Nucleic acid, including DNA, immunization is used to generate a protective immune response in a host, including humans, to a serine-threonine kinase (STK) of a strain of Chlamydia. A non-replicating vector, including a plasmid vector, contains a nucleotide sequence encoding a STK or a fragment of the STK that generates antibodies that specifically react with STK and a promoter sequence operatively coupled to the first nucleotide sequence for expression of the STK in the host. The non-replicating vector may be formulated with a pharmaceutically-acceptable carrier for in vivo administration to the host.

DNA immunization is an approach for generating protective immunity against infectious diseases (ref 1—throughout this application, various references are cited in parentheses to describe more fully the state of the art to which this invention pertains. Full bibliographic information for each citation is found at the end of the specification, immediately preceding the claims. The disclosure of these references are hereby incorporated by reference into the present disclosure). Unlike protein or peptide based subunit vaccines, DNA immunization provides protective immunity through expression of foreign proteins by host cells, thus allowing the presentation of antigen to the immune system in a manner more analogous to that which occurs during infection with viruses or intracellular pathogens (ref 2). Although considerable interest has been generated by this technique, successful immunity has been most consistently induced by DNA immunization for viral diseases (ref. 3). Results have been more variable with non-viral pathogens which may reflect differences in the nature of the pathogens, in the immunizing antigens chosen, and in the routes of immunization (ref. 4). Further development of DNA vaccination will depend on elucidating the underlying immunological mechanisms and broadening its application to other infectious diseases for which existing strategies of vaccine development have failed.
Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen which usually remains localized to mucosal epithelial surfaces of the human host. Chlamydiae are dimorphic bacteria with an extracellular spore-like transmission cell termed the elementary body (EB) and an intracellular replicative cell termed the reticulate body (ref. 5). From a public health perspective, chlamydial infections are of great importance because they are significant causes of infertility, blindness and are a prevalent co-factor facilitating the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (ref. 6). Protective immunity to C. trachomatis is effected through cytokines released by Th1-like CD 4 lymphocyte responses and by local antibody in mucosal secretions and is believed to be primarily directed to the major outer membrane protein (MOMP), which is quantitatively the dominant surface protein on the chlamydial bacterial cell and has a molecular mass of about 40 kDa (ref. 16).
Initial efforts in developing a chlamydial vaccine were based on parenteral immunization with the whole bacterial cell. Although this approach met with success in human trials, it was limited because protection was short-lived, partial and vaccination may exacerbate disease during subsequent infection episodes possibly due to pathological reactions to certain chlamydial antigens (ref. 8). More recent attempts at chlamydial vaccine design have been based on a subunit design using MOMP protein or peptides. These subunit vaccines have also generally failed, perhaps because the immunogens do not induce protective cellular and humoral immune responses recalled by native epitopes on the organism (ref. 9).
In copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/893,381 filed Jul. 11, 1997, assigned to University of Manitoba and the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference (WO 98/02546), I have described the generation of a protective immune response using a DNA sequence which encodes the MOMP of C. trachomatis in a plasmid by DNA immunization.


A glasses box with function of pressable pen is disclosed. A cover is pivotally installed on a cylinder for being turned at any time. A longitudinal slot and a rectangular though hole are installed at one lateral wall of the cylinder. Thereby, an elastic pressable piece 3 is engaged to the upper end of the filler. The filler is vertically passed through the cylinder so that two sides of the pressable piece are engaged into the trench. A stop and a stopper at the surface of the pressable piece is capable of being engaged to the rectangular though hole. The filler is telescopic at the lower end of the cylinder so that the glasses box with function of pressable pen is achieved.

The present invention relates to a glasses box with function of pressable pen, and especially for a glass box for receiving glasses and having a function of writing. The box has a long tube shape and has a structure of a pressable piece so as to have functions of storing a paif of glasses and writing.
The prior presbyopic glasses is often used as in reading or writing. In general, it is made as a very compact structure, even the glasses frame is designed with a width of only 14 mm (referring to FIG. 1) so that it can be used conveniently. Since the presbyopic glasses has a very compact size and thus the glasses box has a smaller size than the prior art ones. However, in general, the presbyopic glasses are used in reading, and thus it is often that the reader is also necessary to write. If now the user needs to search for a pen for writing, it becomes very inconveniently. Therefore, there is an eager demand for a novel design which has function of glasses box and pen.
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a glasses box with function of pressable pen. A compact glass box is made like a pen tube. The tube is formed with slots and other required structure. The filler of the pen is telescopic at the lower end of the cylinder so that the glasses box with function of pressable pen is achieved, which can be carried easily.
The various objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawing.

Glasses box with function of pressable pen

No. 9, Alley 11, Lane 327, Chung Shan Rd., Sec. 2


A system and method for object-oriented marking and assignment of information to selected technological components. For optimized support, particularly during maintenance of automation systems, a system is proposed for object-oriented marking and assignment of information to selected technological components for situation-based support of the interaction between a user and a technical device, particularly for technical and industrial application. The system includes storage means (1) for storing documentation data (I1 . . . In) and recording means (2) for recording real information (R), access means (D) for accessing the documentation data, evaluation means (A) for evaluating the real information and selecting the stored documentation data as a function of the real information, means for virtual marking of a technological component, and means for displaying additional information related to the technological component that is selected by the virtual marking.

The invention relates to a system and method for object-oriented marking and assignment of information to selected technological components.
Such a system and method are used, for instance, in the field of automation technology, production and machine tools, diagnostic/service support systems, and complex components, equipment and systems, such as, for instance, vehicles and industrial machinery and plants.
In the technical article by Daude, R. et al.: "Head-Mounted Display als facharbeiterorientierte Unterstützungskomponente an CNC-Werkzeugrnaschinen" [Head-Mounted Display as a Skilled Worker Support Component on CNC Machine Tools], Werkstattstechnik, DE, Springer Verlag, Berlin, Vol. 86, No. 5, May 1, 1996, pp. 248–252, XP000585192 ISSN:0340-4544, head-mounted display (HMD) denotes a component for supporting the skilled worker in the setup, startup, and fault management of milling machines. The Daude paper discusses the technical interface of the HMD to a modern NC unit and cites the results of a laboratory test utilizing the HMD.
The technical article by Kuzuoka, H.: "Spatial Workspace Collaboration: A Sharedview Video Support System for Remote Collaboration Capability," Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, US, Reading, Addison Wesley, May 3, 1992, pp. 533–540, XP000426833 discloses a system for supporting a skilled worker in a spatially extended workplace. With a head-mounted display (HMD) and a camera fixed to the head of the skilled worker, the worker and a remote expert receive identical image information. The expert provides support to the worker based on this image information.
The technical article by Stoker, C. et al.: "Antarctic Undersea Exploration using a Robotic Submarine with a Telepresence User Interface," IEEE Expert, US, IEEE, Inc. New York, Vol. 10, No. 6, Dec. 1, 1995, pp. 14–23, XP000539881 ISSN:0885-9000, describes a virtual reality system for controlling a very remote underwater robot. The user of this system, via a head-mounted display, sees computer-generated graphics that are based on the picture data taken by a camera installed on the robot. The user can control the alignment of the camera through head movements.

System and method for object-oriented marking and associating information with selected technological components


A glass substrate for plasma display panel, which has a spectral transmittance of at least 87% in the range of from 400 nm to 700 nm at a thickness in the range of from 1.5 to 3.5 mm.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a glass substrate for plasma display panel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heretofore, a plate-like glass formed by float process, having a thickness of from 1.5 to 3.5 mm, particularly soda lime glass, has been used as a glass substrate for plasma display panel. The glass formed by float process is suitable for mass production, and has an excellent smoothness. Thus, in these respects, it is suitable as a glass substrate for plasma-display panel.
However, this glass has inherent coloring. That is, it has an absorption in a visible ray wavelength range, which becomes a bar to improvement of contrast and luminance of image display.
Particularly, soda lime silica glass formed by float process has an absorption peak at a near infrared ray wavelength in the vicinity of 1,000 nm, and the absorption peak is extended to the visible ray wavelength range. Therefore, this glass is colored in a range of from green to blue.

Glass substrate for plasma display panel


To provide a muscle strength increasing device for a pressure muscle training method that can easily be tied around a region to be compressed.

