A collimator lens is configured with a double convex single lens formed with a resinous material, for collimating a light flux emitted from a light source. At least one of surfaces of the collimator lens is formed as an aspherical surface. The collimator lens satisfies following conditions:2<|R1/R2|<10;NA>0.6,where R1 is a curvature radius of a first surface, which is a lens surface on a side of the light source of the collimator lens, R2 is a curvature radius of a second surface, which is a lens surface on a side opposite to the first surface of the collimator lens, and NA is a numerical aperture on the side of the light source of the collimator lens.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a collimator lens, an illumination device including the collimator lens, and a microscope including the illumination device, and more particularly, to a collimator lens configured with a single lens, an illumination device including the collimator lens, and a microscope including the illumination device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a fluorescent observation using a microscope, an illumination device including a xenon light source, a high-pressure mercury light source or the like, by which a high output can be obtained, has been widely used to excite a fluorescent substance heretofore. With a xenon light source or a high-pressure mercury light source, a radiated amount of heat is very large although a high output can be obtained. Accordingly, an optical system included in a conventional illumination device is normally designed so that a focal length is increased by a glass lens having high heat resistance.
In recent years, the need for a light source including a solid-state light emitting element having features such as less heat generation, compactness and a long life has been increasing, and, for example, an illumination device using a light source including a solid-state light emitting element as disclosed by Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2005-208571 has been developed.
The illumination device disclosed by Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2005-208571 includes a light source having an LED, which is a solid-state light emitting element, and a collimator optical system for guiding illumination light of a light distribution specific to an LED in a specified direction with high illumination efficiency.
For an illumination device used for a fluorescent observation, an excitation intensity demanded to excite a fluorescent substance needs to be secured. Accordingly, it is important for an optical system included in an illumination device, especially, an optical system of an illumination device including a solid-state light emitting element to implement a high transmittance and to irradiate light emitted from a light source efficiently on a specimen. Moreover, the illumination device including the solid-state light emitting element is expected to be more advantageous than a conventional illumination device in terms of cost.

Double convex collimator lens, illumination device, and microscope


A lidar apparatus for detecting an object. The lidar apparatus includes a laser providing a visible light output signal over a first field of view and a photodiode having a second field of view. At least some of the first and second fields of view overlap. The photodiode provides electrical signals in response to received optical signals. A controller is coupled to the laser and to the photodiode. The controller for provides electrical signals to the laser, causing emission of visible light output signals. A time varying threshold generator is coupled to the controller. The time varying threshold generator provides a time varying threshold signal in response to signals from the controller. A threshold detector is coupled to the time varying threshold generator and to the photodiode. The threshold detector compares the time varying threshold signal to the electrical signals to provide signals indicating presence or absence of the object.

Radio detection and ranging or "radar", sound navigation and ranging or "sonar" and light detection and ranging or "lidar" (also known as "ladar") are important for many navigation, fuzing, law enforcement and collision avoidance applications. These are used for sensing the location and velocity of either a single object or a plurality of objects simultaneously, independent of conditions affecting detection. An increasingly important application of such sensing devices is in avoidance of collisions between, for example, land based vehicles such as automobiles, motorcycles, trucks and between sea based vehicles and further between airplanes, helicopters and other flying vehicles, including avoidance of fixed or moving objects. Lidar apparatus are also usefully employed for measuring speeds of vehicles because such apparatus provide narrower field of view than, for example, radar apparatus, allowing discrimination of individual vehicles within a group, for example.
Similar apparatus are employed for time domain reflectometry, seismic mapping, ultrasonic imaging for medical and other nondestructive testing and evaluation, as well as other pulse-echo or signal-echo apparatus.
Such sensing apparatus operate by generating and transmitting an interrogation signal and receiving an echo thereof. The delay between transmission and subsequent reception of a reflected component or echo of the transmitted signal is determined. This delay measures distances or ranges between the transmitter, the remote object and the receiver. Many characteristics (e.g., size, albedo, shape) of the remote object may be determined from detailed comparisons between transmitted and received signals.
An object which is being echo-ranged provides a large return signal if close to the echo-ranging transmitter and a small return when far away. To a first approximation the amplitude of the return echo signal varies inversely as a power of the distance between the transmitter/receiver and the target. Since the outgoing and returning pulses typically propagate with constant velocity, the return echo amplitude for targets at various distances also decreases approximately inversely as the square of time.
This relationship is illustrated by curve 52 in FIG. 1. The abscissa and ordinate of FIG. 1 are calibrated in arbitrary units, with times T.sub.0 and T.sub.1 corresponding to the initiation of and the duration of measurement interval T.sub.1, respectively, during which measurement occurs.
Times T.sub.B and T.sub.E mark the beginning and end, respectively, of a measurement epoch. A measurement epoch comprises an initial period T.sub.CAL and a subsequent measurement period T.sub.1. During initial period T.sub.CAL assessment of and calibration for measurement conditions may occur and the measurement pulse is launched. Other related events, such as receiver blanking (temporarily disabling the receiver to avoid receiver overloading by energy from measurement pulse transmission), also occur during this interval. During measurement period T.sub.1, the receiver is enabled and received signals are processed. Measurement period T.sub.1 concludes at time T.sub.E, when a subsequent measurement epoch may begin.
A commonly used technique in echo-ranging is dynamically adjusting the input attenuation (1/gain) and/or the detection threshold of the echo receiver to correspond to curve 52 of FIG. 1. In other words, if the object is close, the echo returns quickly and is large and the receiver attenuation or detection threshold should be high (gain can be low), and if the object is distant, the echo returns later and is weaker and the receiver attenuation or detection threshold should be low (gain must be high), as shown by curve 52. Ultimately, the received signal is extinguished when the reflecting object is sufficiently distant.
If the input attenuation (1/gain) and/or the detection threshold of the echo receiver is varied according to curve 52, one obtains a constant probability of target detection independent of distance. If the return signal lies above curve 52, it is detected, and if it lies below curve 52 it is not detected. Such a time varying detection threshold is referred to as an analog sensitivity time control (STC) curve or signal and is typically used for adjusting the receiver input sensitivity with time. Curve 52 represents an analog STC curve or signal and line 54 is a digital approximation of curve 52.
It is difficult in practice to accurately realize analog STC functions as exemplified by curve 52 by conventional analog techniques, such as R-C or R-L-C networks. Further, analog radio frequency techniques for providing such signals are inherently slow and become complex when it is necessary to accommodate arbitrary changes in the desired receiver gain or threshold by electronic methods. Often digital approximations such as 54 are made to arbitrary analog STC curves such as 52.
Examples of such analog radio frequency techniques for radar applications are discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,994,811, entitled "Sensitivity Time Control Device", by J. Moreira and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,415,897, entitled "Precision Control of RF Attenuators for STC Applications", by H. Kennedy, wherein use is made of digital-to-analog converters for controlling variable radio frequency attenuators. These radio frequency attenuators generate approximations to the desired STC curves in response to control signals.
Lidar apparatus does not require radio frequency signal processing because light pulses are transmitted and received. Signals resulting from detected light signals are processed at baseband frequencies. Conditions affecting propagation of transmitted and reflected light pulses complicate calibration of lidar apparatus.
FIG. 2 is a histogram comparing examples of expected lidar return signal levels from a target (hatched) and background signal levels from the ambient and/or noise (plain), both in arbitrary units, for three different situations. Return signal level 70 and background signal level 75 are representative of echo return signals under clear air conditions. Return signal level 80 and background signal level 85 are typical of what is observed under aerosol conditions, i.e., fine mists or thin clouds, while return signal level 90 and background signal level 95 represent what is often observed with bright background conditions, e.g., bright clouds.
The values represented by right hand (plain) histograms 75, 85 and 95 in the three data pairs of FIG. 2 show representative examples of the background signal levels typical for clear air, aerosol and bright background conditions, respectively. Ambient background signal levels for clear air 75 and aerosol 85 measurement conditions are approximately the same, while bright background ambient signal level 95 is typically much higher. For the size of particles normally found in naturally occurring clouds, backscattering of light is a relatively slowly changing function of the wavelength of the scattered light. For example, light having a wavelength of about 900 nanometers (e.g., light from a GaAs solid sate source) behaves very similarly to red light having a wavelength of 660 nanometers in the presence of clouds.
Comparison of left hand (hatched) histograms 70, 80 and 90 of the data pairs of FIG. 2 shows that the return signal levels are expected to be comparable for clear air 70 and bright background 90 scenarios, while return signal level 80 under aerosol conditions can be expected to be reduced appreciably. These different circumstances require different criteria for STC curves in order to optimally detect a target return signal in the presence of an ambient background signal.
An additional problem associated with the infrared light beams from prior art lidar apparatus employing solid state laser diodes has been that such light beams typically are not visible to the human eye without special tools and/or methods, making alignment and servicing of such apparatus difficult.
What are needed are improved means and methods for generating precise signals to realize STC curves for echo receivers which automatically account for varying ambient conditions over very short measurement intervals, corresponding to ranges of a few tens or hundreds of meters or less.

