According to an embodiment, a first device includes: a first transceiver configured to transmit two or more first carrier signals using an output of a first reference signal source and to receive two or more second carrier signals; and a calculation unit, and a second device includes: a second transceiver configured to transmit the two or more second carrier signals using an output of a second reference signal source that operates independently of the first reference signal source and to receive the two or more first carrier signals. A frequency group of the two or more first carrier signals and a frequency group of the two or more second carrier signals are identical or substantially identical to each other, and the calculation unit calculates the distance between the first device and the second device based on a phase detection result obtained by receiving the first and second carrier signals.

In recent years, keyless entry systems have been adopted in many cars to facilitate locking and unlocking of the cars. According to such a technique, a user of the car can lock and unlock doors using communication between a key of the car and the car. Furthermore, smart key systems, which allow users to lock and unlock doors or start an engine without touching a key, have been widely used in recent years.
However, incidents frequently happen that an attacker who performs a so-called relay attack intrudes into the communication between the key and the car and steals the car or articles in the car. A countermeasure against the attack, that is, a so-called relay attack, is being taken to measure a distance between the key and the car and prohibit control of the car due to the communication when the measured distance is determined to be equal to or greater than a predetermined distance.
Examples of distance measuring methods include a time detection method, a frequency difference detection method, and a phase detection method. However, a distance measuring system employing a communication-type phase detection method for obtaining a distance between respective devices due to communication between the respective devices has been paid attention from the viewpoint of simplicity of mounting. However, since reference signals between the respective devices operate independently, initial phases are different from each other, and thus distance measurement accuracy generally deteriorates significantly in the communication-type phase detection method. Therefore, a technique has been proposed which enables distance measurement by transmitting phase information detected by one device to the other device. According to the proposal, an accurate distance can be calculated by a predetermined arithmetic operation using phase information of signals detected by receiving units of a pair of two distance measuring devices.
At the same time, the battery life of the key needs to be extended since the distance measuring device is also mounted on the key side, and low power consumption of the distance measuring device is required. Since most of the power consumption of the distance measuring device is consumed by the radio unit, low power consumption of the radio unit is required. The power consumption of the radio unit strongly depends on architecture of the radio unit. An example of the widely known low power consumption configuration includes a configuration in which a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) direct modulation method (hereinafter also referred to as VCO direct modulation method) is used for a transmitting unit and a superheterodyne (SH) method (hereinafter also referred to as SH method) or a Low-IF reception method is used for a receiving unit. Therefore, the distance measuring device is desirably implemented by the configuration in which the VCO direct modulation method is used for the transmitting unit and the SH method is used for the receiving unit. However, in the case where the distance is measured using the VCO direct modulation method for the transmitting unit and the SH method for the receiving unit, accurate distance measurement can hardly be performed even when the proposed technique described above is used.

Distance measuring device and distance measuring method

TOSHIBA ELECTRONIC DEVICES & STORAGE CORPORATION


The present invention comprises a method of treating an off-gas stream from a refining process to remove sulfur compounds. A portion of the off-gas stream containing hydrogen sulfide is injected at the front end of the thermal reactor and in at least one other location downstream of the thermal reactor. A ratio of hydrogen sulfide to sulfur dioxide at the outlet of the thermal reactor is less than the stoichiometric requirement. The ratio is adjusted downstream of the thermal reactor so that a ratio of hydrogen sulfide to sulfur dioxide is maintained substantially in excess of the stoichiometric requirement for a Claus reaction. The tail gas, containing hydrogen sulfide but virtually no sulfur dioxide, is treated by a process including removal of water and introducing sulfur dioxide into the tail gas in a stoichiometricly balanced quantity and processing the tail gas in a Claus reactor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to processes for sulfur recovery and more specifically to processes for removing sulfur compounds, including hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide, from process streams.
2. Description of the Related Art
Processing of hydrocarbon-containing fuels such as gasoline and diesel fuel results in gases containing sulfur compounds, including hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and hydrocarbon compounds, including ammonia (NH3). Governmental regulations limit plant emissions of sulfur-bearing gases. Refineries commonly include sulfur reduction units to decrease emissions of sulfur compounds.
The use of a Claus reaction to recover sulfur from process off-gases is widely known in the field. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and hydrogen sulfide react to produce elemental sulfur (S2) and steam (H2O). The reaction formula is:2H2S+SO2→1.5S2+2H2OThe reaction can occur with or without a catalyst. As long as two moles of hydrogen sulfide are available for each mole of sulfur dioxide in appropriate concentrations with appropriate heat and pressure, elemental sulfur and water will result.
A typical prior art arrangement of a Claus process with a SCOT tail gas process is outlined in FIG. 5. The prior art generally teaches high temperature reaction of air, through air line 16, off-gas streams containing hydrogen sulfide, through hydrogen sulfide line 18, and off-gas streams containing ammonia, through ammonia line 12, in a thermal reactor 14 to oxidize a portion of the hydrogen sulfide in the process streams to create sulfur dioxide and to react the sulfur dioxide with hydrogen sulfide into elemental sulfur and water, thus eliminating a substantial portion of the hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide in the streams. The quantity of air to the thermal reactor is controlled to provide a stoichiometric balance of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide in the process stream. A balanced stoichiometric ratio is difficult to maintain due to variations in composition of process streams.
Commonly, the process stream containing significant hydrogen sulfide is divided prior to introduction to the reactor chamber, with approximately 30-70% of the feed directed to the front end 22 of the thermal reactor chamber 14 through line 18 and the remaining 30-70% directed to the back end 20 of the reactor chamber 14 through line 18a. The mixture of air and off-stream gases is thermally reacted near the front end 22 of the reactor chamber 14 and moves to the back end 20 of the reactor chamber 14 where the second hydrogen sulfide stream is received.
It is desirable to maintain a temperature at or near 1,316° C. (2,400° F.) in the thermal reactor 14 to crack process gas hydrocarbon compounds such as ammonia. Providing a determined quantity of hydrogen sulfide at the front end 22 of the reactor chamber 14 assists in maintaining desired temperature in the thermal reactor 14. An excess of hydrogen sulfide tends to lower the temperature in the reactor chamber 14 due to increased mass flow. In prior art thermal reactors, the temperature at the back end 20 of the reactor 14 may be less than the desired temperature because of added off-gases containing hydrogen sulfide.
After the thermal reactor 14 the resulting gas stream is processed through a series of Claus reactors 46, 60 and 72, condensers 34, 50, 64 and 76 and reheaters 42, 54 and 68. The Claus reactors 46, 60 and 72 typically have aluminum oxide or bauxite catalyst beds. The Claus reaction produces elemental sulfur, which is recovered as liquid sulfur and water vapor. Traditional Claus systems remove greater than 95% of the sulfur from the process stream. Tail gas processes are used to remove remaining quantities of sulfur compounds to obtain an overall recovery of up to 99.9%.
Various processes are taught for treating tail gas to remove the remaining hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide. The Shell Claus Off-gas Treating process, often referred to as the SCOT process, reacts hydrogen with remaining sulfur dioxide to generate hydrogen sulfide which is in turn absorbed in an amine compound. A typical SCOT process includes a pre-heater 82 for heating the tail gas, a hydrogenation reactor 84, a quench tower 86 to remove water from the tail gas, an amine tower 88 for reaction of the amine solution with the tail gas, a regenerator 96 to strip the hydrogen sulfide for transmission back to the Claus reactor, and an incinerator 92 for burning off treated tail gas. The SCOT process is effective in further reducing sulfur dioxide emissions. However, the SCOT involves substantial capital and operating expense. The hydrogenation reactor 84, required to react hydrogen with hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide, is expensive because of high initial capital cost and operating costs.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,021,232 issued to Hise et al. on Jun. 4, 1991 discloses a process for the cleanup of sulfur-containing constituents in a gaseous stream such as a tail gas from a sulfur recovery unit. A Claus reaction is used to convert sulfur-containing compounds to elemental sulfur in the presence of a stoichiometric excess of hydrogen sulfide. The elemental sulfur is separated from the tail gas and the sulfurous compounds remaining in the tail gas are separated by crystallization for recycle through the Claus process. Carbon dioxide is the crystallization material. Sulfur-containing compounds are at least partially excluded from a solid (frozen) phase of the carbon dioxide for recycling through the Claus process.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,741,469 issued to Bhore et al. on Apr. 21, 1998 discloses a process that may be used to treat Claus plant tail-gas utilizing solid oxides to remove sulfur oxides from gas streams.
U.S. Pat. App. No. US 2003/0082096, invented by Lynn and published on May 1, 2003 discloses treating sulfur dioxide-rich gas by combusting it with a substoichiometric amount of oxygen to produce a combustion gas with water vapor and sulfur vapor. The combustion gas is cooled to form water containing suspended solid sulfur and polythionic acids.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,610,264 issued to Buchanan et al. on Aug. 26, 2003 discloses a process and system for removing sulfur from tail-gas emitted from a Claus sulfur recovery process. The tail-gas is first oxidized so as to convert sulfur therein to sulfur oxides. Oxidized tail-gas is directed into an absorber where a solid absorbent absorbs substantially all the sulfur oxides thereon. After allowing sufficient time for a desired amount of sulfur oxides to be absorbed, absorption is ceased. Next, the solid absorbent containing the absorbed sulfur oxides is contacted with a reducing gas so as to release an off-gas containing hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide. Upon releasing sulfur from the solid absorbent, the solid absorbent is regenerated and redirected into the absorber. Sulfur in the off-gas emitted by regeneratio is concentrated to an extent sufficient for use within a Claus sulfur recovery process for conversion to elemental sulfur.


