A system, method and apparatus for maintaining cellular telephone network site information is disclosed. A distributed database management system may provide a user with several items of real-time information regarding a cellular telephone network site such as: cell name, cell number, location code, address, latitude/longitude, switch number, battery information (e.g., type, manufacturer, model) for all strings, building information (e.g., building and tower type, gate codes, generator information), contact information (e.g., fire, police, landlord etc.), directions to the site, facility circuit identification numbers and log entries for audits of changed data. In one embodiment, the user can be provided with emergency data associated with the telecommunication network. A common database is provided for storing the information from various entities within an organization responsible for maintaining the cellular telephone network site. Once the information is stored in a common database, it can be made available to users associated with the various entities as well as to various other computer software programs residing on the distributed system.

Related art systems provide data and processes, such as computer software programs, multiple databases, spreadsheets and other files that are not interrelated, interconnected or in communication with each other. Accordingly, users of such data and processes on a distributed network are unable to execute the software programs and access the data on a real-time basis. For example, such users are unable to access modifications to the data or upgrades to the software programs. Furthermore, such users are unable to access changes to data which may have an effect on the user's function or processes made by others, on a real-time basis. There is a need for a system that provides real-time access to a network-organized repository of data and processes, such as software programs, within a distributed data and processes information system.
There is a need for a system that obtains information regarding the deployment of cellular telecommunication sites on a real-time basis. For example, related systems are generally not updated with current information until a deployment project team meets at periodic intervals. In the meantime, deployment project team members are generally unaware of the status of the deployment project until a meeting is held. Accordingly, there is a need for a real-time process that is able to provide deployment project members with real-time up-to-date project information substantially instantaneously once it is entered into the process. Furthermore, there is a need for a process that eliminates the need for maintaining and updating separate databases spread out across various project teams.

System, method and apparatus for maintaining cellular telephone network site information

BellSouth Intellectual Property Corporation


A laser configuration is disclosed that generates linear, repeatable, and one-directional frequency modulated chirps by means of a laser cavity whose effective length is varied by employing a combination of a moving special optical element that engages the laser beam twice on each pass of the laser beam through the cavity plus other optical elements such that the laser beam is returned back upon itself, thus rendering ineffective certain errors of position or orientation associated with the motion of the special optical element that otherwise would disturb the established optical alignment of the laser cavity. Equivalent results are obtained with a ring laser by applying similar and corresponding optical features.

The operation of radars and laser radars generally is thought of in terms of (a) sending out a pulse and timing the return signal to obtain target range or (b) sending out a wave of constant frequency and measuring the frequency of the return signal to obtain the doppler shift and thereby target velocity. Other waveform modulations also have useful applications. One such waveform modulation is linear frequency modulation (FM), where the frequency of the radar is linearly increased or decreased with time; this is known generally as "FM-chirp." The frequency difference between the target return at any instant and the frequency of the transmitter at the same instant (measured by heterodyning the return with a sample of the transmitter) is related to both the range and velocity of the target. Target velocity affects the frequency difference through the doppler shift; target range affects the frequency difference through the change in transmitter frequency during the round trip transit time. Available methods for separating the effects of range and velocity generally rely on reversing or eliminating the chirp slope for some period of time. There are also applications where there is no need to separate these effects. One such application is when the target travels so slowly that the doppler is small or negligible. Another application is for imaging where the entire target has the same velocity, so that changes in frequency represent relative changes in range. For these applications, a repetitive, one directional chirp is the waveform of choice, and system performance depends on the linearity and repeatability of the chirp and the amount of power transmitted. This invention is a low-loss method of generating linear, repeatable, one-directional chirps from a laser transmitter of an optical radar system.
In the prior art, chirping is achieved by employing an electro-optic crystal modulator within the laser cavity (resonator). The laser optical frequency is modulated when the effective optical length of the crystal is varied in response to a suitably shaped electrical pulse applied to electrodes situated at either side of the crystal. A typical electro-optic crystal is formed from cadmium telluride, 5 cm long, 2 mm by 2 mm in cross section, and highly polished on all surfaces.
Many difficulties are encountered with this prior art approach: The crystals are both expensive and fragile. Optical alignment of such crystals is difficult because of their long, narrow shape. Some inherent characteristics of the crystal itself also affect performance. The imperfect optical quality of such crystals leads to optical distortions and birefringence. Strain-optic effects cause transverse variations in the index of refraction that distort the optical beam and degrade beam quality. Piezo-electric effects produce dimensional changes that generate acoustic waves that might fracture the crystal or introduce additional strain-optic effects. Thermal-optic effects result from absorbed optical energy. Because this absorption is not distributed uniformly throughout the crystal, it causes mechanical strains and index of refraction gradients. Typical insertion loss resulting from placing such a crystal into the cavity is about a ten to twelve percent round trip loss.
To operate effectively, a high voltage ramp (0 to 1600 volts) swept at periods of 3 to 50 microseconds must be applied. Arcing and flashover either across the crystal or to adjacent elements must be avoided. As will be explained subsequently, excessive optical length introduced into the laser cavity by such a crystal significantly limits the maximum total range of chirp modulation that can be achieved.
Chirp linearity and repeatability limit the resolution and signal-to-noise ratio of the radar system. Linearity of a system employing an electrooptic crystal depends mainly on linearity of the voltage ramp as a function of time plus dynamic disturbances that alter the index of refraction. These disturbances result from piezo-electric and strainoptic effects. Birefringence and gradients in the index of refraction induced by heat and strain also degrade linearity of the optical frequency chirp. Similarly, repeatability of the chirp slope depends on the repeatability of the voltage drive, dynamic strain-optic effects, and temperature dependence of the electro-optic coefficient. With crystal modulators, deviations from linearity of the chirp ramp can be held to one percent. Chirp slope can be held constant to within one percent from chirp to chirp.
The use of this invention can improve chirp slope linearity by about two orders of magnitude. Chirp slope repeatability will be about the same as in the prior art. It is important to note, however, that variations in slope repeatability resulting from the use of this invention are systematic and known, while variations of the prior art are essentially unpredictable. In many cases, known and systematic variations can be compensated for, which will yield laser radar performance improvements similar to what could be obtained from improving slope repeatability by one or two orders of magnitude.


A disk player for loading and unloading a pair of disks while closing and opening a door to the disk player under control of a single motor capable of rotating in both the clockwise direction and the counterclockwise direction. During rotation in one direction of the motor a plurality of connecting gears transmit the power of the motor to a driver for the pickup, which reads the information on the disks, and to moving rack. The moving rack causes rotation of a cam gear for disengaging a disk holder and rotation of a fitting for slightly opening the door. This causes a gear rack to engage the plurality of connecting gears to thereby open the door fully so that the pair of disks can be inserted or removed from the door. After the disks are inserted in the door the motor reverses direction and pulls the door shut by reverse operation of the components used in the opening of the door.

This invention relates to a twin disk player, and particularly to a twin disk player which enables the records of a disk to be reproduced accordingly as a disk holder and a door may be opened and shut, and simultaneously a pickup may be consecutively driven by a single driving motor mounted on a main chassis.
Generally, the records which are recorded in the disk are reproduced by loading the disk on a turn table and holding the disk by means of a disk holder, and thereafter driving the turn table and a pickup. In the turn table, a motor is used as a power source to drive the turn table. Also, a door is mounted to load the disk on the turn table and is designed to be moved in and out within the disk player when loading and unloading the disk.
However, the conventional disk player with the above mentioned configuration loads only a single disk on the turn table to reproduce the records of the disk. Recently, the customers wish to have a so called twin system in which two disks are simultaneously loaded on one disk player and each disk is selectively driven as needed. In this respect, the twin system has been partly developed to satisfy the customer's desires.
The conventional twin disk player uses a pair of turn tables, two motors for separately operating the turn tables, a motor for opening and shutting a door, and a motor for driving a pickup, wherein each of the four motors has a characteristic operation which is consecutively performed.
Each operating time of the motors should be adequately established, however, the establishment of the proper time is very difficult and additional devices are required to drive the four motors. Accordingly, the above configuration causes the disk player to be complex and the volume thereof to be large. Further, there is the problem that it is difficult to systematically drive each of said motors and to smoothly run disk player.


A reprintable label that can be printed and erased many times without becoming visually degraded. The label is particularly suited for displaying the due date on library materials and video rentals. The label consist of a normally opaque plastic sheet attached to a wax coated colored card. On the back of the colored card is a pressure sensitive adhesive for attaching the label to articles. Printing is accomplished by the application pressure to the opaque plastic sheet, so that it sticks to the underlying wax. Where the opaque sheet sticks to the wax it changes color. The label is erased by pneumatically lifting the plastic sheet away from the wax coating.

