A circuit (100) is provided which includes a forward charging switch (FET MN2) having an input terminal (102), an output terminal 112 and a plurality of current sink elements (FETs MN1 and MN3). The plurality of current sink elements (MN1 and MN3) are selectable via a control switch circuit (114) which is responsive to a control signal at the control switch input terminal (104). Preferably, one of the current sinks is always selected in order for some small amount of current to be discharged from output terminal 112 which is coupled to a capacitor (C1).

In electronic circuits such as voice operated control (VOX) and automatic gain control (AGC) circuits which are used in two-way radios, the release time section of the VOX or AGC circuit controls how fast the voltage on the output capacitor of the VOX or AGC circuit falls as a function of time. As the release time becomes shorter, the output voltage of the circuit falls quickly, yielding a fast increase in gain. This quick fall in voltage (e.g., increase in gain) causes a phenomenon known as noise pulsing. Noise pulsing occurs when for example the gain in an AGC circuit ramps up very quickly between words or phrases and the background noise becomes amplified. The end result is that during a break in words, a rushing sound similar to the sound a waterfall makes occurs.
The opposite end of the spectrum is when the release time in the AGC circuit is set for a longer period of time (e.g., 5 second region). When a word having a very sharp consonant sound (e.g., words beginning with b, p or t) is spoken into the radio microphone, the sharp consonant sound causes the gain of the AGC circuit to decrease too much and then ramp up very slowly. When this occurs, the first part of the word is lost when the word is transmitted by the radio. For example, if a word like "pirate" were spoken, the radio microphone would react to this rush of air (caused by the "p" sound) as a very loud tone and produce a large output voltage. The AGC circuit in turn reacts to the large output voltage very quickly and tries to reduce the magnitude to a predetermined level. This causes the next portion of the spoken word to be reduced, or even eliminated, by the AGC circuit action previously mentioned. The end result, if the AGC circuit were enabled with a long release time, would be that a word like "pirate" would sound like "p . . . te" at the receiving radio. VOX circuits face similar problems to those mentioned above, given that the peak detector capacitor of the circuit is affected by similar release time problems.
Prior art circuits having release time sections have a major drawback in that most of the prior art circuits require manual change of circuit components in order to adjust the release time of the circuit. Also, prior art circuits tend to be temperature sensitive due to variations in the components such as the discharge resistor, etc. Other drawbacks of prior art circuits include not being able to provide for long release times (e.g., in the order of 5 seconds) due to the exponential discharge characteristics of RC circuits. Another problem with prior art circuits that use a diode as the forward charging switch is that the inherent resistance of the diode causes attack times to be longer. A need thus exists for a circuit which can solve the above mentioned problems and can also have an externally adjustable release time without the need to change external circuit components.


A service registration method and usage method, and a related apparatus are used to reduce risks generated when a service of an AP-type service providing node cannot be registered and a CP-type service providing node provides a service since distributed characteristics of a service providing node are not distinguished in a network partition scenario. The method is: obtaining, by a registration service node, network partition information, and receiving a registration request of a service providing node, where the registration request carries a distributed characteristic of the service providing node, and the distributed characteristic meets both consistency and partition tolerance, or meets both availability and partition tolerance; and determining, by the registration service node according to the network partition information and the distributed characteristic of the service providing node, whether registration of a service provided by the service providing node is allowed.

In a service-oriented architecture (service-oriented architecture, SOA) and a servitization architecture, a service registry (Service Registry) is a basic function, and is an important basis of service intermediary and management. As shown in FIG. 1, a registration service function entity provides a registration service and discovery interface, and a service provider (Service Provider) registers a service with the registration service function entity by using a registration service interface provided by the registration service function entity. A service consumer (Service Consumer) queries the registration service function entity about information about a requested service provider by using a service discovery interface provided by the registration service function entity, and the service consumer is bound to the service provider and invokes a required service according to the information provided by the registration service function entity.
To avoid a single point failure, registration service function entities are generally implemented in a distributed cluster manner. To satisfy a service scale requirement, multiple instances need to be deployed for some services, and there are requirements on reliability and availability.
According to the CAP theorem, a distributed system has three characteristics, which are consistency (Consistency, C for short), availability (Availability, A for short), and partition tolerance (Partition Tolerance, P for short). Any network-based data sharing system meets a maximum of two of the three characteristics of data consistency, availability, and partition tolerance.
At present, how the registration service function entity registers and uses a service according to a distributed characteristic of the service to reduce risks in registration and service provision and improve network system performance is a problem to be resolved.

Service registration method and usage method, and related apparatus


A linear motion, muscle-actuated cardiac assist device novelly uses a powering muscle whose contractions and relaxations are made in a substantially linear fashion, as opposed to the curvilinear muscle motions associated with prior art muscle-actuated cardiac assist devices. As a result, collateral circulation of the powering muscle need not be cut, theoretically leading to prevention of ischemia in the powering muscle. Other benefits include: greater energy efficiency of the powering muscle; greater available choice of powering muscles (i.e., not limited to the latissimus dorsi as the powering muscle); and reduced profile height of the cardiac assist device to reduce protrusion from the implanted area of the body.

Muscle-powered cardiac assist systems such as the one labeled 100a in FIG. 1A have been developed to aid patients with chronically and unacceptably low cardiac output, and who cannot have their cardiac output raised to acceptable levels by traditional treatments such as drug therapy. (See G. L. Anstadt & W. E. Britz, Jr., Continued Studies in Prolonged Circulatory Support by Direct Mechanical Ventricular Assistance, 14 Trans. Amer. Soc. Artif. Int. Organs 297 (1968)). In such a system 100a the ventricles of a heart 102a are surrounded by a pneumatic cardiac cup 104a to assist the heart 102a (and thus raise caridac output) during scheduled contractions. During the systolic (contraction) phase of the cardiac cycle the cardiac cup 104b, made of a flexible membrane, is inflated by a fluid to increase external pressure upon the ventricles, thus causing them to contract to a greater degree than otherwise. During the diastolic (relaxation) phase of the cardiac cycle the cardiac cup 104a is deflated to reduce the external pressure upon the ventricles, allowing them to expand to their at-rest position. In usual practice the cardiac pump is coupled to an external air (working fluid) source that drives a diaphragm (not shown) within the cup 104a.
As a variation on this theme, muscle tissue can be used to provide power to drive the working fluid. This is accomplished in FIG. 1A by coupling a cardiac pump to a balloon 114a that is wrapped by muscle tissue 116a. The muscle tissue 116a is stimulated to contract (via leads 132a) by an implantable pulse generator (IPG) 128a that senses the cardiac cycle, usually from heart electrocardiogram (ECG) activity via a cardiac sensing electrode 130a. This mode of assist is in co-pulsation with the heart pumping action.
Another cardiac assist device has been disclosed by Nielson and Chiu, in the book Biomechanical Cardiac Assist Cardiomyoplasty and Muscle-Powered Devices, edited by Ray C. J. Chiu, Futura Publishing Co., Inc., Mount Kisco, 1986 pp. 141-150, which book is hereby incorporated by reference.
The cardiac assist system 100b in FIG. 1B is similar to that of FIG. 1A, but has an aortic blood pump 126b (which is coupled to the aorta 134b) instead of the cardiac cup 104a. The aortic blood pump 126b provides hemodynamic and cardiac assist according to a principle of operation not unlike a prior art temporary intra-aortic balloon pump. As with the cardiac cup 104a, the aortic blood pump 126b must be coupled to an outside, fluid-pumping source, either external to the body or alternatively to a fully implantable system powered by a muscle pump that contracts in response to stimulation emanating from an IPG.
In operation of the system in FIG. 1B, the IPG 128b senses the onset of the diastolic phase via the sensor lead 130b, and stimulation bursts are supplied via the stimulator leads 132b to the powering muscle tissue 116b. The stimulation bursts cause the muscle tissue 116b to contract and thus cause the balloon 114b to expel working fluid, which then causes a diaphragm (not shown) in the aortic blood pump 126b to inflate. Somewhat before the onset of the systolic phase, the muscle tissue 116b is allowed to relax, causing the diaphragm in the aortic blood pump 126b to deflate, which causes a sudden increase in vascular space, and an easing of the load the heart 102b must pump against. This mode of assist is in counter-pulsation with the heart pumping action.
The systems 100a and 100b have some disadvantages related to the use of the balloon pumps 114a and 114b, which are, inter alia, wrapping the muscle tissue 116a and 116b around the balloon pumps 114a and 114b necessitates cutting the muscle collateral circulation, which may eventually lead to ischemia followed by the death of the tissue. Further, because the surface area of the powering muscle tissue is more than adequate to cover the surface area of the balloon pumps, excess muscle which overhangs the balloon pumps tends to generate unwanted tangential forces on the balloon pumps during muscle contraction, thereby wasting available energy of the powering muscle tissue. Also, such arrangements 100a and 100b are typically only well-suited for the latissimus dorsi muscle, and are not practical for other skeletal muscles. Additionally, the shape and size of the balloon pumps 114a and 114b usually result in undesirably large protrusions from the implanted area of the body.