Visible light detection and ranging apparatus and method


An overcurrent protection circuit provided for a switching power supply has a current detector, voltage superposition device, and circuit for reducing a driving pulse. The current detector detects a circuit current in the switching power supply and converts it to a voltage. The voltage superposition device generates a constant voltage and superposes the voltage onto the detected voltage converted by the current detector. The detected voltage onto which the constant voltage has been superposed is applied between the base and the emitter of a transistor which functions as the circuit for reducing the driving pulse. If an overcurrent flows through the switching power supply, the transistor is turned on and a current flows into the transistor. As a result, a voltage applied to a maximum-duty-cycle setting terminal of a PWM IC provided for the switching power supply and used for pulse-width-modulation control of a switch device is reduced, and the overcurrent is suppressed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an overcurrent protection circuit used for a switching power supply.
2. Description of the Related Art
Switching power supplies used as power supplies for operating circuits of electronic units are classified into isolating-type and non-isolating-type switching power supplies. In the case of an isolating-type switching power supply, the switching power supply comprises an input circuit including a first coil at the primary side of a transformer as an input side and an output circuit including a second coil magnetically coupled with the first coil through a core, at the secondary side as an output side.
The input circuit includes the first coil, a DC power supply, a switch device, and a control circuit.
A current supplied from the DC power supply to the first coil flows intermittently by means of ON/OFF control of the switch device performed by the control circuit. As a result, an AC voltage is generated in the second coil, which is magnetically coupled with the first coil. This AC voltage is extracted as a DC output voltage by a rectifying circuit and a smoothing circuit provided for the output circuit, and supplied to a load.
A pulse-width-modulation IC (hereinafter called a PWM IC) is usually used for the control circuit. The PWM IC is basically formed of an error amplifier, a triangular-wave generator, and a comparator.
An output voltage V.sub.out from the output circuit is fed back to the inverted input terminal of the error amplifier and a constant reference voltage is applied to the non-inverted input terminal. The triangular-wave generator outputs, for example, a fundamental triangular wave having a frequency of 20 kHz to 2 MHz. The fundamental triangular wave is input to the inverted input terminal of the comparator and an amplified voltage V.sub.amp amplified by the error amplifier is input to the non-inverted input terminal. The comparator compares the fundamental triangular wave with the amplified voltage Vamp and generates a driving pulse for ON-control of the switch device during the period when the fundamental triangular wave is larger than the amplified voltage Vamp. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, when the amplified voltage V.sub.amp1 is large, the pulse width of the driving pulse becomes small, and when the amplified voltage V.sub.amp2 is small, the pulse width of the driving pulse becomes large. As a result, the ON period of the switch device is varied and pulse-width-modulation control is constantly applied to the output voltage V.sub.out from the output circuit.
The frequency of the driving pulse is the same as that of the fundamental triangular wave. In the PWM IC, the ratio of the pulse width of the driving pulse to the period of the driving pulse, namely the duty cycle, is determined. The duty cycle can be made small by reducing a voltage applied to a duty-cycle setting terminal provided for the PWM IC.
In general-purpose PWM ICs, an overcurrent protection circuit is not provided in many cases. Instead, an overcurrent protection circuit is separately provided for a switching power supply. By referring to FIG. 6, a switching power supply provided with an overcurrent protection circuit will be specifically described below with a resonance-reset-forward-type switching power supply being taken as an example.
An input circuit of the switching power supply includes a first coil 1A at the primary side of the transformer 1, described above, a DC power supply 2, a switch device 3, and a PWM IC 4. An overcurrent protection circuit 5 is also connected as shown.
In a switching power supply, MOS FETs (metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors), IGBTs (insulated gate bipolar transistors), and bipolar transistors are used for the switch device 3, in general. Therefore, in the following description, a case in which a MOS FET is used as the switch device 3 will be taken as an example and described.
One end of the first coil 1A is connected to the positive voltage side of the DC power supply 2, and the other end is connected to the drain D of the MOS FET 3. The source S of the MOS FET 3 is connected to the negative voltage side of the DC power supply 2 through the overcurrent protection circuit 5. The gate G of the MOS FET 3 is connected to a gate drive terminal T.sub.1 of the PWM IC 4. A ground terminal T.sub.2 of the PWM IC is connected to the negative voltage side of the DC power supply 2.
The overcurrent protection circuit 5 is formed of a current detecting resistor 6, a comparator 7, a comparison-reference power supply 8, and a resistor 9.
One end of the current detecting resistor 6 is connected to the source S of the MOS FET 3 and to the inverted input terminal of the comparator 7. The other end of the current detecting resistor 6 is connected to the negative voltage side of the DC power supply 2. The non-inverted input terminal of the comparator 7 is connected to the positive voltage side of the comparison-reference power supply 8. The negative voltage side of the comparison reference power supply 8 is connected to the negative voltage side of the DC power supply 2. The open collector output of the comparator 7 is connected to the maximum-duty-cycle setting terminal T3 for the PWM IC 4 provided for the PWM IC 4 and also connected to a constant-voltage reference power supply V.sub.s through the resistor 9.
Usually, a capacitor 10 is connected in parallel to both ends of the current detecting resistor 6, and the capacitor 10 bypasses a high-frequency component included in a current detected by the current detecting resistor 6. As a result, malfunction of the overcurrent protection circuit 5 caused by the high-frequency component is suppressed. When the PWM IC 4 is provided with a constant-voltage output terminal T.sub.s, the open collector of the comparator 7 may be directly connected to the output terminal T.sub.s through the resistor 9. The comparison-reference power supply 8 may be formed by dividing the constant voltage output from the output terminal T.sub.s with resistors.
The output circuit includes a second coil 1B, an output rectifying diode 11, a flywheel diode 12, a choke coil 13, and a smoothing capacitor 14.
The second coil 1B is magnetically coupled with the first coil 1A through the core 1C. One end of the second coil 1B is connected to the cathode of the output rectifying diode 11. The anode of the output rectifying diode 11 is connected to the anode of the flywheel diode 12, and the cathode of the flywheel diode 12 is connected to the other end of the second coil 1B. The anode of the output rectifying diode 11 is also connected to one end of the choke coil 13, and the other end of the choke coil 13 is connected to the cathode of the flywheel diode 12 through the capacitor 14. The cathode of the flywheel diode 12 is connected to the feedback terminal T.sub.4 of the PWM IC 4.
A load 15 is connected to both ends of the smoothing capacitor 14.
The operation of the switching power supply will be described below.
Between both ends of the current detecting resistor 6, a voltage proportional to a source current I.sub.s flowing through the source S of the FET 3 is generated. The comparator 7 compares the voltage V.sub.6 across the current detecting resistor 6 with the reference voltage V.sub.8 of the comparison-reference power supply 8.
When the source current I.sub.s does not exceed the current specified in advance, the voltage V.sub.6 is smaller than the reference voltage V.sub.8, and the comparator 7 is kept at an off state. Therefore, a current does not flow from the reference power supply V.sub.s to the comparator 7 through the resistor 9 and the open collector of the comparator 7. Consequently, the voltage at the duty-cycle setting terminal T.sub.3 of the PWM IC 4 is maintained at the same voltage as that of the reference power supply V.sub.s, and the duty cycle of the PWM IC 4 is held at a constant.
When the source current I.sub.s becomes greater than the current specified in advance, in other words, when an overcurrent flows through the source S of the FET 3, the voltage V.sub.6 becomes larger than the reference voltage V.sub.8 and the comparator 7 is turned on. As a result, a current flows from the reference power supply Vs to the comparator 7 through the resistor 9 and the open collector of the comparator 7. Therefore, the voltage at the duty-cycle setting terminal T.sub.3 of the PWM IC 4 becomes lower than that of the reference power supply Vs by a voltage drop at the resistor 9. Consequently, the duty cycle of the PWM IC 4 is set to a small value, and the pulse width of the driving pulse for ON-control of the MOSFET becomes small. As a result, the overcurrent flowing through the source S of the MOSFET 3 is suppressed.
On-control is applied to the FET 3 by the driving pulse output from the gate drive terminal T1 of the PWM IC 4, and a current flows intermittently through the first coil 1A. As a result, an AC voltage is generated in the second coil 1B. This AC voltage is half-wave rectified by the output rectifying diode 11 and the flywheel diode 12, then smoothed by the choke coil 13 and the smoothing capacitor 14, and supplied to the load 15 as a DC output voltage V.sub.out.
In recent years, to make a switching power supply compact, however, a switch device operating at a relatively high switching frequency ranging from several hundreds to several MHz is used in some cases.
Therefore, in a case in which an overcurrent protection circuit using a comparator is employed, when the comparator response time is long, even if an overcurrent flows through the switching power supply, the comparator cannot immediately follow. As shown in FIG. 7A, the curve indicating the relationship between the output current and the output voltage decreases gradually. Therefore, the maximum value of the output current flowing through the switching power supply becomes large, and heat generated at electronic components constituting the input circuit and the output circuit becomes high.
On the other hand, when a comparator having a short response time is used so as to follow the operation of the switch device, the curve indicating the relationship between the output current and the output voltage, obtained when an overcurrent flows through the switching power supply, decreases almost immediately. Therefore, a response to an overcurrent becomes extremely satisfactory. However, a short-response-time comparator is generally expensive and it has a large power consumption. Therefore, the switching power supply becomes expensive and energy is wasted.


A nasal breathing assist device includes a pair of open-ended tubular elements each extending along a central tube axis between a relatively large first end and a relatively small second end, a coupler element extending between the first ends of the tubular elements, and at least one non-resilient tab extends from the first end toward the second end of the tubular element. The tab includes at least one relatively small protrusion extending from a distal end of the tab toward the tubular element. The device may further includes a filer having a peripheral frame contoured to be snap-fitted in an open-faced channel defined within the tubular element. The device may further includes a removable medication carrier which is adapted to bear a therapeutic agent and adapted to insert into the open-faced channel of the tubular element. The tubular element may define at least one channels on an inner surface of the tubular element to receive edges of the medication carrier.