Proteins of moderate size having native peptide backbones are produced by a method of native chemical ligation. Native chemical ligation employs a chemoselective reaction of two unprotected peptide segments to produce a transient thioester-linked intermediate. The transient thioester-linked intermediate then spontaneously undergoes a rearrangement to provide the full length ligation product having a native peptide bond at the ligation site. Full length ligation products are chemically identical to proteins produced by cell free synthesis. Full length ligation products may be refolded and/or oxidized, as allowed, to form native disulfide-containing protein molecules. The technique of native chemical ligation is employable for chemically synthesizing full length proteins.

Proteins may be synthesized chemically, ribosomally in a cell free system, or ribosomally within a cell. Advances in each of these areas have significantly improved access to many proteins but have also stimulated demand for yet further improvements.
Proteins owe their diverse properties to the precisely folded three dimensional structures of their polypeptide chains. The three dimensional structure of a protein determines its functional attributes. However, at present, it is difficult to predict and/or fully explain the biological properties of a protein from its three dimensional structure alone. A better understanding of how structure determines the biological properties of a protein can be achieved by systematically varying the covalent structure of the molecule and correlating the effects with the folded structure and biological function. Accordingly, there is an increased demand for enhanced synthetic techniques for synthesizing new proteins and protein analogs.
Techniques derived from recombinant DNA-based molecular biology can be employed to facilitate the expression of proteins in genetically engineered microorganisms. The use of site-directed mutagenesis, as disclosed by M. Smith (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. (1994): vol. 33, p 1214), enables the preparation of large numbers of modified proteins in useful amounts for systematic study, e.g., C. Eigenbrot and A. Kossiakoff, Current Opinion in Biotechnology (1992): vol. 3, p 333. The use of innovative approaches increases the range of amino acids that can be incorporated in expression systems and promises to significantly extend the utility of biosynthetic modification of the covalent structure of proteins. (C. J. Noren et al., Science (1989): vol. 244, p 182 (1989); J. A. Ellman et al., Science (1992): vol. 255, p 197.) However, there appear to be limitations inherent to the nature of ribosomal protein synthesis. (V. W. Cornish, et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1994): vol. 91, p 2910.)
Chemical synthesis of proteins has also contributed to the exploration of the relationship of protein structure to function. Stepwise solid phase synthesis has permitted the de novo preparation of small proteins. (T. W. Muir et al., Curr. Opin. Biotech. (1993): vol. 4, p 420.) There are also several examples of the use of stepwise solid phase synthesis of whole proteins to explore the molecular basis of biological function. (M. Miller, et al., Science (1989): vol. 246, p 1149; A. Wlodawer, et al., Science (1989): vol. 245, p 616; L. H. Huang, et al., Biochemistry (1991): vol. 30, p 7402; and K. Rajarathnam, et al., Science (1994): vol. 264, p 90.)
Semi-synthesis through the conformationally-assisted religation of peptide fragments can also be employed, in special instances, to study of the structure/function relationship of proteins. (R. E. Offord, "Chemical Approaches to Protein Engineering", in Protein Design and the Development of New therapeutics and Vaccines, J. B. Hook, G. Poste, Eds., (Plenum Press, New York, 1990) pp. 253-282; C. J. A. Wallace, et al., J. Biol. Chem. (1992): vol. 267, p 3852. An important extension of the semisynthesis approach is the use of enzymatic ligation of cloned or synthetic peptide segments. (L. Abrahmsen, et al., Biochemistry (1991): vol. 30, p 4151; T. K. Chang, et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1994): in press.) Although the above methodologies have been successfully applied to the synthesis of proteins and protein analogs, T. W. Muir et al., report that there is a continued interest in the wider application of the tools of organic chemistry to the study of proteins (Curr. Opin. Biotech. (1993): vol. 4, p 420.)
Stephen Kent et al. recently introduced the chemical ligation of unprotected peptide segments as an improved route to the total synthesis of proteins. (M. Schnlzer, et al., Science (1992): vol., 3256, p 221.) Chemical ligation involves the chemoselective reaction of unprotected peptides to give a product with an unnatural backbone structure at the ligation site. Use of unprotected peptides circumvented the difficulties inherent to classical chemical synthesis, viz complex combinations of protecting groups that lead to limited solubility of many synthetic inter-mediates, e.g. K. Akaji, et al., Chem. Pharm. Bull. (Tokyo) (1985): vol. 33, p 184. In contrast, the chemical ligation technique has allowed us to make good use of the ability to routinely make, purify, and characterize unprotected peptides 50 or more residues in length. Using optimized stepwise solid phase methods the preparation in good yield and high purity of peptides up to 60 residues is routine. In favorable cases, peptides of 80+ residues can be prepared. (M. Schnolzer, et al., Int. J. Pept. Prot. Res. (1992): vol. 40, p 180-193.)
The key aspect of the above approach to chemical ligation is the use of a chemoselective reaction to specifically and unambiguously join peptides by formation of an unnatural (i.e. non-peptide) backbone structure at the ligation site. It has permitted the facile preparation of a wide range of backbone-modified proteins, including analogues of protein domains, e.g., ligated 10F3, the integrin-binding module of fibronectin: 95 residues (M. Williams, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1994): in press.) The catalytic contribution of flap-substrate hydrogen bonds in HIV-1 protease has been elucidated by the chemical synthesis of a homodimer of 99 residue subunits of this protein by chemical ligation. (M. Baca, et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S., (1993): vol. 90, p 11638.) Chemical ligation has also proven to be useful for the routine, reproducible synthesis of large amounts of proteins in high purity with full biological activity (20). (R. C. deLisle Milton, et al., "Synthesis of Proteins by Chemical Ligation of Unprotected Peptide Segments: Mirror-Image Enzyme Molecules, D- & L-HIV Protease Analogs," in Techniques in Protein Chemistry IV, Academic Press, New York, pp. 257-267 (1992).)
Chemical ligation can also be employed for the straightforward production of protein-like molecules of unusual topology, e.g., four-helix bundle template-assembled synthetic protein (MW 6647 Da) (P. E. Dawson, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1993): vol. 115, p 7263); homogeneous multivalent artificial protein (MW 19,916 Da) (K. Rose, J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1994): vol. 3116, p 30); artificial neoprotein mimic of the cytoplasmic domains of a multichain integrin receptor (MW 14,194 Da) (T. W. Muir, et al., Biochemistry, (1994): vol. 33, pp 7701-7708; and peptide dendrimer (MW 24,205 Da) (C. Rao, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1994): vol. 116, p 6975. The range of proteins accessible by this technique is limited by the size of the synthetic peptide segments.
A useful extension would occur if one had direct synthetic access to native backbone polypeptide chains up to the size of typical protein domains. (A. L. Berman, et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1994): vol. 91, p 4044.) Chemical ligation would then be employed to string these domains together to explore the world of proteins in a general fashion.
A modular strategy for the total synthesis of proteins has been developed, based on the convergent chemical ligation of unprotected peptides has been disclosed by L. E. Canne, et al. (presented at the Annual Meeting of the Protein Society, San Diego, July 1994). Protein domains (modules) were prepared by chemical ligation of 50-70 residue segments; these domains were then stitched together to give the target protein. Mutually compatible ligation chemistries are required: intra-domain ligation should optimally yield a stable, peptide-like bond; inter-domain ligation will tolerate a wider variation of properties of the structure formed at the ligation site.
Straightforward total chemical synthesis of proteins represents the realization of an important objective of organic chemistry. It raises the exciting prospect of unrestricted variation of protein covalent structure made possible by general synthetic access, and will give new impetus to exploration of the structural basis of properties such as folding, stability, catalytic activity, binding, and biological action.
What is needed is a technique of native chemical ligation which combines the formation of a native peptide bond at the ligation site with the advantages of chemoselective reaction of unprotected peptides. This second generation ligation chemistry would significantly increase the size of native backbone polypeptides directly accessible by total chemical synthesis. It could be usefully applied to a wide range of synthetic targets, including proteins of moderate size, and it allows direct access to protein functional domains. Native chemical ligation is a foundation stone of a general modular approach to the total chemical synthesis of proteins. Furthermore, it is compatible with the use of both chemically synthesized peptides and peptide segments derived from other sources.

