According to the present invention there are provided an ultrasound system and method for glass deicing and defrosting, particularly of car's windshields. The system includes cube-shaped ultrasound transducers which generate high-intensity ultrasound waves which propagate in the windshields and heat it uniformly. Selection of the working parameters of the system is performed for specific windshields by a method including simulations.

Ice and frost formation on windows creates severe limitations in peoples' daily lives. Such formation on building windows limits and sometimes blocks visibility through the windows, which may be critical in the cases of observation points and military lookout posts. The problem of ice and frost formation has a severe effect on safety when it appears on windows and mirrors of vehicles such as cars, truck, boats, airplanes, etc.
There is a clear need to prevent the formation of ice and frost on surfaces, and especially on windows at specific times and there is a need to enable the removal of ice and frost in such cases that the formation of ice and frost was not prevented, when ice and frost free surfaces are required.
Since the first time people started using windows, devices, systems and methods began to develop in order to address the problem of ice and frost formation. These are based among other things on mechanical removal of the ice and frost by means of wipers, brushes or other tools, by mechanical removal using air flow, heating by means of electrical conductors glued to the windows and defrosting using a vehicle's air conditioning systems.
Due to the limitations inherent to these systems and methods, systems for vibrating of windows by means of ultra sonic waves transducers were introduced, for hampering of ice formation. The transducer converts an electronic drive signal into mechanical vibrations, resulting in the emission of acoustic waves.
Ultrasound (i.e., acoustic waves having a frequency greater than about 20 kilohertz), is widely used in many industrial, military and medical applications. Some examples are medical diagnostics, underwater sonar imaging, cleaning, medical therapeutic, welding and bonding applications. The last three examples utilize heating effect of ultrasound. The acoustical energy of the mechanical stress waves propagating in a medium is transformed to heat due to absorption along the acoustic propagation path.
In contrast to the liquids, sound wave propagation in solids is carried out by longitudinal waves, which are also referred to as primary waves and P-waves, and secondary waves, which are also referred to as shears waves and S-waves.
In addition, thin solid sheets like glass windows act like waveguides and mix longitudinal and shear wave components and produce a variety of vibration modes.
However, it is not enough to attach an ultrasonic transducer to a window in order to prevent formation of ice and frost on a window as well as removing them based on the power sources available to such transducers on one hand and the required rate of de-icing on the other hand, for example.
In order to achieve results that will enable a substantial improvement over the existing systems' and methods' performance, for example, in de-icing the outer side of a vehicle windshield and preventing the accumulation of frost on the inner side of the windshield, thus providing safe conditions for driving within a short time from starting the car engine, the present invention suggests an optimization method which enables the selection of the ultrasonic transducers, the working frequencies, the transmission power, the locations and ways of attaching the ultrasonic transducers to the vehicle's windshield, for providing a windshield high-intensity heating system.
Such optimization is possible when specific required parameters of the vehicle's windshield are known and each parameter's influence on the system's components on the result is understood.
A window ice formation hampering apparatus is described in PCT patent application No. PCT/US2000/012915 of Lenhardt. Lenhardt describes a vehicle ice formation hampering system utilizes at least one ultrasound frequency to retard the formation of ice or frost on a window of the vehicle, which is incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein.
FIG. 1 of the prior art illustrates an ice formation hampering system according to the invention of Lenhardt.
Two ultrasonic transducers (or vibrators) 20 are coupled to a window of the car, for example, the front flat windshield 31.
Amongst other possibilities, the ultrasonic transducers 20 may be piezoelectric devices.
According to Lenhardt when the ultrasonic transducers 20 vibrate the flat windshield 31 hampering of ice formation is achieved.
The prior art systems and methods do provide a hampering only solution but do not provide a good solution for clearing a defrosted or deiced windshield and do not provide a solution to the need for adjusting the system to varying parameters of different kinds of vehicle windshields.
There is therefore a need for a system for deicing and defrosting, that will improve the known performances and that would fit best for varying types of vehicle windshields.

Ultrasound system and method for deicing and defrosting


The invention relates to a method for reducing glucose consumption during cultivation of animal cells, which comprises cultivating animal cells in the presence of a bi- or tricarbonic acid or a salt thereof at a concentration of about 1 to 50 mmol/l.

Optimization strategies of cell culture processes aim at maximizing the longevity of cell culture (Bibila, T. A., and Robinson, D. K., Biotechnol. Prog. 11 (1995) 1-13). The final integrated number of viable cells over cultivation time is often used as a measure of cultivation success and is positively correlated with product formation. As used herein, this integral is defined as CTI (CTI=Cell density Time Integral).
Lactate is a major waste product formed during the cultivation of mammalian cells. Under typical culture conditions, the cells consume glucose in great excess and metabolize it mainly to lactate. The accumulation of lactate affects cell growth, CTI and protein production adversely as a result of pH and/or pH adjustment by alkali (Chang, Y. H. D., et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 47 (1995) 319-326); Omasa, T., et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 39 (1992) 556-565 and Chen, K., et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 72 (2001) 55-62).
There have been a lot of attempts to reduce lactate formation. It was suggested by Glacken, M. W., et al., (Biotechnol. Bioeng. 28 (1986) 1376-1389); Hu, W. S., et al., (Dev. Biol. Stand. 66(1987) 279-290); and Xie, L., and Wang, D. I. C., Cytotechnology 15 (1994) 17-29) to grow mammalian cells at low glucose concentrations with dynamic controlled feeding with glucose. The idea was to achieve a metabolic shift from high glucose/lactate flux to a low glucose/lactate flux. However, such methods require adaptations of the cells and need carefully designed control mechanisms of feeding. They are therefore complicated and difficult to perform (U.S. Pat. No. 6,156,570).
Other methods for reducing lactate formation are based on genetic engineering means. One method is described by Chen, K., et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 72 (2001) 55-62) suggesting manipulation of the metabolic pathway for lactate in the mammalian cells by inactivation of at least one copy of lactate dehydrogenase genes in the cells. Another method is described by Irani, N., et al., (J. Biotechnol. 66 (1999) 238-246), which introduces a pyruvate carboxylase gene into the host cell genome. It is assumed that the conversion of pyruvate to lactate is reduced and therefore the longevity of the cell culture is improved.
The addition of ferric citrate as a substituent for transferring in serum-free media for the cultivation of mammalian cells has been known for a long time (cf., e.g., Toyoda, K., and Inouye, K., Agric. Biol. Chem. 55 (1991) 1631-1633; Franek, F., and Dolnikova, J., Cytotechnology 7 (1991) 33-38; Kovar, J., and Franek, F., Exp. Cell Res. 182 (1989) 358-369; Schneider, Y. J., J. Immunol. Meth. 116 (1989) 65-77; and Kovar, J., Hybridoma 7 (1988) 255-263).

Methods for growing mammalian cells in vitro


An electric dispenser for wrap film includes a base, two side covers, a conveying track, a driving device, a cutting device, an accommodating case and a bottom cover. The conveying track is contained in the base, driven by the driving device to pull out the wrap film. The cutting device includes a driving motor, a threaded bar, a blade fixing base and an auxiliary rod. The driving motor is commanded by the driving device to drive the threaded bar to rotate to enable the blade fixing base to move along the threaded bar. The blade-fixing base has a blade extended to the surface of the conveying track to cut off the wrap film. The accommodating case is set on the top of the base, for positioning the wrap film in it. The wrap film is replaceable.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electric dispenser for wrap film, particularly to one composed of a base, two side covers, a conveying track, a driving device, a cutting device, an accommodating case and a bottom cover, able to cut off the wrap film safely, used conveniently and replaceable with a new wrap film quickly.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Nowadays, wrap film is often used to wrap around foods or on containers, such as a bowl and a dish etc, with foods so as to keep foods free from dirt or contaminated by fly or insects, or dehydrated if stored in a refrigerator, especially for vegetables and fruits. Or, if foods are to be cooked by microwave or steam, they can be wrapped with wrap film to keep airtight or warm. Therefore, wrap film is really necessary for cooking or foods storing.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional wrap film dispenser is provided with a wrap film spool 10 stored in a rectangular box 11 having one of its sides set as a door 12 able to be opened to form an opening on the box 11. Along the edge of the opening is installed a toothed cutter 13. In using, wrap film 100 is first pulled out to an expected length by one hand and next, the other hand has to press on the door 12, so that the hand holding the end of the wrap film 100 can force oppositely against the cutter 13 to keep the wrap film 100 cut off. But, actually, although the door 12 is pressed by a user, the wrap film 100 is always unapt to be torn off, keeping it entangled to become wasted or cut deformed, because of an uneven force pressed along the cutter 13. In addition, the cutter 13 is installed outside the box 11, possible to hurt a user's hand while tearing the wrap film 100 incautiously.
Therefore, the invention has been devised to overcome the defects mentioned above.