Snoring is a condition characterized by rough, loud, rattling breathing or inspiratory noise during sleep or deep coma. The characteristic snoring noise is produced by vibration of the soft palate (the soft tissue in the roof of the mouth near the throat) or vocal chords by inhaled or exhaled air. As the soft palate vibrates, the lips, cheeks, and nostrils may also vibrate, making the snoring louder.
Snoring can be caused by underlying physical or disease conditions that restrict air passages and force the patient to breathe with exaggerated force to move air through narrowed nasal passages. Chronic snoring can be the result of obstruction of larynx, upper airways, a deviated nasal septum, and blockages to the nose and nasal passages. Temporary snoring, or a sudden onset of snoring can be the result of stuffy and swollen mucus membranes, as with a cold or hay fever, or a nasal polyp.
Anatomical deformities in the airway such as large tonsils and adenoids, excessive length of the soft palate, or broken or crooked nose, can also diminish the airway size. Fat deposits around the upper airway, as found in obesity, can make the airway smaller. Low muscle tone in the muscles of the tongue and throat, or medications and foods (such as alcohol) that relax these muscles also increase snoring.
Snoring can causes relationship problems between partners, leading to a loss of intimacy and deterioration of relationships. Decreased sleep, or insufficient restful sleep increases irritability, poor memory and concentration and decreased work performance.
A number of methods and devices have been developed to reduce or eliminate snoring. Some devices are external to the patient and can include, buzzer systems and alarms that wake the patient. Special pillows, neck collars, chin braces and head straps have also been tested in an effort to control snoring. When snoring is caused by serious deformity, surgery has been performed to remove anatomical obstructions, such as removing tonsils, or correcting a deviated septum. Occasionally a procedure called UPPP (Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty) is recommended. This procedure acts like an internal facelift, tightening loose tissue. However, the success rate is only 50%. Laser surgery to correct airway defects is also available in some cases.
Other remedies include herbal potions and medications such as decongestants and anti-histamines. Diet and lifestyle changes may also reduce snoring to some degree.
Various devices have been developed that keep the mouth open, the tongue depressed, or nasal passages open. These dental devices can be expensive custom-fit, or inexpensive over the counter mouth pieces. Adhesive nasal strips, which are applied externally to either side of the nose, have been developed. While these strips may dilate the nasal passages to small degree, they do not work well in patients with anatomical deformities or obstructions in the nose. Air masks that force pressurized air into the mouth and lungs are available. These devices can be cumbersome, unsightly, painful, or expensive, and the patient may abandon these approaches in short time.
Sinusitis is another common nasal disease. Sinusitis is inflammation or infection of the mucous membranes that line the inside of the nose and sinuses. It can be caused by bacteria, viruses, and possibly by allergies. Chronic sinusitis is a prolonged sinus infection which generally last longer than 12 weeks. Chronic sinusitis is difficult to treat because it responds slowly to medications. Conventional treatment for chronic sinusitis includes oral antibiotics, nasal spray, and sinus surgery. These treatments generally cannot get directly to the source of the problem, or may cause side effect, for example, frequently using nasal spray may worsen the symptom.


According to embodiments of the present technique, a system and a method for obtaining low-noise measurements for a wide range of analog signal strengths is provided. According to aspects of the present technique, a low-gain measurement of an input pixel charge is performed, wherein the input pixel charge is distributed to two feedback capacitors, which together provide a relatively low integrator gain. After the low-gain measurement, a high-gain measurement is performed, wherein one of the capacitors is remove from the feedback loop and the charge is redistributed to the remaining capacitor.

The invention relates generally to signal processing, and more particularly to systems and methods for reducing the noise floor in digital X-ray imaging systems.
A number of radiological imaging systems of various designs are known and are presently in use. Certain of these systems are based upon generation of X-rays that are directed toward a subject of interest. The X-rays traverse the subject and, in digital imaging system, impact a digital detector. Such X-ray systems use digital circuitry for detecting the X-rays, which are attenuated, scattered or absorbed by the intervening structures of the subject. In medical diagnostic contexts, for example, such systems may be used to visualize internal tissues and diagnose patient ailments. In other contexts, parts, baggage, parcels, and other subjects may be imaged to assess their contents and for other purposes.
Basic radiographic X-ray systems may be designed for generating projection images only. Such projection images may be presented as a well-known reverse image, although the image data itself is subject to various presentations. In addition to radiographic X-ray systems, fluoroscopy systems, computed tomography systems, and tomosynthesis (CT) systems that are based on similar X-ray radiation generation and detection are also used to generate images. In fluoroscopy systems, for example, a low dose X-ray signal may be used to generate a real-time moving image.
Quantum and electronic noise in the measurement system may tend to cause various artifacts in the radiological data collected in any one of the foregoing types of systems. Such artifacts are not only distracting, but may impair effective use of the images, such as for diagnosis in a medical context. In particular, such artifacts may make small or more detailed features that would otherwise be visible in the images, difficult to detect and discern. Therefore, reducing the noise floor may result in improved image quality and also enable lower dose protocols.
In applications such as mammography and radiography, the X-ray source energy is high, and the gain of the receiving electronics is relatively low. This allows the receiver to generate an image with a high dynamic range. In such systems, the noise floor is dominated by intrinsic X-ray quantum noise, and the noise generated by the electronics is not as important. In applications such as fluoroscopy systems, the X-ray source energy is low and the gain of the receiver circuitry is relatively high. This reduces the overall X-ray exposure to the patient, while still producing a suitable image. In these types of systems, the noise floor is dominated by the receive circuitry.
Existing techniques for reducing the noise floor in a variety of applications are typically tailored to adapt to a given X-ray application, based on the strength of the X-ray source signal. Accordingly, multiple image processing platforms may have to be developed, each with a different noise reduction technique depending on the X-ray application.
It would be advantageous, therefore, to provide improved techniques for reducing noise in radiological image data that may be used for a wide range of signal levels, thus allowing a single image processing platform to be used with a wide range of X-ray applications.

Low-noise data acquisition system for medical imaging


A cage of a rolling bearing, the cage comprising: an annular heel centered on a central axis and having a constant radial thickness measured radially to the central axis; an axial portion extending from the heel substantially parallel to the central axis; and pockets delimited by the heel and the axial portion for receiving rolling elements. The axial portion has an axial length being greater than half the inner diameter of the pockets and an outside diameter being lesser than the outside diameter of the heel and which comprises between a first value equal to the pitch circle diameter of the cage minus half the radial thickness of the heel and a second value equal to the pitch circle diameter of the cage plus half the radial thickness of the heel. The pockets are spaced around the central axis having angular spacings being at least partly different from one another.

In a known manner, a rolling bearing comprises an inner ring, an outer ring, and one or several rows of rolling elements. For each row, the rolling bearing further comprises a cage retaining the rolling elements.
US-A-2010 046 875 discloses an example of such a cage, comprising an annular heel, an axial portion and pockets for receiving rolling elements, more precisely balls. The pockets are delimited by the annular heel and the axial portion. The pockets are regularly spaced around the central axis of the cage. The axial portion has an outside diameter inferior to the outside diameter of the heel. The axial portion is thus lightened, its radial thickness being reduced in comparison with that of the heel, thus leading to a reduction in the cost of the raw material of the cage, in the mass and in the inertia of the cage. Thanks to this lightening, the cage deforms to a lesser extent at high speed, thus reducing cage and ball wear.
However, when the pockets are regularly spaced around the central axis of the cage, at a given rotation speed of the rolling bearing, the balls pass on the same locations at the same frequency, thus increasing wear of raceways of the bearing. Moreover, if this frequency comes into resonance with a natural frequency of the bearing or of other bodies to which the bearing is fixed, an undesired noise is likely to be generated, progressively increasing, and becoming unacceptable in certain cases.

Cage of a rolling bearing, rolling bearing comprising such a cage and apparatus comprising such a rolling bearing


The present invention relates to chimeric (preferably, bifunctional) compounds, compositions comprising those compounds and methods of treating cancer in a patient or subject, especially including metastatic cancer where cancer cells exhibit overexpression (heightened expression) of cell surface urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (urokinase receptor) compared to normal (non-cancerous) cells. The compounds preferably covalently bind to the urokinase receptor and recruit native antibodies of the patient or subject where the antibodies can selectively degrade and/or deactivate targeted cancer cells through antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis and/or antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) against a large number and variety of cancers, thus providing cancer cell death and/or an inhibition of growth, elaboration and/or metastasis of the cancer, including remission and cure of the patient's cancer.