Synthesis of proteins by native chemical ligation


A mechanism for gripping drill rods in a carousel of a drilling rig provides a dual function of extending and gripping in a single movement of a pair of opposed gripper arms pivotally connected to each other about a first, longitudinally movable pivot pin. A pair of opposed link arms is pivotally connected to each other about a second, fixed pivot pin, each link arm being also pivotally connected at an outer end to a gripper arm. A piston moves the pivot pin longitudinally in the housing, the gripper arms first spread apart from each other and then close toward each other, while simultaneously moving along the housing.

This invention relates generally to drill rigs and more particularly to drill rod gripping mechanisms used to grip and move drill rods from a storage carousel to the drill string of a drill rig.
Prior art drill rod changers of the kind that provide both an extend function and a grip function have a disadvantage in both drill change time and maintenance requirements. Having a separate extend and a separate grip function requires two sets of actuators and two sets of wear points to be maintained. The separate functions also require additional operator input twice during each rod change; once to extend the gripper into the carousel, and once to cause the gripper to grip the drill rod.
The foregoing illustrates limitations known to exist in present drill rod gripping mechanisms. Thus, it is apparent that it would be advantageous to provide an alternative directed to overcoming one or more of the limitations set forth above. Accordingly, a suitable alternative is provided including features more fully disclosed hereinafter.


An electrical circuit including a test circuit and a method of testing electrical circuits is disclosed. In one embodiment, the circuit includes a electrical short-circuit protective circuit according to the invention for protecting an input contact against short-circuit having an input which is intended for connection to a signal generator, and an output which is intended for connection to a input contact. The input contact can be decoupled from the region lying upstream of the input of the electrical short-circuit protective circuit by the electrical short-circuit protective circuit.

The production testing of integrated circuits constitutes a significant cost factor when manufacturing such integrated circuits. In order to optimize the costs that are incurred when production testing integrated circuits, attempts are frequently made to utilize the available test systems in the best possible way. If the test algorithm with which the integrated circuits are tested is optimized for a minimum testing time, all the possibilities for reducing costs are already exhausted with this approach.
Another approach for testing integrated circuits is to test a plurality of integrated circuits simultaneously on a single tester. For this it is necessary for the testers used to be correspondingly equipped, in particular for the load board to be adapted to hold a plurality of integrated circuits. A load board is understood here to be a base which is used in such a test and which is capable of holding one or more integrated circuits to be tested.
When such parallel testing of integrated circuits is carried out there is frequently the problem that owing to a single faulty integrated circuit all the integrated circuits of the respective parallel test run are classified as faulty and therefore eliminated. As a result, the yield is reduced and the unit costs for the faultfree integrated circuits are increased.

Electrical circuit and method for testing integrated circuits


A chopper for an imaging system includes a frame and a sheet that have different coefficients of thermal expansion. The frame has a space within it, and has at least one opening that allows radiation to pass through the space. The sheet has structure which influences radiation passing through the sheet, and the sheet is movably disposed within the space in the frame, in a manner so that the sheet can expand and contract relative to the frame in a direction approximately parallel to the sheet. The frame prevents any significant movement of the sheet in a direction transverse to the sheet.

There are infrared imaging systems which have a lens assembly that images incoming infrared radiation onto an infrared detector. As the radiation travels from the lens assembly to the detector, it passes through a rotating chopper, and the chopper modulates the radiation by influencing it in a manner which varies as a result of the rotation of the chopper. For example, the chopper may alternately cause the radiation passing through it to be diffused to effect blurring, and permit the radiation to pass through it without any significant change.
One existing type of chopper has a frame that supports a polymer film. The polymer film has different portions which respectively include and are free of diffusion structure. Rotation of the chopper causes these portions to influence radiation passing through the chopper in an alternating manner. The film is a polymer material which is processed so that the polymer chains have a generally random orientation. The random orientation of the polymer chains has the effect of softening the material of the film to a point where, in order to keep the film flat, the film must be constrained to the frame at its perimeter, and then stretched taut within the frame. While existing choppers of this type have been generally adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been satisfactory in all respects.
For example, systems using this type of chopper are often expected to operate in a satisfactory and reliable manner across a relatively wide operational temperature range. However, the frame and the film have different coefficients of thermal expansion. As a result, temperature variations tend to induce tensile stresses within the film, due in part to the fact that the film is constrained at its perimeter. As a result, when the film has been subjected to several cycles of temperature variation, the tensile stresses often cause the film to tear, which in turn leads to degradation in the chopper's performance.

Method and apparatus for modulating infrared radiation


A system method of estimating health of aircraft brake system friction material includes sensing a temperature of the friction material, and supplying the sensed temperature to a processor-implemented thermal model that is configured to estimate friction material temperatures at one or more locations on the friction material. The estimates of friction material temperatures are supplied to a processor-implemented thermal oxidation model that is configured, based on the estimates of friction material temperatures, to estimate friction material loss due to thermal oxidation. Data representative of runway fluid exposure are supplied to a processor-implemented catalytic oxidation model that is configured, based on the runway fluid exposure, to estimate friction material loss due to catalytic oxidation. The health of the friction material is estimated based on the estimates of friction material loss from the processor-implemented thermal oxidation model and the processor-implemented catalytic oxidation model.

When a jet-powered aircraft lands, the aircraft brakes, various aerodynamic drag sources (e.g., flaps, spoilers, etc.), and, in many instances, aircraft thrust reversers, are used to slow the aircraft down in the desired amount of runway distance. When the aircraft is sufficiently slowed, and is taxiing from the runway toward its ground destination, the aircraft brakes are used to slow the aircraft, and bring it to a stop at its final ground destination.
Presently, many aircraft brake systems include a plurality of hydraulic or electromechanical actuators, and a plurality of wheel mounted brakes. The brakes in many aircraft are implemented as multi-disk brakes, which include a plurality of stator disks and rotor disks. The stator disks and rotor disks may be alternately splined to a torque tube or wheel rim, and disposed parallel to one another, to form a brake stack. The actuators, in response to an appropriate pilot-initiated command, move between an engage position and a disengage position. In the engage position, the actuators each engage a brake stack, moving the brake disks into engagement with one another, to thereby generate the desired braking force.
In many instances, the disks that comprise a brake stack are formed of a carbon or carbon composite material. Because the brakes rely on friction to slow or stop the aircraft, the disks are subject to wear. As such, the brakes undergo routine visual inspections to determine the amount of wear of the friction material. At times, these routine inspections detect unanticipated amounts of wear, which can cause unanticipated dispatch delays and/or aircraft downtime. Both of these unanticipated events can be costly to an operator.
Hence, there is a need for a system and method of monitoring brakes on an aircraft that can accurately determine the health of the brakes and thereby alleviate unanticipated delays and/or downtime due to unanticipated amounts of wear. The present invention addresses at least this need.