A label that could be printed and erased fifty times or more, would be very useful for certain applications. One obvious application is the return due date associated with library materials. Libraries currently use several methods to indicate the date when a borrowed item is due to be returned. Some libraries print the due date on a slip of paper, which is handed to the patron. If the patron checks out more than one item, they will all be listed on the one paper. There are three disadvantages to this system. First, it consumes paper. Second, the due date information is separate from the borrowed item. The patron is unable to simply look on the book they are currently using, to determine its due date. Third, the small piece of paper is easily lost. Another method that has been used for years is to stamp or write the due date on a card. This card is then placed in a envelope attached to the book. This is a very time consuming method. The envelope is usually inside of the book. So, the book must be opened and then the card is removed. The date is then written or stamped onto the card. The card is then replaced into the envelope and the book closed. All of this handling is time consuming and costly for the libraries. The cards and envelopes are costly to purchase and further costs are incurred in replacing the cards when they are full or lost. Plus, there is the additional cost of mounting the envelopes in the books.
A third method uses a small label with the due date printed on it. These are applied directly to the book cover. A label applicator is used that both prints and applies each label. These applicators are hand operated. The librarians must squeeze the handle of the device for every item that they check out. This has resulted in some library workers now having repetitive motion injuries. Another disadvantage is the pile of labels that accumulate on popular books. Sometimes it becomes unclear, on which of these labels is the real due date? Periodically the mess of labels on the cover must be scrapped off. In an attempt to solve the confusion and mess, a new product has been developed. This is a special label that is applied to the cover. Printed on this label are boxes for placing the smaller due date labels. This allows the smaller labels to be applied in order and eliminates the confusion. After the special label is full it can be peeled off and replaced. This product solves the confusion problem, but at a cost. First, there is the cost of the these additional labels, applying them, and removing them. Then, there is the hidden cost of the added time required to apply each due date label accurately on the special label.
A new method, that only requires a single label to provide due date information, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,290,066 Mody (1994). Mody's label is reprintable. The label is made from a special plastic sheet which is called Particle Oriented Paper (POP). Particles within the plastic sheet can be oriented by the application of magnetic fields. Depending on the resulting orientation of the particles, portions of the sheet will appear darker or lighter. Properly applied the magnetic fields can be used to print information onto POP. Magnetic fields are also used to erase the information from the POP. POP is commercially available from Eurand America, Inc. On testing a sample of POP provided by Eurand America, it was found that a magnetic field did darken it. But I found there was not much difference in contrast between the darkened (printed) and undarkened (unprinted) areas on the standard color POP provided by Eurand. This is because the standard color of POP is already a dark color, medium dark green. Used as a due date label, the date would be readable, but it certainly would not stand out. A second disadvantage of POP, is its present high cost. In quantities of five hundred square feet, it is priced by Eurand America at $9.50 per square foot.
The required use of magnetic fields for printing and erasing may be a disadvantage for using POP labels in another application. Mody (U.S. Pat. No. 5,290,066) describes using POP reusable labels in the video tape rental market. Some video stores allow different rental periods for different video titles. Returning the video just one day late will double the customers cost of the rental. The customer would obviously appreciate having the due date printed on these videos. Mody suggests using POP labels for this application. But he does not address the possible problem that might occur when erasing and printing POP labels. As previously stated, magnetic fields are used to erase and print POP labels. Magnetic fields are also used to erase and record on video tapes. The unanswered question is: could the erasing and printing of the POP label, erase or degrade the video recordings? If the answer is yes, then; the videos would need to be kept way from the magnetic fields of the POP label printers. A video tape would first have to be removed from its box before the POP label on the box could be erased and printed. Then the video could be replaced in the box. If these extra check out steps were necessary, that would be another disadvantage for POP labels. Mody provides no information on this potential problem of using POP labels in the video tape market.
In the preceding description of the limitations of the prior art, only library book and video tape rental applications have been discussed. They are only an example of the types of materials and situations requiring the temporary display of information. The scope of this patent should not be construed to be limited to library books and video tapes. For instance, further uses for labels that provide erasable and reprintable displays of information clearly exist in manufacturing and retailing. Products being manufactured are sometimes moved through the process in tubs, on carts or on pallets et cetera. It can be useful to have temporary information like part numbers, quantities, or work order information on the material handling device. A reusable label attached to the material handling device would provide a convenient place to display this information. Another useful area for reusable labels is in inventories. Manufacturer's, wholesaler's, and retailer's inventories are constantly changing. Reusable labels attached to shelves and bins could provide an inexpensive and convenient place to display the quantities of items in inventory. A further application could be in the display of prices of retail products. Product prices are also continually changing, especially in the grocery market. An attractive label with printed product description and a separate reprintable area for price information may offer cost savings in this application.


The present invention relates compositions and methods for identifying, isolating, and characterizing herbicide tolerant mutations in monocot plastidic acetyl-CoA carboxylases using a model system.

Aryloxyphenoxypropionate (FOP) and cyclohexanedione (DIM) herbicides are used post-emergence in dicot crops to control gramineous weeds. Because these herbicides effectively kill most monocotyledonous species at low concentrations, there is low toxicity to non-target organisms. Great potential exists for developing cereal varieties that can be treated post-emergence to control weedy grasses that escape other pre-emergent herbicides treatments (Somers, 1996). Furthermore, these herbicides have low persistence in soil and provide growers with increased flexibility for weed control and crop rotation. For example, red rice is the most pervasive and expensive pest in U.S. rice production (USDA-ARS Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center 2006 Annual Report) and can serve as a host for rice diseases. CLEARFIELD® Rice is the premier tool for managing red rice in infested areas; however, gene flow between red rice and CLEARFIELD® Rice can result in ˜170 FI hybrids/ha (Shivrain et al., 2007). Thus, stewardship guidelines limit CLEARFIELD® Rice market penetration to two out of any four years on any given field. Therefore, the generation of cultivated rice with tolerance to different herbicides will provide farmers CLEARFIELD® with a rotation partner to help manage red rice weed populations.
FOPs and DIMs target the enzyme Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase (EC 126.96.36.199), which catalyzes the first committed step in fatty acid (FA) biosynthesis. ACCase is a biotinylated enzyme that converts acetyl-CoA to malonyl-CoA in a 2-step reversible reaction. The enzyme first carboxylates the biotin group and then the intrinsic carboxytranferase activity transfers the carboxyl group from carboxybiotin to acetyl-CoA (Nikolau et al., 2003). ACCase activity is necessary in the plastid which is the primary site for FA biosynthesis for membrane biogenesis. ACCase activity is also present in the cytosol, where it is involved in the synthesis of very long chain FA and flavonoids (Chugh and Eudes, 2008). The multidomain, cytoplasmic monocot and dicot ACCases are not sensitive to the FOP and DIM herbicides. It is the plastidic form of ACCase that confers the selectivity to this class of herbicides. Dicot plastidic ACCases are naturally insensitive while monocot plastidic ACCases are herbicide-sensitive. The plastidic ACCases are highly expressed in meristematic tissue to feed the high demand for membrane biogenesis in rapidly growing, young seedlings (Podkowinski et al., 2003). This essential role for growth explains the effectiveness of targeting ACCase inhibition in post-emergent weeds.
Since the inception of FOP and DIM use for controlling weeds in world agriculture in the 1980s, there has been an emergence of tolerance amid various weed species. Among these, the most extensively studied are Alopecurus myosuroides (blackgrass) and Avena sterilis (wild oat). Comprehensive studies of natural blackgrass and wild oat mutants have revealed six residues within the carboxyltransferase domain of the plastidic isoform that confer tolerance to FOPs and/or DIMs (Delye et al., 2003; Delye et al., 2005; Liu et al., 2007) and these are I1781L, W2027C, I2041N, G2096A, D2078G and C2088R (designation according to standard blackgrass ACCase reference sequence). Interestingly, I1781L and D2078G confer tolerance to both FOPs and DIMs while the other four mutations confer tolerance only to FOPs, suggesting that the binding sites of the two classes of herbicides is overlapping, yet distinct.
Two approaches to develop DIM tolerant rice that have been tried include the following. In the first approach, previously identified mutations in natural blackgrass and wild oat are introduced by means of molecular biological techniques in rice plastidic ACCase. The effects of the mutations are studied in rice after Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of the modified ACCase genes. Ultimately, the same mutations can be engineered at the endogenous locus through oligonucleotide gene targeting (Beetham et al., 1999). In the second approach rice callus is propagated in medium with gradually increasing DIM concentrations. This procedure can enrich the callus for cells in which plastidic ACCase has mutated to become more tolerant to the herbicide. Plants can be regenerated from the callus when a satisfactory tolerance level has been reached. However, both approaches are limited in the number of mutations that can be generated and/or tested.
Yeast is an excellent model organism for screening and testing large numbers of mutated rice ACCase genes for increased herbicide tolerance. However, yeast contains a single, endogenous ACCase gene (ACC1), which encodes a multidomain protein that is highly tolerant to herbicides. Haploid yeast in which ACC1 is disrupted is not viable (Hasslacher et al., 1993). Joachimiak et al. (1997) introduced wheat cytoplasmic ACCase into a diploid strain heterozygous for ACC1. Standard tetrad analysis demonstrated that the ACC1 mutation was complemented by the plant ACCase. A similar experiment with the herbicide-sensitive wheat plastidic ACCase gene showed that this gene was not able to take over the function of ACC1 (Nikolskaya et al., 1999). A series of chimeric constructs consisting of the N-terminus of wheat cytoplasmic ACCase and the C-terminus of wheat plastidic ACCase was tested for complementation and herbicide sensitivity. Wheat c60p40 ACCase, which is comprised of the first 60% of cytoplasmic ACCase and last 40% of plastidic ACCase, complemented an ACCase deletion mutant, Δacc1, while showing the highest sensitivity towards haloxyfop, clodinafop, quizalofop, cethoxydim and sethoxydim of all constructs tested. The c60p40 chimeric ACCase is a suitable target for mutagenesis, as all herbicide-conferring mutations known have been mapped to the last 40% of plastidic ACCase. Yet, the Joachimiak approach is limited in its efficiency in that each new mutant plastid ACCase construct is separately introduced into yeast cells to create a new yeast knockout complement.
DIMs and FOPs are important herbicides and there is a need for methods and compositions to isolate, identify and characterize herbicide tolerant ACCase variants. The methods and compositions described herein are suitable for isolating, identifying, and characterizing such herbicide tolerant ACCase variants. Citation or discussion of a reference herein shall not be construed as an admission that such is prior art to the present invention.

