A system for conveniently removing recipients from a message being added to a message thread that enables a user to filter people from a recipient list of a message being added to a message thread. The system advantageously enables a user to filter out potential recipients based on a) their previous non-participation in the thread, b) their lack of registered interest in a topic of the thread, and/or c) their being listed only as recipients by way of their being contained in a group indicated in the recipient list.

As it is generally known, in computer-based communications, electronic mail ("e-mail") is an example of contemporary asynchronous messaging systems. Messaging systems such as e-mail enable geographically dispersed users to exchange information over a communication network. Asynchronous messaging systems such as e-mail allow messages to be exchanged regardless of whether the message sender and recipient(s) are simultaneously on-line or logged in. E-mail messages are typically conveyed using what is referred to as a "store and forward" protocol, in which messages are initially transmitted from a sender's client computer system, and then stored on at least one server computer system, from which they are eventually retrieved for viewing on one or more recipients' client computer systems. E-mail messages are often exchanged using the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), and users download messages from servers with standard protocols such as POP (Post Office Protocol) or IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol), or using proprietary protocols.
E-mail messages are typically stored in and represented to the user in what are generally referred to as message "mailboxes". For example, a mailbox is used to store received e-mail messages in some existing systems, referred to as the user's "Inbox".
A series of messages that have been posted as replies to each are often referred to as a message "thread". By reading each message in a thread, a user can learn how a discussion conveyed by the thread evolved.
Users of existing e-mail systems often face the problem of having too many e-mail messages contained in their Inbox. This problem arises for several reasons. One reason is that messages in threads are often sent to an overly broad recipient list. Thread participants usually use a REPLY TO ALL function or the like when adding a message to the thread, causing their reply to be sent to all recipients of the previous message, without making an effort to selectively filter out unwanted and/or un-needed recipients. This kind of user behavior is mainly the result of current e-mail system user interface design, which doesn't adequately support recipient filtering in a convenient way. As a result, messages in threads are distributed to users who may no longer be interested in the discussion represented by the thread. Such uninterested users continue to be treated as recipients even though they will not participate in the discussion for the thread. For example, replies are often sent to users included in an original distribution list because they are members of a group indicated in the distribution list, even though those users have no interest in the specific topic of the thread.
Moreover, the subject of an e-mail thread often evolves and changes during the lifetime of the thread. Users that may have been initially interested in a thread may at some point lose interest after the subject of the thread changes. For example, a thread including messages at a more general level of discussion may become uninteresting to certain initially interested users after the thread goes down a more detailed, technical line of discussion. This may result in such general interest users losing interest in subsequent thread messages, and not participating further in the thread.
Existing systems have not effectively recognized or dealt with this problem. The user interface designs of existing e-mail systems do not conveniently assist users wishing to filter recipients for a message in a message thread. For example, if a user group is indicated in a recipient list, existing systems do not effectively allow a user to filter recipients from within the group. In addition, the problem may be compounded by the fact that users are often biased towards sending replies to a relatively large recipient set, out of fear that interested people might otherwise be left out.
Thus it would be desirable to have a new system for adding messages to message threads that enables a sending user to more effectively filter message recipients.