Cancer is currently the second leading cause of death in the United States, having claimed over half a million American lives in 2010.i In general, metastatic cancers are particularly difficult to treat and are associated with higher levels of morbidity and mortality compared to localized tumors.ii,iii For example, while the five-year survival rate of patients with localized melanoma is >95%, tins survival rate drops to 15-30% for patients whose disease has metastasized to distant locations. Since American men and women have a 38-44% chance, respectively, of developing invasive cancers during their lifetimes, novel strategies for treating advanced-stage invasive cancers have the potential to provide profound therapeutic impact.
Tumor metastasis begins with cancer cells invading surrounding tissues. This process is frequently accelerated by cell-surface proteases, including uPA,iv,v,vi which are capable of breaking down extracellular matrix proteins and activating migration-inducing signal transduction cascades.vii,viii uPA binds uPAR on the extracellular surface of many cancer cells, including those of the breast, colon, stomach, and bladder.ix,x Extensive evidence suggests that the levels of uPA and uPAR expression are substantially higher on invasive, malignant cancer cells than on either healthy tissues or benign tumors.v,ix,xi,xii,xiii,xiv Indeed, in clinical settings, high levels of uPA and uPAR are used as diagnostic markers for metastatic potential and poor clinical outcome in numerous malignancies.iv,v,x,xv,xvi,xvii,xviii,xix,xx For these reasons uPA and uPAR have emerged as promising therapeutic targets.ix,xxi Data has shown that inhibitors and cytotoxic fusion proteins that target the uPA-uPAR system can both reduce the invasive potential of cancer cellsxxii,xxiii and reduce tumor volumes in animal modelsxxiv,xxv,xxvi without significantly damaging healthy tissue.
The growing field of synthetic immunologyxxvii aims to develop novel synthetic materials capable of modulating the human immune system. One emerging concept in this area is to use bifunctional molecules to direct normal immune responses to attack cancer cells that are not sufficiently recognized and suppressed by the immune system on its own.xxvii,xxix,xxx,xxxi,xxxii We report here a novel application of this strategy to direct endogenous immunological effector mechanisms to act against uPAR-expressing human cancer cells (FIG. 1). We have designed and synthesized two small molecules that can convert uPA into catalytically inactive, bifunctional constructs (ARM-Us) that are capable of both recruiting antibodies and directing antibody-dependent immune responses against uPAR-expressing cancer cells. These small molecules quantitatively inhibit uPA's enzymatic activity by covalently binding to its active site, and this covalent modification simultaneously appends either a 2,4-dinitrophenyl (DNP) moiety or a fluorescein label. The DNP antigen is of particular interest for therapeutic application because anti-DNP antibodies have been found endogenously in the plasma of most humans.xxxiii Here we demonstrate that ARM-U can bind with high affinity to uPAR-expressing cancer cells, recruit antibodies to these cells, and induce phagocytosis and cytotoxicity in an antibody-dependent immune-mediated fashion. The technology reported herein represents a novel strategy to target uPAR-expressing cancers and has significant potential to impact the treatment of a variety of deadly malignancies.

Reprogramming urokinase into an antibody-recruiting anticancer agent


A golf mat for holding multiple tees for golf practice. The mat has a foam bottom in underlying relation to an artificial turf into which is formed a plurality of recesses each of which is adapted to accommodate a golf tee that lies in the recess, placing it out of the path of a golf club. This provides a longer lasting mat and golf tee combination.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to golf mats. More particularly, it relates to a golf mat that houses a plurality of golf tees. It also includes a golf tee connector or insert that holds the tee in the mat.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Some golf mats have training lines to follow as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,494 to Dionne. Some swivel as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,398 to Kibamoto.
The known mats are used with conventional tees that are mounted under the mat and which extend upwardly through a tee-accommodating opening formed in the mat. This makes the mat vulnerable because a golf club can strike the opening where the tee extends through the mat and tears the mat around the opening. Repeatedly striking the tee also creates a huge resistance to the golf club. Therefore, when the club strikes the tee it catches the tee and starts to open and tear the hole. Accordingly, the mat tears around the hole long before the top of the mat is worn out.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,541 to Martino discloses an improved mat structure that includes addition of a stronger section around the tee-accommodating opening, thereby providing a longer playing time before the mat tears. However, the Martino improvement does not totally solve the problem of the mat tearing around the hole.


A signal can be analysed to determine statistical characteristics indicative of, for example, the predictability or time reversibility of the signal. The signal is examined to locate events corresponding to the crossing of predetermined levels with predetermined slopes. Multiple versions of the signal are combined, the versions being shifted with respect to each other by amounts corresponding to the spacings of the detected events. The shape of the resulting representation provides statistical information regarding the signal.

There are many circumstances in which the statistical characteristics of a signal need to be analysed, for the purpose of, for example, classification of the signal, or monitoring or prediction of the signal behaviour. As will be described in further detail below, an example in which such determination is useful is that of random number generation, for example for use in cryptography. A random or chaotic noise signal can be applied to a digitiser which samples the signal at predetermined sampling intervals and outputs a digital representation of the signal which constitutes a random number. For efficiency, the sampling interval should be short. However, short sampling intervals may lead to random numbers which are not statistically independent of each other. It would therefore be desirable to analyse the statistical characteristics of the noise signal so as to enable the determination of the minimum sampling interval which is required to produce statistically independent random numbers.
There are many other circumstances in which signal statistics determination is useful. Where the signal represents variations in a physical parameter of a source, the statistical analysis can be used to classify the source. For example, each signal may represent variations within an image, and the statistical assessment can be used to classify the subject of the image. Similarly, statistical analysis could be used for classification of sound, such as speech or music.
Known analysis techniques include frequency-domain (or spectral) methods, and time-domain methods. Time-domain methods are often necessary in order to provide the required information, and are commonly based on autocorrelation of the signal.
Conventional correlation techniques are however based on the implicit assumption that the signal of interest is Gaussian, and that the statistical behaviour of the signal when considered in the forward direction of time corresponds to that in the backwards direction of time; any asymmetry in the behaviour is lost due to the fact that a correlation function is insensitive to the time direction. In practice, many of the signals being monitored are actually non-Gaussian. Non-linear dependencies in such signals may not be detected by standard correlation techniques.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a method and an apparatus for analysing the statistical behaviour of a signal, which provides a more useful result than the prior art techniques.


A color gamut that has been mapped from a monitor gamut into a printer gamut by gamut mapping is narrower than the printer gamut. Hence, an image to be output, which is corrected by gamut mapping, has low contrast and poor vividness. Hence, a gamut enlargement correction unit (1208) maps an intermediate mapped gamut into the printer gamut with reference to the intermediate mapped gamut obtained by mapping the monitor gamut, and the printer gamut, thus obtaining a mapped gamut for gamut mapping.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signal processing apparatus, image processing apparatus, and their methods and, for example, to a signal processing apparatus, image processing apparatus, and their methods for converting or transforming (gamut-mapping) a signal in a given color space into that in another color space.
2. Description of Related Art
A computer system or video printer, which has a color monitor and color printer, a color image created and/or processed on a monitor, or a color image received by an image receiving device, is often printed out.
As is known, a color monitor that expresses a color image by emitting light in a specific wavelength range using a phosphor has a quite different color gamut from that of a color printer that expresses a color image by absorbing light in a specific wavelength range using ink or the like, and using remaining reflected light. Furthermore, color monitors have different color gamuts depending on their types, i.e., a monitor that uses liquid crystal, a monitor using an electron gun type cathode ray tube, a monitor using a plasma system, and the like. Similarly, color printers have different color gamuts depending on different paper qualities, different ink consumption amounts, and the like.
For this reason, it is impossible to calorimetrically match the colors of an image displayed on a given color monitor, an image output by a given color printer, and color images output using a plurality of types of printers and a plurality of types of recording sheets. Hence, when a person sees color images displayed (formed) on individual output media, he or she experiences large tincture or color appearance differences among images.
Gamut mapping or color matching is known as an image processing technique for absorbing such perceptual tincture differences of displayed (formed) color images among output media having different color gamuts and perceptually matching their tinctures with each other.
According to one image processing technique, gamut mapping is done by computing the square sum of differences between color signals for all colors used in a color monitor and those used in a color printer, and minimizing the square sum. However, this technique can obtain a satisfactory result within the color gamuts of the two devices, but considerably impair image information for color signals falling outside the ranges due to losses of grayscale characteristics or the like. For this reason, when an image has color signals falling outside the color gamuts of the two devices, it is observed to have quite different colors when it is displayed or formed by these devices.
Also, various gamut mapping techniques have been developed under the condition that grayscale information is preserved as much as possible, in consideration of the aforementioned problem relating to tone reproduction. However, in these techniques, since the amplitude of a difference signal between a color signal of a color monitor and that of a color printer upon expressing a given color becomes large for all colors, images displayed or formed by these devices are observed to have considerably different colors.
In this manner, a gamut mapping technique that can simultaneously solve these two problems is demanded.
As personal computers and workstations prevail, desktop publishing (DTP) and computer-aided design techniques are used in many occasions. In such situation, a color reproduction technique that reproduces colors expressed on a monitor by a computer using actual color agents is important. For example, in case of DTP, a color image is created, edited, processed, and so forth on a color monitor, and is output via a color printer. For this reason, it is strongly demanded that the colors of an image displayed on the color monitor (to be referred to as a "monitor image" hereinafter) perceptually match those of the image printed out (to be referred to as a "print image" hereinafter).
However, perceptual color matching between the monitor and print images encounters difficulty for the aforementioned reasons.
As a technique for absorbing perceptual color differences among output media having different color gamuts and perceptually matching the colors of images formed, gamut mapping for mapping a given color gamut into another color gamut is known. Gamut mapping performs, e.g., linear mapping in the lightness-saturation plane in units of hues in a uniform calorimetric system. According to this technique, the color gamut of a monitor shown in the graph of FIG. 19A is mapped into the color gamut of a printer shown in the graph of FIG. 19B.
However, as shown in FIG. 19B, the mapped color gamut indicated by the solid curve is narrower than the printer color gamut indicated by the one-dashed chain curve. An image that has been corrected by such gamut mapping and is printed out normally has low contrast and poor vividness.