Methods and compositions for isolating, identifying and characterizing monocot plastidic accase herbicide tolerant mutations using a model system


A dosimeter is provided on or adjacent to a circuit board deployed in a radiation environment. The dosimeter may be read or output a value or values indicating radiation dosage over a period of time. The radiation dosage associated with the circuit board may be used for determining disposition of the circuit board, such as whether to reuse the circuit board as a spare part or otherwise dispose of the circuit board.

The present invention relates to determining radiation dosage. In particular, radiation dosage associated with medical therapy or imaging is determined.
Medical imaging or therapy systems may generate radiation. For example, x-ray systems, computed tomography systems or x-ray therapeutic systems generate radiation. A linear accelerator generates x-ray photons. The dosage of x-ray photons supplied to a patient is regulated or limited. A detector is positioned to determine a dosage of x-ray photons applied to the patient. For example, a detector is positioned between the linear accelerator and a patient area for determining the dose of radiation output by the linear accelerator.
Radiation may impact on other components within the systems, such as circuit boards. The linear accelerator control system connects with the dose detector. The circuit board for the control system may be within a radiation environment. Most of the radiation produced by the accelerator is directed at the patient, but a certain amount of radiation is emitted in random directions, and it is not practical to shield all the radiation. The extra radiation, if it impinges on circuits and circuit boards, may cause the circuits or circuit boards to deteriorate over the life of the medical system.
Individual circuit boards may be replaced at various times for various reasons. Typically, the reasons are unrelated to radiation exposure. A service engineer removes the board and returns the board to a manufacturer. The returned boards are evaluated, possibly repaired, and then returned to the stock of replacement parts. However, it is difficult to predict when a subsequent failure may occur. The uncertainly is expensive. If all returned boards were discarded, then valuable boards with substantial life may be unnecessarily discarded. If all working circuit boards were returned, then service problems may be generated by circuit boards with minimal remaining useful life.

Medical imaging system with dosimetry for estimating circuit board life


It is targeted that CMs by e.g., television broadcast be detected automatically, an access site to detailed contents of a specified one of the CMs be acquired automatically, and connection be made automatically to the access site to enable accessing to the detailed information. A broadcasting station 302 sends out airing signals containing CMs. A consumer terminal (303) detects these CMs from the aired signals and connects to an access site information furnishing device (305) based on the airing time and the airing channel of the detected CM to acquire the access site information of the distribution terminal (301) for e.g., an article of commerce owning the detailed information pertinent to the CM. Based on the access site information, the consumer terminal (303) accesses the distribution terminal (301) to acquire the detailed information pertinent to the CM.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system and a method for transmitting/receiving the detailed information pertinent to a commercial message, aired using television broadcast signals, by way of an example, and to a method and apparatus for processing the information.
2. Description of Related Art
Up to now, the commercial message, abbreviated herein to CM, furnished by e.g., television broadcast, has been retained to be effective as intuitive information purveying means for consumers at large.
However, with the CM, it is difficult to furnish the detailed information mainly due to temporal limitations, that is the time zone or the time length in which it is aired, or to properties of the image or the speech as information transmitting means. So, a consumer desirous to know the detailed information about CM contents, such as the detailed information pertinent to the commercial articles or services, or to purchase a commercial article or services, has to resort to such measures as telephone or mail or direct contact with distributors. In particular, as to the site of contact from which to acquire the detailed information concerning the CM contents, it is generally up to the knowledge or search on the part of the consumer, even granting that the telephone number, for example, is aired simultaneously with the CM.
On the other hand, the technique of browsing the information employing the Internet has come into widespread use. In particular, the role of home pages in WWW (World Wide Web) as advertizing means for an enterprise or an organization is increasing. Moreover, for the consumers at large, the general tendency is to have reference to the home pages in order to know the detailed information pertinent to the CM contents or in order to purchase the articles of commerce or services. However, there lacks direct means for interconnecting the CM broadcast by e.g., the televison broadcast and the home pages in the WWW on the Internet. Thus, if a consumer apprized of the articles of commerce or service by e.g., the television broadcast and desires to obtain the information of the contents of the articles of commerce or service, he or she has to check for an access site furnishing the information on his or her own and to make connection to the access site using a separate computer or the like device, such as a personal computer.

Information transmission/reception system and method and information processing method and apparatus for automatic detection of data for commercial messages


A by-product mixture produced when polycrystalline silicon is deposited on a base material in a CVD reactor is made to react with chlorine to form a tetrachlorosilane (STC) effluent in a chlorination reaction vessel, and the tetrachlorosilane (STC) distillate is made to react with hydrogen in a hydrogenation reaction vessel to be converted into trichlorosilane (TCS). In the chlorination step, poly-silane contained in the above described by-product mixture can be efficiently recycled as a raw material for producing the polycrystalline silicon, which can enhance a yield of the production process. In addition, in the chlorination step, methyl chlorosilanes having boiling points close to TCS are hyper-chlorinated to be converted into hyper-chlorinated methyl chlorosilanes having higher boiling points, which facilitates the hyper-chlorinated methyl chlorosilanes to be separated into high concentration, and reduces carbon contamination of the polycrystalline silicon.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a production technology for obtaining polycrystalline silicon by reacting trichlorosilane (TCS) with hydrogen.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a process for producing high-purity polycrystalline silicon of a semiconductor grade, generally a "Siemens method" of reducing a trichlorosilane (TCS) gas and depositing the product on a silicon rod has been widely used.
As for the Siemens method, National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2004-532786 (Patent Document 1) discloses an invention relating to a method of producing polycrystalline silicon, which newly includes a step of converting disilane (HnCl6−nSi2: n is a value of 0 to 6) that exists in a gaseous effluent coming out from a CVD process for producing polycrystalline silicon, into mono-silane, in a hydrogenation reaction vessel for converting tetrachlorosilane (STC) into trichlorosilane (TCS). The method is evaluated to have advantages of enhancing a yield of a hydrogenation process by combining a hydrogenation reaction with a thermal decomposition reaction of disilane in the same reaction vessel which is the hydrogenation reaction vessel, and the like.
Incidentally, a by-product mixture produced when polycrystalline silicon is deposited by reacting TCS with hydrogen also includes a poly-silane (H2(n+1)−mClmSin: n is an integer of 3 or 4 and m is an integer of 0 to 2(n+1)), other than disilane having a silicon atom number n of 2. Accordingly, if these poly-silanes can be effectively used, the by-product mixture produced in the step of depositing the polycrystalline silicon is facilitated to be recycled as a raw material for producing the polycrystalline silicon, and a yield of the production process is further enhanced.
In other words, a conventional method of producing polycrystalline silicon including a method disclosed in National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2004-532786 (Patent Document 1) has a room to be improved in a process of converting the above described by-product mixture into a raw material for producing the polycrystalline silicon.
In addition, in order to produce high-purity polycrystalline silicon of a semiconductor grade, it is required to enhance the purity of TCS which is to be the raw material. As a result, it is needed to prepare a step for removing impurities in the TCS and the by-product which are circulated and used in the process for producing the polycrystalline silicon. Accordingly, it is extremely important from a practical standpoint to design the process so as to facilitate the removal of impurities from the TCS and the by-product which are circulated and used in the process for producing the polycrystalline silicon.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for producing polycrystalline silicon


A sound dampening assembly adapted to engage an exhaust pipe in an automotive engine exhaust system adjacent an outlet of an internal combustion engine. The assembly includes a bottle portion having a single opening and an interior defining a predetermined amount of volume and a neck portion having a first end attached to the opening of the bottle portion and extending from the bottle portion. The neck portion is in fluid communication with the bottle portion interior and includes a second end adapted to be attached to the exhaust pipe. The neck portion has an interior defining a predetermined amount of volume and the bottle portion and the neck portion are sized to attenuate vibration at a predetermined frequency in the exhaust system.