A yarn false twisting device in which two motors 30, 40 are installed separately for each of the drive shafts 30a, 40a of each false twist application element, and each motor is controlled by a control unit C in accordance with changes in the yarn tension. The installation of separate motors for each drive shaft of each false twist application element has enabled the elimination of complex power transmission mechanisms such as an endless belt or idler, making the yarn false twisting device more compact. Furthermore, each motor is controlled so as to rotate in mutually synchronic fashion according to changes in the yarn tension, improving the overall quality of false twisted yarn.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, a device of this type, as is known in the art, is so constructed that one endless belt 1 of a pair of crossed endless belts 1, 2, wherein a yarn y is sandwiched, is installed between pulleys 1a, 1b, that are positioned a specified distance apart, and the other endless belt 2 is likewise installed between pulleys 2a, 2b that are positioned a specified distance apart. One pulley 1a with which the endless belt 1 is engaged is connected to an output shaft 3a of a motor 3.
Furthermore, a toothed pulley 4 is connected to the said output shaft 3a. The other pulley 2a with which the endless belt 2 is engaged is connected to a shaft 5, and a toothed pulley 6 is also connected to the said shaft 5. To the toothed pulley 4 that is connected to the said toothed pulley 6 and the output shaft 3a of the motor 3, an endless timing belt 9, which is guided by idlers 7, 8, is installed. The thus constructed device works as follows; starting the motor 3 rotates the pulley 1a that is connected to the output shaft 3a of the motor 3 thereby the endless belt 1 that is installed between the pulleys 1a, 1b and the endless belt 2 that is installed between the pulleys 2a, 2b run through the toothed pulley 4, the endless timing belt 9 and the toothed pulley 6.
Additionally, the conventional yarn false twisting device is so constructed that, after the yarn y is sandwiched between the aforesaid pair of the endless belts 1, 2 and provided with false twist, its tension is detected by a tension detecting element t. When the tension of the yarn y is larger than a predetermined setting or range, a control unit c increases the rotation rate of the motor 3 in order to increase the travelling speeds of the endless belts 1, 2, thereby increasing the feed rate of the yarn y and decreasing the tension of the yarn y.
Similarly, when the tension of the yarn y is smaller than a predetermined setting or range, the control unit c decreases the rate of rotation of the motor 3 in order to decrease the travelling speeds of the endless belts 1, 2, thereby decreasing the feed rate of the yarn y and increasing the tension of the yarn y.
As the conventional yarn false twisting device described above is designed to run one of the pair of the endless belts 1, 2 by using such mediums as the toothed pulley 4, the endless timing belt 9 and the toothed pulley 6, it has a problem in that the power transmission mechanism from the motor 3 is complex, thereby causing the yarn false twisting device itself to become larger and the frequency of servicing to increase.
Furthermore, due to the above construction, it is difficult to change the cross angles of the endless belts 1, 2 by changing the angle of the output shaft 3a of the motor 3 and the shaft 5 of the pulley 2a, over which the endless belt 2 is installed.
The object of the present invention is to solve the above problems of the conventional yarn false twisting device, and to provide a yarn false twisting device with improved travelling speed controlling means of the endless belts in response to changes in yarn tension.


An input signal is compared to 2N−1 reference voltages to generate 2N−1 corresponding binary valued comparison signals, delaying at least one of the comparison signals by a variable delay and detecting a difference in arrival time between the delayed signal and another comparison signal. A time interpolation signal encoding a plurality of bins within a least significant bit quantization level is generated, based on the detected difference in arrival time. An M-bit output data is generated based on the comparison signals and the time interpolation signal. A non-uniformity of a code density of the M-bit output data is detected, and based on the detecting the delaying is varied.

In a basic form, an N-bit flash analog-to-digital (A/D) converter (hereinafter referred to as "ADC") has 2N−1 comparators, arranged in cardinal order to compare the same input signal against a respective cardinal order of 2N−1 equally spaced reference voltages. The voltage spacing between each comparator and its adjacent higher and/or lower comparator is typically one least significant bit (LSB) of the N-bit output.
In operation, all of the 2N−1 comparators receive the same sampling clock (typically periodic at a sampling rate) and, at each clock pulse, generate a broadside output of "1s" from all comparators (if any) for which the signal exceeds the reference voltage, and a "0" from all comparators (if any) having higher reference voltages. The broadside output of the 2N−1 comparators is sometimes referred to as "thermometer code" encoding, because it can be visualized as similar to a liquid column thermometer, where the liquid (e.g., mercury) rises to a point corresponding to the temperature.
A decoding logic decodes the broadside of binary outputs to generate a binary N-bit data representing, in the cardinal ordering of the 2N−1 comparators, which from the comparators generating a "1" has the highest reference voltage. Stated differently, if the comparators generating "1s" are considered as a thermometer column, the decoding logic generates a binary N-bit data representing the "top" comparator of the column.
One significant feature of flash ADCs is speed. ADCs enable high speed conversion because, in basic form, each sample requires only one clock. This differs from other known ADC architectures such as, for example, successive approximation (SAR) ADCs that use a plurality of clock cycles to convert the signal.
However the number of comparators required to construct prior art flash ADCs is exponentially related to the number of bits. Simply put, N bits of resolution requires 2N−1 comparators.
As an illustration, a basic 4-bit flash ADC (assuming the output "bit" is binary valued) converts the input into one of 16 levels and, therefore, requires 15 comparators (a zero value does not require a comparator). An 8-bit flash ADC requires 255 voltage comparators. With current state-of-the art A/D technology, economical implementation of 255 comparators and all the required support circuitry in an acceptable size and acceptable power consumption package is readily attained. A 10-bit true flash ADC, meaning 10 bits in a single clock, requires 1023 comparators.
This requirement for 2N−1 comparators causes multiple problems.
One problem is that each comparator requires chip area and, therefore, as a rough estimate, each one bit increase in resolution may require approximately a doubling of the chip area.
Another problem is that clocked comparator circuits have various capacitances, and current flows are required to charge and discharge these capacitances. As a rough estimator, each one bit increase in resolution may approximately double the power dissipation. For reasons well known to persons skilled in the art, these power issues may manifest significantly at higher sampling rates.
Another problem arising from the requirement for 2N−1 comparators is that, for ideal performance (meaning maximum sampling rate and minimal noise and distortion), the input amplifier to a flash ADC must deliver high current at a fast slew rate. The reason is that the input of each of the 2N−1 comparators has a capacitance. A multi-stage, fan-out arrangement of buffers may not be acceptable because these introduce various distortions, and bandwidth reduction. For this reason, it is often preferable when striving for a maximum speed and accuracy flash ADC that a single amplifier output directly connects to all of the signal level comparators. In such instances the input amplifier must effectively drive a load of 2N−1 parallel capacitors.
Still other problems, both additional to and exacerbating of the above example problems of structural overhead (e.g., power dissipation, and input amplifier demands), is that the present requirement for 2N−1 comparators necessarily introduces noise and linearity problems. Basically, each doubling of the number of bits halves the voltage difference between successive comparators. This, in turn, reduces tolerance for comparator inaccuracy, and increases susceptibility to noise-induced error by the comparators. Still further, circuit technologies and design methods directed to controlling such comparator accuracy and noise problems, in addition to direct cost, often require a compromising of ADC cost.
Methods to lessen or ameliorate some of these problems have been identified and, in certain instances, some may be used. All, however, have significant costs.
One example of such methods is the subranging ADC. In a basic form, a subranging ADC performs an N-bit quantizing using a multiple step sequence. Generally, each additional step provides a theoretical increase of one bit of resolution, using substantially the same number of signal level comparators. However, subranging ADCs have costs. Reduced quantizing speed is foremost, and is significant. Each additional step reduces the maximum speed by two. Distortion and noise arising from the lengthened "hold" time of the internal sample-and-hold circuitry is another problem.

Time interpolation flash ADC having automatic feedback calibration


A sewing machine includes a sewing machine motor that vertically drives a sewing needle via a main shaft; a sewing speed commander that produces a command sewing speed determined by rotational speed of the sewing machine motor; a stitch-pitch specifier that specifies a stitch pitch to be applied to manually fed sewing operation; a consumed thread amount detector that detects a consumed needle-thread amount in each ongoing sewing cycle; a sewing speed controller that controls sewing speed at the command sewing speed when the command sewing speed is equal to or less than a predetermined reference sewing speed, and that controls sewing speed at a target sewing speed calculated based on the consumed needle-thread amount and the stitch pitch when the command sewing speed is greater than the reference sewing speed.

Conventionally, quilting have been performed with a sewing machine by stitching a three-layered fabric having materials such as cotton, feather, or urethane foam stuffed between the top cloth and the bottom cloth while forming decorative patterns on the top cloth of the fabric. The user is allowed to freely move the three-layered quilting fabric in given directions to enjoy quilting by combining various stitches such as straight stitches and curved stitches while the sewing machine is in operation.
For example, JP 2002-292175 A (hereinafter referred to as Reference 1) describes a sewing machine provided with a downwardly-oriented sensor mounted at a head of a sewing machine arm. Some of the images captured by the image sensor are inputted to a microcomputer provided in the sewing machine during the sewing operation and the inputted images are take in as static images at predetermined small time intervals. Then, amount of movement of the workpiece cloth is calculated by a first interrupt process. Then, a second interrupt process obtains speed of needle-bar movement, in other words, rotational speed of a sewing machine motor based on a preset "pitch-width" and the calculated amount of workpiece cloth movement. The sewing machine executes a sewing speed control so that the rotational speed of the sewing machine motor is altered from time to time to control the stitch pitch during manual feed so that spacing between the stitches is constant.
The sewing machine described in Reference 1 works fine when patterns can be sewn by effortlessly moving the workpiece such as quilting fabric manually by the user. However, when sewing patterns require dynamic manual movement of the workpiece, the workpiece need to be fed at lower speed. In such case, the needle bar is also moved at lower speed, consequently increasing the time period in which the workpiece is anchored in place by the sewing needle penetrating through it, which in turn reduces the time available for moving the workpiece.
When the user tries to force the movement of the workpiece with the sewing needle penetrating through it, the workpiece is pulled away from the sewing needle. Thus, once the sewing needle is lifted out of the workpiece, the workpiece becomes displaced by the sudden release of tension, resulting in displacement of stitches. The sudden movement of workpiece also causes sudden acceleration of needle-bar movement. When the user brings the workpiece movement to a sudden stop in response to the sudden workpiece movement and acceleration of the needle bar-movement, this time, needle-bar movement is suddenly decelerated.
Thus, when sewing patterns that require dynamic workpiece movement or when the user is a beginner at sewing machine operation, it is desirable to execute the sewing operation under low-speed needle-bar movement, in other words, under low-speed rotation of the sewing machine motor. However, when executing sewing operations at low speed with sewing machines that control sewing speed as described above, it is difficult to sew desired patterns in steady rhythm without stitch displacement.