The present inventor has conducted studies for some time in order to work out a muscle training method for easy, safe, and effective muscle development, and put together the accomplishments into a patent application having Japanese Patent Application No. 5-313949, which has been granted as Japanese Patent No. 2670421.
The muscle training method according to the subject patent, which involves the application of pressure, is a distinctive non-conventional one called a "Pressure Muscle Training Method". This muscle training method is based on the following theoretical concept.
Muscles are composed of slow-twitch muscle fibers and fast-twitch muscle fibers. Slow-twitch muscle fibers are limited in their potential for growth. Accordingly, it is necessary to recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers of the slow- and fast-twitch muscle fibers in order to develop muscles. Recruitment of fast-twitch muscle fibers causes lactic acid buildup in the muscles, which triggers secretion of growth hormone from the pituitary. The growth hormone has effects of, for example, promoting muscle growth and shedding body fat. This means that recruitment of fast-twitch muscle fibers results in development of fast-twitch muscle fibers and, in turn, the entire muscles.
Slow-twitch muscle fibers and fast-twitch muscle fibers are different from each other in terms of the following. Slow-twitch muscle fibers use oxygen for energy and are recruited for low-intensity activities. Fast-twitch muscle fibers provide for activities regardless of whether or not oxygen is present. They are recruited after the slow-twitch muscle fibers for highly intense, activities. Therefore, it is necessary to cause the earlier activated slow-twitch muscle fibers to be exhausted soon in order to recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers.
Conventional muscle strength increasing methods use heavy exercises with, for example, a barbell to cause the slow-twitch muscle fibers to be exhausted first, and then to recruit the fast-twitch muscle fibers. This recruitment of the fast-twitch muscle fibers requires a significant amount of exercises, is time-consuming, and tends to increase the burden on muscles and joints.
Conventional muscle training methods use exercises with, for example, a barbell to cause the slow-twitch muscle fibers to be exhausted first, and then to recruit the fast-twitch muscle fibers. This requires a significant amount of exercises, is time-consuming, and tends to increase the burden on muscles and joints.
On the other hand, when a predetermined range of muscles is pressurized to restrict the blood flow therethrough before muscle exercises, less oxygen is supplied to these muscles. The slow-twitch muscle fibers, which require oxygen for energy, are thus exhausted in a short period of time. Muscle exercises with blood-flow restriction by application of pressure will result in recruitment of the fast-twitch muscle fibers without needing a large amount of exercises.
In addition, restriction of the blood flow by application of pressure makes the lactic acid built up in the muscles less likely to be removed from the muscles. Thus, the muscle lactic acid level is more likely to rise and a much larger amount of growth hormone is secreted, as compared with the case where the blood flow is unrestricted.
Based on this theoretical concept, restriction of the muscle blood flow can provide significant development of the muscles.
The pressure muscle training method according to the aforementioned patent is premised on the theoretical concept of muscle strength increase by the restriction of blood flow. More specifically, a compression force for the blood flow restriction is applied to a range near the muscles that you want to develop and closer to the heart, i.e., a proximal region near those muscles. The compression force is controlled to put an appropriate stress attributed to blood flow decrease on the muscles, thereby causing muscle fatigue. Thus, effective muscle development is achieved.
This muscle training method features in muscle development without any exercises because it involves developing muscles by putting a stress attributed to blood flow decrease on the muscles. In other words, this muscle training method provides significant effects when applied to training for old people who do not exercises or rehabilitation for injuries, for example.
In addition, this muscle training method can compensate for a total amount of stress that is placed on the muscles by putting a stress attributed to blood flow decrease on the muscles. When combined with some exercises, the method advantageously reduces an exercise-related stress as compared with conventional methods. This advantage brings about some effects : the possibility of incurring damages to the joints or muscles can be reduced and the period of training can be reduced, as a result of decrease in amount of muscle exercises.
The present inventor invented a tight fitting band that restricts the blood flow using a compression force produced by a belt, which is disclosed in the aforementioned Japanese Patent Application No. 5-313949, as an implement that can put a stress on muscles by restricting the blood flow through the muscles, thereby achieving muscle development. The tight fitting band is for compressing a predetermined region to be compressed that is defined on at least one of the limbs of a wearer to restrict the blood flow through the limb while the tight fitting band is wrapped around the region to be compressed, to achieve muscle development.
However, such a tight fitting band also has a challenge to be solved.
That is, the aforementioned tight fitting band is wrapped twice around the region to be compressed during use. When a wearer tries to wrap the belt around the region to be compressed again after wrapping it once, the belt slips over the region to be compressed and turned around. To tie the belt around the region to be compressed is sometimes not so easy when being done without someone's help.
In particular, the pressure muscle training method is also suitable for those having some abnormalities of motor ability If the tight fitting band has a problem of not being able to be tied easily without someone's help around the region to be compressed, this may result in preventing widespread use of the pressure muscle training method.
The present invention is directed to provide a muscle strength increasing device that can be easily tied around the region to be compressed without someone's help.

Abstract: A muscle strength increasing device has a main belt 10 and a tie-down belt 20. A ring 11A and a loop-shaped belt 12A are fastened to the one end and the other end, respectively, of the main belt 10. The main belt 10 and the tie-down belt 20 are provided with two-dimensional fasteners 16, 21 for fastening. In order to tie the muscle strength increasing device around the region to be compressed, the region to be compressed is first passed through a loop of the main belt 10 that is formed by passing one end of the main belt 10 through the belt 12A. Then, the end of the tie-down belt 20 is passed through the ring 11A and turned right back. Thereafter, the tie-down belt 20 is pulled and the tie-down belt 20 is fastened to the main belt 10.


A scroll compressor includes a fixed scroll compressor body and a moveable scroll compressor body that are arranged for relative orbital movement relative to one another to facilitate compression of refrigerant. The scroll compressor includes a key coupling acting upon the moveable scroll compressor body. The key coupling includes a ring body with a plurality of keys, with key contact surfaces, each of the keys projecting axially from the ring body. The key coupling includes four keys in separate quadrants defined by perpendicular lateral axes. The key coupling guides orbital movement of the moveable scroll compressor body along a linear translational path along a lateral axis.

A scroll compressor is a certain type of compressor that is used to compress refrigerant for such applications as refrigeration, air conditioning, industrial cooling and freezer applications, and/or other applications where compressed fluid may be used. Such prior scroll compressors are known, for example, as exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 6,398,530 to Hasemann; U.S. Pat. No. 6,814,551, to Kammhoff et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,960,070 to Kammhoff et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,112,046 to Kammhoff et al., all of which are assigned to a Bitzer entity closely related to the present assignee. As the present disclosure pertains to improvements that can be implemented in these or other scroll compressor designs, the entire disclosures of U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,398,530; 7,112,046; 6,814,551; and 6,960,070 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.
As is exemplified by these patents, scroll compressors conventionally include an outer housing having a scroll compressor contained therein. A scroll compressor includes fixed and moveable scroll compressor members. A first compressor member is typically arranged stationary and fixed in the outer housing. A second scroll compressor member is moveable relative to the first scroll compressor member in order to compress refrigerant between respective scroll ribs which rise above the respective bases and engage in one another. Conventionally the moveable scroll compressor member is driven about an orbital path about a central axis for the purposes of compressing refrigerant. An appropriate drive unit, typically an electric motor, is provided usually within the same housing to drive the moveable scroll member.
One of the common approaches for preventing relative rotation or movement between the scroll members as they orbit relative to each other is through the use of what is commonly referred to as an "Oldham coupling". As exemplified by the patents referenced herein, an Oldham coupling typically includes a ring structure that has two sets of keys. One set of keys slides in one linear direction on a surface of the orbiting scroll compressor body while the other set of keys slides at right angles on a fixed surface such as along the fixed scroll compressor body as illustrated but not numbered in the '551 patent (see also the Oldham key coupling at 90 in the '530 patent). For one of the set of keys, the orbiting scroll compressor body will commonly employ two slots spaced 180° apart in separate quadrants defined by the mutually perpendicular axes as for example is illustrated in FIG. 10. Such slots receive the two keys of the Oldham coupling guiding linear translational movement along one lateral axis. As also shown in FIG. 10, the slots are typically provided for through the provision of outwardly projecting ears. The moveable scroll compressor body slots are positioned in substantial spaced relation from the respective axes so as to provide for carrying moment loads necessary to prevent relative angular movement between the moveable and fixed scroll compressor bodies.
Embodiments of the present invention are directed towards improvements over prior Oldham coupling configurations and scroll compressors incorporating the same.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Key coupling and scroll compressor incorporating same


In one embodiment, a multiphase power control system uses two control lines from a PWM section to control the switch controllers of the system. The two control signals contain power control information in addition to timing information. The switch controller uses the two control signals to facilitate enabling and disabling a power switch of the multiphase power control system.

The present invention relates, in general, to electronics, and more particularly, to methods of forming semiconductor devices and structure.
In the past, the electronics industry utilized various methods and structures to produce multi-phase power supply systems. A multi-phase power supply system typically divided a load of the power supply system into several regions. The power supply controller was also divided into a number of phases or channels. In some cases, each channel was assigned to a particular region of the load. A pulse width modulated (PWM) circuit provided a variable duty cycle signal to control the switching for each channel. All of the channels were summed together to generate a single output voltage. In order to regulate the output voltage, each phase generally had several control signals that were used to synchronize the operation of the channels. In some cases, the control signals were analog signals. These signals were routed from the PWM controller through the switch controllers and other regions of the power control system in order to provide the desired control signals. Often the areas through which the signals were routed were noisy and induced noise into the control signals which determinately affected the accuracy of the power supply system.
Another problem was the number of signals that are required. Typically, several control signals were routed from the PWM controller through the switch controllers and other regions of the power control system. Several more drive synchronization signals often ran from each PWM phase through the region. Such a large number of signals were difficult to build and increased the manufacturing costs of the system.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a method of forming a power supply control system that minimizes the number of signal routed within the power supply system.
For simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements in the figures are not necessarily to scale, and the same reference numbers in different figures denote the same elements. Additionally, descriptions and details of well-known steps and elements are omitted for simplicity of the description.

