A method of producing isopropyl alcohol includes: culturing an isopropyl alcohol-producing Escherichia coli under a bacterial cell growth condition in which the Escherichia coli stably proliferates in an isopropyl alcohol production period while continuously supplying a substrate solution to a culture tank and continuously removing a product-containing culture solution from the culture tank, the substrate solution containing a plant-derived raw material, the number of cells of the isopropyl alcohol-producing Escherichia coli in the culture tank being maintained during the culturing, and the isopropyl alcohol-producing Escherichia coli having isopropyl alcohol production ability introduced or modified by genetic recombination; bringing the isopropyl-alcohol-producing Escherichia coli into contact with the plant-derived raw material in the culture tank to produce isopropyl alcohol; and recovering the isopropyl alcohol produced by the isopropyl alcohol-producing Escherichia coli from the culture solution that contains the product and that has been removed from the culture tank.

Propylene is an important basic raw material for synthetic resins such as polypropylene or petrochemical products, and propylene widely is used in bumpers for cars, food containers, films, medical instruments, and the like.
Isopropyl alcohol produced from a plant-derived raw material can be converted to propylene through a dehydration process. Therefore, isopropyl alcohol is expected to be useful as a raw material for carbon-neutral propylene. Considering the current situation in which Kyoto Protocol mandates reduction of total amount of greenhouse gas emitted from developed countries by 5% during the period of 2008 to 2012 as compared to that in 1990, propylene, which is carbon-neutral, is extremely important from the viewpoint of global environment due to its versatility.
Microorganisms that assimilate a plant-derived raw material to produce isopropyl alcohol are already known.
For example, WO 2009/008377 discloses that isopropyl alcohol is produced using an Escherichia coli modified to produce isopropyl alcohol from glucose as a raw material while a semibatch cultivation with sequential addition of a substrate solution is carried out. It is described that this isopropyl alcohol-producing Escherichia coli has excellent properties as a biocatalyst for industrial production because of its high isopropyl alcohol selectivity.
In order to produce isopropyl alcohol at the industrial level using a culture method, effective production of isopropyl alcohol through long-term continuous cultivation is required.
Addressing this request, for example, continuous cultivation of butanol-isopropyl alcohol using a microorganism separated from the soil belonging to the genus Clostridium is reported in Journal of Biochemical Engineering, 71(1), pp. 9-14, (1993). In this document, continuous cultivation is performed for 30 days. However, this microorganism is not modified by genetic recombination, and the isopropyl alcohol selection ratio thereof is as low as about 25%.
Production of isopropyl alcohol through long-term semibatch cultivation using an Escherichia coli modified to produce isopropyl alcohol is reported in J. Biosci. Bioeng., 110(6), pp. 696-701, (2010). In this document, isopropyl alcohol produced is transferred from the culture solution into the gas by gas stripping, and the isopropyl alcohol contained in the gas is recovered using water as a capturing solution. Here, an Erlenmeyer flask is used as the culture tank, and the specific surface area of the culture solution is increased by charging the culture solution in a very small amount, which is 1/10 or less of the volume of the flask; further, although the cultivation is semibatch cultivation with sequential addition, the produced isopropyl alcohol as well as the culture solution are evaporated, whereby the amount of the culture solution decreases, and a long operation time of 240 hours is possible.
J. Ind. Microbiol. Biotechnol, 33, pp. 834-844, (2006) reports ethanol continuous cultivation without aeration, in which a genetically-modified Escherichia coli for ethanol production. Here, continuous cultivation with fluid-circulation-type fixed bed is carried out in which, in addition to feeding of a sterilized culture medium to the culture tank and drawing of the culture solution from the culture tank carried out in general continuous cultivation, the solution in the culture tank is circulated.
It is known that acetic acid is produced as a by-product in aerobic cultivation using Escherichia coli in which oxygen gas or an oxygen-containing gas is supplied. An increased concentration of accumulated acetic acid causes inhibition of the growth of Escherichia coli and a decrease in the efficiency of the production of a target product. To address this issue, a DO-Stat method is well known in which the aeration or stirring rate is regulated in order to suppress high accumulation of acetic acid, and in which the concentration of dissolved oxygen in the culture tank is adjusted to several ppm in order to prevent depletion. In regard to the accumulation of acetic acid, Biotech. Bioeng., 36, pp. 750-758, (1990) reports that the concentration of acetic acid at 48 hours in the ordinary semibatch cultivation is 35 g/L, that the concentration of acetic acid at 36 hours with control by the DO-Stat method is 17 g/L, and that acetic acid is not produced in a Balanced DO-Stat method in which regulation of the concentration of glucose in the culture tank by control of the addition rate of the substrate solution in the semibatch cultivation is also carried out in addition to the regulation of the concentration of dissolved oxygen.

Method for producing isopropyl alcohol by continuous culture


A surgical instrument includes a first member having an inner surface defining a first passageway. A second member is disposable within the first passageway and movable relative to the first member. The second member defines a longitudinal axis and extends between a first end and a second end configured to engage tissue. The second end includes a first surface configured for a non-penetrating engagement with the tissue and a second surface including at least two spaced apart cutting members extending axially from the first surface. The cutting members are rotatable to excise a portion of the tissue.

Spinal stenosis typically occurs when the spinal cord, cauda equina and/or nerve root(s) are impinged by one or more tissues in the spine, such as a buckled or thickened ligamentum flavum. Impingement of neural and/or neurovascular tissue in the spine by a buckled or thickened ligamentum flavum may cause pain, numbness and/or loss of strength or mobility in one or both of a patient's lower limbs and/or of the patient's back.
In lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS), the space around the spinal cord becomes narrow, thus compressing the spinal cord and the nerve roots. This causes back pain with neurogenic claudication, i.e., pain, numbness, or weakness in the legs that worsens with standing or walking and is alleviated with sitting or leaning forward. Compression of neural elements generally occurs as a result of hypertrophied facet or ligamentum flavum hypertrophy. LSS is one of the most common reasons for back surgery and the most common reason for lumbar spine surgery in adults over 65 years of age. Patients suffering from spinal stenosis are typically first treated with conservative approaches such as exercise therapy, analgesics, anti-inflammatory medications, and epidural steroid injections. When these conservative treatment options fail and symptoms are severe, surgery may be required to remove impinging tissue and decompress the impinged nerve tissue.
Decompressive laminectomy, a well-known treatment for LSS, unroofs the spinal canal by resectioning posterior spinal elements, such as the ligamentum flavum and/or the facet adjacent to the lumbar nerve roots. Wide muscular dissection and retraction is needed to achieve adequate surgical visualization. The extensive resection and injury to the posterior spine and supporting muscles can lead to instability with significant morbidity, both post-operatively and longer-term. Spinal fusion may be required to reduce the resultant instability. Laminectomy may be used for extensive multi-level decompression.
Standard methods of cutting tissue may include using a scalpel and scissors or electrosurgical procedures using radio frequency energy. Electrosurgical procedures and techniques using radio frequency energy are currently used since they generally reduce patient bleeding and trauma associated with cutting operations. Additionally, electrosurgical ablation procedures, where tissue surfaces and volume may be reshaped, cannot be duplicated through other treatment modalities.
Minimally invasive procedures in nerve and/or soft tissue such as the spine or the breast, however, are difficult to perform using standard scissors and scalpel. Furthermore, in a closed environment, radio frequency current dissipates into the surrounding tissue causing a decreased ability to achieve a current at the cutting electrode of sufficiently high density to initiate a cut. To overcome this problem, high power settings are often required to initiate the cut which often is painful and increases thermal damage to the tissue whether using a standard or a custom electrosurgical generator.
Another problem associated with cutting tissue is the control of bleeding. Radio frequency energy controls bleeding by coagulating small blood vessels. Another method of controlling bleeding is through the use of heat. For example, some commercially available scalpels use direct heat to control bleeding. However, while the bleeding is generally controlled, the cutting of tissue is often slower than with radio frequency energy and the knife edge readily dulls. Other commercially available scalpels use ultrasonic energy generally at 50 kHz to heat the tissue so as to coagulate severed blood vessels but cut slower than a standard electrosurgical electrode and are costly as a custom ultrasonic generator is required.
A further disadvantage of using radio frequency energy is the generation of smoke. The smoke is malodorous and can contain airborne viral particles that may be infectious. Furthermore, the smoke often obscures visualization of the procedure. When the smoke becomes too dense, the procedure is delayed until the smoke is released through one of the trocar ports and after enough carbon dioxide gas has re-insufflated the abdominal cavity. This unnecessarily prolongs the operative time.
Radiofrequency (RF) energy is used in a wide range of surgical procedures because it provides efficient tissue resection and coagulation and relatively easy access to the target tissues through a portal or cannula. Conventional monopolar high frequency electrosurgical devices typically operate by creating a voltage difference between the active electrode and the target tissue, causing an electrical arc to form across the physical gap between the electrode and tissue. At the point of contact of the electric arcs with tissue, rapid tissue heating occurs due to high current density between the electrode and tissue. This high current density causes cellular fluids to rapidly vaporize into steam, thereby producing a "cutting effect" along the pathway of localized tissue heating. Thus, the tissue is parted along the pathway of evaporated cellular fluid, inducing undesirable collateral tissue damage in regions surrounding the target tissue site. This collateral tissue damage often causes indiscriminate destruction of tissue, resulting in the loss of the proper function of the tissue. In addition, the device does not remove any tissue directly, but rather depends on destroying a zone of tissue and allowing the body to eventually remove the destroyed tissue.
Present electrosurgical techniques used for tissue ablation may suffer from an inability to provide the ability for fine dissection of soft tissue. The distal end of electrosurgical devices is wide and flat, creating a relatively wide area of volumetric tissue removal and making fine dissections along tissue planes more difficult to achieve because of the lack of precision provided by the current tip geometries.
In addition, identification of the plane is more difficult because the large ablated area and overall size of the device tip obscures the physician's view of the surgical field. The inability to provide for fine dissection of soft tissue is a significant disadvantage in using electrosurgical techniques for tissue ablation, particularly in arthroscopic, otolaryngological, and spinal procedures.
Traditional monopolar RF systems can provide fine dissection capabilities of soft tissue, but may also cause a high level of collateral thermal damage. Further, these devices may suffer from an inability to control the depth of necrosis in the tissue being treated. The high heat intensity generated by these systems causes burning and charring of the surrounding tissue, leading to increased pain and slower recovery of the remaining tissue. Further, the desire for an electrosurgical device to provide for fine dissection of soft tissue may compromise the ability to provide consistent ablative cutting without significant collateral damage while allowing for concomitant hemostasis and good coagulation of the remaining tissue.
Further, the health care practitioner may have difficulty positioning the tip of the device in the optimal location to get an optimal and consistent clinical result. This may also result in unwanted necrosis of adjacent tissue, which can lead to clinical adverse events including subsequent repair of the necrotic tissue.
Accordingly, there is a need for devices and methods to provide efficient severing or cutting of nerve and/or soft tissue that can be used during a procedure, such as, for example, open decompression. Further, there is also a need for devices and methods that provide fine dissection capabilities of nerve and/or soft tissue. Devices and methods that do not cause a high level of collateral thermal damage and allow for the control of necrosis in the tissue being treated are also needed. Devices and methods that provide efficient, controlled and safe debulking of tissue would also be beneficial.