Sewing machine and computer readable medium


Embodiments are provided for mutually authenticating a pair of electronic devices. According to certain aspects, the electronic devices may connect to each other via an out-of-band communication channel. The electronic devices may each output audio signals and detect audio signals output by the other electronic devices. Based on timestamps associated with audio output and detection events, each of the electronic devices may calculate relevant time and distance parameters, and transmit the calculated parameters to the other electronic device via the out-of-band communication channel. The electronic devices may compare the calculated parameters to determine mutual authentication.

Mutual authentication is a technique employed by two devices that concurrently authenticate each other such that each device may be assured of the other device's identity. In some cases, a client device and a server may mutually authenticate; in other cases, two client devices may mutually authenticate with each other. Mutual authentication offers an added layer of security for the devices. Accordingly, threats posed to the devices such as phishing, malware, and other common attacks may be reduced or eliminated.
There are various existing techniques for mutual authentication. Generally, for a successful mutual authentication, each device must successfully respond to a challenge from the other device. Some mutual authentication techniques incorporate pairs of public and private keys. Some other techniques involve the devices sensing each other, such as via the output and detection of audio. However, current mutual authentication techniques that incorporate audio lack an added layer of security that is afforded to more digital data-based mutual authentication techniques.
Accordingly, there is an opportunity for audio-based mutual authentication techniques having an added layer of security.

Systems and methods for mutual authentication of electronic devices


A sanitary shower has a shower body, a water inlet on the shower body connectable to a wall supply line, at least one jet outlet opening and a water conduit providing fluid communication to the water inlet. The sanitary shower includes a connector body with a water inlet connectable to a wall supply line and a basket-type shower body which extends from the connector body up to an outlet-sided basket terminal axially spaced from the connector body. The basket-type shower body defines a hollow basket interior space adjacent to the connector body, and the outlet-sided basket terminal delimits an axial basket opening and/or a light transparent terminal disk element. On the basket-type shower body and/or on the connector body at least one jet outlet opening is provided. A water conduit provides a fluid communication of the at least one jet outlet opening to the water inlet.

Sanitary showers of this type are in use in particular as head showers, hand showers and side showers. In the conventional manner, the shower body is most commonly formed by a cylindrical shower housing which, on an outlet-sided end side, displays a jet disk having a plurality of jet outlet openings and, on another side, e.g. on the opposite end side or on the cylinder-jacket face, has the water inlet and is otherwise implemented in a closed manner. In the case of these conventional showers various shower-head components, such as water containing duct structures of the housing, water containing inserts, valves and similar, are accommodated in the housing, wherein the jet disk conceals from view these internal components of the conventional shower heads from the outlet side and completely covers them. The jet pattern which is generated by the sanitary shower is a result of the arrangement and the implementation of the jet outlet openings, wherein corresponding types of known showers make possible a plurality of different jet patterns, the user being able to switch from one to the other by way of an operating element which is provided on the shower housing or on the jet disk.
It is in particular for head showers that other shower-head designs which are less restricted in their design have also already been proposed, including such having an annular shower-jet outlet body or having a plate-shaped shower-jet outlet body in which an illumination may be integrated.
It is an object of the invention to provide a sanitary shower of the type mentioned at the outset by way of which the diversity of shapes and functions can be significantly widened in comparison to the known sanitary showers mentioned above.
This and other objects are achieved by providing a sanitary shower which comprises a connector body and a basket-type shower body disposed thereon. The connector body includes a water inlet connectable to a wall supply line. The wall supply line may be one which leads to a water supply connector on a ceiling wall or side wall of a shower room, for example.
The shower body is characteristically implemented in a basket-type manner, wherein it extends from the connector body up to an outlet sided basket terminal axially spaced from the connector body. The term outlet sided basket terminal here is to be understood to mean that side of the basket-type shower body that faces the user during operation and faces away from the connector body. Depending on requirements and on the type of application, the basket-type shower body is implemented as an open frame-type or aperture-type shower basket or as a closed lampshade-like shower basket. The water inlet is situated on an inlet side which lies opposite the outlet sided basket terminal or may be situated transversely to the axial direction of the basket-type shower body, on the connector body. The basket-type structure of the shower body defines, i.e. delimits a hollow basket interior space adjacent to the disk-shaped connector body. The outlet-sided basket terminal delimits an axial basket opening and/or a light transparent terminal disk element. Moreover, the sanitary shower includes one or more jet outlet openings which are provided on the basket-type shower body and/or on the connector body. A water conduit provides a fluid communication of the at least one jet outlet opening to the water inlet.
On account of the mentioned features the sanitary shower according to the invention enables a significant widening of the potential in terms of design and function of the entire shower body itself and also of providing advantageous jet patterns and jet characteristics of the shower jet(s) which can be generated by the sanitary shower. Depending on requirements, a plurality of jet outlet openings in various different arrangements may be provided on the basket-type shower body and/or on the connector body in this manner. The basket shape of the basket-type shower body may be varied in many different ways and be optimized according to standpoints of design and/or functionality. The same applies to, for example, the disk-shaped implementation of the connector body. The basket opening delimited by the outlet sided basket terminal, in terms of size, may be chosen depending on requirements, for example as a comparatively large opening which may extend over practically the entire basket cross section or as a tighter opening in comparison thereto.
In the embodiments in which the outlet sided basket terminal displays the light transparent terminal disk element, the latter may, as desired, leave or delimit, respectively, an axial basket opening or terminate the hollow basket interior space on the outlet side as a light transparent face. The characterizing term "light transparent" here is to be understood to mean both embodiments in which the terminal disk element is transparent to the observer and such which are opaque but, to illumination light, are at least part-transparent or which can emit diffused light or fluorescent light.
In one advantageous refinement of the invention, the basket-type shower body is configured so as to be bell-shaped and extends as a corresponding shower-body bell from the connector body with a radial main direction component up to an upper basket circumferential region and from there with an axial main direction component up to the outlet sided basket terminal. In this case, too, depending on requirements, open frame-type or alternatively closed bell shapes are possible for the basket-type shower body.
In one advantageous refinement of the invention the basket-type shower body includes a plurality of basket tubes arranged distributed over the basket circumferential direction to form a basket. Using these shower tubes, the basket-type shower body can provide an open basket frame. Alternatively, the basket tubes may carry a cover, if the shower basket is to be implemented in a closed manner.
In one refinement of the invention a plurality of jet outlet openings are provided on the outlet-sided basket terminal. In alternative or combined embodiments, the outlet-sided basket terminal, to this end, may have an annular and/or light transparent jet outlet disk having one or more jet outlet openings and/or at least one annular jet outlet tube having one or more jet outlet openings on a tube-jacket side and/or at least one radial jet outlet tube having a plurality of jet outlet openings on a tube jacket side. This enables numerous different variants of designs and jet patterns.
It is possible, in this manner, for a jet outlet region to include a plurality of jet outlet openings in a plane, preferably disposed in a round arrangement or circumferentially in an annular arrangement, advantageously but not necessarily on a continuous component, such as a jet disk. Here at least two such jet outlet regions may be provided, advantageously on different components and/or regions or at different axial spacing, respectively, preferably in relation to an axis of a rotational symmetry.
It is furthermore possible for a plurality of jet outlet openings to be arranged in different angles relative to one another. The jet outlet openings here in particular are in each case arranged in groups or form groups, respectively. Within one group the angular alignment is in each case identical, specifically either parallel with or coincidental with an axis which advantageously runs centrically through the group, preferably as an axis of a rotational symmetry. These groups of jet outlet openings may be provided in each case along closed lines or rings and/or exactly in one plane.
In one refinement of the invention the basket-type shower body includes at least one water containing tube, which tube is a component of the water conduit from the water inlet to the jet outlet opening(s). The water containing tube preferably simultaneously functions as a component of the shower-basket structure.
In one refinement of the invention, the connector body includes one or more jet outlet openings on an outlet side facing the basket interior. This enables a jet pattern in which a water jet exits from the connector body into the basket interior space, traverses the latter and then axially exits on the outlet sided basket terminal. If desired, additional water jets may exit via corresponding jet outlet openings at pre-definable points from the basket-type shower body itself.
In one advantageous refinement of the invention an illuminant is disposed in the basket interior, which illuminant is attached to the connector body or to the basket-type shower body. In this embodiment the function of providing the water jet of the shower is combined with an illuminating function. On account of arranging the illuminant in the basket interior space, the basket-type shower body thus adopts a type of lampshade function.
In the embodiment of this measure, the illuminant is an electric illuminant of which the electrical supply passes through the water inlet. Therefore, no separate electrical supply opening is required in the connector body or in the shower body.
In one refinement of the invention the sanitary shower includes a support and supply tube, in the form of an overhead shower ceiling wall support or an overhead shower side wall support or a lateral shower side wall support or a hand-held shower handle, and a water outlet section capable of being coupled to the water inlet of the connector body. The sanitary shower may thus be used as a head shower, a side shower or a hand shower, as desired.


