The present invention is a composition and method of treatment for actinic purpura, skin disorders, and skin conditions in general through topical systematic and periodic application of a formulation that generally may include ingredients to improve circulation such as but not limited to arnica oil CLR and phytotonine; ingredients to thicken the skin such as but not limited to retistar, glycolic acid, vitamin K1, and phyto-age; and ingredients to repair the skin's barrier, such as but not limited to timecode, SKINMIMICS, ABS pomegranate sterols, and pentatavitin.

1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention is a composition and method of treatment for actinic purpura, skin disorders, and skin conditions in general. More in particular, the present invention is a systematic and periodic application of a topical formulation that may include ingredients to improve circulation such as but not limited to arnica oil CLR and phytotonine; ingredients to thicken the skin such as but not limited to retistar, glycolic acid, vitamin K1, and phyto-age; and ingredients to repair the skin's barrier, such as but not limited to timecode, SKINMIMICS, ABS pomegranate sterols, and pentatavitin.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Mature skin is often prone to pronounced bruising due to decreased blood flow, reduction in connective tissue (i e thinning skin), loss of subcutaneous fat to support the skin structure, and flattening of the Dermal-Epidermal Junction and effacement of the dermal papillae. This condition is referred to as solar or actinic purpura. Although the lesions are not typically associated with any serious complications, bruising may be cosmetically distressing and may leave dyspigmentation or scarring.
Actinic purpura is a benign clinical entity resulting from sun-induced damage to the connective tissue of the dermis. It is characterized by ecchymoses on the surfaces of the forearms and the dorsa of the hands that usually last 1-3 weeks. The condition was first described in 1818 when a physician named Bateman noted dark purple blotches and determined that they were due to the extravasation of blood into the dermal tissue. Hence, it is sometimes called Bateman purpura. It is common in elderly individuals and usually occurs after unrecognized minor trauma to the respective areas.
Clinical aspects of dermatoporosis include morphological markers of fragility, such as senile purpura, stellate pseudoscars, and skin atrophy. The concept of the syndrome term dermatoporosis has been used to compare it to osteoporosis, implying both should be prevented and treated to avoid complications
The purple macules and patches of this condition occur because red blood cells leak into the dermal tissue. This extravasation is secondary to the fragility of the blood vessel walls caused by ultraviolet radiation-induced dermal tissue atrophy. This atrophy renders the skin and microvasculature more susceptible to the effects of minor trauma and shearing forces. The insult to the skin is typically so minor that isolating it as a cause of the bruise can be difficult. Notably, no inflammatory component is found in the dermal tissue. The absence of a phagocytic response to the extravascular blood has been postulated to be responsible for delaying resorption for as long as 3 weeks.
Actinic purpura may be, along with osteoporosis, a sign of collagen loss in skin and bone. This causal loss of skin collagen has been confirmed when collagen was expressed absolutely, instead of as a percentage or ratio. That is, women have less collagen than men and it decreases by 1% a year in exposed and unexposed skin. These changes in skin collagen may correspond to changes in bone density. The hypothesis is that the changes in skin collagen also occur in bone collagen, leading to the associated changes in bone density.
Actinic purpura does not require extensive medical care. To prevent further ultraviolet-induced damage to the skin, sunscreens that provide both UV-A and UV-B protection should be applied daily, especially to areas affected by the purpuric lesions. Patients should also use barrier protection.
Actinic purpura is an extremely common finding in elderly individuals, occurring in approximately 11.9% of those older than 50 years. Its prevalence markedly increases with years of exposure to the sun. Furthermore, a study of the prevalence of dermatoses in 75 elderly residents in a long-term care facility in Santos, Brazil, found 280 dermatoses, with an average number of 3.73 per elderly person and 32 different types of dermatoses. Actinic purpura was evident in 29.3% of them.
Chronic sun exposure leads to skin changes that predispose patients to actinic purpura. Because of the ultraviolet-induced atrophy, the connective tissue of the dermis is no longer able to adequately support the microvasculature. As a result, even minor trauma can tear the blood vessels, leading to the extravasation of blood. The effects of chronic sun exposure with the resultant ultraviolet radiation induced skin changes more often and are more pronounced in fair-skinned individuals than in others.
Both sexes are equally affected, but typically, actinic purpura occurs almost exclusively in the elderly population, though it may sporadically occur in younger people. The incidence varies with respect to age. Approximately 2% of those aged 60-70 years and as many as 25% of those aged 90-100 years can have the purpuric lesions.
Often patients may report the appearance of purple blotches or bruises on their forearms, hands, face, or neck. The macules are not associated with pain or pruritus. Patients also may report a history of the lesions resolving and then subsequently reappearing. Residual brown pigmentation may appear after the purpuric macules resolve. Individual lesions usually last 1-3 weeks, and they do not undergo the color changes that occur with other types of purpuric lesions. Further, patients are typically unaware of any external trauma that may have been responsible for the bruising. Still further, individuals may report a history of chronic sun exposure to skin sites where lesions are present.
Purpuric patches and macules larger than 3 mm in diameter are usually present on the extensor surfaces of the forearms and on the dorsa of the hands; the lesions do not extend onto the fingers. Bruising may also be found on the neck and face. Macules and patches are dark purple and irregularly shaped. A sharp margin is seen between the borders of the lesions and the surrounding skin. Some macules are more deeply colored than other are because the duration of the lesions varies. The color changes that are typically associated with actinic purpura or bruising due to other causes do not occur, although residual brown pigmentation may persist.
Lesions of actinic purpura occur in areas of atrophic and inelastic photo damaged skin. Other signs of dermatoheliosis often present include leathered wrinkling, stellate pseudoscars, and a sallow yellow hue to the skin. Lentigines and scars may be present. The skin may appear darker secondary to hyperpigmentation due to hemosiderosis.
Of note, the US total skin care market was estimated at $8.3 billion in 2008, up 1.1% over 2007. From 2003 to 2008, the market for premium skin care products grew 18% or a compounded annual growth rate of 3.4%. Contributing to this growth was the anti-aging segment, which grew 58.8% over this same time frame to approximately $2.5 billion. Medical professionals as well as consumers are constantly looking for new and improved treatments that provide solutions and preventative care to improve health needs associated with skin issues and skin care in general.
It is therefore desirable to provide a new and improved treatment for actinic purpura, skin disorders, and skin conditions in general. The above discussed limitations in the prior art is not exhaustive. The current invention provides an inexpensive and effective composition and method of treatment for skin not currently found in the known art.

Composition and method of treating actinic purpura


The present invention involves obtaining telecommunications data of a business entity from its communications vendors and providing that business entity with aggregated telecommunications data. After obtaining from multiple vendors both the detailed information of a business entity's telecommunications assets and usage of network services and/or the accompanying costs for those assets and services, the present invention aggregates the detailed information for telecommunications asset management and analysis purposes and provides the business entity with the aggregated information, for example by database or through a network interface.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to telecommunications data. More specifically, the field of the invention is that of comparative evaluation of telecommunications data.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are many challenges associated with the successful operation of businesses. One of these challenges includes the efficient utilization of the businesses resources. Competition in one form or another forces business owners to constantly evaluate their business resources and determine whether or not they are being efficiently utilized. There are many historical breakthroughs in business resource utilization that have dramatically affected commerce and changed the way business is done.
For example, in the early stages of the automobile industry automobiles were so costly that they could only be purchased by people having substantial incomes. In these early stages, the primary cost of manufacturing was the labor cost. Automobiles were made one at a time. Workmen would either be responsible for a number of different tasks or they would be called upon to perform a specific task at a specific time. In either of these cases the labor resource was not being completely utilized. In the first instance, workmen who were responsible for a number of different tasks typically were not as efficient as they could be at all of the them. In the later instance, workmen were being paid to move between jobs, a cost that was never recovered.
Henry Ford changed all this when he invented a better way to manufacture automobiles—the assembly line. With the assembly line in place automobiles could be manufactured more efficiently by cutting labor costs. Employees were able to work efficiently at a certain position, do one job, do it well, and do it many times over to produce automobiles that were able to be afforded by people of almost every income bracket. Ford recognized the benefit of complete resource utilization. Basically Ford got more bang for his buck. For every hour he paid a workman on the assembly line, the workman was being utilized. Prior to Ford's assembly line, the workman may have been paid to perform a job inadequately or to wastefully move in between jobs.
To this day, labor and materials are still important resources; however, other resources are playing an even more important role in modem business. In order to effectively compete, modem businesses must rely on telecommunications. Whether companies are making themselves more accessible by providing associates with pagers and cell phones or they are conducting business or advertising over the internet, the costs of providing these services are telecommunication resources. At one point in business the telecommunications cost was the fourteenth or fifteenth highest cost of doing business. In recent years this cost has been ranked as high as third or fourth.
To date no one has completely effectively utilized these telecommunications resources. Typically the extent to which these resources are managed consists of shopping for the lowest rate plan possible. Returning to the early automobile industry for a moment, this is the equivalent of hiring workmen who would work for the least amount of compensation. Clearly this technique does not address the utilization of the resource. What is needed is a method or system that allows businesses to determine the utilization of their telecommunication resource. Only when the utilization is determined can companies alter their present utilization to more effectively utilize their telecommunications resource.
Conventional telecommunications rating and analysis is performed by the telecommunications services provider, or by a third party vendor using data from the telecommunications services provider's billing data. These conventional telecommunications rating analysis vendors attempt to provide business entities a way to analyze telecommunications billing data in an organized and timely manner, but fail to provide a comprehensive business entity cost and usage analysis. What is needed is a better telecommunication data analysis system.