A hydraulic circuit is disclosed. The hydraulic circuit may have a variable displacement pump. The variable displacement pump may have a fluidic displacement control configured to vary a flow of pressurized fluid based on a fluid signal and an electronic displacement control configured to vary the flow of pressurized fluid based on an electronic signal. The flow of pressurized fluid may be controlled by the one of the fluidic and electronic displacement controls that requests the smallest flow of pressurized fluid. The hydraulic circuit may also have a control valve connected between the pump and the fluidic displacement control, and the control valve may be configured to transmit the fluid signal to the fluidic displacement control. The hydraulic circuit may further have a controller configured to transmit a fluid signal to cause the fluidic control to request a maximum flow of pressurized fluid, and transmit an electronic signal requesting a flow smaller than the maximum flow, which causes the electronic displacement control to vary the flow of pressurized fluid.

Construction machines such as, for example, dozers, loaders, excavators, motor graders, and other types of heavy machinery use a hydraulic circuit to operate a variety of actuators and associated implements. During operation of the construction machines, there may occasionally arise a need for rapid operation of the actuators to move the implements back and forth (i.e. to shake the implement). For example, an implement such as a bucket is often used for excavating earthen materials, and due to the adhesive nature of the materials, an operator may need to shake the bucket to adequately remove material that is stuck to or remains within the bucket. An operator may also shake the bucket to break into hard ground. Such shaking can be manually accomplished by a rapid back and forth movement of a lever controlling a valve associated with the actuators of the bucket, or it can be accomplished by a controller that automatically and rapidly cycles the valve.
The bucket actuators are moved by a working fluid supplied from a variable displacement pump having load-sensing control. A problem associated with type of pump is that it can respond slowly to demand. That is, the variable displacement mechanism inside the pump may adjust slowly to sudden demands for increased flow. On the other hand, these mechanisms may quickly adjust to a low flow-producing state upon the sudden cessation of demand for flow. This delay ill transition to full flow and subsequent rapid return to a low flow condition may cause problems when an actuator or implement must be moved rapidly back and forth, such as when an operator needs to shake a bucket. In such a situation, the pump may have difficulty responding quickly to demands to rapidly extend, stop, and then retract the bucket actuator.
Attempts have been made to improve performance during a bucket shaking operation of hydraulic circuits having a load-sensing, variable-displacement pump. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,235,809 (the '809 patent), issued to Farrell on Aug. 17, 1993, discloses a hydraulic bucket shake circuit that allows rapid shaking of a bucket in response to an operator actuated switch. Upon activation of the switch, a directional control valve opens and sends a pilot pressure signal equivalent to a pump output pressure to a load-sensing input on an associated pump. This pilot pressure signal causes the load-sensing circuit to adjust the pump to maximum displacement, thereby allowing a rapid shaking of the bucket quicker than typical load-sensing pumps could otherwise respond.
Although the system disclosed in the '809 patent may allow a rapid initial extension of a bucket actuator, such as during a bucket shaking operation, it may have limited applicability. Specifically, the '809 system disables the variable displacement and load-sensing capabilities of the pump and, in doing so, turns the pump into a constant displacement pump displacing a maximum amount of fluid. This disabling may result in an inefficient system, because any excess fluid must be dumped directly to a tank, and the power used to pressurize the fluid is wasted. Additionally, the pressurized fluid being dumped across a relief valve to the tank may result in an undesired heating of the fluid, which may require a fluid cooling system, and/or prematurely degrade the quality and effectiveness of the fluid.
The disclosed hydraulic circuit is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.

Hydraulic circuit for rapid bucket shake out


A system to launch and recover an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) aircraft has a pole member attached to a deck of a ship. An arm member is attached to the pole member and extends away from the pole member in an approximately horizontal direction. The arm member is able to move rotationally and vertically on the pole member. An attachment mechanism is attached to a distal end of the arm member for holding and capturing the UAV aircraft. Momentum of the UAV aircraft causes the arm member to move rotationally around and vertically on the pole member when the UAV aircraft is coupled to the attachment mechanism.

Embodiments of this disclosure relate generally to an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aircraft, and more particularly, to a system and method for shipboard launch and recovery of a UAV aircraft that does not require a flight deck/runway.
Presently, in order to launch and land a UAV aircraft from a ship, a flight deck is required. The flight deck is generally considered the upper level of an aircraft carrier where the aircraft take off and land. Alternatively, on smaller ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopters and Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft is also referred to as the flight deck. Thus, all UAV aircraft requires some type of flight deck for launch and recovery from a ship.
For non high lift UAV aircraft, an aircraft catapult is needed to launch the UAV aircraft from the ship. An aircraft catapult consists of a track built into the flight deck. A shuttle device is attached to the track and to the UAV aircraft to be launched. In general, the shuttle is attached to the nose of the UAV aircraft. When the UAV is set to launch, a release bar holds the UAV aircraft in place as steam pressure builds up to a predetermined level. At this point, the release bar is unlatched freeing the shuttle to pull the UAV aircraft along the deck at high speed. The shuttle will pull the UAV aircraft in order to obtain sufficient velocity for takeoff. The aircraft catapult and flight deck results in added weight, less equipment space on the deck, and increased support cost of the ship.
When landing a non high lift UAV aircraft on a ship, an arresting gear is generally used to decelerate the UAL aircraft as it lands. The arresting gear is generally used to decelerate the UAL aircraft as it lands. The arresting gear generally comprises a set of cables strung across the flight. The cables are attached to hydraulic cylinders. The hydraulic cylinders are connected to a pressure vessel via a special valve. When the UAV aircraft lands, the tailhook catches into one of the cable and pulls on the cable. The tension cased by the tailhook pulling on the cable compresses the hydraulic cylinders and pulls the UAV aircraft to a stop. For light weight UAV aircraft, a wire snare mounted on poles is generally used to catch the tailhook of the UAV aircraft. The arresting gear further adds weight and increases support cost of the ship.
For all UAV aircraft, a landing gear and retraction system are required. Furthermore, for high lift UAV aircraft, high lift devices are required for launch and landing. Additional structure is needed on the UAV to allow for the high structural loads that occur due to catapult acceleration loads for launch and for high impact vertical and longitudinal forces on landing and the hook arrestment deceleration. The landing gear and retraction system, the high load structure for catapult and landing arrestment, and the high lift devices increase the cost and weight of the UAV aircraft. Furthermore, the landing gear and retraction system and the high lift devices require high strength flight deck structure for launch loads and deck impact on landing. This results in added weight and increased support cost of the ship.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system and method that overcomes the above problems. The system and method would allow for shipboard launch and recovery of a UAV aircraft without the use of flight deck/runway.