A zoom lens is disclosed having a zoom ratio larger than four with a field of view at the short focal length position larger than 85 degrees and with a minimal number of moving groups. The zoom lens utilizes a compound zoom structure comprising an NP or NPP zoom kernel followed by a P or PP zoom relay, with only two or three moving groups that can be used for both zooming, focusing and athermalization. An overall compact package size is achieved by the use of prisms to fold the optical path in strategic locations. An optional variable power liquid cell can provide close focusing with little or no focus breathing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, generally, to zoom lenses, and in particular embodiments, to an optionally rotatable compound zoom lens with a minimal number of moving lens groups that provides a wide focal length range and a wide field of view and is small in size to fit in consumer products such as cellular telephones and other products with compact lenses.
2. Description of Related Art
Notably lacking in the prior art are zoom lenses having a zoom ratio greater than about four combined with a maximum field of view at the short focal length position of 85 degrees or more. Although such zoom lenses are known in the field of broadcast zoom lenses, these are typically large, complex and expensive designs. Examples can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,745,300, and in Japanese Patents 62-153,913, 08-136,808, 09-015,501, 09-033,812 and 11-030,749.
A more compact, wide-range, wide-angle zoom can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,038,084, although the performance of the examples is poor despite significant complexity.
What is desired is a compact and relatively simple zoom lens with both a wide zoom range and wide field angle that can be economically produced in high volume. Such a zoom lens would have wide-ranging application in digital still and video cameras, cell phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and the like.
Recently, a novel compound zoom system was described in related U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20040021953. This system comprises a zoom kernel that forms an intermediate image, followed by a zoom relay that re-images the intermediate image to a final image plane. The zoom ratio of the lens system as a whole is equal to the zoom ratio of the kernel multiplied by the zoom ratio of the relay. Such a design approach has a number of potential advantages over conventional zoom lens designs, including large zoom range, wide field of view, high image quality, and flexibility in arranging fold mirrors or prisms. However, the zoom system does not provide for a compact wide-range wide-angle zoom lens that is suitable for mass-market applications.
More recently, a wide angle compound zoom system was described in related U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/071,125, filed on Mar. 2, 2005. This system comprises four independently moving groups to achieve a zoom ratio of about 8.6 together with a field of view of 90 degrees at the short focal length position. The system is sufficiently compact to be used in a cell phone, PDA, or compact digital camera.
However, with the size of personal electronics ever decreasing, there is still a need for an even more compact and relatively simple zoom lens with both a wide zoom range and wide field angle that can be economically produced in high volume. Such a zoom lens would have broad application in digital still and video cameras, cell phones, PDAs, and the like.

Wide-range, wide-angle compound zoom with simplified zooming structure


A fiber optic light guide for a vehicle lighting system has a light transmissive core and a light absorptive cladding provided circumferentially about the core. The light guide has a pair of end portions with opposing canted parallel end surfaces. The end surfaces are canted at a predetermined angle greater than the critical angle associated with the light transmissive core material and the surrounding air, so that if the end surfaces are separated light will not be emitted from the fiber optic light guide, but rather reflected off an end surface and into the light absorptive cladding.

Conventional light systems, used for vehicle head lights or tail lights, typically use a bulb and reflector system. In a bulb and reflector system, the filament of the bulb is placed at or near a focal point of a parabolic reflector. The light emitted by the bulb filament is collected by the reflector and reflected outward to form a light beam. A lens may be used to shape the light beam into a specified pattern.
The conventional bulb and reflector systems have several disadvantages. For example, bulb and reflector systems collect and often reflect only thirty percent of the light emitted from the bulb filament into the useful lighting area. Additionally, thermal energy given off by the bulb during operation must be considered. The size of the reflector as well as the material used in its construction vary depending upon the amount of thermal energy generated by the bulb filament. Decreasing the size of the reflector requires use of materials with high thermal resistivity for the reflector. Further, bulb and reflector systems have disadvantages related to aerodynamics and aesthetics. For example, the depth of the reflector along its focal axis and the height of the reflector in directions perpendicular to the focal axis greatly limit attempts at streamlining vehicle contours.
An approach to develop an automotive lighting system directed at remedying the above disadvantages and for use with the newer streamlined vehicle contours is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,434,754, assigned to the assignee of the present invention. Therein disclosed is the combination of a fiber optic light guide which transmits light from a remote light source, to a parabolic reflector, through a light manifold, and to a thin sheet optical element. The light guide is optically connected to the remote light source, the optical element, and sometimes to other light guides.
Certain advancements to such an approach have been directed at reducing the thickness of the thin sheet optical element. One way of accomplishing this reduction is by utilizing a high brightness remote light source. One approach is to provide a remote diode laser light source in combination with reduced diameter fiber optic light guides and reduced thickness optical elements. U.S. application Ser. No. 08/780,034, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, is exemplary of such an approach.
Utilization of a light management system as described will necessarily require system assembly and maintenance. The fiber optic light guides will need to be connected to the remote diode laser source, the thin sheet optical element, and potentially to other light guides. Further, the fiber optic light guides may deteriorate over time and may need to be disconnected and replaced. During such procedures the escape of laser light at the connection points is a condition to be avoided.
It is therefore desirable, particularly when using diode laser remote lighting systems, to provide for prevention of emission of laser light at the connection points, especially during system assembly or maintenance.

Light trap for a laser-based fiber optic vehicle lighting system


A broadcast communication system is presented which includes a broadcast communication transmitter, a broadcast communication receiver, and an information processor. The broadcast communication receiver is configured to receive programming from the broadcast communication transmitter. The receiver is also configured to generate information relating to the operation of the broadcast communicate receiver. In addition, the receiver is configured to connect to the information processor and transfer the information thereto during a time period in accordance with user input accepted by the receiver. The information processor is configured to receive and process the information.

Satellite broadcast communication systems, such as direct broadcast satellite (DBS) and satellite radio systems, typically are designed to transfer information primarily in one direction. For example, entertainment and news programming, program schedule information, and the like are normally transferred from a satellite uplink center through a satellite to a receiver, such as a satellite set-top box, located at a business or residential location.
At times, however, information generated in the satellite receiver must be relayed from the satellite receiver to some portion of the satellite broadcast communication system. For example, many satellite set-top box units allow a subscriber to order pay-per-view (PPV) events, such as major sporting events, music concerts, popular motion pictures, and the like, by way of a remote control unit accessing a control menu provided by the set-top box through a connected television set. Such information is often transferred through a terrestrial telephone connection between the set-top box and a back-end processing system configured to receive and process such information. In the case of a PPV order, the processing system then causes the communication system to download the requested programming (if prerecorded) or stream the programming (if presented live) to the receiver unit. The processing system also causes a charge for the requested event to be added to the subscriber's bill.
In the case of a receiver being located at a residence, the phone connection employed to transfer the information from the receiver to the processing system is typically the primary phone connection for the residence. Thus, the receiver does not stay connected at all times to the processing system, as such a permanent coupling would prevent the phone connection from being utilized for normal telephone communication and other uses. Instead, the receiver unit is normally configured to store the information temporarily, and then periodically connect by way of the phone connection to the processing system to transfer the stored information. The receiver normally makes such connections at times when the telephone connection is not likely to be employed for normal use, such as at noon during the week (when the subscriber is likely to be at work and, hence, not at home) or at midnight (when the residents are expected to be asleep).
Some subscribers may prefer that the connection between the receiver and the processing system be made at times other than those determined by the receiver. For example, the subscriber's use patterns involving the available phone connection may conflict with the connection times employed by the receiver. In another situation, the terms of a subscriber's phone service plan may allow for less expensive calls during times not being utilized by the receiver. Moreover, the use patterns and phone plan terms may change over a period of weeks or months.

Handling of information generated within a receiver of a broadcast communication system


A first internal conductor has a first portion. A second internal conductor has a lead portion and a main electrode portion. The second internal conductor is arranged in the same layer as the first internal conductor. A third internal conductor has a lead portion and a main electrode portion. The third internal conductor is arranged so as to be adjacent to the second internal conductor in a laminate direction. A fourth internal conductor has a lead portion and a main electrode portion. The fourth internal conductor is arranged so as to be adjacent to the third internal conductor in the laminate direction. When the laminate body is viewed from the laminate direction, the main electrode portion of the third internal conductor overlaps with the main electrode portions of the second and fourth internal conductors. A width of the first portion is smaller than a width of the main electrode portion of the second internal conductor in the longitudinal direction of the laminate body and a width of the main electrode portion of the second internal conductor in the transverse direction of the laminate body.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multilayer capacitor.
2. Related Background Art
A known multilayer capacitor of this kind is provided with a capacitor element body of a rectangular parallelepiped shape having a pair of principal faces of a rectangular shape facing each other, a pair of side faces extending in the longitudinal direction of the pair of principal faces so as to connect between the pair of principal faces, and facing each other, and a pair of end faces extending in the transverse direction of the pair of principal faces so as to connect between the pair of principal faces, and facing each other, and a plurality of terminal electrodes disposed on the pair of respective side faces; the capacitor element body has a plurality of dielectric layers laminated together in the facing direction of the pair of principal faces, and a plurality of internal conductors alternately arranged so as to face each other with at least one dielectric layer in between out of the plurality of dielectric layers and connected to the corresponding terminal electrodes (e.g., cf. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 09-148174). In the multilayer capacitor described in the foregoing Application Laid-open No. 09-148174, the spacing is short between the terminal electrodes disposed on the pair of respective side faces and thus electric current paths are relatively short in the multilayer capacitor. As a result, it becomes feasible to make the equivalent series inductance (ESL) small.