Linear motion, muscle-actuated cardiac assist device


A method for executing a non-native mode-sensitive instruction within a computer system is disclosed. In accordance with the method and system of the present invention, a computer system as described, capable of executing a non-native mode-sensitive instruction, includes a system memory, an instruction set convertor, and a processor. The system memory is utilized to store the non-native mode-sensitive instruction. The instruction set convertor, having a Semantics Table, is utilized for converting the non-native mode-sensitive instruction to a group of native instructions by preemptively testing whether or not the mode-sensitive instruction is preceded by a mode-altering instruction within a single block, and for accessing the Semantics Table for the non-native instruction with an address according to the preemptive testing. The processor is then utilized to process the group of native instructions from the instruction set convertor.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an improved method and system for data processing in general and, in particular, to an improved method and system for processing non-native instructions within a computer system. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to an improved method and system for executing non-native mode-sensitive instructions within a computer system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The World Wide Web, or as it is simply known as, the "Web," has dramatically changed the on-line world and continues to grow in popularity. As a communications system, the Web allows information providers to distribute and collect information globally and instantly. For users, the Web is a dynamic view into the works and ideas of millions of people worldwide. Through a system of hypertext, users of the Web are able to select and view information from all over the Web. While the hypertext system gives Web users a high degree of selectivity over the information they choose to view, their level of interactivity with that information is low. Even with improvements such as hypermedia, which opens up many new kinds of sensory input for the Web users, including access to graphics and videos, the Web itself still lacks a true interactivity, that is, a kind of real-time, dynamic, and visual interaction between Web users and applications.
Java.sup.1 brings this missing interactivity to the Web. With Java, animations and interactive applications on the Web become feasible. Java's features enrich communication, information, and interaction on the Web by enabling the distribution of executable content-rather than just Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) pages and hypermedia files-among Web users. This ability to distribute executable content is one of the powerful features of Java.
In order to view and interact with animations and the interactive applications on the Web, a Web user must have a computer installed with a Java-enabled Web browser. Even so, because Java has an instruction set that is different from the instruction set of most, if not all, processors utilized within a Web user's personal computer, Java instructions typically cannot be executed in their original bytecode form. Hence, some form of translation from the Java instruction set to an instruction set associated with the processor FNT .sup.1 Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, and is also the name of a programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. within the personal computer is required. Conventionally, an instruction set associated with a particular processor is called a "native" instruction set to that computer, while an instruction set that is not specifically developed for that particular processor is called a "non-native" instruction set to that particular computer. In this case, Java would be a non-native instruction set with respect to the Web user's computer.
Most instruction sets have instructions that affect the way subsequent instructions are suppose to behave. These instructions are known as "mode-altering" instructions. Not surprisingly, there is one mode-altering instruction called "WIDE" in the Java instruction set, which affects the way an immediate subsequent instruction executes. Only certain instructions out of the entire Java instruction set are allowed to follow this WIDE instruction. These certain instructions include ILOAD, FLOAD, ALOAD, LLOAD, DLOAD, ISTORE, FSTORE, ASTORE, LSTORE, DSTORE, and RET. For the sake of convenience, these "mode-sensitive" instructions that are permissible to follow the WIDE instruction will be referred to as "wideable" instructions.
When a wideable instruction is encountered, there are two different sets of native code that could be generated, based on whether or not the preceding instruction is a WIDE instruction. One method of handling this is to have the native code for the WIDE instruction set a condition register in the processor. Then, the native code for wideable instructions begins with a test of the condition register and branches accordingly. This method is not only slow, but it also requires the execution of several native instructions for the testing of the condition register before branching. It further requires the generation of native instructions for both the widened and the unwidened versions of the wideable instructions, which takes up space in the primary cache, and ultimately leads to reduction in system performance.
Due to the large number of wideable instructions that are commonly encountered in a program written in Java, the execution time of these wideable instructions has a large impact on system performance. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide an improved method for executing these types of non-native wideable instructions within a computer system.

Method and system for executing a non-native mode-sensitive instruction within a computer system

International Business Machines Corporation


An internal combustion engine wherein an SOX trap catalyst (11) able to trap SOX contained in exhaust gas is arranged in an engine exhaust passage upstream of an NOX storing catalyst (12). When the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the SOX trap catalyst (11) is switched from lean to rich to make the NOX storing catalyst (12) release the NOX, if the temperature of the SOX trap catalyst (11) is the SOX release lower limit temperature or more, rich processing making the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas flowing into the SOX trap catalyst (11) rich for making the NOX storing catalyst (12) release NOX is prohibited.

Known in the art is an internal combustion engine arranging in an engine exhaust passage an NOX storing catalyst storing NOX contained in exhaust gas when the air-fuel ratio of the inflowing exhaust gas is lean and releasing the stored NOX when the air-fuel ratio of the inflowing exhaust gas becomes the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio or rich. In this internal combustion engine, the NOX generated when burning fuel under a lean air-fuel ratio is stored in the NOX storing catalyst. On the other hand, if the NOX storing capability of the NOX storing catalyst approaches saturation, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is temporarily made rich and thereby NOX is released from the NOX storing catalyst and reduced.
However, fuel and lubrication oil contain sulfur, therefore the exhaust gas contains SOX. This SOX is stored together with the NOX in the NOX storing catalyst. However, this SOX is not released from the NOX storing catalyst by just making the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas rich, therefore the amount of SOX stored in the NOX storing catalyst gradually increases. As a result, the amount of NOX which can be stored ends up gradually decreasing.
Therefore, to prevent SOX from being sent to the NOX storing catalyst, an internal combustion engine provided with an SOX trap agent in the engine exhaust passage upstream of the NOX storing catalyst is known (see Japanese Patent Publication (A) No. 2004-92524). In this internal combustion engine, the SOX contained in the exhaust gas is trapped by the SOX trap agent, therefore the flow of SOX into the NOX storing catalyst is inhibited. As a result, it is possible to prevent the storing capability of NOX from falling due to the storage of SOX.
However, in this internal combustion engine, before the SOX trap capability of the SOX trap agent becomes saturated, SOX is released from the SOX trap agent. In this case, to ensure that the SOX is released well from the SOX trap agent, it is necessary to make the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas rich when the temperature of the SOX trap agent is the SOX release temperature. Therefore, in this internal combustion engine, to ensure that SOX be released from the SOX trap agent, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is made rich when the temperature of the SOX trap agent is the SOX release temperature.
Further, this internal combustion engine is provided with a bypass exhaust passage bypassing the NOX storing catalyst for preventing the SOX released from the SOX trap agent from flowing into the NOX storing catalyst. When SOX trap agent has released SOX, the exhaust gas flowing out from the SOX trap agent is guided into the bypass exhaust passage.
On the other hand, in this internal combustion engine, when the SOX trap amount of the SOX trap agent becomes a fixed amount or more, when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is made rich to release NOX from the NOX storing catalyst, even if the temperature of the SOX trap agent is made the SOX release temperature or less, SOX is released from the SOX trap agent, therefore the SOX ends up being stored in the NOX storing catalyst. Therefore, in this internal combustion engine, when the SOX trap amount of the SOX trap agent becomes a fixed amount or more, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is prohibited from being made rich.
However, in this case, if using an SOX trap agent not releasing SOX when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is made rich to release NOX from the NOX storing catalyst, SOX will no longer be stored in the NOX storing catalyst. Further, at any time when the NOX storing catalyst should release NOX, the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas can be made rich. However, so long as the SOX trap agent is given the function of releasing SOX like with this internal combustion engine, it is difficult to prevent SOX from being released when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas becomes rich.
As opposed to this, if not giving the SOX trap catalyst the function of releasing SOX and only giving it the function of storing SOX, even if making the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas rich so as to make the NOX storing catalyst release NOX, usually SOX is not released from the SOX trap catalyst, therefore SOX is no longer stored in the NOX storing catalyst. However, the problem arises that even when using such an SOX trap catalyst, if the temperature of the SOX trap catalyst becomes the SOX release lower limit temperature or more, SOX will be released from the SOX trap catalyst when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is made rich so as to release NOX from the NOX storing catalyst.

Exhaust purification device of compression ignition type internal combustion engine


The present invention relates to a method and a system for synthesizing a prescribed three-dimensional electromagnetic field based on generalized phase contrast imaging. Such a method and apparatus may be utilized in advanced optical micro and nano-manipulation, such as by provision of a multiple-beam optical tweezer.