Customer-oriented telecommunications data aggregation and analysis method and object oriented system


A card connector housing comprises an elongate insulative housing having two guiding bars extending from distal ends thereof for guiding a complementary card inserted into the housing. A plurality of contacts are received in the housing for electrically engaging with the inserted card. An auxiliary suction member extends from an upper surface of the housing thereby defining an engagement region between the auxiliary suction member and the housing. The auxiliary suction member provides a flat surface for receiving suction from a vacuum nozzle during automated soldering. The auxiliary suction member can be manually separated from the housing after the automated soldering.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a card connector and particularly to a card connector having a pick-up member for receiving suction from a vacuum nozzle for positioning it onto a printed circuit board.
2. The Prior Art
Memory cards have become popular due to the trend of compact size, modularization, and object oriented requirements of the computer industry. Accordingly, card connectors have also become more popular because they are the inevitable members cooperating with the memory cards. However, soldering of a card connector to a printed circuit board is difficult due to the card connector not having a sufficient flat surface for a vacuum nozzle to be fixed to the card connector. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,396,245, 5,026,295, 5,055,971, 5,147,209, 5,242,311, and 5,249,977 disclose different auxiliary suction members for use with different connectors. For example, FIG. 6 illustrates a conventional card connector 4 constructed according to card bus standards to have an insulative housing 40 and a mating face 41 defined in one side of the housing 40. Normally, the card bus connector 4 is manually positioned on a printed circuit board and soldered thereto. However, manually positioning the connector 4 on the printed circuit board instead of using a vacuum nozzle is cost inefficient. For facilitating operation of a vacuum nozzle in automated soldering, a card connector 5 as shown in FIG. 7 includes an auxiliary suction member 51 having a flat surface integrated with two guiding bars 50 thereof for receiving suction from a vacuum nozzle during automated soldering. The auxiliary suction member 51 can be withdrawn from the connector 5 after the connector 5 has been soldered on a related printed circuit board. Although the auxiliary suction member 51 is useful for the soldering of the card connector, the manufacture thereof results in a considerable extra cost. In addition, the auxiliary suction member 51 occupies too much space which violates the compact size requirement of personal computers. Moreover, the auxiliary suction member 51 is not detachable from the housing therefore it will occupy space even after the connector 5 has been soldered on the printed circuit board. Hence, it is requisite to provide a space sufficient auxiliary suction member for receiving suction from a vacuum nozzle whereby a card connector can be positioned on a PCB with minimum cost.


A novel protein, fibroblast growth factor homologous factor-1 (FHF-1), the polynucleotide sequence encoding FHF-1, and the deduced amino acid sequence are disclosed. Also disclosed are diagnostic and therapeutic methods of using the FHF-1 polypeptide and polynucleotide sequences and antibodies which specifically bind to FHF-1.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to growth factors and specifically to a novel member of the fibroblast growth factor family, denoted fibroblast growth factor homologous factor-1 (FHF-1) and the polynucleotide encoding FHF-1.
2. Description of Related Art
The fibroblast growth factor family encompasses a group of structurally related proteins with a wide range of growth promoting, survival, and/or differentiation activities in vivo and in vitro (reviewed in Baird, A., and Gospodarowicz, D. Ann N.Y. Acad. Sci. 638: 1, 1991; Eckenstein, F. P., J. Neurobiology 25: 1467, 1994; Mason, I. J. Cell 78: 547, 1994). As of December 1994, nine members of this family had been characterized by molecular cloning. The first two members of the family to be characterized, acidic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF/FGF-1) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF/FGF-2), have been found in numerous tissues, including for example brain, eye, kidney, placenta, and adrenal (Jaye et al., Science 233: 541, 1986; Abraham et al., Science 233: 545, 1986). These factors have been shown to be potent mitogens and survival factors for a variety of mesoderm and neurectoderm-derived tissues, including fibroblasts, endothelial cells, hippocampal and cerebral cortical neurons, and astroglia (Burgess, W. H. and Maciag, T., Ann. Rev. Biochemistry 58: 575, 1989). Additional members of the FGF family include: i-nt-2/FGF-3, identified as one of the frequent sites of integration of the mouse mammary tumor virus, and therefore a presumptive oncogenic factor (Smith et al., EMBO J. 7: 1013, 1988); FGF-4 (Delli-Bovi et al., Cell 50: 729, 1987) and FGF-5 (Zhan et al., Mol. Cell Biol. 8: 3487, 1988) as transforming genes in the NIH 3T3 transfection assay; FGF-6, isolated by molecular cloning based on its homology to FGF-4 (Marics et al., Oncogene 4: 335 (1989); keratinocyte growth factor/FGF-7, identified as a mitogen for keratinocytes (Finch et al., Science 245: 752, 1989); FGF-8 as an androgen-induced mitogen for mammary carcinoma cells (Tanaka et al., Proc. Natl. Acad Sci. USA 89: 8928, 1992); and FGF-9 as a mitogen for primary astrocytes (Miyamoto et al., Mol. Cell Biol. 13: 4251, 1993). Several of the FGFs, including aFGF and bFGF, lack a classical signal sequence; the mechanism by which they are secreted is not known.
All members of the FGF family share approximately 25% or more amino acid sequence identity, a degree of homology indicating that they are likely to share nearly identical three-dimensional structures. Support for this inference comes from a comparison of the three-dimensional structures of bFGF and interleukin 1-beta determined by x-ray diffraction (Eriksson et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci USA 88: 3441, 1991; Zhang et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci USA 88: 3446, 1991; Ago et al., J. Biochem. 110: 360, 1991). Although these proteins share only 10% amino acid identity, the alpha carbon backbones of the two crystal structures can be superimposed with a root-mean square deviation of less than 2 angstroms (Zhang et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci USA 88: 3446, 1991). Both proteins consist almost entirely of beta-sheets, which form a barrel composed of three copies of a four-stranded beta-meander motif The likely heparin- and receptor-binding regions are located on nearby regions on one face of the protein.
aFGF, bFGF, and FGF-7/KGF have been shown to exert some or all of their biological activity through high affinity binding to cell surface tyrosine kinase receptors (e.g., Lee, P. L., et al., Science 245: 57, 1989; reviewed in Johnson, D. E. and Williams, L. T., Adv. Cancer Res. 60: 1, 1993). Many members of the FGF family also bind tightly to heparin, and a terniary complex of heparin, FGF, and transmembrane receptor may be the biologically relevant signalling species. Thus far four different genes have been identified that encode receptors for FGF family members. Recent work has shown that receptor diversity is increased by differential mRNA splicing within the extracellular ligand binding domain, with the result that multiple receptor isoforms with different ligand binding properties can be encoded by the same gene (Johnson, D. E. and Williams, L. T., Adv. Cancer Res. 60: 1, 1993). In tissue culture systems, the binding of aFGF or bFGF to its cell surface receptor activates phospholipase C-gamma (Burgess, W. H. et al., Mol. Cell Biol. 10: 4770, 1990), a pathway known to integrate a variety of mitogenic signals.
Identification and characterization of new members of the FGF family will provide insights into the mechanisms by which cells and organs control their growth, survival, senescence, differentiation, and recovery from injury.

Fibroblast growth factor homologous factor-1 (FHF-1)

The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine


An arrangement for sterilizing objects in which a quantity of liquid and one or more objects to be sterilized are introduced into a pouch formed of flexible sheet material at least partially transparent to microwave radiation whereupon the pouch is sealed to form a gas-tight assembly. The gas-tight assembly is situated in an inner rigid cavity of an enclosure which is at least partially formed of material that is substantially transparent to microwave radiation. The enclosure is irradiated with microwave radiation which passes into the cavity and then into the gas-tight pouch assembly situated therein to vaporize the liquid to produce an atmosphere of hot vapor under pressure in the pouch. The pouch expands under pressure until the sheet material of which it is formed presses against the rigid inner surfaces of the enclosure cavity. At least a part of the gas-tight pouch assembly may be surrounded with microwave radiation shielding which divides the interior of the pouch into shielded and unshielded interior portions, the object to be sterilized being situated in the shielded pouch portion while the liquid to be vaporized is situated in the second unshielded pouch portion.

This invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for disinfecting or sterilizing objects, and more particularly, to methods and apparatus for disinfecting or sterilizing objects, such as dental and medical instruments. As used hereinbelow, the terms "sterilizing", "sterilization", and the like will be used in their broadest sense and should be understood to mean the killing of bacteria and spores, as well as the killing of bacteria to the extent necessary for a particular purpose, and may include the process of "disinfection."
The need for effective sterilization of dental instruments, such as dental handpieces, is more important today than ever before due to the realization of the significant potential for infection via dental procedures and the increase in the rate of transmission of serious diseases by blood and saliva. However, from a practical viewpoint, not only must the sterilization procedure be effective, it must also be rapid, i.e., have a short turn-around or cycle time. Thus, it will be understood that the quantity of any one instrument that a practitioner or institution must purchase and have available for use will depend on the frequency of treatments requiring that instrument and on the turn-around time required to sterilize the instrument. In the case of dental handpieces, which generally are required for most treatments performed in the dental operatory, an extended sterilization cycle means that a larger inventory of available handpieces must be maintained. The high cost of dental handpieces, on the other hand, often limits the number of available handpieces, which in turn may result in hasty and therefore ineffective attempts at, or even dispensing with, lengthy sterilization procedures. This of course is unacceptable.
Heat sterilization methods, such as steam heat (autoclave), dry heat, and chemical vapor, are generally preferred over cold immersion methods, which are generally not effective unless glutaraldehyde is used and the instrument is immersed for 7-10 hours. Chemical vapor sterilization has the advantages of minimal corrosion of burs and other sharp instruments (steam sterilization or immersion in most liquid sterilents produces dullness and rusting) and a cycle time which is relatively short compared to cold sterilization techniques.
One type of chemical vapor sterilizing arrangement which is in commercial use (available from MDT Corporation of Gardena, California under the designation Harvey Chemiclave) comprises apparatus which uses moderate heat (about 270.degree. F.), pressure (about 20 psi) and a special solution composed primarily of 3A alcohol (about 80%) and water (about 9%) with small amounts of acetone, ketone and formaldehyde. The cycle time is about 20 minutes after proper pressure is reached. The length of time required to reach pressure depends on the size of the load. On the other hand, the purchase price of this arrangement is higher than steam and dry heat processors. Additional drawbacks are that relatively large quantities of sterilizing solution are required, and odor and minor irritation of eyes, nose and throat from chemical vapors often accompanies use, the process chamber must be cleaned on a frequent basis, the instruments should be wrapped to prevent recontamination, and the simultaneous sterilization of a plurality of instruments results in the possibility of cross contamination. Moreover, the sterilization cycle time, although less than the time required for the sterilization by solution immersion, is still relatively long, essentially because of the relatively large chamber volume.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,357 issued Aug. 23, 1983 to Hohmann, discloses an arrangement for chemical vapor sterilization of articles, such as dental handpieces, which would appear to overcome some of the above-mentioned problems. The patent discloses an arrangement in which the article to be sterilized is situated in an enlarged portion of a rigid vessel. A liquid reaction agent is charged into a narrow portion of the vessel which is in communication with the enlarged article-containing vessel portion. The liquid reaction agent is heated to produce a vapor which flows into the first vessel portion to sterilize the article. The first vessel portion may be designed to accept only a single article in which case the amount of liquid reaction agent required to generate the vapor is relatively small which in turn reduces the heating time required for vaporization and the overall sterilization cycle time. The patent suggests that the means for heating the liquid reaction agent may comprise a microwave radiator. In such a case, the vessel is situated such that only the narrow liquid-containing vessel portion is positioned in the microwave radiation field while the article to be sterilized is situated outside the radiation field which, the patent notes, avoids the formation of spark gaps at border surfaces and seams of the article which cause surface destruction. Although possibly reducing the time required for sterilization, the arrangement proposed in the patent has various drawbacks which have apparently prevented adoption and commercialization of this arrangement. For example, it requires a complicated, specially designed microwave generator adapted for positioning the vessel with only the liquid reaction agent-containing portion in the radiation field of the microwave generator with the article-containing vessel portion outside the radiation field. It requires a specially designed rigid pressure vessel which either must be cleaned after each use to avoid cross-contamination or discarded at significant expense.
A discussion of the sterilization of articles, such as dental instruments, by microwave radiation is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,651 issued Aug. 21, 1973 to Boucher. Briefly, it is noted that sterilization by microwave radiation is due to both thermal effects, such as microwave induced heat, and non-thermal effects, which the patent suggests may affect a metabolic system distinct from that of thermal energy. It is disclosed that improved surface sterilization results are obtained when the articles are subjected to microwave radiation while situated in a humid atmosphere, i.e., an atmosphere having a relative humidity of at least 50% or super-saturated with water or saline solution. To this end, the articles to be sterilized are placed on trays which are situated in a rigid, microwave-transparent container having a known volume, along with a quantity of water or saline solution determined by the container volume so as to be sufficient when vaporized to increase the humidity of the atmosphere within the container to the desired value. After placing the articles to be sterilized and the water or saline solution into the container, the container is sealed with a lid and then placed within the cavity of a microwave generator and subjected to microwave radiation. The electromagnetic energy penetrates through the container walls to evaporate the water or saline solution to produce the desired humidity, and at the same time, proceeds to sterilize the surface of the article by the thermal and non-thermal effects discussed above. It is indicated that this procedure results in reduced cycle time for effective sterilization compared to dry heat or steam sterilizing methods and that the localized arcing (sparking) which usually occurs when metallic objects are irradiated by microwave radiation is practically eliminated in the moist atmosphere.
The patent also points out that the container can be filled with any gas to constitute the atmosphere to be humidified. For example, it is suggested that a gas or vapor sterilant can be introduced into the container through valves provided in the container walls to take advantage of their chemical sterilizing effects, although care should be taken to avoid heating the article being sterilized to a point where it reaches the ignition or explosion point of the gas,
The arrangement proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,651 has drawbacks which have apparently prevented it from being adopted on a practical basis. For example, as noted in the above-discussed U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,357, only surface sterilization is achieved by microwave irradiation and micro-organisms present on surfaces located within the seams and crevices of the article will not be killed, especially if blood and salivary protein are deposited on those surfaces. This is true regardless of whether the container is initially filled with a gas sterilant as suggested in the patent. The procedure requires a specially designed gas-tight rigid container having a known, fixed volume. The container must be sterilized after each use or discarded, in which case considerable expense is incurred especially where valves are provided in the container walls as discussed above. To provide a truly gas-tight condition, it is necessary to use materials, such as for gaskets and the like, which are not entirely transparent to microwaves. Moveover, the relatively large volume of the container which is necessary to accommodate the articles to be sterilized in turn requires a relatively large volume of water or saline solution to achieve the desired humidity. This results in an increase in the time required for the evaporation of the water or saline solution thereby increasing the overall sterilization cycle time. Furthermore, it is not thought that the arrangement described in this patent will avoid the problem of arcing or sparking.
Applicants have developed new and improved methods and apparatus for sterilizing objects which overcome many of the drawbacks of the prior art arrangements discussed above. In particular, methods and apparatus for sterilizing objects are disclosed in applicants' prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,019,344 issued May 28, 1991 and 5,039,495 issued Aug. 13, 1991, the descriptions of which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety. These patents describe arrangements in which an object to be sterilized and a quantity of liquid are introduced into a pouch formed of flexible vapor-impermeable sheet material whereupon the pouch is sealed to form a gas-tight assembly. The liquid is introduced into the pouch in a quantity sufficient to create an over-pressure within the pouch when it is vaporized which expands the pouch, whereupon the object becomes sterilized under the effect of the hot vapor under pressure. The liquid within the pouch may be vaporized by irradiating the gas-tight assembly with microwave radiation in which case the object being sterilized is preferably surrounded by shielding which presents a barrier to the transmission of microwave radiation to thereby avoid arcing or sparking. The arrangements developed by the applicants which are disclosed in the above-mentioned patents are advantageous in that the time required for a sterilizing cycle is substantially reduced relative to prior techniques, a visual indication that the process is proceeding is provided by virtue of the expanding pouch, the arrangements are inexpensive in manufacture and use, and they allow the subsequent handling and storage of the sterilized object without the danger of recontamination. The arrangements may be used for sterilizing a wide variety of objects including medical and dental instruments, medical waste material, contact lenses, and the like.

