A detecting device includes: a measurement coil made up of a first partial coil to which current in a particular direction is induced by a magnetic field to be supplied to a power reception coil configured to receive power, and a second partial coil to which the current in the opposite direction of the particular direction is induced by the magnetic field; a measurement unit configured to measure the voltage of the measurement coil as measurement coil voltage; and a foreign object detecting unit configured to detect a foreign object within the magnetic field based on the measurement coil voltage.

The present disclosure relates to a detecting device, a power supply system, and a detecting device control method, and specifically relates to a detecting device, a power supply system, and a detecting device control method, which detect a foreign object within a magnetic field.
Recently, a power supply system, which supplies power to a consumer electronics (CE) device such as a cellular phone, portable music player, or the like in an electrically noncontact manner, has received attention. This power supply system has been referred to as a noncontact power supply system, noncontact power transmission system, or wireless power supply system. This system enables a secondary-side device such as an electronic device or the like to be charged using a simple method such that placing the secondary-side device on a primary-side device such as a power supply device or the like. That is to say, this system eliminates terminal connection between the electronic device and power supply device.
Electromagnetic induction has been widely used as a method to perform supply of power in such a noncontact manner. Lately, a noncontact power supply system, which employs magnetic field resonance (or magnetic resonance) utilizing the resonance phenomenon, has also received attention.
The noncontact power supply system using the magnetic field resonance method has an advantage over the electromagnetic induction method in that transmission of power can be performed between devices with more distance therebetween, utilizing a principle called the resonance phenomenon. Also, the noncontact power supply system using the magnetic field resonance method has an advantage such that power transmission efficiency (that is, power supply efficiency) does not deteriorate even when axial matching is poor between a power supply coil serving as the power supply source and a power reception coil serving as the power supply destination.
However, the fact remains that both the magnetic field resonance method and electromagnetic induction method are noncontact power supply systems utilizing magnetic coupling between a power supply coil serving as the power supply source and a power reception coil serving as the power supply destination.
Incidentally, there have been developed heat generation countermeasures regarding foreign objects such as metal, magnetic materials, magnets, and so forth, which may generate heat due to magnetic field lines, as one of important factors in the noncontact power supply system. Upon a foreign object entering the gap between the power supply coil and power reception coil in the noncontact power supply system in the electromagnetic induction method or magnetic field resonance method, there is a possibility that the foreign object will generate heat due to magnetic field lines passing through this foreign object. Such heat generation of the foreign object is caused due to overcurrent loss generated at a metal foreign object through which the magnetic field lines pass, hysteresis loss generated at a foreign object magnetic material or foreign object magnet or the like through which magnetic field lines pass, or the like.
Since the heat generation of a foreign object may lead to malfunction or damage or the like of the power supply device or electronic device, prevention of heat generation of the foreign object can be said to be a major issue in the noncontact power supply system.
Though there is a technique to deal with this heat generation, which involves adding a temperature sensor to detect the heat generation of a foreign object, this technique is far from being a fundamental solution for the heat generation of a foreign object, since this technique detects the temperature of a foreign object which has already been heated. That is to say, a method for enabling detection of a foreign object before the foreign object excessively generates heat, is desirable as a method for detecting a foreign object which may generate heat due to magnetic field lines.
Therefore, there has been proposed a technique for determining whether or not there is a metal foreign object, by monitoring electrical parameters (current, voltage, and so forth) which will change when a metal foreign object enters between the power supply side and power reception side. Such a technique enables detection of whether or not there is a foreign object, before the foreign object excessively generates heat. Specifically, there has been proposed a technique for detecting a metal foreign object, by monitoring change in amplitude and phase at the time of communication between the power supply side and power reception side (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-206231). Also, a method for detecting a metal foreign object according to overcurrent loss has been proposed (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-275280).

Detecting device, power supply system, and detecting device control method


An aspect of the present invention performs offline validation of data in database system for foreign key constraints. In an embodiment, a foreign key constraint defined for a database system is identified and an SQL script designed to verify whether data values stored in a foreign key column of a detail table is present in a primary key column of a master table (corresponding to the identified foreign key constraint), is generated. The SQL script is executed to determine whether the data stored in the database system satisfies the identified foreign key constraint.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to database systems and more specifically to offline validation of data in a database system for foreign key constraints.
2. Related Art
A database system generally enables data to be organized and managed in a structured manner. A common example of a database system is a relational database management system (RDBMS), in which data is organized in the form of one or more databases, tables and columns (containing the actual data values), and the data is managed (added/deleted/updated, etc.) in databases using structured queries (e.g., Structured Query Language) as is well known in the relevant arts.
Keys are fundamental to the organization of data in a database system. Thus, in the context of relational database systems, data is organized in the form of tables and a primary key (spanning one or more columns) uniquely identifies each row of a table. On the other hand, a foreign key identifies a column or a set of columns (foreign key column) in one (referencing) table that refers to a column or set of columns (primary/candidate key column) in another (referenced) table.
Constraints are often defined associated with a database system to restrict the type/format/uniqueness of the data values stored in specific columns in the database system. In particular, with respect to foreign keys noted above, the data values stored in a foreign key column of a table are to be restricted to the specific data values stored in the primary key column in another table. Such a constraint is referred to as a foreign key constraint.
Validation of data for foreign key constraints is commonly performed/enforced when data values are sought to be stored in the database system during normal operations (e.g., when processing transaction requests, etc). Such validations performed during normal operations may be termed as 'online or real-time validation', and generally operates to ensure that the data in the database system is maintained in a consistent form, including enforcement of the foreign key constraints (according to the design/definition of the database system).
There is often a need for offline validation of data for foreign key constraints. Offline validation refers to validation of data already stored in a database system. Offline validation may be desirable, for example, in scenarios where the database system is required to be populated with large amount of data (e.g., when migrating, upgrading or importing) without enforcements of the constraints during the population/storage process (to reduce the time/resources requirements). Accordingly, it may be desirable that the populated data be validated offline/later to ensure that the data is consistent for subsequent normal operation of the database system.
Several aspects of the present invention provide for offline validation of data in a database system for foreign key constraints, as described below with examples.
In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements. The drawing in which an element first appears is indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the corresponding reference number.

Offline validation of data in a database system for foreign key constraints


A method and a device for detecting chromosomal structural abnormalities are provided. The method includes acquiring a whole genome sequencing result of a target individual, that is, multiple pairs of Reads located at two ends of chromosome fragments are determined; aligning the sequencing result with a reference sequence to obtain an abnormal match set, which includes Read pairs that have two Read sequences matched respectively to different chromosomes of the reference sequence; clustering the Read sequences in the abnormal match set based on the positions matched thereto; and filtering the resultant clusters by using, for example, preset requirements associated with compactness and others, and obtaining the filtered result, clusters, for determining the occurrence of translocation-type chromosomal structural abnormity.

Technical Field
The present invention relates to the technical field of genomics and bioinformatics technologies, and more particularly to a method and a device for detecting chromosomal structural abnormalities.
Related Art
Currently, the commonly used chromosome examination methods include the following.
Karyotype analysis, for example G-banding karyotype analysis, determines chromosomal structural abnormalities based on the distribution of 400 to 600 BANDs, and thus generally can detect the abnormalities on chromosomal level only. The method may detect the deletion or repetition of above 5 Mbp in the best situations, but fails to detect much smaller fragments (<5 M). Moreover, the method necessitates the culture of living cells, and the cells are required to stay alive.
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) can detect the deletion, repetition, and balanced translocation of much smaller fragments. However, the chromosome fragment to be detected is required to be predetermined, to prepare the corresponding probe. As such, the method is limited by probe design. FISH is frequently used for validation of detection results, due to its failure in detection of unknown regions.
Microarray method includes two probe methods. One is designed based on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and the other is designed based on CNV. Therefore, the method suffers from the similar limitations to FISH.
With the continuous development of whole genome sequencing technologies, the sequencing cost is continuously lowered, so that generalization of whole genome sequencing may become possible. It is necessary to investigate means of finding chromosomal structural abnormalities based on whole genome sequencing results.