Aircraft brake health monitoring system and method


This invention pertains to a purified flavoring agent represented by the formula: EQU CH.sub.3 (CH.sub.2).sub.n CH(CH.sub.3)OCOR. wherein n is 2 or 4 and R is a lower alkyl group having from 1 to 5 carbon atoms. The flavoring agent may be used in a wide variety of ingestible vehicles such as chewing gum compositions, hard and soft confections, dairy products, juice products, and the like. The present invention also pertains to methods for preparing and using the flavoring agents and the ingestible products in which they may be used.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to a purified flavoring agent represented by the formula: EQU CH.sub.3 (CH.sub.2).sub.n CH(CH.sub.3)OCOR
wherein n is 2 or 4 and R is a lower alkyl group having from 1 to 5 carbon atoms. The flavoring agent may be used in a wide variety of ingestible vehicles such as chewing gum compositions, hard and soft confections, dairy products, juice products, and the like. The present invention also pertains to methods for preparing and using the flavoring agents and the ingestible products in which they may be used.
2. Description of the Background
The Generessence.TM. flavor research program conducted by Bush Boake Allen focuses on developing flavors by employing in depth understanding of the volatile organic components present in a wide variety of samples, for example fruits and herbs and coupling this information to flavor preference profiling. A number of sampling and analytical techniques are used including, headspace analysis of the growing sample. The flavors are primarily formulated from synthetic chemicals and contain only components identified in the sample. There is no limit to the concentration of individual components used apart from organoleptic considerations. A problem with developing flavoring agents for fruity materials, such as banana, is that natural fruits do not contain a single flavoring agent, but rather contain a complex mixture of volatile components making identification of characteristic flavors very difficult.
Food Technol. (Chicago) Nov. 23 (1969) 1435; (Issenberg) discloses volatile components identified by capillary column GC-MS analysis in the headspace vapor of banana (Table 4). Z. Naturforsch. B 24 (1969) 781; (Tressel et al.) discloses a gas chromatographic separation of aromatic materials in banana including a table listing 183 flavor compounds, approximately 350 compounds were separated by gas chromatography. Z. Lebensm. Unters. Forsch. 142 (1970) 313; (Tressel et al.) discloses the gas chromatographic identification of 60 esters, 40 alcohols, 28 carbonyl groups, and 4 phenyethers in banana including iso-amyl acetate. Chem. Mikrobiol. Technol. Lebensm. 10 (1986) 120; (Berger et al.) discloses 15 volatile trace components in banana.
While the above disclosures provide some insight into the flavoring components in banana, none of the above disclosures provide satisfactory banana flavoring agents. The present invention provides novel flavoring agents without the disadvantages which are characteristic of previously known products. The flavoring agents may be used in a wide variety of ingestible vehicles. The present invention also provides methods for preparing and using these flavoring agents and the ingestible compositions in which they may be employed.

Methods for using 1-methylbutyl and 1-methylhexyl esters as flavoring agents


A hood hinge mechanism having a pivot pin having a D-shaped cross sectional shape positioned within a recess. The hood and pin are pivotal to a position whereat the D-shaped cross section is oriented to pass through a slotted opening to the recess to thereby allow the hood to be removed or installed on the vehicle. A bracket coupled with the hood abuts a support member when the hood is pivoted to its fully open position such that the hood is held open by the weight of the hood and is generally blocked from being detached from the vehicle unless acted upon by an operator.

The present invention relates to mechanisms that pivotally mount a hood to a vehicle such as a lawn and garden tractor.
It is known to provide lawn and garden tractors with hoods which serve to generally enclose the vehicle engine compartment. The hoods are mounted to the vehicle frame for pivoting between open and closed positions. In the closed position the hood generally encloses the engine and other vehicle components during vehicle operation. In the open position such a hood exposes the engine and other vehicle components to allow easy access for maintenance operations. The hoods are also typically adapted for being removed entirely from the vehicle to allow even greater access to the engine and vehicle components.
One type of conventional hood mounting mechanism includes a pivot pin mounted with the hood. The pivot pin is received within an opening defined by the vehicle frame or other structural element. The pin pivots within the opening as the hood pivots between its various positions. The pin is held in place within the opening by parts such as quick pull pins, or other attaching mechanisms such as nuts and washers. To remove the hood from the vehicle an operator must partially disassemble the mechanism and remove the attaching mechanisms from the pins. This typically requires the use of tools. This type of hood hinge mechanism tends to include a relatively large number of parts, and the steps of assembly and disassembly that are required by the operator to attach or remove the hood from the vehicle tend to be undesirably complicated and time consuming.
It is known to provide hood hinge mechanisms that do not require the use of tools. Such mechanisms include those shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,048,154 and 5,645,133, both of which are also assigned to Deere & Company. Those devices are relatively simple to use and are relatively simple in construction which allows them to be manufactured and assembled relatively cost effectively. However, it would be desirable to improve upon the simplicity of these structures such that the manufacturing and assembly costs are further reduced while also maintaining or improving upon the ease of operation.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a hood hinge mechanism adapted for use with a lawn and garden tractor that allows the hood to pivot smoothly between various open and closed positions, and that can be removed from the vehicle completely without requiring the use of tools, and without requiring partial disassembly of the mechanism. It would be desirable for such a mechanism to allow the removal of the hood to be a relatively simple operation. It would be desirable for such a mechanism to allow the hood to easily and smoothly pivot to its various positions without causing the hood to be detached from the vehicle accidentally. It would also be desirable for such a hood hinge to allow the hood to assume a fully open position whereat the hood remains open under its own weight, and that does not allow the hood to become easily detached from the vehicle unless acted upon by an operator. It would also be desirable for such a mechanism to be comprised of relatively few parts that can be manufactured and assembled quickly at relatively low cost.


A display apparatus including a display, a video processor to output an video signal to the display, a power supply to output a power signal to turn on/off the display, and a controller to control at least one of the power supply and the video processor to make a sequence difference between an enable/disable time of the video signal outputted form the video processor and an on/off time of the power signal outputted from the power supply be within a predetermined range. The display apparatus and a control method thereof, in which the sequence difference is adjusted to be within a predetermined range.

1. Field of the Invention
The present general inventive concept relates to a display apparatus and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a display apparatus and a control method thereof to improve an on and/or off time for electric power supplied to a display.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a display apparatus receives a video signal of a display mode from a video signal source, such as a computer, a TV broadcasting system and etc., to display an image on a display. The display apparatus can use a flat panel such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel, a plasma display panel (PDP), etc. as well as a cathode ray tube (CRT) as the display.
In the display apparatus, the display receives electric power and processes the video signal to be displayed as the image thereon. Further, a time difference between a time of receiving the electric power and a time of displaying an image should not exceed a predetermined range.
In a conventional display apparatus, an internal circuit of a power supply supplying the electric power comprises a capacitor, so that the time difference between the time of receiving the electric power and the time of displaying the image is a predetermined time. Thus, in a case where the time difference between the time of supplying the electric power to the display and the time of displaying the image exceeds the predetermined range, noise is generated in the display or an excessive voltage is applied to the display.

Display apparatus and control method thereof


A method for producing a fused silica glass containing titania includes synthesizing particles of silica and titania by delivering a mixture of a silica precursor and a titania precursor to a burner, growing a porous preform by successively depositing the particles on a deposition surface while rotating and translating the deposition surface relative to the burner, and consolidating the porous preform into a dense glass.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to methods for producing doped glass. More specifically, the invention relates to a method for producing a titania-doped fused silica glass and a titania-doped fused silica glass having low water content.
2. Background Art
Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography is emerging as one of the next-generation lithography techniques that will allow high-volume production of integrated circuits with sub-100-nm features. EUV lithography as currently contemplated involves producing electromagnetic radiation at around 13 nm. The EUV radiation may be produced, for example, using a 1064-nm neodymium-YAG laser which produces a xenon gas plasma or from a synchrotron source. A condenser collects the EUV radiation and projects it onto a mask containing a pattern to be replicated on a silicon wafer. The mask reflects the EUV radiation into an imaging system, which then projects an image onto a resist-coated silicon wafer. The pattern is later transferred to the silicon wafer by etching.
The mask structure consists of a substrate ("mask blank"), a reflective multilayer stack formed on the mask blank, and an absorber formed on the multilayer stack. Typically, the multilayer stack includes alternating layers of Mo and Si or Mo and Be. The absorber defines the pattern to be replicated on the silicon wafer. The mask blank may be made of silicon or glass or other suitable material. It is important that the mask blank has a low thermal expansion so that it does not distort under exposure to the EUV radiation. Titania-doped fused silica (SiO2—TiO2) is one example of a glass that can be made to have a very low thermal expansion, i.e., lower than pure fused silica with the potential for a coefficient of thermal expansion that approximates zero. The coefficient of thermal expansion of the SiO2—TiO2 glass can be controlled by adjusting the percent weight content of TiO2 in the glass.
Commercial processes for producing SiO2—TiO2 glass involve transporting a mixture of a silica precursor and a titania precursor to a reaction site, thermally decomposing the mixture of precursors (usually via flame hydrolysis) into SiO2—TiO2 particles ("soot"), and depositing the soot on a support. In the conventional boule process, the soot is captured in a cup of a refractory furnace at consolidation temperatures (typically 1200 to 1900° C.) so as to allow the soot to immediately consolidate into a solid body ("boule"). These high consolidation temperatures may result in compositional variations within the glass, which would result in the glass having non-uniform thermal expansion properties. Applications such as EUV lithography require very low variations in coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) within the substrate (e.g., 0±5 ppb/° C.). Therefore, a production method which favors homogeneity in the SiO2—TiO2 glass is desirable.
For environmental reasons, commercial processes for producing SiO2—TiO2 glass use a chloride-free material such as octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (OMCTS), a siloxane, as a silica precursor. Usage of organic precursors and a hydrogen-containing fuel for thermal decomposition of the organic precursors inherently results in the SiO2—TiO2 glass containing more OH (often referred to as water) than can be tolerated by infrared transmission applications or deep-UV applications such as at 157 nm. In particular, OH has some absorption at these wavelengths. Therefore, a production method which favors dehydration of the SiO2—TiO2 glass is also desirable.

