these jewelry cases in no way allow a customer to see how the jewelry appears in use. It is desirable to provide a stand-up display that allows salespeople and consumers to "page" through displayed jewelry and that graphically depicts the jewelry in use.
Some display stands have allowed retail exhibition of jewelry in a non-portable frame. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,087,105 (White) shows an earring rack having two shutters hingedly attached to the outside edges of a grid frame. In this patent, the grid frame is mounted in a stationary position to a flat base to prevent the rack from tipping over when jewelry is removed therefrom or when the shutters are swung open. However, White departs from the book-like design, as the shutters give the device the appearance of a window and not the appearance of a book.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,928,555 (Childs et al.), 3,391,796 (Cross) and 3,514,883 (Albright) all show display devices having a series of swinging panels pivotally mounted within a frame. Childs et al. discloses a mounting arrangement for panels of electrical components in which each panel swings from one of two pivot points at opposite sides of the frame, wherein offset crank arms provide clearance between each leaf. In both Albright and Cross, each leaf pivots about its own pivot axis set within two parallel stationary tracks. This type of device is commonly used to display items such as posters, photographs, compact discs, etc. For such large display devices, however, it is desirable to provide a mechanism for allowing a salesperson to quickly and easily change displays without having to cross to the opposite side of the sales counter. This is generally not possible with devices such as in Albright and Cross, which are mounted to a wall or some other vertical support surface.
Accordingly, it is one object of this invention to provide a jewelry display device that allows salespeople and customers to "page" through displayed jewelry.
It is another object of this invention to provide a jewelry display device that graphically depicts the jewelry on display.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a countertop jewelry display device that allows a salesperson to quickly and easily change displays without having to cross to the opposite side of the display.


The present invention provides a method of sludge recycling by utilizing an existing facility as it is, degrading sludge efficiently and simply, and producing useful recycled water from treated water separated from the sludge, and an apparatus for sludge recycling. The present invention provides a method of sludge recycling including the steps of: bringing sludge into contact with a sludge degrading agent containing, as an active ingredient, microorganisms containing an actinomyces belonging to Streptomyces; degrading the sludge; separating the degraded sludge into a solid content and a liquid content; and producing recycled water from the liquid content.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of effectively recycling sludge discharged in a large volume and an apparatus therefor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Waste water is treated by biological waste water treatments such as an activated sludge method at a public sewage treatment plant, a night-soil treatment plant, a rural community wastewater treatment plant, or the like. However, a problem exists in that a treatment of sludge in a large volume produced from such treatment systems is difficult. Further, sludge has been conventionally treated follows. Settled sludge has been pulled out from a sedimentation tank or the like, dehydrated by a dehydrator, and incinerated or landfilled for disposal. Nevertheless, such disposal requires tremendous labor and time, and cost of transport, incineration, or the like is high. Moreover, from environmental concerns, dumpsites for the sludge discharged successively and growing enormous naturally become limited, and in the near future, respective local governments may not be able to assure dumpsites for the sludge.
Further, a sludge reduction method reported conventionally is not suited for mass disposal, and in practice, most of the sludge has been landfilled. Therefore, there still remains the need for dumpsites. Moreover, an investment for a large-scale treatment facility is necessary for the treatment, and a problem exists in that the cost of the treatment mounts. Further, a method of recycling residual sludge has been sought, but a particularly useful means has not been found.
Further, JP 2000-342670 A describes a method of degrading sludge or organic substances effectively, and a high reduction rate of sludge is indicated. However, a solution to the treatment of residual sludge has not yet been found.


A method for generating a registered image relative to a cardiac cycle and a respiratory cycle of a person is provided. The method includes generating a plurality of 2-D images of an anatomical region of the person. The method further includes generating a 3-D model of the anatomical region of the person. The 3-D model is associated with a predetermined phase of the cardiac cycle and a predetermined phase of the respiratory cycle. The method further includes selecting a first 2-D image from the plurality of 2-D images associated with the predetermined phase of the cardiac cycle and the predetermined phase of the respiratory cycle. The method further includes generating the registered image of the anatomical region utilizing the first 2-D image and the 3-D model. The method further includes storing the registered image in a memory device.