The present invention relates generally to automotive exhaust systems and, in particular, to a sound dampening assembly for an automotive exhaust system.
Automotive exhaust systems include piping and other components that treat an exhaust gas stream as well as rout the stream from an inlet connected to an internal combustion engine to an outlet to atmosphere.
Mufflers are disposed in the exhaust systems and are intended to smooth the exhaust gas pulsations and make the noise emitting from the tail pipe as inaudible as possible. To dampen and smooth the exhaust gas pulsations, mufflers and/or resonators use a combination of reflection and absorption techniques typically employing such traditional elements as helmholtz resonators, pipes perforated with holes and venturi nozzles. These traditional elements are sized and dimensioned (i.e. tuned) to have specified natural frequencies. These tuning elements, then, will dampen the frequencies of interest within the exhaust gas stream. Often, however, additional or unexpected noises occur in the exhaust system. These noises must also be dampened to minimize noises felt or heard in the passenger compartment and to assure compliance with noise regulations. Moreover, packaging concerns remain an issue in the design of the exhaust system because these traditional tuning elements consume a relatively large amount of space in the vehicle, which space in the vehicle and in the engine compartment in particular is limited.
It is desirable, therefore, to provide an effective sound dampening assembly for an automotive exhaust system that may be packaged easily within the engine compartment.

Sound dampening assembly for automotive exhaust system


The present invention describes compositions and methods for improving the appearance of skin, particularly, treating, preventing, ameliorating, reducing and/or eliminating excess accumulation or production of subcutaneous fat, such as cellulite, or conditions related to excess accumulation, production, or excretion of sebum, such as acne, an oily complexion, oily hair or scalp, or undesirable body odor, by topically applying compositions comprising Alisma orientate constituents, or extracts therefrom.

Active ingredients or components derived from plants and plant seeds have commonly been employed for a myriad of medicinal, therapeutic and cosmetic purposes. Such actives may be obtained from the entire plant or various parts of a plant, such as seeds, needles, leaves, roots, bark, cones, stems, rhizomes, callus cells, protoplasts, organs and organ systems, and meristems. Active ingredients or components are incorporated in compositions in a variety of forms. Such forms include a pure or semi-pure component, a solid or liquid extract or derivative, or a solid natural plant material. Plant material may be incorporated in a variety of subforms such as whole, minced, ground or crushed.
A problem commonly encountered when using an active agent, ingredient, or component derived from a natural plant material and/or plant seed is the relatively low level at which they are naturally present. Such low levels frequently require relatively large amounts of the natural plant material be processed in order to obtain desired or useful quantities of actives. For rare plants or plant seeds, such large amounts may be unavailable or difficult to obtain.
There is active interest in the cosmetics industry to develop products that may be applied topically to the skin that provide anti-acne, anti-oil, and anti-cellulite benefits. Cosmetic products that enhance the appearance of skin are increasingly in demand. Consumers are interested in mitigating or delaying the signs of excess sebum accumulation, production or excretion and excess accumulation or production of subcutaneous fat. During the teenage years, the complexion of the skin, i.e., the color and appearance of the skin, is oily due primarily to hormonal changes.
Sebum is an oily secretion containing fat, keratin, and cellular material, produced by sebaceous glands, which are tiny ducts adjacent to hair follicles. Sebum is secreted into the skin and hair. Both excess and lack of sebum are undesirable. Excess sebum is associated with oily skin or hair and acne. It is particularly common in adolescents as the increased levels of sex hormones stimulate sebum production. Cosmetic products that are able to provide anti-acne, anti-oil, and anti-cellulite benefits are highly desirable, to both manufacturers and consumers.
In traditional Chinese medicine, Alisma orientale has been used as an herbal medicine to eliminate extra water and heat from the body, improve kidney function, enhance blood circulation, increase metabolism, and to decrease the levels of blood glucose, lipids and cholesterol. A water plantain in the Alisma genus and Alismataceae family having a Latin botanical name of Alisma orientale (Sam.) Juzep.(a plantago-aquatica L. var. orientale Sam.) (a.k.a. "Alisma orientate," "Ze Xie," "Fu Ze Xie," or "Jiang Ze Xie" (Chinese names) or "Rhizoma alismatis" (medical name)) is commonly found in Europe, Africa, East Asia, for example China, and North America.
A topical cosmetic composition having an active ingredient, agent, or component derived from a natural plant material, or extract therefrom, is desired in the treatment, prevention, control, amelioration, inhibition and/or reduction of signs of excess sebum accumulation, production, or excretion, including oily, shiny, or acne prone skin, oily hair, oily scalp, or undesirable body odors, and increased subcutaneous fats or cellulite.
Excess sebum production is a common problem particularly with teenagers leading to an oily or shiny appearance of the skin which is one of the principal factors causing acne. Sebum is a semi-fluid secretion of the sebaceous glands, comprising primarily of fat, keratin, and cellular material. The oily/shiny appearance of skin results from excess sebum excretion in the sebaceous glands. Additionally, odors may be emitted as a result of excess sebum accumulation, production, or excretion. The classic approach to addressing oily or shiny skin is the use of powders that provide an immediate masking effect by absorbing the excess sebum on the skins surface. Such an approach has short term benefit only and has a minimal effect on conditions such as acne caused through excess sebum production.
Cellulite is the lumpy uneven type of fat that is subcutaneous and accumulates primarily on the buttocks, thighs, and limbs of many women. It is rather unsightly because it gives the tissues underlying the skin an 'orange peel' or 'cottage cheese' look. Pinching of the skin produces a 'mattress appearance' with bulging and pitting of the fatty layer. One may be able to feel tender nodules of fat trapped inside hardened connective tissue. A number of factors can cause cellulite including, hereditary, intestinal, circulatory, lymphatic, hormonal, and lifestyle factors. Dieting to decrease additional fat intake, exercise to increase fat metabolism and prevent the build up of cellulite, and massage and/or hydrotherapy may help to stimulate lymphatic drainage and reduce cellulite. However, all of these means for reducing cellulite or subcutaneous fat are limited, producing little visible results over extended periods of time.
Therefore, safe, effective, natural, and new components of compositions to treat, prevent, reduce, inhibit, and/or improve the signs of excess accumulation, production, or excretion of sebum and subcutaneous fat would be advantageous for the formulation of treatments and products for the skin or hair. As described herein, novel and beneficial methods and compositions, as well as their mode of action, for the treatment of conditions related to excess accumulation, production, or excretion of sebum and subcutaneous fat, and the like, for skin and hair formulations, as well as, personal care products for the skin, are provided by the present invention.


An imprinting method includes dispensing a first liquid on a first region of a substrate. The first liquid is a photocurable resist precursor. A second liquid is dispensed on a second region of the substrate. The second region is adjacent to and surrounding the first region. The second liquid is non-photocurable as dispensed. The first region is then irradiated with light while a patterned template is being pressed against the first liquid. The light cures the first liquid and forms a resist pattern corresponding to the patterned template. The patterned template and the substrate are then separated from each other. The second liquid is then selectively removed from the substrate while leaving the resist pattern on the substrate.

An imprinting method is known as a method for forming a fine pattern in a semiconductor device manufacturing process. The imprinting method involves dispensing a resist onto a to-be-processed film, pressing a patterned template against the dispensed resist, and then curing the resist, thereby transferring the pattern of the template into the resist.
When a template is pressed against a resist in the known imprinting method, the resist sometimes leaks from the periphery of the template and moves up on the side wall of the template. This may cause a so-called leakage defect when such a leaked portion of the resist is later cured.

Imprinting method, semiconductor device manufacturing method and imprinting apparatus


A method of locating a lost item via a provided telephone service, using an identification number given on both an identification card held by the owner of the item, and on an identification tag worn or attached to the item. A telephone number is given on the identification card for the item owner to access the telephone service and open a voice mailbox under the identification number, and a telephone number is given on the identification tag for the finder of the item to access the telephone service and leave a message with the telephone service (either in the opened voice mailbox or with the service if the finder calls before the item owner opens the voice mailbox) regarding the whereabouts of the lost item.