Method for producing titania-doped fused silica glass


An avalanche photodetector element is disclosed for converting an optical signal to an electrical signal, comprising an input waveguide and a photodetector region, the photodetector region comprising at least one intrinsic region, at least one p-doped region and at least one n-doped region, the doped regions and the at least one intrinsic region forming at least one PIN-junction avalanche photodiode, the input waveguide and the photodetector region being arranged with respect to each other such that the optical signal conducted by the input waveguide is substantially conducted into the photodetector region to the PIN-junction avalanche photodiode, the PIN-junction avalanche photodiode converting the optical signal to an electrical signal, characterized in that the photodetector region comprises more than one p-doped region and/or n-doped region, whereby these p-doped regions and/or n-doped regions are physically arranged as an array.

Infrared avalanche photodetectors are already known to the person skilled in the art. For example, the known avalanche photodetector element comprises an absorbing intrinsic semiconducting material with bandgap smaller than photon energy of the to-be-detected light wave, including Group IV semiconductors such as Germanium (Ge), Silicon-Germanium (SiGe), Germanium Tin (GeSn) or SiGeSn alloys, or alternatively, binary, ternary and quaternary III-V semiconductors, including but not limited to InP, InGaAs, InGaAsP and related materials.
Light with infrared wavelengths can be coupled directly from free space into the absorbing semiconductor, or alternatively, can be guided and coupled into the absorbing semiconductor by means of an optically transparent input waveguide, which can be built from optically transparent semiconductors such as silicon. The absorbing semiconducting material comprises a p-doped region, an n-doped region, and an intrinsic region in between the doped regions. A schematic overview of such configuration is for example shown in FIG. 1. The p-doped, the n-doped and the intrinsic region are implemented longitudinally along the propagation direction of the incoming light wave and extend with their longitudinal direction parallel to each other and parallel to the longitudinal direction of the absorbing material. The doped regions and the intrinsic semiconducting material thus form a PIN-junction photodiode wherein the input waveguide, if present, and the intrinsic semiconducting material are arranged with respect to each other such that optical waves, with typical infrared wavelengths greater than 1200 nm, guided by the input waveguide are substantially coupled into the intrinsic semiconducting material to the so called PIN-junction, formed by the combination of a p-doped region, an n-doped region and the intrinsic semiconducting material in between them, forming a PIN photodiode.
A reverse bias potential difference is applied between the p-doped region and the n-doped region, resulting in an electric field in the intrinsic region. At the intrinsic, absorbing region of the PIN-junction, the optical signal is converted to an electrical signal by optical excitation of electrons from the valence band to the conduction band under influence of the optical waves, essentially forming free electrons and free holes in the semiconducting material, which are subsequently collected at the n-doped region and p-doped region respectively, under the influence of the internal electric field.
For a sufficiently high electric field in the intrinsic region, the generated free electrons or the generated free holes, or both, can be multiplied by the mechanism known as impact ionization, essentially creating an avalanche of free electrons and/or holes. Such resulting multiplication gain essentially improves the responsiveness of the photodiode, potentially resulting in superior sensitivity of optical receivers built from such avalanche photodetectors. However, it has been found that for creating a sufficiently large multiplication gain of the free electrons and or holes, necessary for increased receiver sensitivity, a relatively strong electric field must be created in between the doped regions. Although the strength of the electric field can be increased by increasing the reverse bias potential difference over the doped regions, the increased potential difference requires for example more power leading to an increase in the power needed to use such avalanche photodetector element.


Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods of locating a patent within a facility. In one example, the system includes a beacon and a sensor. The beacon is positioned in a location of the facility. The beacon includes an infrared emitter and a processor. The processor is in communication with the infrared emitter. The processor is configured to instruct the infrared emitter to periodically emit an infrared emission. The processor modulates the infrared emission with a unique identification of the beacon that corresponds to the location of the beacon. The sensor is worn by the sensor wearer. The sensor includes an infrared receiver and a processor. The processor is in communication with the infrared received. The infrared receiver is configured to demodulate the received infrared emission to identify the unique identification of the beacon.