A fluoroscopy system has been utilized to generate a 2-D image of an anatomical region. Further, a CT system has been utilized to generate a 3-D model an anatomical region. However, a drawback associated with the fluoroscopy system and the CT system, is that neither system can generate a registered image, illustrating features of the anatomical region in the 2-D image and the 3-D model, corresponding to a predetermined phase of a cardiac cycle and a predetermined phase of a respiratory cycle.
The inventors herein have recognized a need for a method for generating a registered image of an anatomical region that is associated with a predetermined phase of a cardiac cycle and a predetermined phase of a respiratory cycle.

Method for generating a registered image relative to a cardiac cycle and a respiratory cycle of a person


The system comprises a roller screw mechanism 12 which is provided with a screw 16 which comprises at least a first outer threaded portion 18, a nut 20 and a plurality of rollers 24 which cooperate with the first outer portion 18 and an inner thread of the nut. The system further comprises a roller thrust bearing 14 which is mounted on a second outer portion 52 of the screw and which is provided with a bushing 50 and a plurality of rollers 56 which comprise flanks which cooperate with flanks of the second outer portion 52 of the screw and the bushing 50. The flanks of the screw, the bushing and the rollers are configured so that, during a rotation of the screw, the rollers 56 are fixed axially relative to the screw 16 and relative to the bushing 50.

Such a mechanism is provided with a screw which comprises an outer thread, a nut which is arranged around the screw and which comprises an inner thread, and a plurality of longitudinal rollers which engage with the outer and inner threads of the screw and the nut. Compared with a ball screw mechanism, a roller screw mechanism has the main advantage of having higher permissible load capacities.
A first type of roller screw mechanism provides rollers which have an outer thread which is in engagement with the outer and inner threads of the screw and the nut, and which roll in the nut around the screw in a constant axial position. Such a mechanism is referred to as a satellite roller screw.
A second type of mechanism comprises rollers which are non-threaded but which are provided with grooves inside which the outer thread of the screw and the inner thread of the nut are accommodated. During a rotation of the screw or the nut, the rollers move axially in the nut. After a complete revolution, each roller is returned to the initial position thereof by cams which are fixed to the ends of the nut. Such a mechanism is referred to as a screw with roller recirculation.
In order to rotatably guide the screw of a roller screw mechanism and to support the loads transmitted, there is generally mounted an end bearing on a smooth portion of the screw. This bearing must support relatively high loads. Consequently, the end bearing generally used comprises four oblique-contact ball bearings which are accommodated inside a casing and preloaded axially by a self-locking clamping nut.
This solution has in particular the disadvantages of having a large axial dimension and requiring a large number of assembly operations. Furthermore, the weight of such a bearing is relatively great.
An object of the present invention is to overcome these drawbacks.

System comprising a roller screw and a roller thrust bearing


An improved gliding-style rocking chair (10) provides a base (12) for continuous engagement of a support surface (94), wherein the base (12) does not move along the support surface (94) during use. Moreover, in the preferred embodiment, the improved gliding-style rocking chair (10) is designed to allow simple attachment of a seat (18) to the base (12). A seat support (16) is provided for the attachment of the seat (18). A plurality of pivoting members (54) is provided for pivotally connecting the base (12) and the seat support (16). At least one stop rod (60) is provided for limiting the motion of the seat support (16) in relation to the base (12). A damper (64) is provided for reducing the shock resulting from the contact between a first stop rod (60) and the base as the improved gliding-style rocking chair (10) is pushed to the rearward limit. A seat (18) is provided for the seating of a user. A plurality of seat connectors (78) is provided for connecting the seat (18) to the seat support (16). A plurality of cushions (20) may be provided as desired for the comfort of the user.