It is well known to form an image by phase contrast imaging methods in which phase modulation of light is converted into intensity modulation. As opposed to intensity modulation, phase modulation does not involve loss of energy.
A generalized phase contrast imaging method and system for synthesizing a prescribed intensity pattern is disclosed in WO 96/34207, which is hereby incorporated by reference. The generalized method is not based on the so-called Zernike approximation that the phase shift φ is less than 1 radian. An improved method is provided without this approximation and based on imaging with a simple one-to-one mapping of resolution elements or pixels of a spatial phase modulator and resolution elements of the generated intensity pattern.
The disclosed phase contrast imaging method of synthesizing a prescribed intensity pattern I(x′,y′), comprises the steps of:                dividing the intensity pattern I(x′,y′)=|(x′,y′)|2 into pixels in accordance with the disposition of resolution elements (x,y) of a spatial phase mask having                    a plurality of individual resolution elements (x,y), each resolution element (x,y) modulating the phase of electromagnetic radiation incident upon it with a predetermined phasor value eiφ(x,y),                        radiating electromagnetic radiation towards the spatial phase mask,        Fourier or Fresnel transforming the modulated electromagnetic radiation,        phase shifting with a spatial phase filter (SPF) in a region of spatial frequencies comprising DC in the Fourier or Fresnel plane, the modulated electromagnetic radiation by a predetermined phase shift value θ in relation to the remaining part of the electromagnetic radiation, and        forming the intensity pattern by Fourier or Fresnel transforming, respectively, the phase shifted Fourier or Fresnel transformed modulated electromagnetic radiation, whereby each resolution element (x,y) of the phase mask is imaged on a corresponding resolution element (x′,y′) of the image,        calculating the phasor values eiφ(x,y) of the phase mask and the phase shift value θ in accordance witho(x′,y′)=eiφ(x′,y′)+ α(eiθ−1)        for selected phase shift values θ, α being the average of the phasors eiφ(x,y) of the resolution elements of the phase mask,        selecting, for each resolution element, one of two phasor values which represent a particular grey level, and        supplying the selected phasor values eiφ(x,y) to the resolution elements (x,y) of the spatial phase mask.
In one embodiment disclosed in WO 96/34207, the spatial phase mask is positioned at the front focal plane of a lens while the spatial phase filter is positioned in the back focal plane of the lens, whereby a first electromagnetic field at the spatial phase mask is Fourier transformed by the lens into a second electromagnetic field at the spatial phase filter. Thus, specific spatial frequencies of the first electromagnetic field will be transmitted through the spatial phase filter at specific positions of the phase filter. For example, the energy of the electromagnetic radiation at zero frequency (DC) is modified and transformed onto the intersecting point of the Fourier plane and the optical axis of the lens also denoted the zero-order diffraction region by the phase filter.

Generation of a desired three-dimensional electromagnetic field


In an electronic thermostat timer having a time-keeping switch and having a thermostat, having an optoelectronic display (6) arranged at the front side of the housing for the time of day, the switching times and the switching temperatures, having a manual, key-shaped input device (7) for the time of day, the switching times and the switching temperatures in a common housing (1), the housing (1) is provided with a quadratic cross section, particularly having the edge dimensions 60.times.60 mm. A cylindrical clockface dial (3) is provided at the front side (2) of the housing (1), the outer circumference of said cylindrical clockface dial partially projecting beyond the sides (17) of the housing (1). A thermostat module (5) that is covered by a housing cover (10) is arranged at the back side (4) of the housing (1).

The invention is directed to an electronic thermostat timer having a time-keeping switch means and having a thermostat, having an optoelectronic display means arranged at the front side of the housing for the time of day, the switching times and the switching temperatures, having a manual, key-shaped input means for the time of day, the switching times and the switching temperatures, in a common housing.
In such thermostat timers that can be practically employed not only for a time-controlled temperature regulation of dwelling spaces but also for air conditioning units having heating and/or cooling function, freezer chests, refrigeration rooms and refrigerators, particularly as what are referred to as defroster controls as well, it is necessary--particularly when these are intended to be built-in--that the external dimensions of the overall device be optimally small and compact without the technical demands made of the thermostat being thereby deteriorated. It should thereby be assured that the inertia of such a thermostat is appropriately matched to the respective requirements. As necessary, moreover, what are referred to as optimization functions having up to four temperature levels should be possible, first with a comfort temperature control at 21.degree. C., second with a day time temperature control lowered under chronological control at approximately 19.degree. C., third with a night temperature control lowered under chronological control at approximately 16.degree. C. and, fourth, an antifreezing temperature control at about 5.degree. C., as well as with what is referred to as an automatic surge aeration unit.
It is also required in such thermostat timers that, first, the electrical installation terminals can be placed corresponding to the respective, requirements without the installation orientation of the device having to be changed as a result thereof and that, second, an arrangement of the temperature sensor corresponding to the respective requirements is also possible in addition to a monitoring of the power reserve of the device.
In known electromechanical or electronic thermostat timers, the switch clock and the thermostat are arranged lying spatially side-by-side in a rectangularly fashioned housing that is relatively large in terms of space. The electrical installation terminals are invariably arranged thereat in a specific region of the housing.
These known thermostat timers are relatively large in size and their employment is correspondingly limited.


A copolymer composition and coating comprising the copolymer composition containing a vinyl silane of the formula ##STR1## where R.sub.1 is an aryl or alkyl group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and R.sub.2 is a hydrolysable group; and. a vinyl ester of a branched fatty acid having the formula ##STR2## wherein R.sub.3, R.sub.4, R.sub.5 are hydrogen or alkyl groups with 1 to 12 carbon atoms and PA1 optionally at least one olefinically unsaturated compound.. wherein the total of R.sub.3, R.sub.4 and R.sub.5 contain at least 3 carbon atoms and

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a curable resin and more particularly to a curable resin having hydrolysable silyl groups on the side chains.
2. State of the Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,459,205 discloses a curable resin based on prepolymers with hydrolyzable silyl groups copolymerized with short chain vinyl derivatives such as vinyl acetate, vinylpropionate and silane functional monomers such as trialkoxy vinyl silanes. EP 0 396 914 discloses top coat compositions based on a blend of a hydroxyl group resin and a hydrolysable silyl group--containing polymer. Neither publication discloses copolymers comprising vinyl esters of branched fatty acids.
Japanese Patents 63/027564, 04057820, and 04288376 disclose high molecular weight coating compositions containing vinyl silane monomers, vinyl ethers and vinyl esters of branched fatty acids which are fluoro-modified.
None of the prior art teaches curable resins such as disclosed herein. The compositions of this invention give an excellent balance of solvent resistance, chemical resistance, hardness, flexibility and adherence to a variety of substrates. More specifically, such compositions can be used in automotive top coat formulations where they give an exterior finish having attractive aesthetic appearance, including high gloss, excellent distinctness of image (DOI) and protection against environmental chemical attack.

Crosslinkable copolymers comprising vinyl silane and vinyl esters of branched fatty acid


A memory card comprises a flash memory for storing data, in which defective block data indicating defective one of memory blocks constituting the flash memory is stored in advance, and an attribute memory for storing attribute data of the memory card, wherein the defective block data is stored in a blank area of the attribute memory so as to assure that the defective block data is regenerated in the flash memory in a case where the defective block data on the flash memory is erased.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an IC memory card having a flash memory and an attribute memory, which is used as a memory medium such as a data processing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, hard disk devices or floppy disk devices are widely used as an external memory device of a data processing device such as a personal computer or work station. Recently, IC memory cards (integrated circuit memory cards) are being used as an external memory device in place of those disk devices, and accordingly, personal computers have as a standard device slots for holding memory cards, or periphery devices such as memory card reader or writer to which can be optionally supplied with personal computers, are being developed.
A memory card is advantageous in terms of portability, and it has a larger storing capacity than that of a floppy disk. Thus, a memory card is convenient when transferring between terminals or carrying from one place to another.
Although the memory card is convenient as described above, its specification varies widely from one production maker to another, and the memory card entails the problem of being incompatible with a lot of different computer models in comparison with the floppy disk, for example. Due to these circumstances, the standardization of the memory is in progress, and more recently, a memory card having a specification in conformity with the standard set by PCMCIA (personal computer memory card international association) has been developed. A memory card having, for example, a flash EEPROM (flash electrically erasable programmable read-only memory) is standardized in terms of its physical and electrical specifications.
However, in accordance with an increase in the degree of integration and the capacity of the flash EEPROM, it is getting difficult to form a defective free bit (memory area) or block (a set of the predetermined number of bits) in the chip. As a result, flash EEPROMS, shipped from the factory, inevitably contain defective bits or defective blocks.
When manufacturing flash EEPROMs, the test for checking erasing and writing is usually carried out chip by chip. When it is judged that a chip contains a defective block, data "0" is marked on all the bits in the defective block. In the case where there is even only one defective bit present in a block, the block is still handled as a defective block. With the marking, initial defect data which indicates a defective block on a flash EEPROM is recorded.
The judgment in the test is made very precisely in consideration of the erase/write properties and the like with regard to the applied voltage value. Even if data can be temporarily erased or written, a block having a low reliability in storing data is judged to be defective.
As described above, the initial defective data recorded on the flash EEPROM in the marking has a very high reliability, and therefore it is desirable that the judgment of a block as to GOOD or NO GOOD should be made based on the initial defect data when the test of the flash EEPROM is carried out.
The flash EEPROM in which the initial defect data is recorded, is built in a memory card in an assembly step. The memory card in which the flash EEPROM is built, is usually examined when shipped from the factory. In the examination before the shipping of the memory card, erasing of data and writing of a test data pattern are carried out on its built-in flash EEPROM. The erasing of data and the writing of a test data pattern are carried out for the purpose of checking the state of assembly, such as contact error or the like, and the state of operation of the control circuit in the card.
However, in the examination before the shipping of the memory card, the initial defect data recorded on the flash EEPROM is destroyed while erasing the data or writing the test data pattern. Consequently, the initial defect data which has been recorded cannot be utilized for the examination.
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate the initial defect data being destroyed as a test data pattern is written.
As shown in FIG. 1A, data "0" is already marked in a defective block of a flash EEPROM, whereas data "1" is marked in a normal block as initial defect data. In this figure, blocks 2 and 4 are defective. In the examination, when a predetermined test data pattern is written in each block on a flash EEPROM, the initial defect data is destroyed as shown in FIG. 1B, making it impossible to determine which block is defective.
In order to solve the above problem, a technique in which the initial defect data is transferred to a recording medium other than the memory card, is considered. However, with this technique, a new recording medium for reserving the initial defect data during the examination must be prepared, making the procedure complex. Further, in the case where the initial defect data is stored in a predetermined memory area on the flash EEPROM, the block in which the initial error data is stored, cannot be examined.
As described, conventionally, the initial defect data for a block prerecorded on the flash EEPROM built in a memory card cannot be effectively utilized for the examination of the block.
The memory card containing a flash EEPROM is presently being standardized in terms of physical and electrical specifications as described above; however there is no established norm regarding the specification of the formatting of the card, especially, the handling of a defective block with which writing or erasing cannot be properly carried out with respect to the flash EEPROM. As a result, it is conventionally rare to perform formatting while considering a possibility of the presence of a defective block, so that the defective block to which write/erase cannot be performed, will not have to be accessed later.
One solution to the above problem is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,200,959, a method in which defective blocks on a memory (flash EEPROM or the like) are detected while formatting, and the data of the detected error block (address and type of error) are listed and stored in a predetermined memory area on the same memory. According to this method, the list of the defective block data stored in the memory area is referred to when the memory is accessed.
In the case where a new defective block is detected while writing data in the memory, the list of the defective block data is stored in the same memory but in a different memory area. When the data written in the memory is read out, the above two types of lists are referred to. Therefore, the data written in predetermined addresses are correctly read out without accessing to the defective block.
However, in this method, a large memory area is required to save the list of the defective block data and the address data, and therefore the memory area freely used by the user is limited by the list. Furthermore, in the case where a block for storing the data of defective block data is judged to be defective, some countermeasure must be taken, such as transferring the data of the error block to another memory area. In the case where all the bits on the memory are examined, the list of the data thereof must be temporarily transferred to another memory medium.
As described, with the conventional IC memory card, the formatting in consideration of the presence of defective blocks on the contained flash EEPROM, cannot be efficiently carried out.