Owners of pets are always faced with the possibility of losing their animals. In an attempt to assure safe return of a lost pet, owners have placed their names, phone numbers and/or addresses on the pet tags worn by the pet, in hopes that the finder of the lost pet will contact the owner if the pet is found. If a pet is lost, this provides some direction and incentive to the finder of a pet to contact the rightful owner and safely return the animal.
Another method used by pet owners is to have a computer microchip or other information containing device surgically implanted into their animals. If the lost pet is found the chip or information may be removed by a veterinarian who may then read the information containing the phone number and/or address of the owner, who can then be contacted to pick up the pet.
Both of these methods, however, are dependent on several things. First, the phone number and address of the pet owner must be updated each time the pet owner relocates, or the tag becomes obsolete. This takes time and effort of the pet owner, and is often overlooked by the owners so that a lost pet cannot be returned to the rightful owner after the owner relocates. Additionally, these methods cost the finder of the lost pet time and money (e.g., money for one or more phone calls or visits to the veterinarian). This is an immediate disincentive for the finder to make any effort to return a found pet.
Additionally, there are existing services whereby an owner may register his/her name and address (and optionally telephone number) with the service, and provide this information and the service telephone number on a tag attached to the owner's pet. Thereby, if the pet is lost, the finder may call the service and leave a message for the owner of the pet regarding the whereabouts of the lost pet. This, however, also requires the updating of information registered with the service and contained on the pet tag. Moreover, all of these services existing today require a monthly or yearly fee which must be paid to the service to keep the information on file.
Another method used by pet owners after a pet is lost, consists of posting notices around the area where the pet was lost in an attempt to notify the finder of the identity of the rightful owner. These notices give the owners name, address and phone number. In addition to taking up valuable time of the pet owner in placing the notices around the area, this method relies on the luck of the finder seeing the notice, and the time and effort of the finder to contact the pet owner.
Similarly, many people have attached tags or notices to children, elderly or mentally incapacitated relatives, or personal objects, said tags or notices containing the name, address and/or phone number of the relative or owner who should be contacted if the person or object is found. The effectiveness of these methods, again, relies on the responsibility of the relative or object owner to update the information on the notice or tag in the event of a relocation, as well as the time and expense of the finder of the person or object to contact the relative or owner given on the notice or tag.
Despite the fact that these methods are often effective in returning a lost pet, person or object, they are burdensome to a pet owner, relative of a child or elderly or incapacitated person, or the owner of a personal object to constantly update the information on the tag each time there is a relocation. Often this is overlooked, and the tag or notice on the pet, person or object is outdated and obsolete. No one to date has developed a method whereby one can place a tag or notice on a pet, person or object just once, and use this same tag wherever one is located, no matter how many times an owner or relative relocates after the tag or notice is placed on the pet, person or object.
The present invention discloses a method whereby one may purchase a tag or notice with an identification number on the tag or notice, said tag or notice being attached or connected to any item. If the item is lost, the owner or relative can then call a given phone number, and use the identification number to open a voice mailbox. The finder of the lost item is then able to call a phone number located on the tag or notice, access the voice mailbox opened by the owner or relative, and give the exact location of the lost item.
Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide a method whereby a pet owner can attach a tag to a pet once, which will provide an easy and effective way for the finder of the pet to leave a message for the pet owner to retrieve the lost pet, regardless of how many times the pet owner relocates between the time the tag is attached to the pet and when the pet is lost.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a method whereby a relative of a child or elderly or incapacitated person may attach a tag (e.g., bracelet, necklace, etc.) to the person, which will provide an easy and effective way for the finder of the child or elderly or incapacitated person to leave a message for the relative regarding where to find or pick-up the lost child or elderly or incapacitated person, without the need to update the information on the tag regardless of how many times the relative relocates after the tag is placed on the child or elderly or incapacitated person.
A further object of the invention is to provide a method whereby the owner of personal property can attach a tag or notice to the property, which will provide an easy and effective way for the finder of the lost property to leave a message for the owner regarding where to locate or pick-up the property, without the need to update the information on the tag or notice regardless of how many times the owner relocates after the tag or notice is placed on the object.