Methods and apparatus for sterilizing objects


An electromagnetic relay having a plate spring provided with a fixed contact, a movable contact and an L-shaped bent portion at the middle portion of the plate spring, and an armature fixed on one side of the plate spring with respect to the bent portion. The armature includes a first offset portion spaced apart from the plate spring between a first fixed portion of the plate spring and the bent portion and a blocking portion for changing the supporting arrangement of the plate spring in accordance with the deflection of the plate spring. A yoke is fixed on the other side of the plate spring with respect to the bent portion and has a second offset portion spaced apart from the plate spring between a second fixed portion of the plate spring and the bent portion. As a result, the magnetic path of the armature and the yoke is not made narrow in the case where a working precision is increased by reducing the number of the portions at which the plate spring is bent, and a sufficient contact pressure can be maintained without generating a two-step operation phenomenon even when the suction force of the coil is low.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to switching devices, and in particular to an improved electromagnetic relay.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, there is known an electromagnetic relay of the hinge-type, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 56-170852, in which the switching operation of the relay is achieved by the swinging operation of an armature generated on the basis of excitation or deexcitation of the electromagnet. In this device, the contact surface of a movable contact plate of a yoke and/or armature in the contact portion at which the armature contacts with the yoke is beveled.
According to the conventional electromagnetic relay, since the contact surface of a movable contact plate of the yoke and/or armature in the contact portion at which the armature contacts with the yoke is beveled, the magnetic path is made narrow at the beveled portion thereby undesirably reducing the efficiency of the magnetic circuit. In accordance with the efficiency reduction, the suction force due to the coil is also reduced thereby generating an insufficient suction force for the armature. The reduced suction force results in problems such that the minimum operation voltage of the electromagnet is increased, and the so-called two-step operation phenomenon of the relay is generated, whereby a sufficient contacting pressure is not maintained.


The OTP generator 104 may alternatively be electrically connected to the client-side computing device 102, for example, via a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. Further, the OTP generator 104 may alternatively be a server or other type of module that is accessible over the network 110, or it may be a software component resident on the client-side computing device 102. As another alternative, the OTP generator 104 may be distributed over multiple devices, one of which may be the client-side computing device 102.

In order to gain access to applications or other resources via a computer or another device, users are often required to authenticate themselves by entering authentication information. Such authentication information may comprise, for example, passcodes that are generated by a security token carried by, or otherwise available to, a user. A passcode may be a one-time passcode (OTP) that is generated using a time-synchronous or event-based algorithm. For example, in the time-synchronous algorithm, the OTP changes at the end of a predetermined time period, e.g., a new OTP is generated by the token every 60 seconds. One particular example of a well-known type of security token is the RSA SecurID® user authentication token commercially available from RSA Security Inc. of Bedford, Mass., U.S.A.
However, as security fraud techniques progress, the use of the traditional OTPs using a security token may not be secure enough for certain security applications. To improve security with the OTP approach, user-known information (such as, e.g., a fixed prefix or suffix of digits or characters representing a password) can be added to the OTP generated by the token. This improvement achieves so-called two-factor authentication (user-known information+OTP). Still, security concerns may exist with respect to the robusteness of this particular two-factor authentication approach for certain security applications.

Authentication using one-time passcode and predefined swipe pattern


A circuit (40) for use in a mass data storage device (10) has first (44) second (46) current driver circuits for providing write currents to the data transducer (18). The first and second current levels are different, the second current level being lower than the first. The first current driver circuit (44) may be used to apply currents representing user data to the data transducer (18) and the second current driver circuit (46) may be used to apply currents representing servo information to the data transducer (18). In addition, the first (44) and second (46) current drivers circuits may be operated at different frequencies. The first (44) and second (46) current driver circuits additionally may share at least some circuit components (70, 72, 74-75, 64-65), and may operate at different write speeds.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to improvements in mass data storage devices, and, more particularly, to improvements in circuits used to write user and servo data to data storage media, such as spinning magnetic disks, or the like, with a thin film data transducer, or head in mass data storage devices.
2. Relevant Background
Mass data storage devices of the type to which the invention pertains include hard disk drives that have one or more spinning magnetic disks or platters onto which data is recorded for storage and subsequent retrieval. Hard disk drives may be used in many applications, including personal computers, set top boxes, video and television applications, audio applications, or some mix thereof. Applications for hard disk drives are still being discovered.
Typically in a hard disk drive, a stack of rotating storage disks is provided. The disks are generally formed of a suitable substrate material, such as metal or glass, onto which a thin film magnetic storage medium has been vacuum sputter deposited. The disks are generally secured to a disk spindle that rotates the disk.
Servo synchronization data is imprinted onto the disks, typically by a servo writer during the manufacturing process of the mass data storage device in which the disks are included, by altering the magnetic domains on the disk in each sector of each track as it is being defined on the disks. Such servo imprints are used for identifying individual tracks, sectors, data beginning and ending locations, head alignment along the track, and so forth. The servo sectors are written by the disk drive manufacturer by a device known as a track writer, and are generally not re-written. The process of writing the servo sectors is known as hard formatting, as opposed to soft formatting, which is performed by the end user for different purposes.
Read/write transducers, or heads, are a part of the mass data storage device, and are carried by pivotally mounted arms extending over the surface of the disks to move the heads radially inwardly and outwardly over selected radial distances of the disks. The radial position of the write head arm is controlled in a known manner by a "voice coil" that receives positioning signals from a voice coil driver circuit.
As the heads fly over the disks along the paths of the track with which they are currently aligned, electrical currents are passed through the heads at strategic times, so that the heads will produce magnetic flux signals that are recorded onto or in the magnetic media of the spinning disk.
So-called magneto-resistive (MR) heads are becoming increasingly popular, and may be used in environments having very high disk drive densities with low power requirements. Despite the reduced power requirements of MR heads, one of the problems facing mass data storage device designers is that as write speeds demanded of the heads and their supporting electronics increase, so does the current required to develop the magnetic fluxes necessary to operate the writing functions of the heads. In the past, write drivers operated at 1 Gb/s during normal operation and <100 Mb/s during servo operation. Little care was taken to lower the power of the writer while running at lower servo data rates because the power was naturally reduced in those architectures at lower data rates. For example, the previous writers consumed about 2 watts at 1 Gb/s but consumed 0.5 watts at 100 Mb/s. Newer writers which are designed for 1.6 Gb/s have higher DC current (current that is used with no switching). Thus, newer writers consume 2 watts at 1.6 Gb/s and they consume 1.2 Watts at 100 Mb/s. Thus, there is a need for a smarter design which uses less power during servo operation.
As described above, servo write operations occurs only during drive manufacturing, and is a well controlled environment; however, even with careful selection of operating conditions, a 1.6 Gb/s design writer will consume 2 watts, and at data rates below 100 Mb/s will consume 1.2 watts. This results in the tolerable temperature of the integrated circuit on which the drive circuitry is constructed being exceeded, and needs excessively large power busses to not exceed electromigration rules.
What is needed therefore, is a write driver that can be controlled to achieve the needed servo and data write functions without exceeding the current and power limitations of the writer circuitry.


A computer-implemented method for generating parking permits reports for a parking permit system. The method includes aggregating parking permit data for each zone within the parking permit system into a logical grouping in a database. Then processing data according to report generation instructions. The data is then parsed to obtain a requested report and the report is distributed to a specified party.