Method and system for removing recipients from a message thread


In a piezoelectric element (21), an internal electrode (31) is embedded in a piezoelectric ceramic body (22) to extend in its longitudinal direction, first to third surface electrodes (23 to 25, 27 to 29) are formed on upper and lower surfaces of the piezoelectric ceramic body (22) in first to third portions along the longitudinal direction, connecting electrodes (26, 30) are formed to connect the first to third surface electrodes (23 to 25, 27 to 29) with each other, the first to third portions are so polarized that the second portion is oppositely polarized to the first to third portions, and regions located above and under the internal electrode are polarized in opposite directions in the respective ones of the first to third portions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a piezoelectric element and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, it relates to a bimorph piezoelectric element which is suitably employed for forming an acceleration sensor and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, a sensor utilizing a piezoelectric element is known as an acceleration sensor which is employed for detecting impact or the like. With reference to FIG. 1, an exemplary piezoelectric element 1 of this type is now described.
The piezoelectric element 1 has a plate type piezoelectric ceramic body 2. First to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 are formed on an upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 by a thin film forming method such as sputtering, at longitudinal intervals along the piezoelectric ceramic body 2. Further, a first connecting electrode 6 is formed on the upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, for electrically connecting the first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 with each other. A first signal drawing electrode is formed by the first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 and the first connecting electrode 6.
On the other hand, first to third surface electrodes 7 to 9 are formed on a lower surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 in first to third portions thereof respectively by a thin film forming method, and a second connecting electrode 10 is formed to at least partially cover the first to third surface electrodes 7 to 9, for electrically connecting the same with each other. A second signal drawing electrode is formed by the first to third surface electrodes 7 to 9 and the second connecting electrode 10.
The piezoelectric ceramic body 2 has a longitudinally extending internal electrode 11 in an intermediate vertical position. As shown in FIG. 1, the internal electrode 11 is formed not to reach both longitudinal ends of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2.
The interior of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 is polarized as follows: In a piezoelectric ceramic body region 2A which is located above the portion provided with the internal electrode 11, the second portion is downwardly polarized as shown by arrow B while the first and third portions are upwardly polarized as shown by arrows A and C respectively. In a piezoelectric ceramic body region 2B which is located under the internal electrode 11, on the other hand, the first to third portions are polarized oppositely to those of the piezoelectric ceramic body region 2A which is located above the internal electrode 11, as shown by arrows D, E and F respectively. In other words, the upper and lower piezoelectric ceramic body regions 2A and 2B are polarized in opposite directions in each of the first to third portions. In each of the respective piezoelectric ceramic body regions 2A and 2B, the second portion and the first and third portions are polarized in opposite directions.
On the upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, the first surface electrode 3 is formed to reach a side edge of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, whereby an end of the first signal drawing electrode which is formed on the upper surface reaches this side surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2. On the lower surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, on the other hand, the third surface electrode 9 is also formed to reach another side edge of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, whereby the second signal drawing electrode which is formed on the lower surface reaches this side edge of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2.
Broken lines G and H show the boundaries between the first to third portions of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 respectively. The first, second and third portions are located on the left side of the boundary G, between the boundaries G and H, and on the right side of the boundary H respectively.
The piezoelectric ceramic body 2 is held by frame bodies 12 and 13 which are arranged on upper and lower portions thereof respectively. Each of the frame bodies 12 and 13 is made of insulating ceramics such as alumina or another material having rigidity, and has a flat plate portion and a pair of fixed portions extending toward the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 from both ends of the flat plate portion. The frame body 12 is fixed to the upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 at forward ends of the pair of fixed portions. Similarly, the frame body 13 is fixed to the lower surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2 at forward ends of the pair of fixed portions.
The piezoelectric element 1 has such a structure that the frame bodies 12 and 13 are fixed to the upper and lower portions of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2. External electrodes 14 and 15 are formed on both side surfaces of this structure. The external electrode 14 is electrically connected to the signal drawing electrode which is formed on the upper surface of the piezoelectric body 2, i.e., the first surface electrode 3, in more concrete terms. On the other hand, the external electrode 15 is electrically connected to the signal drawing electrode which is formed on the lower surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, i.e., the third surface electrode 9, in more concrete terms.
When this piezoelectric element 1 is employed as an acceleration sensor, the following action is attained: When acceleration acts on the piezoelectric element 1, respective central portions of the piezoelectric ceramic body regions 2A and 2B forming the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, i.e., the second portions, and the first and third portions are deformed in opposite directions by action of inertial force. In this case, the second portions and the first and third portions are subjected to tensile force or compressive stress resulting from the aforementioned deformation. When the central second portions are subjected to tensile stress, for example, the first and third portions are subjected to compressive stress. On the other hand, the second portions and the first and third portions are polarized in opposite directions. Therefore, the quantity of electric charges generated in the overall piezoelectric ceramic body 2 is extremely increased due to contribution by those of electric charges generated by the stress in the second portions and the first and third portions. Thus, it is possible to form an acceleration sensor having excellent detection sensitivity.
A method of manufacturing the piezoelectric element 1 shown in FIG. 1 is now described with reference to FIGS. 2A to 2C and 3A and 3B. This method is adapted to obtain the piezoelectric element 1 shown in FIG. 1 from a mother piezoelectric ceramic body material, and hence ranges corresponding to individual piezoelectric elements are divided by phantom lines X, Y and Z in FIGS. 2A to 2C and 3A and 3B.
First, a mother piezoelectric ceramic body 16 which is in the form of an elongated plate is prepared as shown in FIG. 2A. Internal electrodes 11 are formed in the piezoelectric ceramic body 16 on its intermediate vertical position, to extend in the longitudinal direction. While a plurality of internal electrodes 11 are formed in FIG. 2A, each internal electrode 11 is provided in the finally obtained piezoelectric element 1 shown in FIG. 1.
The mother piezoelectric ceramic body 16 is divided into upper and lower piezoelectric ceramic body regions 16A and 16B through the portion provided with the aforementioned internal electrodes 11.
On an upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 16, a plurality of sets of first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 are formed longitudinally along the piezoelectric ceramic body 16.
On a lower surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 16, a plurality of sets of first to third surface electrodes 7 to 9 are similarly formed along the longitudinal direction. The first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 are formed to be positioned in the aforementioned first to third portions respectively.
Then, polarization is carried out through the internal electrodes 11 and the first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 and 7 to 9. Namely, relatively high voltages, relatively low voltages, and intermediate voltages are applied to the second surface electrodes 4 and 8, the first and third surface electrodes 3, 5, 7 and 9, and the internal electrodes 11 respectively, thereby polarizing the respective piezoelectric ceramic body regions 16A and 16B as shown by arrows A to C and D to F in FIG. 2B.
Then, first and second connecting electrodes 6 and 10 are stacked/formed on the first to third surface electrodes 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 respectively in the individual piezoelectric element portions, as shown in FIG. 2C.
Then, mother frame bodies 17 and 18 are pasted to and integrated with upper and lower portions of the piezoelectric ceramic body 16 respectively by adhesives, as shown in FIG. 3A. Further, the structure shown in FIG. 3A is cut along two-dot chain lines X, Y and Z to obtain individual piezoelectric elements 1, thereby obtaining a structural body 19 shown in FIG. 3B. The signal drawing electrode which is formed on the upper surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2, i.e., the first surface electrode 3 in more concrete terms, is exposed on one side surface of the structural body 19 obtained in the aforementioned manner. Similarly, an end of another signal drawing electrode, i.e., the third surface electrode 9 in more concrete terms, is exposed on another side surface of the piezoelectric ceramic body 2. The external electrodes 14 and 15 shown in FIG. 1 are formed on these side surfaces, so that the respective signal drawing electrodes are electrically connected with the external electrodes 14 and 15 for obtaining the piezoelectric element 1.
However, the aforementioned method of manufacturing the piezoelectric element 1 has the following problems: The thicknesses of the first to third mother surface electrodes 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 which are formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the mother piezoelectric ceramic body 16 may be reduced depending on the forming conditions. When the thicknesses of the surface electrodes 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 are reduced, electrical connection between the external electrodes 14 and 15 and the surface electrodes 3 and 9, i.e., electrical connection between the external electrodes 14 and 15 and the respective signal drawing electrodes, may be instabilized.
When the connecting electrodes 6 and 10 are formed by a method of screen-printing conductive paste and baking the same, further, depolarization is caused in the piezoelectric ceramic body 16 by heat which is applied in baking. When slight depolarization is caused, detection sensitivity is reduced in the obtained acceleration sensor. Thus, the non-defective rate as well as mass productivity of the acceleration sensor are disadvantageously reduced.

Method of manufacturing a piezoelectric element


Standard word lists that are often used for such operations as predictive text, spell checking, and word completion are based on general linguistic data that might not accurately reflect actual text usage patterns of particular users. Systems and methods of building and using a custom word list for use in text operations on an electronic device are provided. A collection of text items associated with a user of the electronic device is scanned to identify words in the text items. A weighting is then assigned to each identified word, and the words and corresponding weightings are stored.

Word lists for such operations as spell checking, text replacement, and predicting intended user input, typically referred to as predictive text, are known. These word lists are often used in conjunction with such computer programs as word processing applications, email applications, spreadsheet applications, and other computer programs that require the input of text.
Although spell checking and text replacement are useful in many different types of device, predictive text methods are particularly helpful for devices with limited keyboards, in which text inputs may be ambiguous because each key represents a plurality of characters. For example, a user of a mobile phone having an ITU E 1.161 Standard Key Pad typically uses a multi-tap method to achieve proper character inputs. On this keypad, the "2" key represents the letters A, B, and C. During text entry according to a multi-tap method, the user presses the "2" key once to obtain an input of "A", twice to enter a "B", and three times to enter a "C". These types of multi-tap methods can be utilized for so-called reduced QWERTY keyboards, in which the general QWERTY keyboard layout is maintained, but with fewer keys than a standard QWERTY keyboard. Predictive text methods have been applied in conjunction with such keypads and keyboards to reduce the reliance on multi-tap methods.
However, known word lists for these text operations are generated from standard language data, including word and frequency information, that does not reflect the actual text usage patterns of many users. Acronyms, names, technical terms, and the like, do not often appear in such word lists, which are therefore of limited value to some users.

Systems and methods of building and using custom word lists


An object of the present invention is to provide an electrodeposition paint composition and a method of forming an electrodeposited coating, which exhibit quality of coating deposition even in the interior of narrow spaces of objects subjected to painting. A solution of the object is cationic electrodeposition paint composition in which in an aqueous medium contained are a cationic epoxy resin, a blocked isocyanate curing agent, a hydrophobic agent wherein an SP value of the hydrophobic agent (C) is 10.2 or more and less than 10.6 and is lower by 0.6 to 1.0 than an SP value of the cationic epoxy resin, a viscosity modifier, and a neutralizing acid, and in which coulombic efficiency of the cationic electrodeposition paint composition is 2.0 to 2.5 mg/(μm·C). A voltage boost rate of the voltage in painting is 30 to 70V/10 seconds.