The Baby Boomer wave is yet to peak and already they are electing Medicare at the rate of 11,000 a day since June, 2012. Patients with chronic care conditions are on the rise, especially those with the so-called "life style" diseases such as Diabetes and Obesity. The funding model of our healthcare system cannot keep pace with the demand. As in any system, higher level of resources cost more. The highest cost care setting is the Hospital, and the lowest is care at home. Further, the staffing model of our healthcare system cannot keep pace with the demand. The ratio between available professional caregivers and seniors with healthcare needs is set to dramatically escalate as the baby boomer wave rolls inexorably towards its peak in 2023. The advantages of a low cost care setting can be wiped out in an instant, if the patient health degrades unnoticed and they end up in the ER or an Acute care setting.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) enshrines and encourages the concept of Accountable Care Organizations (ACO). According to the ACA, an ACO "must define processes to promote evidence-based medicine and patient engagement, report on quality and cost measures, and coordinate care, such as through the use of tele-health, remote patient monitoring, and other such enabling technologies." In essence this means that healthcare providers are responsible for the outcomes of a patient even when the patient is not in their setting of care. For instance an ACO is still accountable when a patient is discharged to an Assisted Living Facility (ALF) or to home care to make certain the patient outcome remains positive, i.e., the ACO's are responsible for the patient outcome even when they are at home or in an ALF setting. This is ensured by the use of financial incentives to the ACO that maintains good patient outcomes. The ACA caused a large number of ACO's to form quickly and they usually consist of a hospital, physicians and increasingly post acute healthcare providers such as Home care or ALF.
The second aspect of the Affordable Care Act is the incentive to set up Health exchanges in which Insurance companies compete to provide healthcare policies. Since pre-existing conditions and cherry picking of the insured are not allowed, this will cause these insurance companies, typically operating as Managed Care Organizations (MCO) to offer attractive benefits to obtain customers but will also force them to use cost containment models to make the care delivery very efficient.
The third aspect of the ACA is that state Medicaid enrolments are set to increase dramatically. Even before ACA, states such as Texas, New Jersey and others were experimenting with outsourcing their entire Medicaid populations to Managed Care entities primarily with a cost containment by utilization management goal. Medicaid populations have a high incidence of lifestyle diseases as well and a tendency to utilize high cost healthcare such as the Emergency Room. This Medicaid expansion brings into the main stream more patients who are homebound and/or have one or more chronic diseases, who were previously completely outside the healthcare system (due to lack of insurance), and whose healthcare system contact was primarily the ER, and who now will fall under the MCO umbrella. This additional patient load can be a very high utilizer of costly services.
Further, hospitals that participate in Medicare are now responsible for the patient's outcome even after discharge; in essence, if the patient is re-hospitalized within 30 days following discharge, for the same diagnosis that they were originally in the hospital for, then the hospital has to absorb all the costs for the patient's subsequent admission. In addition there is potential for extending this warranty period from 30 days to 60 days and beyond. This financial penalty makes the hospital acutely concerned for the patients' welfare post discharge and incentivizes the Hospital to offer services outside their four walls, out of their own pocket, to make sure the patient is not readmitted unnecessarily. These services today range from having a home care agency check on the patient periodically in the 30 days and/or to assign a tele-monitor to remotely collect clinical data on the patient to try to see if a hospitalization is needed.
The use of Tele-Monitoring has been well documented for several decades. Tele-monitoring as used today is primarily a device installed in the home with various sensors such as Blood Pressure cuffs, pulse-oximetry and weight scales that are designed to collect clinical "Vitals" of the patient. These devices require the patient to be an active participant in the process and diligently use the device at prescribed times to collect the data. The device then transmits the data to a central clearing house or to a Live Ops center for action.
Tele-monitoring has been used extensively in the past to monitor "Clinical Vitals" such as pulse, blood oxygen levels, ECG, EEG etc. Tele-monitoring is usually not a wearable device but a static device in a home with various attachments that a patient needs to actively use at prescribed times by applying its various measuring devices to their body (ECG leads, pulse oximetry sensor, BP cuffs etc.). Tele-monitoring usually sends data to a LiveOps center where a nurse monitors readings and calls a patient back for abnormal vitals results. There is no inclusion of "free" resources such as resident caregivers, family and friends, to help determine the patient state. There is no tracking of functional state or detecting anomalies in patterns of activity.
The adoption of Tele-monitoring has not taken off primarily due to the high cost of these proprietary devices and lack of reimbursement from the payers for installing them in a patient home. An additional hurdle has been the requirement for active participation by the patient in using the devices.
In the early 2000's with the widespread availability of RFID, several large companies (Intel, GE among others) tried to deploy the model of a fully instrumented patient home with the use of ambient monitoring. This ranged from sensors in the carpet to measure weight, to pressure mats that detect steps, to cameras that detect presence of the patient and attempt to deduce the activity they were involved in. This overly ambitious idea failed due to several reasons: one being the very high cost of retrofitting a home for ambient monitoring systems (sensor laden carpets, door mats, cameras, wiring, RFID tags on everyday objects and RFID readers), and a second being patient disenchantment with the surveillance systems that reeked of "big brother" style lack of privacy.
Ambient monitoring came into vogue with the widespread use of RFID in 2000. Ambient monitoring uses cameras, pressure mats, carpet sensors and RFID tags on household items to try to detect activity that a patient is engaged in. It is very expensive to fit a home with ambient monitoring. Mostly targeted towards group Senior Living Facilities, it is highly intrusive and the lack of privacy means low adoption rates. Also, ambient monitoring has trouble distinguishing the patient from other residents. Wearable sensors bypass the need for ambient monitoring as the patient is instrumented and not the home.
Wearable Sensors utilizing MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) are ubiquitous now in personal health and fitness (e.g., fitbit, Jawbone, Nike etc.). Sensors typically have Accelerometers, Gyros, Inclinometers and Magnetometers among other MEMS. Sensors can detect walking, running, sleeping, sitting, falling, and rolling among other functional states of a wearer by combining the readings from the multiple on-board MEMS. Sensors can have radios to communicate with a base station, smartphone, computing device or directly to the internet.
Over the last 3-5 years and especially the last 12 months, there has been a sharp increase in the number of health and fitness devices targeting consumers directly. These range from wearable sensors for counting steps, sleep state, and other fitness metrics to disease monitoring by use of clinical FDA approved consumer devices such as blood pressure monitors, weight scales, BMI and heart rate monitors. One common aspect of these devices is that they all interact with a consumer's Tablet, Smartphone or other computing device and present information graphically to the consumer. Some also allow the data to be uploaded to a web site and either printed and shared with a clinician, or in a few cases to be sent to a Clinician's email, or in rare cases to be sent electronically to the system the Clinician uses to store that patient's records. In almost all cases, these readings sit unattended until the clinician and patient have another reason to interact, such as a scheduled appointment. This is because the U.S. health care system is still based on a patient encounter between a Clinician and Patient to trigger any kind of interaction with the patient measurements.
Unlike the methods and systems of the present disclosure, other than recent use in fall detection, wearable MEMS sensors have not been used previously in a home setting with patients. Sensors have not been used as near real-time feedback sources in remote monitoring of directed demonstration of activity that is disease specific. Wearable sensors have not been used previously in a home setting with patients to track activity and track which room/area of a home the activity occurs in to deduce type of activity.
Further, unlike the methods and systems of the present disclosure, systems have not previously been used in conjunction with remote sensors to predict disease progression or decline in functional status of a patient in a home setting. Systems have not been used previously to ask disease specific questions in an automated manner (previously this required a clinical actor to present questions, observe patient and record answers). Automated systems have not been used previously to ask resident care givers, family members and friends of a patient to actively participate in the observation and interrogation of a patient with disease specific questions. Also, automated systems have not been used to triage through all available "free" resources before progressively costly resources are utilized.
Accordingly, to address the above stated issues, a method and system for remotely determining the need for healthcare interventions, and which keeps patients in the lowest cost setting of care, the home, for as long as possible is needed. The methods and systems disclosed herein fulfill such needs, and the costs and disadvantages associated with prior attempts at tele-monitoring, ambient monitoring and/or consumer self-monitoring are diminished or eliminated. It is desired that the disclosed methods and systems for providing the above benefits be applicable to any instances or applications wherein a patient's health is monitored to determine healthcare interventions.

Methods and systems for locating patients in a facility


A brake system with linking effect includes rear-wheel and front-wheel brake devices. The rear-wheel brake device includes a first rotating member, a first shifting member allocated in the first rotating member, and a first drawing member encircling the first rotating member at a first connecting radius. The rear-wheel brake device is drawn by the first drawing member and rotated from a first initial position. The front-wheel brake device includes a second rotating member, a second shifting member allocated in the second rotating member, and a second drawing member encircling the second rotating member at a second connecting radius. The front-wheel brake device is drawn by the first drawing member to rotate from a second initial position to perform a braking operation. The first and second shifting members are configured, to allow the first shifting member to draw the rear-wheel brake device to synchronously brake the front and rear wheels.

With the popularity of the sport of cycling, there are more and more people riding bicycles for recreation. In a conventional bicycle brake system, the braking operation is driven by a rider who presses brake levers installed on handles, and the front and rear wheels will be braked accordingly. The conventional bicycle brake system performs the braking operation for each individual brake of front wheel and rear wheel. In other words, when only one of the levers is being pressed, it drives only the brake connected to that lever. The brake levers in related to a front wheel or a rear wheel are arbitrarily installed on left side handle and right side handle depending on every different manufacturer, so therefore when a rider with less physical reaction in choosing which wheel should be braked may cause an emergency incident, because of his/her wrong choosing of brake lever.
Accordingly, a rider pressing a wrong brake lever during a high speed riding may causes a flip over of a bicycle. Because if, in a high speed riding, a front wheel is suddenly braked prior to a rear wheel, the inertia force from the rear wheel will overwhelm the braking force in the front wheel to thus cause a flip over.
In addition, since a gravity center of bicycle is allocated on a frame body, the balancing itself is complicated. An emergency situation will let it even more complicated, since a rider becomes difficult to make a prompt analysis in such a rush moment to determine whether a front wheel, a rear wheel or both wheels should be braked. Moreover, to remember which brake lever corresponds to which wheel is another problem that a ride may not be able to react. Moreover, if a rider only brakes the rear wheel, it may cause the non-braked front wheel driving the bicycle to run a unexpected distance, which may also cause an accident.


Systems and methods for delivering multiple ocular implants to reduce intraocular pressure are disclosed. The ocular implants can be implanted at multiple sites within a single human eye without requiring removal of the delivery apparatus from the eye. A system for delivering multiple ocular implants can include at least two implants preloaded within a delivery device and configured to be implanted within the eye, a metering device configured to transfer energy to the implants for delivery at selected locations within the eye, wherein the metering device is configured to meter a variable amount of energy for each implant delivery event in the eye. The system can further include an injector mechanism configured to serially engage and drive each of the implants.

A human eye is a specialized sensory organ capable of light reception and is able to receive visual images. Aqueous humor (hereinafter referred to as "aqueous") is a transparent liquid that fills at least the region between the cornea, at the front of the eye, and the lens. Aqueous is continuously secreted by ciliary processes of a ciliary body to the posterior chamber of the eye and the aqueous flows to the anterior chamber by crossing the pupil, so there is a constant flow of aqueous humor from the ciliary body to the anterior chamber of the eye. The aqueous fluid supplies nutrients to the avascular structures of the eye (for example, the cornea and the lens) and maintains intraocular pressure. Pressure within the eye is determined by a balance between the production of aqueous and its exit through canalicular outflow, uveoscleral outflow, or other outflow routes or pathways.
Many open-angle glaucomas are caused by an increase in the resistance to aqueous drainage through the trabecular meshwork and/or Schlemm's canal (e.g., the canalicular outflow pathways). The tissue of the trabecular meshwork normally allows the aqueous to enter Schlemm's canal, which then empties into aqueous collector channels in the posterior wall of Schlemm's canal and then into aqueous veins, which form the episcleral venous system. The uveoscleral outflow pathways can refer to the aqueous leaving the anterior chamber by diffusion through intercellular spaces among ciliary muscle fibers or through a supraciliary and/or suprachoroidal space.
Intraocular implants (for example, shunts or stents) can be implanted within the eye to facilitate the outflow of aqueous, thereby reducing intraocular pressure. Typical methods of implantation require relatively invasive surgical procedures, pose a risk of excessive trauma to the eye, and require excessive handling of the implant. For example, in a typical method of implantation, an incision is made through the sclera or cornea and the implant is inserted into the desired implantation location using forceps or another like manual grasping device. These forceps are configured for holding, and introducing into the eye only one implant at a time. This requires reloading and repositioning of the forceps prior to inserting each implant into the eye. Once the implants are deposited, the grasping device is removed and the incision is sutured closed.
Alternatively, a trocar, scalpel, or similar instrument can be used to pre-form an incision in the eye tissue before passing the implant into such tissue. After the incision is made in the eye tissue, a trocar can be advanced through the incision and then the implant can be delivered over the trocar.
Prior methods and systems for delivering multiple implants within the same eye typically require the delivery instrument to be removed from the eye and reloaded with a second implant. This reloading process increases the time of surgery, increases the risk of infection due to exposure and to excessive handling of the implant, and increases the risk of trauma to the eye due to multiple entries within an incision.