Publicly and privately administered parking programs continually struggle with the seemingly intractable problem of providing parking services for an area having a limited number of parking spaces to an ever increasing number of vehicles. To combat this struggle, there is an increasing effort to manage parking in residential and business communities. That is, cities, towns, universities and large corporations are attempting to set up parking programs that provide local residents, students and employees with a place to park. This effort generally involves the use of permit-based parking programs but the challenges faced when implementing these systems are great.
For background, most permit-based parking programs restrict parking privileges in an attempt to assure residents that they are able to find a place to park. The goal of such programs is to encourage persons to obtain a permit for parking privileges, or, alternatively, move non-permit holder vehicles, to metered, time-limited, or garage parking.
However, such programs are very difficult and expensive to implement and manage. Inefficiencies in the administration of these parking programs and a lack of enforcement of the regulations are rampant problems facing today's parking programs, leading to a significant dilution in the intended benefits.
For example, a municipality that institutes a permit-based parking program may face the task of issuing from 20,000 to 500,000 permits per year, which requires a complete overhaul of the municipality's existing parking regulation enforcement plan. Also, enforcement in areas designated for parking by permit-only is difficult since parking enforcement officers need to locate and validate every parking permit they encounter. This is especially difficult and sometimes even dangerous if the parking permits are for parking overnight.
Another problem encountered is that permit-based parking programs inherently require a paper intensive application and validation process. Often times, the applicant is required to prove that they are the owner of the vehicle they are requesting the parking permit for, and that they live or work in the parking zone in which they would like to park. In addition, there may also be other requirements that the applicant must adhere to such ensuring that there are no other outstanding obligations to the municipality or university.
The conventional verification process generally requires an applicant to prove, in person, the information needed for issuing the permit since scanned, faxed, or emailed documents can be easily forged. This wastes a considerable amount of time for both the permit holder and the issuing agency.
Anther problem is that while the issuance of permits assists in the institution of parking regulations, use of conventional permits includes many disadvantages. For example, a conventional parking system may designate a parking zone within the parking system with a unique parking permit design and color. These designs and colors may change from month to month, or year to year depending on the permit expiration dates. The reason these permits are different in each zone is to make it easier for the parking enforcement officers to determine the parking eligibility of the vehicle. However, managing the inventory of physical permits for each different color and design scheme presents additional challenges and costs.
Also since conventional permits are typically embodied as a sticker that either affixes to a window of the vehicle or a hang-tag that hangs within the vehicle (e.g., from the rear view mirror), it is often difficult to determine if a permit is present based on a visual inspection of the vehicle, due to a variety of factors including the presence of tinted windows and/or the arrangement of the vehicle (e.g., angled parking). This creates a significant burden on the individual responsible for inspecting vehicle to determine if the vehicle is legally parked who must locate and read the permit via a visual inspection of the vehicle.
In addition, conventional permits are frequently stolen or "scalped" (i.e., sold by the authorized permit holder to an unauthorized person). With no efficient means to track the permits administered under a parking program, such misuse is extremely difficult to detect and terminate. Additionally, even properly issued permits may be misused and sometimes the parking permits themselves are often forged in an effort to trick parking enforcement officers and get free parking.
Finally, while some municipalities and most universities charge a fee parking permits, others distribute parking permits at no cost to the applicants. When these entities try in increase the cost of the permits or initiate a cost for parking permits, this is often met by resistance by the public. This resistance is generally due the fact that information about how and why parking permit programs are necessary and the results thereof are not shared in a digestible format to the public, or not shared at all. This leaves the public to believe that parking permits may have little or no monetary value because the entity has no way to prove the value of the parking permit program it administers.
Accordingly, there is a need in the industry for a method and system to streamline the permits application, validation, and registration process, eliminate the need for physical permits, make enforcement of parking permit violation more efficient, and provide a way where information about the parking permit program is shared amongst the program administrator and general public.
Furthermore, there is a need for a motorist to be able apply and have their information validated quickly without the need to apply in person.
Further, there is a need for the parking permit administrators to have way to distribute parking permits that will eliminate the need to manage an inventory of physical permits and virtually eliminate the possibility of permit fraud.
Further, there is a need for parking enforcement to be quicker, more efficient, and safe.

System and method for generating permit reports


There is provided an image processing apparatus including a communication unit configured to communicate with an information processing apparatus, a processor; and memory storing computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causing the image processing apparatus to perform acquiring error information indicating an error occurring in the image processing apparatus and usage information of the image processing apparatus, determining whether to transmit, via the communication unit, the acquired error information to the information processing apparatus based on the acquired usage information, and transmitting the acquired error information to the information processing apparatus if it is determined to transmit the acquired error information.

In an image processing apparatus capable of performing image processing operations such as printing or scanning, various errors, such as paper jam, no paper, or lack of colorants, occur, which cause the image processing operation not to be carried out continuously. At the occurrence of the errors, as a solution thereof, for example, there is known a technique for notifying error information to an information processing apparatus utilizing the image processing apparatus.
For example, JP-A-2010-157929 describes a technique for notifying error information. According to the technique, in an image forming system including one digital multifunction peripheral and at least one host personal computer (PC) connected to the digital multifunction peripheral (MFP), if an error occurs in the digital multifunction peripheral, information for solving the error is sent to the host PC from the digital multifunction peripheral. The digital multifunction peripheral specifies an interface with the host PC, which is a destination, and sends an appropriate manual corresponding to the interface.

Program, image processing apparatus, and image processing system


A cloud-based cyber shopping mall system is provided. The cloud-based cyber shopping mall system includes a cloud-based server module, a scene movement module, a product introduction module, a customer service module, a shopping cart module, a style change module, and an exhibition area switching module. The cloud-based server module includes a cloud-based database and a cloud-based shopping mall webpage. Through the scene movement module, the product introduction module, the customer service module, and the shopping cart module, a user can click on related options adjacent to any product viewed on the cloud-based shopping mall webpage to view an introduction of the product, contact the customer service, and place an order. Through the style change module, the user can change a style of a three-dimensional product model on the cloud-based shopping mall webpage.

When the supply of earlier processed plastic products did not meet demands, plastic processors can profit greatly from producing and selling products through a basic distribution business. Such business approach can be referred to as being "production-oriented (i.e., business 1.0)". The "production-oriented" business approach underwent a huge change when a large number of competitors entered the market at the same time, which nearly saturated the market demand, and the processing technology became more and more mature. The plastic processors could no longer rely on the "production-oriented" business approach to obtain the same profit, therefore, some of the plastic processors have turned the business approach into being "market-oriented (i.e., business 2.0)" in order to maintain the same profit.
However, with the coming of globalization, the competition in the plastic processing market has intensified. Therefore, plastic processors must transform products into high-value products, cease to produce products that lack business benefits and prospects, and invest into the development and expansion of high-value products that have high quality, high prices, and high benefits without pursuing the expansion of production volume. The plastic processors are required to turn the business approach into being "business-oriented (i.e., business 3.0)". For example, Nan Ya Plastics Corporation has successfully achieved outstanding business results by applying the business 3.0 approach in 2016, despite poor domestic business environment. Moving forward, Nan Ya Plastics Corporation is prepared to move toward the "forward-oriented (business 4.0)" business approach.
"Forward-oriented (business 4.0)" is a business model that predicts the future development of the industry through aspects such as business, research and development, and production. The business model cooperates with industry 4.0 and cyber methods to connect employees, clients, material suppliers, equipment manufacturers, and the company together. Instantaneous and borderless data of the Internet is used in conjunction with data that are analyzed, so as to generate a model that helps decision makers make forward-looking decisions. Therefore, how an intelligent "cyber physical system" can be built to turn around the gross margin of low margin products and expand the sales volume and market responsiveness of high margin products has become one of the important issues that traditional plastic processors are currently faced with.
Most common ways to sell plastic processing products are to participate in large-scale domestic and international trade shows to reach potential customers. In common large-scale trade shows, participating businesses are required to rent an exhibition area, arrange for plane tickets, and accommodations in advance so as to exhibit products at the specific exhibition area in a specific exhibition period. Similarly, for buyers and visitors, they also have to arrange for plane tickets and accommodations in advance to visit the exhibition area in the specific exhibition period to see the products provided by the exhibitors. Therefore, the common large-scale trade shows require a lot of manpower and resources from exhibitors, buyers and visitors alike.
Existing product webpages produced by the plastic processors only present descriptions and images of the products in a static manner, so that webpage visitors cannot have a same experience of exploring through the products on the product webpages as if they were at the trade show, and the purchasing, price inquiry or inquiry processes that can be experienced at the trade show cannot be afforded to the webpage visitors on the existing product webpages. Therefore, for the conventional plastic processors who participate in large-scale trade shows, traveling to a specific country every year or every few years to exhibit requires a lot of manpower and resources, but the traditional plastic processors still do so in spite of hardships, since participation in such exhibitions is the only way to reach a large number of potential buyers.
According to the above, it has become one of the important issues for the traditional plastic processors to improve on the inconveniences caused by participating in large-scale domestic and foreign trade shows to reach potential customers by using the "forward-oriented (business 4.0)" approach with industry 4.0 and cyber methods.


A cleaning tool for preparing the surfaces of pipes and fittings for soldering, welding or gluing comprises a base and a pair of opposing prongs. The tool further includes a distal set of replaceable brushes for cleaning the inner surfaces of pipes or fittings and a proximal set of replaceable abrasive pads for cleaning the outer surfaces of pipes and fittings. The tool is configured to accommodate pipes and fittings of a variety of diameters.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to cleaning tools, and more particularly, to cleaning tools for removing debris from interior and exterior surfaces of pipes and fittings of various diameters.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional preparation of pipes and fittings for soldering, welding or gluing, commonly involves removing or cleaning grease, metallic oxides (e.g., rust), dirt and/or like debris from the pipes and fittings to ensure that the solder or glue will adhere to the pipe surface or that the welded joint will not contain impurities. This task commonly requires the use of a variety of brushes and/or abrasive elements to scour the internal and external surfaces of the pipes and fittings. In addition, a number of different size cleaning tools are normally required to clean pipes and fittings of different diameters.
Most prior pipe cleaning devices can only clean either the inner or the outer surface of pipes. Typical examples include U.S. Pat. No. 2,551,875, which can only be used to clean the inner surface of pipes, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,621,505 to Vocker, et al., which can only be used to clean the outer surfaces of pipes.
Several prior pipe cleaning devices have been designed to clean both the internal and external surfaces of pipes. Examples of such devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,551,875 to Cotton and U.S. Pat. No. 2,922,218 to Lewis. These devices, however, suffer from several drawbacks.
Some of these prior cleaning devices only accommodate pipes and fittings of a particular diameter. For example, the tool disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,922,218 to Lewis is designed to fit a particular size diameter of a pipe or fitting. The tool is thus dedicated to a particular size pipe.
Other prior cleaning tools, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,551,895 to Cotton, are complicated, which increases manufacturing costs and decreases reliability. Moreover, these devices are rendered useless once the cleaning elements of the devices are worn.