Cationic electrodeposition painting makes it possible to paint details of a painting target even if the painting target has a complicated shape, and to paint a plurality of painting targets automatically and continuously. Accordingly, it has come in wide use for executing an undercoat painting method that particularly enables coating on a large painting target having a complicated shape, such as an automobile body.
Deposition of a coating film in a process of the cationic electrodeposition painting is caused by an electrochemical reaction, in which the coating film is deposited on a surface of the painting target by application of a voltage. The deposited coating film has insulation properties. Accordingly, in a painting process, electrical resistance of the coating film is increased as the deposition of the coating film progresses and the deposited film grows in thickness. As a result, the amount of deposition of the paint in a region where the coating film has been already deposited is lowered, and instead, on a region where a coating film has not yet been deposited, deposition of the coating film starts. As described above, a solid content of the paint is sequentially deposited onto the painting target, whereby the painting is completed. In this specification, such properties where the coating film is sequentially formed on undeposited regions of the painting target are hereinafter referred to as "throwing power".
In Patent Literature 1, an electrodeposition coating film forming method is described, which is capable of enhancing the throwing power without being accompanied with deterioration of an exterior appearance of the coating film owing to generation of a gas pinhole, and the like.
However, the electrodeposition coating film forming method has properties that, in a case where the painting target has a narrow gap in terms of a structure thereof, as a target portion is being located in a deeper side from an opening portion of the gap, deposition of a coating film becomes more difficult. In particular, in a case where the structure of the gap has a hermetically sealed bag portion with a cylindrical or rectangular parallelepiped shape or the like though the opening portion, and particularly in the deeper side from the opening portion thereof as the target portion is being located more in an inside of the gap, deposition of a coating film becomes more difficult. For example, in a case where the painting target is a structure formed by connecting a plurality of steel plates together, and each of connected portions of the plurality of steel plates has a gap between one steel plate and another steel plate stacked on and connected to the former, formation of the coating film in an inside of the gap is difficult, and the painting becomes prone to be imperfect. An inside of such a narrow gap formed in the painting target is generally referred to as "a clearance portion".
In general, when a gap between one steel plate and another steel plate becomes 300 μm or less, quality of deposition of electrodeposition coating films into the gap is obviously deteriorated. Moreover, in a case where a gap like that described above is 100 μm or less, quality of deposition of electrodeposition coating films is further deteriorated, and if a distance of a target portion from an opening portion of the gap is 5 mm or more, then a portion where the coating film is not formed remains on such a depth of the gap.
As described above, in a case where a portion in which the electrodeposition painting is imperfect is left somewhere on a surface of each steel plate, it is likely to generate rust at the portion concerned.

Cationic electrodeposition paint composition paintable even on narrow-clearance portion, and electrodeposition coating film using the same


Devices, computer-readable media and methods are disclosed for verifying that an optical transmit/receive device is correctly installed. For example, a processing system including at least one processor may activate a first light source of an optical transmit/receive device of a telecommunication network and detect a receiving of a light from the first light source at a port of an optical add/drop multiplexer of the telecommunication network. The processing system may then verify the optical transmit/receive device and the port of the optical add/drop multiplexer match a network provisioning order, when the receiving of the light from the first light source is detected, and may generate an indication that the optical transmit/receive device is correctly installed, when the optical transmit/receive device and the port of the optical add/drop multiplexer match the network provisioning order.

Reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers (ROADMs) are increasingly being used in dense-wavelength-division-multiplexed (DWDM) networks. However, tail installation (e.g., installation of transponders and switches) remains subject to manual error. For instance, network personnel or an installation vendor may physically install a transponder and Ethernet switch by connecting these devices to each other, and by connecting the transponder to a ROADM using fiber optic patch cords. In one example, the installer may install the device(s) and fiber(s), and then walk away and assume the physical connectivity is correct. In other cases, the installer may call a network provisioning center to advise that the device(s) and fiber(s) have been installed, and then wait on-site until the network provisioning center verifies connectivity by turning up a circuit, e.g., a wavelength connection, that utilizes the tail. When the circuit is verified, the installation is then deemed to be correct. In turn, the installer may be informed that the installation is complete and is allowed to depart from the installation site. Such verification approach may incur a certain amount of potential down time for the installer.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Network switch and optical transponder connectivity verification for wavelength division multiplexing network


An apparatus includes a body assembly, an acoustic waveguide, an ultrasonic blade, a liquid dispensing feature, and a control module. The liquid dispensing feature is positioned distally relative to the body assembly. The liquid dispensing feature is positioned adjacent to the ultrasonic blade. The liquid dispensing feature is configured to deliver a flow of cooling liquid to the ultrasonic blade. The control module is operable to regulate fluid flow through the liquid dispensing feature.

A variety of surgical instruments include an end effector having a blade element that vibrates at ultrasonic frequencies to cut and/or seal tissue (e.g., by denaturing proteins in tissue cells). These instruments include piezoelectric elements that convert electrical power into ultrasonic vibrations, which are communicated along an acoustic waveguide to the blade element. The precision of cutting and coagulation may be controlled by the surgeon's technique and adjusting the power level, blade edge, tissue traction and blade pressure.
Examples of ultrasonic surgical instruments include the HARMONIC ACE® Ultrasonic Shears, the HARMONIC WAVE® Ultrasonic Shears, the HARMONIC FOCUS® Ultrasonic Shears, and the HARMONIC SYNERGY® Ultrasonic Blades, all by Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. of Cincinnati, Ohio. Further examples of such devices and related concepts are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,055, entitled "Clamp Coagulator/Cutting System for Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments," issued Jun. 21, 1994, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,873, entitled "Ultrasonic Clamp Coagulator Apparatus Having Improved Clamp Mechanism," issued Feb. 23, 1999, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,510, entitled "Ultrasonic Clamp Coagulator Apparatus Having Improved Clamp Arm Pivot Mount," filed Oct. 10, 1997, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,325,811, entitled "Blades with Functional Balance Asymmetries for use with Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments," issued Dec. 4, 2001, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,773,444, entitled "Blades with Functional Balance Asymmetries for Use with Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments," issued Aug. 10, 2004, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,783,524, entitled "Robotic Surgical Tool with Ultrasound Cauterizing and Cutting Instrument," issued Aug. 31, 2004, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Still further examples of ultrasonic surgical instruments are disclosed in U.S. Pub. No. 2006/0079874, entitled "Tissue Pad for Use with an Ultrasonic Surgical Instrument," published Apr. 13, 2006, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0191713, entitled "Ultrasonic Device for Cutting and Coagulating," published Aug. 16, 2007, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0282333, entitled "Ultrasonic Waveguide and Blade," published Dec. 6, 2007, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2008/0200940, entitled "Ultrasonic Device for Cutting and Coagulating," published Aug. 21, 2008, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2009/0105750, entitled "Ergonomic Surgical Instruments," published Apr. 23, 2009, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,623,027 on Jan. 7, 2014, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2010/0069940, entitled "Ultrasonic Device for Fingertip Control," published Mar. 18, 2010, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,023,071 on May 5, 2015, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pub. No. 2011/0015660, entitled "Rotating Transducer Mount for Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments," published Jan. 20, 2011, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,461,744 on Jun. 11, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pub. No. 2012/0029546, entitled "Ultrasonic Surgical Instrument Blades," published Feb. 2, 2012, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,591,536 on Nov. 26, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Some ultrasonic surgical instruments may include a cordless transducer such as that disclosed in U.S. Pub. No. 2012/0112687, entitled "Recharge System for Medical Devices," published May 10, 2012, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,381,058 on Jul. 5, 2016, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pub. No. 2012/0116265, entitled "Surgical Instrument with Charging Devices," published May 10, 2012, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and/or U.S. Pat. App. No. 61/410,603, filed Nov. 5, 2010, entitled "Energy-Based Surgical Instruments," the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Ultrasonic surgical instruments such as those described in the above-cited references may be primarily used to sever and/or seal soft tissue. However, it may be desirable to use an ultrasonic surgical instrument to cut bone, in addition to or as an alternative to cutting/sealing soft tissue. Cutting bone with an ultrasonic surgical instrument may generate more heat than cutting/sealing soft tissue with an ultrasonic surgical instrument. Unless properly addressed, this additional heat may cause undesirable effects, such as damage (e.g., necrosis) to adjacent bone and/or tissue; and/or damage to the ultrasonic blade.
Some conventional ultrasonic surgical instruments may be configured to use fluid to cool an ultrasonic blade. Examples of such instruments are described in U.S. Pub. No. 2015/0148832, entitled "Features to Apply Fluid to an Ultrasonic Blade of a Surgical Instrument," published May 28, 2015, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,034,685 on Jul. 31, 2018, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Other examples of ultrasonic surgical instruments that are configured to communicate fluid are described in U.S. Pub. No. 2013/0090576, entitled "Surgical Instrument with Ultrasonic Waveguide Defining a Fluid Lumen," published Apr. 11, 2013, now abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,591,459, entitled "Use of Biomarkers and Therapeutic Agents with Surgical Devices," issued Nov. 26, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
While several surgical instruments and systems have been made and used, it is believed that no one prior to the inventors has made or used the invention described in the appended claims.
The drawings are not intended to be limiting in any way, and it is contemplated that various embodiments of the technology may be carried out in a variety of other ways, including those not necessarily depicted in the drawings. The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present technology, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the technology; it being understood, however, that this technology is not limited to the precise arrangements shown.