In the field of rocking chairs, it is well known that many undesirable characteristics are inherent in the traditional rocking chair. For example, when the traditional-style rocking chair is used, the ends of the rockers continuously oscillate toward and away from the floor. This may cause serious injury to the body of a person who accidently gets caught underneath. Animals have also been injured as well. Another undesirable characteristic of such rocking chairs is that during use, the chair has a tendency to slowly move across the floor.
In an attempt to overcome such problems, several gliding rockers have been devised so that the motion of the user is substantially the same as per the traditional styled rocking chairs. Gliding-style rocking chairs include a support frame which engages the floor and does not move substantially in relation thereto. However, several problems still remain with conventional gliding-style rocking chairs.
Namely, if the gliding-style rocking chair is maneuvered to reach the full backward motion, the seat portion collides with the frame, thereby causing a sudden impact between the two. This impact will momentarily lift the frame from the floor and the momentum obtained in the back-swing of the seat portion will move the gliding-style rocking chair along the floor in a direction toward the rear of the chair a distance dependant on the force of the impact. Therefore, when the conventional gliding-style rocking chairs are swung over a full range of motion, the problems of the traditional rocking chair reoccur.
Further, many conventional gliding-style rocking chairs are of such size that shipping is prohibited. Many shipping companies have restrictions as to the size of a parcel which may be shipped. Some gliding-style rockers are shipped in at least two pieces to avoid having to ship via trucking companies, which are traditionally more expensive and less efficient. However, assembling these gliding-style rocking chairs is typically very difficult for the average user.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a gliding-style rocking chair which provides a base means for continuous engagement of a support surface such as a floor, wherein the base means does not move along the floor during use.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a gliding-style rocking chair which may be assembled and disassembled quickly and easily, thereby allowing for shipping with most parcel carriers.


An equipment support stand for mounting and positioning photographic, motion picture and video accessories and the like. A riser comprising a plurality of telescoping shafts is coupled to at least three rotatable support legs which, when activated, will position the riser vertically relative to the mounting surface. Each support leg is integral with a positioning sleeve which is rotatably coupled about the lower end of the riser. Each positioning sleeve includes at least one engagement surface which is adapted to interface with the adjacent positioning sleeve or sleeves. When engaged, each of the three support legs are angularly spaced from adjacent support legs by 120.degree. of arc. In a closed state, the support legs may be rotated about the riser and be placed in a co-planar relationship with one another to facilitate storage and transport.

1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention generally relates to mechanical supporting apparatus, and more particularly, to supporting apparatus used to positionally support photographic, motion picture and video accessories.
2. Prior Art.
As the photographic, motion picture and television industries have evolved and developed, demand for equipment which is capable of enhancing the final product has increased. This is led to the use of accessories which are integral and necessary to the filming and/or recording of visual and audible images. These accessories are, for example, such items as light reflectors, filters and microphones. The effective use of these accessories requires that they be placed in precisely the correct location to permit optimum recording of visual images and/or sound.
The prior art illustrates numerous designs for apparatus used to vertically position photographic, motion picture and video accessories. The most basic design constitutes a plurality of supporting legs, typically in the form of a fixed tripod which is integral with a vertical riser. The photographic, motion picture and video accessories which are to be positioned are secured directly or indirectly at the upper end of the vertical riser. The inadequacies of this design are inherent in its structure. Since all support members are in a fixed position relative to each other and the riser, they cannot be adjusted to compensate for changing conditions which result from the mounting surface upon which the apparatus is used. For example, where cables or other obstruction of varying heights are present, the fixed relationship of the support legs obviate the ability to change the height of the supporting apparatus or the individual support legs to compensate for the environment. In addition, the inability to fold or otherwise collapse the stand renders the design inefficient for storage or transport.
Another design for an equipment support apparatus disclosed by the prior art utilizes a supporting tripod wherein each of the three support legs are independently rotatable about an equipment riser. Although the support legs may be placed in a co-planar position to thereby reduce the problems inherent in storage and in transporting same, the inability to efficiently lock the support legs in a stable position creates problems which are resolved by the present invention. In the prior art design, each of the support legs is required to be independently rotatable with respect to one another about the riser shaft. As a result, unless easily and accurately positioned with respect to one another, the positioning of the support legs will be unstable and create the possibility of damage to the supported equipment.
The present invention resolves the problems inherent in the designs disclosed by the prior art. The present invention equipment support stand employs support legs which are integral with positioning sleeves. The sleeves are adapted to engage one another in a manner which will stabilize the support legs and accurately position them in relation to one another. In addition, since the positioning sleeves determine the angular separation of each support leg relative to the others, the present invention design insures support stability while simultaneously resolving the problems inherent in storage and transport.