Adjustable tube and fitting cleaning brush


A fishing line is produced by forming a monofilament by subjecting a resin composition (C) containing 90 to 99.3% by weight of a polyamide resin (A) and 0.7 to 10% by weight of a silicone compound (B) having a number average molecular weight of 100,000 to 2,000,000 to melt-spinning and then drawing. This method can provide a fishing line which is excellent in abrasion resistance and also excellent in visibility. In this method, it is preferable to conduct melt-kneading of a part of the polyamide resin (A) with the silicone compound (B) in advance, adding of the residual polyamide resin (A) and further melt-kneading, subsequent melt-spinning, and drawing at a draw ratio of from 4 to 7.

Heretofore, synthetic resins, such as polyamide resin, fluororesin, polyester resin and polyolefin resin, e.g. ultra high molecular weight polyethylene, are widely used as materials of fishing lines, in view of requirements with respect to processability and mechanical properties such as strength. In particular, polyamide resin is especially commonly used as a material of fishing lines because it is flexible and highly resistant to abrasion and also because highly visible lines can be obtained easily since it can be dyed easily.
Polyamide resin is a resin which is originally excellent in abrasion resistance. In use of a fishing line made of a polyamide resin, however, it has been impossible to prevent the fishing line from being damaged due to so-called sea floor abrasion or rock abrasion, which are abrasion with rocks or the like on the bottom of the water and there has been a risk of breakage of the line. Therefore, for fishing lines made of polyamide resin, further improvement in abrasion resistance is required.
As means for improving abrasion resistance, 1) a method of applying or fixing an abrasion resistance modifier to the surface of a fishing line fiber and 2) a method of mixing an abrasion resistance modifier in the raw material resin of fishing lines have been proposed.
As an example of the method 1), a fishing line made of nylon coated with a fluorine-containing resin is disclosed in Patent Document 1. It is reported to be excellent in slipping property, antifouling property and abrasion resistance. Patent Document 2 discloses a fishing line composed of a polyamide monofilament having a surface provided with amino-modified silicone oil. This is reported to be resistant to damage due to abrasion with rocks or the like. Both of the fishing lines, however, are not sufficient in adhesion between a coating layer and a polyamide resin and tend to suffer from delamination or falling off due to repeated use. In practical use in fishing, the effects often disappear only in short-time use, for example, almost one-day use. It therefore is difficult to say that the durability of abrasion resisting effect is sufficient.
As an example of the method 2), Patent Document 3 discloses a fishing line made of a monofilament obtained by mixing a modified resin composed of a fluorine-containing resin and/or an organic silicon-based resin with nylon resin and then molding. It is reported to be excellent in slipping property, antifouling property and abrasion resistance. In Examples of Patent Document 3, an example of incorporation of polydimethylsilicone as an organic silicon-based resin is disclosed. The incorporation amount thereof, however, is just 0.05 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the nylon resin. No description was made to the molecular weight of the silicone blended.
As disclosed in Patent Document 3, the method in which silicone is kneaded into a nylon monofilament can improve the durability of the effect of improving abrasion resistance more than the method in which silicone is coated on the surface. However, kneaded silicone having a number average molecular weight less than 100,000 tends to bleed out to the surface of fiber. Therefore, the durability of abrasion resisting effect is not sufficient yet. Moreover, silicone having a number average molecular weight less than 100,000 has low viscosities at high temperatures. Therefore, in the case of kneading and melt-spinning with a polyamide at a high temperature, increase in the addition amount thereof will cause variation in fiber diameter or breakage of strands, resulting in remarkable decrease in spinnability. It, therefore, is difficult to conduct stable production in an industrial scale. Furthermore, in the case of increasing the addition amount of the silicone having a number average molecular weight less than 100,000, mechanical properties, such as tensile strength and knot strength, are also deteriorated remarkably, and no fishing lines having strength sufficient enough for practical use have been obtained.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 60-224885    Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 4-4832    Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-269877

Fishing line and method for production thereof


The present invention relates to an epoxy-resin composition comprising the following components (A), (B), (C) and (D), a film made of the epoxy resin composition, a prepreg and a fiber-reinforced plastic. The present invention can provide an epoxy-resin composition that cures at a low temperature in a short period of time. Also, the present invention can provide a fiber-reinforced plastic having excellent mechanical characteristics, especially excellent fracture toughness and heat tolerance, is made from the epoxy-resin composition.                component (A): an epoxy resin having a monomer unit represented by formula (1) in the molecule;        component (B): a bifunctional epoxy resin with a number-average molecular weight of at least 600 but no greater than 1300, which does not have a monomer unit represented by formula (1) below in the molecule;        component (C): a triblock copolymer; and        component (D): a curing agent.

Because of their lightweight, high strength and rigidity, fiber-reinforced plastics are widely used as fiber-reinforced composite materials in products ranging from sports/leisure applications to industrial applications such as automobiles and aircraft.
Among fiber-reinforced plastics, fiber-reinforced plastic tubes are especially widely used in sports/leisure applications such as fishing rods, golf club shafts, ski poles, bicycle frames and so on. In recent years, improving the fracture toughness of fiber-reinforced plastics in sports/leisure applications has been required to enhance feel during usage or feel when hitting a ball.
A method for producing fiber-reinforced plastics is, for example, using intermediate material (prepreg) formed by impregnating a matrix resin into reinforcing material made of reinforcing fibers such as long fibers. Such a method is useful because the content of reinforcing fibers is easier to control in a fiber-reinforced plastic and a plastic is designed to have a greater amount of reinforcing fibers.
Specific examples of a method for producing a fiber-reinforced plastic from a prepreg are molding using an autoclave, compression molding, internal-pressurizing molding, oven molding and the like. To cure a generic prepreg using such a method, it is usually necessary to thermoset the prepreg by applying heat for approximately two hours. Considering the time for heating or cooling the equipment, a molding die or the like to be used for curing, it takes approximately 2˜6 hours, depending on conditions, to cure a prepreg in one molding process. Accordingly, time taken for thermosetting is a factor that increases the cost of molding. In addition, a method has been sought for molding a product at a lower temperature in a shorter period of time so as to achieve mass production of a product.
As a method for shortening the molding time of fiber-reinforced plastics, it is an option to use a highly reactive epoxy-resin composition as a matrix resin so that curing reactions progress by a slight amount of energy, thereby shortening the time for curing the epoxy resin composition. However, if a resin composition is too highly reactive, curing reactions progress even when the composition is stored at room temperature, causing a decrease in the storage stability of the resin composition. Also, if the matrix resin composition cures too quickly, that may cause voids in a molded product produced using a method for molding in a short period of time. Especially, voids tend to remain in a molded product when oven molding (vacuum bag molding) is employed. Voids may be suppressed by lowering the viscosity of the matrix resin composition. However, a prepreg containing a low viscous matrix resin composition tends to be tacky at room temperature and is hard to handle during a production process.
Considering the problems above, epoxy-resin compositions are required to have the following features: properties for producing a molded product at low temperature in a short period of time; processability of a prepreg at room temperature and suppression of voids in a molded product; and excellent mechanical characteristics, especially excellent fracture toughness, when used as a matrix resin to produce fiber-reinforced plastics.
As an example of a prepreg capable of producing molded products at a relatively low temperature in a short period of time, patent publication 1 discloses a prepreg containing an epoxy-resin composition as a matrix resin, where dicyandiamide is used as a latent curing agent, and polyvinyl formal is used as a thermoplastic resin elastomer. Also, patent publication 2 discloses a prepreg formed by using an epoxy-resin composition containing a reaction product of an epoxy resin and an amine compound having a sulfur atom in the molecule.
In addition, to improve fraction toughness of a cured product, numerous methods are proposed using epoxy-resin compositions containing thermoplastic resins. For example, patent publications 3 and 4 each propose to use an epoxy-resin composition with an added polyamide-based thermoplastic elastomer. Also, patent publications 5 and 6 each propose to use an epoxy-resin composition with an added block copolymer.