Features and methods to control delivery of cooling fluid to end effector of ultrasonic surgical instrument


A skateboard deck and a method of manufacturing a skateboard deck is provided without requiring the use of industrial-grade machinery. Precut layers of veneer or other suitable material are coated with adhesive and stacked on a one-sided, negative-contoured mold and placed in a flexible-walled, airtight container from which the air is evacuated, so as to place pressure on the container and force the layers to conform to the contours of the mold. The air evacuation may be accomplished by means of a hand operated, non-electric vacuum pump.

Traditionally skateboard decks, such as street decks, long boards, and luge boards, have been manufactured from hardwood veneer layers using industrial presses. These presses push two molds, a positive and a negative form, similar to the shape of a modem skateboard deck against a number of layers of veneer and glue. Once the glue has dried the molds are separated and the skateboard deck is removed, finished, and mounted on skateboard hardware.
It has been noted that avid skateboarders frequently break their skateboards in use, and require replacement decks, although the hardware portion (such as the trucks, including the wheels) are still in good condition. Some skateboarders also wish to customize their decks by building their own, or decorating the outer surfaces. However, at present skateboarders must either obtain a complete replacement skateboard, including hardware, which increases the cost of a replacement; or obtain a pre-manufactured deck, which is pre-shaped and pre-finished. Equipment such as the industrial press needed to manufacture a custom skateboard deck is typically inaccessible to the average skateboard user, who requires instead a less expensive, more accessible means of manufacturing a skateboard deck which may later be customized or finished and mounted on skateboard hardware.

Method of manufacturing a skateboard deck


The invention provides, inter alia, immunogenic compositions comprising a first antigen, at least two adjuvants, wherein a first adjuvant comprises a polymer derived from poly(lactides) and/or poly(lactide-co-glycolides), and wherein a second adjuvant comprises an imidazoquinoline, wherein said first antigen is encapsulated within, adsorbed or conjugated to, co-lyophilized or mixed with said first adjuvant, and a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient, wherein said composition elicits a cellular immune response when administered to a vertebrate subject. The invention also provides methods of producing immunogenic compositions, methods for producing a cytotoxic-T lymphocyte (CTL) response in a vertebrate subject, and methods of immunization.

Numerous vaccine formulations have been developed which include attenuated pathogens or subunit protein antigens. Conventional vaccine compositions often include immunological adjuvants to enhance cell-mediated and humoral immune responses. For example, depot adjuvants are frequently used which adsorb and/or precipitate administered antigens and which can retain the antigen at the injection site. Typical depot adjuvants include aluminum compounds and water-in-oil emulsions. However, depot adjuvants, although increasing antigenicity, often provoke severe persistent local reactions, such as granulomas, abscesses and scarring, when injected subcutaneously or intramuscularly. Other adjuvants, such as lipopolysacharrides, can elicit pyrogenic responses upon injection and/or Reiter's symptoms (influenza-like symptoms, generalized joint discomfort and sometimes anterior uveitis, arthritis and urethritis). Saponins, such as Quillaja saponaria, have also been used as immunological adjuvants in vaccine compositions against a variety of diseases.
Complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) is a powerful immunostimulatory agent that has been successfully used with many antigens oh an experimental basis. CFA includes three components: a mineral oil, an emulsifying agent, and killed mycobacteria, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Although effective as an adjuvant, CFA causes severe side effects primarily due to the presence of the mycobacterial component, including pain, abscess formation and fever. CFA, therefore, is not used in human and veterinary vaccines.
Incomplete Freund's adjuvant (IFA) is similar to CFA but does not include the bacterial component. IFA, while not approved for use in the United States, has been used elsewhere in human vaccines for influenza and polio and in veterinary vaccines for rabies, canine distemper and foot-and-mouth disease. However, evidence indicates that both the oil and emulsifier used in IFA can cause tumors in mice.
Despite the presence of such adjuvants, conventional vaccines often fail to provide adequate protection against the targeted pathogen. In this regard, there is growing evidence that vaccination against intracellular pathogens, such as a number of viruses, should target both the cellular and humoral arms of the immune system. More particularly, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs) play an important role in cell-mediated immune defense against intracellular pathogens such as viruses and tumor-specific antigens produced by malignant cells. CTLs mediate cytotoxicity of virally infected cells by recognizing viral determinants in conjunction with class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules displayed by the infected cells. Cytoplasmic expression of proteins is a prerequisite for class I MHC processing and presentation of antigenic peptides to CTLs. However, immunization with killed or attenuated viruses often fails to produce the CTLs necessary to curb intracellular infection. Furthermore, conventional vaccination techniques against viruses displaying marked genetic heterogeneity and/or rapid mutation rates that facilitate selection of immune escape variants, such as HIV or influenza, are problematic. Accordingly, alternative techniques for vaccination have been developed.
Particulate carriers with adsorbed or entrapped antigens have been used in an attempt to circumvent these problems and in attempts to elicit adequate immune responses. Such carriers present multiple copies of a selected antigen to the immune system and promote trapping and retention of antigens in local lymph nodes. The particles can be phagocytosed by macrophages and can enhance antigen presentation through cytokine release. Examples of particulate carriers include those derived from polymethyl methacrylate polymers, as well as polymer particles derived from poly(lactides) and poly(lactide-co-glycolides), known as PLG. While offering significant advantages over other more toxic systems, antigen-containing PLG particles to-date suffer from some drawbacks. For example, large-scale production and manufacturing of particulate carriers may be problematic due to the high cost of the polymers used in the manufacture the particulate carriers.
Liposomes have also been employed in an effort to overcome these problems. Liposomes are microscopic vesicles formed from lipid constituents such as phospholipids which are used to entrap pharmaceutical agents. Although the use of liposomes as a drug delivery system alleviates some of the problems described above, liposomes exhibit poor stability during storage and use, and large-scale production and manufacturing of liposomes is problematic.
International Publication No. WO 98/50071 describes the use of viral-like particles (VLPs) as adjuvants to enhance immune responses of antigens administered with the VLPs. St. Clair et al. describe the use of protein crystals to enhance humoral and cellular responses. (St. Clair, N. et al., Applied Biol. Sci., 96:9469-9474, 1999).
Despite the above-described adjuvant and antigen-presentation systems, there is a continued need for effective, safe and cost-efficient compositions with improved purity, stability and immunogenicity.