System for shipboard launch and recovery of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aircraft and method therefor


A process for melting material to be treated includes placing material to be treated in a container that may include an insulating lining, heating the material to be treated and melting the material to be treated, preferably allowing the melted material to cool to form a vitrified and/or crystalline mass, and disposing of the mass. The mass is either disposed while contained in container or removed from container after cooling and disposed. Insulating lining may comprise one or more layers of a thermal insulating material, one or more layers of refractory material, or a combination thereof. The material to be treated may be heated by placing at least two electrodes in the material to be treated and passing a current between the electrodes, or alternatively, by placing at least one heating element in the material to be treated and passing heat into the material to be treated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for the melting of materials to be treated. More specifically, the invention relates to an apparatus that comprises a container in which melting is performed, thus enabling a one-step disposal method for the treated materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of vitrification methods for safely disposing contaminated soil or waste materials (hereinafter referred to as material to be treated) is known in the art. Examples of such methods are provided in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,376,598; 5,024,556; 5,536,114; 5,443,618; and, U.S. RE Pat. No. 35,782. The disclosures of these patents are incorporated herein by reference.
Generally, the known vitrification methods involve placement of the material to be treated into a vitrification chamber or vessel. Electrodes are then introduced into the material and a high current is supplied there between. Application of the current is continued until the temperature of the material is raised to the point where the material begins to melt and is continued until the material is completely melted. If certain cases, other additives may be required to provide an initial electrically conductive resistance path through the material to be treated if such material is not capable of adequate current conduction. Once the resistance path is initiated and melting of the material begins, the molten material itself will continue current conduction.
In the course of melting the material, organic components are destroyed or vaporized and the gases are normally vented through a suitable scrubber, quencher, filter or other known device or method.
Once the material is sufficiently melted and all organic components are treated, the electricity supply is terminated and the molten material allowed to cool. The cooling step then results in a vitrified and/or crystallized solid material. In this manner, inorganic contaminants are immobilized within a solid, vitrified mass thereby ensuring containment of the contaminants and facilitating disposal of same.
In the known methods, vitrification is accomplished within a complex refractory-lined melting apparatus or within a pit dug into the soil. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,618, an example is provided of a vitrification apparatus comprising a chamber that is either permanently in place (as in a treatment facility) or one which can be dismantled and reassembled at desired locations. In each case, the molten mass is removed from the chamber and processed further separately. Such further processing may involve burial, or other type of disposal, of the vitrified and/or crystalline mass. The apparatus known in the art for conducting vitrification process are normally complex structures including various electrical supply systems, waste feed systems, molten glass discharge systems, cooling systems and venting systems. Such systems require the removal of the melted mass while in the molten state, hence requiring the above mentioned molten glass discharge systems. In these cases, the melt is either poured or flowed out as a molten liquid into a receiving container.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,376,598 and U.S. RE Pat. No. 35,782, vitrification processes within a pit are described. In this case, the material to be treated is dumped into a pit or trench in the ground and a soil or other type of cap is placed as a cover. Electrodes are then introduced to conduct the vitrification process as described above. Once the process is completed, the vitrified and/or crystalline mass is left buried in the ground. As will be appreciated, certain contaminants such as radioactive waste etc. cannot safely be disposed in this manner as they must be disposed of in regulated burial locations.
Generally, the known methods are expensive and are used in difficult situations to which there is no alternative. Therefore, there exists a need for a vitrification apparatus and method that overcomes various deficiencies in the prior art.

Methods for melting of materials to be treated


A temperature corrected voltage bandgap circuit is provided. The circuit includes first and second diode connected transistors. A first switched current source is coupled to the one transistor to inject or remove a first current into or from the emitter of that transistor. The first current is selected to correct for curvature in the output voltage of the bandgap circuit at one of hotter or colder temperatures.

To measure temperature, a common method utilizes a sensor to convert the quantity to be measured to a voltage. Common solid state sensors utilize semiconductor diode Vbe, the difference in Vbe at two current densities or delta Vbe, or a MOS threshold to provide a temperature dependent output voltage. The temperature is determined from the voltage measurement. Once the sensor output is converted to a voltage it is compared it to a voltage reference. It is common to utilize a voltage reference having a low temperature coefficient such as a bandgap circuit as the voltage reference. The bandgap voltage reference is about 1.2 volts. An n-bit analog to digital converter divides the bandgap reference down by 2n and determines how many of these small pieces are needed to sum up to the converted voltage. The precision of the A/D output is no better than the precision of the bandgap reference.
Typical plots of the output bandgap voltage with respect to temperature are bowed and are therefore of reduced accuracy.
Prior bandgap voltage curvature correction solutions result in very complicated circuits whose performance is questionable.

Bandgap circuit with temperature correction


A method of implementing an engineering change order includes steps of: (a) receiving as input an integrated circuit design; (b) receiving as input an engineering change order to the integrated circuit design; (c) creating at least one window in the integrated circuit design that encloses a change to the integrated circuit design introduced by the engineering change order wherein the window is bounded by coordinates that define an area that is less than an entire area of the integrated circuit design; (d) performing a routing of the integrated circuit design that excludes routing of any net that is not enclosed by the window; (e) replacing an area in a copy of the integrated circuit design that is bounded by the coordinates of the window with results of the incremental routing to generate a revised integrated circuit design; and (f) generating as output the revised integrated circuit design.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the design of integrated circuits. More specifically, but without limitation thereto, the present invention relates to methods of implementing an engineering change order (ECO) in an integrated circuit design.
2. Description of Related Art
In previous methods for implementing an engineering change order (ECO) request in an integrated circuit design, design tools are run for the entire integrated circuit design, even though the engineering change order typically is only a small fraction of the size of the integrated circuit design. For example, cell placement, routing, design rule check validation, and timing closure run times typically scale with the size of the entire integrated circuit design.

Method of implementing an engineering change order in an integrated circuit design by windows


The software tool of this invention estimates the costs of an application program accessing a database. These costs may be execution costs of the application or of a transaction, SQL statement, and/or a utility. Execution costs include CPU time, I/O time and minimum elapsed time. For estimating the execution costs, the tool receives simplified and partial definitions of tables, utilities, SQL statements, transactions, and applications. The estimator tool requires only a minimal amount of information to calculate the various execution costs.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to software application development tools and system management tools, and more particularly relates to a system, method and tool for estimating the execution costs of an application designed to access a database, and for estimating the system performance when executing the application.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a relational database, information is kept in logical tables comprised of rows and columns. Underlying this logical structure is the physical structure used to hold the data and the indexes used to access the data.
A utility is used to maintain the data in the database. The REORG utility is used for reorganizing the physical data on the disk. It reorganizes a table space to improve access performance and reorganizes indexes so that they are more efficiently clustered. The BACKUP utility is used for making a copy of the data so that the data can be recovered if it is lost such as after a disaster. The COPY utility creates an image copy of a table space or a data set within the table space. There are two types of image copies. A FULL IMAGE COPY is a copy of all pages in a table space or data set. An INCREMENTAL IMAGE COPY is a copy only of pages that have been modified since the last use of the COPY utility. The LOAD utility loads data into one or more tables in a table space or partition. It may also be used to replace the contents of a single partition or an entire table space. The RUNSTATS utility scans a table space or indexes to gather information about utilization of space and efficiency of indexes.
A Structured Query Language (SQL) statement allows a user (an application or an end user) to access the logical data without regard to physical structure. In data access languages that predated SQL, the data access language included directions to the database manager on how to obtain the data. With SQL statements, the data access language indicates only what data is required, and leaves it to the optimizer function of the database manager to figure out how to find the data.
A transaction is made up of one or more SQL statements and any given SQL statement, within the transaction, may be executed any number of times. In an actual transaction, the SQL statements may be interleaved with application logic, and there may be a specific sequence of execution of the SQL statements. Overhead costs, such as thread create, terminate, authorization checking, and commits, are associated with transactions.
An application is made up of transactions interleaved with application logic. All of the transactions contend for the CPU and the I/O resources.
In specifying a full definition of a table in a relational database, such as in the IBM DB2 relational database, the user and/or application must specify the database name; the table space or storage group defined; the table description in terms of column names, their data types, and other associated information such as data length; as specified in IBM Database 2 Version 2 SQL Reference Release 2, 1989, Chapter 6. "Statements," pages 95-246, as incorporated herein by reference.
In specifying a full definition of a SQL statement, a user and/or application must specify the columns selected; the tables accessed; the join columns and predicates; all other predicates with specific values and how they are combined, such as through boolean operators; the columns in GROUP BY and ORDER BY clauses; as well as any columns updated, as shown in Chapter 5, "Queries" of the above referenced document, as incorporated herein by reference.
In specifying a full definition of a transaction, the fully defined SQL statements are fully defined in a programming language such as Cobol, C++, etc., as shown in Appendix C of IBM Database2 Version 2 Release 1, Application Programming Guide, 1988. The full definition of the transaction is embodied in program source code that includes the fully defined SQL statements as well as the other language statements that make up the program logic and structure.
When a database manager processes an SQL statement on behalf of an application, the database manager will need to use CPU resources and possibly perform I/O operations to return the results of the SQL query back to the requestor. For any given SQL statement, this may involve scanning all the rows of the database tables or using an index to directly access the data. The amount of CPU and I/O necessary will vary depending on various factors. Some of these factors are under the control of the requestor (an application or end user) while others are internal to the database manager and out of the control of the requester.
For applications that are designed to access a database, design decisions affecting the logical structure of the table impact how the SQL statement is coded as well as the performance of the SQL statement. Decisions affecting the physical structure of the table do not affect the SQL statement, but still may affect the performance of the application accessing the data.
Developing an application for accessing a database can be a very expensive process. Before incurring the development cost, it is important to know in the early design phase whether the performance of the finally designed application will meet performance requirements. During the development process, it is important to be able to estimate the performance of alternative designs to determine which design is optimal. Also, after an application is in use, it is important to estimate how modifications to the system may affect its performance.
Methods are known (IBM Database2 Version 2 Administration Guide Volume 1, Release 2, September 1989, pages 2-24 to 2-28, ) for estimating the amount of disk space required to hold a table and indexes based upon the number of rows in the table and the type of data.
Methods are known for estimating the CPU and I/O time for SQL statements. ("DB2 Cost Formula," Shibamiya, A., Yeung, M. Y., IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Volume 34, Number 12, May 1992, pages 389-394).
Tools are known to estimate the SQL statement cost. However, these estimates are based on user inputs regarding database internals that the user is unlikely to have any real knowledge of, such as the number of columns used in an internal sort.
Tools are known to estimate the database cost of an existing application which was designed using a specific design methodology. Unless an application has been designed using this methodology, no estimation is possible.
Tools are known to estimate the cost based upon the costs of other, possibly similar, applications that have been measured. This type of tool may not take into account that the database manager may execute two similar SQL statements in different ways. Tools are known that have a graphical user interface (GUI) that allows a user to build complete executable SQL statements and to execute those SQL statements against the database. However, these tools require more input than is necessary for estimating the cost of executing the SQL statement, and are, therefore, more complex.