Method of locating a lost pet, person or object


A combined sectional view is produced by obtaining a section plane based on one of a plurality of section lines, which is currently set as a target, and on a cut face along the target section line, obtaining an adjacent section plane passing a crossed point between a connected section line, which is connected to the target section line, and the target section line and being perpendicular to a plane including the plurality of section lines and to the section plane, specifying one or more elements and/or parts of elements of a three-dimensional model, which are necessary to draw a sectional view of the model, with respect to the section plane and the adjacent section plane, projecting the specified elements and/or the parts of the elements to obtain a sectional view corresponding to the target section line, and combining a plurality of sectional views obtained by executing the above-described processes for each of the section lines.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for drawing a sectional view of an object, and more specifically, to a method for drawing a sectional view taken along a plurality of section planes.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general drawings for mechanical design, an interior shape of an object is often represented using hidden lines such as dashed lines. When drawing a complicated shape, however, many hidden lines are used and the drawing becomes hard to understand. FIG. 18A shows a part 500 having the shape of a cylinder 504 having a flange 502, the cylinder 504 formed to extend in a direction toward a person viewing the drawing with a cylindrical hollow 506 coaxially formed in the cylinder 504. Although many dashed lines shown the hidden lines are used to show the shape of the hollowed portion, the presence of many hidden lines makes it rather difficult to grasp the shape of the part.
In such a case, a technique of imaginary cutting an object along a section plane, removing a cut portion positioned closer to the person viewing the drawing, and depicting the remaining portion is practiced so that an interior shape of the object to be shown is illustrated in an easily recognizable manner (see FIG. 18B). A figure drawn by that technique is called a sectional view. FIG. 18B is a sectional view resulting from cutting the part of FIG. 18A along a vertical plane passing a center axis of the part 500. In FIG. 18B, hatching with parallel slant lines indicates a section 506 and a two-dot-chain lines 510 indicates an exterior shape of the cut-away portion of the part 500.
There are several types of methods for drawing a sectional view. According to one of the methods, sectional views taken along two or more section planes are combined into one. The resulting view is called a "sectional view by combination" (hereinafter referred to as a "combined sectional view"). The combined sectional view can be further classified into several types. One of those types represents the "case of cutting an object along two crossed planes."
The "case of cutting an object along two crossed planes" corresponds to the case that, when an object has a symmetrical or nearly symmetrical shape and portions to be shown in a sectional view are not present on one plane, the object can be cut along a section plane above a certain center line (e.g., a center line of symmetry) and a section plane below it at a certain angle between the two section planes. A sectioned model of FIG. 19A is obtained by cutting a part 520 which has a flange 522, a cylinder 524 with a hollow 528 and a projecting portion 562, shown in a front view of FIG. 19B, along a section plane corresponding to a section line indicated by a segment OA and a section plane corresponding to a section line indicated by a segment OB. A sectional view 530 of FIG. 19C is obtained by projecting the sectioned model onto a projection plane parallel to the section plane corresponding to the section line OA or the section plane corresponding to the section line OB.
Depicting sectional views resulting from cutting an object along two crossed planes in a combined manner is advantageous in reducing the number of orthographic views to be depicted as drawings and in realizing a reduction of a drawing space.
Stated another way, two-dimensional drawings are premised on printing on a sheet of paper having a prescribed size, and they can be depicted on the sheet of paper having the prescribed size by combining plural drawings into one.
In the case of cutting an object along two crossed planes, the object is generally cut along two planes. Such a case is already adaptively dealt with in some of famous CAD (Computer Aided Design) systems. Example of those systems is SolidWorks (registered trade name).
In that type of sectional view, it is further possible to depict sectional views resulting from cutting an object along two crossed planes in combination with other sectional views. Such a combination is called the "case of complicated section planes" by JIS Handbook Drawing (Japanese Standards Association, 1995) and, in this specification, it is referred to as a combined sectional view cutting an object along crossed plural planes. For understanding of the "case of complicated section planes," reference is made to FIGS. 20A to 20C. A sectioned model 562 of FIG. 20A is obtained by cutting a part 550, shown in a front view of FIG. 20B, along a section plane corresponding to a section line indicated by a segment OA, a section plane corresponding to a section line indicated by a segment OB, a section plane indicated by a curved line BC, and a section plane indicated by a segment CD. A sectional view 564 of FIG. 20C is obtained by projecting the sectioned model 562 onto planes parallel to the section planes indicated by the respective segments OA, OB and CD, and combining the projected views. The sectional view 564 of FIG. 20C is obtained by an engineer imaging the various sections in accordance with the drawing techniques.
However, the known system can not draw a combined sectional view cutting an object along crossed plural planes. The user is therefore required to draw such a combined sectional view with any of the following techniques by utilizing the functions already provided by the known system:
Combine detailed views (FIG. 21)
Form a plurality of sectioned models and combine respective sectional views of the sectioned models (FIG. 22)
Those techniques will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 21A shows the same sectioned model 562 as shown in FIG. 20A, and the arrows B, C, and D show each viewing direction of corresponding sectional view. FIG. 21B is a projected view obtained by projecting the sectioned model onto a plane parallel to the section plane corresponding to the section line CD, FIG. 21C is a projected view obtained by projecting the sectioned model onto a plane parallel to the section plane corresponding to the section line OB, and FIG. 21D is a projected view obtained by projecting the sectioned model onto a plane parallel to the section plane corresponding to the section line AO, where each section line is shown in FIG. 20B. In FIGS. 21B through 21D, hatched areas represent cut faces provided by the respective section planes. FIG. 21A can be produced by the user designating the respective section planes on the part model 562 of FIG. 20B. FIGS. 21B through 21D can be each produced by designating a plane parallel to the corresponding cut face and projecting the sectioned model onto the plane (designation of the projection). From those figures, the sectional view same one of FIG. 20C is obtained as follows. The user designates the cut faces corresponding to FIGS. 21B through 21D by specifying rectangular areas indicated by dotted lines and then manually designates relative positional relationships among resulting sectional views (designation of projecting positions), thereby producing a sectional view of FIG. 21E. Comparing with FIG. 20C, an unnecessary segment is depicted in a hollow region of the part 550 (see FIG. 20B) because view ranges indicated by dotted lines in FIGS. 21C and 21D are just combined with each other. A sectional view similar to that of FIG. 20C is obtained by manually removing the unnecessary segment.
FIGS. 22A through 22C show sectioned models which are obtained by manually removing, from the sectioned model 562 of FIG. 20A, portions unnecessary for the respective sectional views, so that the sectional view of FIG. 20C is obtained. The sectional views 586, 588, and 590 of FIGS. 22D through 22F are projected views which are produced by projecting the sectioned models 580, 582, and 584 of FIGS. 22A through 22C onto planes parallel to the respective section planes (designation of the projection). A sectional view 592 of FIG. 22G is obtained by manually designating relative positional relationships among the sectional views of FIGS. 22D through 22F (designation of projecting positions). FIG. 22G also includes an unnecessary segment 594 as in FIG. 21E. Hence the sectional view of FIG. 20C is obtained by removing the unnecessary segment through a similar manual operation.
Using the above-described techniques gives rise to the following problems. The problems with those techniques will be described below.
[Case of Combining Detailed Views]
A larger number of operations have to be made by the user for design work because of the necessity of combining a plurality of detailed views with each other and performing the "designation of the projection" and the "designation of the projecting position" for each combination of the detailed views.
A higher degree of freedom in operations made by the user in preparation of the detailed views leads to a possibility that an incorrect sectional view may be produced. A finally obtained sectional view should be free from individual differences if many steps of operations have to be made by the user just in a procedural point of view. In fact, however, the user is required to perform the operations while imaging the finally obtained sectional view and an incorrect sectional view is apt to be produced.
When the shape of the model is updated, an operation of readjusting respective view ranges for the detailed views is required. More specifically, when the user performs an operation of magnifying a sectioned model 562 of FIG. 23A to a sectioned model 596 of FIG. 23B, the detailed views are also magnified correspondingly from FIGS. 21B through 21D to FIGS. 23C through 23E. On the other hand, each of rectangular areas 598, 600, and 602 designated by the user remains the same. This means that the cut face of the sectioned model is enlarged beyond the rectangular areas 598, 600, and 602 set as the view ranges for the detailed view, and that the mutual positional relationships among the detailed views have also to be readjusted depending on the enlargement of the sectioned models. If the positional relationships among the detailed views are left not readjusted, a sectional view 604 lacking continuity is finally produced as shown in FIG. 23F.
Because an unnecessary linear line is drawn in the combined boundary between the sectional views as described above, the operation of deleting such an element of the unnecessary linear line is required, thus resulting in need of increased time and labor (see the unnecessary linear line 678 of FIG. 25).
[Case of Forming Plural Sectioned Models and Combine Respective Sectional Views of Sectioned Models]
A larger number of operations have to be made by the user for design work because of the necessity of combining a plurality of sectional views with each other and performing the "designation of the projection" and the "designation of the projecting position" for each combination of the sectional views.
The sectioned models resulting from removing unnecessary portions with respective plane surfaces of the section planes viewed from the front (e.g., three models of FIGS. 22A, 22B and 22C) are required in addition to the original sectioned model. Also, a higher degree of freedom in operations made by the user in preparation of the sectional views leads to a possibility that an incorrect sectional view may be produced.
When the shape of the model is updated, operations such as readjusting respective positions of the sectional views, deleting projected portions of unnecessary shapes, and changing the hatched areas are required. More specifically, referring to FIG. 24, when sectioned models 580, 582, and 584 of FIGS. 24A through 24C are magnified to sectioned models 610, 612, and 614 of FIGS. 24D through 24F, a sectional view lacking continuity is finally produced as shown in FIG. 24J unless the mutual positional relationships among sectional views of FIGS. 24G through 24I are readjusted.
Because an unnecessary linear line is drawn in the combined boundary between the sectional views as described above as shown in FIG. 25E, the operation of deleting such an element of the unnecessary linear line is required, thus resulting in need of increased time and labor.

Combined sectional view producing method and apparatus


An orthopedic splint has two end plates connected to an intermediate hinge which flexes in a plane transverse to the plates and attaches to a limb in a less obtrusive position behind the joint rather than on opposite sides of the joint. The hinge has continuously adjustable stops for limiting flexing and extension and a spring contained in the hinge for preloading the splint. The entire splint including the hinge may be enclosed and contained in a zippered moisture absorbent contour fitting cover for improved esthetic appearance and comfort.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to the field of orthopedic splints and orthoses, and more particularly concerns articulated splints used in physical therapy designed to improve extension of a limb.
2. State of the Prior Art
Orthotic splints are used to assist extension of a joint, typically the knee, elbow or wrist, of a patient for therapeutic reasons. Such splints are well known and commonly used in physical therapy designed to reverse the involuntary contraction of muscles which typically results from protracted disuse of the muscles. This neuromuscular condition is frequent in disabled or comatose patients who are bedridden for long periods of time. The arm, leg and finger muscles become contracted, causing permanent retraction of the elbow, wrist or knee joints. Such a condition can be reversed with physical therapy, by gradually forcing the joints towards an extended condition in small daily increments. After each such extension the involved limb is held at the newly achieved degree of extension by a splint which is attached to the limb and bridges the affected joint. After a number of such sessions the limb may regain a normal range of motion. Splints are also employed in the treatment of other conditions where mobility of a diseased or injured joint must be restricted for therapeutic reasons.
Such splints generally have two end portions, which are fastened to opposite sides of the joint in question by means of straps. The end portions are usually plates curved to fit against the limb surface, and are joined by an intermediate portion which is pliable or flexible to allow bending of the splint to fit the angle of the joint. In its simplest form, a splint has two end plates joined by a narrower midportion which is sufficiently rigid so that the patient is not able to change its shape, yet sufficiently deformable that the therapist can bend it to a desired angle. The splint requires successive adjustment as limb extension progresses, which is also accomplished by bending the semi-rigid intermediate portion of the splint. This simple type of splint merely immobilizes the joint to prevent retraction of the limb.
For some patients, however, it is desirable to allow a limited range of motion of the joint, which may be gradually adjusted and increased as therapy progresses. For this purpose, articulated splints are available which are equipped with a specialized hinge, known as a goniometer. The goniometer has adjustable stops which can be preset by the physical therapist to allow a limited range of motion appropriate to the particular patients needs and condition. in some cases it may be also beneficial to provide a continuous force, as by a spring, urging the limb towards an extended condition to compensate for the greater natural strength of the retractor muscles as compared with extensor muscles and thereby assist the patient in extension of the limb.
Existing articulated splints are of cumbersome design in that the goniometer hinge is in the form of two spaced apart pivots positioned on opposite sides of the joint when the splint is applied to the patient's limb. Range of motion settings must be made on each of the two sides of the goniometer hinge by the therapist. Existing splint goniometers suffer from the additional shortcoming that the range of motion settings are not continuously adjustable, as would be desirable, but only in discrete steps by means of stop pins inserted in a limited number of holes spaced along an arc on the goniometer hinge. Still further, the goniometer hinge on existing splints remains exposed to view on the patient's limb and makes for an awkward looking, aesthetically unappealing apparatus.
What is needed is a splint with a goniometer hinge arrangement which is more compact, easier to adjust, has a continuous range of adjustment, and is less conspicuous when worn by the patient.