Compositions for inducing immune responses


A method for file locks in a distributed file system, performed by a storage system is provided. The method includes receiving, at a storage system having a distributed file system, a request for access of a file and locking the file, through one of a plurality of persistent file locks in the storage system. The method includes accessing the file, through the distributed file system, and unlocking the file, through the one of the plurality of persistent file locks.

File systems, such as NFS (network file system), which a distributed file system protocol use file locks that reside in RAM (random-access memory) and can be lost if a component or system crashes. In the event of a crash or restart, the server that hosts the file system needs to perform a time-expensive file lock reclamation operation, incurring, for example, a timeout interval of an unacceptable amount of time. When file locks are lost, the client or the server may elect to reclaim a lock. But this time delay is undesirable in modern, high demand/high reliability data storage and server systems. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a solution which overcomes the drawbacks described above.

Persistent file locks in a storage system


A terminating device enables power line communication to be performed while suppressing degradation of the communication quality without decreasing the communication efficiency. The terminating device includes power supply plugs, a terminating circuit, a changeover switch, and power jack terminals, which are housed in an adapter case. The terminating circuit has an impedance corresponding to the impedance between power lines in the used frequency band of power line communication and is connected or disconnected between the power supply plugs by the changeover switch.

Power line communication, also known as Broadband over Power Lines (BPL), is communications using a power line such as electric wires for supplying commercial power as a transmission line and is generally performed as balanced transmission using parallel electric wires. In indoor power line communication, each communication apparatus is connected through a modem to an electric outlet to which two or three electric wires are connected. Both transmission and reception are executed between the communication apparatus connected to the electric outlet.
Since the indoor power line is not essentially laid as the transmission line, the power line is not suitable to communications in some cases. For example, if an electric apparatus is not connected to an electric outlet, the electric wires are in a state of a so-called open stub at the electric outlet and the communication quality is adversely affected. That is, because the electric outlet becomes an open end (high impedance), the input impedance characteristic of the power line to which a predetermined load is connected becomes unstable relative to the frequency. Consequently, reflection of a high frequency signal occurs, and thus a communication signal is degraded.
In a state in which a power plug of an electric apparatus is connected to an electric outlet, the input impedance of the electric apparatus is small in a high frequency and the electric wires are in a state of a so-called short stub state at the electric outlet. Consequently, reflection of a high frequency signal occurs in the portion of the electric outlet, and the communication quality deteriorates.
US2006/0214507 A1 describes terminating devices that are for being connected to an electrical outlet of an indoor power line and that have a plug for enabling an electric apparatus to be connected thereto. However, if an electric apparatus for power line communication (a modem, etc.) is connected to the terminating device, a communication signal of power line communication is absorbed in the terminating device and the communication efficiency is reduced. If a modem, etc., is connected to the electrical outlet adjoining (or close to) the electrical outlet to which the terminating device is connected, absorption of a communication signal also occurs, and a decrease in the communication efficiency cannot be avoided.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a terminating device for making it possible to conduct power line communication with suppression of the degradation of the communication quality without decreasing the communication efficiency.

Terminating device for installation at a termination of a power line usable for power line communication


In a Web information preferential transfer system, two priorities, personal priority and site priority can be set on the site of a user. On the site of a user, the site priority which can be set by a LAN-side proxy server is the priority of when a request is made. A WAN-side proxy server installed on the provider side extracts the site priority of the request, converts it to the final priority according to the communication state and settings, converts the final priority to a preferential control parameter of an IP packet of a Web object in response to the Web request, and relays it to the LAN-side proxy server. Preferential control may be made based on the final priority in the WAN-side proxy server. Charging by the provider is performed based on the communication contents used and the requested priority.

In recent years, the number of services and applications using the Web has been higher to increase transmission and reception of Web information. An increase in such Web-related communication traffic makes the network line volume insufficient to slow a service response. Internet communication typically attempts to deliver traffic as equitably as possible irrespective of Web information importance. Both an important traffic and an unimportant traffic are uniformly influenced. Since a response time is secured for a more-important network service, preferential control identifying traffic importance must be done.
There are the following four prior art traffic identification and preferential control methods including the Web.
A first system is that a router identifies the port number of TCP/UDP to deliver it for preferential control. In the system, the router identifies the traffic for preferential control using the port number, the transmitting side IP, and the transmitted side IP included in the header of an IP packet. Typically, a client server type network application uses the specified port number for communication. In the system, the router can identify the type of application, the client, and the server for preferential control.
A second system is that a packet is identified in Precedence field of Type of Service of an IP packet to be preferentially controlled by the router. In the system, the client server type network application adds preferential information to the Type of Service of the packet when a client and a server communicate with each other and the application can specify priority for each data flow.
A third system uses RSVP (Resource Reservation Protocol). In the system, before transmission, a packet needing to secure a communication bandwidth to units configuring a path is transmitted to secure the communication bandwidth of the units on the path for communication. In the system, the application can secure the communication bandwidth for each data flow before transmission so that a response time can be assured for the each data flow.
A fourth system is called packet shaping. The data flow of the client server type network application is identified by the port number, the transmitting side IP and the transmitted side IP on a path between a client and a server. The data flow request interval and network window size are controlled for preferential control for each data flow. In the system, a packet shaper can identify the type of application, the client, and the server for preferential control.
The first and second preferential control systems are described in 2475 of RFC (Request for Comments) in detail. The third system is described in 2205 of the RFC in detail.
The prior art first system identifying a data flow by the port number can identify the data flow only by the type of application.
The Web service typically uses the same port number and cannot identify it for each Web request. Preferential control and bandwidth assurance for each Web cannot be done.
A Web request to a delivery service and a stream service using the Web and a service of a Web business application in which properties such as a traffic volume, a required response time and priority are different are handled to be identical. The traffic of an important Web request is oppressed to slow its response.
The traffic volume of the Web application from the server to the client is larger than that from the client to the server. It is effective to preferentially control the traffic from the server to the client. The Web application uses an unspecified server. It is difficult to realize the preferential control system needing control in the server or on the entire path. For example, in the third system, all units on the path must understand the protocol of the RSVP.
Typically, the communication bandwidth is small on the Internet network where the business network such as LAN accesses the Internet of the provider via a public line. This is a bottleneck in using the Internet. It is effective to perform preferential control of the downward line of the communication path as the bottleneck.
All the prior art first to fourth systems have no idea for preferential control and bandwidth assurance for each Web request. In the provider Internet connection service and the business site connection service, all Web requests of users have the same priority. When a user desires to use a Web service by a quick response and other users fully use the line communication bandwidth, the Web service can be used only by a slow response. A service of the same quality can be only provided at the same charge to a user having a large Web service used amount and a user having a small used amount, which is a kind of inequity.
The present invention has been made to solve the above problems and an object of the present invention is to provide a Web information preferential transfer system in which when the site of a user or a business uses the Internet to receive a Web service, the service can be received with priority according to its quality and charge and the existing Internet network such as a client, a Web server and a path used by the user can be used.