Database execution cost and system performance estimator

International Buisness Machines Corporation


The invention refers to a method for the regional determination of the alveolar opening and alveolar closing of the lung depending on the respiration pressure, wherein according to the method of electrical impedance tomography, an impedance signal is measured in at least one lung zone depending on the respiration pressure. The alveolar opening or closing of a lung zone is determined, in particular to enable an improved artificial respiration.

For the regional measurement of the pressure-volume relationship the so-called electrical impedance tomography is known. In this process, a number of electrodes are placed around the thorax, wherein an alternating current with e.g. 50 kHz at 5 nA peak to peak amplitude is applied to respectively adjacent electrodes. The other electrodes respectively are used with the alternating current to carry out the measurement of impedance against a defined reference potential. As soon as all the electrodes, one after another, have served as current conducting electrodes, a cycle for data detection is concluded. In order to eliminate statistical disturbances, as a rule a plurality of data detection cycles is averaged, in order to obtain a corresponding picture. The maximal impedance changes in the zone of the thorax are caused by the breathing in and out of air. In this context it can be observed that the impedance change which is measured by electrodes is a measure of the change of volume in the lung. Therefore according to the process of electrical impedance tomography, measurements can also be carried out with respect to the pressure-volume relationship in the lung. However, the special feature of electrical impedance tomography is that on the basis of a computer-based evaluation of the signals at the electrodes, a two-dimensional or even three-dimensional image of the impedance changes can be compiled.
From Dijkstra A. M. et al.: "Review Clinical Applications of Electrical Impedance Tomography", Journal of Medical Engineering & Technology, G B, Basingstoke, Hants, no. 3, May 1993 (1993–05), pages 89–98 a general review of clinical applications of electrical impedance tomography is known. It is shown that besides respiratory applications also applications for the central nervous, cardiovascular and digestive systems are possible.
From Eung Je Woo et al.: "Measuring Lung Resistivity Using Electrical Impedance Tomography", IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, US, IEEE Inc. New York, vol. 39, no. 7, 1 Jul. 1992 (1992-07-01), pages 756–760 a method for measuring the lung resistivity using electrical impedance tomography is known. It is proposed to use the electrical impedance tomography imaging techniques in the measurement of lung resistivity for the detection and monitoring of apnea and edema.
The artificial respiration of a sick lung, wherein oedemas have formed, is a special problem, because it cannot be exactly controlled whether the lung has already closed and/or collapsed in certain parts. Then it was found that the mortality rate can be reduced substantially when a predetermined pressure is artificially maintained in the lung, which just makes possible keeping open all the alveoli (terminal lung units, air sacks). However, this pressure is not known in the case of artificial respiration, because the alveolar opening and/or closing of the lung could not yet be regionally determined.
Therefore the object of the invention is to make available a method for the determination of the alveolar opening and alveolar closing of the lung, depending on the respiration pressure.
This object is solved by a method comprising the features according to claim 1 and by an apparatus comprising the features according to claim 25. The method according to the invention is based on the cognition that the alveolar opening and/or closing can be determined from an impedance signal gained with the method of electrical impedance tomography. Thereby at least two important values can be determined, namely a first respiration pressure value which corresponds to the alveolar closing of the corresponding lung zone and a second respiration pressure value which corresponds to the alveolar opening of the corresponding lung zone.
Accordingly, the apparatus according to the invention comprises a means for measuring according to the method of electrical impedance tomography an impedance signal (AU) in at least one lung zone depending on the respiration pressure, a means for determining from the impedance signal a first respiration pressure value which corresponds to the alveolar closing of the corresponding lung zone, and a means for determining from the impedance signal a second respiration pressure value which corresponds to the alveolar opening of the corresponding lung zone.
In contrast to computer tomography and magnetic resonance tomography, the process according to the invention can also be carried out at the bed of the patient, because no costly instruments are necessary. In this case there is no radiation stress either for the patient or for the staff. In the case of critical patients constant supervision of the state and degree of openness of the lung can therefore be carried out.
The first effect of the process according to the invention is that the impedance signal is influenced by the breathing movements of the patient. In each breathing movement the lung volume rises and falls. Using the regional impedance curves of electrical impedance tomography it can be observed that the average change of the impedance signal, due to breathing movements, is conspicuously greater in zones wherein the lung has not yet collapsed, whereas in zones wherein the lung has already collapsed, only minor changes in the impedance signal are caused. For example the change in the impedance signal due to breathing movements can be determined on the basis of the unaveraged root mean square of the impedance signal over a plurality of breaths. The change in the impedance signal on the basis of breathing movements is therefore determined from the signal energy of the high frequency portions of the impedance signal, which are based on the breathing movements. But it is equally possible that the change in the impedance signal based on breathing movements can be determined on the basis of an average peak to peak value of the impedance signal over a plurality of breaths.
The alveolar closing and/or opening of the lung or the first and second respiration pressure value respectively is determined on the basis of the change in the impedance signal due to breathing movements, in that the change in the impedance signal based on breathing movements is compared with predetermined breathing movement comparative values. In doing so, it must be taken into account that with respect to the two comparative values, as a rule a certain hysteresis is found. This means that the opening of the pulmonary cells does not take place at the same pressure as the closing of the alveoli (terminal lung units), but that both comparative values fall away from each other. In this context it must in addition be taken into consideration in which direction the respective comparative value passes in order to be able to precisely identify the hysteresis.
With respect to the comparative values it is conceivable that fixed comparative values are predetermined. However, in this case disturbance factors, e.g. based on offset changes, enter fully into the measurement. Therefore it is expedient to determine the breathing movement comparative values dynamically from the average change in the impedance signal on the basis of breathing movements of another zone of the lung. Preferably the lung is divided into a plurality of zone planes perpendicularly to the gravity vector, wherein the other lung zone is a zone which is in the direction of the gravity vector above the lung zone which is concerned. In this case use is made of the fact that as a rule the lung part which is lowest in the direction of the gravity vector is more strongly affected by the pathological appearance of the collapse of the alveoli (terminal lung units) than the correspondingly higher part of the lung zone. Alveolar closing of a lung zone, for example, can be determined as soon as the breathing movement comparative value of the lower lung zone is less by a predetermined factor than the breathing movement comparative value of the lower zone.
A further effect which is suitable to determine the alveolar opening or closing of the lung or the first and second respiration pressure value respectively is the change in the impedance signal due to the collapse of the alveoli. In the case of a pathological lung or an unphysiological condition such as i.e. anaesthesia it is observed that even with constant pressure the lung zone collapses, i.e. the pulmonary units therefore collapse spontaneously. This collapse takes place all the more strongly as the respiration pressure falls, wherein the effect in addition is reinforced like an avalanche over time. Consequently according to the invention alveolar closing of the lung zone or the first respiration pressure value respectively is determined as soon as the average change in the impedance signal due to the collapse of the alveoli falls below a collapse comparative value. Accordingly alveolar opening of a lung zone or the second respiration pressure value respectively is found as soon as the average change in the impedance signal based on the opening of the alveoli is above an opening comparative value.
The average change in the impedance signal due to the collapse of the alveoli, for example, can be determined on the basis of the mean increase in the impedance signal depending on time with a predetermined respiration pressure.
The average increase, for example, can be determined by the Gauβ compensation computation, in that a straight line is placed in a segment of the impedance signal depending on time at constant pressure. The collapse comparative value and/or the opening comparative value can be prescribed as fixed values, or however they can be determined from a dynamic comparative value determination. The dynamic determination of the comparative value is carried out expediently on the basis of an impedance signal in a different lung zone. Preferably the lung is divided, as was described above, into a plurality of zone planes in the direction of the gravity vector, wherein the comparative value is derived from the lung zone which is above the lung zone concerned in the direction of the gravity vector.
A further effect caused by the alveolar opening or closing of a lung zone is the average change of the impedance signal on the basis of respiration pressure changes. As soon as a sudden respiration pressure change is applied to the lung, the impedance signal for this pressure change does not follow at once, but respectively with a certain delay.
Accordingly, alveolar closing or the first respiration pressure value respectively of a lung zone is determined, as soon as the average change in the impedance signal based on respiration pressure changes falls below a first respiration pressure comparative value, and wherein an alveolar opening or the second respiration pressure value respectively of a lung zone is determined as soon as the average change of the impedance signal based on respiration pressure changes moves above a fixed second respiration change comparative value. In this context use is made of the observation that the lung mechanics responds with a certain inertia to changes in pressure. This inertia is larger in the sick zones than in the healthy zones of the lung, because the sick zones only open as from a higher pressure, so that the sick zones can be localised according to the invention.
The change in the impedance signal due to respiration pressure changes, for example, can be determined on the basis of the average initial rise in the impedance signal after a sudden increase in respiration pressure. The initial rise is all the smaller, the more the lung zone which is concerned tends on the basis of pathological changes to a collapse of the terminal lung units or alveoli. Another possibility is that the change of the impedance signal on the basis of respiration pressure changes is determined based on the time constant of the impedance signal, with which the impedance signal follows a change in the respiration pressure. The first respiration pressure comparative value and/or the second respiration pressure comparative value can be prescribed or, however, can be determined dynamically, as was described already above for the other processes. In the case of dynamic determination of the first respiration pressure comparative value and/or of the second respiration pressure comparative value, the determination is carried out on the basis of the average change of the impedance signal due to respiration pressure changes in another lung zone. The other lung zone is again preferably a zone which is in the direction of the gravity vector above the lung zone concerned. In this process the lung is subdivided for the measurement into a plurality of zone planes in the direction of the gravity vector.
According to a preferred embodiment it is provided that setting out from a respiration pressure wherein the lung alveoli are opened in almost all the lung zones, the respiration pressure is reduced step by step, until an alveolar closing of a lung zone is found in one lung zone.
Apart from the division of the lung into zones in the direction of the gravity vector, it is also conceivable that the lung is divided into a plurality of radial sectors, wherein the centre point axis of the sectors is in the direction of the gravity vector.
A device for carrying out the method according to the invention consists of a plurality of electrodes which are applied around the thorax, of an electrical impedance tomograph for the control of individual electrodes and for the evaluation of the impedance signals at the uncontrolled electrodes, in order to obtain a regional impedance signal in the thorax, and of a processing unit to evaluate the regional impedance signals for determining the first respiration pressure value and the second respiration pressure value. Falsification of the signals is to be determined in this context, in particular, due to breathing movements, because on each intake or outlet of breath, the positions of the electrodes in relation to each other alter. In order to eliminate the resultant signal falsifications at the electrodes, a sensor is provided to measure the changing periphery of the thorax caused by the breathing movements. In addition, the electric impedance tomograph comprises a correction unit, wherein the change of impedance signals of the electrodes caused by breathing movements is corrected by including the sensor signal.
An important aspect of the apparatus according to the invention is to control an artificial respiration unit. This can be particularly useful for a sick lung because it cannot be exactly controlled whether the lung has already closed and/or collapsed in certain parts. However, according to the invention it was found that the mortality rate can be reduced substantially when a predetermined pressure is artificially maintained in the lung, which just makes it possible to keep open all the alveoli. This can be done by providing a control unit which is connected to the artificial respiration unit and the processing unit, whereby the first respiration pressure value and the second respiration pressure value is fed from the processing unit to the control unit to control the artificial respiration.
The signals obtained by regional impedance tomography can be used to determine an optimal therapeutic level of the so-called positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP). It is important to find an optimal biological compromise between treating alveolar overdistension in one part of the lung and atelectasis in another. As a priority, PEEP levels must be set high enough to prevent as much as possible the collapse of alveoli at the end of expiration in the most dependent parts of the lung; at the same time the over-stretching of the non-dependent upper parts on the lungs must be avoided. Both these pathological conditions—alveolar collapse and alveolar overdistension—can be recognized as a reduced amplitude of the ventilation-induced impedance changes in a regions of interest. An optimal level of PEEP, however, leads to an even distribution of ventilation (and thus impedance changes) throughout the entire lung.
In addition, an optimal level of PEEP prevents the collapse of airways. If airways are kept open during the entire respiratory cycle, the respiratory gases are exchanged efficiently. These parts are thus ventilated and the impedance signals follow this ventilation. If, however, the conducting airways are collapsed during the entire respiratory cycle, the terminal lung units—in particular the alveoli—are cut off from the supply of fresh gas. Gas exchange suffers and no ventilation-induced change in the impedance signal can be detected. These lung areas become silent on the impedance tomographic image. The oxygen within the cut-off alveoli is absorbed and with the progressive decrease in their gas content, the absolute impedance of such a lung unit is reduced. In a scenario where PEEP levels are not high enough to prevent the expiratory collapse of airways and terminal lung units (alveoli) but where pressures are sufficiently high to open collapsed airways during inspiration, ventilation of these lung units takes place only during this period of the respiratory cycle. The changes in the impedance signals of such a lung region can be amplified compared to an area of normal ventilation since these collapsed lung units start from a low expiratory air content but are filled rapidly to approximately normal volumes during inspiration. During expiration they collapse, again and the process of tidal recruitment/collapse begins anew.
Observing the signals from regional impedance tomography it is possible to determine the points of airway/alveolar opening and closing by systematically titration inspiratory and expiratory airway pressures.
In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, the apparatus comprises a monitoring unit for monitoring the first respiration pressure value and the second respiration pressure value. By monitoring these values the patient can be observed by a monitoring device gaining important pieces of information with regard to the lung functioning. All the direct and derived impedance signals and/or images discussed above should be calculated continuously and should be available for on-line display. Any single one of them or a combination of them can be used for the automatic or semi-automatic control of a therapeutic device, such as a mechanical ventilator. The information obtained by electrical impedance tomography can be used to guide specific clinical maneuvers aiming at optimal lung recruitment and at keeping most alveoli open or at finding the best biological compromise between alveolar over-distension and alveolar collapse.
Furthermore, regional pressure-volume curves generated by electrical impedance tomography can be used to define pressure points of specific clinical relevance. These points are the alveolar opening and closing pressure of a specific lung region, the lower and the upper inflection point of the inspiratory and the expiratory pressure-volume curve. Additional information on lung behavior can be obtained by analyzing the shape and the area the pressure-volume-curve.
Further details and advantages of the invention will be explained in more detail on the basis of the example of an embodiment shown in the drawing. It shows:

Method and apparatus for determining alveolar opening and closing


A touch panel and a fabrication method thereof are provided. The touch panel includes a plurality of touch electrodes and at least one organic, transparent, electrically conductive layer. The touch electrodes include a plurality of touch units. The at least one organic, transparent, electrically conductive layer covers at least one surface of the touch units. Therefore, the touch electrodes of the touch panel have good electrical conductivity and flexibility.

The present disclosure relates to a field of touch technologies, and more particularly to a touch panel and a fabrication method thereof.
With advent of flexible screen products, display devices and touch devices of display screens have gradually developed in a direction that display devices and touch devices have flexibility. In order for display devices to meet flexible characteristic requirements, metal mesh structures are selected for touch electrodes. Metal mesh structures have flexibility and electrical conductivity that meet requirements of flexible screens. However, due to opacity of metal, when metal meshes are made, metal lines need to be disposed in a non-active area, or need to be made very fine. These two methods impose very high requirements on processes and equipment, causing equipment investments to be huge, indirectly resulting in increase in product costs. Indium tin oxides (ITOs) are a common choice for touch electrodes of flexible screens. A problem of using ITOs for touch electrodes is that ITOs have large brittleness, and therefore, ITO electrodes cannot meet flexibility requirements of flexible screens for touch electrodes.

Touch panel and fabrication method thereof

Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Semiconductor Display Technology Co., Ltd.


Provided is a beta-type zeolite which has a high catalytic activity and is not easily deactivated. The beta-type zeolite of the invention has a substantially octahedral shape, has a Si/Al ratio of 5 or more, and is a proton-type zeolite. The Si/Al ratio is preferably 40 or more. This beta-type zeolite is preferably obtained by transforming a raw material beta-type zeolite synthesized without using a structure directing agent into an ammonium-type zeolite through ion exchange, then, exposing the beta-type zeolite to water vapor, and subjecting the exposed beta-type zeolite to an acid treatment.