Switch controller for a power control system and method therefor

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC


A print processing method used in a photographic printer which can print images on a negative film which have different aspect ratios. The print processing method comprises the steps of judging the aspect ratio of each of the images printed on photographic paper, and printing cumulative numbers of prints of each aspect ratio onto the photographic paper of a final printing. The number of prints per aspect ratio can be easily known, and the cost of the prints can be calculated more efficiently.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a print processing method and a photographic printer for printing images of different aspect ratios, and also to a print stacking device and a print stacking method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Printer processors are set up at DPE stores, which are so-called mini-labs. An exposure portion, in which images recorded on a negative film are exposed, and a processor portion, in which exposed photographic paper is subject to developing processing, are formed integrally in the printer processor. By simply setting the elongated photographic paper at the printer processor, the photographic paper can be automatically transported to and processed at the exposure portion and the processor portion.
Some printer processors are equipped with a printing function to print the number of prints on the rear surface of a print. The printing function prints the order of prints printed from one roll of negative film on the rear surface of the print. In this way, the total number of prints printed from one roll of negative film can be known by looking at the rear surface of the final print.
At DPE stores, the calculation or verification of the cost of the prints is sometimes effected by using the number printed on the final print of the roll of negative film.
In recent years, the number of customers enjoying variations in photographing size, such as high vision size, cinerama size, panorama size, and the like, has increased. Accordingly, cameras which can photograph images of high vision, cinerama, panorama, and other sizes have been proposed. Such a camera can, on the same photographic film, effect standard photographing and also photograph images such as high vision, cinerama, panorama and other size images which have different aspect ratios, i.e., the ratio of the length of the short side of the image surface to the length of the long side thereof, which is the reference. As shown in FIG. 4A, the images are exposed onto the negative film such that the lengths of the longitudinal directions thereof are constant whereas the lengths of the transverse directions are varied. Namely, standard, high vision, cinerama, and panorama size images are exposed onto the same negative film at different aspect ratios (in FIG. 4A, only three types of print sizes are illustrated).
Further, some printer processors can print portions of the images. In these printer processors, the portions of the images other than those for which printing is desired can be masked, and printing onto photographic paper is effected. In this way, prints of different aspect ratios can be obtained.
When these kinds of images recorded on negative film are printed onto photographic paper at the printer processor, the lengths in the transverse direction of image portions of the photographic paper are uniform. The lengths in the longitudinal direction are varied by changing the projection magnification and the masking of the photographic paper in accordance with the aspect ratio of each image. In this way, the print sizes are changed, and prints of various sizes, such as standard, high vision, cinerama, and panorama, can be obtained.
However, prints of different aspect ratios have different prices. It is therefore difficult to calculate or verify the cost of the prints from simply looking at the total number of prints printed on the rear surface of the final print.
When images recorded on film are printed onto paper and processed at a photographic processing apparatus such as a printer processor, the images are photometrically measured when they are positioned at the exposure position. The exposure conditions are determined based on the photometric values, and the positioned images are printed onto paper at the determined exposure conditions. Further, a cut mark for each print is applied to the paper. A sort mark is applied to the paper for each print corresponding to one order. After the paper on which the prints are printed undergoes developing, fixing, washing, and drying processing, the cut marks are detected, and the paper is cut into prints. The prints are then transported into a print stacking device (sorter). The sort marks are detected at the print stacking device, and each order of prints is stacked in the order in which the prints were transported thereto. After the prints are stacked by the print stacking device, the finish and the like of each print are inspected at an inspection process. Thereafter, the prints are compared with the film, are placed in a DP bag along with the film, and are shipped.
As described above, in recent years, prints having high aspect ratios, such as panorama size prints, have become quite popular. Cameras which exclusively photograph panorama size images, and cameras which can photograph panorama size images by a panorama photograph adaptor or the like being attached thereto are sold. In print processing, the proportion of processed prints having high aspect ratios has increased. Further, aspect ratios of images recorded on a film can be varied at the camera, and printing processing may be requested for a roll of film on which images of different aspect ratios are photographed.
However, the printer processors described above are constructed on the premise that only images of a single aspect ratio are recorded on a roll of film. In the above-mentioned print stacking devices as well, the transported prints are only stacked per order in the order in which the prints are transported to the print stacking device. Therefore, when prints having different aspect ratios are transported to the print stacking device, the prints are stacked such that prints of different aspect ratios are mixed. This results in poor manageability of the prints after they have been stacked. The images cannot be inspected efficiently at the inspection process. Further, it is difficult to compare the images with the film. Moreover, as the prints are not sorted per size, the arrangement thereof is unattractive, which does not give the customer a good impression.

Print processing method, photographic printer, and print stacking device and method


A BOF process in which iron oxide units are added to the melt during the blow characterized in that the oxygen flow is reduced during pellet feeding and is replenished with inert gas so that the total gas flow remains the same as that designed to achieve optimum BOF performance.

This invention relates generally to the basic oxygen process of melting and refining steel, and more specifically to a new mixed gas blowing technique in which iron oxide containing material is added to the melt during the blow.
Mixed gas blowing (oxygen and an inert gas) has been used in the BOF process for various reasons. U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,442, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference, discloses a basic oxygen refining process in which argon is blown into the melt with the oxygen in order to prevent slopping caused by the evolution of carbon monoxide. As discussed in this patent, silicon, manganese, etc. are preferentially oxidized in the initial stage of the blow. After the metallic impurities are oxidized, more oxygen is available for reaction with the carbon in the melt and this results in increased evolution of carbon monoxide. It is at this stage of greater carbon monoxide evolution that slopping is likely to occur. According to U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,442, argon is then blown into the melt with the oxygen until slopping has stopped. In the illustrative examples of the process disclosed in the patent, the initial oxygen flow rate is maintained when injecting the argon.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,514,220 discloses a mixed gas blowing process used to make stainless steel in a top-blown vessel having a hot metal charge that forms the bath. The process involves introducing an inert gas beneath the surface of the charge throughout the blow. After the top blowing has commenced, an inert gas is injected with the oxygen while decreasing its flow rate. The bottom inert gas flow is used to produce stirring of the bath, while the top blown inert gas is used to dilute carbon monoxide formed during decarburization of the melt.
Mixed gas blowing also has been used to minimize oxidation of chromium in the production of stainless steel, to produce low nitrogen steels, and for degassing. In still another process disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,297, a stream of inert gas is used when a carbonaceous fuel is introduced into the furnace with the oxygen. An inert gas is injected between the fuel and the oxygen stream to prevent premature combustion.
There has existed a need for a process that would facilitate the introduction of iron oxide containing material during the blow while maintaining optimum furnace performance. When iron oxide is added to the melt, the evolution of carbon monoxide is increased as the iron oxide is reduced. A conventional practice has been to reduce the oxygen flow when adding iron ore pellets to the melt. This reduction in the flow of oxygen during blowing has several disadvantages. The reduced jet momentum and penetration into the bath generates more iron oxide in the slag in addition to the iron oxides already introduced by the feed material. Also, the reduction of oxygen flow reduces the turbulence of the bath which in turn reduces the rate of melting and reaction of the iron ore or oxides, thereby adversely affecting performance of the BOF.

Basic oxygen process with iron oxide pellet addition


A terminal device password unlocking method includes the following steps: selecting at least one candidate information set from a plurality of candidate information sets which are displayed on a screen and each of which contains a plurality of information units; verifying a password based on all of selected candidate information sets, and confirming success of password verification when: all information units contained in the password are included into the selected candidate information sets, each of selected candidate information sets contains at least one information unit of the password, and the number of the selected candidate information sets is less than that of the information units of the password; unlocking the terminal device when verification of password is successful.

With popularity and development of terminal devices, they have found their application in kinds of aspects of people life such as working and daily life. Users have increased dependency upon these terminal devices. As a result, users get to realize security issues of terminal devices carrying much private user information.
In prior art, there are various unlocking methods for maintaining security of terminal devices including slide unlocking, password unlocking and nine-square stroking and the like. These methods also have kinds of applications. For example, slide unlocking can be used to unlock a locked mobile phone. Password unlocking can be used to get access for the user to specific software or unlock an electronic lock.
These unlocking means improve security of terminal devices. However, the user is required to input password characters sequentially and this causes inconvenience to the user. For instance, for unlocking a cell phone with a nine-square stroking technique, the user is needed to select desired squares based on the number of password characters due to only one digit being contained in a single square. In case the password contains more characters, the user must select corresponding number of squares, thus resulting in cumbersome inputting operation. Therefore, prior art password unlocking methods as described above are not convenient for the user.