An electrical distribution system for selectively connecting an electrical power source to a load device uses astronomical calculations. The system comprises a switching device electrically connected between an electrical power source and a load device for selectively delivering electrical power to the load device. A control system controls operation of the switching device. The control system comprises a programmed controller for commanding operation of the switching device in accordance with a scheduling routine stored in a memory. The scheduling routine enables control of the switching device based on sunrise and sunset time. The memory further comprises a database of a plurality of geographic locations and coordinate information for the plurality of geographic locations. The control system further comprises a setup routine comprising a user interface enabling a user to select one of the plurality of geographic locations and a manager routine automatically determining sunrise and sunset times using the coordinate information for the selected geographic location and providing the sunrise and sunset times to the scheduling routine.

Circuit breaker panels are used to protect electrical circuitry from damage due to an overcurrent condition, such as an overload, a relatively high level short circuit, or a ground fault condition. To perform that function, circuit breaker panels include circuit breakers that typically contain a switch unit and a trip unit. The switch unit is coupled to the electrical circuitry (i.e., lines and loads) such that it can open or close the electrical path of the electrical circuitry. The switch unit includes a pair of separable contacts per phase, a pivoting contact arm per phase, an operating mechanism, and an operating handle.
In the overcurrent condition, all the pairs of separable contacts are disengaged or tripped, opening the electrical circuitry. When the overcurrent condition is no longer present, the circuit breaker can be reset such that all the pairs of separable contacts are engaged, closing the electrical circuitry.
In addition to manual overcurrent protection via the operating handle, automatic overcurrent protection is also provided via the trip unit. The trip unit, coupled to the switch unit, senses the electrical circuitry for the overcurrent condition and automatically trips the circuit breaker. When the overcurrent condition is sensed, a tripping mechanism included in the trip unit actuates the operating mechanism, thereby disengaging the first contact from the second contact for each phase. Typically, the operating handle is coupled to the operating mechanism such that when the tripping mechanism actuates the operating mechanism to separate the contacts, the operating handle also moves to a tripped position.
Switchgear and switchboard are general terms used to refer to electrical equipment including metal enclosures that house switching and interrupting devices such as fuses, circuit breakers and relays, along with associated control, instrumentation and metering devices. The enclosures also typically include devices such as bus bars, inner connections and supporting structures (referred to generally herein as "panels") used for the distribution of electrical power. Such electrical equipment can be maintained in a building such as a factory or commercial establishment, or it can be maintained outside of such facilities and exposed to environmental weather conditions. Typically, hinge doors or covers are provided on the front of the switchgear or switchboard sections for access to the devices contained therein.
In addition to electrical distribution and the protection of circuitry from overcurrent conditions, components have been added to panels for the control of electrical power to loads connected to circuit breakers. For example, components have been used to control electrical power for lighting.
One system used for controlling electrical power to loads utilizes a remote-operated circuit breaker system. In such a system, the switch unit of the circuit breaker operates not only in response to an overcurrent condition, but also in response to a signal received from a control unit separate from the circuit breaker. The circuit breaker is specially constructed for use as a remote-operated circuit breaker, and contains a motor for actuating the switch unit.
In an exemplary remote-operated circuit breaker system, a control unit is installed on the panel and is hard-wired to the remote-operated circuit breaker through a control bus. When the switch unit of the circuit breaker is to be closed or opened, an operating current is applied to or removed from the circuit breaker motor directly by the control panel. Additional, separate conductors are provided in the bus for feedback information such as contact confirmation, etc., for each circuit breaker position in the panel. The control unit contains electronics for separately applying and removing the operating current to the circuit breakers installed in particular circuit breaker positions in the panel. The panel control unit also has electronics for checking the state of the circuit breaker, diagnostics, etc.
Lighting control systems may include a schedule program to automatically turn a light or lights on and off at select times of day according to user requirements. This can be based on occupancy trends, or the like. However, some lighting, such as exterior lighting, is advantageously turned on or off based on daylight conditions. For example, it might be desirable to turn a light on at sunset and off at sunrise. This may be accomplished by using an ambient light sensor. However, use of such sensors can be expensive to install and maintain. Alternatively, control systems can calculate sunrise and sunset time based on coordinate information such as longitude and latitude. However, this requires that the user have access to such information which is not always generally available.
The present invention is directed to improvements in electrical distribution systems using astronomical calculations with pre-populated cities.

Astronomical calculations in lighting control panel with pre-populated cities


There is provided a method for applying an improved chromium diffusion coating on an industrial item such as a turbine blade of a gas turbine engine. Chromium and other active metals are combined to form an alloy coating. Active elements include silicon, hafnium, zirconium, yttrium, tantalum, and rhenium. For producing the modified coatings through pack cementation chromium and a master alloy are mixed into a packing along with inert material and a halide activator. The packing surrounds a target in a diffusion box. The metals are then deposited by diffusion onto a target surface by pack cementation methods. The diffusion of the desired metals takes place during a coating thermal cycle. Alternatively, the diffusion can take place using an out-of-pack arrangement. Such modified coatings are utilized as improved performance coatings for environmental resistance applications over the current chromium diffusion coatings.