Method and device for detecting chromosomal structural abnormalities


The present invention is directed to a method of manufacturing silicide used to reduce a contact resistance at a contact of a semiconductor device and a semiconductor device with the silicide manufactured by the same method. The method comprises the steps of: (a) cleaning a semiconductor substrate with a transistor formed thereon, the transistor including a source electrode, a drain electrode and a gate electrode; (b) placing the cleaned semiconductor substrate into a sputter chamber in a deposition equipment, and forming silicide at the same time of depositing a metal film under a state where the semiconductor substrate is heated at a temperature of 450-600° C.; (c) removing residual metal film not used for the formation of silicide; and (d) annealing the semiconductor substrate. According to the present invention, since silicide is formed at the same time of depositing a cobalt film, there is an advantage of omission of a protection film formation process over the prior arts where silicide is formed by a post-heat treatment.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly to a method of manufacturing silicide used to reduce a contact resistance at a contact of a semiconductor device and a semiconductor device with the silicide manufactured by the same method.
(b) Description of the Related Art
In general, a semiconductor device includes a plurality of transistors, each of which includes a source/drain electrode and a gate electrode in each of device regions separated from one another by a device isolation method such as a LOCOS (local oxidation of silicon) or STI (shallow trench isolation) method, and titanium silicide or cobalt silicide used to reduce a contact resistance of a transistor driving circuit.
Techniques related to the silicide formation process are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,534,390, 6,316,362, 6,013,566, 5,869,397, and 5,780,350
Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing the silicide according to the prior art is in brief described with reference to FIG. 3 as follows.
First, as shown in FIG. 3A, a transistor 104 including a source/drain electrode 104a and a gate electrode 104b is formed between two device isolation regions 102 of a semiconductor substrate 100, and then a cleaning process for removing a variety of undesired impurities such as metal impurities, organic contaminations or natural oxide films residual on the semiconductor substrate 100 is performed.
Here, a chemical cleaning process to use SC1 (standard cleaning: an organic mixture where NH4OH:H2O2:H2O is 1:4:20) solution and HF or DHF (dilute HF) solution is used as the cleaning process.
Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, a metal film 106 is formed by sputtering metal, such as cobalt for forming silicide in a sputter chamber in a sputter system, on the entire surface of the semiconductor substrate 100. At this time, the semiconductor substrate 100 is heated at a temperature of 20-50° C. After forming the metal film 106, a Ti or TiN protection film 108 for preventing nitrification or contamination of the metal film 106 in the course of a post-heat treatment process is deposited.
Next, as shown in FIGS. 3C and 3D, silicide 110 is formed by picking and placing the semiconductor substrate 100 into a RTP (rapid thermal process) equipment or an electric furnace and then post-heat treating it at a temperature of 400-600° C. Subsequently, after removing residual metal film 106 not used for the formation of the silicide 100, silicide 110 with a low resistance is completed by annealing the semiconductor substrate 100 and stabilizing a phase of the silicide 100.
However, in the prior art as described above, since the silicide 110 is formed through the post-heat treatment process, and the protection film 108 for protecting a surface of the metal film 106 at the time of the formation of the silicide 110 has to be formed, there is a problem of increase of process time.

Method for manufacturing silicide and semiconductor with the silicide


The present application discloses a method for multiplexing multi-service UCI on an uplink data channel to solve the problem of different numbers of coded bits of UCI of different services. The method includes: regulating a value of a code rate offset of UCI relative to a UL-SCH, and calculating the number of modulation symbols for transmitting coded information according to the code rate offset. With the consideration that URLLC data requires higher reliability when UCI of the eMBB service is multiplexed on a UL-SCH of the URLLC service, a corresponding numerical value is required to be smaller than 1. When UCI of a URLLC is multiplexed on a PUSCH of the eMBB, the code rate offset is increased. furthermore, high-layer signaling may include a scaling parameter. It is suitable to apply the method disclosed by the present application to different service multiplexing scenarios simultaneously.

An NR supports three service types including the eMBB service, the URLLC service and the mMTC service. For the URLLC service, the targets of use plane time delay of both the uplink and downlink are 0.5 ms. Generally, the reliability of one-time transmission of the URLLC is required as that: the reliability of transmitting a 32-byte packet is equal to 1-10{circumflex over ( )}(-5) within the time delay (1 ms) on the user plane. Due to the diversity of service types, a situation that a plurality service types are multiplexed may appear. In NR system, a PUSCH may bear an uplink shared channel (UL-SCH) and/or uplink control information (UCI) transmitted by a terminal device. When different service types are multiplexed, a situation that data with different service types and UCI with different service types are multiplexed may appear.
When the UCI is transmitted on the PUSCH, a plurality of situations may appear in consideration of the plurality of services multiplexing. With eMBB and URLLC multiplexing as an example, for the first situation, UCI of the same service type (the eMBB or the URLLC) is multiplexed on the PUSCH so as to be transmitted; for the second situation, UCI of the eMBB is transmitted on a PUSCH of the URLLC; for the third situation, UCI of the URLLC is transmitted on a PUSCH of the eMBB; and there are different ways for determining the number of coded bits of UCI in the three situations.

Method for multiplexing multi-service UCI on uplink data channel

CHINA ACADEMY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS


A system to connect and retain a first member with a second member. The first member has a mounting section with two arms and a bridge between the arms. The arms are canted towards each other in a general cantilever fashion and are deflectable outward from each other. The bridge extends between middle sections of the two arms and is deflectable as the arms are moved outward. The bridge can be collapsed to retain the arms in their outward position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to retaining two members together and, in particular, to a system for connecting to members to each other by use of a collapsible bridge.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 2,329,471 discloses an electrical terminal with teeth that are driven into walls of a support as feet are bent. U.S. Pat. No. 2,933,007 discloses an insert member that has teeth. A screw expands sides of the insert and can contact a bottom cantilever. U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,227 discloses a terminal retention device with nibs. U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,119 discloses an electrical contact with a base section having compliant spring sections and projections.

Retention system with collapsible bridge


A safety vest to be used in a car and more particularly a safety vest to be worn by a child in a car; the safety vest comprises a vest portion and a plurality of safety belts being fixed inside the lamina of the vest portion; the front opening of the vest portion is furnished with buckle assemblies whereby the safety vest can be put securely on a child. The back of the vest has two slots, through which a car safety (or seat) belt is inserted so as to allow the safety vest fixedly mounted on car seat; since the car safety belt and the safety vest are assembled together, a larger restraining area can be formed and applied to a child, and in case of emergency or accident, the injury to a child would be minimized.

Recently, the number of mother or father drivers who have to carry their baby around has increased considerably. As a consequence, the baby has more chances than ever to sit beside a mother or father driver. Unfortunately, the conventional car safety belt (or seat belt) is evidently not capable of protecting the baby in a car in case of accident. The worst of it is that some children were strangled to death in an accident as a result of the seat belt. In the market, there are available safety chairs for babies who sit in a car so as to provide greater protections.
The aforesaid safety chair is substantially a simple seating chair, which includes a cushion, a back frame and a safety belt; the seating chair is then fastened in place with a seat belt.
Apparently, the aforesaid safety chair has a complex structure, which causes a higher cost that may not be affordable the ordinary consumers; the structure of such safety chair is good only for children who are young and not too tall, but is not good for children who have grown a little older or higher; further, such a safety chair takes a considerable storage space when not in use; to a small car which has a limited space, such a safety chair is deemed not an ideal structure designed. Moreover, a simple seat chair would give rise to a problem, i.e., it is rather difficult to keep a child to sit thereon quietly and patiently.