System and method for delivering multiple ocular implants


In the case of a process for changing an electronic memory for use-related data of a vehicle, the changed new data and the old data maintained in the memory are sent to a comparator, in which case the comparator permits the taking-over or acceptance of the new data into the memory only if the new data have changed in comparison to the old data in a manner which conforms with the use of the data.

This application claims the priority of German Application No. 196 24 041.7, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
In modern vehicles, a data-receiving write and read memory stores not only the parameters required for the vehicle variants and the country variants but also documentary data, such as the total mileage driven as well as service data. By means of special, high-expenditure methods, such as the redundant filing of the data also in other control units as well as by coding and a software write protection, these data are made as inaccessible as possible so that a manipulation of these data is made more difficult.
Although the required technical expenditures with respect to a manipulation of this type of memory have risen in comparison to changing the previously customary total mileage counter (referred to in the following as "GWSZ"). In a mechanical roller-type counter, the above-mentioned conventional measures have all not been able to prevent a manipulation of the content of GWSZ and of other documentary data.
There is therefore needed a process of the above-mentioned type which offers increased protection against a manipulation of the memory.
This need is met according to the present invention by a process for changing an electronic memory for use-related data of a vehicle. The changed new data and the old data maintained in the memory are sent to a comparator. The comparator will permit the taking-over of the new data into the memory only if the new data are changed with respect to the old data in a manner conforming with the use.
The comparator is now a part of a logic unit which compares the new and the old data with one another and will permit an overwriting of the memory with the new data only if the difference of the two satisfies defined plausibility criteria.
If the documentary data are, for example, the overall operating time of the vehicle, the new data can be taken over only if they correspond to a fairly long total operating time. However, not only the type, e.g. in this case, the increase of the total operating time, but also the extent by which the data are changed falls into the scope of the present invention. The change must be plausible. This prevents making an accidental change of data which does not correspond to the actual conditions. For example, an unintentional doubling of the total operating time can be excluded in this manner.
In the case of the GWSZ (total mileage counter), the invention is represented as follows.
The new data are taken over and used for overwriting the old data only if the new data correspond to an increased running performance of the vehicle and if they differ from the old data by a predetermined value. This value can be used as the upper limit and correspond, for example, to a change of the running distance by two kilometers.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Process for changing an electronic memory for use-related data of a vehicle

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


A tablet computer includes a mobile phone mounting portion which has determined width and length and is formed in the rear of the tablet computer in a recessed manner, guide grooves which are longitudinally formed on both lateral walls of the mounting portion, and a separation prevention member which is fixedly inserted into the guide grooves and has width and length corresponding to those of the mounting portion. The separation prevention member includes wing fixing portions which are fixedly inserted into the guide grooves of the lateral walls, determined width of wings which are extended upwards from the wing fixing portions and formed to bend toward the center of the mounting portion, respectively, and a determined width of cover which is provided in the range between one end of the separation prevention member and the wings.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a tablet computer. Especially, the present invention relates to a table computer which has a mobile phone mounting portion formed so that a mobile phone may be mounted on the rear of the table computer, wherein the table computer is provided with a mobile phone separation prevention member allowing a mobile phone to be mounted on the mobile phone mounting portion of the table computer regardless of different width and thickness.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile electronic devices with large screens, i.e., tablet computers, have been recently widespread, and mobile phones have also become living necessaries. It is, therefore, often to carry large screen tablet computers along with mobile phones. However, carrying mobile phones and big size tablet computers separately causes inconvenience in using both of them. Korean Patent Application No. 10-2013-0062850 filed by the applicant on May 31, 2013, entitled "Tablet Computer" relates to a tablet computer having a mobile phone mounting portion formed in the rear thereof.
According to the application, a tablet computer is configured to include a mobile phone mounting portion which is formed in the rear of the tablet computer in a recessed manner so that a surface line of a mobile phone to be mounted is flush with another surface line of the rear of the tablet computer, has an entrance formed in a lateral direction, and has an elastic cover formed in an inwardly-protruding manner along the boundary formed between the rear of the tablet computer and the mobile phone mounting portion to elastically restrain the mounted mobile phone, a port which is formed in the mobile phone mounting portion and electrically connects the mobile phone mounted on the mobile phone mounting portion and the tablet computer to allow data communication to be performed between the mobile phone and the tablet computer, and an interface which performs a tethering connection from any one, which may communicate with an external network, among the mobile phone mounted in the mobile phone mounting portion and the tablet computer to the other through the port.
However, because, according to the application, the mobile phone mounting portion formed in the rear of the tablet computer is manufactured in a determined size, and the elastic cover is formed in a fixed size and is fixedly mounted on the mobile phone mounting portion, the size of a mobile phone to be mounted on the tablet computer has to correspond to that of the mobile phone mounting portion. Accordingly, when the size of a user's mobile phone fails to correspond to that of the mobile phone mounting portion of the tablet computer, it is disadvantageous to use the mobile phone and the table computer together.
Consequently, a tablet computer with a mobile phone mounting portion formed in the rear thereof is required that may allow a user's mobile phone to be mounted on the tablet computer regardless of the size of the user's mobile phone.


The present invention relates to a method to locate a fault in a section of a transmission line using measurements of current, voltage and angles between the phases at a first (A) and a second (B) end of said section. The invention is characterised by the steps of, after the occurrence of a fault along the section, calculating a distance (dA, dB) to a fault dependent on a fault current measured at one of said first and second ends and phase voltages measured at both of said first and second ends (A, B), where the distance to fault is calculated from the end (A or B) where the fault current is measured. The invention is particularly suitable when a current transformer at either of the first or second ends (A, B) is saturated. If so, then, a distance (d) to a fault is calculated dependent on a fault current measured at the non-affected end and phase voltages measured at both the affected end and the non-affected end.

Several methods and approaches for fault location in high voltage power systems have been developed and employed. One approach has been to use voltage/current transducers located at terminals, between which the power lines to be monitored run. Inductive current transformers are used to provide a measurement of instantaneous current in a transmission line.
However, inductive current transformers (CTs) may become saturated under transmission line faults with high fault current, which often takes place during faults close to CTs installation point. The saturation is possible especially for faults in which there is a slowly decaying dc component in the fault current.
Saturation of CTs influences operation of protective relays as well as the accuracy of fault location for inspection-repair purposes. Note that accuracy of both one-end and two-end fault locators can be adversely affected by the saturated CTs. U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,491 which is titled Method and device for locating a fault point on a three-phase power transmission line, discloses a method and device wherein a single end fault locator uses measurements of voltages and currents from a particular side [1], and, if at the side where the fault locator is installed the CTs are saturated, the achieved accuracy of fault location could be unsatisfactory.
Better conditions may be obtained for the above single end fault location for the case when the CTs are saturated at the terminal which is opposite to the fault locator installation point. In such cases the input post fault currents of the fault locator are not contaminated due to saturation of CTs. However, greater accuracy of fault location in such cases can be achieved if impedance of a source from the remote side (where CTs are saturated) is known. The remote source impedance cannot be determined with one-end measurements and therefore in some applications the one-end fault locator may be augmented by inputting a value for the remote end impedance. This value may be measured by the other remote device and sent via a communication channel. Note that in this case the measured remote source impedance can differ greatly from the actual value due to saturation of CTs. Using an inaccurately measured source impedance could deteriorate substantially the fault location accuracy.
Similarly, accuracy of fault location with two-end methods, as for example with the representative methods disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,776 which is titled Automatic fault location system, and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,256,592B1 [2–3] which is titled Multi-ended fault location system, are also affected by saturation of CTs. The method of U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,776 [2] uses symmetrical components of voltages and currents from both sides of a line. In case of the method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,256,592B1 [3] the amplitude of the remote current and the amplitude of the remote source impedance, both determined for the negative sequence, are utilized for calculating a distance to fault. The distortion of the currents, resulting from any saturated CTs, affects the accuracy of both the above two-end fault location techniques [2–3]. No countermeasures against the possible effects of saturation are disclosed in the cited methods [2–3].