In an attempt to increase the efficiencies and performance of contemporary jet engines, and gas turbine engines generally, engineers have progressively pushed the engine environment to more extreme operating conditions. The harsh operating conditions of high temperature and pressure, in a corrosive environment, that are now frequently specified place increased demands on engine components and materials. Indeed the gradual change in engine design has come about in part due to the increased strength and durability of new materials that can withstand the operating conditions present in the modern gas turbine engine.
The turbine blade is one engine component that directly experiences severe engine conditions. Turbine blades are thus designed and manufactured to perform under repeated cycles of high stress and high temperature. An economic consequence of such a design criteria is that currently used turbine blades can be quite expensive. It is thus highly desirable to maintain turbine blades in service for as long as possible. It is correspondingly desirable to manufacture and finish turbine blades so as to withstand the corrosive and erosive forces that will attack turbine blade materials.
Turbine blades used in modern jet engines are frequently castings from a class of materials known as superalloys. The superalloys include alloys with high levels of cobalt and/or nickel. In the cast form, turbine blades made from superalloys include many desirable mechanical properties such as high strength at elevated temperature. Advantageously, the strength displayed by this material remains present even under demanding conditions, such as high temperature and high pressure. Disadvantageously, with the optimization of mechanical properties, the superalloys generally can be subject to corrosion and oxidation at the high temperature operating regime. Sulfidation can also occur in those turbine blades subject to hot exhaust gases.
Thus, it has become known to provide coatings or protective layers on items, such as turbine blades, that are subject to corrosion, erosion or sulfidation. Chromium, aluminum, and other metallic diffused coatings can be used to provide a protective layer that is more resistant to corrosion and/or oxidation than is the underlying substrate material. In the case of superalloys, materials such as platinum, aluminum, and chromium can be used to provide a protective diffusion coating.
One method used for providing diffusion coatings is the pack cementation process. In this method the target, the industrial item to be coated, is placed in a box or retort with a "pack" surrounding it. The pack typically includes a source of the metal that is to be diffused into the target, inert packing material, and an activator if any. Typically the target lies in a bed of mixed powdered materials. The box containing the target and its surrounding pack is then placed in an oven where the materials are heated for a desired time at a desired temperature. Diffusion of desired elements takes place during the thermal cycle. Pack cementation is a comparatively attractive method of coating in that it is a relatively simple method that is relatively inexpensive to apply to the target, as compared to other methods of coating superalloys.
In the pack cementation process, elemental diffusion coatings on an article is produced through essentially a chemical vapor deposition procedure. The metallic elements in the pack react with the halide activator to form halide precursors which upon transport to the articles (substrates) react with the substrate surface to form the protective coatings. The material transfer reactions at the surface involve adsorption, dissociation and the various reactions involved in coating processes can become somewhat complex. Hence, several commercially practiced coatings involving more than one elemental diffusion utilize multiple sequential steps to diffuse single elements such as Cr, Al, and Si in order to achieve duplex coatings. The situation becomes increasingly more intricate with the need to diffuse more than two elements for coating formation in a single step.
The prior art methods of providing protective coatings have experienced limitations and drawbacks. One problem that has been encountered is the inability of known diffusion methods to apply a coating that includes as well other active elements (such as Hf, Si and Y) in addition to chromium. An improved oxidation, corrosion, and sulfidation resistance can be achieved in those coatings that include silicon, hafnium, yttrium, and other materials.
Hence there is a need for a method to apply an improved active element modified chromium diffusion protective coating on a metallic item such as a turbine blade. There is a need for an improved coating method that uses combinations of materials such as chromium, silicon, hafnium, and yttrium to render increased resistance to oxidation, corrosion, and sulfidation. Moreover there is a need for an improved diffusion method that retains the cost advantages associated with known pack cementation methods. The present invention addresses one or more of these needs.


A system for executing software, wherein a computing device stores first software instructions for a code execution module such that, when the first software instructions are executed, the computing device will: receive, for execution by the code execution module, second software instructions; create one or more immutable software nodes described in the second software instructions; determine that the second software instructions comprise an instruction to begin a simulated change at runtime of the one or more immutable software nodes; store the simulated change in a simulated change apparatus; using the simulated change apparatus, perform one or more operations of the second software instructions as if the one or more immutable software nodes had been changed in memory, during a period of time where each of the one or more immutable software nodes is guaranteed to retain logical immutability; and output results of the one or more operations.

When a computer programmer writes source code in a high-level programming language, the code must, either before or during execution, be transformed from an almost-English set of instructions into a form that is intelligible to a computer processor as a series of discrete instructions at the machine level. For some languages, usually termed "interpreted languages" or "scripting languages," the source code is loaded directly into a computer program called an interpreter that generates the machine instructions at runtime, which can result in much slower execution as the processor waits for commands from the interpreter. For other languages, usually termed "compiled languages," a computer program called a compiler generates the machine language that will be needed for a particular processor type and possibly operating system (OS), allowing for faster execution but generating a compiled program that may not be compatible with other processor types or OSs.
A few programming languages such as Java™ have been designed with a hybrid approach in mind. High-level source code is compiled into an intermediate "bytecode" that is optimized for speed and efficiency in comparison to the source code, and is the same for all processor and operating system types, but is not intended to be directly intelligible by any processor. Then, an interpreter (for example, the Java Virtual Machine™) that is configured for a particular processor and OS receives bytecode and generates the proper machine instructions for the processor with less overhead processing than a scripting interpreter. As a result, speed of execution is balanced with cross-platform compatibility of a single distributable compiled version of bytecode.
One feature of many programming languages is that variables which are not "primitives" (for example, an integer or a boolean value) and instead are more complicated Objects, such as a String or HashTable, are not directly changed in memory when a program instruction attempts to change the object reference. Instead, the reference to the Object is redirected to a newly created Object, and the older Object remains in memory, or may be subsequently removed by an automated "garbage collector" or a manual command to free a region of memory for later use. Thus, for example, code reading "String s="hello"; s="goodbye"; s="hello again" would actually create at least three new Objects in memory, despite the variable s only pointing to the memory address storing the last of the three. This problem is further compounded when Objects contain references to other Objects, so that a change in one reference causes a cascading chain of newly created Objects, or in multi-threaded applications, where changes in Objects may need to be propagated into other concurrently-executed processes than the process originally making the change to one or more objects. As a result, software often either needs to be written with extra care or complexity to minimize the numbers of newly created objects at runtime, or else suffer unnecessarily decreased performance during runtime.

Simulated change of immutable objects during execution runtime


A hydraulic excavator enabling an efficient arrangement of a coolant pipe is provided. A fuel tank has a lateral side surface located outward relative to a lateral edge of a revolving frame. The hydraulic excavator includes an exterior cover laterally covering a mount member, a coolant pipe directing a coolant for an engine to a reducing agent tank, and a reinforcement plate. The coolant pipe is arranged through a space under the fuel tank and between the mount member and the exterior cover. The reinforcement plate is provided outward of the coolant pipe and inward of the exterior cover.

An exhaust gas treatment device is mounted on a hydraulic excavator. As the exhaust gas treatment device, for example, a diesel particulate filter device (DPF), a diesel oxidation catalyst device (DOC), a selective catalytic reduction device (SCR), and the like are available. In particular, the selective catalytic reduction device reduces a nitrogen oxide in an exhaust gas to thereby purify the exhaust gas. A reducing agent used for this exhaust gas treatment is stored in a reducing agent tank.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2013-2082 (PTD 1) discloses a structure in which an exhaust gas treatment device is arranged rearward in a vehicular body and a reducing agent tank is arranged forward in the vehicular body.


The present invention generally involves the fabrication of semiconductor devices so as to reduce the active region to interconnect interface resistivity. Fabrication begins by forming active regions on a semiconductor device. Next, a titanium metal of approximately 900 .ANG. thickness is deposited on the semiconductor device. The semiconductor device is then annealed in a single step to form the interconnects.