Terminal device password unlocking method and device, and terminal device using the same


An emergency lighting fixture combining the functions of an illuminated sign such as an exit sign and an emergency lighting unit integrated into one housing onto which one or more emergency lights can be mounted at predetermined locations of the housing, the combined emergency lighting structure providing both exit location information and ambient emergency lighting in a single cooperatively operating device. The present device replaces bulky prior combinations of discrete exit signs and emergency lighting units which have been assembled together essentially as individual devices without integration into a single housing or without substantial integration of operational features, the housing of the present device being only slightly larger than standard exit signage. The present fixture is preferably formed from light weight materials such as polycarbonate/ABS or sheet metal configured to mount in tension internal weight such as weight due to enlarged battery mass and the like as well as externally mounted emergency lights. Manufacture of the present fixture is improved by the ability to mold major portions of the fixture from suitable polymeric materials, thereby allowing formation of substantial portions of the fixture located internally of the housing integrally with the housing to substantially reduce the number of parts necessary to be assembled together in an assembly situation. Assembly, installation and maintenance of a molded fixture according to the invention is further improved by the ability to snap-fit together all structural elements of the fixture both internally and externally of the housing.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to emergency lighting fixtures including illuminated signs and emergency lighting units and particularly relates to combinations of illuminated exit signs and the like with emergency lighting units to form fixtures having multiple emergency lighting functions in a single device.
2. Background of the Invention
Emergency lighting capability is mandated by building codes throughout most of the world for commercial buildings in particular. The most common type of emergency lighting is the exit sign which is also the most noticed due not only to its ubiquity but also due to the fact that most exit signs are constantly illuminated and are therefore readily seen. Exit signs are typically placed above doorways or in egress paths to indicate in a time of emergency the most efficient manner of exiting a building. Another common form of emergency lighting is generally referred to as an emergency lighting unit and typically operates two spaced lamps which are often referred to as xe2x80x9cfrog eyesxe2x80x9d. Emergency lighting units operate only in the event of emergency and are intended to supply an acceptable degree of ambient illumination under emergency conditions, these conditions usually including loss of normal power. Since emergency conditions requiring the most immediate and effective use of both exit signs and emergency lighting units are normally associated with mains power loss, backup power is necessary for the continued operation of an exit sign and for start-up and continuing operation of an emergency lighting unit. This back-up power is provided by batteries, a typical exit sign having a battery and circuitry capable of switching to DC battery power from AC mains power on loss of AC power to the exit sign. An emergency lighting unit includes a battery and sensing circuitry which initiates operation of the battery on loss of normal building power, the lamps of the emergency lighting unit being then activated to provide emergency lighting. These two forms of emergency lighting, the exit sign and the emergency lighting unit, are placed in a building structure at locations requiring a particular function of each form. Certain situations require the use of both forms of emergency lighting in one location. Rather than USQ separate lighting fixtures in one particular location, common practice has been to use a xe2x80x9ccombinationxe2x80x9d exit sign and emergency lighting unit, this type of fixture being commonly referred to as an exit/unit combo. The xe2x80x9ccomboxe2x80x9d has previously taken the form of an emergency lighting unit mounted to an exit sign, the emergency lighting unit most often being mounted along the top of the exit sign. In most instances, the exit sign and the emergency unit operate separately although certain functions can be shared between the exit sign and the unit by providing common circuitry such as would be useful to detect power line failure for switching the exit sign to DC battery power and for initiating operation of the emergency lighting unit. A particular exit/unit combo which has enjoyed substantial market acceptance is the QUANTUM Exit/Unit Combo manufactured by Lithonia Lighting, Inc. of Conyers, Ga., a wholly owned subsidiary of National Service Industries, Inc., of Atlanta, Ga., QUANTUM being a trademark of National Service Industries, Inc. The widespread use of the Lithonia Lighting combo has been brought about at least in part due to the reduced labor costs associated with installation of the Lithonia combo on site, the exit sign and the emergency lighting unit being factory assembled and prewired for shipment to a job site in a configuration allowing rapid and simultaneous final wiring of both the exit sign and the emergency lighting unit. Further, the Lithonia combo manufactured and marketed under the QUANTUM mark is comprised of a substantially all-plastic exit sign and a substantially all-plastic emergency lighting unit, thereby resulting in a combo product which is light in weight relative to previous combo products many of which included metal housings and parts which caused the products to be heavy and therefore more difficult to support especially in end mounted installations. The Lithonia QUANTUM combo could be rapidly and easily mounted at the top, back or ends with adequate support of the assembly being possible even when end mounted. Manufacture and maintenance of the Lithonia combo were facilitated by the virtual all-plastic structure of the Lithonia product which allows at least portions of the product to be positively and readily snap-fitted to each other. While the QUANTUM combo evidenced significant advantages in this art, the combination of two essentially different and distinct forms of emergency lighting into a single product with both the exit sign and the emergency lighting unit retaining its own housing inter alia such as would be employed in their separate use has caused combo products to continue being somewhat bulky in size and to be less attractive than most other forms of emergency lighting have become in recent years as the industry has devoted increased attention to the appearance of emergency lighting products generally.
Accordingly, the art has experienced a long-felt and continuing need for improvement of a combination exit sign and emergency lighting unit or combo product to the end that such products become a true integration of an exit sign and an emergency lighting unit capable of supporting the weights of batteries necessary for providing power to both sides of an exit sign as well as unit lamps including remote unit lamps. In addition to the need to support greater battery weights than previously necessary in exit signs alone, the need exists in a combo to support greater weight than is normally experienced with an exit sign per se so that a combo can be safely and positively mounted in wall or ceiling installations. The art has thus felt the need for the present combo invention which integrates the functions of an exit sign and an emergency lighting unit into a single housing with repositionable lamping elements mounted to exterior portions of the housing. The structure of the present exit/unit combo allows support of battery loads in tension rather than through the usual cantilevered support of loads disposed internally of a sign housing. The structure of the present combo housing provides support of such efficiency as to prevent warping or bowing of the housing over time, thereby providing substantially improved product quality along with substantially improved product appearance. The exit/unit combo of the invention is provided with significant structural features useful not only with the combo but also with exit signs per se and with emergency lighting units per se as well as remote emergency lighting units., The present invention thus provides substantial improvement over the prior art by the provision of an integral and integrated exit/unit combo characterized by ease of assembly, installation and maintenance as well as by extraordinarily acceptable appearance.
The invention provides an emergency lighting fixture which combines the functions of an illuminated sign, particularly an exit sign, with an emergency lighting unit, the structural combination being integrated into a single housing which internally contains those structural elements necessary to produce the functions of the feature and which carries emergency lamping externally of the housing at multiple locations thereby providing extraordinary flexibility in use. The present combination of an exit sign and an emergency lighting unit or xe2x80x9cexit/unit comboxe2x80x9d is preferably formed of a polymeric material such as polycarbonate/ABS, thereby allowing molding of a fixture housing with most of the structural elements necessary to produce the functions of the fixture being integrally formed with the housing, these molded structural elements and other structure contained within the housing being located in the housing in a manner whereby the elements combine to produce synergistic effects in addition to the primary functions of the structural elements, the fixture being totally integrated as to structure and function as well as being substantially integral in construction. Formation of the fixture essentially from moldable material further allows integral formation of snap-fitting structural elements which not only provide easy snap fitting of facing plates to the housing to form the primary structural portion of the combo per se but also the integral formation of snap-fitting structure with bulb holders, battery mounting elements and option board storage elements inter alia. Assembly of the fixture is therefore facilitated at least in part due to the reduced number of individual parts occasioned by the integral nature of the housing inter alia.
The housing of the present exit/unit combo fixture is configured to support battery weights inter alia which are typically greater than those battery weights encountered in conventional exit signs due to the need to operate exit lighting, unit lighting and even remote unit lighting with a single battery disposed within the housing. In order to accommodate greater battery weight and the weight of the fixture itself, the battery is centered with the housing disposed at a lower portion thereof, battery location couples with a central, vertical structural beam known as a xe2x80x9cladderxe2x80x9d allows support of the battery inter alia in tension rather than in a cantilevered arrangement as has been previously employed in exit signs and the like. The structural features such as the ladder integrated with location of major weighting such as the weight of the battery actually allows use of a material such as plastic for formation of the fixture, the self-support provided by the structure itself preventing warping and bowing of the plastic exit/unit combo fixture over time such as would occur with a fixture having the weight of the exit/unit combo fixture if not provided with the integrated structural relationships of the invention. The dimensional stability of the present exit/unit combo fixture occurs due to the structural features of the fixture which maintain substantial portions of the fixture weight in tension.
The exit/unit combo fixture of the invention provides xe2x80x9cunitxe2x80x9d emergency lighting by the disposition of one or more emergency lamps mountable at different locations on the periphery of the fixture housing to accommodate differing lighting situations. The lamps are mounted by lamp holders fitted with swiveling concentric spherical structural elements which allow movement of the lamps with a degree of freedom not previously possible, the structure of the concentric spherical elements additionally yielding a compact profile which is not only attractive in appearance but functional due to the volumetric efficiency thus provided. The lamp holders of the invention are formed with torsion snap elements which fit into slots formed in peripheral edges of the housing, the slots receiving the snap elements of the lamp holders to positively mount the lamp holders in desired locations on the fixture. The particular snap element/slot arrangement of the invention allows rapid and ready mounting and dismounting of the lamp holders to and from the fixture housing with positive locking of the lamp holders to the housing once assembled. The lamp holders of the invention can be removed from the present fixture and mounted to remote slave mounting stations driven by the fixture with the snap elements of the lamp holder fitting into arranged slots of the slave station. Further, the lamp holder can be mounted to a station separate from the fixture with battery or other operation, the lamp holder being mounted to the station through use of the snap elements of the lamp holder in cooperation with slots formed in the station.
Various other features of the invention include structure for minimizing the xe2x80x9cshadowxe2x80x9d of the battery appearing through face plates of the exit/unit combo fixture; registration structure for mounting of a diffusion panel in a face plate of the fixtures; routing of wiring in association with the ladder support and in front of the battery with the use of slack in the wiring and structure for compartmentalization of electrical components within the interior of the fixture housing including snap-mounting of a capacitor inter alia. Many of the inventive features disclosed herein are useful in fixtures other than exit/unit combo fixtures and are disclosed for use in that variety of fixtures for which these features find utility. Use of these features is thus not limited to use in an exit/unit combo fixture.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an integral exit/unit combo fixture having the capabilities of an exit sign and of an emergency lighting unit integrated into a fixture formed with a single housing for containing a substantial portion of the structures and for mounting emergency unit lamps on the housing externally thereof and at repositionally distinct locations of the housing.
It is another object of the invention to provide an integral exit/unit combo fixture substantially moldable of a polymeric material to allow formation of substantial structural portions of the fixture with a fixture housing, the housing and associated face plates being rapidly fitted together with snap features, components of the fixture internally of the housing being snap-fitted to the housing for rapid assembly thereof, structure holding emergency lighting lamping further being rapidly snap-fitted to the housing at predetermined locations on the exterior of the housing.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an integral exit/unit combo fixture substantially moldable of a polymeric material with structural support features providing dimensional stability to the fixture thereby minimizing warping and bowing of the fixture over time in spite of substantial weight occasioned by the use of heavy batteries as well as the weight of the fixture itself, the fixture including internal support elements which mount battery weight as well as the weight of the fixture per se substantially in tension.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide an integral exit/unit combo fixture having unit lighting provided by lamps mounted on exterior portions of the fixture by lamp holders mounted to the fixture by tension snap elements, each lamp being mounted by a swiveling double concentric structure which allows an extraordinary range of movement of the lamp and which allows formation of the unit lighting structure with a compact profile, the fixture requiring a reduced volume and vertical height for mounting of the fixture, the fixture being also mountable with the back of the fixture directly against a flat surface such as a wall.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent in light of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.