Signal processing apparatus image processing apparatus and their methods


A heat-exchanging core portion includes a plurality of tubes arranged in parallel and a plurality of fin members disposed between a pair of adjacent tubes. While an electric heat emitting unit is constructed by supporting a heat emitting body including a heat emitting element inside a frame through a fin member. The electric heat emitting unit is installed into a space, which is defined in the heat-exchanging core portion, having a predetermined distance after the heat-exchanging core portion is assembled and integrally brazed while defining the space.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat exchanger for heating a passenger compartment of a vehicle by carrying out heat exchange between air and hot water (engine coolant), to which an electric heat emitter is attached.
2. Description of Related Art
A heating heat exchanger to which an electric heat emitter is attached is disclosed in JP-A-63-203411 and JP-U-6-75819. According to this heating heat exchanger, the electric heat emitter is integrated with the heat exchanger to heat air by carrying out heat exchange between the air and hot water (engine coolant). In the heating heat exchanger, when the hot water temperature is low as in right after a vehicle engine starts, an electric current is supplied to the electric heat emitter. Then, the heat generated by the electric heat emitter radiates to the air through corrugated fins of the heat exchanger, and the air is heated.
However, according to the heating heat exchanger disclosed in JP-A-5-69732, because the electric heat emitter including a heat emitting element and electrode plates is brazed with a core portion of the heat exchanger, the electric heat emitter is exposed to a high temperature condition (about 600.degree. C., in case an aluminum brazing process is carried out). As a result, the electric characteristic of the heat emitter is deteriorated.
Further, according to JP-U-6-75819, the electric heat emitter is installed in a concave portion formed on an air downstream side surface of the plate fin, in a plate fin type heating heat exchanger. In this plate fin type heat exchanger, a cylindrical tube is mechanically expanded to connect to the plate fin. Therefore, a heat resistance at the connecting portion becomes large, thereby decreasing the heat conductive efficiency of the heat exchanger.
Further, the concave portion is additionally formed on the plate fin for installing the electric heat emitter, thereby increasing the manufacturing cost of the heat exchanger.

Heating heat exchanger with electric heat emitter


A microemulsion light duty liquid detergent with desirable cleansing properties and mildness to the human skin comprising: a C.sub.8-18 ethoxylated alkyl ether sulfate anionic surfactant, a sulfonate anionic surfactant, an alkyl polyglucoside surfactant, and a betaine surfactant and/or amine oxide surfactant, a cosurfactant, a water insoluble hydrocarbon, essential oil or perfume, water and optionally a C.sub.8-18 mono or dialkoxylated alkylamide.

In recent years all-purpose liquid detergents have become widely accepted for cleaning hard surfaces, e.g., painted woodwork and panels, tiled walls, wash bowls. bathtubs, linoleum or tile floors, washable wall paper, etc.. Such all-purpose liquids comprise clear and opaque aqueous mixtures of water-soluble organic detergents and water-soluble detergent builder salts. In order to achieve comparable cleaning efficiency with granular or powdered all-purpose cleaning compositions, use of water-soluble inorganic phosphate builder salts was favored in the prior art all-purpose liquids. For example, such early phosphate-containing compositions are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,560,839; 3,234,138; 3,350,319: and British Patent No. 1,223,739.
In view of the environmentalist's efforts to reduce phosphate levels in ground water, improved all-purpose liquids containing reduced concentrations of inorganic phosphate builder salts or non-phosphate builder salts have appeared. A particularly useful self-opacified liquid of the latter type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,244,840.
However, these prior art all-purpose liquid detergents containing detergent builder salts or other equivalent tend to leave films, spots or streaks on cleaned unrinsed surfaces, particularly shiny surfaces. Thus, such liquids require thorough rinsing of the cleaned surfaces which is a time-consuming chore for the user.
In order to overcome the foregoing disadvantage of the prior art all-purpose liquid, U.S. Pat. No. 4,017,409 teaches that a mixture of paraffin sulfonate and a reduced concentration of inorganic phosphate builder salt should be employed. However, such compositions are not completely acceptable from an environmental point of view based upon the phosphate content. On the other hand, another alternative to achieving phosphate-free all-purpose liquids has been to use a major proportion of a mixture of anionic and nonionic detergents with minor amounts of glycol ether solvent and organic amine as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,130. Again, this approach has not been completely satisfactory and the high levels of organic detergents necessary to achieve cleaning cause foaming which, in turn, leads to the need for thorough rinsing which has been found to be undesirable to today's consumers.
Another approach to formulating hard surface or all-purpose liquid detergent composition where product homogeneity and clarity are important considerations involves the formation of oil-in-water (o/w) microemulsions which contain one or more surface-active detergent compounds, a water-immiscible solvent (typically a hydrocarbon solvent), water and a "cosurfactant" compound which provides product stability. By definition, an o/w microemulsion is a spontaneously forming colloidal dispersion of "oil" phase particles having a particle size in the range of about 25 to about 800 .ANG. in a continuous aqueous phase.
In view of the extremely fine particle size of the dispersed oil phase particles, microemulsions are transparent to light and are clear and usually highly stable against phase separation.
Patent disclosures relating to use of grease-removal solvents in o/w microemulsions include, for example, European Patent Applications EP 0137615 and EP 0137616 --Herbots et al; European Patent Application EP 0160762 - Johnston et al; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,991 --Herbots et al. Each of these patent disclosures also teaches using at least 5% by weight of grease-removal solvent.
It also is known from British Patent Application GB 2144763A to Herbots et al. published Mar. 13, 1985, that magnesium salts enhance grease-removal performance of organic grease-removal solvents, such as the terpenes. in o/w microemulsion liquid detergent compositions. The compositions of this invention described by Herbots et al. require at least 5% of the mixture of grease-removal solvent and magnesium salt and preferably at least 5% of solvent (which may be a mixture of water-immiscible non-polar solvent with a sparingly soluble slightly polar solvent) and at least 0.1% magnesium salt.
However, since the amount of water immiscible and sparingly soluble components which can be present in an o/w microemulsion, with low total active ingredients without impairing the stability of the microemulsion is rather limited (for example, up to about 18% by weight of the aqueous phase), the presence of such high quantities of grease-removal solvent tend to reduce the total amount of greasy or oily soils which can be taken up by and into the microemulsion without causing phase separation.
The following representative prior art patents also relate to liquid detergent cleaning compositions in the form of o/w microemulsions: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,472,291 --Rosario; 4,540,448 --Gauteer et al: 3,723,330 --Sheflin; etc.
Liquid detergent compositions which include terpenes, such as d-limonene, or other grease-removal solvent, although not disclosed to be in the form of o/w microemulsions, are the subject matter of the following representative patent documents: European Patent Application 0080749: British Patent Specification 1,603,047; 4,414,128; and 4,540,505. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,128 broadly discloses an aqueous liquid detergent composition characterized by, by weight:
(a) from about 1% to about 20% of a synthetic anionic, nonionic, amphoteric or zwitterionic surfactant or mixture thereof;
(b) from about 0.5% to about 10% of a mono- or sesquiterpene or mixture thereof, at a weight ratio of (a):(b) lying in the range Vf 5:1 to 1:3; and
(c ) from about 0.5% about 10% of a polar solvent having a solubility in water at 15.degree. C. in the range of from about 0.2% to about 10%. Other ingredients present in the formulations disclosed in this patent include from about 0.05% to about 2% by weight of an alkali metal, ammonium or alkanolammonium soap of a C.sub.13 -C.sub.24 fatty acid; a calcium sequestrant from about 0.5% to about 13% by weight; non-aqueous solvent, e.g., alcohols and glycol ethers, up to about 10% by weight; and hydrotropes, e.g., urea, ethanolamines, salts of lower alkylaryl sulfonates, up to about 10% by weight. All of the formulations shown in the Examples of this patent include relatively large amounts of detergent builder salts which are detrimental to surface shine.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,584 discloses a microemulsion composition having an anionic surfactant, a cosurfactant, nonionic surfactant, perfume and water; however, these compositions are not light duty liquid compositions.
The present invention relates to novel microemulsion light duty liquid detergent compositions with high foaming properties, containing an alkyl polyglucoside surfactant, a sulfonate surfactant, a betaine and/or amine oxide surfactant, an ethoxylated alkyl ether sulfate surfactant, and optionally a cosurfactant, a solubilizing agent and/or an alkyl mono or dialkoxylated amide.
Nonionic surfactants are in general chemically inert and stable toward pH change and are therefore well suited for mixing and formulation with other materials. The superior performance of nonionic surfactants on the removal of oily soil is well recognized. Nonionic surfactants are also known to be mild to human skin. However, as a class, nonionic surfactants are known to be low or moderate foamers. Consequently, for detergents which require copious and stable foam, the application of nonionic surfactants is limited. There have been substantial interest and efforts to develop a high foaming detergent with nonionic surfactants as the major active ingredient. Yet, little has been achieved.
The prior art is replete with light duty liquid detergent compositions containing nonionic surfactants in combination with anionic and/or betaine surfactants wherein the nonionic detergent is not the major active surfactant, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,658,985 wherein an anionic based shampoo contains a minor amount of a fatty acid alkanolamide. U.S. Pat. No. 3,769,398 discloses a betaine-based shampoo containing minor amounts of nonionic surfactants. This patent states that the low foaming properties of nonionic detergents renders its use in shampoo compositions non-preferred. U.S. Pat. No. 4,329,335 also discloses a shampoo containing a betaine surfactant as the major ingredient and minor amounts of a nonionic surfactant and of a fatty acid mono- or di-ethanolamide. U.S. Pat. No. 4,259,204 discloses a shampoo comprising 0.8-20% by weight of an anionic phosphoric acid ester and one additional surfactant which may be either anionic, amphoteric, or nonionic. U.S. Pat. No. 4,329,334 discloses an anionic-amphoteric based shampoo containing a major amount of anionic surfactant and lesser amounts of a betaine and nonionic surfactants.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,129 discloses a liquid cleaning composition based on the alkali metal silicate content and containing five basic ingredients, namely, urea, glycerin, triethanolamine, an anionic detergent and a nonionic detergent. The silicate content determines the amount of anionic and/or nonionic detergent in the liquid cleaning composition. However, the foaming property of these detergent compositions is not discussed therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,129,515 discloses a heavy duty liquid detergent for laundering fabrics comprising a mixture of substantially equal amounts of anionic and nonionic surfactants, alkanolamines and magnesium salts, and, optionally, zwitterionic surfactants as suds modifiers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,224,195 discloses an aqueous detergent composition for laundering socks or stockings comprising a specific group of nonionic detergents, namely, an ethylene oxide of a secondary alcohol, a specific group of anionic detergents, namely, a sulfuric ester salt of an ethylene oxide adduct of a secondary alcohol, and an amphoteric surfactant which may be a betaine, wherein either the anionic or nonionic surfactant may be the major ingredient.
The prior art also discloses detergent compositions containing all nonionic surfactants as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,154,706 and 4,329,336 wherein the shampoo compositions contain a plurality of particular nonionic surfactants in order to effect desirable foaming and detersive properties despite the fact that nonionic surfactants are usually deficient in such properties.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,013,787 discloses a piperazine based polymer in conditioning and shampoo compositions which may contain all nonionic surfactant or all anionic surfactant.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,895 teaches a liquid detergent composition containing an alcohol sulfate surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, a paraffin sulfonate surfactant, an alkyl ether sulfate surfactant and water but fails to disclose an alkyl polysaccharide surfactant.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,450,091 discloses high viscosity shampoo compositions containing a blend of an amphoteric betaine surfactant, a polyoxybutylene polyoxyethylene nonionic detergent, an anionic surfactant, a fatty acid alkanolamide and a polyoxyalkylene glycol fatty ester. But, none of the exemplified compositions contains an active ingredient mixture wherein the nonionic detergent is present in major proportion, probably due to the low foaming properties of the polyoxybutylene polyoxyethylene nonionic detergent.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,526 describes a composition comprising a nonionic surfactant, a betaine surfactant, an anionic surfactant and a C.sub.12 -C.sub.14 fatty acid monethanolamide foam stabilizer.
However, none of the above-cited patents discloses a microemulsion foaming, liquid detergent composition containing a nonionic surfactant, a supplementary high foaming anionic sulfonate surfactant, a betaine surfactant, and an ethoxylated alkyl ether sulfate surfactant and a water insoluble hydrocarbon or perfume as the essential ingredients, and the composition does not contain any abrasives, silicas, alkaline earth metal carbonates, alkyl glycine surfactant, cyclic imidinium surfactant, alkali metal carbonates or more than 3 wt. % of a fatty acid or its salt thereof.