The beta-type zeolite is a useful substance as a solid acid catalyst or an adsorbent, and, currently, a large amount of the beta-type zeolite is globally used as a catalyst in the petrochemical industry or a hydrocarbon trap for purifying the exhaust gas of an internal-combustion engine. A variety of synthesizing methods of a beta-type zeolite have been proposed. An ordinary method is a method in which a compound including tetraethylammonium ions is used as a structure directing agent (hereinafter abbreviated to "organic SDA"). Such a method is described in, for example, Patent Citation 1 below. However, although the compound including tetraethylammonium ions is expensive, most of the excessive portion is decomposed after completion of the crystallization of a beta-type zeolite, and decomposition is the only method that can remove the portion incorporated into crystals, and therefore it is not possible to collect and recycle the compound. Therefore, a beta-type zeolite manufactured using the above method is expensive. Furthermore, since tetraethylammonium ions are incorporated into crystals, it is necessary to remove tetraethylammonium ions through firing when a beta-type zeolite is used as an adsorbent or a catalyst. The exhaust gas at this time causes environmental contamination, and a large amount of a chemical is required for a detoxifying treatment of a synthesis mother liquid. As such, since the synthesizing method of a beta-type zeolite using tetraethylammonium ions is a manufacturing method which is not only expensive, but also causes a large environmental load, there has been a demand for realization of a manufacturing method in which the organic SDA is not used.
Under the above circumstance, in recent years, a synthesizing method of a beta-type zeolite in which the organic SDA is not used has been proposed in Patent Citation 2. In the document, a silica source, an alumina source, an alkali source and water are mixed so as to form a reaction mixture having a specific composition; a beta-type zeolite not including an organic compound which has a SiO2/Al2O3 ratio of 8 to 30 and an average particle diameter of 150 nm or more is used as a seed crystal, the beta-type zeolite is added to the reaction mixture at a proportion of 0.1 mass % to 20 mass % with respect to the silica component in the reaction mixture; and the reaction mixture to which the seed crystal is added is enclosure-heated at 100° C. to 200° C., thereby synthesizing a beta-type zeolite without using the organic SDA.
However, in a case in which the beta-type zeolite is used as a catalyst in the petrochemical industry or a hydrocarbon trap for purifying the exhaust gas of an internal-combustion engine, it is advantageous to increase the Si/Al ratio from the viewpoint of performance improvement. A method for increasing the Si/Al ratio in the beta-type zeolite is described in, for example, Patent Citation 3, and a method in which a water vapor treatment and an acid treatment are carried out sequentially is known.    [Patent Citation 1] U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,069    [Patent Citation 2] Pamphlet of the International Publication No. 2011/013560    [Patent Citation 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-215434

Zeolite, manufacturing method of the same, and catalytic cracking batalyst of paraffin

NAT'L UNIVERSITY CORP. YOKOHAMA NAT'L UNIVERSITY


A “no dead time” data acquisition system for a measurement instrument receives a digitized signal representing an electrical signal being monitored and generates from the digitized signal a trigger signal using a fast digital trigger circuit, the trigger signal including all trigger events within the digitized signal. The digitized signal is compressed as desired and delayed by a first-in, first-out (FIFO) buffer for a period of time to assure a predetermined amount of data prior to a first trigger event in the trigger signal. The delayed digitized signal is delivered to a fast rasterizer or drawing engine upon the occurrence of the first trigger event to generate a waveform image. The waveform image is then provided to a display buffer for combination with prior waveforms and/or other graphic inputs from other drawing engines. The contents of the display buffer are provided to a display at a display update rate to show a composite of all waveform images representing the electrical signal.

The current invention relates to data acquisition, and more particularly to "no dead time" data acquisition for measurement instruments, such as oscilloscopes.
The "dead time" of a measurement instrument, such as an oscilloscope, is a time when data acquisition circuitry does not respond to a valid trigger event by displaying a waveform representing an electrical signal being monitored. In an analog oscilloscope, for example, dead time occurs during beam retrace time on a cathode ray tube. In a digital oscilloscope dead time often occurs when the instrument is busy with a number of tasks, i.e., not able to process a trigger when a previously acquired waveform is being read from an acquisition memory or when it is busy drawing the acquired data to make an image of the waveform for display. Electronic circuits occasionally work in an unexpected manner. The incorrect operation may be rare, perhaps occurring once in thousands of correct cycles of operation. Fast circuits that cycle quickly often operate at rates much faster than a standard digital oscilloscope can display the corresponding waveforms. The typical digital oscilloscope ignores most of the triggers because it is busy processing and drawing waveforms. The waveforms that show the incorrect operation of the circuit may be missed, i.e., may not be acquired. An oscilloscope user may have to wait a long time in order to view the incorrect operation. Even though incorrect circuit operation may not be visible, the oscilloscope user may not ever have confidence that the circuit is working properly since only a small fraction of the waveforms are drawn on the oscilloscope display. The basic digital oscilloscope has an architecture in which data is received in an acquisition memory, and then acquisition is halted by a trigger event while the acquisition memory is read and the waveform drawing is performed.
What is desired is continuous drawing of the waveform of an electrical signal so that incorrect operation of an electronic circuit being monitored, if present, is guaranteed to be drawn on the display.


A display panel and a display device are provided. The display panel includes a display component layer and a first anti-reflective film arranged on the display component layer. The display component layer includes a first polarizer, a first substrate arranged on the first polarizer, a second substrate arranged on the first substrate and a second polarizer arranged on the second substrate. The anti-reflective film on the second polarizer may reduce reflected light energy while increasing transmitted light energy.

In a Thin Film Transistor-Liquid Crystal Display (TFT-LCD), the thin film transistor acts as a switch. When the thin film transistor is powered, liquid crystal molecules are arranged in a regular pattern to allow light to pass easily. When the thin film transistor is not powered, the liquid crystal molecules are arranged randomly to prevent the light from passing. Technically speaking, a TFT-LCD panel is composed of two sophisticated sodium-free glass substrates and a liquid crystal layer therebetween. Light beam may be provided by a back-light module. When the light beam passes through the liquid crystal layer, the light beam may pass through or be blocked depending on whether the liquid crystal molecules are arranged regularly or irregularly. By adjusting orientation of the liquid crystal molecules on inner sides of substrates, an expected structural deformation of the liquid crystal molecules can be made, thus achieving different display modes. When a display mode is selected, the orientation of the liquid crystal molecules is changed under influence of electrical field. An intensity of incident light is changed under the liquid crystal layer along with a polarizer, and therefore image display is achieved.
Cellphones and tablets are typical electronic devices in our daily life. An electronic device is normally equipped with a display such as liquid crystal display (LCD), active-matrix organic light-emitting diode display (AMOLED) and so on. The LCD or AMOLED requires a backlight module or a self-luminous component to display light, and blue light emitted by the self-luminous component may be harmful to human eyes.
Fabricators of displays accordingly provide a kind of display which does not requires the backlight module and the self-luminous component, for example, a reflective liquid crystal display (RLCD). A traditional RLCD has high requirement of environment light intensity. Only when the traditional RLCD receives relatively high external environment light, the traditional RLCD can be used comfortably. When the environmental light intensity is relatively weak, brightness of the traditional RLCD is accordingly relatively low.


A projection-type image display apparatus includes a display device and a projection optical system. The projection optical system includes a first lens group having a positive power as a whole, and a second lens group having a negative power as a whole. The second lens group includes a first lens and a second lens in an order from the display device side, both of which have negative powers. When the first lens is moved toward the display device and the second lens is moved away from the display device with reference to positions of the first lens and the second lens in a direction of an optical axis when an image surface is planar, a focal position of the peripheral light becomes closer to the projection optical system in the direction of the optical axis than a focal position of the on-axis light, and the image surface is made concave to the projection optical system side. Further, when the first lens is moved away from the display device and the second lens is moved toward the display device, the focal position of the on-axis light becomes closer to the projection optical system in the direction of the optical axis than the focal position of the peripheral light, and the image surface is made convex to the projection optical system side. In this way, a curvature of the image surface formed by the projection optical system is changed.

In the field of image display apparatuses, it has been conventionally studied to project an image on a curved screen in order to obtain a high realistic feeling. Recently, regarding an image display apparatus for use in vehicle, there is a demand for an image display apparatus capable of displaying an image on a curved surface so as to match an interior of the vehicle.
In this regard, image display apparatuses using a liquid crystal or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) have difficulty in displaying an image on a curved surface other than a cylindrical surface because of constraints in manufacturing. In contrast, a projection-type image display apparatus is able to display an image on a curved surface other than a cylindrical surface, and therefore is advantageous in remarkably enhancing a degree of design freedom of the interior of the vehicle.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a projection apparatus that projects a two-dimensional image of an object on a hemispherical surface.

Projection optical system and projection-type image display apparatus


Fat free meat products are provided which incorporate whole muscle components that are selectively and precisely separated from larger whole muscle groups, such as hams. The whole muscle components have a weight percent fat of not greater than 1.5, usually less. A brine composition is also incorporated. The fat free meat products have a fat percentage of about 0.9 weight percent or below. Typically, the fat free meat also includes finely textured reduced fat meat such as that processed by grinding and centrifuging. Residual trim cuts formed during subdivision of the whole muscle groups are greatly reduced in fat content by removing gristle or connective tissue or other fatty tissue from these residual trim cuts.