An exposure apparatus includes a projection optical system for projecting a pattern of a mask onto an object using a light with wavelength of 20 nm or less from a light source, and first and second accommodating parts for accommodating the projection optical system and the mask or the object, said first and second accommodating part has different pressures, wherein said a Ps/Po≧100 and Ps≦10−3 Pa are met, where Po is the pressure of the first accommodating part, and Ps is the pressure of the second accommodating part.

The present invention relates generally to an exposure apparatus that transfers a pattern of a mask (reticle) onto an object such as a single crystal substrate for a semiconductor wafer and a glass plate for a liquid crystal display ("LCD"), and more particularly to an exposure apparatus that exposes an object using a light with a wavelength of 20 nm or less in a reduced or vacuum environment. The present invention is suitable for an exposure apparatus that uses an extreme ultraviolet light (EUV light) (referred to as an "EUV exposure apparatus" hereinafter).
Along with the recent demands on finer processing and improved economical efficiency, the further improvement of resolution and productivity of the projection exposure apparatus has been increasingly required. In the improvement of resolution, shortening the wavelength of exposure light is general, and recently, an EUV exposure apparatus using EUV light with a wavelength of 10 to 15 nm has been proposed. The EUV light is easily absorbed by air and helium etc., a conventional EUV exposure apparatus accommodates an optical system, mask and object in a vacuum chamber, and exposes with the inside maintained to a vacuum or reduce environment (referred to as only a "vacuum environment" hereinafter).
However, when the mask and object are carried into and carried out of the vacuum chamber, an atmosphere flows into the chamber and the vacuum environment is broken. In addition, it takes a long time to form again a predetermined vacuum environment by evacuating the vacuum chamber. Moreover, organic matters generated from a resist on the object contaminate the optical system during exposure. The contaminated optical system causes various problems, such as a decreased light intensity and throughput, a non-uniform distribution, and a lower resolution etc.
An EUV exposure apparatus that divides the vacuum chamber into plural areas (accommodating parts) and accommodates the mask, object and optical system in different accommodating parts has been proposed (see, for example, Japanese Patent No. 2,691,865 and Japanese Patent Application, Publication No. 2003-332214). The separate accommodating parts enable, for example, the accommodating part that accommodates the optical system to maintain the vacuum environment even when the object is carried out of the vacuum chamber to exchange the object. As a result, after the object is exchanged, only the accommodating part that accommodates the object may be evacuated. Therefore, a time period necessary to form a predetermined vacuum environment shortens, and the optical system is protected from contaminations during exposure.
However, Japanese Patent No. 2,691,865 arranges a light-transmitting thin film window between the accommodating parts, and causes the decreases of the light intensity and throughput because the thin film window absorbs the exposure light. An exposure apparatus of Japanese Patent Application, Publication No. 2003-332214 discloses a pressure difference formed between the accommodating parts. However, it requires to control an interval between a connecting part that partitions two accommodating parts and the object to 20 μm or less for a desired pressure difference, and the control over the pressure difference is difficult. Moreover, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-332214 sets a vacuum level of the accommodating part for the optical system to 1×10−5 Pa or less (paragraph number 0019) and a vacuum level of the accommodating part for the object and mask to 1×10−4 Pa or more (paragraph number 0020) in one example of the pressure difference. However, the inventors have discovered that this pressure condition is insufficient to improve both the resolution and productivity.
In other words, when carbon molecules such as hydrocarbon, remain on an exposure optical path, the carbon adheres to a surface of the optical element due to the irradiated light, and absorbs the EUV light, causing decreased reflectivity. Such carbon originates in an escape gas from a driving mechanism that drives the object and the mask. The prior art does not propose any pressure controls to prevent the carbon adhesion.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A variable capacity wobbling swash plate type compressing apparatus is provided with a housing (10), and a cylinder block (12) arranged in the housing; the cylinder block being provided with cylinder bores arranged radially with respect to the central axis of the housing and equidistantly to one another; the cylinder bores receiving therein pistons (16) to be slidable therein. A drive shaft (20) is arranged in a crank chamber (18) so as to extend along the central axis of the housing, and supports thereon a swash plate (40, 44) capable of wobbling about an axis perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the drive shaft, and shoes (22) are arranged between the swash plate and the pistons for converting a rotation of the swash plate into reciprocation of the respective pistons. A rotary drive member (50) is fixedly mounted on the drive shaft to support thereon a bearing element (52b) for transmitting a rotation of the rotary drive member to the swash plate; the bearing element being provided with a connecting pin element (52c) extending from the swash plate and slidably engaged with the bearing element. The shoes and the bearing element are arranged in substantial alignment with center lines (CL) of the respective pistons, and this arrangement is unchanged even when an angle of inclination of the swash plate is changed so as to vary the compression capacity of the pistons.

Japanese Unexamined (Kokai) Patent Publication No. 60-175783 and Japanese Unexamined (Kokai) Utility Model Publication No. 62-183082 disclose a typical wobble plate type variable capacity compressing apparatus. The disclosed apparatus is provided with a housing, a cylinder block housed in the housing and a drive shaft arranged so as to axially extend along the longitudinal axis of the housing. The cylinder block has a plurality of cylinder bores that are arranged radially with respect to the axis of the drive shaft and equidistantly to one another. Each of the cylinder bores is communicated with suction and discharge chambers, respectively, via respective reed valves. The suction and discharge chambers of the compressor communicate with a condenser and an evaporator of an air-conditioner of an automobile, respectively.
Each of the cylinder bores receives a piston to be reciprocated therein, and during the suction stroke of the piston, a refrigerant gas sent from the condenser to the suction chamber enters the cylinder bores via the reed valves. The refrigerant gas is subsequently compressed in the cylinder bores during the compressing stroke of the pistons, and the compressed refrigerant is discharged toward the discharge chamber via the reed valves. The compressed refrigerant is then delivered from the discharge chamber of the compressor to the evaporator of the air-conditioning system.
In order to reciprocate the pistons in the cylinder bores, a swash plate is arranged, in a crank chamber of the housing so as, to be slidably engaged with the pistons. Namely, the swash plate is engaged with pistons in a manner such that the rotation of the swash plate causes reciprocation of the pistons. The swash plate is supported and slidable with respect to the drive shaft, and can wobble about an axis perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft. Further, the angle of inclination of the swash plate can be adjustably changed to control the stroke of the pistons, i.e., the compression capacity of the compressor.
The swash plate is connected to a rotary drive member fixed to the drive shaft via a hinge means to thereby obtain a drive force from the drive shaft, and the hinge means includes a connecting pin element supported by the swash plate. The connecting pin element is engaged in an elongated arcuate hole formed in the rotary drive element. The connecting pin element of the hinge means is moved in the arcuate hole when the angle of inclination of the swash plate is adjusted, and acts as a fulcrum about which the swash plate is moved to change the angle of inclination thereof.
The adjustment of the angle of inclination of the swash plate is performed by changing the pressure level of the refrigerant gas prevailing in the crank chamber, which is in fluid communication with the suction chamber and/or the discharge chamber via an appropriate control valve. Namely, when the pressure level in the crank chamber is lowered by the control valve, pressure acting on the back of each piston is lowered to increase the angle of inclination of the swash plate to thereby expand the stroke of each piston. As a result, the compression capacity of the compressor increases.
On the contrary, when the pressure level within the crank chamber is increased by the control valve, the pressure acting on the back of each piston is accordingly increased to reduce the piston stroke thereby decreasing the angle of inclination of the swash plate. Thus, the compression capacity of the compressor becomes small.
As described above, when the swash plate is moved so as to change the angle of inclination thereof, the movement of the swash plate is conducted with respect to the fulcrum provided by the connecting pin element of the hinge means, and the fulcrum per se moves in response to a change in the angle of inclination of the swash plate. More specifically, in the conventional variable capacity wobbling swash plate type compressor, when the swash plate is moved to the largest inclination angle position thereof, i.e., when the stroke of the pistons is fully extended a specific point of action, where a reaction force due to compression of the refrigerant gas is given by the piston to the swash plate, and the position of the connecting pin element (i.e., the fulcrum of the movement of the swash plate) are in alignment with the center axis of one of the pistons.
Nevertheless, when the angle of inclination of the swash plate is reduced, the connecting pin element is shifted from the aligned position to a position below the above-mentioned specific point of action, and therefore, the reaction force due to the compression of the refrigerant gas produces a rotary moment acting on the swash plate so as to rotate it about the connecting pin element. Namely, the above-mentioned rotary moment provides the swash plate with a further reduction in the angle of inclination thereof, and accordingly, a response to the control operation of the control valve for reducing the angle of inclination of the swash plate to thereby reduce the compression capacity becomes extra-sensitive.
On the contrary, when the control operation is carried out to increase the angle of inclination of the swash plate from the smallest inclination angle position so as to obtain a large compression capacity, a response to the control operation is not sensitive.
Further, in the above-mentioned conventional variable capacity wobbling swash plate type compressor, with the afore-mentioned elongated arcuate hole of the rotary drive element for receiving the connecting pin element it is very difficult to obtain an accurate formation thereof by machining. If an accurate formation of the arcuate hole fails, a change in the top clearance of respective pistons occurs, thereby lowering the compression efficiency. Moreover, an inaccurate formation of the elongated arcuate hole will result in the production of noise during operation of the compressor.