A wood drying kiln and airflow controlling process is described in which the kiln includes an structure with a charge receiving chamber, and a door accessible opening to allow passage of a charge of lumber for drying. Circulating fans in the structure produce airflow that is directed by baffles in a prescribed path through the charge. At least one row of elongated resilient brush bristles within the structure are positioned therein to yieldably engage the charge of lumber placed within the charge receiving chamber. The brush bristles are provided with sufficient density to limit passage of air laterally through the row.

Drying kilns are used at saw mills and treatment plants to lower the moisture content of lumber to a selected desired level. The lumber fed into drying kilns is typically "green" lumber, cut from previously living trees and that typically has high moisture content. The lumber is dried usually by application of heat and airflow directed through and around layers of lumber arranged in stacks forming a charge within the kiln chamber.
Drying kilns are a faster alternative and more consistently controllable than air drying. Stacks of lumber may be effectively dried in just over two days, depending of course on the species of wood, initial moisture content, and other considerations that can affect drying time. On the other hand, air drying of the same material may take several months or more. Expediency is clearly an advantage in kiln drying over air drying, but need remains for efficient kiln systems that will provide for expeditious drying at low cost.
A "charge" of lumber is comprised of at least one stack of boards with layers separated by thin transverse slats termed "stickers." The stickers are used at spaced locations along the layers to form air passages in the stack. It is an objective in drying kilns to move drying air through the charge in an even manner so the individual boards will dry uniformly. Thus it is desirable to have substantially equal airflow through each of the spaces formed by the stickers. This is not possible at the top of the typical charge, since the top layer of lumber is exposed. As a result, various baffle arrangements have been devised to engage the top of the charge and prevent or control airflow across the top board layer.
One common baffle arrangement involves long baffle plates that are hinged to the ceiling or fan deck of the kiln and that can be pivoted up to positions clear of an incoming charge of lumber. Once the charge is positioned in the kiln, the baffles are pivoted down to engage the top longitudinal corners of the charge and effectively limit airflow across the top layer. In actual practice, the baffles function quite well but are difficult and time consuming to use. A kiln operator must go into the kiln, lift and lock the baffles (which are quite heavy) in an up position before the charge is moved in. Then, once the charge is in place within the kiln, the operator must lower the baffles to engage the top layer. Finally, when the drying process is complete, the operator must again go into the kiln, and raise the baffles to allow the charge of dried lumber to be removed. Shifting the baffles up and down in the kiln is not only hard physical labor (since the baffles are heavy), but the worker is exposed to dark, steamy, unsafe conditions in the kiln. It is not at all unusual for a baffle to accidently strip a board from the top of a charge and onto a worker below. It is also a common occurrence for someone to forget to lift the baffles before a dried charge is taken from the kiln. The baffles will then drag along the top layer of lumber and either be damaged by the lumber, push one or more boards off the top of the charge, or simply swing down to positions in a collision path with the next incoming charge of lumber.
As a solution to the baffle problem discussed above, attempts have been made to eliminate or modify the baffle construction in drying kilns. For example, U. S. Pat. No. 5,488,785 granted to George Culp on Feb. 6, 1996, recognizes the need to effectively control air passage over a charge of lumber in a dry kiln. The solution offered is provision of flat panels that are positioned on the top layers of the charge. Placement of the panels is a time consuming task, requiring the use of a fork lift truck to hoist and place the panels in place, then to remove the panels after drying.
Another attempted solution to the dry kiln baffle problems discussed above is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,972,604 granted to Leon Breckenridge on Nov. 27, 1990. This patent discloses the use of inflatable bladders that are positioned in a dry kiln and inflate to engage the charge of material to be dried, thereby confining the passage of air through the kiln chamber to prescribed passages. However, the time required to inflate the bags becomes a negative factor, as well as the propensity for the inflated bags to burst when inflated against sharp splinters. Still further, the high pressure pumps required to properly operate the bags adversely affects the overall cost of the baffling unit.
Still other attempts have been considered, including flexible cloth or canvass aprons draped loosely against the top surface of a charge within a kiln. Such drapes often snag, wear quickly, or may be too flexible to adequately control airflow in the drying chamber.
A need has therefore remained for a drying kiln baffle system that will operate to influence airflow within a drying kiln without requiring manual or automatic positioning. A need further remains for a baffle that is relatively safe to operate and that in normal use, will not drag lumber from a dry kiln charge as the charge is being moved into or out from the drying kiln.


Dynamic digital recording is described. A client device is configured to include digital recording capabilities. The digital recording capabilities are automatically enabled when recording media is connected to the client device, and the digital recording capabilities are automatically disabled when the recording media is not connected to the client device.

An increasing variety of television set-top boxes (STB's) with digital video recording (DVR) capability is becoming available. However, the addition of DVR capability to a STB can add significant cost and complexity in the form of large hard-disk drives and associated electronics. The increased bill of materials cost poses significant challenges to media service providers such as cable and satellite television companies. If a media service provider absorbs the increased cost required to include DVR capability in the STB's, then the time to break-even for each subscriber is increased. Alternatively, the media service provider may increase the up front cost to a subscriber for a STB with DVR capability. This may be frustrating, or even cost prohibitive, to a user, who may not want DVR functionality, but may want other functionality (such as support for high definition television) that a particular STB provides. Furthermore, users may be frustrated by the need to obtain a new STB if they choose to add a DVR package to an existing subscription.


A reserve, back-up battery assembly is described providing adequate voltage and power levels to replace a main battery for a limited period of time. The reserve battery assembly includes a housing, an electrolyte, an openable sealing mechanism, a plurality of pairs of anodes and cathodes, and first and second leads integrally connected to the first and second cable assemblies. The housing includes a fluid reservoir with an electrolyte solvent sealed within it, and it further includes a cell chamber containing the anodes and cathodes. The openable sealing mechanism releases the electrolyte solvent into a chute leading from the fluid reservoir to the cell chamber, and the chute contains anhydrous electrolytic crystals, for dissociation in the electrolyte solvent. The openable sealing mechanism also opens a vent passage extending between the fluid reservoir and the exterior of the housing. The anodes and cathodes may be made from Al and S, Al and AgO, or Al and MnO.sub.2, respectively. The electrolyte may be made employing H.sub.2 O+KOH+Salt, or with NaOH or LiOH used in lieu of KOH. One of the cable assemblies includes a lug configured to receive a battery-cable connector, and that cable assembly has a detachable alligator-type jumper clip that normally is attached over the lug. The reserve battery assembly further includes an indicator for indicating whether the main battery should be bypassed before jumping.