Emergency lighting unit/exit sign combination


Haptic effects have long been provided to enhance content, such as by providing vibrations, rumbles, etc. in a remote controller or other device being used by a user while watching or listening to the content. To date, haptic effects have either been provided by programming controls for the haptic effects within the content itself, or by providing an interface to audio that simply maps certain haptic effects with certain audio frequencies. The present disclosure provides a haptic control interface that intelligently induces haptic effects for content, in particular by using machine learning to detect specific features in content and then induce certain haptic effects for those features.

Video games have long been enhanced using haptics in remote controllers. For example, remote controllers have been configured to vibrate or rumble in connection with events occurring in video games. However, these haptic effects have traditionally been controlled by the video games itself. In particular, the video game program is generally pre-programmed to induce certain haptic effects at certain points during the program execution. As a result, the haptic effects experienced by a player have generally been limited to those pre-programmed by the video game developer. Moreover, for video games without any pre-programmed instructions to induce haptic effects, these haptic effects are usually not available to the player.
Some new systems have aimed to expand the use of haptic effects by providing an interface to audio content (e.g. audio of a video game, audio of a song, audio of a movie, etc.) that analyzes the audio signals output by the audio content and converts the audio signals to haptic commands. For these new systems, the haptic commands typically control the haptic effects provided in a device of a user, such as headphones worn by the user to listen to the audio content. However, these new systems are limited by very simply correlating certain audio signals (e.g. frequencies) with certain haptic effects.
There is a need for addressing these issues and/or other issues associated with the prior art.

Haptic control interface for detecting content features using machine learning to induce haptic effects


The invention relates to a catalyst composition comprising a mixed oxide of vanadium, titanium, and phosphorus. The titanium component is derived from a water-soluble, redox-active organo-titanium compound. The catalyst composition is highly effective at facilitating the vapor-phase condensation of formaldehyde with acetic acid to generate acrylic acid, particularly using an industrially relevant aqueous liquid feed. Additionally, the catalyst composition is catalytically active towards the formation of acrylic acid from methylene diacetate and methacrylic acid from methylene dipropionate; both reactions are carried out with high space time yields.

2,3-Unsaturated carboxylic acids and esters can be prepared from the reaction of a formaldehyde (H2CO) source and a saturated carboxylic acid or ester containing one less carbon atom. Thus, acrylic and methacrylic acid derivatives can be prepared from the condensation of a formaldehyde source with acetic or propionic acid derivatives, respectively. The reaction produces one equivalent of water for each equivalent of carboxylic acid derivative reacted.
Although a number of catalysts have been proposed for this reaction, catalysts containing acidic vanadium and phosphorus oxides are among the most efficient, especially when a third component such as titanium or silicon is present in the catalyst. Water, however, tends to inhibit the condensation reaction with these catalysts. The use of formalin—which typically contains about 37 weight percent formaldehyde in water—as a starting material, therefore, is less efficient. Methanol can also be an inhibitor for the condensation reaction, and, since formalin can also contain methanol, the efficiency can be further lowered. When a carboxylic acid is the reactant, the presence of methanol in formalin can create a mixture of acids and methyl esters. And when an ester is the reactant, the water in formalin can create a mixture of acids and esters.
Industrial grade aqueous formaldehyde contains about 55 weight percent formaldehyde. It is relatively inexpensive and, therefore, is an economical source of this reactant. Thus, there is a need in the art for catalysts that are capable of condensing formaldehyde with alkanoic acids or esters in the vapor phase and that are tolerant of water in the feedstock. Ideally, such catalysts would also provide a high conversion of formaldehyde along with a high selectivity to the acrylic product.
The conventional process for these aldol condensation reactions combines a formaldehyde source, such as trioxane, with a carboxylic acid to form water, the 2,3-unsaturated carboxylic acid, and formaldehyde. The formaldehyde can react with itself at any time during the reaction to form paraformaldehyde. This by-product formation of paraformaldehyde can contribute to yield losses and increased maintenance costs as the paraformaldehyde deposits on equipment and piping.
Conventional Feed

The problems caused by paraformaldehyde create the need to make 2,3-unsaturated carboxylic acids without producing significant paraformaldehyde. One solution is to introduce a methylene unit by an alternative feed that does not utilize or produce formaldehyde which can polymerize to paraformaldehyde. A methylene dialkanoate feed can be used as such an alternative feed.
Methylene Dialkanoate Feed

The use of a methylene dialkanoate feed can also lead to improved space time yield (STY) while operating at decreased temperatures, even in the presence of extraneous water when compared to the conventional reaction process. These reaction improvements come as a surprise since acrylic acid production from conventional feeds comprising acetic acid and formaldehyde (as trioxane) are negatively impacted by water and reduced temperature. The practical utility of these benefits are increased catalyst lifetime and maintained STY when water is introduced to the reaction system from impure gas lines or generated via by-product chemistry.
Although the V—Ti—P catalysts of the present invention function with the presence of water, improved STY can be seen by attenuating the effects of water. One approach to reduce the presence of water in the feed is to replace aqueous formaldehyde with anhydrous formaldehyde (trioxane, C3H6O3). Despite this replacement, the molar addition of trioxane with acetic acid still includes one mole of a latent molecular water, thereby limiting the maximum attainable rate. To further offset the effect of water, methylene dialkanoates, such as methylene diacetate (MDA) and methylene dipropionate (MDP) can be synthesized from formaldehyde and utilized as a feed towards the production of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, respectively. These methylene dialkanoates are molecularly equivalent to one mole of formaldehyde and two moles of the corresponding carboxylic acid but without the latent molecular water (i.e. one mole of latent water is not produced). MDA and MDP form acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, respectively, over the V—Ti—P catalyst at a surprisingly high reaction rate and yield.
Vanadium-titanium-phosphorus (V—Ti—P) mixed oxides are the best known catalysts for generating acrylic acid from the condensation of formaldehyde and acetic acid. But the preparation of these catalysts can be dangerous and is not amenable to scale-up. Typically, the titanium component is incorporated into these catalysts by first hydrolyzing liquid titanium chloride. This step, unfortunately, generates large quantities of hydrochloric acid fumes. Thus, there is also a need in the art for methods of preparing V—Ti—P mixed oxide catalysts that are safer and more amenable to industrial production.
The reactions catalyzed by vanadium-titanium-phosphorus catalysts usually produce few undesired side reactions and offer high yields. However, one of the drawbacks with V—Ti—P condensation catalysts is they can quickly deactivate during the reaction due to coking on the catalyst. Although the V—Ti—P catalyst can typically be regenerated by removing the coke at an elevated temperature in the presence of oxygen, the lifetime of the reactive catalyst between regenerations can be limited and short. It has been shown that co-feeding oxygen can help stabilize the condensation catalyst over a short period of time, i.e. 8 hours. However, inferior yields to acrylic acid were also observed. Thus, there is a need to extend the reactive lifetime of the V—Ti—P catalyst while maintaining the high conversion and selectivity by co-feeding oxygen at certain concentrations to the reactor.
The present invention addresses these needs as well as others that will be apparent from the following description and claims.