Variable capacity wobbling swash plate type compressing apparatus

Kabushiki Kaisha Toyoda Jidoshokki Seisakusho


Provided is a liquid ejection head having a structure in which an organic resinous member is formed in contact with a substrate. The substrate includes heat generators for generating heat energy used to eject ink, when being energized, and a metallic line portion for energizing the heat generators. The organic resinous member is provided with ejection openings corresponding to the heat generators. In the liquid ejection head, the substrate and the organic resinous member have an improved adhesion therebetween, and are prevented from being separated from each other. To improve the adhesion, the metallic line portion is cut so that no line portion exists under an end part of the organic resinous member (nozzle formation member). Then, two members of the line portion thus cut are connected to each other through a roundabout line formed under an insulating layer which has a good adhesion to the organic resin.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid ejection head that employs a scheme in which liquid is ejected by using thermal energy.
2. Description of the Related Art
Through similar processes to that for semiconductor manufacturing, a substrate for a liquid ejection head is manufactured by forming, on the same substrate, multiple heaters for heating liquid to generate bubbles when being energized, lines for providing electrical connection to the heaters, and the like. Then, a liquid ejection head is constructed in a way that a member (nozzle formation member) forming ejection openings and walls for liquid passages is provided on the substrate. Here, the ejection openings are provided corresponding to the heaters and are used to eject ink therefrom. Meanwhile, the liquid passages are formed to communicate with the corresponding ejection openings, respectively.
One method of manufacturing the liquid ejection head (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H6-286149 (1994) includes the following steps:                (1) forming a pattern to form the liquid passages on the substrate with a dissolvable resin;        (2) applying a coating resin containing an epoxy resin being solid at ordinary temperature;        (3) forming openings to be the ejection openings in the coated resin; and        (4) dissolving the dissolvable resin layer.
Further, there has been proposed a liquid ejection head and a method of manufacturing a liquid ejection head in which a layer made of a polyetheramide resin (called an adhesion improvement layer below) is interposed between the substrate and the nozzle formation member in order to improve the adhesion between them (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H11-348290 (1999)).
As even higher printing fineness and higher printing speed are demanded of the liquid ejection head, an increased number of heaters are required to be implemented on the substrate. This largely increases the number of lines used for energizing the heaters. As a result, depending on the locations of the heaters, the lines extending from electrode terminals of the substrate to the heaters vary in length, and accordingly greatly vary in resistance value. A possible way of evening the resistance values of the respective lines is to determine a width of each of the lines according to the distance from the electrode terminal. In this case, however, the lines for heaters existing farther from the electrode terminals have larger widths, and therefore the substrate increases in size.
To suppress the increase in the substrate size, a configuration has been proposed in which a low-resistance line common to all the heaters is formed of a thick film on the substrate surface and in which an individual line is formed from the common line to each of the heaters (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-153499).
To further reduce the line resistance value, the following technique has been proposed. Specifically, the common line and the electrode portions are simultaneously formed as a gold (Au) layer by plating (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-199701). Gold has excellent properties as a line material because of its low electric resistance, high chemical stability, high electromigration characteristics, and the like. Particularly, gold is excellent as a line material of a substrate for a liquid ejection head because the lines ordinarily exist very close to the ink and are used to energize the heaters to raise their temperature instantly.
However, the present inventors have discovered that the following technical problems needing resolution arise if the configuration using a common line as described above, especially using gold as the common line, is applied to the liquid ejection head described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H6-286149 (1994) or No. H11-348290 (1999).
In the configuration of the liquid ejection head described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H6-286149 (1994) or No. H11-348290 (1999), metal surfaces of the lines and the like existing on the substrate adhere to an organic resin constructing the nozzle formation member or the adhesion improvement layer. This adhesion is thought to be brought by a physical anchor effect of the organic resin entering the dips in the metal surfaces, and also by chemical bond, hydrogen bond, or the like through the OH groups existing on the metal surfaces.
However, being a stable noble metal, gold has a few OH groups on its surface, and therefore has poor bonding power with an organic resin. In addition, on a liquid ejection head substrate, the organic resin film swells because ink constantly exists near the ejection openings. Particularly, in a liquid ejection head substrate with heaters, heat generated by the heaters causes the organic resin and the substrate to expand to different degrees. As a result, the liquid ejection head substrate with heaters undergoes internal stress caused by the difference in thermal expansion between the substrate and the organic resin, in addition to the swelling of the organic resin film. This stress could possibly cause separation of the nozzle formation member from the Au layer, originating from and around parts having poor adhesion with the organic resin.
Such separation causes electrolytic ink to invade into an interface between the organic resin layer and the gold (Au) lines. Then, such ink invasion causes the electrolysis of Au and the deformation of the nozzle formation member. As a result, sufficient reliability might not be obtained.
The problems given above are especially noticeable when gold is used as the lines, but are also concerned more or less when a metal other than gold is used.


An automatic control system is provided for acid concentration in an aluminum strip cleaning line wherein an aluminum strip is contacted with an acid solution while passing through an acid cleaning bath and the concentration of the acid in the bath is adjusted by adding either concentrated acid or water to the bath. A conductivity probe is provided in the acid bath and generates a first signal approximately proportional to the free acid concentration of the bath. An on-line process titrator periodically samples the acid bath and by a dual endpoint titration obtains the free acid concentration and total acid concentration of the bath and thereby generates a second signal indicative of the actual free acid concentration and the total acid concentration. These first and second signals are fed to a programmable logic controller, which based on the signal from the titrator calculates a correction factor for the signal from the conductivity probe to thereby obtain a corrected value for free acid concentration. The bath acid concentration is then adjusted as required based on the corrected specific conductivity value. The above procedure may also be used in the cleaning of an aluminum strip with an alkali solution.

This invention relates a method of automatically controlling chemical concentration in a metal strip cleaning line, particularly an aluminum strip cleaning line.
In the processing of aluminum strip, e.g. for use in automotive production, it is necessary to clean the surfaces of the strip material. One way of doing this is by passing the strip material on a continuous basis through a cleaning line which includes an acid wash section or sections(s), followed by a rinse section or sections. In each section acid solution or rinse water respectively is sprayed via nozzles onto the top and bottom faces of the strip passing through the line. The sprayed liquid is collected in tanks at the bottom of the enclosure from where it is re-circulated by pumps back through the nozzles.
In this procedure it is important to control the free acid strength in the wash section(s), and this is typically done by providing a conductivity probe immersed in the fluid in the bath. A specific conductivity signal which varies approximately in proportion to the free acid concentration of the solution is typically provided by the conductivity probe and this is used to adjust the acid concentration. However, use of the specific conductivity signal to estimate the free acid concentration is prone to offset errors due to impurities, and temperature fluctuations in the bath which increase or decrease the actual specific conductivity of the cleaning solution independently of free acid concentration, and errors due to drift of the conductivity probe itself caused by build up on the electrode.
Because of this unreliability, it is the usual practice to periodically perform manual titrations to verify that the concentration is still within limits. If a discrepancy is found, options are manual recalibration of the probe or manual adjustment of the bath using trial and error methods. This requires skilled technicians and/or operators, is labour intensive and is subject to operator errors in the calibration and correction. It has been found that the bath concentration can experience considerable drift from target before a correction is made, resulting in product which is improperly processed.
In making the above corrections, the objective is to control the free acid concentration (FAC) in the bath, which is the acid available for reaction with the aluminum surface as opposed to the total acid concentration (TAC). The total acid concentration comprises the free acid concentration plus soluable reaction products. Control of the free acid concentration is done by estimating the free acid concentration and adding fresh concentrated acid from a storage tank or water depending on whether the free acid is too low or too high.
Japanese Patent Publication JP 7-54175, published Feb. 28, 1995 describes a method of controlling acid concentration in a steel pickling line by monitoring weight loss. However, it is not concerned with the problems related to a cleaning line and the importance of the correctness of the free acid concentration.
It is also known to clean metal strips by passing the strip through a cleaning line where an alkali solution is used rather than an acid solution. An example of this can be found in Japanese Patent Publication JP 11-269,678, published Oct. 5, 1999, where an alkali solution was used to degrease and clean cold-rolled steel strips. When cleaning with alkali solution, the same problems in controlling concentration are encountered as described above for acid cleaning solutions.
It is the object of the present invention an automated and more accurate method of controlling the chemical concentration in a metal strip cleaning line.
One embodiment of this invention relates to a method for automatically controlling acid concentration in an aluminum strip cleaning line in which an aluminum strip is contacted with an acid solution while passing through a cleaning bath and the concentration of the acid in the bath is adjusted by adding either concentrated acid or water to the bath. A conductivity probe is provided in the acid cleaning bath and this probe generates a first signal approximately proportional to the free acid concentration of the bath. An on-line process titrator is also provided to periodically sample the acid bath and by a dual endpoint titration, obtain the free acid and total acid concentration of the bath. The on-line titrator generates a second signal indicative of the actual free acid concentration and the total acid concentration. The above signals are fed to a programmable logic controller (PLC) which, based on the signal from the titrator, calculates a correction factor for the signal from the conductivity probe to thereby obtain a corrected specific conductivity value proportional to the free acid concentration. Based on this corrected value, the bath acid concentration is automatically and continuously adjusted as required based on the corrected specific conductivity value. The acid used for this purpose is typically sulfuric acid. The difference between the total and free acid concentration is indicative of the level of bath contaminants and can therefore be used to adjust the amount of metered overflow from the wash section.
The conductivity probe measures the ability of a solution to conduct an electric current between two electrodes. An increase in concentration of ions in the solution results in higher conductivity values. Conduction is measured in Siemens (formerly known as mho) and the conductivity probe can also be used to find the concentration of total dissolved solids in a sample of water.
A new titration is conducted automatically at timed intervals or when requested by the PLC and the value of the specific conductivity at the time of the titrator sample being drawn is stored in the PLC memory. The titration timer is reset to zero after each successfully completed titration.
The titrator free acid titration % input validation is accomplished as follows. If the difference between the new value of free acid and the recorded value of free acid is more than x percent of the current value, the current value is retained and a new titration is requested by the PLC. A warning signal is sent to the operator station advising xe2x80x9cAcid Concentration out of Rangexe2x80x94Rechecking Concentrationxe2x80x9d. This is to ensure that any large discrepancies are not due to a titration error or anomaly. The value of the next titration is accepted by the PLC and replaces the current value.
Immediately upon receiving a valid reading of free acid from the titrator input, a Conductivity Correction Factor is calculated and stored in the PLC. The calculation is as follows:
Conductivity Correction Factor=Free acid Titration % xe2x88x92{Specific conductivity (xcexcSiemens/cm)*Concentration Factor (1/xcexcSiemens/cm)}
The Concentration Factor is the conversion factor for specific conductivity to Free Acid % with units 1/xcexcSiemens/cm which is determined once for each type of cleaning solution by an off-line calibration. The true acid concentration based on the output of the conductivity meter is determined in the PLC by the following algorithm:
xe2x80x83Conductivity Corrected Free Acid Concentration %={Specific Conductivity (xcexcSiemens/cm)*Concentration Factor (1/xcexcSiemens/cm)}+Conductivity Correction Factor
A value indicative of the level of bath contamination is also calculated in the PLC as follows:
Contaminant Level=Total acid Titration %xe2x88x92Free acid Titration %
The acid cleaning bath is typically followed by one or more rinsing sections where the acid cleaned strip is thoroughly rinsed. The cleaning and rinsing liquids are preferably sprayed on the strip material by means of a plurality of spray nozzles above and below the strip. These are connected to pumps to simultaneously spray the top and bottom faces of the moving strip. The cleaning and rinsing liquids flow back down into a reservoir in each section to be re-circulated through the nozzles.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the acid cleaning bath in the above description may be replaced by an alkali cleaning bath. The same procedures as described above are then used to control the alkali concentration in the cleaning bath.
The method of this invention has the important advantage of requiring no skilled technicians or operators and allowing more precise control of the process by semi-continuously compensating for measurement errors.