This invention relates generally to electrochemical energy sources and, more particularly, to battery assemblies capable of retaining electrochemical energy in a reserve state until activation.
In the use of systems requiring a main battery for electrical requirements, the retention and use of a back-up battery to provide for power upon failure of the main battery is highly preferred. Back-up automobile batteries, for example, are known to provide a backup source of power in the event of battery failure due to accidental discharge (such as leaving the lights on), battery malfunction (such as internal shorting), and battery limitations (such as weakness in extreme cold). A variety of back-up batteries have been designed, each with its own characteristics and limitations.
A main battery for an automobile is usually of the lead-acid type. A lead-acid battery provides a recharge capability superior to most battery types. It does not have a high specific or volumetric energy density, however, and necessarily must be a large and heavy battery. While a second lead-acid battery could be carried in an automobile to serve as a backup for the first, this solution is not generally practical for reasons of cost, space, weight, and limited shelf life without a recharge.
A back-up battery must provide adequate voltage and power levels to either replace or recharge the main battery for a limited period of time. Because the immediate need to use a back-up battery is not predictable, the back-up battery should have a long shelf life. Storage conditions of a back-up battery may vary, and therefore durability and safety are principal concerns. This is particularly true when the back-up battery contains more dangerous electrolyte fluids. Thus, it is preferable that the back-up battery be small, lightweight, durable, and not contain dangerous fluids. It is further desirable that the back-up battery be convenient to use in a variety of main battery failure scenarios. Furthermore, a preferable back-up battery should be inexpensive, and environmentally safe.
It is known that nickel-cadmium (NiCad), rechargeable back-up batteries, with jumper cable clips attached and stored in separate hinged-door compartments, are available for charging depleted batteries, powering portable television sets and radios, and the like. Such devices, while providing for short-term, portable power needs, do not have significant shelf life or power. They require frequent recharging, and eventually suffer performance degradation from that recharging.
In order to extend shelf life, back-up batteries have been designed as reserve electrochemical batteries for recharging main batteries. In a reserve battery, the electrolyte is stored separate from one or both types of electrodes, providing for an extended period of shelf life. Significant degradation of the electrodes generally does not occur until the reserve battery is activated by introducing electrolyte to the electrodes.
Nevertheless, whether reserve or not, back-up battery designs must trade off charging power level against the preference for reduced size, weight, cost, and safety concerns. Compact back-up batteries for automobiles have therefore been designed for slowly recharging a main battery rather than replacing it or jump-starting the automobile engine directly. An exemplary device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,058, to Theiss. The Theiss device includes an ammeter for observing the progress of the charge, an expandable bag to store the electrolyte under pressure, and a frangible trigger member for activating the battery (i.e., conveying the electrolyte to the electrodes). Such a device, while conveniently small, would be expensive to manufacture due to its many intricate and expensive components (e.g., charge control circuitry and complex activation system). Furthermore, it is inconvenient to use, in that it takes an extended period of time to charge the battery. The user of the battery (e.g., the motorist) must wait patiently to regain the use of the main battery. Furthermore, such a battery does not provide assistance when the main battery is no longer capable of holding an adequate charge, such as when it is shorted out internally, or when it is significantly degraded, and at a very low temperature.
While the Theiss device uses a pressure feed system (the elastic bag) to deliver the electrolyte to the electrodes, other systems are also known. A spring-feed system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,894,888, to Gold. A system driven by a tube of compressed gas is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,695,520, to Koper et al. Gravity-feed systems are also known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 3,953,239, to Anderson, discloses a reserve battery comprising aluminum alloy and silver oxide electrodes and a pre-heated potassium hydroxide electrolyte.
Accordingly, there has existed a definite need for a back-up battery providing adequate voltage and power levels to replace a main battery for a limited period of time, and its related method of use. The back-up battery should have a long shelf life, high durability, and it should have a minimal risk of leaking dangerous chemicals. The back-up battery should be small, lightweight, and convenient to use in a variety of main battery failure scenarios. Furthermore, the back-up battery should be inexpensive, and environmentally safe. The present invention satisfies these and other needs, and provides further related advantages.

Reserve battery assembly and related method of use


A time domain aliasing cancellation (TDAC) apparatus and its signal processing method to be used with the AC-3 high-fidelity audio signal compression system of the MPEG-2 international video standard. This invention proposes two preferred embodiments to realize the compression encoding and decoding processes of the TDAC apparatus. The first preferred embodiment employs a data reordering technique to change the TDAC encoding to a discrete cosine transform (DCT), and furthermore, it changes the TDAC decoding to a inverse discrete cosine transform (IDCT). This implementation has the least computational complexity. The second preferred embodiment utilizes data reordering to change the TDAC encoding and decoding into a type IV discrete cosine transformation, and then converts the DCT transformation into a 2nd order infinite impulse filter. The multiplication coefficients in this filter can be fixed to improve the precision and also to reduce the amount of computations. This implementation of the TDAC apparatus has the simplest hardware structure. Both preferred embodiments are suitable for implementation using VLSI technology.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to a data encoding and decoding apparatus and the corresponding data processing method thereof for processing multi-channel audio signal. The MPEG-2 international video and audio standard has adopted the AC-3 high-fidelity multi-channel audio signal compression technique developed by the DOLBY Inc., in which the subband coding analysis and synthesis filters utilize time-domain aliasing cancellation technique. The invention provides a highly-efficient and compact technique for implementing the encoding and decoding process of the time-domain aliasing cancellation apparatus.
2. Background Art of the Invention
Due to increased demands for high-quality audio and video entertainment for private uses, multi-channel high-fidelity audio equipments are gradually moving from the public entertainment facilities, like the movie theaters, into the living room for many families. To achieve wide-spread private uses, the cost of these equipments must be lowered substantially. The compression apparatus of these multi-channel high-fidelity audio equipments is the key element of the cost reduction efforts. Manufacturing cost of these equipments can be significantly reduced simply by developing simple and highly efficient signal processing technique to be implemented in semiconductor devices.
Currently, the most widely adopted high-end audio signal compression technique is the AC-3 multi-channel high-fidelity audio signal compression technique invented by DOLBY Inc. Because its subband encoding filter using the time-domain aliasing cancellation (TDAC) technique requires a large amount of computations, the TDAC apparatus becomes the key technology for audio compression. The TDAC analysis and synthesis filters are also treated as the modified discrete cosine transform and the inverse modified discrete cosine transform. Dolby Inc. employs Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to achieve the TDAC operation. The details of this technique can be found in the documentation Dolby AC-3, Multi-Channel Digital Audio Compression System Algorithm Description, Dolby Laboratories Information, Feb. 22, 1994 Revision 1.12, Dolby Laboratories Inc. Also, according to Duhamel's suggestion (P. Duhamel, "Implementation of `Split-Radix` FFT Algorithm for Complex, Real, and Real-Symmetric Data," IEEE Trans. on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing, Vol. ASSP-34, No. 2, pp. 285-295, April 1986), the FFT can be substituted by split-radix FFT (SRFFT) to speed up the compression and de-compression operations. Nevertheless, the SRFFT still requires tremendous amount of computations. Thus, any manufacturer possessing a simple and fast technique for TDAC will have an advantage the highly competitive international market.

Time domain aliasing cancellation apparatus and signal processing method thereof


Packets are received from a network, and for each received packet, it is determined whether the packet belongs to one of a plurality of previously identified flows using a plurality of existing flow rules. For each received packet determined to belong to one of the previously identified flows, a flow identifier is assigned to the packet to indicate the previously identified flow to which the packet belongs and the packet or a packet descriptor corresponding to the packet is directed to a next location in a packet forwarding pipeline. Additionally, for each received packet determined not to belong to one of the previously identified flows, it is determined whether the packet belongs to a currently unknown flow. If a received packet is determined to belong to a currently unknown flow: the packet is sent to a processing unit associated with the packet forwarding pipeline; the packet is analyzed using the processing unit; an additional existing flow rule corresponding to the packet is determined using the processing unit; and based on the analysis of the packet; and the additional existing flow rule is added to the plurality of existing flow rules.

It is often useful to obtain traffic flow measurements in a network that utilizes a protocol such as the Internet Protocol (IP). For example, such measurements may be used to characterize flows using parameters such as flow duration, volume, time, burstiness, etc. Flow traffic information may be useful for network planning, optimizing network resource utilization or traffic performance, detection of and defense against network attack/intrusion, quality of service (QoS) monitoring, usage-based accounting, etc.
Traffic flow measurements may be made by a network bridge, switch or router, for example, or some other measurement device. Then, these measurements may be utilized by various applications such as a traffic profiling application, a traffic engineering application, an attack/intrusion detection system, an accounting application, a QoS validation application, etc. For example, a traffic profiling application may utilize flow measurements taken at multiple different nodes (e.g., routers, bridges, switches, etc.) in a network so as to analyze traffic in different portions of the network. Various definitions and requirements for export of IP flow information and for metering processes have been proposed by the Network Working Group of the Internet Society at least in the Request for Comments 3917, "Requirements for IP Flow Information Export (IPFIX)", 2004 (RFC 3917).