Process for preparing V—Ti—P catalysts for synthesis of 2,3-unsaturated carboxylic acids


A method for detecting the occurrence of a specific event is provided. The method includes: capturing image data of a scene; detecting and tracking an object of interest in the image data; analyzing features of the object of interest; comparing the analyzed features with predetermined criteria indicative of the specific event; and determining whether the specific event has occurred based on the comparison. The method is particularly useful in the monitoring of the elderly where the specific event is selected from a list comprising a fall-down, stagger, and panic gesturing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computer vision, and more particularly, to video based detection of specific events, such as a fall-down event.
2. Prior Art
Video based event detection has been approached in a number of ways in the prior art. One such way has been to analyze object trajectories to extract events like "person entered/exited" or "person deposited an object." Simple motions such as "person walking" or "person running" have been learned and recognized from spatio-temporal motion templates. Example representations include motion history images, which capture recent object motion, and optical flow measurements. Probabilistic techniques such as Hidden Markov models (HMMs) and Bayesian nets have also been used extensively to recognize complex motion patterns and to learn and recognize human activities. Furthermore, invariance to changes in viewpoint has been studied and action recognition from multiple viewpoints has been analyzed in the prior art.
In the current state of the art, simple events (person entering a room) can be recognized well and without constraints. More complicated events/motions (person sitting on a chair) can either be recognized from a single viewpoint, or from multiple representations for multiple views of the event. However, current systems do not address the large amount of variation in appearance of certain events, such as a person falling down. That is, similar events, which can be performed in a great number of ways, cannot be consistently detected by the methods of the prior art. Other events that can be similarly classified include, but are not limited to, staggering and wild (panic) gestures (which can also be a visual way of calling for help).
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for consistently detecting such events.

Video based detection of fall-down and other events


A radio controller monitors a radio channel for a first period of time and determines a first indication of signals received without detecting synchronization or with detecting synchronization but failing error correction during that time. Responsive to determining that the first indication is above a predetermined threshold indicative of an interference condition, causing an instruction to be broadcast identifying a subset of subscriber devices allowed transmitting random access requests on the radio channel. The radio controller monitors the radio channel for a second period of time and determines a second indication during that time. If the second indication is an improvement over the first indication, the radio controller determines that the interference condition is caused by the mass random access event.

Radio access networks (RANs) provide for radio communication links to be arranged within the network between a plurality of user terminals. Such user terminals may be mobile and may be known as 'mobile stations' or 'subscriber devices.' At least one other terminal, e.g. used in conjunction with subscriber devices, may be a fixed terminal, e.g. a base station, eNodeB, repeater, and/or access point. Such a RAN typically includes a system infrastructure that generally includes a network of various fixed terminals, which are in direct radio communication with the subscriber devices. Each of the fixed terminals operating in the RAN may have one or more transceivers which may, for example, serve subscriber devices in a given region or area, known as a 'cell' or 'site', by radio frequency (RF) communication. The subscriber devices that are in direct communication with a particular fixed terminal are said to be served by the fixed terminal In one example, all radio communications to and from each subscriber device within the RAN are made via respective serving fixed terminals. Sites of neighboring fixed terminals may be offset from one another and may be non-overlapping or partially or fully overlapping with one another.
RANs may operate according to an industry standard protocol such as, for example, an open media alliance (OMA) push to talk (PTT) over cellular (OMA-PoC) standard, a voice over IP (VoIP) standard, or a PTT over IP (PoIP) standard. Typically, protocols such as PoC, VoIP, and PoIP are implemented over broadband RANs including third generation and fourth generation networks such as third generation partnership project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks.
RANs may additionally or alternatively operate according to an industry standard land mobile radio (LMR) protocol such as, for example, the Project 25 (P25) standard defined by the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials International (APCO), or other radio protocols, the TETRA standard defined by the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (ETSI), the Digital Private Mobile Radio (dPMR) standard also defined by the ETSI, or the Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) standard also defined by the ETSI. Because these generally systems provide lower throughput than the 3GPP and LTE systems, they are sometimes designated narrowband RANs.
Communications in accordance with any one or more of these protocols or standards, or other protocols or standards, may take place over physical channels in accordance with one or more of a TDMA (time division multiple access), FDMA (frequency divisional multiple access), OFDMA (orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access), or CDMA (code division multiple access) protocols. Subscriber devices in RANs such as those set forth above send and receive auditory data (encoded voice, audio, or audio portions of an audio/video stream) and other types of data in accordance with the designated protocol.
OMA-PoC, in particular, enables familiar PTT and "instant on" features of traditional half duplex subscriber devices, but uses mobile subscriber devices operating over modern cellular telecommunications networks. Using PoC, wireless subscriber devices such as mobile telephones and notebook computers can function as PTT half-duplex subscriber devices for transmitting and receiving auditory data. Other types of PTT models and multimedia call models (MMCMs) are also available.
Floor control in an OMA-PoC session is generally maintained by a PTT server that controls communications between two or more wireless subscriber devices. When a user of one of the subscriber devices keys a PTT button, a request for permission to speak in the OMA-PoC session is transmitted from the user's subscriber device to the PTT server using, for example, a real-time transport protocol (RTP) message. If no other users are currently speaking in the PoC session, an acceptance message is transmitted back to the user's subscriber device and the user can then speak into a microphone of the device. Using standard compression/decompression (codec) techniques, the user's voice is digitized and transmitted using discrete auditory data packets (e.g., together which form an auditory data stream over time), such as according to RTP and internet protocols (IP), to the PTT server. The PTT server then transmits the auditory data packets to other users of the PoC session (e.g., to other subscriber devices in the group of subscriber devices or talkgroup to which the user is subscribed), using for example a unicast, point to multipoint, or broadcast communication technique.
Narrowband LMR systems, on the other hand, operate in either a conventional or trunked configuration. In either configuration, a plurality of subscriber devices are partitioned into separate groups of subscriber devices. In a conventional system, each subscriber device in a group is selected to a particular frequency for communications associated with that subscriber device's group. Thus, each group is served by one channel, and multiple groups may share the same single frequency (in which case, in some embodiments, group IDs may be present in the group data to distinguish between groups using the same shared frequency).
In contrast, a trunked radio system and its subscriber devices use a pool of traffic channels for virtually an unlimited number of groups of subscriber devices (e.g., talkgroups). Thus, all groups are served by all channels. The trunked radio system works to take advantage of the probability that not all groups need a traffic channel for communication at the same time. When a member of a group requests a call on a control or rest channel on which all of the subscriber devices in the system idle awaiting new call notifications, in one embodiment, a call controller assigns a separate traffic channel for the requested group call, and all group members move from the assigned control or rest channel to the assigned traffic channel for the group call. In another embodiment, when a member of a group requests a call on a control or rest channel, the call controller may convert the control or rest channel on which the subscriber devices were idling to a traffic channel for the call, and instruct all subscriber devices that are not participating in the new call to move to a newly assigned control or rest channel selected from the pool of available channels. With a given number of channels, a much greater number of groups can be accommodated in a trunked system as compared with conventional radio systems.
Group calls may be made between wireless and/or wireline participants in accordance with either a narrowband or a broadband protocol or standard. Group members for group calls may be statically or dynamically defined. That is, in a first example, a user or administrator working on behalf of the user may indicate to the switching and/or radio network (perhaps at a call controller, PTT server, zone controller, or mobile management entity (MME), base station controller (BSC), mobile switching center (MSC), site controller, Push-to-Talk controller, or other network device) a list of participants of a group at the time of the call or in advance of the call. The group members (e.g., subscriber devices) could be provisioned in the network by the user or an agent, and then provided some form of group identity or identifier, for example. Then, at a future time, an originating user in a group may cause some signaling to be transmitted indicating that he or she wishes to establish a communication session (e.g., group call) with each of the pre-designated participants in the defined group. In another example, subscriber devices may dynamically affiliate with a group (and also disassociate with the group) perhaps based on user input, and the switching and/or radio network may track group membership and route new group calls according to the current group membership.
One problem that has arisen with the increasing proliferation of wireless subscriber devices is that in the event of a large number of such subscriber devices attempting to register on a same random access radio channel such as the trunked control channel or conventional channel noted above, the large number of registration requests (or other random access requests) are likely to collide with each other over a period of time and may generate what looks like mere interference to the fixed terminal or terminals tasked with registering and/or serving the large number of such subscriber devices. For example, large numbers of subscriber devices may attempt to register (or otherwise transmit a random access request) on a random access radio channel (e.g., what is called a "mass random access event") as a result of: a site failure at a nearby radio site or fixed terminal, an initial powering on of a radio site or fixed terminal in a vicinity of the plurality of subscriber devices, an initial powering on of a large number of subscriber devices near a radio site or fixed terminal within a short period of time, an occurrence of an event requiring an emergency response within a particular area associated with a radio site or fixed terminal, and/or a change in affiliation of a large number of subscriber devices within a short period of time, among other possibilities. Such events could delay or prevent group-call services from being provided to some or all of the subscriber devices in the vicinity of the affected fixed terminal or radio site.
Accordingly, what is needed is an improved method and apparatus for handling mass registration events, and in particular, for distinguishing between mere interference and mass random access events and taking corresponding action in the infrastructure as a result of the determination.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.