Method of controlling solution concentration in strip cleaning line


An electrical connector for electrically connecting an integrated circuit package to a circuit substrate includes a first and a second unit sections, and each unit section has a number of terminals received therein. Each unit section includes a mating surface, an opposed mounting surface, a fixing edge, and an engaging edge. The engaging edge of the first unit section has a protruding tongue, and the engaging edge of the second unit section defines a recessed portion for engaging the protruding tongue. An interlocking device is formed between the protruding tongue and the recessed portion, so that the protruding tongue is capable of overlapping and combined with the recessed portion via the interlocking device to make the first and the second unit sections become a unitary structure.

1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to the art of electrical connectors. Specifically, the present invention provides an electrical connector configured by unit sections that are interconnected with each other by interlocking devices.
2. Background of the Invention
Generally, a conventional connector to which the present invention is related is interposed between a first and a second electronic parts or components having contact pads, respectively, to achieve electrical connection between the first and the second electronic components. In the following description, the first and the second electronic parts or components are a printed circuit board and a Large Scale Integrated circuit (LSI), respectively. The connector comprises an insulator provided with a plurality of contact receptacle holes penetrating the insulator in a thickness direction, and a plurality of elastic contacts and inserted into and held in the contact receptacle holes, respectively.
However, in the conventional electrical connectors, housings are usually molded by an injected art.
As a result, when the connector is formed, contacts are inserted in passageways defined on the housing of the electrical connector. In addition, when an industry trend is to obtain highest quantity of contacts on the electrical connector, the housing of the electrical connector needs receive more terminals therein for getting a better electrical connection and transmitting more signals, so much passageways are formed on the housing, correspondingly that leads the housing difficultly to mold, such as insulative material can not fill fully of moulds.
Heretofore, various electrical connectors have been developed for interconnecting IC package to the Printed Circuit Board (PCB). However, previous attempts in forming higher density electrical connector met much difficulties resulted from uneven distribution of material flow and shrinkages, problems that were magnified as the housing/array of the contacts became larger.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,679,707 issued to Brodsky on Jan. 20, 2004 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,881,073 issued to Glen Ellyn both disclose a modular electrical connector formed from several smaller sections, each including interconnecting edges for joining with another the sections together. Configuring the electrical connector by interconnecting the smaller sections together, the electrical connector having maximum quantity of contacts can be easily provided. The electrical connector disclosed by Brodsky or Glen Ellyn is a good concept but not a most suitable way. Moreover, the electrical connector also needs a frame for fixing the sections to be a unitary structure, thus it is more complicated to manufacture the electrical connector.
In view of the above, it is strongly desired to provide an improved electrical connector to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantage.

Electrical connector configured by unit section


A dispensing device having a polymer which is combined with a therapeutic agent in the form of a microparticle or nanoparticle which is “hyper-compressed” to form a controlled release dispensing device and methods of locally administering a therapeutic agent using said microparticles.