An adjustment device for a hearing aid includes: an audio extraction section for, through an acoustic process of a collected audio signal, utilizing information of a phoneme or syllable contained in the audio signal to output time information, the time information identifying a point of uttering the phoneme or syllable; an electroencephalogram measurement section for measuring an electroencephalogram signal of a user; a determination section for determining a difficulty of hearing of the phoneme or syllable by relying on an event-related potential in the electroencephalogram signal based on the identified point of uttering the phoneme or syllable as a starting point; a phoneme identification section for, when a plurality of phonemes or syllables are determined as difficult to hear, identifying a chronologically preceding phoneme or syllable among them to be difficult to hear; and a gain adjustment section for, with respect to the phoneme or syllable identified by the phoneme identification section, determining a gain adjustment method based on a type of the phoneme or syllable, and adjusting a gain for the phoneme or syllable in accordance with the determined gain adjustment method.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique of making adjustments for a hearing aid. More specifically, the present invention relates to a technique of utilizing an electroencephalogram of a user who is wearing a hearing aid to identify phonemes which are difficult for the user to hear, and adjusting a correction process in the hearing aid to realize better hearing.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, due to the aging society, increased opportunities for listening to loud music for long hours, and other influences, there is an increasing number of people suffering from presbycusis or hypacusia associated with acoustic traumas. Moreover, due to the downsizing and improved performance of hearing aids, users feel less of a psychological barrier against wearing hearing aids, and there is an increasing number of users who use hearing aids to be able to hear daily conversations more clearly.
A hearing aid is a device for compensating for the deteriorated hearing of a user through sound amplification. The amount of sound amplification which a user desires in a hearing aid depends on the level of deterioration in the hearing of the user, and on the frequency band. Therefore, before beginning use of a hearing aid, "fitting" is required for adjusting the amount of sound amplification for each frequency, in accordance with the hearing of each user.
Fitting is generally performed based on each user's audiogram. An "audiogram" is a result of evaluating how a pure tone of each frequency is heard; for example, a diagram in which, for each of a number of sounds of different frequencies, the smallest sound pressure level (decibel value) that the user can hear is plotted against frequency. An audiogram is created at a hearing aid shop or a medical institution.
A hearing aid shop or a medical institution first generates an audiogram for each user. Then, from the audiogram, an amount of amplification is determined and an initial adjustment is made according to a fitting method, which is an adjustment method for providing amplification to a sound pressure level for attaining comfortable hearing.
As necessary, a hearing aid shop further performs a speech sound intelligibility assessment, which involves presenting monosyllabic audios one by one to the user orally or from a CD, and making evaluations as to whether the speech sounds were actually heard, and thus makes a fine adjustment for the hearing aid. Through repetitions of such evaluations and hearing aid adjustments, a hearing aid is obtained which has characteristics suited to the hearing of the user.
However, there has been a problem in that satisfactory adjustments for a hearing aid may not necessarily be made even through such fully-attended adjustments, because such hearing aid evaluations and adjustments are made in a hearing aid shop and by a shop expert.
More specifically, it is in the scenes of daily life that a user of a hearing aid actually wears the hearing aid, e.g., in the household, while watching television, or while going out, and thus the optimum adjustment for the hearing aid will presumably differ from situation to situation. Conventionally, when any dissatisfaction with regard to the adjustment of a hearing aid is felt in the daily life, such scenes of dissatisfaction must be memorized (e.g., conversations are clearly heard but television tends to sound too loud; while there was no problem conversing with an expert at the hearing aid shop, talking to the family still presents a problem in aural comprehension; and so on). Then, such scenes must be conveyed to an expert at the hearing aid shop, based on which the expert makes a readjustment.
The difficulty in such adjustments is that the user needs to recall from memory those past experiences of difficulty of hearing, and try to explain the particular scene(s) and difficulty of hearing to the expert, who tries to estimate out of this dialogue what is appropriate from among a large number of adjustable items with regard to the hearing aid. In the first place, subjective expressions of hearing may permit a lot of variations, and the difficulty of adjustments is further enhanced by reliance on memory.
One solution to such problems may be an approach of making automatic readjustments in scenes of daily life. Known conventional techniques related to this approach are, in particular: a technique of making evaluations based on an objective index (such as an electroencephalogram) rather than making hearing evaluations based on oral reporting (Japanese National Phase PCT Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-533258); a technique of adjusting the reproduced sound based on changes in external ambient sounds (Japanese Patent No. 4145507); a technique of retaining a plurality of fitting parameters and switching between them (Japanese Patent No. 3482465); and so on.
The technique of Japanese National Phase PCT Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-533258 evaluates auditory characteristics for each frequency with respect to pure tones by using an electroencephalogram, based on ASSR (Auditory Steady-State Response). As a result, evaluations can be made without having to provide oral reporting, which would permit large variations from user to user.
The technique of Japanese Patent No. 4145507 ensures that music of the same sound quality is always reproduced irrespective of fluctuations in the external ambient sounds, thus being able to cope with fluctuations in the external ambient sounds to a certain extent.
The technique of Japanese Patent No. 3482465 makes use of a plurality of previously-stored fitting parameters, and switches between the fitting parameters in accordance with the acoustic environment of one's place of living.
The above techniques are techniques of adapting the hearing to the acoustic environment, which differs in each scene of life, and may be useful in making evaluations of hearing without oral reporting.
However, these techniques cannot be used to make evaluations of hearing in the daily life without inconveniencing the user, so as to realize readjustments of a hearing aid in situ. In other words, it is impossible to objectively detect a sound that is difficult for a user to hear in daily life, and make an automatic adjustment. For example, in Patent Document 1, although a user's hearing of a pure tone can be evaluated, evaluations concerning conversational sounds cannot be made. In Japanese Patent No. 4145507, although adjustments in accordance with external sounds can be made to a certain extent, no adjustments are possible that are in accordance with how the user heard them. In Japanese Patent No. 3482465, although a plurality of adjustment parameters may be retained, there is no guarantee that parameters for addressing every possible situation are provided.
For the user, the criterion as to whether or not a hearing aid needs an adjustment should be whether the user himself or herself can easily and aurally comprehend a given sound which is heard through the hearing aid, irrespective of the acoustic environment. In particular, if a phoneme that was difficult to hear can be identified, an adjustment for improving the hearing with respect to that phoneme alone can be made. Generally speaking, each individual adjustment method for hearing aids has a disadvantage in that, while it may be effective for a certain phoneme, other phonemes may be unfavorably affected by it. So long as the conventional adjustment methods are used, adjustments need to be made for every possible sound; however, such adjustments are difficult to make. Therefore, instead of the conventional adjustment methods, it would be effective to employ an adjustment method that addresses phonemes which are difficult to hear while not unfavorably affecting any other phoneme.

Device, method, and program for adjustment of hearing aid

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.


It is intended to provide a means of diagnosing myocardial infarction which shows a high accuracy and a high predictability. The risk of myocardial infarction is diagnosed by a method comprising the following steps: (i) the step of analyzing 2 or more polymorphisms among 10 gene polymorphisms or 5 gene polymorphisms proved as relating to myocardial infarction; (ii) the step of determining the genotype of a nucleic acid sample based on the polymorphism data obtained in the above step; and (iii) the step of determining the genetic risk of myocardial infarction from the genotype thus obtained.

Myocardial infarction is a multifactoral disease and its development is defined by the interaction between individual's genetic background and various environmental factors (Marenberg M E, Risch N, Berkman L F, Floderus B, de Faire U. Genetic susceptibility to death from coronary heart disease in a study of twins. N Engl J Med 1994; 330:1041-1046., Nora J J, Lortscher R H, Spangler R D, Nora A H, Kimberling W J. Genetic-epidemiologic study of early-onset ischemic heart disease. Circulation 1980; 61: 503-508). In general, the risk of myocardial infarction is increased in proportion to the number of conventional risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, etc (Nora J J, Lortscher R H, Spangler R D, Nora A H, Kimberling W J. Genetic-epidemiologic study of early-onset ischemic heart disease. Circulation 1980; 61: 503-508). These risk factors themselves are partially regulated by genetic factors. However, since a family history is an independent predictable factor of myocardial infarction, it is suggested that there are genetic factors susceptible for myocardial infarction other than conventional risk factors (Marenberg M E, Risch N, Berkman L F, Floderus B, de Faire U. Genetic susceptibility to death from coronary heart disease in a study of twins. N Engl J Med 1994; 330: 1041-1046). In addition, cases in which myocardial infarction may be developed without any conventional risk factors also suggest the relationship between myocardial infarction and genetic factors.
Myocardial infarction is a disease with the highest mortality in the Western countries. Even in the case where myocardial infarction is not lethal, it may be complicated with heart failure, angina pectoris and refractory arrhythmia, thus deteriorating the quality of life of patients. Therefore, needless to say, it is important to prevent myocardial infarction. One of the methods for preventing myocardial infarction is to identify genes susceptible for myocardial infarction. By linkage analysis (Broeckel U, Hengstenberg C, Mayer B, et al. A comprehensive linkage analysis for myocardial infarction and its related risk factors. Nature genet 2002; 30:210-214) and association studies by candidate genes (Cambien F, Poirier O, Lecerf L, et al. Deletion polymorphism in the gene for angiotensin-converting enzyme is a potent risk factor for myocardial infarction. Nature 1992; 359: 641-644. Weiss E J, Bray P F, Tayback M, et al. A polymorphism of a platelet glycoprotein receptor as an inherited risk factor for coronary thrombosis. N Engl J Med 1996; 334: 1090-1094., Iacoviello L, Di Castelnuovo A, De Knijff P, et al. Polymorphisms in the coagulation factor VII gene and the risk of myocardial infarction. N Engl J Med 1998; 338:79-85., Kuivenhoven J A, Jukema J W, Zwinderman A H, et al. The role of a common variant of the cholesterol ester transfer protein gene in the progression of coronary atherosclerosis. N Engl J Med 1998; 338: 86-93), gene locus on the chromosome and some candidate genes which are associated with myocardial infarction have been identified. Previously, by studies of genetic epidemiology, there have been reported the relationships between the myocardial infarction and gene polymorphisms such as angiotensin converting enzyme (Cambien F, Poirier O, Lecerf L, et al. Deletion polymorphism in the gene for angiotensin-converting enzyme is a potent risk factor for myocardial infarction. Nature 1992; 359: 641-644), platelet glycoprotein IIIa (Weiss E J, Bray P F, Tayback M, et al. A genetical polymorphism of a platelet glycoprotein receptor as an inherited risk factor for coronary thrombosis. N Engl J Med 1996; 334: 1090-1094), blood coagulation factor VII, cholesterol ester transfer protein (Kuivenhoven J A, Jukema J W, Zwinderman A H, et al. The role of a common variant of the cholesterol ester transfer protein gene in the progression of coronary atherosclerosis. N Engl J Med 1998; 338: 86-93), and the like. However, there have been conflicting reports, certain conclusion has never been reached. Furthermore, since different races have different gene polymorphisms, it is important to construct a database as to the relationship between polymorphisms and myocardial infarction in each race.