Articulated splints and goniometric hinge for the same


The present invention provides a method for driving a backlight module of a liquid crystal display. The backlight module includes three light sources, a first light source, a second light source, and a third light source, that illuminate different color light respectively. The method includes sequentially turning on the three light sources, wherein the first light source and the second light source are turned on twice and the third light source is turned on once.

Generally, methods for driving an LCD can be classified into two methods, the color filter method and the field-sequential driving method, based on methods of displaying color images.
According to the color sequential method, three primary colors are sequentially switched within the time that humans percept the flicker of image to compose a color. That is, the primary colors are sequentially displayed in three time segments. Therefore, a complete color image is displayed as a rapidly changing sequence of primary monochrome images. Since every pixel unit in the display contributes to every primary image, a color sequential imaging display must address the pixel units first to select required pixel units to display. Since three primary colors are sequentially switched in three time segments in the color sequential method, a color difference exists between the moving object's head and tail, called color break-up; that may reduce the display quality. When a white color image moves from right side to left side, human eyes may catch up with this image. However, due to the vision persistence effect, a trailing image whose front end is red color and rear end is blue color is projected onto the retina.
FIG. 4 illustrates a white color image corresponding to m pixel to m+7 pixel. Since the display is driven by the color sequential method, corresponding to the horizontal axis, different colors of vertical axis are displayed in different times. Human's eyes trace the moving object and the trace leave on the retina for a while. At the beginning of the red-sub frame within the (N+1) frame, a white color image whose front end is red color and rear end is blue color is formed in retina
Therefore, improving the image quality is one of the targets waiting for being solved.

Method for driving field sequential LCD backlight


The present invention provides a three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffold for tissue regeneration, which is increased in porosity and thickness to enlarge the surface area thereof, thereby enabling cell adhesion at a high density, and a method for fabricating the same. The method for fabricating a three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffold for tissue regeneration includes the steps of: (a) preparing a polymer solution; (b) preparing a nanofiber matrix, in which a plurality of nanofibers is entangled with each other, from the polymer solution prepared in step (a) using electrospinning; and (c) immersing the prepared nanofiber matrix in a solution and subjecting the solution to ultrasonication, thereby increasing the thickness and porosity of the nanofiber matrix. According to the inventive scaffold fabricating method, the nanofiber matrix prepared by using electrospinning is ultrasonicated in a solution, so that a three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffold with improved thickness and porosity can be provided in a simple and low-cost manner.

1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a scaffold for tissue regeneration, and more particularly to a three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffold for tissue regeneration, in which can be increased in thickness and porosity in a simple manner by ultrasonication, and a method for fabricating the same.
2. Background of the Related Art
The human body is very limited in tissue's ability to self-regenerate because the tissue has a significantly complex and delicate structure. The human body possesses a possibility of tissues being regenerated when tissues are damaged owing to stem cells, but there may occur the case that goes beyond a limitation of a tissue regeneration function due to the reason of incident, illness, aging, or the like. Recently, the need for regeneration of organs or tissues of the body is sharply increasing since they encounter a limitation of the ability to regenerate due to an increase in a variety of diseases and incidents along with the rapid entry into an aging society.
In addition, the demand for development of a technology capable of effectively replacing or implanting biological tissues is increasing gradually, and an effort to restore organs and tissues of the human body has been greatly spotlighted for a long time. Initially, an effort were attempted for the development of biocompatible materials for an artificial substitute, organ transplantation, and the like, but such a technology is recently advanced to the tissue engineering that incorporates and applies biological science, engineering, and medical science.
The tissue engineering is a field of regenerative medicine which deals with regeneration of body tissues from cells to artificial organs, and is recognized as one of important technologies of a biological science and a medical field in future based on the science that deals with biological and engineering technologies involving biomaterials that can help to restore tissues or organs. A research is in progress on various methods for achieving a goal to restore, maintain, and improve the function of the human body by understanding the correlation between the structure and function of biological tissues, and furthermore fabricating and implanting biological substitutes.
In the tissue engineering, to produce a scaffold that functions as a support to allow cells to adhere and grow is one of core technologies. Unlike a two-dimensional membrane or capsule, the scaffold is formed in a three-dimensional shape and refers to a space where all the cells having a three-dimensional structure in vivo can adhere, proliferate, and differentiate.
The scaffold plays a very important role in the tissue engineering. In addition, the scaffold plays a significant role in growth of cells disseminated in a porous structure and cells migrated from tissue surroundings. Almost all the cells in vivo are adherent cells that adhere and grow. If there is no a place for the cells to adhere, they do not grow but perish. Thus, it is required that the scaffold should provide an environment suitable for adhesion, growth, and differentiation of cells as well as cell migration. The scaffold can be prepared of various materials, and a research is actively being conducted to develop a scaffold for tissue regeneration using a natural material, a synthetic polymer, a biological ceramics, and a polymer-ceramic composite material.
The scaffold has a structure that needs a high porosity to secure a large surface area enabling cell adhesion at a high density, and requires an open cellular structure in which large pores enabling formation of a blood vessel, and delivery of a substance such as nutrient, growth factor, hormone, or the like, after implantation in vivo are connected to each other. In addition, it is required that porosity and the shape of pores of the scaffold should be controlled depending on the properties of tissues cultured.
As examples of a technique for preparing a sponge type porous scaffold, particulate leaching, emulsion freeze-drying, high-pressure gas expansion, phase separation, and the like have been generally accepted. However, such a conventional scaffold preparation method has a limitation in the production of pores having an open cellular structure, and entails a problem in that the pore size is too small to culture cells three-dimensionally.

Three-dimensional nanofiber scaffold for tissue repair and preparation method thereof

UNIVERSITY-INDUSTRY COOPERATION GROUP OF KYUNG-HEE UNIVERSITY ET AL


A vascular or endoluminal stent is adapted to be implanted in a vessel, duct or tract of a human body to maintain an open lumen. The stent includes a base layer of a biologically compatible metal. An intermediate metal particle layer of substantial greater radiopacity overlies the base layer, with particles bonded to the base layer and to each other to leave interstices therebetween as a repository for retaining and dispensing drugs or other agents for time release therefrom. The particles are composed primarily of a noble metal. Exposed surfaces of the particle layer are coated with ceramic-like iridium oxide or titanium nitrate, as a biocompatible material to inhibit irritation of tissue at the inner lining of the vessel when the stent is implanted.

The present invention relates generally to stents which are implantable or deployable in a vascular or endoluminal location within the body of a patient to maintain the lumen open at the implant site, and more particularly to improvements in stent coatings.
Stents are expandable prostheses employed to maintain narrow vascular and endoluminal ducts or tracts of the human body open and unoccluded, such as a portion of the lumen of a coronary artery after dilatation of the artery by balloon angioplasty, for example. In the exemplary case of an occluded coronary artery, the original blockage typically arises from a buildup of fatty deposits or plaque on the inner lining of the vessel. The balloon angioplasty procedure is used to compress the deposits against the inner lining of the vessel, or virtually entire removal may be achieved using other types of angioplasty such as laser or rotational cutting. A different mechanism, however, may cause a new blockage after the angioplasty procedure is performed. The blood vessel wall is subjected to trauma by the balloon, laser or rotating knife, as the case may be, which results in intimal hyperplasia, i.e., a rapid proliferation of smooth muscle cells in the affected region of the wall, to cause restenosis and re-occlusion of the vessel lumen in a significant percentage of angioplasty patients within a period of from three to six months following the initial procedure.
To avoid this re-occlusion and to maintain the lumen of the vessel open, it is now customary procedure to install a stent at the site in the vessel where the angioplasty was performed. The stent is deployed by radial expansion under pressure exerted, for example, by active inflation of a balloon of a balloon catheter on which the stent is mounted, or in some instances by passive spring characteristics of a pre-formed elastic stent, to engage the inner lining or inwardly facing surface of the vessel wall with sufficient resilience to allow some contraction but also with sufficient stiffness to resist to a great degree the natural recoil of the vessel wall that follows its expansion.
The stent itself, however, offers a surface that can promote thrombus formation as blood flows through the vessel. This can result in an acute blockage, which, in a coronary artery, is sufficient to produce an infarction. The thrombosis and clotting can be reduced or even eliminated by localized application of appropriate drugs in a biodegradable formulation, which act for only a period of time sufficient to stave off the thrombus reaction to the presence of the stent in the bloodstream. Some difficulty is encountered in providing a stent surface which is suitable for retention of the necessary drug(s) to achieve those purposes.
A similar situation is encountered at the outward facing surface of the stent that contacts and engages the inner lining of the vessel, duct or tract, where tissue irritation can exacerbate fibrosis of the vessel wall and restenosis in the region of the irritation. Here, also, it would be desirable to provide the stent with the capability to provide a timed release of suitable drug(s) from a biodegradable carrier on or in the affected stent surface, to reduce the occurrence of fibrosis and hyperplasia at the portion(s) of the vessel wall contacted by the stent.
An additional need encountered for stent usage in the human body include a capability to clearly visualize the stent as it is being implanted at the preselected site in the body, as by advancement on a stent delivery system through a portion of the patient's vascular system and into a coronary artery, and after the stent is implanted, for purposes of its examination from time to time at the implant site.
Among the most important features of a suitable stent are the following. The device should be flexible, and yet possess sufficient mechanical strength to resist vessel recoil. It should demonstrate a high rate of successful interventional placement, be highly visible on x-ray fluoroscopy, be very thin to minimize obstruction by its mere presence in the lumen intended to be dilated and held open, and not be an agent which promotes a re-narrowing or re-occlusion of the vessel or duct lumen in which it is implanted. Stent design, of course, can play a major role in influencing the aforementioned features, but also significant is the material(s) of which the stent is composed, with respect to visibility, flexibility, and recoil-resistant characteristics of the stent, as well as its surface characteristics that affect capability of the stent to prevent or inhibit thrombus formation and restenosis in a blood vessel in which the stent is implanted. Current stents have not proved to be capable of fulfilling all of these requirements.
Therefore, it is a principal aim of the present invention to provide a stent which has a composition that offers an enhanced capability to fulfill these important requirements.