One of the major issues involving treatment involves the toxicity and/or adverse effects of pharmaceuticals that complicate the treatment of various conditions. Systemically administered medications tend to have effects that are undesirable when the therapeutic objective of the treatment is considered. If a pathology affects only a particular part or organ in the body, it is desirable to only administer treatment to that particular part or organ. In the prior art it has been known to provide localized radiation treatment by implanting radioactive pharmaceuticals in an organ that is to be treated so that radiation will be substantially confined to that organ. Most other implants have been intended to provide a systemic effect.
Two sustained delivery systems in the form of ophthalmic inserts that have been developed for commercial use are the Ocusert system (Akorn) and Lacrisert® (Aton). The Ocusert device is designed to provide for the release of medication at predetermined and predictable rates, which permits the elimination of frequent dosing by the patient, ensures nighttime medication, and provides a better means of patient compliance. The insert is elliptical with dimensions of 13.4 by 4.7 mm and 0.3 mm in thickness. The insert is flexible and is a multilayered structure consisting of a drug-containing core surrounded on each side by a layer of copolymer membranes through which the drug diffuses at a constant rate. The rate of drug diffusion is controlled by the polymer composition, the membrane thickness, and the solubility of the drug. The devices are sterile and do not contain preservatives. Ocusert inserts containing pilocarpine have been used in glaucoma therapy. After placement in the conjunctival fornix, the inserts are designed to release medication at the desired rates over a 7-day period at which time they are removed and replaced with new ones.
The Lacrisert® insert is a sterile, translucent, rod-shaped, water-soluble form of hydroxypropyl cellulose. The product is inserted into the inferior cul-de-sac of the eye of patients with dry eye states. The insert acts to stabilize and thicken the precorneal tear film and to delay its breakup. Inserts are typically placed in the eye once or twice daily. Following administration, the inserts soften and slowly dissolve.
The following U.S. patents disclose various ocular inserts for medicinal therapy. U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,013 to J. V. Bondi, et al., assigned to Merck & Company, Inc., discloses ocular inserts with or without pharmaceutically active agents, comprising 75% to 100% of a matrix of 15% polyvinyl alcohol, 10% glycerine, 75% hydroxy propyl methylcellulose phthalate, and 0-25% of a pharmacologically active agent. U.S. Pat. No. 5,637,085 describes the making of an implantable wafer for the treatment of solid cancer tumors.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,522,829 to Andreas Fuchs, et al., (Merck GmbH), discloses an intraocular pressure-lowering film insert of a 1-(p-2-iso-propoxyethoxy methyl-phenoxy)-3-isopropylamino-propan-2-ol or a physiologically acceptable salt thereof and an ophthalmically acceptable carrier.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,964 to Robert M. Gale (Alza Corp.) discloses an ocular insert for treating inflammation made of a pair of micronized steroids consisting of two topically acceptable different chemical therapeutic forms of betamethasone or a derivative, and a bio-erodible polymeric polyorthoester carrier.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,346,709 to Edward E. Schmitt (Alza Corp.) discloses an erodible device for delivering a drug to an environment of use, which includes a poly(orthoester) or a poly(orthocarbonate).
U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,637 to Robert M. Gale, et al., discloses an ocular insert composed of a beta
U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,637 to Robert M. Gale, et al., discloses an ocular insert composed of a beta blocking drug in a polymer with the drug surrounded by the polymer selected from the group consisting of poly(olefin), poly(vinylolefin), poly(haloolefin), poly(styrene), poly(vinyl), poly(acrylate), poly(methacrylate), poly(oxide), poly(ester), poly(amide), and poly(carbonate).
U.S. Pat. No. 4,190,642 (Alza Corp.) discloses an ocular insert composed of a discrete depot of a pilocarpine solute and an epinephrine solute, a film of an ethylene-vinyl ester copolymer forming the insert, where fluid from the environment is imbibed through the wall into the depots to continually dissolve the solutes and release the formulation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,093,709 to Nam S. Choi (Alza Corp.) discloses an ocular insert composed of an orthoester and an orthocarbonate polymer.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,993,071, issued Nov. 23, 1976 to Takeru Higuchi, et al., discloses a bio-erodible ocular insert for the controlled administration of a drug to the eye from 8 hours to 30 days, in which the drug formulation can also be microencapsulated and the microcapsules dispersed in the drug release rate controlling material.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,303 to Takeru Higuchi, et al. (Alza Corp.) discloses an ocular insert for the continuous controlled administration of a drug to the eye composed of a plurality of microcapsule reservoirs comprised of a drug formulation confined within a drug release rate controlling material, distributed throughout a bio-erodible matrix permeable to the passage of the drug at a higher rate than the rate of drug passage through the drug release rate controlling material, where the device is of an initial shape and size that is adapted for insertion and retention in the sac of the eye. The hydrophobic material may be selected from cholesterol, waxes, C.sub.10 to C.sub.20 fatty acids, and polyesters, and the drug may be selected from epinephrine, pilocarpine, hydrocortisone, idoxuridine, tetracycline, polymixin, gentamycin, neomycin, and dexamethasone.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,960,150 to Takeru Higuchi, et al. (Alza Corp.) discloses an ocular insert for the continuous controlled administration of a drug to the eye composed of a body of hydrophobic bio-erodible drug release rate controlling material containing a drug, where the body is of an initial shape adapted for insertion in the sac of the eye, where the drug release rate controlling material can be a polyester, and the drug may be selected from epinephrine, pilocarpine, hydrocortisone, idoxuridine, tetracycline, polymixin,
U.S. Pat. No. 3,811,444, issued May 21, 1974 to Richard W. Baker, et al., assigned to the Alza Corp., discloses an ocular insert for the continuous controlled administration of a drug to the eye comprising a drug formulation dispersed through a body of selected hydrophobic polycarboxylic acid which erodes over time to dispense the desired amount of drug. The polycarboxylic acid can be a copolymer of an acid from the group of maleic acid, acrylic acid, lower alkyl acrylic acids from about 4 to about 6 carbon atoms, with a copolymerizable olefinically unsaturated material selected from the group consisting of ethylene, propylene, butadiene, isoprene and styrene and the lower alkyl vinyl ethers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,200, issued Dec. 28, 1971, to Takeru Higuchi, assigned to the Alza Corporation, discloses a drug-dispensing ocular insert for insertion into the cul-de-sac of the conjunctiva between the sclera of the eyeball and the lid where the inner core contains the drug and is surrounded by a soft hydrophilic outer layer, where the outer layer can be composed of a polymer selected from the group consisting of hydrophilic hydrogel of an ester of acrylic or methacrylic acid, modified collagen, cross-linked hydrophilic polyether gel, cross-linked polyvinyl alcohol, and cross-linked partially hydrolyzed polyvinyl acetate and cellulosic gel. The inner core may be a polymer selected from the group of plasticized or unplasticized polyvinylchloride, plasticized nylon, unplasticized soft nylon, silicone rubber, polyethylene, hydrophilic hydrogel of an ester of acrylic or methacrylic acid, modified collagen, cross-linked hydrophilic polyether gel, cross-linked polyvinyl alcohol, cross-linked partially-hydrolyzed polyvinylacetate, cellulosic gel, ion-exchange resin and plasticized polyethylene terephthalate.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,604 to Richard A. Mess (Alza Corporation) discloses a drug-dispensing ocular insert adapted for insertion into the cul-de-sac of the eye, where the insert is a tablet containing a reservoir of drug formulation within a flexible polymeric material, and the polymeric material is formed of plasticized or unplasticized polyvinylchloride, plasticized nylon, unplasticized soft nylon, plasticized polyethylene terephthalate, silicon rubber, hydrophilic hydrogel of a ester of acrylic or methacrylic acid, modified collagen, cross-linked hydrophilic polyether gel, cross-linked polyvinyl alcohol, and cross-linked partially-hydrolyzed polyvinylacetate.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,993,071; 3,986,510; 3,981,303, 3,960,150, and 3,995,635 to Higuchi, et al., disclose a biodegradable ocular insert made from zinc alginate, poly(lactic acid), poly(vinyl alcohol), poly(anhydrides), and poly(glycolic acid).
A number of patents disclose the use of drug-loaded polyanhydrides (wherein the anhydride is in the backbone of the polymer) as matrix materials for ocular inserts. See, in general, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,270,419; 5,240,963; and 5,137,728. Other U.S. patents that describe the use of polyanhydrides for controlled delivery of substances include: U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,311 to Domb and Langer, entitled "Polyanhydrides with Improved Hydrolytic Degradation Properties," which describes polyanhydrides with a uniform distribution of aliphatic and aromatic residues in the chain, prepared by polymerizing a dicarboxylic acid with an aromatic end and an aliphatic end); U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,176 to Langer, Domb, Laurencin, and Mathiowitz, entitled "Controlled Drug Delivery High Molecular Weight Polyanhydrides," which describes the preparation of high molecular weight polyanhydrides in combination with bioactive compounds for use in controlled delivery devices); and U.S. Pat. No. 4,789,724 to Domb and Langer, entitled "Preparation of Anhydride Copolymers," which describes the preparation of very pure anhydride copolymers of aromatic and aliphatic diacids.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,075,104 discloses an ophthalmic carboxyvinyl polymer gel for the treatment of dry eye syndrome.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,792 discloses an aqueous gel that includes a gel-forming amount of an ethylene-maleic anhydride polymer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,855 discloses the salt of pilocarpine with a polymer containing acid groups for use as an ocular insert, among other things.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,064 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,014,987 disclose the use of poly(carboxylic acids) or their partially esterified derivatives as drug delivery devices. PCT/US90/07652 discloses that biologically active compounds containing a carboxylic acid group can be delivered in the form of an anhydride of a carrier molecule that modifies the properties of the molecule. U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,691 discloses the use of pressure to form drug containing ocular inserts from polymers with pressures up to 12 tons. The insets are made by mixing the drug powder with a polymer prior to compressing the mixture. There is no mention of the application of pressure to microspheres and polymers to form a dispensing device.
Although these patents disclose a number of types of ocular inserts, there is still a need to provide new dosage forms with modified properties for the delivery of local delivery of therapeutic agents. In particular, there is a need to provide a dispensing device that provides for the long acting local delivery of therapeutic agents to the eye and other locations in the body.
The formulations comprise a matrix of a polymer carrier and an active drug where the matrix is made by compression of micro or nano particles of a therapeutic agent in combination with a polymer. The matrix is positioned in or near the location where it will make available the therapeutic agent for treating or preventing pathologic conditions. The preferred polymeric matrix combines the characteristics of stability, strength, flexibility, low melting point, dispersability and suitable degradation profile. The matrix must retain its integrity for a suitable time so that it may be handled and placed in an aqueous environment, such as the eye, pancreas, liver, adrenal gland, colon, without loss of structural integrity. It should also be stable enough to be stored and shipped without loss of structural integrity. The matrix is designed to disintegrate into its constituent particles shortly after it is placed in position to release the therapeutic agent. Gliadel Implant Wafer (Eisai Corp. of N. Amer.) made of carmustine in polifeprosan intracranial implant wafer, is a white, dime-sized wafer made up of a biocompatible polymer that contains the cancer chemotherapeutic drug, carmustine (BCNU). After a neurosurgeon removes a high-grade malignant glioma, up to eight wafers can be implanted in the cavity where the tumor resided. Once implanted, Gliadel slowly dissolves, releasing high concentrations of BCNU into the tumor site. The specificity of Gliadel minimizes drug exposure to other areas of the body. Other recent products based on drug-loaded biodegradeable microspheres have reached the pharmaceutical marketplace. Drugs such as Lupron Depot (Abbott Laboratories), Trelstar Depot (Watson Pharmaceuticals) and Risperdal Consta (Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals) offer injectable parenteral drug delivery in depot formulations (IM or SC). Targeted local therapy include Bausch & Lomb's Retisert® a sterile nonbiodegradable implant that continuously delivers fluocinolone acetonide to the posterior segment of the eye.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,019,400 discloses a process for preparing microspheres using very cold temperatures to freeze polymer-biologically active agent mixtures into polymeric microspheres with very high retention of biological activity and material.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,781 discloses a process for fabricating implantable wafers produced by compression of: (1) polymer matrix fragments containing cryogenically pre-dispersed protein crystal produced by mechanical grinding, or (2) microcapsules produced by cryogenically suspending protein crystals in polymer solutions and coating them with a layer of polymer. The practical result of producing [polymer/protein crystal] fragments by mechanically grinding a cryogenically casted polymer-protein crystal slab is the formation of a highly heterogeneous mixture of polymer fragments, fractured protein crystal and protein crystal (full or partial) entrapped in polymer fragments. The microcapsule formation method described is a process to encapsulate either individual protein crystal or a cluster of protein crystals, which is analogous to coating protein crystals with a layer of polymer, followed by compression. In both cases, drug was not co-dissolved in the polymer solution to formulate microspheres or nanospheres with drugs uniformly dispersed/distributed inside the nano or microsphere matrices.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,462,366 discloses a process for preparing a drug delivery particle including a reservoir region having primarily large pores and a metering region. The particle can be highly spherical.
There remains a significant unmet need for dispensing devices that provide for the local delivery of long acting formulations of therapeutic agents. The applicants have devised formulations which comprise a matrix of a polymer carrier and an active drug where the matrix is made by hyper-compression of micro or nano particles of a therapeutic agent in combination with a polymer via modified high compression machines and/or dies. The matrix is positioned in the body in a location where it will be available for absorption to produce a substantially local effect. The preferred polymeric matrix combines the characteristics of stability, strength, flexibility, low melting point, dispersability and suitable degradation profile. The matrix must retain its integrity for a suitable time so that it may be handled and placed in an aqueous environment without loss of structural integrity. It should also be stable enough to be stored and shipped without loss of structural integrity. The matrix is designed to disintegrate into its constituent particles shortly after it is placed in position to release the therapeutic agent to the area where it will be available for therapeutic purposes.

Controlled release implantable dispensing device and method