Method of diagnosing risk of myocardial infarction by detection of specific gene polymorphisms

Nagoya Industrial Science Research Institute


A network monitoring device for a supply network and a method for actuating a switch unit are disclosed, wherein the switch unit can control the energy supply of a consumer connected to a supply network. In order to prevent an overload of the supply network or of parts thereof, according to an embodiment of the invention, the network monitoring device includes a communication device, wherein the network monitoring device can receive a switch command for a switch unit via the communication device and transmit same to the switch unit, wherein the network monitoring device is designed to determine a network utilization of the supply network by way of a measurement device and, in dependence on the determined network utilization,; to influence a received switch command for the switch unit, which would lead to increased energy consumption on the supply network.

When motors are connected to an electrical supply network, in particular with a direct start, but also with a star-delta start, significant starting currents occur. In the case of a direct start, these currents can be six to eight times the rated motor current and, in the case of star-delta start, 3.5-4.5-times the rated motor current. Twice the motor currents still occur with soft starters or frequency converters. However, even when other electrical consumers such as, for example, capacitors in compensation systems or lighting strips in factory buildings are connected, there is greatly increased power consumption for a brief period.
In addition to the size of these currents, the duration of such overloads is also of significance. With capacitive and resistive loads, these are typically from less than 10 to a maximum of 100 ms. In the case of motors, this time constant is much longer. In an ideal case, the start-up time can be less than 200 ms but it can also be up to a few 10 s (worst-case start-up time).
Both these core variables have a considerable influence on the load on the electrical supply network and on the network quality of the supply network (voltage dips). In particular in the case of the parallel connection of a plurality of (large) consumers, the feed-in power of the supply network can be too low. The voltage dips that occur then can result in faults in components or overloads.
Power supplies are therefore designed with certain simultaneity factors which are typically less than 80% of all consumers at rated load.


This invention describes a genetic system for targeting the EVI1 gene in mammalian cells. The EVI1 gene is an oncogenic transcription factor that, when expressed, accelerates cell division and inhibits death of cells. Nucleotide sequences that block the expression of EVI1 and drug delivery systems for them are described. These nucleotide sequences cause a block in cell growth and division and trigger death of mammalian cells, including lung and ovarian cancer cells.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cancer and reagents and methods for treating cancer. The invention generally relates to reagents and methods for inhibiting tumor cell growth, and provides said reagents and methods per se as well as in embodiments adjunct or complimentary to conventional anticancer treatments. The invention specifically provides isolated ribonucleic acid oligonucleotides, in single-stranded and double-stranded forms, that inhibit tumor cell growth, particularly in short interfering RNA (siRNA) embodiments, as well as pharmaceutical compositions thereof. Methods for using said reagents to inhibit cell growth are also provided.
2. Background of the Related Art
Tumor cell growth is known to involve expression of numerous genes, and particularly the dysregulation of that expression. Several genes having dysregulation are genes that are normally expressed during development but are improperly expressed in the tumor cell, contributing to uncontrolled growth, invasiveness and other phenotypic hallmarks of cancer.
One such gene is termed EVI1. The EVI1 (ecotropic virus integration site 1) gene, which encodes a zinc finger protein, plays important roles both in normal development and in oncogenesis. Overexpression of EVI1 has been found in certain solid tumors, such as those of the female reproductive organs, and EVI1 has been shown to be a key contributor to the emergence and clinical characteristics of myeloid malignancies, including acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS).
Human EVI1 is localized to chromosome 3, band q26 (Morishita et al., 1990, The human EVI1 gene is located on chromosome 3q24-q28 but is not rearranged in three cases of acute nonlymphocytic leukemias containing t(3; 5)(q25; q34) translocations, Oncogene Res 5: 221-31), spans 60 kb, and contains 16 exons, with multiple alternative 5′ mRNA variants and several alternatively-spliced transcripts (Wieser, 2007, The oncogene and developmental regulator EVI1: expression, biochemical properties, and biological functions, Gene 396: 346-57). The major EVI1 form is a 1051-amino-acid protein with an apparent molecular weight of 145 kDa (Morishita et al., 1990, Unique expression of the human EVI1 gene in an endometrial carcinoma cell line: sequence of cDNAs and structure of alternatively spliced transcripts, Oncogene 5: 963-71; Matsugi et al., 1990, Identification, nuclear localization, and DNA-binding activity of the zinc finger protein encoded by the EVI1 myeloid transforming gene, Mol Cell Biol 10: 1259-64). EVI1 has multiple zinc finger domains that are organized into two sets, one each of seven and three zinc finger domains. A repression domain has been identified between the two sets of zinc finger domains, as well as an acidic region at the C-terminus (see FIG. 1). One particular transcript from the EVI1 gene, termed "the Δ324 transcript," is an alternative splice variant of EVI1 encoding an 88-kDa protein lacking zinc fingers 6 and 7; it is found at low levels in human and mouse cells (Bordereaux et al., 1990, Alternative splicing of the EVI1 zinc finger gene generates mRNAs which differ by the number of zinc finger motifs, Oncogene 5: 925-7.). Another variant, termed "the -Rp9 variant," lacks nine amino acids in the repression domain and is quite common in human and mouse cells.
The EVI1 protein is located in the nucleus and can bind to specific DNA sequences independently through both of its zinc finger domains (Perkins et al., 1991, EVI1, a murine zinc finger proto-oncogene, encodes a sequence-specific DNA-binding protein, Mol Cell Biol 11: 2665-74; Delwel et al., 1993, Four of the seven zinc fingers of the EVI1 myeloid-transforming gene are required for sequence-specific binding to GA(C/T)AAGA(T/C)AAGATAA, Mol Cell Biol 13: 4291-300; Morishita et al., 1995, EVI1 zinc finger protein works as a transcriptional activator via binding to a consensus sequence of GACAAGATAAGATAA(N1-28)CTCATCTTC, Oncogene 10: 1961-7). The proximal zinc finger domain recognizes a consensus sequence of 15 nucleotides consisting of GA(C/T)AAGA(T/C) AAGATAA (SEQ ID NO: 201), and EVI1 has been shown to bind directly to the Gata2 promoter through this domain (Yuasa et al., 2005, Oncogenic transcription factor Evil regulates hematopoietic stem cell proliferation through GATA-2 expression, EMBO J 24: 1976-87; Yatsula et al., 2005, Identification of binding sites of EVI1 in mammalian cells, J Biol Chem 280: 30712-22). Additionally, the binding site for this domain has a Gata1 consensus motif that may compete with Gata1 for DNA binding (Kreider et al., 1993, Loss of erythropoietin responsiveness in erythroid progenitors due to expression of the EVI1 myeloid-transforming gene, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 90: 6454-8). Although in vitro studies showed that the distal zinc finger domain recognizes the consensus GAAGATGAG (SEQ ID NO: 202), to date, there is no report of genes that are directly regulated by EVI1 through the distal zinc finger domain.
EVI1 also interacts with several transcription regulators as shown in FIG. 2. In particular, interaction with the co-repressor CtBP is important for EVI1 function (Izutsu et al., 2001, The corepressor CtBP interacts with EVI1 to repress transforming growth factor beta signaling, Blood 97: 2815-22; Palmer et al., 2001, EVI1 transforming and repressor activities are mediated by CtBP co-repressor proteins, J Biol Chem 276: 25834-40). CtBP increases the transcriptional repression of a reporter gene by EVI1, and point mutations in EVI1 that abolish the interaction significantly decrease EVI1-mediated transcriptional repression, growth inhibition of Mv1Lu cells in response to transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, and transformation of Rat-1 fibroblasts.
EVI1 also interacts with histone deacetylases directly or through CtBP, and histone deacetylase inhibitor partially relieves transcriptional repression by EVI1 (Vinatzer et al., 2001, The leukaemia-associated transcription factors EVI1 and MDS1/EVI1 repress transcription and interact with histone deacetylase, Br J Haematol 114: 566-73; Chakraborty et al., 2001, Interaction of EVI1 with cAMP-responsive element-binding protein-binding protein (CBP) and p300/CBP-associated factor (P/CAF) results in reversible acetylation of EVI1 and in co-localization in nuclear speckles, J Biol Chem 276: 44936-43; Spensberger & Delwel, 2008, A novel interaction between the proto-oncogene Evil and histone methyltransferases, SUV39H1 and G9a, FEBS Lett 582: 2761-7). It has also been shown that EVI1 binds to the coactivators CREB binding protein (CBP) and P300/CBP-associated factor (P/CAF), and co-expression of CBP could transform a repressive effect of EVI1 on a reporter gene into a moderately-activating effect (Cattaneo & Nucifora, 2008, EVI1 recruits the histone methyltransferase SUV39H1 for transcription repression, J Cell Biochem 105: 344-52). Furthermore, it was recently shown that EVI1 associates with the histone H3 lysine 9-specific histone methyltransferases SUV39H1 and G9a (Kurokawa et al., 1998, The oncoprotein EVI1 represses TGF-β signaling by inhibiting Smad3, Nature 394: 92-6; Sood et al., 1999, MDS1/EVI1 enhances TGF-β1 signaling and strengthens its growth-inhibitory effect but the leukemia-associated fusion protein AML1/MDS1/EVI1, product of the t(3; 21), abrogates growth-inhibition in response to TGF-β1, Leukemia 13: 348-5718,19). Thus, EVI1 forms higher-order complexes with various transcriptional regulators, and these associations are important for transcriptional regulation by EVI1 (see FIG. 2).
In addition, it has been shown that EVI1 affects various signaling pathways, including the TGF-β pathway (which has been the best-characterized). TGF-β controls proliferation and cellular differentiation of most cell types and plays an important role in inhibiting tumor development. EVI1 significantly represses TGF-β-mediated activation of the p3TP-Lux reporter plasmid in HepG2 cells, and EVI1 suppresses TGF-β-mediated growth inhibition in Mv1Lu and 32D cells (Alliston et al., 2005, Repression of BMP and activin-inducible transcription by EVI1, J Biol Chem 280: 24227-37; Nitta et al., 2005, Oligomerization of EVI1 regulated by the PR domain contributes to recruitment of corepressor CtBP 2005, Oncogene 24: 6165-73). Furthermore, EVI1 interferes with the induction of endogenous genes by TGF-β and other TGF-β family members in Xenopus animal cap explants and in C2C12 cells (Alliston et al., 2005, Id.). EVI1 inhibits TGF-β signaling through at least two possible mechanisms: reduction of Smad3 activity by physical interaction, and recruitment of the co-repressor CtBP (Izutsu et al., 2001, ibid; Kurokawa et al., 1998, ibid.).
One EVI1 transcript variant, termed MDS1/EVI1, consists of sequences derived from the MDS1 gene (which is located upstream of EVI1 and is also expressed on its own) and EVI1 (Wieser, 2007, ibid.). In contrast to EVI1, MDS1-EVI1 enhances TGF-β-induced growth inhibition in 32D cells (Sood et al., 1999, ibid.) and cannot efficiently repress TGF-β-mediated activation of p3TP-Lux in HepG2 cells (Nitta et al., 2005, ibid.). The lower repressive activity correlates with a reduced ability of MDS1/EVI1, compared with EVI1, to bind to the co-repressor CtBP (Id.) (see FIG. 2).
In contrast, certain cellular proteins induce apoptosis, the disruption thereof being another way tumor cell growth is promoted. Examples of such cellular proteins include the c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK), which are mitogen-activated protein kinases that are responsive to various stress stimuli and play an important role in triggering apoptosis. EVI1 significantly suppresses the JNK1-mediated phosphorylation of c-Jun. Conversely, reduction of EVI1 expression using antisense oligonucleotide recovers endogenous JNK1 activity experimentally in MOLM-1 and HEC1B cells (Kurokawa et al., 2000, The EVI1 oncoprotein inhibits c-Jun N-terminal kinase and prevents stress-induced cell death, EMBO J 19: 2958-68). EVI1 physically interacts with JNK through the proximal zinc finger domain, and an EVI1 mutant lacking this domain fails to suppress JNK1 activity. EVI1 also protects cells from stress-induced cell death with dependence on the ability to inhibit JNK (Id.) (see FIG. 2).
In addition to JNK, several mechanisms have been proposed to play a role in the survival function of EVI1. EVI1 protects murine bone marrow progenitors from apoptosis by activating the Promyelocytic leukemia (Pml) gene (Buonamici et al., 2005, EVI1 abrogates interferon-α response by selectively blocking PML induction, J Biol Chem 280: 428-36). It was also reported that EVI1 suppresses TGF-β or taxol-mediated apoptosis through a phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt dependent mechanism in RIE cells (Liu et al., Evil is a survival factor which conveys resistance to both TGFβ- and taxol-mediated cell death via PI3K/AKT, Oncogene 25: 3565-75). Activator protein (AP)-1 is a transcription factor complex consisting of a Fos-Jun heterodimer or Jun-Jun homodimer. It regulates gene expression in response to a variety of stimuli, and controls a number of cellular processes including differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. EVI1 raises AP-1 activity and stimulates c-fos promoter activation with dependence on its distal zinc finger domain in NIH3T3 and P19 cells (Tanaka et al., 1994, EVI1 raises AP-1 activity and stimulates c-fos promoter transactivation with dependence on the second zinc finger domain. J Biol Chem 269: 24020-6). Because the distal zinc finger domain is required for EVI1-mediated transformation of Rat-1 cells, the enhanced AP-1 activity probably contributes to cell transformation by EVI1.
EVI1 is highly expressed in certain cancer cell types. The EVI1 gene is amplified in 76% of squamous cell carcinoma, the most abundant type of non-small cell carcinoma (Kang et al., 2009, Identification of novel candidate target genes, including EPHB3, MASP1 and SST at 3q26.2-q29 in squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, BMC Cancer 9: 237-52). The EVI1 gene is also amplified in lung adenocarcinoma (Id.). The expression of EVI1 was significantly higher in 19 of 25 human non-small cell lung cancer samples, as determined by real time quantitative RT-PCR, compared with non-tumor tissues (Yokoi et al., 2003, TERC identified as a probable target within the 3q26 amplicon that is detected frequently in non-small cell lung cancers, Clin Cancer Res. 9: 4705-13). A study by Brooks et al. demonstrated, by RT-PCR, that EVI1 was highly expressed in 22 of 25 human ovarian tumors samples, and 6 of 7 melanoma samples (Brooks et al., 1996, Expression of the zinc finger gene EVI1 in ovarian and other cancers, Br. J. Cancer 74: 1518-25).
Thus, because inter alia of its role in oncogenesis, EVI1 is a desirable therapeutic target for the treatment of certain cancers, and there exists a need in the art for reagents and methods for inhibiting EVI1 expression or activity or both in order to inhibit tumor cell growth, induce apoptosis in tumor cells, and otherwise provide methods for improved cancer treatment, either used alone or in conjunction with conventional anticancer agents.