Epoxy-resin composition, and film, prepreg and fiber-reinforced plastic using the same


A tensioning device for applying tension to a line extending between first and second objects. The tensioning device comprises a first engaging portion, a support surface, and first and second gripping portions defining a gripping notch. The first engaging portion is adapted to be connected to the first object. The support surface is adapted to support the line. The gripping notch is located adjacent to the support surface. The support surface supports the line to define a first line portion extending in a first direction, a second line portion in contact with the support surface, and a third line portion extending in a second direction. The third line portion is adapted to support the second object. The first line portion is pulled to place the line under tension. The gripping notch is arranged to engage the first line portion to inhibit movement of the line relative to the support surface.

In many situations, a line such as a rope, cable, or the like is tied to two different objects. Often, the line is placed in tension to reduce slack in the line, move one or both of the objects towards the other, and/or to fix a maximum distance between the two objects.
For example, a line may be engaged with an object such as a bike and suspended from a first fixed location such as a rafter in a garage. Pulling on the line can raise the bike relative to the fixed location. Further, securing a portion of the line relative to a second fixed location can fix the distance between the bike and the first fixed location. The bike may thus be lifted into a storage location by pulling on the line and then fixed in the storage location by tying the line off.
A variety of hardware devices have been developed to facilitate the use of a line to connect two objects. A single wheel pulley can be used to reduce friction when changing direction of a line under tension. Multiple wheel pulleys can be used to provide a mechanical advantage when a line is placed under tension. Hooks, eyelets, cleats, and the like can all be used to secure a line at a desired location.
The need exists for general purpose hardware devices that facilitate the use of a line to connect two objects.


Systems and techniques for generating test structures. The test structures may conform to a set of design rules for a portion of an integrated circuit design. The test structures may include base figures, which may be in an enriched environment. For example, the test structures may include one or more additional figures such as surrounding figures, external figures, and/or symmetric figures. A correction algorithm for correcting a layout may be checked using a plurality of the test structures.

Integrated circuits are formed by patterning successive layers on a substrate such as a silicon wafer. Each of the successive circuit layers is typically patterned using a lithography process. In a lithography process, light (or massive particles, such as ions or electrons) interacts with a mask that includes a pattern to be transferred to a substrate. Radiation then transfers the mask pattern to the surface of a substrate.
One concern in a lithography process is that the layer design layout be accurately reproduced on the surface of the substrate. However, the optical characteristics of the lithography system may not reproduce the design layout with adequate fidelity. For example, an optical projection system including lenses is typically positioned between the mask and substrate. The lens system may act as a low band-pass filter, so that some information carried by the radiation may not reach the substrate. Because some information being carried by the radiation may be lost, features patterned on the substrate may differ from the corresponding mask feature.
One method that may be used to more accurately reproduce the intended design on the substrate is to include additional features on the mask, such as optical proximity correction (OPC) features. FIGS. 1A to 1D illustrate an example of an OPC feature that may be used to increase pattern fidelity. FIG. 1A shows a T-shaped mask feature with dimensions near the resolution limit of a projection lens of a lithography system. FIG. 1B shows that the feature of FIG. 1A as transferred to the surface of a substrate is significantly distorted due to rounding of the corners. FIG. 1C shows the mask feature with added OPC serifs. FIG. 1D illustrates that the rounding is improved due to the inclusion of OPC serifs on the mask.
For each layer layout of a particular integrated circuit or combination of integrated circuits, circuit designers apply a number of design rules (e.g., rules specifying the minimum line width, minimum line spacing and the like) to produce a mask layout. After the layer design layout is complete, an OPC recipe may be applied to the initial design layout to produce a mask pattern that reproduces the design layout with better fidelity. The OPC recipe adds and/or modifies features in the design layout to compensate for distortion during the lithography step. A checking algorithm may then be applied to determine whether the proposed OPC features properly correct the layer design, so that features patterned using the mask will conform to design and processing requirements for the integrated circuit functionality and manufacturing yield.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

Test structures for feature fidelity improvement


A method and apparatus for compensating a base current of a bipolar junction transistor by replicating operating conditions of the BJT in a compensating circuit. An output current of the compensating circuit is fractionally related to the base current and thus can be supplied to an operational circuit comprising the BJT to compensate the base current. In a preferred embodiment, the BJT is operated between BVCEO and BVCBO and the base current to be compensated flows from the BJT.

A bipolar junction transistor (BJT) comprises three adjacent doped semiconductor regions or layers having an NPN or PNP doping configuration. A middle region forms a base and two end regions form an emitter and a collector. Typically, the emitter has a higher dopant concentration than the base and the collector, and the base has a higher dopant concentration than the collector. Generally, the BJT can be operated as an amplifier (for example, to amplify an input signal supplied between the base and the emitter, with the output signal appearing across the emitter/collector) or as a switch (for example, an input signal applied across the base/emitter switches the emitter/collector circuit to an opened or a closed (i.e., short-circuited) state). In operation, the emitter/base pn junction is forward biased and the collector/base pn junction is reverse biased. According to convention, all BJT currents are assumed to be positive when flowing into the base, collector and emitter regions of the BJT.
The breakdown characteristics of a BJT are determined by its physical parameters, including doping levels and region dimensions. The reverse-biased base-collector junction is susceptible to avalanche breakdown, during which a carrier of the reverse saturation current falls down a potential barrier at the reverse-biased junction and acquires energy from the applied potential across the junction. For example, in an isolated pn junction, if the reverse bias voltage creates a sufficiently large electric field in the transition region, an electron of the reverse saturation current entering from the p-type material may acquire sufficient kinetic energy to cause an ionizing collision with the lattice, creating an electron-hole pair. The original electron and the secondary electron are swept into the n-material by the electric field, and the secondary hole is swept to the p-side. The generated secondary carriers (both the electron and the hole) may acquire sufficient energy from the applied field, collide with another crystal ion, and create still another electron-hole pair. Each new carrier may, in turn, produce additional carriers through collision and disruption of existing bonds. The cumulative process is referred to as avalanche multiplication, where an initial carrier can create a large number of new carriers. Increasing the reverse bias voltage increases the energy imparted to the carrier, in turn increasing the rate at which additional carriers are generated by collisions, i.e., increasing the avalanche multiplication factor.
In a common base configuration with the emitter open, the breakdown due to impact ionization produces a breakdown voltage (BVCBO) (referred to as the common base breakdown voltage with the emitter open) above which the collector current increases without bound and is essentially limited by the external circuit resistance, i.e., the circuit in which the transistor is operative. This breakdown phenomenon is essentially identical to the breakdown of an isolated pn junction as described above. With the emitter current set at zero (because the emitter is open) transistor action plays no role in this breakdown mechanism. The value BVCBO thus represents an upper operational limit for the collector-base reverse-bias voltage of a transistor. Since the sum of the collector-base voltage and the base-emitter voltage equals the collector-emitter voltage and the base-emitter voltage is constant, BVCBO can also be regarded as an upper limit on the collector-emitter voltage.
For the common emitter configuration with the base open, avalanche breakdown occurs at a voltage BVCEO (referred to as the common emitter breakdown voltage with the base open), where BVCEO<BVCBO due to the influence of transistor action on the avalanche multiplication process.
In the BJT, during avalanche breakdown carriers generated by impact ionization in the collector-base depletion region are injected into the base or swept into the collector. The carriers injected into the base create a base current that in turn leads to an increase in the emitter current that in turn increases the carriers injected from the emitter. A current runaway situation may eventually develop as the avalanche mechanism snowballs. The current of injected carriers is multiplied by the avalanche multiplication factor at operating voltages well below BVCEO, and as BVCEO is approached breakdown of the base-collector junction is observed, i.e., the collector current increases without bound.
For example, in an NPN transistor, if the reverse bias voltage is sufficiently large, electrons collected in the collector may collide with a crystal ion in the collector depletion region, imparting sufficient energy to disrupt a crystal bond and create an electron-hole pair by impact ionization. The initial and secondary electrons are swept into the collector, while the secondary hole is swept into the base by the junction field. The generated carriers may acquire sufficient energy from the applied field, collide with another crystal ion, and create still another electron-hole pair. Each new carrier may, in turn, produce additional electron-hole pairs through collision and disruption of existing bonds.
To maintain charge neutrality in the NPN base, as holes flow into the base from the collector, additional electrons must be supplied to the base by the emitter. But the increase in electron injection causes an increase in the injection of electrons from the base into the collector that leads to the generation of additional secondary carriers at the base-collector depletion region. Thus transistor action contributes to the avalanche condition.
In a case where the emitter-base junction is slightly reverse-biased by imposing a small negative base current, the transistor can be operated above BVCEO as the negative base current minimizes carrier injection from the emitter into the base, minimizing the effect of transistor action on the avalanche condition and permitting operation of the transistor at a voltage above BVCEO (but not above BVCBO). Due to the negative base current, the emitter junction initially does not inject electrons into the base region. But, as the multiplication process increases hole injection into the base region to a point where the additional flow of holes into the base exceeds the negative base current, the holes flow into the emitter region. When hole injection into the emitter junction has increased sufficiently to cause significant electron injection into the base region, transistor action again begins to influence the avalanche process. An identical operating condition arises for a PNP bipolar junction transistor, with the references to holes and electrons reversed.
If the base current is positive or zero and the transistor is operated with a collector-base voltage above BVCEO, the avalanche process aided by transistor action causes the transistor to break down. However, if the base terminal can sink all the negative base current created during the avalanche multiplication process, the avalanche process does not cause a breakdown condition, unless the collector-base voltage is above BVCBO. Since in a typical bipolar junction transistor, BVCEO is much less than BVCBO, the transistor can be operated in the region between BVCEO and BVCBO if the base can sink the negative base current. In some transistor applications it may be necessary to compensate this negative base current to avoid errors in the transistor's output voltage.
In a typical bipolar junction transistor, the collector breakdown voltage (BVCEO) and the collector carrier transit time depend upon the thickness and doping concentration of the base and collector region. Lighter doping and a wider collector region increase the breakdown voltage and collector transit time. A narrower base decreases transit time (permitting operation at higher frequencies) but a higher collector-emitter voltage can destroy the narrow base. Ideally, transistors having both a high breakdown voltage and high speed performance flow transit time) are desired. Optimizing a bipolar junction transistor relative to these two countervailing effects necessarily results in a tradeoff between breakdown voltage and transit time (or speed, which is directly related to the maximum operational frequency for the transistor). A typical integrated circuit includes transistors that are optimized for high voltage operation and also transistors that are optimized for high speed performance, rather than attempting to produce a single transistor structure that is optimized for both.