Fault location using measurements from two ends of a line


The present disclosure relates to the field of endoscopy. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to delivery systems and methods for coagulating sites of bleeding within mucosal tissues, and in particular, for eradicating esophageal varices.

Gastroesophageal varices develop when normal blood flow to the liver is obstructed by scar tissue caused by cirrhosis. The scar tissue forces blood into smaller vessels surrounding the esophagus or stomach, causing the vessels to swell, leak and eventually rupture. Approximately 80 percent of patients with cirrhosis develop varices of the esophagus, and approximately 17 percent develop gastric varices (Hepatology, 16, 1343-49 (1992)). Bleeding occurs in approximately 36 percent of patients and is associated with a mortality rate of at least 20 percent, which increases to 50 percent with each bleeding episode. In the United States alone, gastroesophageal varices due to cirrhosis account for more than 25,000 deaths and 373,000 hospitalizations annually (J. Clin. Gastroenterol., (2014); U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (2014)).
The primary prophylactic treatment for variceal bleeds is non-selective beta-blockers that reduce portal hypertension. Studies have shown that beta-blockers are only effective in 38 percent of patients (Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther., 30, 48-60 (2009)). Application of cyanoacrylate glue (Covidien, TissueSeal and Ethicon) into gastroesophageal varices has been shown to eliminate bleeds, however, the glue has a limited working time after mixing and poses a risk of systemic embolization.
Endoscope band ligation may be used to treat acute bleeds or when non-selective beta-blockers have failed. Unfortunately, band ligation can have a number of drawbacks, including high cost, low efficacy and various safety concerns. Significant training is required to deliver the bands in a controlled manner. Furthermore, the bulge that forms when a varix is banded may obscure the field of view, which may limit the ability to maneuver the endoscope and may make subsequent band placements more difficult. As the number of deployed bands increases, the likelihood of the endoscope accidentally dislodging a band and causing a bleed increases. These factors may limit the number of bands that can be deployed to approximately 6 per session. On average, 2-4 procedures may be required to eradicate all of the varices. These treatments may be expensive and may increase the risk of acute bleeds occurring from varices that are awaiting treatment. These untreated bleeds may be associated with a four-fold increase in hospital costs, including possibly increased hospitalization times (Value Heal., 11, 1-3 (2008)). Ulcers and strictures also may tend to form in the mucosal lining of the esophagus when the bands slough off. Some studies have shown that more than 12 percent of patients experience re-bleeding after a band ligation procedure (BMC Gastroeneterol., 10, 1-10 (2010)). The average band ligation procedure may take more than 50 days to complete, with varices possibly recurring in up to 75 percent of patients after two years. Some studies claim that these re-bleeds are estimated to result in a four-fold increase in both the duration of hospitalization and treatment costs (Value Heal., 11, 1-3 (2008)).
The risks and costs that may be associated with existing endoscope banding treatments may be too high to warrant earlier intervention to prevent recurrence of varices and bleeds (Hepatology 21, 1517-1522 (1955); ACTA Medica. Litu., 19, 59-66 (2012). There is an ongoing need for an easier-to-use and more cost-effective system capable of coagulating multiple varices in a single procedure without damaging surrounding mucosal tissues.

System and method for treatment of gastroesophageal varices


A method for guiding waves over objects, a method for improving a performance of an antenna, and a method for improving a performance of a radar are disclosed. The methods disclosed teach how an impedance structure can be used to guide waves over objects.

A common problem for antenna designers is creating antennas that are able to radiate energy at angles that are shadowed. For example, in Prior Art, a monopole antenna 10 on a conducting cylinder 20, as shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b, does not radiate energy below line 3 because the external surface of the cylinder 20 that is below line 3 is shadowed from the monopole antenna 10. FIG 1c shows the radiation pattern 22 produced by the cylinder 20 in FIGS. 1a and 1b.


Techniques and apparatus for analytical instrument management and information assessment processes are described. In one embodiment, for example, an apparatus may include at least one memory and logic coupled to the at least one memory. The logic may be configured to perform a test plan on at least one rubber material analytical instrument via accessing a test plan comprising at least one step, generating test plan results responsive to performing the test plan on the at least one rubber material analytical instrument, analyzing the test plan results, and presenting the test plan results on a plurality of graphical user interface (GUI) objects. Other embodiments are described.

The manufacture of material products entails testing to ensure that quality control requirements have been met. Each type of material may have a suite of tests to ensure that the product has been manufactured within proscribed guidelines. For example, rubber manufacturers typically perform various tests according to protocols developed by standards organizations, such as the ASTM. Exemplary rubber manufacturing tests may include isothermal tests, viscosity tests, frequency sweep tests, amplitude sweep tests, conditioning tests, ramp tests, relaxation tests, and/or the like. The performance of these tests involves multiple types of instruments and testing procedures. According to conventional processes, rubber manufacturers have to manage multiple interfaces and test procedure applications in order to perform all of the required quality control procedures. This adds complexity and resources that add significantly to the cost of manufacturing rubber products. A system capable of effectively and efficiently managing the suite of instruments and test protocols required to certify a batch of product would increase rubber manufacturer productivity and decrease production costs.

Techniques for generating and performing analytical instrument test plans


The invention relates to novel polymers containing repeating units based on benzo[1,2-d;4,3-d′]bisthiazole, monomers and methods for their preparation, their use as semiconductors in organic electronic (OE) devices, especially in organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices, and to OE and OPV devices comprising these polymers.

In recent years there has been growing interest in the use of conjugated, semiconducting polymers for electronic applications. One particular area of importance is organic photovoltaics (OPV). Conjugated polymers have found use in OPVs as they allow devices to be manufactured by solution-processing techniques such as spin casting, dip coating or ink jet printing. Solution processing can be carried out cheaper and on a larger scale compared to the evaporative techniques used to make inorganic thin film devices. Currently, polymer based photovoltaic devices are achieving efficiencies up to 8%.
The conjugated polymer serves as the main absorber of the solar energy, therefore a low band gap is a basic requirement of the ideal polymer design to absorb the maximum of the solar spectrum.
A commonly used strategy to narrow the band gap of conjugated polymers is to utilize an alternating copolymer consisting of both electron rich donor units and electron deficient acceptor units within the polymer backbone. Additionally, the HOMO and LUMO levels of the polymer should be optimized to maximize the open circuit voltage (Voc).
One candidate which has been suggested utilized as donor unit within the polymer backbone is benzo[1,2-d;4,5-d′]bisthiazole:

Copolymers of benzo[1,2-d;4,5-d′]bisthiazole and thiophene are described in E. Ahmed, F. S. Kim, H. Xin and S. A. Jenekhe, Macromolecules 2009, 42, 8615-8618 and I. Osaka, K. Takimiya and R. D. McCullough, Adv. Mater. 2010, published online.
However, these polymers have limited solubility in commonly used organic solvents, which can inhibit their suitability for device manufacturing methods based on solution processing. In addition, they still do not have satisfying mobility.
Therefore, there is still a need for organic semiconducting (OSC) materials that are easy to synthesize, especially by methods suitable for mass production, show good structural organization and film-forming properties, exhibit good electronic properties, especially a high charge carrier mobility, good processibility, especially a high solubility in organic solvents, and high stability in air. Especially for use in OPV cells, there is a need for OSC materials having a low bandgap, which enable improved light harvesting by the photoactive layer and can lead to higher cell efficiencies, and do not suffer from open circuit potentials (Voc) in OPV bulk-heterojunction devices, or do so to a lower extent than polymers from prior art.
It was an aim of the present invention to provide compounds for use as organic semiconducting materials that do not have the drawbacks of prior art materials as described above, are easy to synthesize, especially by methods suitable for mass production, and do especially show good processibility, high stability, good solubility in organic solvents, high charge carrier mobility, and a low bandgap. Another aim of the invention was to extend the pool of OSC materials available to the expert. Other aims of the present invention are immediately evident to the expert from the following detailed description.
The inventors of the present invention have found that these aims can be achieved by providing conjugated polymers comprising repeating units that contain a benzo[1,2-d;4,3-d′]bisthiazole moiety.
It was found that conjugated polymers based on this unit show good processability and high solubility in organic solvents, and are thus especially suitable for large scale production using solution processing methods. At the same time, they show a low bandgap, high charge carrier mobility and high oxidative stability and are promising materials for organic electronic OE devices, especially for OPV devices.