Reagents and methods for treating cancer


A respirator mask includes an inflatable cuff, a gas-guiding member, and an inflating valve. The inflatable cuff has an inner wall surface confining an air chamber, and a gas inlet unit having a hollow protrusion projecting into the air chamber from the inner wall surface. The hollow protrusion has an innermost end wall spaced apart from the inner wall surface and a through hole formed in the innermost end wall. The hollow protrusion is formed as one-piece with the inner wall surface. The gas-guiding member has an annular connecting edge portion which is connected to the inflatable cuff and which has a hollow seat aligned with the hollow protrusion. The hollow seat has a through hole communicated with the through hole of the hollow protrusion. The inflating valve is mounted in the hollow seat.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mask, more particularly to a respirator mask, which can be fabricated with relative ease.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional respirator mask includes an inflatable cuff 1, a gas-guiding member 2 mounted on the inflatable cuff 1, and an inflating valve 3 mounted on the inflatable cuff 1 for inflating the cuff 1.
The inflatable cuff 1 is made in a form of an annular hollow body by blow molding or by rotational molding, and has a broad mouth covering portion 11, a tapered nose covering portion 12, and an inflating hole 13 corresponding to the inflating valve 3. Additionally, the inflatable cuff 1 has an annular connecting portion 14, which is relatively thick due to being made by rotational molding. If the inflatable cuff 1 is made by blow molding, the thickness of the annular connecting portion 14 is reduced.
The gas-guiding member 2 has an annular connecting edge portion 21 connected to the annular connecting portion 14 of the inflatable cuff 1, a hose connecting tube 23, a skirt member 22 extending from the annular connecting portion 21 to the hose connecting tube 23, and a hollow seat 24 aligned with the inflating-hole 13. The hose connecting tube 23 is used for connecting a tube (not shown) thereto so as to introduce gas, such as oxygen, into the mask via the tube for respiration of a patient. The hollow seat 24 has a hollow seat body 241 for mounting the inflating valve 3 therein, and a through hole 242.
The inflating valve 3 is mounted on the hollow seat 24, and is aligned and communicates with the inflating hole 13 for inflating the inflatable cuff 1 therethrough.
In use, the inflatable cuff 1 is inflated by introducing air through the inflating valve 3 from a inflating device (not shown). Therefore, the inflatable cuff 1 of the mask can cover the mouth and the nose of the patient closely.
However, the inflating hole 13 can not be preformed by blow molding or by rotational molding because it is not permissible to have any hole for communicating to the ambient environment during the blow molding or the rotational molding. Therefore, the inflating hole 13 is formed after the inflatable cuff 1 is molded. Furthermore, the gas-guiding member 2 is usually connected to the inflatable cuff 1 using an adhesive. In order to avoid the inflating hole 13 from being blocked by the adhesive, the inflating hole 13 is formed after the gas-guiding member 2 is connected to the inflatable cuff 1. However, the inflating hole 13 can not be formed by cutting the inflatable cuff 1 formed by rotational molding directly due to the relatively large thickness thereof. As for the inflatable cuff 1 formed by blow molding, although the thickness thereof is relatively small, the surface of the inflatable cuff 1 to be formed with the inflating hole 13 is a continuous surface. Hence, it is not easy to control the size of the inflating hole 13 properly by cutting. If the inflating hole 13 is too large, the inflatable cuff 1 is easily damaged due to breaking or deformation. On the other hand, if the inflating hole 13 is too small, it may get blocked during use, which can lead to insufficient inflation of the inflatable cuff 1. Therefore, the inflating hole 13 is usually formed by drilling in the prior art. However, the adhesive between the inflatable cuff 1 and the gas-guiding member 2 is liable to overflow therefrom and to cure on the surface of the inflatable cuff 1, which can make drilling of the inflating hole 13 relatively difficult to conduct.