A solid electrolyte for a lithium-sulfur battery includes particles of a lithium ion conducting oxide composition embedded within a lithium ion conducting sulfide composition. The lithium ion conducting oxide composition can be Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO). The lithium ion conducting sulfide composition can be β-Li3PS4 (LPS). A lithium ion battery and a method of making a solid electrolyte for a lithium ion battery are also disclosed.

Since its introduction in 1991, modern Li-ion battery technology has found a wide range of applications from portable electronics to transportation systems. Due to the increasing demand on advanced energy storage devices, high energy density technologies such as Li—S and Li—O2 are now being extensively researched. Li—S cells offer a 6-fold increase in specific energy over conventional Li-ion systems. Their implementation is currently limited by the dissolution and migration of polysulfides in conventional liquid electrolytes. The polysulfide shuttle phenomenon leads to a decrease in columbic efficiency and rapid electrode degradation. In addition, cycling a metallic lithium anode in liquid electrolyte raises safety concerns due to the dendrite-caused internal cell shorting and high flammability of organic solvents.
Solid state Li-ion conductors offer a solution to these issues by providing a typically impermeable membrane that prevents the penetration of lithium dendrites and the migration of polysulfides. Additionally, they offer improved electrochemical, mechanical and thermal stability. Ionic conductivity of solid electrolytes can be as high as liquid electrolytes with concentrated salts. For example, the sulfide based Li10GeP2S12 has an unprecedented ionic conductivity of 1.2×10−2 S cm−1 which is comparable to that of 1M LiPF6 in the carbonate solvents.
Solid electrolytes are single ion conductors; the lithium ion transference number is 1. With comparable ionic conductivities, the effective lithium-ion conductivity of solid electrolytes is much higher than that of liquid electrolytes. However a majority of the solid state conductors suffer from poor ionic conductivity (10−6 to 10−8 S cm−1), while the better ionic conductors are not stable with metallic Li anodes.
The practical use of solid electrolytes in batteries extends beyond the investigation of ionic conductivity. Chemical compatibility of solid electrolytes with electrode materials, interfacial resistance, and processablity of the solid electrolytes restrict the deployment of solid electrolytes in batteries. Thus, it is very challenging to have a single electrolyte that meets all above requirements for practical use in batteries.

High conducting oxide—sulfide composite lithium superionic conductor


A method and apparatus for a rugged three-axis inclinometer for determining an object's orientation with respect to a gravitational field. Components of the apparatus include but not limited to a magnet, a non-magnetic casing, a ferrofluid, one or more non-magnetic gravitational field aligning materials attached to the magnet and a plurality of angle sensors attached to the non-magnetic casing. In this regard, when the apparatus is rotated, the gravitational field aligning materials maintain a constant orientation of the magnet and the angle sensors experience different magnetic field strengths as they rotate around the magnet. The position of the apparatus, with respect to the gravitational field can then be calculated based on the angle sensor outputs.

Determining the orientation of a device with respect to gravity is typically accomplished by attaching accelerometers to the device and performing calculations on the output of the accelerometers. These types of orientation measurement devices are known as inclinometers. Example applications of the use of this technology are digital cameras, cell phones and game controllers. Another example of an application desiring a method to determine a device orientation with respect to gravity is the bit end of a downhole drilling device for the oil and gas industry. In the downhole drilling application, it is important to know the orientation of the drill bit to assure the safety and integrity of the drilling operation.
The currently available designs result in several problems experienced during operation in a downhole well drilling operation. First, the operating temperature in a downhole well drilling application exceeds the operating temperature ranges of available accelerometers. Second, and more importantly, the operating environment of a downhole well drilling application includes vibration and shock events that would damage and/or disable available accelerometers, rendering them useless for determining the device orientation with respect to gravity.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide devices and methods that avoid the afore-described problems and drawbacks.