Microemulsion light duty liquid cleaning compositions


An automobile center console has an associated armrest with a lifting and transverse shifting mechanism that exerts on the armrest a combination of a lifting movement and a transverse displacement toward one of the two front seats. The lifting and transverse shifting mechanism is located on a guide carriage that is linearly movable by a linear guide device along the center console in the lengthwise direction of the vehicle.

The invention relates to a center console for an automobile, said console being located between the two front seats, with at least one armrest associated with at leas one of the two front seats, said armrest being adjustable by means of at least one adjusting device into different ergonomic positions relative to the (at least) one front seat.
Adjustable armrests for motor vehicles are known from German Patent Document DE 38 07 880 C2. Such known armrests are mounted to be displaceable along the center console of the interior of the vehicle, with adjustment relative to the position of the front seats from the ergonomic standpoint being possible depending on the position of the respective front seat.
A height-adjustable center armrest for motor vehicles is known from French Patent 2 633 566 in which the armrest plate is mounted on a supporting plate by a plurality of compression springs as well as a lifting mechanism. The supporting plate together with the armrest is mounted on an adjustable frame and is intended merely to be placed loosely in the vicinity of the center console of the vehicle. The lifting mechanism comprises a spider that is lockable by engaging a locking rod, said spider supporting the armrest and being adjustable heightwise manually exclusively in the vertical direction, with extension being reinforced by releasing the compression springs and lowering being accomplished against the force of the compression springs.
An ergonomically adjustable armrest is also known from German Patent Document DE 41 35 279 A1, said armrest being mountable by a vertical base plate on doors or side walls of a motor vehicle. Heightwise and widthwise adjustment is permitted by two linear guides and corresponding gear drives using an external drive. No lengthwise displaceability is provided.
An object of the invention is to provide a center console of the type referred to at the outset whose armrest is adaptable in an ergonomically satisfactory manner to a wide range of individuals of extremely different heights.
This object is achieved according to preferred embodiments of the invention by virtue of the fact that the armrest has associated with it a lifting and transverse shifting mechanism that exerts on the armrest a combination of a lifting movement and a transverse shift, crosswise with respect to the lengthwise axis of the vehicle, toward one of the two front seats and in that the lifting/shifting mechanism is mounted on a guide carriage that is linearly movable in the lengthwise direction of the vehicle by means of a linear guide device along the center console. In addition to the lengthwise displacement of the armrest, known of itself, the armrest can therefore be adjusted heightwise and transversely toward the respective front seat, so that the armrest can be adjusted in an ergonomically favorable manner for a wide range of individuals ranging from very small, thin individuals to very tall, broad persons. The transverse shift toward the front seat makes it unnecessary for relatively short, thin persons to slide sideways on their front seats in order to be able to support themselves on the armrest.
In the design of certain preferred embodiments of the invention, a scissors joint is provided as the lifting and transverse shifting mechanism, one of whose joint levers is additionally displaceable transversely in the vicinity of its upper and lower articulation points in a linear guide. This is an especially simple yet functionally reliable mechanical solution for the lifting and transverse shifting mechanism.
In certain preferred embodiments of the invention, the scissors joint is lockable in its folded and extended end positions as well as in several intermediate positions with the aid of a lock. In this way, any person seated on the corresponding front seat can move the armrest individually into the correct ergonomic position and lock it in this position.
In certain preferred embodiments of the invention, the lock is manually operable by a handle. This is a simple and economical yet functionally reliable design.
In certain preferred embodiments of the invention, the linear guide device is a locking mechanism for locking the guide carriage in different intermediate positions between front and rear end positions as well as for locking in the two end positions. The armrest is also lockable along the center console in various individually adjustable positions.
In certain preferred embodiments of the invention, the locking device is manually operable by a handle. This also results in simple and economical yet functionally reliable operability for the locking device.

Center console having lengthwise, laterally and vertically moveable armrest for an automobile


The present invention relates to a method for transceiving scheduling signals in a multi-carrier wireless communication system, comprising a step of transmitting, via a predetermined downlink component carrier, a PDSCH transmission scheduling signal on one or more downlink component carriers and/or a PUSCH transmission scheduling signal on one or more uplink component carriers; and a step of transceiving the PDSCH and/or the PUSCH in accordance with the scheduling signals. The scheduling signals can be defined to the same size in a PDCCH transmission region of said predetermined downlink component carrier in the event different MIMO transmission modes are applied to the PDSCH transmission or the PUSCH transmission, or in the event said one or more downlink component carriers or said one or more uplink component carriers have different bandwidths.

In a general wireless communication system, only one carrier is considered even though an uplink and downlink are set to different bandwidths. For example, an uplink and downlink are respectively configured with one carrier and bandwidths of the uplink and downlink are symmetrical on a single carrier basis in a wireless communication system.
ITU (International Telecommunication Union) requires a candidate technology for IMT-Advanced to support an extended bandwidth compared to the existing wireless communication system. However, it is difficult to allocate a frequency with a wide bandwidth in general. Accordingly, carrier aggregation, bandwidth aggregation or spectrum aggregation is developed which physically combines a plurality of bands in a frequency domain to create an effect of using a logically wide band in order to use segmented narrow bands.
Carrier aggregation is introduced in order to support increased throughput, prevent cost increase due to introduction of broadband RF elements and guarantee compatibility with existing systems. This carrier aggregation enables data exchange between a user equipment (UE) and a base station (BS) by combining a plurality of carriers on a bandwidth basis, defined in a conventional wireless communication system (e.g. a 3GPP LTE release 8 or 9 system in the case of a 3GPP LTE-Advanced system). Here, the carrier defined in the conventional wireless communication system can be referred to as a component carrier (CC). Carrier aggregation, wherein one or more CCs are used on each of an uplink and downlink, can be used. The carrier aggregation can include technologies that support system bandwidths of up to 100 MHz corresponding to a group of five CCs even if a single CC supports a bandwidth of 5 MHz, 10 MHz or 20 MHz.