Methods and apparatus for flow classification and flow measurement


A method of designing an asynchronous integrated circuit is provided. A global clock network of a synchronous circuit is replaced with a plurality of handshaking circuits. Data validity is encoded into a communication path between a first pipeline stage and a second pipeline stage of the synchronous circuit. A control logic for the first pipeline stage is implemented using a template that contains characterization information for timing to generate an asynchronous circuit design.

As the system on a chip becomes faster and larger, it is becoming increasingly difficult to distribute the clock to the entire chip because of clock skew. To achieve a low skew clock distribution, low skew drivers are used which are extremely power hungry. Asynchronous circuits may provide a solution for this problem.
A system is asynchronous if a clock is not used for sequencing actions such that inputs and outputs can change at any time. The chief difficulty in asynchronous design is knowing when a specific computation is complete. However, a major advantage of asynchronous design over synchronous designs is that asynchronous designs dissipate substantially less power than synchronous designs because asynchronous circuits only dissipate power when actively computing instead of for each clock cycle. Thus, less power is used because there is less switching.
Additionally, skew is also not an issue for asynchronous circuits because there is no common clock. Asynchronous circuits are also modular and exhibit average case performance instead of worst case as is the case for synchronous circuits. Asynchronous circuits also exhibit dramatic improvements in terms of electro-magnetic interference and are inherently closed loop making them more robust in the presence of process, voltage, and temperature variations.
Asynchronous design has shown substantial power and performance benefits but is in practice difficult to implement due to the protocol and sequential, rather than combinational, nature of its design. Revolutionary means of designing these chips has largely failed to gain wide spread industry acceptance. Asynchronous designs have been avoided because they are difficult to implement and difficult to test. In general, there is a lack of good computer aided design (CAD) tools that completely cover the design flow for asynchronous circuits.
Desynchronization is an evolutionary means of creating asynchronous designs from clocked circuit design largely using the traditional clocked CAD. In this design style, the clock distribution network is removed and replaced with asynchronous handshake protocols and circuitry. Current means of implementing desynchronization use a static marked graph handshake and token marking with no choice. The handshake protocol guarantees correctness of the clock distribution network but carries no information about data validity. This results in circuits that behave very much like a clocked design, but with a performance and power penalty.

Method and system for asynchronous chip design

The University of Utah Research Foundation


A siderail assembly comprises a siderail with a siderail body. The siderail body has a storage area integrated therein. The storage area has a bottom surface, at least one side surface, and an opening. The storage area is configured to removably retain at least one object therein.

This disclosure relates generally to person-support apparatuses. More particularly, but not exclusively, one illustrative embodiment relates to a person-support apparatus including a siderail with an integrated storage area.
People staying in hospitals can often bring personal belongings with them. The belongings can be collected by caregivers and stored until the person is discharged or the person requests an item. The belongings can be stored in a storage room that can include, for example, lockers, storage bins, drawers, and/or bags with identifying information, such as, the patient's room number, listed thereon, and/or a list of the items and/or bin, locker, or bag numbers and/or location put on the patient's medical chart. The people can also be provided with storage space for storing personal belongings or other objects in the room they are assigned to, for example, in various shelving units or other furniture storage areas, such as, drawers and/or closets. While various person-support apparatuses have been developed, there is still room for development. Thus a need persists for further contributions in this area of technology.


The present invention provides methods of site-specific labeling of antibodies, using proteins having 4′-phosphopantetheinyl transferase activity that catalyze post-translational modification of peptide sequences (“peptide tags”) incorporated into one or more specific sites of an antibody of interest. Enzymatic labeling enables quantitative and irreversible covalent modification of a specific serine residue within the peptide tags incorporated into the antibody, and thus creates desirable antibody conjugates.

Conjugation has been widely used to optimize the properties of biologically active proteins, such as protein therapies, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), vaccines, tissue selective targeting vehicles, molecular diagnostics, and protein nucleic acid conjugates. Traditional conjugation method utilizes lysine based covalent ligation, which makes it difficult to achieve homogeneity due to the abundance of lysines on the protein's surface.
Site-specific labeling of proteins can be achieved by post-translational enzymatic reactions, for example, using human O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyl-transferase (AGT), biotin ligase, transglutaminase, sortase, cutinase, or 4′-phosphopantetheinyl transferases for the covalent attachment of a label to a protein.
For post-translational enzymatic reactions using human O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyl-transferase, the AGT is fused to a target protein of interest, followed by the addition of a labeled O6-benzylguanine, which is a suicide substrate for the AGT (Keppler et al., Nat. Biotechnol. 21:86-89, 2003). This approach is the basis for a technology called SNAP-Tag™, which utilizes a 180 amino acid tag (Tirat et al., International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 39:66-76, 2006). However, labeling of proteins using this approach occurs only at the C- or N-termini.
For biotin ligation, the enzyme biotin protein ligase (BPL) attaches biotin to the biotin carrier domain of certain carboxylases or decarboxylases. BPL catalyzes, in a two-step, adenosine-5′-triphosphate (ATP)-dependent reaction, the post-translational formation of an amide bond between the carboxyl group of biotin and the ε-amino group of a specific lysine residue located within a highly conserved Ala-Met-Lys-Met (SEQ ID NO: 1017) recognition located motif within the biotin carrier domain (Tirat et al., International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 39:66-76, 2006). This approach can be used to create fusion tags at the C-terminus, the N-terminus or even within the target protein and is the basis for a technology called BioEase™ (72 amino acid tag) and AviTag™ (uses the biotin ligase, BirA and 15-residue acceptor peptide tag (AP)).
Transglutaminases catalyze the formation of stable isopeptidic bonds between the side chains of glutamine (Gln) and lysine (Lys) with the loss of ammonia, and have been used to label glutamine side chains in proteins with fluorophores in vitro (Sato et al., Biochemistry 35:13072-13080, 1996). Also, bacterial and human tissue transglutaminases (BTGase and TG2) have been used to catalyze the post-translational modification of different IgG's via the Lys or Gln side chains located in the IgG heavy chain (Mindt et a, Bioconjugate Chem. 19:271-278, 2008; Jeger et at, Angew. Chem. Int. 49:9995-9997, 2010).
Sortases have been used for C-terminal and N-terminal site specific modification of proteins, where sortase A catalyzes the transpeptidation reaction (Antos et al., JACS, 131:10800-10801, 2009).
Cutinase is a 22-kDa serine esterase that forms a site-specific covalent adduct with phosphonate ligands that is resistant to hydrolysis. Cutinases have been used for C-terminal and N-terminal site specific modification of antibodies followed by immobilization onto surfaces (Kwon et al., Anal. Chem. 76:5713-5720, 2004; Hodneland et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 99:5048-5052, 2002).
4′-Phosphopantetheinylation of acyl carrier proteins (ACPs) and peptidyl carrier proteins (PCPs) are involved in an essential post-translational modification that is required to activate metabolite synthesis by polyketide synthases (PKSs) and nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs), respectively (Fischbach et al., Chem. Rev. 106(8):3468-3496, 2006). The apo to holo conversion of ACPs and PCPs is catalyzed by 4′-phosphopantetheine (ppan) transferases, which attach a 4′-phospho-pantetheinyl moiety of coenzyme A (CoA) to an invariant serine residue of the protein domains (Lambalot et al., Chem. Biol. 3(11):923-936, 1996). Due to the comparably small size of the carrier proteins and the ability of 4′-phosphopantetheinyl transferases to accept functionalized CoA analogues as substrates, researchers have used carrier proteins as fusion tags to label target proteins with a variety of small molecule probes (see, e.g., La Clair et al., Chem. Biol. 11(2):195-201, 2004; Yin et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 126(25):7754-7755, 2004). In an effort to further reduce the carrier protein tag size, Walsh and co-workers used phage display to identify 8- to 12-residue peptides that are recognized as efficient substrates by the bacterial 4′-phosphopantetheinyl transferase Sfp (previously identified as a genetic locus responsible for surfactin production) and AcpS (Yin et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102(44):15815-15820, 2005; Zhou et al., ACS Chem. Biol. 2(5):337-346, 2007; Zhou et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 130(30):9925-9930, 2008).
Antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) have been used for the local delivery of cytotoxic agents in the treatment of cancer (see e.g., Lambert, Curr. Opinion In Pharmacology 5:543-549, 2005). ADCs allow targeted delivery of the drug moiety where maximum efficacy with minimal toxicity may be achieved. As more ADCs show promising clinical results, there is an increased need to develop stable engineered antibodies that provide reactive groups capable of conjugation to various agents, especially site-specific conjugations that can generate homogeneous immunoconjugates with a defined drug-to-antibody ratio for use in cancer therapy.