A method and apparatus for compensating for a delay in the propagation of a plurality of signals via different signal paths, i.e., a skew compensation method, are provided. The apparatus includes a processing circuit which performs a data processing operation on input data, and a reset adjustment circuit which maintains a reset state of the processing circuit for a time period when a reset signal that initializes the processing circuit is received.

1. Field of the Invention
Methods and apparatuses consistent with the present invention relate to the compensation of a delay (i.e., skew) in the propagation of signals via different signal paths, and more particularly, to a circuit for compensating for a delay in the propagation of multi-bit width data signals between large-scale integrated (LSI) circuits or between modules.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the operating speed of central processing units (CPUs), memories, and large-scale integrated (LSI) circuits increase, the demand for high-speed transmission of signals between LSI circuits or between modules has steadily grown. In order to transmit large amounts of data, methods of transmitting data using a number of multi-bit data transmission paths in parallel have been widely used.
However, in the case of transmitting data using a multi-bit data transmission system, a delay in the propagation of a plurality of signals, including a clock signal, a reset signal, and a data signal, via a plurality of signal paths, i.e., skew, is highly likely to occur if the signal paths have different printed circuit board (PCB) trace characteristics and different lengths and, thus, result in different data propagation speeds. Because of skew, multi-bit data transmitted at the same time by a transmitting party may be received by a receiving party at different times.
As the speed of data transmission increases, the proportion of data imbalance caused by skew to the period of data signals increases. Thus, a plurality of signals that need to be received at the same time may not be received at the same time. Therefore, it is necessary to develop deskew circuits that are capable of guaranteeing a stable reception of data by compensating for the skew.
An example of a skew compensation technique is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Gazette No. 1998-040071 (hereinafter referred to as Cited Reference 1) entitled "Arithmetic Device and Method of Controlling Time Delay Therein."
In detail, Cited Reference 1 discloses an arithmetic device which includes two arithmetic circuits that perform an operation, at least two arithmetic termination circuits that determine whether the arithmetic circuits have completed their operations, and a synthesizer that receives an arithmetic termination signal obtained by each of the arithmetic termination circuits and determines whether all the arithmetic circuits have completed their operations.
The arithmetic device also includes a synchronization clock generation circuit which generates a clock signal that drives the arithmetic circuits to operate in synchronization with the arithmetic termination circuit. Therefore, after the arithmetic circuits terminate their operations, they sequentially perform their operations according to the clock signal, thereby preventing data deviation caused by skew.
According to Cited Reference 1, an input clock signal CLK and an input reset signal RESET are provided to each of first and second arithmetic circuits via a corresponding buffer circuit, as illustrated in FIG. 1. In this case, the input clock signal CLK and the input reset signal RESET must have the same phase, and buffer circuits with high driving power are needed.
However, the invention disclosed in Cited Reference 1 may result in an increase in the power consumption of buffer circuits that output a clock signal and a reset signal, especially when the aforementioned synchronization design is applied to LSI circuits. In addition, in some cases, buffer circuits which supply a clock signal and a reset signal consume more power than the arithmetic circuits that perform data processing operations.

Circuit block and circuit system having skew compensation, and skew compensation method


A dual-bed catalytic distillation tower has a catalytic column having an upper catalytic bed filled with low temperature dehydration catalysts and a lower catalytic bed filled with high temperature dehydration catalysts. When using the dual-bed catalytic distillation tower, the feeding may be fed to the tower at the top of the upper catalytic bed, between the upper and lower catalytic beds, or at the bottom of the lower catalytic bed for dehydration to obtain DME. The dual-bed catalytic distillation tower has the advantage of flexible set-up depending on various feedings such as anhydrous or crude methanol and on different grades of DME to be obtained.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a catalytic distillation tower used for preparing dimethyl ether (DME), especially a dual-bed catalytic distillation tower. The present invention also relates to a method for preparing dimethyl ether using the same.
2. Description of the Prior Arts
Dimethyl ether (DME) is prepared by using different raw materials such as coal, nature gas, petroleum coke and biochar. The methanol is firstly prepared from the raw materials, and the methanol is dehydrated to obtain DME. In the dehydration reaction, catalysts are needed to carry out the reaction. Solid-state acid catalysts such as zeolite, silicone, aluminum oxide, resin etc. (Spivey, J. J., 1991) or modified acid ion exchange resin (U.S. Pat. No. 6,740,783) are commonly used in the dehydration. Resin catalysts are low temperature catalysts with reaction temperatures ranging from 70 to 150° C. and almost 100% conversion of methanol can be obtained. However, the low temperature catalysts cannot bear high temperature. Other catalysts are high temperature catalysts with reaction temperatures ranging from 200 to 350° C. When the reaction temperature is getting higher, however, methanol and DME will be further dehydrated to C2-C4 olefin, thereby resulting in the loss of catalyst activity and reduction of DME yield.
Further, to reduce the energy consumption during the catalytic distillation process, the catalysts are put in the catalytic distillation tower so the heat generated from the methanol dehydration reaction can be used for catalytic distillation. The requirement for this catalytic distillation process is that the catalytic reaction and distillation can happen at the similar tower pressure and temperature range.
US 2007/0066855 A1 discloses a method for production of DME using catalytic distillation tower so the heat generated from dehydration can be fully used and reduce the production cost. However, the tower temperature and pressure used for dehydration reaction result in that methanol and water in the stripping column cannot be separated easily. FIG. 1 shows the relative volatility of methanol and water at different tower pressures and can be used to calculate and estimate the difficulty for separating methanol and water at high tower pressure. FIG. 1 shows that the relative volatility of methanol and water reaches 1 (i.e. the azeotropic zone) when the mole fraction of liquid water equals 0.825 at a tower pressure of 18 bar. Azeotrope composition of methanol and water results in separation difficulties.
WO 2007/014534 provides high temperature dehydration in the catalytic distillation tower by using high temperature dehydration catalysts at a reaction temperature ranging from 160 to 180° C. and under a tower pressure ranging from 18 to 23 bar. However, the energy consumption of the condenser and reboiler increases in order to drive the catalytic reaction under high temperatures. U.S. Pat. No. 5,684,213 mentions high temperature dehydration reaction at a reaction temperature ranging from 350 to 400° C. and under 600 psi of tower pressure. When dehydration is carried out at such a high temperature, olefin side products increase to cause the decay of catalyst activity, resulting in lower DME yield. Hydrogen is added to the catalytic distillation tower to inhibit undesired side products generated. However, adding hydrogen increases the production cost and the reaction complexity.
The technique of using low temperature dehydration catalysts in the catalytic distillation tower is also disclosed. For example, WO 2007/014534 provides that dehydration reaction is carried out at a reaction temperature ranging from 130 to 158° C. and under a tower pressure ranging from 10 to 18 bar by using low temperature acid ion exchange catalysts. However, the low temperature catalysts can only be used at temperature lower than 140° C. When the reaction is carried out at a low temperature and pressure, the dew point of high purity DME at the top of the tower will decrease. For example, the dew point of DME becomes 40.3° C. when the tower pressure is as low as 9 bar and therefore using 20° C. industrial water to condense DME will be impractical. When the tower pressure is adjusted to 12 bar, the temperature at the catalytic column will be higher than 150° C., and the low temperature catalysts will be damaged.
All the above-mentioned methods use single-bed catalytic system in the catalytic distillation tower, i.e. only high temperature or low temperature dehydration reaction is carried out. In the conventional methods, the catalytic distillation tower cannot be easily adjusted depending on the grades of the feeding methanol and of the obtained DME because none of the conventional methods can provide suitable and complementary tower temperature and pressure conditions.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Dual-bed catalytic distillation tower and method for preparing dimethyl ether using the same


A seismic isolator includes a lower guide rail 4 having grooves on the side surfaces thereof and fitted to an upper surface of a lower plate 1, an upper guide rail 6 having grooves on the side surfaces thereof and fitted to a lower surface of an upper plate in a direction criss-crossing the lower guide rail 4, a block body 9 clamping at its lower part the lower guide rail 4 and clamping at its upper part the upper guide rail 6, a large number of rollers interposed between the lower guide rail 4 and the block body 9 and between the upper guide rail 6 and the block body 9, a large number of balls interposed between grooves of the side surfaces of the lower guide rail 4 and the block body 9 and between grooves of the side surfaces of the upper guide rail 6 and the block body 9 and a flexible member 22 fitted between the lower surface of the upper plate and the upper surface of the lower plate 1.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a seismic isolator for protecting a structure such as a building from vibrations such as an earthquake.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional seismic isolators include generally those which interpose flexible members between a foundation and a structure and those which dispose vibration damping means and structure restoring means besides the flexible members.
In the conventional seismic isolators, however, a pull-out resistance force which inhibits upward displacement of a structure is small, and setting of a load bearing force, rigidity and horizontal deformation capacity per unit seismic isolator is limited. Furthermore, since these performance factors interfere with one another, the individual performance factors cannot be changed greatly.