Method and apparatus for transceiving scheduling signals in a multi-carrier wireless communication system


An illumination apparatus includes a light source that emits light, a light guide member that has a base end surface onto which the light emitted from the light source is incident and a tip surface which is an opposite end surface to the base end surface, and guides the light from the base end surface towards the tip surface, and an attachment member that has a light shield property and an opening corresponding to a shape of the light guide member and accommodates the light guide member in the opening. The light guide member is curved so that a distance between the light guide member and the opening is gradually increased towards the tip surface-side in a longitudinal direction of the light guide member.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an illumination apparatus, and more particularly, to an illumination apparatus having a light guide member of a long article.
2. Related Art
Patent Document 1 discloses an illumination apparatus for a vehicle cabin where an illumination member of a long article having a light guide property is disposed on an instrument panel, an upper part of the instrument panel is formed with a recess portion, the recess portion opens downwardly, the illumination member is accommodated in the recess portion, a cover member is attached and fixed to the opening of the recess portion and light emitted from the illumination member is illuminated from the opening of the recess portion to an outside through the cover member.
Patent Document 2 discloses an illumination apparatus for a vehicle having a long light guide member and a light source configured to make light incident on an end surface of the light guide member in a longitudinal direction, where the light guide member is accommodated in a housing, the housing is attached to a molding and the light emitted from the light guide member is illuminated from an opening configured by the housing and the molding to an outside.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 4,737,241B
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent No. 5,225,744B
In the technology of Patent Document 1, a distance (a distance between the illumination member and the cover member) between the illumination member and the opening of the recess portion is constant in a longitudinal direction of the illumination member.
Therefore, a shape of an illumination range (an illumination region) of the light emitted from the illumination member is similar to a shape (a long rectangular shape) of the opening of the recess portion and an illuminance in the illumination range is uniform, so that an illuminance difference (a contrast) between an internal and an external of the illumination range is increased.
For this reason, when an illumination target is very close to the illumination member, particularly, a boundary of the illumination range is clearly illuminated to the illumination target, so that an illumination effect of a soft texture by indirect illumination is deteriorated.
In the technology of Patent Document 2, a distance between the light guide member and the opening is constant in the longitudinal direction of the light guide member.
Therefore, a shape of an illumination range of the light emitted from the light guide member is similar to a shape (a long rectangular shape) of the opening and an illuminance in the illumination range is uniform, so that an illuminance difference between an internal and an external of the illumination range is increased.
For this reason, when an illumination target is very close to the light guide member, particularly, a boundary of the illumination range is clearly illuminated to the illumination target, so that an illumination effect of a soft texture by indirect illumination is deteriorated.
In recent years, for the indirect illumination of which illumination range has a long linear shape, it is required to improve the illumination effect of the indirect illumination by gradually decreasing the illuminance towards an end portion of the illumination range in a longitudinal direction and gradually narrowing a width of the illumination range in a width direction.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an illumination apparatus capable of improving an illumination effect of indirect illumination.

Illumination apparatus with curved light guide


Provided is an apparatus and method for connecting a Bluetooth portable terminal to a Bluetooth device closest to the Bluetooth portable terminal by measuring link qualities or Received Signal Strength Indications (RSSIs) of accessible Bluetooth devices to determine the closest Bluetooth device when a Bluetooth connection event occurs in the Bluetooth portable terminal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for Bluetooth connection in a portable terminal, and in particular, to an apparatus and method for connecting a Bluetooth® (hereinafter "Bluetooth") portable terminal to a Bluetooth device closest to the Bluetooth portable terminal when a Bluetooth connection event occurs in the Bluetooth portable terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
Owing to the development of efficient and economical Bluetooth communication technology, more electronic devices are using Bluetooth modules. Bluetooth is a radio communication protocol for connecting various terminals and devices using an Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band frequency of 2.4 GHz at a rate of 1 Mbps. A device including a Bluetooth module (i.e., a Bluetooth device) communicates with a neighboring Bluetooth device using a Bluetooth ratio frequency as follows. The Bluetooth device searches for neighboring Bluetooth devices and selects one of the searched Bluetooth devices. If authentication is required for a Bluetooth communication with the selected Bluetooth device, authentication procedures are performed by Bluetooth pairing. Then, the two Bluetooth devices communicate with each other. A general method of searching for accessible Bluetooth devices is described with respect to FIG. 1.
FIG. 1 is an exemplary view illustrating how a Bluetooth portable terminal 100 generally searches for neighboring Bluetooth devices.
In FIG. 1, the Bluetooth portable terminal 100 including a Bluetooth module searches for neighboring Bluetooth devices 120, 122, 124, and 126 and makes a list 102 of accessible Bluetooth devices using the search result. Then, a user of the Bluetooth portable terminal 100 selects one Bluetooth device from the list 102. When a number of Bluetooth devices are searched for as accessible Bluetooth devices, as in FIG. 1, it can be difficult for the user to select one of the Bluetooth devices. For example, a plurality of Bluetooth devices 120 and 122 having the same name can be searched for as accessible Bluetooth devices, and moreover, the name of the searched Bluetooth devices 120 and 122 can be a product model name that is not familiar to the user. In this case, it may be more difficult for the user to select one of the Bluetooth devices 120 and 122.
Conventional Bluetooth connection procedures are described with reference to FIG. 2, wherein a flowchart illustrating Bluetooth connection process between Bluetooth devices is shown.
In FIG. 2, in step 200, a Bluetooth device receives a Bluetooth connection request from a user. In step 202, the Bluetooth device searches for accessible Bluetooth devices by transmitting a Host Controller Interface (HCI) inquire signal as a connection request signal and receiving a response signal. In step 204, the Bluetooth device outputs a list of accessible Bluetooth devices. In step 206, a user selects one of the listed accessible Bluetooth devices. In step 208, the Bluetooth device connects to the selected Bluetooth device by Bluetooth pairing. In step 210, a Bluetooth service is provided to the user.
In step 206, the user selects one of the listed accessible Bluetooth devices. However, it may be difficult for the user to select one of the listed accessible Bluetooth devices due to the above-mentioned problems. In general, users of Bluetooth portable terminals use a Bluetooth connection for connecting his/her Bluetooth portable terminal to other devices such as a Bluetooth headset, a Bluetooth headphone, a Bluetooth handsfree kit, or another Bluetooth portable terminal. In this case, most users may place a desired Bluetooth device close to their respective Bluetooth portable terminal and then try a Bluetooth connection between his/her Bluetooth portable terminal and the Bluetooth device.
Therefore, in addition to a conventional apparatus and method for connecting two Bluetooth devices by searching for neighboring Bluetooth devices and selecting one of the searched Bluetooth devices, there is a need for an apparatus and method for connecting the closest two Bluetooth devices.

Apparatus and method for bluetooth connection in portable terminal


A camera film-loading door interlock mechanism includes a film-loading door movable between a closed position and an open position to provide access to a film compartment in the camera. A door latch has an active state retaining the film-loading door in its closed position and an inactive state permitting movement of the film-loading door to its open position. A door un-latching mechanism is movable along a predetermined path to set the door latch in its inactive state, and a locking lever is selectively movable into the path of the door un-latching mechanism to prevent the door un-latching mechanism from setting the door latch in its inactive state. A bi-stable structure selectively moves the locking lever into the path of the door un-latching mechanism. The door un-latching mechanism includes a slide lever, slidably movable along the predetermined path to set the door latch in its inactive state, and a slide lever stop movable with the slide lever. The locking lever is selectively movable into the path of the slide lever stop. The bi-stable structure includes a rotatable cam and an electromagnetic member for selectively rotating the cam to a position causing the locking lever to move into the path of the door un-latching mechanism against a resilient bias.

It has long been a desirable feature of current point-and-shoot cameras to prevent accidental opening of the film-loading door while film is present in the film gate. Various mechanisms exist that mechanically sense the presence of film in the film gate and disable the film-loading door un-latching mechanism. Another type of interlock device exists for advanced photo system (APS) cameras wherein the door latch mechanism also interfaces with the film cartridge active-light-lock mechanism. This type of interlock device works by blocking the active-light-lock mechanism unless the cartridge spool is parked in the fully exposed state.
With the advent of the new APS cameras and their sophisticated electronic microprocessor controls, new customer features are being introduced. One such feature is the ability to electronically sense the fully exposed state of a cartridge that has been inserted into the camera. If, for example, a fully exposed cartridge had been inserted into the camera, the camera senses this and does not thrust the film out of the cartridge. To do so would cause double exposure of the film and resultant loss of pictures. Likewise, if a processed cartridge were inserted into the camera, the camera would likely malfunction if it attempted to thrust the film because the metering opto-sensors that are commonly used cannot detect the transitions of the film perforations that are used to register the film in the film gate for each picture.
Another APS feature enhancement is the ability of the camera to sense that a cartridge, being newly inserted into the camera, has been only partially exposed and can now be thrust in a manner that the first available unexposed frame is registered in the film gate. In each of these cases, the camera first drives the film cartridge in the rewind direction in order to optically read a cartridge bar code label and thus determine the state of the cartridge when it was first inserted into the camera. If the camera determines that the cartridge should not be used, as in the case of a fully exposed or processed cartridge, the camera must then re-park the cartridge in its original state. The camera would then provide the user some indication that the cartridge is unusable and that it should be removed from the camera.
During the camera operation cycle where the cartridge bar code label is being read, it is important that nothing interferes with the rotation of the cartridge spool. To do so would cause the bar code label to be mis-read and the exposure state of the cartridge to be incorrectly determined. The undesirable consequences could be double exposed pictures, camera malfunction, or parking the cartridge in the wrong exposure state.
Many of the APS camera features described above would present a challenge to the simple door interlock schemes currently in use. It is apparent then that a more robust and comprehensive door interlock device is required to help prevent the common mishaps that can occur and to help give the user a more enjoyable picture taking experience.
Some cameras use a large solenoid to drive the door latching mechanism or some form of motor driven gear train to provide the necessary power. While these embodiments may be robust, they tend to require substantial space in the camera or require camera power in order to remove the film cartridge at a later time. Noise is another factor that should also be considered.