Drug-releasing stent with ceramic-containing layer


In order to provide an oil separator for separating oil from a blowby gas of a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine, which oil separator is manufactured separately from a basic body of a cylinder head cover but may nevertheless be easily integrated into the cylinder head cover, it is proposed that the oil separator comprises an oil separator module, which is manufactured separately from a basic body of a cylinder head cover and comprises a cyclone plate having at least one cyclone as well as a base plate, wherein the cyclone plate is fastened to the base plate and the oil separator module is fastenable to the basic body of the cylinder head cover.

Such an oil separator is known for example from EP 1 559 876 A2. This known oil separator comprises a plurality of cyclones for separating the oil from the blowby gas, wherein each cyclone comprises a bowl, which is formed integrally with a bottom shell of a cylinder head cover, and an immersion tube, which is formed integrally with a top shell of the cylinder head cover. The cyclones in this case therefore form an integral component of a twin-shelled basic body of the cylinder head cover and are manufactured together with the basic body.


A linking system and associated method are used to link two or more large dissimilar databases. The linking system generally includes a software program installed on a server with access to databases such as customer databases and organization databases. The linking system includes pointers, as needed, to link customers with positions, jobs, groups or other organizational entities. These pointers allow for a reduced maintenance of the underlying data, while the number of pointers used is relatively small. In addition, the set of information for each pointer can be modified without changing the structure or information of the linked databases.

Database systems are collections of files stored on computers or other linked systems such as the Internet. The files together contain all the information about a topic or related topics. Generally, a file system is used to "file away" information which a user will later retrieve for processing. A file typically resides in directly accessible storage and can be manipulated as a unit by file system operations. The file system allows a user the means for storing data in files, the means for accessing the data in those files, the means for managing direct access to storage space where the files are stored, and the means for guaranteeing the integrity of those files.
Database systems are used by organizations to manage information about clients, orders, client accounts, and so forth. In addition, organizational databases are maintained that manage information about organization structure, employees, position, job, accounts, etc. When dealing with clients and orders, the organization often needs to locate and contact the appropriate employee or group for an issue being addressed. The organization could change the structure of the databases to link employees and groups with clients and purchase orders, but this data changes frequently and would require constant change and maintenance. For large databases with dissimilar structures and programming languages, linking becomes even more difficult.
While it would be useful to link different databases to correlate data such as purchase orders, clients, employees, and groups, reprogramming the databases and then maintaining the links between these databases could become inconvenient, inefficient, and cost prohibitive. What is needed, therefore, is a system for externally linking databases, which does not require modification of the databases. The need for such a system has heretofore remained unsatisfied.

System and method of linking dissimilar databases using pointers

International Business Machines Corporation


The present invention is an imaging element including a support, at least one image-forming layer and an auxiliary layer. The auxilary layer is formed by providing a coating composition of a fluoroolefin-vinyl ether copolymer dissolved in an organic medium, coating the coating composition on the support and drying the coating composition. The present invention also includes a coating composition for use in an imaging element including a fluoroolefin-vinyl ether copolymer dissolved in an organic medium.

The imaging elements to which this invention relates can be of many different types depending on the particular use for which they are intended. Such elements include, for example, photographic, electrophotographic, electrostatographic, photothermographic, migration, electrothermographic, dielectric recording and thermal-dye-transfer imaging elements.
Layers of imaging elements other than the image-forming layer are commonly referred to as auxiliary layers. There are many different types of auxiliary layers such as, for example, subbing layers, backing layers, overcoat layers, receiving layers, stripping layers, antistatic layers, transparent magnetic layers, and the like.
Support materials for an imaging element often employ auxiliary layers comprising glassy, hydrophobic polymers such as polyacrylates, polymethacrylates, polystyrenes, or cellulose esters, for example. One typical application for such an auxiliary layer is as a backing layer to provide resistance to abrasion, scratching, blocking, and ferrotyping. Backing layers may be applied directly onto the support material, applied onto a priming or "subbing" layer, or applied as an overcoat for an underlying layer such as an antistatic layer, transparent magnetic layer, or the like. When the backing layer is an overcoat for an antistatic layer the backing layer may need to protect the antistatic layer from attack by film processing solutions in order to preserve the antistatic properties of the film after image processing. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,769 describes a vanadium pentoxide-containing antistatic layer that is overcoated with a cellulosic layer applied from an organic solvent.
The problem of controlling static charge is well known in the photographic art. The accumulation and discharge of static charges can lead to a variety of problems such as dirt and dust attraction, coating imperfections such as mottle, and static marking. The accumulation of static charge is related to both the electrical conductivity and the charging characteristics of the imaging element. Incorporation of conductive agents such as salts, semiconductive metal oxide fillers and polymers, for example, in auxiliary layers has been used effectively in the photographic art as a means of increasing the electrical conductivity of an imaging element.
The accumulation of static charge may be reduced by controlling the triboelectric charge generated on the surface of imaging elements as a result of friction and separation of surfaces during the manufacture and use of the imaging element. The incorporation of fluorine-containing surface active agents in the surface layers of imaging elements as a means of controlling triboelectric charge generation has been disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,589,906, 3,666,478, 3,884,609, 3,888,678, 4,330,618, and others. European Patent Application EP 0 693 709 A describes a light sensitive material having at least one hydrophilic colloid layer containing in combination, at least one fluoropolymer and at least one fluorochemical surface active agent. Such layers reportedly improve the antistatic behavior of the light sensitive material. Typical compositions in this patent application comprise gelatin as the hydrophilic colloid, fluorochemical surface active agent, and an aqueous dispersion of fluoropolymer. Such hydrophilic layers would be expected to have poor barrier performance and abrasion resistance and not be coatable from organic solvent.
Frequently, when the auxiliary layer serves as the outermost layer, as is the case for a backing layer, it is desirable for this layer to have a low coefficient of friction (COF) to provide proper conveyance properties and to protect the imaging element from mechanical damage during the manufacturing process or customer use. It is known to protect imaging elements against mechanical damage by coating them with a layer comprising a lubricant such as a wax. However, it has proven difficult to provide a single layer applied from organic medium that comprises both an abrasion-resistant polymer and a lubricant since it is difficult to find a coating medium that dissolves both the polymer and the lubricant and is at the same time attractive from an environmental and health standpoint. In addition, it is difficult to form a stable dispersion of a lubricant such as a wax in an organic medium that may be added to a coating composition containing a dissolved, abrasion-resistant polymer. Therefore, in order to form a backing layer which can be applied from liquid organic medium that is both abrasion-resistant and has a low coefficient of friction one often applies two separate layers; a first layer which is comprised of an abrasion-resistant polymer and then a second layer which is comprised of a lubricant such as a wax. The need to apply these two separate layers increases both manufacturing complexity and cost.
While the aforementioned prior art references relate to some aspects of the present invention, they are deficient with regard to simultaneously satisfying all the physical, chemical, and manufacturing requirements for providing an improved auxiliary layer for imaging elements that is applied from organic solvent. The present invention provides a coating composition which may be applied from organic solvent and forms a dried layer with excellent physical and chemical properties such as transparency, abrasion resistance, coefficient of friction, triboelectric charging, and barrier properties.

Auxiliary layer for imaging elements containing solvent-soluble fluoropolymer