Large-scale high strength seismic isolator


The inventive data processing system and method enable recognition, matching, and/or identification of images and/or of objects, utilizing at least one novel pleographic data processing technique.

Image analysis techniques are utilized in a vast array of everyday applications ranging from consumer systems to industrial, scientific, medical, law enforcement systems and solutions. However, current image analysis systems suffer from many disadvantages and drawbacks.
The inventive data processing system and method advantageously provide a number of scalable novel image/object recognition and processing techniques that are capable of dramatically improving the efficacy, reliability, and accuracy of conventional and future surveillance, detection, identification, verification, matching, navigation, and similar types of systems utilizing image acquisition/analysis of any kind. Moreover, the use of the novel data processing system and method of the present invention, advantageously provides unequaled levels of tolerance to degradation in quality, decrease in available portion, increased noise, and variation in positioning and/or orientation in the images being analyzed as compared to the corresponding reference image(s).
The techniques of the inventive data processing system and method are especially effective under conditions of strong, real-time limitations, shock/vibration overloading, atmospheric noise, arbitrary signal distortions, etc., because they rely on utilization of a newly developed novel type of spatial response surface functions, hereinafter referred to as "pleograms", that are unique for each initially observed image, and that are later used for further matching thereto. Due to their inherent redundancy, comparable to holographic-based measurements, pleograms are extremely informative and stable. As a result of this property, utilization of pleograms in image analysis (e.g., identification, recognition, matching, etc.) applications creates an environment that is practically immune to strong signal/image distortions, arbitrary noises, etc., thereby providing, a high level of reliability in comparison to conventional raw image matching. Moreover, the novel pleographic approach is based on 3-dimensional object identification procedures that have substantially higher discriminative power than previously known image analysis techniques. The novel techniques based on the inventive pleographic approach and method provide, in particular, measurement accuracy and factual continuity due to an efficient data restoration between discrete reference points that results in higher effective resolution. The novel pleographic technique also meets the criteria of the minimal mean risk of real-time decision-making and is readily suitable for actual implementation including by way of simple real-time computations.
In summary, the novel pleographic image analysis (PIA) system and method of the present invention, include, but are not limited to, the following distinct unique features and advantages over previously known solutions:                Utilization of all available information about the observations and utilizes this information for full likelihood estimate,        No specific assumption regarding the noise distributions are required—any arbitrary random distortions are admissible for statistically optimal algorithm synthesis,        Significant tolerance to imperfect images and conditions—the matching reliability remains satisfied even if the images are strongly damaged        Mere pipeline computations that provide high speed processing        The technology can be deployed in a variety of platforms
The inventive PIA system and Method are advantageous in a wide variety of commercial applications such as biomedical diagnostics support, biometric access control, law enforcement, security, navigation, etc. In inventive PIA system and method are also particularly effective in military applications, such as automatic target detection (ATD), automatic target recognition (ATR), synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and so on. In such applications, the use of novel PIA techniques substantially increases the reliability/accuracy of target identification, increases the noise-stability, reduces processing time, and lowers the minimum requirements of the sensors and images captured in the course of system operation.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims.

System and method for pleographic recognition, matching, and identification of images and objects


[Object] To provide a pallet capable of reliably holding a board-like work on a table and applying a liquid to a desired position on an upper surface of the work, and to provide an applying apparatus provided with the pallet. [Solving Means] A pallet for fixing a board-like work is arranged on a table of a liquid applying apparatus, which applies a liquid by moving a nozzle for discharging the liquid and the table relatively to each other. The pallet comprises a base having a work area in which a plurality of works are arranged in parallel in a row direction and/or a column direction, and a holding plate for holding the work at both ends thereof, the holding plate having a window (69) which is positioned to make open central portion of the works arranged in the work area.

As one example of apparatus for arranging a plurality of board-like works on a table and applying a liquid onto each of the works, there is known an apparatus (arrayer) disclosed in Patent Document 1.
The apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 relates to a biochip arrayer and includes a separable board fixing base having a plurality of board fixing grooves in which fixing ends, fixing projections, and aligning bosses are formed such that biochips can be closely inserted in the board fixing grooves.
Also, the board fixing groove holds the board at both lateral sides thereof, as shown in FIGS. 6A to 6F of the cited Patent Document 1.
Thus, the biochip board is fixed in place by holding the board at both lateral sides thereof in the fixing groove which is formed in plural number in the separable fixing base.
Patent Document 1: PCT Japanese Patent Translation Publication No. 2004-512514

Pallet for fixing work and liquid applying apparatus provided with same


A steam oven having a steam distributing unit which is installed in the steam oven and evenly distributes steam generated by a steam generator into a cooking cavity, which is defined in a cabinet of the steam oven. The steam oven has the steam generator, the cooking cavity, a steam feed pipe to feed the steam generated by the steam generator into the cooking cavity, and a steam distributing pipe to distribute the steam from the steam feed pipe into the cooking cavity. The steam oven additionally has a sectional area control part provided in the steam feed pipe, to control a flow speed of the steam in the steam feed pipe.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to steam ovens and, more particularly, to a steam oven having a steam distributing unit that is installed in a cabinet of the steam oven to evenly distribute steam generated by a steam generator into all areas in a cooking cavity, which is defined in the cabinet.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, to cook foods, the foods may be: roasted with heat, such as in a gas oven; steamed by water vapor, such as in a steaming vessel; or boiled with water, such as in a cooking vessel. Also, there are methods to cook foods using microwaves, far infrared rays, and steam, etc.
When cooking using steam, steam is discharged from a steam generator into a cooking cavity to cook food in the cooking cavity. Accordingly, when cooking using steam, the food is not burnt, and controlling a temperature and a volume of the discharged steam easily controls a cooking temperature. Also, because oxidation of the food does not occur, cooking using steam has an advantage in that the cooked food has a better taste.
But in most conventional steam ovens, a steam distributing unit to distribute the steam into the cooking cavity is not provided on a steam feed unit that feeds the steam from the steam generator into the cooking cavity. Even in case of conventional steam ovens having a steam distributing unit on the steam feed unit, the steam distributing unit only allows the steam to be discharged into the cooking cavity in one direction, and in a manner of a straight flow.
Accordingly, when cooking large-sized food, the conventional steam ovens are problematic in that only a part of the food is effectively heated by the steam directly discharged onto the part of the food, but other parts of the food are not effectively heated because the steam is not discharged onto those parts of the food. When cooking small-sized food, the conventional steam ovens are problematic in that a heating ability of the steam oven varies according to a position at which the food is placed. Particularly, when cooking foods in the cooking cavity, in which a plurality of racks are installed, the heating ability of the steam oven varies according to positions of the foods, which are placed on the racks in the cooking cavity.


A strand based on glass fibers with a τ/μ2 ratio greater than 9, where τ is the yardage of the strand in tex and μ is the filament diameter in μm. The strand has at least 6000 filaments with a yardage greater than 1200 tex and a filament diameter greater than 11 μm.

Rovings are intended for many uses. As far as composite materials are concerned, rovings constitute the reinforcement used in plastics. Methods for using glass fibre rovings are very varied. Among these methods, mention may be made of:
A—Weaving and other methods using textile machinery, leading to flat woven or nonwoven reinforcements.
The fabrics and other heavy reinforcements based on rovings (about 1000 g/m2 or greater) are used above all for the manufacture of composite components which may be very highly mechanically stressed. They find an application in parts used in static applications, such as panels for isothermal box bodies of refrigerated trucks, or alternatively in parts used in dynamic applications such as the blades of wind machines which experience high vibrational oscillations.
B—Pultrusion which consists in impregnating a reinforcement of continuous yarns with resin then in forming it by pulling it through a heated mould (die) which cures the profiled structure thus produced. This method allows for the manufacture of oblong reinforcing products, such as strips or elements for producing gratings.
C—Thermoplastic extrusion which consists in manufacturing thermoplastic granules containing so-called long fibres, the continuous fibres being introduced into an extruder and coated with the plastic on leaving the extruder to be cut into granules. This method makes it possible to obtain reinforced parts for building motor cars.
D—Filament winding which consists in winding a resin-impregnated continuous-fibre reinforcement under constant tension onto a rotating mandrel of appropriate shape so as, after curing, to form a hollow body of revolution such as a pipe.