Site-specific labeling methods and molecules produced thereby


A light-weight composite material with enhanced structural characteristics includes, in one embodiment, a compositionally modulated nanolaminate coating electrically deposited into an open, accessible void structure of a porous substrate. As a result of including a nanolaminate within the void structure, the composite can include a greater amount of nanolaminate material per unit volume than can be achieved by depositing a nanolaminate material solely on a two-dimensional surface. In addition, the nanolaminate material as well as other material electrodeposited to form the composite is compositionally modulated so that discontinuities between layers are minimized and potentially eliminated. The light-weight but structurally enhanced composite material can be used in a number of different applications including, but not limited to, ballistic applications (e.g., armor panels or tank panels), automotive protection applications (e.g., car door panels, racing shells) and sporting equipment applications (e.g., golf club shafts and tennis racket frames).

In general, today's advanced material applications are subjected to environments and stresses, which benefit from unusual combinations of material properties that cannot be met by metal alloys, ceramic compacts, or polymeric materials alone. For example, in ballistic applications, a material is sought which is lightweight and thus fuel efficient, while at the same time provides great impact absorption properties to prevent injury or mechanical failure to an underlying structure designed to be hit by shrapnel or an exploding device. In aircraft or seacraft applications, materials that are strong, light-weight and at the same time corrosion resistant are also sought. To achieve these and other unusual combinations of material properties, composite materials (i.e., a multiphase material that exhibits a significant proportion of properties of its two or more constituent phases) are employed.
There are many types of composite materials. For example, particle-reinforced composite materials, fiber-reinforced composite materials, and structural composite materials or layered composite materials are generally well-known. Each type of composite material can include two or more phases wherein one phase makes up the majority of the material and is known as the matrix material and the second phase (and potentially additional phases) make(s) up a lesser extent of the composite and can be dispersed within the matrix material or layered within the matrix material to form a sandwich. The presence of the second and additional phases affects the material properties of the composite material. That is, the material properties of the composite material are dependent upon the material properties of the first phase and the second phase (and additional phases) as well as the amounts of the included phase forming the composite. Thus, the material properties of a composite can be tailored for a specific application by the selection of specific concentrations of the phases, as well as potentially, the sizes, shapes, distribution, and orientations of the included phases.
In general, a structural composite includes two or more layers of material, wherein one or more of the layers may be formed of a composite material in and of itself (e.g., a fiber-reinforced layer or particle-reinforced layer). Each layer of a structural composite provides a different function or provides a specific material property to the structural composite. For example, in ballistic applications one layer can provide toughness to blunt or plastically deform any sharp projectile, a second layer can provide impact resistance so as to absorb kinetic energy of a ballistic that hits the composite, and a third layer can provide strength so as to maintain structural integrity of the composite even after the composite material has been hit by shrapnel or a projectile. Typically, material transitions between these layers are discontinuous. That is, there is an abrupt change in material properties across an interface formed by two of the layers. It is well known that discontinuities often lead to failures in a composite material. For example, interlaminar failure can occur as a projectile's stress wave travels through a composite plate, impacting each of the interfaces between the layers.
It is also well known that nanolaminate layers may provide enhanced material properties not achievable by their constituent materials on other length scales. For example, certain bimetallic multilayer systems exhibit an anomalous jump in elastic modulus at a specific nanoscale layer thickness, a phenomenon known as the supermodulus effect. In general, to deposit nanoscale multilayers, systems such as DC magnetron sputtering or other deposition techniques that deposit material on top of a substantially flat surface have been utilized.

Compositionally modulated composite materials and methods for making the same


An apparatus for controlling drive or operation of a quenching car and/or a bucket car for a coke oven and a method therefor, capable of effectively accomplishing the automatic control of the operation of the quenching car/bucket car. A quenching car/bucket car is adapted to travel on a track due to traction by a wire rope through a winch structure, to thereby reduce the load of the quenching car/bucket car applied to the track surface to prevent positional variations on the track surface. This results in the relative positional relationship of the track surface to a quenching tower, a coke wharf/CDQ and the like being ensured.

This invention relates to an apparatus for controlling the drive of and/or the operation of a quenching car/ bucket car for a coke oven as well as a method therefor, and more particularly to an apparatus for effectively accomplishing the automatic control of the operation of the quenching car/bucket car and a method therefor.
Conventionally, the control of the drive and/or operation of a quenching car for a coke oven is generally carried out by an operator riding in an electric car drawing the quenching car. Now, the manner or procedure of controlling operation of the quenching car will be described. First, when red-hot coke, as calcined is pushed out, by means of a pusher, from a designated one of the coking chambers of a coke oven from which the coke is to be delivered while keeping the pusher, a guide car and a quenching car accurately registered or aligned with respect to the designated coking chamber, it is charged onto the quenching car of which a door is kept closed while causing the quenching car to travel in correspondence with the speed of the coke pushed out. After the charging is completed, the quenching car is moved into a quenching tower and located accurately at a predetermined position in the quenching tower. Then, water is sprinkled from a water tank arranged above the quenching tower on the red-hot coke charged onto the quenching car to quench the coke and then the water is drained off from the coke. Subsequently, the quenching car is moved to coke wharves and then accurately stopped at a predetermined position in front of designated one of coke wharves. Thereafter, the door of the quenching car is opened to discharge the quenched coke onto the wharf. Thus, the processing of calcined coke is completed. The above-described procedure is repeated with respect to each of the coking chambers in order, resulting in the delivery of coke from the coking oven being carried out.
The control of drive of a bucket car for a coke oven is likewise carried out by an operator riding in an electric car drawing the bucket car. More particularly, red-hot coke as calcined is pushed out or discharged, by means of a pusher, from designated one of coking chambers of a coke oven from which coke is to be delivered while keeping the pusher, a guide car and a bucket car accurately located or aligned with respect to the designated coking chamber. The discharged coke is then charged into a coke bucket on the bucket car. Subsequently, the bucket car is moved to a coke dry quenching facility (hereinafter referred to as "CDQ") and accurately located at a predetermined position in CDQ. Then, the coke bucket in which the red-hot coke is charged is hung up by means of a charging crane to cause the coke to be subject to a dry quenching treatment. The coke bucket which has thus been rendered empty is then placed down into the bucket car for the next operation. The above-described operation is repeated with respect to each of the coking chambers, resulting in the delivery of coke from the coking oven to the bucket car being carried out.
For the operation of the quenching car/bucket car for the coke oven, the correlation between the quenching car/bucket car and other working machines such as the guide car, pusher and the like is highly important. To this end,, it is generally required that workers or operators carefully and closely maintain contact with each other using a communication means such as a wire telephone, a wireless telephone or the like to verify with each other the working condition of the working equipment, such as its working position or the like.
However, the artificial or manual operation of the quenching car/bucket car carried out while the operators maintain contact with each other is apt to cause exchange of incorrect information due to misunderstanding or the like, resulting in the operators often failing to carry out the operation while properly grasping the working situation, the working position and the like.
In view of the foregoing, an automatic control means is proposed for successively automatically controlling the operation of the working machines such as the pusher, guide cat, quenching car/bucket car and the like. However, taking, as an example, a track surface on which the working position of the quenching car/bucket car is determined, lots of load is applied onto the track surface because the sum of weight of the quenching car/bucket car and weight of the electric car traveling while drawing the quenching car/bucket car reaches a high level such as, for example, 90 tons (-55 tons (quenching car) +35 tons (electric car)). This causes the positional relationship of the track surface to a body of the coke oven, the quenching tower, the coke wharf/CDQ and the like to be readily varied, so that the track surface fails to serve as a reference surface for the operation of the quenching car/bucket car, resulting in a failure to permit the automatic control to be effectively carried out. Also, in order to permit the track surface to endure such high load as described above, it is required that there is a rigid concrete foundation to strengthen the track surface. Unfortunately, this leads to a problem of increased costs.

Apparatus and method for controlling operation of quenching car/bucket for coke oven


An optical index switch including curved ridge waveguides. The cladding around the waveguides is selectively etched to produce tightly curved optical switches.