The present invention relates to meat products of the fat free variety and to a process for producing same on a production scale basis, and more particularly to fat free meat products having a fat percent by weight equal to or less than that allowed by controlling governmental agencies for meat products permitted to be labeled as fat free. A typical fat free fat percentage is less than about one percent by weight. For example, the United States Nutritional Labelling and Education Act (NLEA) regulations require that for a non-entree meat to be labelled as "fat free", it must have less than 0.5 gram of fat per serving and reference amount, which is 55 grams for a sliced meat. This translates to a definition of fat free being equal to or less than 0.91 percent by weight of fat in a non-entree meat product.
Awareness of fat intake has lead consumers to value highly those food sources which are relatively low in fat or have virtually no fat content. Traditionally, many meat products have been perceived by certain groups as being products that are relatively high in fat content. Various techniques have made available meat products having fat percentages of 5% or less, such as at the 1% to 4% by weight level of fat in the meat product. Examples are turkey breast products which can achieve fat levels at the lower values of these ranges.
Consumer perception has developed along these lines to the extent that there is a desire to have even these relatively low fat percentages reduced further, ideally to arrive at a fat free condition or a nominally fat free condition. For example, current guidelines which are followed by the USDA permit packaged meat products to be labeled as "fat free" provided the amount of fat in the packaged sliced meat or sausage product is less than 0.5 gram of fat per 55 grams, which is less than 0.91 percent by weight of the total packaged meat product. Such a product is thus properly designated as "free" of fat, and nutritional labeling properly specifies a zero ("0") as the reported fat content. Accordingly, there is an important need for meat products having a fat content which meets these zero or nominal zero levels.
In the past, certain fat free meat products, that is those meeting the governmental guidelines specified above, have been commercialized on a production scale basis. Typically, these are fat free turkey and chicken whole muscle (often breast) products. Other fat free products have been formulated from traditionally higher fat content sources. Such products typically are of the comminuted or ground variety. Examples include fat free frankfurters, hot dogs or wieners and other sausage type products such as bologna and other luncheon meat which is not of the so-called whole-muscle type, but is formed from batters, grinds or emulsions. The reformulation of such products in order to reduce fat levels can be aided by the inclusion of non-meat components that generally dilute the fat which is present in the meat that is included within the batter, grind or emulsion from which the sausage product is formed. It is often the case that these fat free products, when subjected to taste tests, score significantly lower than corresponding products which are not of the fat free variety. Therefore, it would be desirable and extremely important to be able to produce fat free meat products from higher fat meat sources which are not of the ground emulsified type and which, when subjected to taste testing, score at a level that is more generally in agreement with taste test scores for corresponding products that are not fat free or that include traditional levels of fat.
Fat free meat products which are made from pork or ham and the like that are currently available on a production line scale often do not exhibit texture characteristics of corresponding meat products which are not within the fat free category. Such texture differences, especially when combined with taste differences, can provide consumers with a perception that these fat free products do not elicit the eating experience which has been viewed positively in connection with the taste and texture of higher fat or traditionally high fat corresponding products. Examples of positively perceived texture attributes are the appearance and mouth feel of natural whole muscle meat cuts or slices which have no ground or emulsified components. These attributes are typically not attainable by a comminuted or ground meat product, even when sliced, especially when compared with a slice directly made from a natural whole muscle piece of meat. Thus, it would be desirable to have a production scale, manufactured-type of meat product made from sources such as pork or ham which are not naturally lean enough to meet the fat free criteria, especially while exhibiting natural whole muscle characteristics and texture attributes that equal or approximate those associated with corresponding traditionally prepared whole muscle meats, such as sliced smoked cooked ham.
A long-recognized difficulty in reducing the fat content of traditional meat cuts that are provided in natural muscle form is the variation in fat content from animal to animal. Attempts to address this difficulty have included modification in and tight control of the diets of the animals, as well as selective breeding practices and other approaches founded in the biological or chemical sciences which are directed toward modification of the animals themselves in order to reduce fat formation within the animals prior to slaughter. This approach has met with some success, although the fat reduction levels typically do not allow for natural muscle or traditionally cut whole muscle products which satisfy fat free criteria. For example, traditional natural meat cuts from such animals still have fat contents in excess of 1%, usually multiples of these levels.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved meat product that has a fat content which is at or below regulatory definition(s) of fat free meat products which are typically below one weight percent fat based on the total weight of the meat product, the exemplary USDA adopted level being less than 0.5 gram of fat per serving, which is the total weight of whole units closest to 55 grams and per reference amount for sliced non-entree meat products.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved fat free ham which is cured, shaped, and (if desired) sliced in accordance with traditional practices and which has a nominal fat content of zero.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved process and fat free meat product which eliminates many of the fat sources found in traditional pork cuts, especially the leaner cuts of pork including those that are the traditional materials for ham, so as to result in the production of a meat supply that is in the vicinity of one weight percent fat or lower and which, when formulated into a finished meat product has a fat weight percent of below 1%, typically at or below 0.9 weight percent.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fat free ham and water product, chopped and formed, and an improved process for producing same which incorporates low fat core meat cuts together with finely textured reduced fat meat and a water composition.
Another object of the present invention is to separate meat whole muscle into muscle "core meat" cuts and "residual trim" cuts, the latter having a significantly higher fat level, and processing the residual trim cuts to remove gristle and connective tissue in order to thereby remove a substantial contributor to the fat content of the residual trim cuts for use in preparing fat free meat products.
Another object of the present invention is to utilize mechanical approaches for removing gristle and connective tissue from meat pieces in order to substantially reduce the fat content of the meat pieces.


In a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, a conductive film is formed for a plurality of wiring patterns on a first insulating film and a second insulating film is formed on the conductive film. The second insulating film is patterned to be adaptive for the plurality of wiring patterns and then anisotropically etching is performed to the conductive film using the patterned second insulating film a mask such that a part of the conductive film is remained in a thickness direction of the conductive film. Subsequently, side wall insulating films are formed on side walls of the etched conductive film and then the conductive film is completely patterned for the plurality of wiring patterns using the side wall insulating films and the patterned second insulating film as a mask. In this case, the step of anisotropically etching the conductive film includes stopping the etching when the etching is performed by a predetermined depth with respect to a film thickness of the conductive film. Alternatively, when a lower layer of the conductive film is detected, the etching may be stopped.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of a semiconductor device, and more particularly to a manufacturing method of a semiconductor device in which damage of a gate oxide film due to charge-up phenomenon in a reactive ion etching method can be reduced when wirings are formed.
2. Description of Related Art
In a conventional semiconductor device, in order to perform anisotropic etching to a wiring film composed of material of aluminium or the like, a reactive ion etching (RIE) method is generally used, because of excellent perpendicular workability and fine fabrication. In the reactive ion etching method, ions generated in plasma are used. Therefore, electrons, positive charge ions, negative charge ions are contained in an ambience. In a case where the semiconductor devices such as a MOS-type field effect transistor are manufactured to have a gate electrode, these electrically charged particles flow into the gate electrode through a contact during the etching process. As a result, since high voltage is applied to the gate electrode, a thin gate oxide film is sometimes degraded and destroyed. The problem is called plasma damage and is one of the causes that the reliability is reduced when the semiconductor device is manufactured. The larger the lateral area of the wiring pattern connected to the gate electrode is, the more conspicuous this plasma damage is.
In a case where a metal wiring pattern is formed by use of the reactive ion etching method, various manufacturing methods are proposed to prevent the plasma damage of the gate oxide film in the plasma process. For example, as shown in the technique of FIG. 1, which is described in Japanese Laid Open Patent Disclosure (JP-A-Showa 63-25976), a protection diode is previously formed by layers 22 and 27, and a gate electrode 25 under a contact hole 29a is connected to the protection diode. Therefore, the electric charges generated when a through hole 30 is formed by the plasma etching process are directed to a silicon substrate 21 through the protection diode. This protection diode is also effective when a wiring film is etched to form a wiring pattern. The wiring pattern to be formed is connected to the protection diode via the contact hole 30 and the gate electrode 25. For this reason, charging up of the gate electrode can be restrained.
On the other hand, the method is proposed in which the plasma damage is reduced by adding a new manufacturing process without adding a functional element like the protection diode. FIGS. 2A to 2C are plan views illustrating the processes of the manufacturing method of the semiconductor device which is described in Japanese Laid Open Patent Disclosure (JP-A-Heisei 5-343398). In this method, an aluminium film is connected to a gate electrode through a contact 41. First, as shown in FIG. 2A, the aluminium film is etched by the reactive ion etching method using a photoresist as a mask such that a pattern 42 is removed. As a result, patterns 43a and 43b are left. The pattern 43a is connected to the gate electrode through the contact hole 41. In this case, the etching is performed such that the gate electrode is not charged up, i.e., such that the area of the pattern 42 becomes as small as possible.
Next, as shown in FIG. 2B, the aluminum film other than the pattern 43a is etched by the reactive ion etching using a photoresist as a mask so as to form wiring patterns 44. In this case, the pattern 43a on the contact hole 41 is separated from the aluminium wiring patterns 44. Also, because the surface area of the pattern 43a is very small, the injection of charged particles into the gate electrode can be restrained.
Finally, as shown in FIG. 2C, a tungsten film 45 is deposited by use of a selective CVD method such that separated aluminium wiring patterns are connected to each other. In this way, a wiring pattern is completed.
However, as described below, there are problems in the above-mentioned conventional manufacturing methods of the semiconductor device. First, in the conventional manufacturing method which is shown in FIG. 1, because the protection diode must be always formed, the required layout area increase. As a result, an integration density decreases. Also, because the wiring patterns must be always connected to either protection diode, the design of a circuit is greatly constrained.
On the other hand, in the conventional manufacturing method which is shown in FIGS. 2A to 2C, the lithography process needs to be executed many times, so that the manufacturing process becomes complicated. Therefore, it is difficult to reduce the number of manufacturing processes, and it is also difficult to avoid the rise of cost. Also, because an isolation pattern on the contact hole and patterns other than the isolation pattern are connected after the wiring film is patterned, a short circuit is easily produced in the high-density integrated circuit in which the separation between the wiring patterns is narrow, when the tungsten film is formed.
That is, these conventional techniques are not suitable for formation of fine patterns and high density integration.