Method and apparatus for responding to a potential mass random access event


Technologies for 3D printing digital rights management (DRM) include a 3D printing device communicatively coupled with a 3D model storage server and a rights management server over a network. The 3D printing device may establish a model unlock engine in a first trusted execution environment and a key release engine in a second trusted execution environment. The model unlock engine may extract a content access policy and a content key from an encrypted 3D model and generate a content key request to the key release engine. The key release engine may validate the content key request and decrypt the content key in response to the content access policy being satisfied. The model unlock engine may further decrypt 3D model content included in the 3D model using the decrypted content key to facilitate the printing of the 3D model.

Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing as it is commonly referred to, is a process of "printing" a physical 3D object using additive processes. In additive processes, a series of thin, successive layers of material are placed under the control of a computing device (i.e., a 3D printer). A variety of technologies exist for 3D printing, mainly differing in materials used to create the object, and how the layers are placed and/or fused. Similar to traditional printing, the 3D printer receives a digital representation, or 3D model, which serves as a blueprint for the 3D printer to use in executing the printing operation. Upon receiving the 3D model, the 3D printer analyzes the 3D model and uses printer nozzles to deposit the material, typically in a series of cross-sections, forming the layers based on the 3D model.
The 3D model may be created using computer aided design (CAD) modelling software or by scanning a real-world object using a 3D scanner. Presently, the 3D models are sold as digital files from which a purchaser can then create an unlimited number of copies. To limit the number of copies, sellers may require a key to unlock the content. However, such methods do not prevent the sharing of keys, nor does the key typically limit the number of copies that may be created using the key. Additionally, 3D printers are often based on open sourced designs, which may allow for modification to circumvent the required keys. For example, a digital rights (DRM) key protected 3D model may be compromised (i.e., left unprotected) between the point at which the DRM key was used to remove protection from the 3D model and the point in which the unprotected content is used by the 3D printer for printing. During such time, the unprotected content is vulnerable to be copied and redistributed without requiring a DRM key.

Technologies for digital rights managment of 3D printable models


The present invention relates to novel antibodies capable of binding specifically to the human insulin-like growth factor I receptor IGF-IR and/or capable of specifically inhibiting the tyrosine kinase activity of said IGF-IR receptor, especially monoclonal antibodies of murine, chimeric and humanized origin, as well as the amino acid and nucleic acid sequences coding for these antibodies. The invention likewise comprises the use of these antibodies as a medicament for the prophylactic and/or therapeutic treatment of cancers overexpressing IGF-IR or any pathology connected with the overexpression of said receptor as well as in processes or kits for diagnosis of illnesses connected with the overexpression of the IGF-IR receptor. The invention finally comprises products and/or compositions comprising such antibodies in combination with anti-EGFR antibodies and/or compounds and/or anti-cancer agents or agents conjugated with toxins and their use for the prevention and/or the treatment of certain cancers.

The present invention relates to novel antibodies capable of binding specifically to the human insulin-like growth factor I receptor IGF-IR and/or capable of specifically inhibiting the tyrosine kinase activity of said IGF-IR receptor, especially monoclonal antibodies of murine, chimeric and humanized origin, as well as the amino acid and nucleic acid sequences coding for these antibodies. The invention) likewise comprises the use of these antibodies as a medicament for the prophylactic and/or therapeutic treatment of cancers overexpressing IGF-IR or any pathology connected with the overexpression of said receptor as well as in processes or kits for diagnosis of illnesses connected with the overexpression of the IGF-IR receptor. The invention finally comprises products and/or compositions comprising such antibodies in combination with anti-EGFR antibodies and/or compounds and/or anti-cancer agents or agents conjugated with toxins and their use for the prevention and/or the treatment of certain cancers.
The insulin-like growth factor I receptor called IGF-IR is a receptor with tyrosine kinase activity having 70% homology with the insulin receptor IR. IGF-IR is a glycoprotein of molecular weight approximately 350,000. It is a hetero-tetrameric receptor of which each half-linked by disulfide bridges—is composed of an extracellular a-subunit and of a transmembrane β-subunit (see FIG. 1). IGF-IR binds IGF I and IGF II with a very high affinity (Kd #1 nM) but is equally capable of binding to insulin with an affinity 100 to 1000 times less. Conversely, the IR binds insulin with a very high affinity although the ICFs only bind to the insulin receptor with a 100 times lower affinity. The tyrosine kinase domain of IGF-IR and of IR has a very high sequence homology although the zones of weaker homology respectively concern the cysteine-rich region situated on the a-subunit and the C-terminal part of the β-subunit. The sequence differences observed in the a-subunit are situated in the binding zone of the ligands and are therefore at the origin of the relative affinities of IGF-IR and of IR for the IGFs and insulin respectively. The differences in the C-terminal part of the β-subunit result in a divergence in the signalling pathways of the two receptors; IGF-IR mediating mitogenic, differentiation and antiapoptosis effects, while the activation of the IR principally involves effects at the level of the metabolic pathways (Baserga et al., Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 1332: F105–126, 1997; Baserga R., Exp. Cell. Res., 253:1–6, 1999).
The cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase proteins are activated by the binding of the ligand to the extracellular domain of the receptor. The activation of the kinases in its turn involves the stimulation of different intra-cellular substrates, including IRS-1, IRS-2, Shc and Grb 10 (Peruzzi F. et al., J. Cancer Res. Clin. Oncol., 125:166–173, 1999). The two major substrates of IGF-IR are IRS and Shc which mediate, by the activation of numerous effectors downstream, the majority of the growth and differentiation effects connected with the attachment of the IGFs to this receptor (FIG. 2). The availability of substrates can consequently dictate the final biological effect connected with the activation of the IGF-IR. When IRS-1 predominates, the cells tend to proliferate and to transform. When Shc dominates, the cells tend to differentiate (Valentinis B. et al.; J. Biol. Chem. 274:12423–12430, 1999). It seems that the route principally involved for the effects of protection against apoptosis is the phosphatidyl-inositol 3-kinases (PI 3-kinases) route (Prisco M. et al., Horm. Metab. Res., 31:80–89, 1999; Peruzzi F. et al., J. Cancer Res. Clin. Oncol., 125:166–173, 1999).
The role of the IGF system in carcinogenesis has become the subject of intensive research in the last ten years. This interest followed the discovery of the fact that in addition to its mitogenic and antiapoptosis properties, IGF-IR seems to be required for the establishment and the maintenance of a transformed phenotype. In fact, it has been well established that an overexpression or a constitutive activation of IGF-IR leads, in a great variety of cells, to a growth of the cells independent of the support in media devoid of fetal calf serum, and to the formation of tumors in nude mice. This in itself is not a unique property since a great variety of products of overexpressed genes can transform cells, including a good number of receptors of growth factors. However, the crucial discovery which has clearly demonstrated the major role played by, IGF-IR in the transformation has been the demonstration that the R-cells, in which the gene coding for IGF-IR has been inactivated, are totally refractory to transformation by different agents which are usually capable of transforming the cells, such as the E5 protein of bovine papilloma virus, an overexpression of EGFR or of PDGFR, the T antigen of SV 40, activated ras or the combination of these two last factors (Sell C. et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 90: 11217–11221, 1993; Sell C. et al., Mol. Cell. Biol., 14:3604–3612, 1994; Morrione A. J., Virol., 69:5300–5303, 1995; Coppola D. et al., Mol. Cell. Biol., 14:4588–4595, 1994; DeAngelis T et al., J. Cell. Physiol., 164:214–221, 1995).
IGF-IR is expressed in a great variety of tumors and of tumor lines and the IGFs amplify the tumor growth via their attachment to IGF-IR. Other arguments in favor of the role of IGF-IR in carcinogenesis come from studies using murine monoclonal antibodies directed against the receptor or using negative dominants of IGF-IR. In effect, murine monoclonal antibodies directed against IGF-IR inhibit the proliferation of numerous cell lines in culture and the growth of tumor cells in vivo (Arteaga C. et al., Cancer Res., 49:6237–6241, 1989 Li et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Com., 196:92–98, 1993; Zia F et al., J. Cell. Biol., 24:269–275, 1996; Scotlandi K et al., Cancer Res., 58:4127–4131, 1998). It has likewise been shown in the works of Jiang et al. (Oncogene, 18:6071–6077, 1999) that a negative dominant of IGF-IR is capable of inhibiting tumor proliferation.