A system and method of controlling a concentration of one or more gases dissolved in a beverage is included. The system includes a saturation tank having a gas head space, a brite tank, and a beverage supply system to pass the beverage between the saturation tank and the brite tank. A beverage supersaturated with the gas from the head space is formed in the saturation tank. The supersaturated beverage is passed from the saturation tank to the brite tank. Once the amount of gas added to the beverage exceeds saturation, some of the gas escapes from solution from the beverage and the pressure in the brite tank increases. Once the pressure within the brite tank reaches a pre-defined pressure, a pump supplying the beverage to the saturation tank is shut-off and the inlet and outlet valves of the brite tank are closed.

The current method for dissolving carbon dioxide (CO2) into beer is to place diffusers at the bottom of a pressurized carbonation tank and bubble CO2 gas through the diffusers into the beer. The gas dissolves into the beer as the bubbles rise through the beer. A gas headspace is maintained at the top of the carbonation tank above the beer to collect and vent undissolved CO2. The source of the CO2 is typically commercially purchased storage dewars containing liquid CO2. The CO2 is vaporized into a gas and pressurized. Approximately half or more of the gas passing through the beer does not dissolve and is vented to the air outside the carbonation tank. When CO2 gas is added to the carbonation tank, the CO2 that is dissolved does not add volume to the tank and therefore does not increase pressure inside the carbonation tank. CO2 gas that is not dissolved will add volume to the tank and will increase pressure in the tank if not vented. Therefore, when using the current carbonation method, the carbonation tank must be continually vented to maintain the desired pressure. The pressure in the carbonation tank is used to control the final, saturated dissolved CO2 content of the beer. As the pressure of the gas and beer is increased, the beer can hold more dissolved CO2. Dissolved CO2 content is an important quality parameter for beer to provide the fizz, proper mouth feel, and flavor. Typical carbonation tank pressures range from 10 to 15 psi gauge and this allows the beer to increase CO2 concentration from typically 1 vol CO2/volume beer to 2.5 to 3 vol CO2/volume beer (vol/vol). Undissolved CO2 exiting the carbonation tank is a wasted cost, can increase the CO2 concentration in the building which creates a health hazard and requires additional cost for ventilation, and also adds to the greenhouse gas carbon footprint of the process. Also, the gas headspace at the top of the carbonation tank can allow oxygen from air into the tank upon initially filling the carbonation tank with beer. This oxygen can have detrimental effects on beer quality and reduce shelf life of packaged beer. The rate that the CO2 dissolves into the beer depends on the CO2 gas transferring from the bubble to the beer and varies greatly with the type of beer being carbonated, bubble size, pressure, and desired final CO2 content. These parameters can change from batch to batch. It would therefore be desirable to develop an apparatus and method of carbonating beverages that overcomes these drawbacks.
Dissolving nitrogen gas in beverages imparts a different flavor and mouth feel than carbonation. Nitrogen gas is far less soluble in a water-based beverage than carbon dioxide. Because of this, there is usually far less dissolved nitrogen gas than carbon dioxide in beverages. When a beverage package is sealed, the pressure inside is elevated causing dissolved gas to remain in solution. When the package is opened, the pressure is reduced to that of the surrounding atmosphere resulting in dissolved gas exiting solution as bubbles. When nitrogen gas exits solution, it does so much more slowly than carbon dioxide and the nitrogen bubbles that form are much smaller than carbon dioxide bubbles as a result. The smaller nitrogen bubbles create a "creamy" sensation when the beverage is consumed. Also, nitrogen bubbles do not impart an acidic, sharp sensation because the nitrogen gas does not react with the beverage. When carbon dioxide is dissolved in water-based beverages, carbonic acid is formed, which creates an acidic flavor. The small nitrogen bubbles enhance the perceived thickness of the beverage, provide a lighter appearance in darker beverages, such as stout beer and coffee, and create a foam head with different characteristics than when only carbon dioxide is dissolved.
Dissolving nitrogen gas into beer is typically done in combination with carbon dioxide gas. The ratio of dissolved carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas can give the brewer a tool to control flavor and mouth feel of the brew. This ability to create different flavors and sensations is crucial for craft brewers who seek to create unique experiences and are constantly attempting to create new beers. Nitrogenating coffee has also recently become popular to create a packaged cold coffee beverage.
Because nitrogen gas is much less soluble in water-based beverages than carbon dioxide, the pressure required to dissolve nitrogen gas to the same concentration as carbon dioxide gas is much greater. For example, according to Henry's Law relating gas pressure to dissolved concentration at equilibrium, in order to dissolve carbon dioxide into beer to a typical concentration of 2.2 vol/vol (liters of carbon dioxide per liter of beer) at a temperature of 1° C., a gas partial pressure of 1.43 atmospheres (absolute) is required. For nitrogen gas to reach the same dissolved concentration, a pressure of 110 atmospheres (absolute) is required or 77 times greater pressure than required for dissolving carbon dioxide. In order to maintain the gas in a dissolved state in the beer, this pressure must be maintained in the package (can, bottle or keg) and this pressure increases as the temperature of the package increases. Typical packages of beer at room temperature (20° C.) have a pressure around 2 atmospheres (absolute) and cannot sustain pressure much more than 8 atmospheres (absolute). Because of its high pressure requirement, the amount of nitrogen dissolved in beer is substantially less than carbon dioxide. In a typical nitrogenated beer, both nitrogen and carbon dioxide are dissolved with a concentration of 0.016 vol nitrogen/vol beer and 1.2 vol carbon dioxide/vol beer. This requires a partial pressure of 0.78 atmospheres for both nitrogen and carbon dioxide for a total pressure of 1.56 atmospheres (absolute), which is slightly greater than the package pressure of beers with dissolved carbon dioxide only.
Using typical force carbonation methods where gas is bubbled through the beer in a brite tank, nitrogenated beer is achieved by using a gas mixture of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The ratio of carbon dioxide to nitrogen in the gas mixture determines the ratio of the gases dissolved in the beer. Brewers use the dissolved gas ratio to control flavor and mouth feel of the beer and create flavor experiences for consumers. This ability is very important in the craft brewing industry where the creation of unique beers is the art form that attracts customers. Using force bubbling to dissolve gases in the beer limits dissolved gas ratios to those commercially available and thereby limits brewers to only a few choices. Custom gas mixtures are more expensive than the standard ones available and are typically not used by craft brewers. Having a tool to be able to control ratios of gases dissolved in beer would be valuable for craft brewers allowing them to create unique beers based on experimentation and optimization. It would therefore be desirable to develop an apparatus and method of controlling ratios of gases dissolved in beverages that overcomes these drawbacks.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for controlling the concentration of single and multiple dissolved gases in beverages

Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas


Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, provided default values for business objects. In one exemplary embodiment, there is provided a method for providing default values for attributes of business objects. The method may comprise receiving, at a first service provider, a call to instantiate a first business object. The method may then obtain a static default value of an attribute associated with the first business object. A second service provider may be called to determine a dynamic default value for the attribute based on the static default value. The first service provider may then be provided with the dynamic default value for use when instantiating the first business object.

The way enterprises conduct business continues to advance. The key for an enterprise to succeed in this environment often depends on how quickly the enterprise's information technology (IT) organization adapts to evolving business needs. Therefore, a major challenge to these enterprises is how they handle change. To enable business agility, enterprise applications must be not only high-performance business engines, but also be flexible building blocks of future business systems.
A recent promising solution has risen in the form of services. A service, such as a Web service or other program accessible through a network, may represent a self-contained, self-describing piece of application functionality that can be found and accessed by other applications. A service may be considered self-contained because the application using the service does not have to depend on anything other than the service itself, and self-describing because all the information on how to use the service can be obtained from the service itself. The descriptions may be centrally stored and accessible through standard mechanisms.
Instead of requiring programmers to establish and maintain links between applications, services can be loosely coupled, making connections simpler and more flexible and allowing application architects to more easily find and understand services offered by other cooperative applications. However, a problem that exists with services is that they are often designed to expose functionality of individual applications and thus are too limited to be efficient building blocks for enterprise-wide business processes.
An answer to this shortfall has been the migration to a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). The SOA is an open architecture middleware, which builds on the benefits of services. An example of an SOA can be found in the Enterprise Service Framework (ESF), which is commercially available from SAP AG, Walldorf, Germany. The term "SOA" may also be used to refer to "distributed objects" architecture, such as CORBA (Common Object Request Broker Architecture) and DCOM (Distributed Component Object Model).
The SOA enables the abstraction of business objects (BO), modeled as services (also referred to as enterprise services), from actual applications. Aggregating services into business-level enterprise services may provide more meaningful building blocks for the task of automating enterprise-scale business scenarios. Enterprise services allow IT organizations to efficiently develop composite applications, which may be defined as applications that compose functionality and information from existing systems to support new business processes or scenarios.
The SOA also enables the use of an enterprise services repository. The enterprise services repository stores relevant pre-existing enterprise services and makes them available to selected partners and customers. By using the enterprise services repository, these selected partners and customers can use the pre-existing enterprise services to aid in the implementation of new services and corresponding business objects. An "object" refers to a software bundle of variables (e.g., data) and related methods. For example, in object-oriented programming, an object is a concrete realization (instance) of a class that consists of data and the operations associated with that data. The term business object (BO) thus represents a data structure, such as an object, having significance to a business (e.g. a business object for providing a purchase order).
When services and business objects are developed, the fields which may be filled in with values at a user interface may be defined within the business object and may be fixed for the lifetime of the application providing the business object. For example, a business object for a purchase order may have a field for the purchase order id and a field for the date. If these fields need to be updated or changed, however, each business object that contains the values must be updated as well. As such, there is a need to improve development of business objects and their corresponding values.

Default value initialization of business objects