A system performs a loss factor determination which refers to, for each of two or more different Ms from among 4 Ms (Man, Machine, Material, and Method), a time series data group representing a time series of a state of an element belonging to the M, and which determines, for each period between time points, whether or not a state combination in the same period between time points corresponds to one or a plurality of loss state combinations. In each period between time points, the state combination is a combination of two or more states belonging to the period between time points and corresponding to the two or more Ms. The loss state combination is a state combination defined as an opportunity loss. With each loss state combination, a loss factor, which is a factor of an opportunity loss corresponding to the loss state combination, is associated.

The present invention generally relates to a computer technique for support of production management.
Techniques relating to support of production management include, e.g., a management system disclosed in PTL 1, i.e., Japanese Patent Specification No. 6540481. In the management system disclosed in PTL 1, in a case where the occurrence of a specific event is detected based on state information obtained from production equipment, i.e., a management target, a possibility that a factor, which belong to an M from among 4 Ms (Machine, Man, Material, and Method), has caused the specific event is output.
[PTL 1] Japanese Patent Specification No. 6540481

Production management support system and production management support method that automatically determine loss factors


A system and method for accurately and reliably determining and recording the time, date and location where a medication is used, and a system and method for transmitting, collecting, and using that data to improve clinical care, disease management, and public health surveillance. The device allows information concerning drug usage, including the time, date and location of use, to be transmitted to a remote network computer system so that the data can be evaluated to determine current impairment and future risk, and to identify changes in the frequency, timing, or location of medication usage indicative of change in disease control or management, and to examine spatial, temporal or demographic patterns of medication use or absence of use among individuals and groups. In addition, the device may further be configured to transmit signals indicative of its status, condition or other results to the remote network computer system.

Asthma remains a significant and costly public health problem. In the United States, more than 22 million people have the disease; worldwide, the World Health Organization estimates the population with asthma may be 300 million, and predicts that it will rise to 400 million by 2025.
Despite the development of new medications, rates of hospitalizations and emergency room visits have not declined. Each year in the United States the disease causes approximately 2 million emergency department visits, 500,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths. In addition, asthma is responsible for an estimated 15 million missed days of school, and 12 million days of work. Total annual costs to US health insurers and employers are greater than $18 billion.
The majority of these exacerbations could be prevented with currently available treatments, however, only 1 in 5 asthmatics has the disease under control. Newly revised national guidelines urge doctors to more closely monitor whether treatment is controlling everyday symptoms and improving quality of life. Physicians, however, have few available tools to assess how well their patients are doing day-to-day. An increasing number of physicians have begun to use periodic, written questionnaires (such as the Asthma Control Test) to monitor patients and determine their level of control. These instruments require patients to accurately recall and report the frequency of symptoms, inhaler usage, and activity level and restriction over some period of time (usually two to four weeks). As a result, these questionnaires are subject to error introduced by biases (recall), different interpretations of symptoms, and behaviors (non-adherence), and only provide information at the time they are used.
Nearly all persons with asthma carry an inhaled medication to immediately relieve symptoms wherever they occur. The frequency with which patients use these medications is one of the most important indicators of how well their disease is controlled. Physicians who could remotely monitor the use of these medications by patients in real-time would be able to identify and help patients in need of additional attention before they suffer an exacerbation.
Asthma is unique in that important medication(s) are often used at the location and time of exposures that cause exacerbations. Many exacerbations are caused by exposure to environmental factors such as allergens, air pollutants, tobacco smoke, and occupational chemicals, but identifying causative exposures or locations that pose a particular threat has been a struggle for public health experts.
Since established risk factors do not explain the prevalence of asthma or its trends over time, it is likely that there are unknown environmental factors that trigger symptoms or contribute to the development of asthma.
Public health officials have been limited to the retrospective analysis of the small proportion of attacks that led to emergency room visits and hospitalizations (the most severe exacerbations). These events indicate where the patient lives or the location of the health facility where they received treatment, but provide no information about where their exacerbation began. Last year, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that the timeliness and geographic specificity of asthma surveillance data be improved.
As a result, real-time tracking and mapping of the locations where persons with asthma use their inhaled medications would improve scientific assessment and management of asthma, and enable better public health surveillance of asthma and its relationship to environmental exposures. Studies of epidemic asthma have demonstrated that understanding the locations where asthma exacerbations occur can help identify important new exposures.
In addition, many patients with asthma triggered by exposures at school or work do not recognize the relationship between their symptoms and specific locations, resulting in missed opportunities to avoid or mitigate the exposure and thereby prevent further exacerbations.
At present, there are no commercially available devices that allow the location where an inhaler is used to be objectively obtained. In addition, there are no commercially available devices that allow physicians to monitor the medication use of their patients in real time, to gauge their control over the disease, and to use technology to determine who needs additional attention. Furthermore, there are no systems that allow public health officials to collect and analyze data on the medication use of individual patients in order to monitor in real time the overall burden of the disease in the community or to guide public health interventions and epidemiological research.
Various systems have been proposed to record the time and date of usage of metered dose inhalers. Two models are currently available in the U.S. market. One device, described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,192, attaches to the end of a metered dose inhaler and records the time and date of inhaler use over a 30 day time period. Another device, described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,642, captures the time and date of inhaler use, and provides a means to transmit this information at a later time to the health care provider. To accomplish this, the patient must connect their device to a computer.
Several devices that provide means for the two-way transmission of information between a medication and a remote network using wireless technologies have also been proposed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,958,691 describes an inhaler having an electronic data management and display system and a communicator for wireless communication with a network computer system. US application 2006/0089545 proposes use of a cellular phone to transmit information about medication, and to present medication information and treatment instructions to the patient.
The primary aim of both of these devices is to encourage and improve patient compliance with their prescribed medication regimen. As a result, these systems focus on providing education (treatment instructions), monitoring, and supervision. In addition, the above devices provide for two-way communication between the inhaler (or device) and the physician or health care provider, and some allow for controlling or modifying the medication delivered by the inhaler (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,477,849).
Various methods for the epidemiological analysis of medical data and information (such as emergency room visits or hospitalizations, or over the counter medication purchases) have been proposed. However, these systems are focused on establishing a diagnosis or on tracking and analyzing the geographic location(s) of health care utilization (such as emergency room visits or hospitalizations) or the residence of the person with the disease of interest. No known system describes the analysis of the location where the medication is used, or proposes a system for aggregating and making use of information from a population of individuals.

Device and method to monitor, track, map, and analyze usage of metered-dose inhalers in real-time


Described is a system for maintaining dual-party authentication requirements for data retention compliance in a distributed storage environment that includes servers or nodes with remote access components. When administering a data retention policy, an operating system component may require a dual-party authentication mechanism to prevent data deletion, while a different authentication mechanism may control access to the remote access components. Access to the remote access component by a single privileged user, however, may enable overriding or compromising the retention lock compliance implemented by the operating system. Accordingly, the system may tie the dual-party authentication requirement to the authentication mechanism of the remote access components.

Data storage systems (or on-demand storage services) may provide various tools that are crucial for enterprise level network clients. For example, clients may rely on such systems to efficiently back up and recover data in the event of user error, data loss, system outages, hardware failure, or other catastrophic events to allow business applications to remain in service or quickly come back up to service. In addition, as part of a data storage service, providers may provide tools for retaining data according to various data retention policies and regulations. For example, storage systems may ensure immutable copies of data are retained for a predefined amount of time. To provide such capabilities, storage systems may prevent the unauthorized deletion of data. For example, storage systems may implement procedures that require authentication from multiple parties before retained data may be deleted. Such an authentication requirement may be administered by certain operating system components of the storage system. However, due to the large number of interconnected components that may be implemented within a distributed storage environment, there is a potential that such authentication requirements may be circumvented when managing storage hardware. Consequently, changes to storage configurations may result in the inadvertent deletion of retained data. Thus, there is a continued need to provide mechanisms to ensure that data retention policies are maintained within distributed storage systems.

Maintaining dual-party authentication requirements for data retention compliance within a distributed server environment


A sensing apparatus comprising an ion sensitive field effect transistor arranged to generate an electrical output signal in response to localized fluctuations of ionic charge at or adjacent the surface of the transistor, and means for detecting the electrical output signal from the ion sensitive field effect transistor, the localized fluctuations of ionic charge indicating events occurring during a chemical reaction.

DNA sequencing methods have remained largely unchanged in the last 20 years [1]. The Sanger method is a well known method of DNA sequencing, and comprises DNA synthesis, with termination of DNA replication at points of di-doxynucleotide insertion. The DNA synthesis is followed by electrophoresis of the synthesised DNA to separate DNA molecules according to their mass to charge ratios, thereby allowing determination of the DNA sequence.
A disadvantage of the Sanger method is that electrophoresis is complex, costly and hazardous.