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device without plasma damage


Method and apparatus are provided for the treatment of a user's sleeping disorder, e.g., snoring. Positive pressure gas in the range of 8 cm H2O or less, preferably about 3-6 cm H2O, is provided to the user's airways. If the pressure is greater than 6 cm H2O, or between 6-8 cm H2O, an indication or alert is provided to treat or diagnose the user with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Snoring (and other sleep disordered breathing) have major consequences to the community, both social and medical. Some studies suggest that more than a third of adults report that they snore at least a few nights a week. It is possible that about 40% of middle-aged men snore versus about 30% of middle-aged women. It has been reported that 30% of those over the age of 30 are snorers.
Snoring may be controlled with modification to several factors including obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption and late night eating. These are however behavioural and therefore most of the population have difficulty in modifying these.

Snoring treatment apparatus and methods of managing snorers


Disclosed is an oligomer or polymer obtained by reacting at least one monomeric, oligomeric or polymeric isocyanate having two or more isocyanate groups with 2-hydroxy-3-butenoic acid and/or at least one alkyl ester of 2-hydroxy-3-butenoic acid. A composition comprising a said oligomer or polymer is also disclosed.

Chemical compounds having one or more carbon-carbon double bonds (unsaturations) are well known in the art and used as reactants and chemical building blocks in a wide variety of applications, such as drying and/or heat curing and/or UV, IR and EB curing paints, enamels, putties, lacquers, varnishes, adhesives and inks, esters and polyesters, latex, fibres, textiles and so on, as well as in for instance moulding and casting compositions and the like. There is, however, despite the large amount of commercially available unsaturated compounds and derivatives thereof, due to for instance environmental concerns and legislation and/or new application areas, a substantial and ever growing demand for novel, safer, more efficient and/or more versatile compounds having one or more carbon-carbon double bonds. A major search, for safer unsaturated compounds for use in polymeric materials, is directed to suitable replacements for presently used unsaturated compounds, such as acrylic and allylic compounds.

Oligomer or polymer and composition comprising the same


The present invention pertains to a method for treating ulcerative colitis in a human which comprises orally or rectally administering to the human a therapeutically effective amount of an antibody which binds to a colonic antigen associated with ulcerative colitis. In another embodiment, the present invention pertains to a method for treating ulcerative colitis in a human which comprises the steps of (a) obtaining from a human a colon epithelial cell extract containing a colonic antigen associated with ulcerative colitis; (b) purifying the colonic antigen until the antigen is substantially homogeneous; (c) developing an antibody which binds to the colonic antigen; (d) orally or rectally administering to a human having ulcerative colitis a therapeutically effective amount of the antibody to bind to the colonic antigen associated with ulcerative colitis. In yet another embodiment, the present invention pertains to a method for vaccinating a human against ulcerative colitis which comprises orally administering to the human a therapeutically effective amount of a colonic antigen associated with ulcerative colitis.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to a method for treating ulcerative colitis. Specifically, the method comprises orally or rectally administering to a human having ulcerative colitis a therapeutically effective amount of an antibody which binds to a colonic antigen associated with ulcerative colitis.
2. Description of the Background
Ulcerative colitis is an idiopathic form of inflammatory bowel disease which manifests itself as a chronic, recurrent, nonspecific ulceration in the colon, chiefly of the mucosa. Ulcerative colitis is evidenced clinically by cramping, abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, and bloody diarrhea. Complications include bleeding, toxic megacolon, perforation of the colon, and carcinoma.
The disease usually begins in the rectosigmoid area and may extend proximally, eventually involving the entire colon, or it may attack most of the large bowel at once. Pathologic change begins with degeneration of the colonic epithelium and progressive infiltration of the lamina propria with plasma cells, eosinophils, lymphocytes, mast cells, and polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Crypt abscesses, epithelial necrosis, and mucosal ulceration are commonly found.
Although there is a familial tendency, the etiology of ulcerative colitis remains undefined, however, there is considerable evidence pointing towards autoimmunity. Acute and chronic inflammation within the colonic mucosa are known to generate inflammatory mediators which perpetuate the inflammatory process.
Current therapy for ulcerative colitis remains empirical and consists of treatment with sulfasalazine, glucocorticosteroids, and immunosuppressants. These agents require continuous administration to prevent recurrent inflammation once an acute episode has subsided. In recent years, 5-ASA compounds have been used with reduction in side effects but without much change in response rate as compared to conventional therapy.
The presence of a 40 KDa (Mr 40K, p40) colonic autoantigen and the circulating antibodies reactive against this protein have been detected in idiopathic ulcerative colitis (Takahasi et al., J. Clin. Invest. 76:311,1985) and in cotton top tamarins with spontaneous colitis (Das et al., Gut 33:48, 1992). Using hybridoma technology, a monoclonal antibody (7E.sub.12 H.sub.12, IgM isotype) was developed against the epithelial antigen associated with ulcerative colitis (Das et al., J. Immunol. 139:77, 1987). The monoclonal antibody 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 binds specifically to colonocytes along baso-lateral and brush border areas and it does not react with any other parts of the gastrointestinal tract including the small intestine. This colon epithelial specific protein (CSP) is localized in the cell membrane. Three recent studies demonstrated that 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 reactive protein (CSP) indeed is recognized by a disease specific (ulcerative colitis) autoantibody of IgG1 subclass (Halstensen et al., Gut 34:650, 1993; Dasgupta et al., Gut 35:1712-1717, 1994; Hassan et al., Clin. Exp. Immunol., 1995, 100:1457-1462).
Using an animal model of colitis, researchers have recently shown that the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 monoclonal antibody given by enema provides beneficial effect against the Dextran Sulfate Sodium induced murine colitis (Nandiwada et al., Gastroenterology 104:A754, 1993). The study involved intracolonic administration of 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 prior to and along with Dextran Sulfate Sodium and the results suggested that the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 monoclonal antibody is significantly effective in improving the clinical and histological integrity of the colonic mucosa.
Autoimmunity has been implicated in the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis (UC) since its initial report 36 years ago demonstrating the presence of circulating antibody in ulcerative colitis against colonic antigen (Perlman, P., J. Exp. Med. 1959;110:657-673). Subsequently, other investigators reported the presence of various serum antibodies occurring in up to 70% of patients with ulcerative colitis directed against intestinal goblet cells (Brandtzaeg, P., Gastroenterology 1995;109:307312; Hibi et al., Clinical Exp. Immunol. 1983, 54, 163-168) as well as directed against colonic epithelial brush border, suggesting the multiplicity of antigenic cellular proteins. Tissue bound IgG eluted from ulcerative colitis colon but not from non-ulcerative colitis diseased colon, has been shown to react with an Mr 40K colonic protein (p40). The ulcerative colitis colon eluted IgG (CCA-IgG) also reacted with the autologous p40. Lamina propria lymphocytes from ulcerative colitis also secrete IgG reactive to the mucosal extract enriched in p40. Subsequently, a partial sequence study indicated that p40 belonged to a tropomyosin family.
Using highly enriched p40, a murine monoclonal antibody (mAb), termed 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 (IgM isotype) was developed (Das, K. M. et al., J. Immunol. 1987;139:77-84). Immunocytochemical studies using the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 monoclonal antibody demonstrated specific recognition of the colonic epithelial cells and not with 13 other epithelial organs including other parts of the gastrointestinal tract and small intestinal enterocytes. The reactivity was predominantly localized at the plasma membrane in the apical (brush border area) and basolaceral domains of colonocytes (Das, K. M. et al., J. Immunol. 1987;139:77-84). Using two and three color immunofluorescence assay (Halstensen, T. S. et al., Gut 1993;34:650-657), the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 reactive epitope was also localized exclusively in colonic enterocytes, but not in small intestinal enterocytes, with increasing intensity caudally, expanding to intense cytoplasmic expression in the rectum. Furthermore, IgG1 antibody and activated complement products, C3b and terminal complement complex, were co-localized with 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 epitope on the colonic epithelium in ulcerative colitis but not in Crohn's disease (Halstensen, T. S. et al., Gut 1992;33:902-908), suggesting a specific antibody response against the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 reactive protein and perhaps followed by activation of complement system. This in situ observation of a specific IgG1 autoantibody response against the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 -reactive protein was confirmed using sera from a large number of patients with ulcerative colitis and other disease controls (Dasgupta et al., Gut 35:1712-1717). Sera from patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis also contain specific autoantibody against the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 -reactive protein that is shared by colon and biliary epithelial cells (Mandal, A. et al., Gastroenterology 1994; 106:185-192). Indeed, following systematic screening of 17 various epithelial organs using the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 monoclonal antibody, epitope(s) cross-reactive to colonocytes were localized only in the epidermis, biliary epithelium, non-pigmented epithelial cells of the ciliary processes in the eye, and chondrocytes of joints (Das, K. M. et al., Gastroenterology 1990:98;464-469; Bhagat et al., Gastroenterology 1994:107;103-108), the extracolonic organs most commonly involved in ulcerative colitis. These findings from several independent studies provide evidence suggesting that an autoimmune response to the 7E.sub.12 H.sub.12 -reactive protein is an important immunopathological event in ulcerative colitis.

Method of treating ulcerative colitis with a monoclonal antibody