Base current compensation circuit for a bipolar junction transistor


An arrangement for executing a process in a data processing system using first and second programs each including executable codes and data in coordinated fashion in which a portion of the data and executable codes from the first program is provided to the second program during execution of the process. In execution of the process, portions of the data and executable codes provided by the first program to the second program are forcibly added or forcibly substituted and executed by the second program. The data and executable code portions are provided by injection and the injection and execution are conducted by imparting an acknowledgement of the addition or substitution and execution to the first program by the second program.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a program controlling method in a form of processing a plurality of programs in a coordinated manner, and an apparatus having the same.
More particularly, it relates to a program controlling method for implementing a system which requires a mechanism to cause a client to execute a request from a server or provide a new function to the client in a database system implemented as a server-client system, and an apparatus having the same.
2. Related Background Art
Recently, in a process of developing a complicated application program such as a DTP system or a drawing tool (picture drawing program), problems have been raised in that the programming is complex, the program becomes huge and switching depending on the situation is difficult to attain. In the prior art, the following methods have been proposed to solve those problems.
Object oriented database system (for example, an object oriented database system described in The Object Store Database System, CACM Vol. 10, pp50-63 (Oct. 1991)). It is a system which applies the concept of the object oriented database to a database system. A mechanism required when data having a complex structure is shared among a plurality of programs (for example, data persistency, parallel access control, version management) is provided. It can relieve the complexity of the programming which occurs in realizing the data sharing by the object oriented database system.
Dynamic loading/linking (for example, An Approach to Genuine Dynamic Linking, CSE-90-25, 8-1990, Div Computer Science, University of California). It is a mechanism to build in a function during the execution of the program instead of building it in the program during the development of the program. It is usually implemented by building in a module build-in procedure (loading and linking) as a function which can be called by the program during the development of the program. It is used as a mechanism for avoiding the increase of the size of the program and switching the content of process depending on the status. PA1 Shared library (for example, a library which belongs to the Unix System V). A library means one or a group of files of modules which may possibly be shared by a plurality of programs. A shared library means those programs which call procedures in the files when they are executed. It is used as means for preventing the increase of the size of the program. PA1 (1) a consistent operation can be forced to each program, PA1 (2) an optimum processing mechanism which complies with the status thereof can be provided to each program, PA1 (3) a size of each program can be reduced because a functional element may be added from time to time as required, and PA1 (4) the advantages of (1), (2) and (3) may be enjoyed without making the program complex.
However, recently, as an application program such as groupware in which a plurality of programs share data having a very complex structure and program codes which depend on the structure of the data and which requires more complex form of sharing such as coordinated processing has been developed, the following problems are raised.
a. Change notification
For example, when a plurality of windows applications share data and it is required to always reflect the status of the shared data on the display, it is necessary to inform each change of the shared data by one application to other applications.
b. Ownership
In a data management application, particularly where the update of data or the access control is required, it may be required to force an application based on certain convention of the application.
c. Evaporation
In an application which refers the shared data, the data which is shared by a plurality of applications and should be persistently saved after the completion of the application and the temporary data which is inherent to the application and erased at the completion of the application may be mixedly present.
In such a circumstance, when reference information to the temporary data is included in the persistent data, the persistent data holds useless data after the completion of the application because the temporary data is erased at the completion of the application. In many cases, such useless data is interpreted as invalid data which may adversely affect to the application.
In the prior art, however, the plurality of programs share the data of very complex structure and the program codes which depend on the data structure, and the problems raised by the dynamic change of the status during the execution of the programs are not solved.
This is because the object oriented database system provides the centralized management system for the persistent data and it cannot solve the problem of complex distributed data management such as the change notification and the ownership or manage the non-persistent data such as the evaporated data.
Further, the function provided by the shared library is a mechanism for supporting the sharing of the program code which may be decided at the time of preparation of the program that cannot handle the problem which dynamically changes depending on the execution status.
In the dynamic loading/linking, the dynamic addition and execution of the program code may be conducted but it cannot provide a mechanism to manage the sharing of the program code. As a result, the dynamic loading/linking cannot attain the base of coordinated processing by the plurality of programs.

Program controlling method having transfer of code and data among programs and apparatus therefor


A plastic drywall accessory includes an elongated strip of plastic having a nose and at least one wing projecting outwardly from a stepped edge of the nose. A hinge of flexible plastic is interposed between the nose and wing, so the wing will closely conform to an associated wall surface. In a first embodiment, the accessory is co-extruded, with the wing and nose formed of a rigid plastic material and the hinge formed of a flexible plastic material. In a second embodiment, the accessory is co-extruded, with the nose formed of a rigid plastic material and the hinge and wing formed of a flexible plastic material.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to drywall construction, and more particularly to an improved mud-on cornerbead and trim product with flexible wing portions.
(2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97, 1.98
Current building construction utilizes sheets of drywall, commonly referred to as "wallboard," to form the surfaces of interior walls of buildings. Drywall is typically formed of sheets of plaster sheathed in an outer wrapping of heavy construction paper.
In drywall construction, joints between adjacent sheets of drywall are usually covered by paper tape extending lengthwise along the joint. To finish exterior corners in wallboard construction, metal corner beads and bullnose beads are typically installed. Similarly, metal trim is used to protect and finish a wallboard edges at window and door jams, while expansion joints are inserted between sheets of wallboard at predetermined intervals within buildings.
The above-described corner bead and trim products include metal flanges projecting outwardly, which are perforated with circular holes or elongated slots, so that the trim product may be fastened to the drywall panels using nails or the like. Wet plaster is then smoothed into place to cover the metal flanges, and edges of the plaster are smoothed and feathered to cover and conceal the metal edges.
Another type of corner bead on the market is referred to as a "tape-on" or "mud-on" bead. Conventional tape-on bead includes a metal bead with a strip of paper covering the exterior surface of the metal, with wings projecting outwardly from the legs of the corner angle. Wet plaster or joint cement ("mud") secures these paper wings to the drywall to secure the corner bead in position. Thus, the bead is fastened with mud, rather than nails or other fasteners.
While tape-on bead has found success and popularity in the market, it has its drawbacks. One problem with the use of paper strips is the scuffing and damage to the paper covering the curved nose of the bead once the bead has been installed on a corner. Because the curved nose portion of the bead is directly exposed, and has no plaster or other material covering the paper, the paper may be easily scuffed or torn with only minimal contact.
Another problem with prior art tape-on bead is the cost of the product. The paper strips must be adhered to the metal bead in a separate step from the formation of the underlying metal corner angle. This additional step can make the end product quite expensive, as compared to conventional bead without the tape-on feature.
Corner bead and other drywall trim products of the prior art have also been extruded from plastic. Plastic is preferable material over metal for a number of reasons. The major reason is the resistance of the material to rust and other natural environmental breakdown. An additional advantage of vinyl, and other plastic products, is the greater dent-resistance than its metal alternative.
The inventor herein developed an improved mud-on bead manufactured entirely of plastic or vinyl, which is the subject of co-pending application Ser. No. 11/375,997. While this co-pending application addresses many of the shortcomings of the prior art, it has been found that even this improved bead could be improved by the provision of more flexible wings or flanges, to more closely conform with the wall surface to which it is attached.