The present invention relates to digital optical switches. In particular, it relates to tightly curved digital optical switches.
The shift to optical fiber as the preferred transmission medium in telecommunications has created the need for practical optical switches to perform both the routing and distribution functions of the optical network. A type of optical switch is the waveguide spatial switch that selectable transfers an incoming optical signal to a specific one of a plurality of output waveguides. The spatial switch is controlled by an externally applied electrical control signal without regard to the particular spectral or informational content of that signal. This type of optical switch generally functions in one of three modes: (1) as a direct coupler switch, (2) as a gain switch, or (3) as an index switch. A direct coupler switch splits single polarized monochromic light and subsequently recombines it constructively in the desired channel and destructively in the non-desired channel. A gain switch splits the light and subsequently amplifies the light in the desired channel (the amplification compensates for the loss from splitting the light) and absorbs it in the non-desired channel. An optical index switch focuses, or reflects, the optical energy into the desired output channel.
A number of factors, however, limit the performance of these different switches. For example, direct coupler switches are critically dependent on the length of the active interference region for complete switching. They must be fabricated for operation at a particular wavelength and polarization, which eliminates use in a multi-wavelength network or a network in which the polarization varies. Gain switches suffer from the high power requirements. Additionally, gain switches require complex fast optical amplifiers in the output channels, which must be turned on for amplification or off for absorption. Finally, optical switches that depend upon mechanical or thermal mechanisms for switching are too slow for general use in a telecommunication network.
This leaves the optical index switch as the switch of choice for most telecommunication networks. Optical switches can be fabricated to reflect or to focus light by changes in the index of refraction, where the index change is accomplished by either injecting or depleting electrical carriers in the switching region. The depletion mode of operation suffers from polarization sensitivity because the depletion region's large electrical field couples to the material's electro-optic coefficients; however, for polarization insensitive operation, the optical index switch can be operated by injecting electrical carriers.
Conventional optical index switches require electrodes on each output branch to effect index changes so that a propagation tendency in the higher index branch will result due to asymmetric adiabatic modal evolution. However, these index switches require stringent fabrication procedure and tolerances to minimize any coupling between the electrodes, particularly in the interaction region at the wave guide junction. Moreover, index switches require continuous electrical power to remain in a particular switching state.
Solutions to the above problems were provided by U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,226 for ZERO HOLDING POWER DIGITAL OPTICAL SWITCHES and U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,497 for OPTIMIZED ELECTRODE GEOMETRIES FOR DIGITAL OPTICAL SWITCHES, both issued to William H. Nelson, the relevant disclosure of which is set out below. These switches, however, required a large chip in order to achieve the required separation between the terminations that would allow coupling to individual fibers. In order to reduce the length of the switch, current technology requires additional masking and regrowth, or fabrication, to place tightly bound curved waveguides in the switch. The additional masking and regrowth increases the cost and significantly reduces the yield of the optical switch. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a small chip without the additional masking and regrowth, and the corresponding reduction in yield.


An optical system comprises, at least, in order from an object side, a first lens group having positive refracting power, a second lens group having negative refracting power, a third lens group having positive refracting power, and a fourth lens group having positive refracting power, wherein at least, the second lens group and the fourth lens group move along an optical axis when magnification is changed from a wide angle end to a telephoto end, and the first lens group contains a light path reflecting element having refracting power.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a small sized variable magnification optical system, especially used for such as a digital camera, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular phone and the like which carries a variable magnification optical system, and an apparatus provided with the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
To an image forming optical system which is built in and used for a miniature camera using an electronic imaging element, such as CCD, a personal digital assistant, a cellular phone, etc., a miniaturization, especially thinning of its shape has been strongly demanded. The following optical systems have been disclosed as conventional technology about these optical systems. For example, in No. Toku Kai Hei 10-20191 (Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application), four groups zoom optical system in which a light reflecting path is arranged by using what cementing a plano-convex lens and a rectangular prism in a third lens group between the third lens group and a fourth lens group has been disclosed. In No. Toku Kai Hei 09-211287, what giving optical power to a prism for reflecting a light path has been disclosed.

Light path reflecting optical system and apparatus provided with the same


An asymmetrical half-bridge converter, a method of operating the same and a power supply that incorporates either the converter or the method. In one embodiment, the converter includes: (1) a power transformer that receives AC input power into a primary winding thereof and transfers the AC input power into first and second secondary windings thereof, the first secondary winding having a secondary to primary turns-ratio smaller than the second secondary winding, (2) an auxiliary inductor coupled across the first and second secondary windings and (3) first and second rectifying diodes having inputs coupled to outer taps of the first and second secondary windings, an output of the converter derived from outputs of the first and second rectifying diodes and a center tap between the first and second secondary windings, an average current in the first secondary winding increased to cause the first and second secondary windings and the auxiliary inductor to share a DC bias current developed in the converter during an operation thereof.

Asymmetrical switching occurs when the two switches in a half-bridge power converter are turned on and off complementarily. In conventional switch-mode converters, the power switches are typically maintained in a conducting state for an equal duration during each half of the switching period. For one duty cycle, alternately one switch, then the other switch, conducts during successive half periods of the duty cycle for the same length of time with a corresponding dead time between each conduction time period. Asymmetrical half-bridge converters differ from the conventional switch-mode converters in that the switches conduct for unequal lengths of time with only a small deadtime between conduction periods.
An analysis of a zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) asymmetrical half-bridge converter with pulse-width-modulation (PWM) control is described, for example, in a paper entitled "Static and Dynamic Analysis of Zero-Voltage-Switched Half-Bridge Converter with PWM Control" by Tamotsu Ninomiya, et al., Proceedings of IEEE PESC '91, pp. 230-237 (1992); see also "Static and Dynamic Analysis of ZVS-PWM Half Bridge Converter" by T. Ninomiya, et al., IEE of Japan, MAG-90-82, August 1990, both of which are incorporated herein by reference. Ninomiya, et al., analyses a half-bridge converter with an asymmetrical PWM control scheme and demonstrates quantitatively the improvement of the control characteristics performed by the asymmetrical regulation of a pair of switches employed therein. Furthermore, Ninomiya, et al., teaches that the small deadtime between conducting periods in an asymmetrical converter circuit allows lossless commutation of the power switches.
Another asymmetrical half-bridge ZVS converter is described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,245,520, issued on Oct. 10, 1993, to Imbertson, entitled "Asymmetrical Duty Cycle Power Converter," which is incorporated herein by reference. Imbertson omits the resonant inductor described in Ninomiya's converter by utilizing the energy stored in the leakage inductance (or an auxiliary inductor) and the magnetizing inductance to reach ZVS. This practice is commonly used in designing ZVS full-bridge DC/DC converters and clamping-mode forward converters. This arrangement permits ZVS without introducing additional voltage and current stresses on the switches and the converter is suitable for high frequency applications.
An asymmetrical half-bridge converter, however, suffers from having a DC bias current in the converter's isolation transformer and a large ripple current component in the output of the converter. The output ripple current can be reduced or eliminated at the expense of increasing the DC bias current in the converter's transformer. The DC bias current necessitates that magnetic core of the isolation transformer be increased to prevent the transformer from saturating. Therefore, care must be taken when determining the size of the transformer to take into account the largest DC bias current that may be present. This inevitably results in an increase in the overall size, weight and cost of the converter.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is an improved converter that mitigates the above-identified problems and, more particularly, there is a need for an improved converter wherein the isolation transformer is not burdened with all of the DC bias current generated in the converter.

Asymmetrical half-bridge converter having distributed DC bias method of operation thereof and power supply employing the same


A system and method for efficient delivery of radio frequency (RF) energy includes a backplane. At least a single channel card is removably coupled to the backplane for controlling the amount of RF power delivered through a single channel via an electrical coupling to at least one ablation electrode or a catheter. The at least one channel card provides a gradual increase in RF power calculated in real-time during an initial ramp-up phase, and to limit the delivery of RF power through the electrical coupling based on a received temperature of cardiac tissue in contact with the at least one ablation electrode, thereby reducing the likelihood coagulum formation.

Radio frequency energy may be used to treat certain cardiac abnormalities, such as fibrillation, by ablating cardiac tissue. Radio frequency energy is delivered by RF generators in two phases: (i) the "ramp up" phase in which a relatively high amount of power is delivered to an ablating electrode until a desired set temperature is sensed by a thermocouple or thermistor, and (ii) the "regulation" phase in which power is still being delivered but regulated at a lower level to maintain the desired set temperature. This target temperature is predetermined by the operator, and is generally 50° to 55° C. for ablation of cardiac tissue.
Most RF generators have software modules which run simultaneously on portable computers during RF energy delivery to log the ablation episode. Typically, the parameters logged are sensed impedance, power delivered, as well as tissue temperature sensed by either thermistors or thermocouples. This information is typically used for post-procedural review.
One objective in RF ablation of cardiac tissue is to create deep lesions in the cardiac tissue while avoiding coagulum formation. RF energy must be delivered efficiently into the tissue, and not delivered and lost into the blood medium. Previous methods and systems are not adequate to assure that RF energy is delivered efficiently to cardiac tissue during an ablation procedure.
In previous systems, a master control card with a master controller is typically used to control the operation of various system components. Since the control is centralized, the loss of controller card means the system becomes inoperable.

System and method for multi-channel RF energy delivery with coagulum reduction


A circuit arrangement includes a feedback loop, with a forward path and a feedback path, and a re-combining stage. A measuring circuit is provided to produce a measuring signal derived from a result signal and a feedback signal by linear combination.

This invention relates to a circuit arrangement comprising a feedback loop, which arrangement has a forward path for transmitting a result signal, a feedback path for deriving a feedback signal from the output signal of the forward path and a first re-combining stage for re-combining an input signal with the feedback signal to generate the result signal.
Such a circuit arrangement is known from European Patent Application 598 585. More particularly, the feedback loop described therein has the configuration of a Cartesian loop. Such Cartesian loops--but also feedback loops in more general terms--are to be used for a loop gain for the open feedback loop of which the gain value may at most have slight deviations from the set value for which the loop gain is designed. This is necessary for not affecting the stability of the loop and its bandwidth. In the known circuit arrangement, however, a measurement of the loop gain with open or interrupted feedback is not possible.

Circuit feedback loop with monitored loop gain