A computing device can include a base portion housing a central processing unit, a heat exhaust element disposed within the base portion and operable to move air past the central processing unit, a display portion configured to display information to a user, and a metal hinge portion operably coupling the base portion to the display portion and being operable to couple the base portion to the display portion between an open and a closed configuration. The hinge portion can include a hollow cavity extending parallel to a longitudinal axis of the metal hinge and a longitudinal slot in a wall of the metal hinge and parallel to the longitudinal axis, where the longitudinal slot is positioned relative to the heat exhaust element so as to receive air moved by the heat exhaust element through the slot and into the hollow cavity.

Computing devices (e.g., cellphones, tablets, laptop and notebook computers) include components (e.g., processors, memories, hard disks) that generate heat, and the heat must be dissipated from the components so that the components can perform properly. As computing devices become thinner and more compact, the challenge of cooling the central processing unit (CPU) and other components of the computing device while maintaining acceptable surface temperature of enclosures becomes extremely challenging. Thus, there is a need for new techniques to dissipate heat in computing devices.

Notebook metal hinge as heat sink element


A module circuit board for a semiconductor device by a solder reflow process includes a plurality of pads on which the semiconductor device to be mounted, a plurality of terminals formed on a side edge of the board, a resist film covering an area between said pads and said terminal on the board, and a barrier formed between said pads and said terminals.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a module circuit board including a plurality of I/O terminals disposed at an edge of the board, a plurality of soldering pads on its surface for mounting parts such as semiconductor devices, and a barrier formed on its surface to isolate the I/O terminals from solder.
2. Description of the Related Art
A module circuit board for mounting flat type package ICs using a Surface-Mounted Device includes a plurality of I/O terminals plated of gold or flash gold which is formed on its one edge, a plurality of soldering pads on its surface on which the ICs are mounted using a solder reflow process, and a solder resist film formed on the circuit board. In the solder reflow process, some problems occur. That is, during the performance of the solder reflow process, solder balls are formed from melted solder. The solder ball is moved on the resist film, which is disposed between the pads and the terminals. If the solder ball reached the terminal is adhered to the terminal, the circuit board will be defective. To avoid this problem, the following countermeasure has been taken.    (1) To avoid the formation of the solder ball, some conditions of the reflow process, including the temperature, are changed.    (2) To prevent the solder ball from reaching the terminal, the terminal is sealed with a tape before the reflow process.
In the measure (1), the frequency that the solder ball is formed can be decreased. However, it is difficult to eliminate the formation of the solder ball completely. In the measure (2), the cost performance is not effective because of sealing and removing the tape. Further, if the tape adhesive remains on the terminal, it becomes a problem when the board is connected to the other parts.

Module circuit board for semiconductor device having barriers to isolate I/O terminals from solder


A home appliance having a housing, an internal compartment within the housing, and a first duct extending from the internal compartment to an area exterior to the housing. The first duct formed from at least one sound absorbing material.

In a residential dwelling, excessive noise may be generated by home appliances, such as clothes washing machines and dishwashers, which can be annoying to inhabitants of the dwelling. The unwanted sound from these machines can be caused both by the mechanical operation of the motor or other mechanical components within the machine and by the vibration of the machine itself. In some appliances, the ductwork within the appliance can be a factor in transmitting the unwanted noise. Some home appliances may have an inner compartment, such as the tub of a clothes washing machine or a dishwasher, that is connected to an area exterior to the appliance by a duct which allows air into or out of the tub. For example, due to the potential risk of a child being trapped inside the compartment, such appliances are required to have a safety air duct extending from the inner compartment to the exterior of the appliance. The safety air duct must be an open (unobstructed) passage of a certain diameter or width. Further, some dishwashers that include a drying cycle include a duct to vent warm, moist air from the inner compartment to the exterior of the appliance during the drying cycle. Unwanted noise can be transmitted through these ducts.

Appliance with acoustically insulated ductwork


A positioning system receiver that mitigates cross correlation of received signals from positioning system satellite vehicles by generating the strong satellite vehicle signal and subtracting it from the received signal before correlation while eliminating the need for cross correlation signature without changing the C/A code.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates in general to satellite navigation systems and in particular to mitigating the effects of cross correlation in Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers.
2. Related Art
Cross correlation between a strong received satellite signal with the C/A (clear/acquisition) code of a weak satellite signal may prevent the weak satellite signal from being acquired/tracked. This problem may occur where the weak satellite signal is blocked by physical obstruction or in an indoor environment where the satellite signal is severely degraded. It is desirable to mitigate cross correlation in order to acquire/track the weak signal.
Past methods of cross correlation mitigation have included the classic post correlation subtraction method or the subspace projection method. The post correlation subtraction method typically relies on computing the cross correlation signature of the weak satellite C/A with a generated signal representing the strong satellite to be mitigated. The generated signal uses the carrier phase, carrier frequency, and code phase obtained from tracking of the strong satellite to estimate the received strong satellite signal. The correlation signature is then scaled by the estimated strong satellite amplitude and subtracted from the correlation of the received signal with the weak satellite C/A code. Alternatively, in the subspace projection method the correlation signature is compared against a threshold and the weak satellite C/A code is modified for received signal correlation so as to reduce the cross correlation of the strong satellite signal with the modified C/A and to enable the weak satellite signal to be acquired/tracked.
However, both the post correlation subtraction method and the subspace projection method suffer from poor mitigation performance in dynamic environments. Correlation signature is sensitive to the amplitude estimate error and phase estimate error of the strong satellite signal. Estimate of the satellite parameters may not be accurate due to Doppler and fading that often occurs in dynamic environments. In the subspace projection method, a different C/A code would have to be derived for each code phase position used in the correlation signature. Integration of the modified C/A code into the correlation with the received signal is also complicated to implement due to the code phase dependency of the correlation signature.
Therefore, there is a need for a system and method capable of mitigating the effects of cross correlation in a GPS receiver.

Method and apparatus for mitigating the effects of cross correlation in a GPS receiver


The present disclosure provides systems and methods for estimating a change in an intracardiac distance between systole and diastole. A system includes a pacing electrode configured to generate a pacing pulse, a sensing electrode configured to measure an electrical artifact corresponding to the pacing pulse, and a computing device communicatively coupled to the pacing electrode and the sensing electrode, the computing device configured to determine a first amplitude of a first electrical artifact measured at the sensing electrode during systole, determine a second amplitude of a second electrical artifact measured at the sensing electrode during diastole, and calculate a mechanical index based on the first amplitude and the second amplitude, wherein the mechanical index is representative of the change in the intracardiac distance.

Heart failure (HF) is a debilitating, end-stage disease in which abnormal function of the heart leads to inadequate blood flow to fulfill the needs of the body's tissues. Typically, the heart loses propulsive power because the cardiac muscle loses capacity to stretch and contract. Often, the ventricles do not adequately fill with blood between heartbeats and the valves regulating blood flow may become leaky, allowing regurgitation or backflow of blood. The impairment of arterial circulation deprives vital organs of oxygen and nutrients. Fatigue, weakness, and inability to carry out daily tasks may result.
Not all HF patients suffer debilitating symptoms immediately. Some may live actively for years. Yet, with few exceptions, the disease is relentlessly progressive. As HF progresses, it tends to become increasingly difficult to manage. Even the compensatory responses it triggers in the body may themselves eventually complicate the clinical prognosis. For example, when the heart attempts to compensate for reduced cardiac output, it adds muscle causing the ventricles to grow in volume in an attempt to pump more blood with each heartbeat. This places a still higher demand on the heart's oxygen supply. If the oxygen supply falls short of the growing demand, as it often does, further injury to the heart may result. The additional muscle mass may also stiffen the heart walls to hamper rather than assist in providing cardiac output.
Current standard treatment for HF is typically centered around medical treatment using ACE inhibitors, diuretics, and digitalis. It has also been demonstrated that aerobic exercise may improve exercise tolerance, improve quality of life, and decrease symptoms. Cardiac surgery has also been performed on a small percentage of patients with particular etiologies. Although advances in pharmacological therapy have significantly improved the survival rate and quality of life of patients, some HF patients are refractory to drug therapy, have a poor prognosis and limited exercise tolerance. In recent years cardiac pacing, in particular Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT), has emerged as an effective treatment for many patients with drug-refractory HF.
Long-term clinical benefits of CRT are influenced by patient selection, lead placement, and device programming. For example, a variety of intracardiac electrogram (IEGM) based algorithms have been developed to predict which atrioventricular (AV) and interventricular conduction (VV) delays will facilitate maximizing clinical benefits. For a viable myocardium, mechanical contraction is coupled with electrical conduction. Given that restoration of both mechanical and electrical synchrony is important for CRT optimization, it would be desirable to have a mechanically-based evaluation technique that facilitates comparisons between different CRT settings.

Systems and methods for estimating intracardiac distance using sensed electrical pulses