In semiconductor device fabrication processes it is generally desirable to minimize the total number of steps in the process. Furthermore, it is generally desirable to allow the greatest latitude in fabrication process parameters while still yielding satisfactory semiconductor device characteristics. Stated differently, the simpler and the more robust the process the better suited it is for large scale manufacturing of semiconductor devices and the greater the number of devices which can be manufactured.
One of the semiconductor device characteristics which is of concern for most device types (e.g., microprocessors, memory devices, etc.), is the resistance of the interface between the active regions (source, drain, etc.) of the device and the contacts or interconnects (metalization lines, etc.) to other devices. The greater the resistance at this interface the more power that is required to operate the device, the greater the heat generated and the slower the device operation. Therefore, it is generally desirable to have the interface resistivity be as low as possible.
One commonly known prior art fabrication process (explained further below) used to minimize the interface resistivity requires multiple steps and relatively tight fabrication process parameters in order to yield satisfactory resistivity values. In contrast, the present invention reduces the number of steps as compared to the prior art and allows greater fabrication parameter variation while yielding equivalent, or even improved, semiconductor device films with lower interface resistivity values as compared to the prior art.


A method for providing a continuous injection of a substantially constant amount of a desired treatment chemical into a flowing process stream is described. This method insures that the concentration of the desired treatment chemical is maintained at a relatively constant and effective concentration throughout the flowing process stream. The means for providing the relatively continuous injection of the treatment chemical is preferably a pump that provides a continuous injection at a relatively constant flow rate of the treatment chemical into a flowing process stream.. Providing a uniform concentration of a treatment chemical in a flowing process stream maximizes the benefit of the treatment chemical. Conventional methods for injecting treatment chemicals provide intermittent injection of the treatment chemical such that sections of the flowing process stream have no concentration of the treatment chemical. This reduces the benefit of the treatment chemical and may prevent it from providing any benefit at all.

The invention relates to an improved method for injecting treatment chemicals into a flowing stream such as a process stream in a hydrocarbon processing plant. Specifically, the invention comprises the use of continuous and constant injection of a desired treatment chemical into a flowing process stream to insure the optimum effect of the treatment chemical. Conventional, noncontinuous methods of injecting treatment chemicals into process streams reduce the effect of the treatment chemicals due to the intermittent injection and lack of axial dispersion of the treatment chemical in the flowing process streams. This produces a nonuniform concentration of the treatment chemical in the process stream.
The hydrocarbon processing industry, chemical industry, oil production industry, water treatment plants, and other similar industries and plants frequently use relatively small amounts of treatment chemicals to control undesirable occurrences in process streams and other streams in the plants. The undesirable occurrences may take many forms such as corrosion, saltation, fouling, wax formation, scale formation, and polymerization in pipes or equipment. Corrosion, for example, deteriorates the metal in pipes and process equipment and may cause failure of the pipes or equipment. Fouling and wax formation, for example, occur when particular materials are deposited in pipes and equipment due to undesirable chemical processes, and may lead to plugging of the pipes or equipment.
These problems vary in severity from minor annoyances in the operation of a plant to problems that halt operations of an entire plant. For example, a change from a nonacidic crude oil feedstock in an oil refinery to an acidic crude oil feedstock may cause pipes exposed to the acidic component of the crude oil to experience sudden and severe corrosion. The pipes may develop a hole within hours or days, and cause a processing unit or the whole refinery to shut down. Thus, the effective use of the appropriate treatment chemicals to eliminate these problems may be of paramount importance for the operation of a hydrocarbon processing plant or other plant.
Various treatment chemicals are available to remedy each of these problems in any particular application. Many chemical companies manufacture and sell treatment chemicals to alleviate specific problems for particular types of process streams. For example, Nalco Chemical Number 5192 made by Nalco Chemical Company may be used to prevent corrosion in overhead process streams.
Typically, treatment chemicals are injected intermittently into process streams because the pumps used for this purpose provide an intermittent, nonconstant flow of the treatment chemical. Generally, positive displacement pumps are used to inject treatment chemicals into flowing process streams. Several types of positive displacement are available.
Piston pumps are one type of positive displacement pump used for injecting treatment chemicals. For example, a Milton-Roy pump incorporates one or more pistons which are driven by a motor. The pistons pull liquid into a piston chamber when the piston is moving away from top dead center of its stroke, and discharge liquid when the piston is moving towards top dead center of its stroke.
Another type of a positive displacement pump is a diaphragm pump which incorporates a flexible diaphragm as one wall of a fluid chamber. When the diaphragm is flexed away from the chamber liquid is pulled into the chamber by the suction created by the diaphragm. When the diaphragm is flexed into the chamber liquid is discharged from the chamber due to the pressure from the diaphragm. Generally, positive displacement pumps are used to inject treatment chemicals into process streams because of their dependability and their ability to accurately discharge a measured amount of treatment chemical.
Positive displacement pumps share a common flow pattern that derives from their nature and results in a two stage cycle: Stage 1 is a discharge stroke that produces a positive flow of liquid which varies with time and is typically represented by a positive sine wave. Stage 2 is a return stroke during which there is no liquid being discharged. The duration of the discharge stroke and the duration of the return stroke are the same, and the combined duration for both strokes is the cycle time for the pump. The cycle time for positive displacement pumps ranges from about 0.6 to 1 second. Thus, for a positive displacement pump operating at full capacity, liquid is only being discharged during 50 percent of the cycle time at best.
Typically, the amount of liquid discharged by positive displacement pumps may be varied from 10 percent of the pump's discharge capacity to the pump's full discharge capacity. When a positive displacement pump is adjusted to deliver less than its full capacity the pump only discharges liquid during a portion of the pump discharge stroke. And the sine wave representing the flow of liquid from the pump is reduced in amplitude. The result is a decrease in the total amount of liquid discharged by the pump.
The total amount of time that the positive displacement pump does not discharge liquid is the combined amount of time of the return stroke and the amount of time during the discharge stroke when no liquid is being discharged. Consequently, if the pump is operating at less than full capacity, treatment chemicals will be injected into the flowing process line less than 50 percent of the time.
During the cycle time when no treatment chemical is being discharged by a positive displacement pump the liquid of the process stream is continuing to flow past the injection point. This section of liquid is not being treated. With the pump at full capacity the section of liquid with no injected treatment chemical corresponds to the amount of liquid that flows past the injection point during the return stroke. If the pump is operating at less than full capacity, this section of liquid corresponds to the amount of liquid that flows past the injection point during both the return stroke and the portion o the discharge stroke when no liquid is discharged. At a minimum, 50 percent of the liquid in the process stream line will not be injected with treatment chemical. And if the pump is operating at less than full capacity this percentage will be greater than 50 percent.
When treatment chemical is injected intermittently into a process stream the chemical will mix rapidly in a radial direction from the point of injection. Consequently, the concentration of the treatment chemical is relatively uniform across the cross-section of the flowing process stream within a short distance from the point at which the treatment chemical is injected. This is due to the rapid radial mixing that occurs in the turbulent flow regime of most flowing process streams.
Axial mixing, however, does not appear to occur rapidly in a flowing process stream. It is generally a function of the nature of the flowing liquid, the nature of the injected liquid, and the flow regime of the flowing liquid. The nature of the flowing liquid and the treatment chemical are important to the extent that the liquids will tend to mix. For example, if the liquids have some chemical attraction to each other they will tend to mix. In the case of a polar treatment chemical being injected into a flowing polar liquid, the polar affinity between the treatment chemical and the flowing liquid will cause axial dispersion more quickly than would occur for a nonpolar treatment chemical injected into a flowing nonpolar liquid.
The flow regime of a flowing fluid is dependent on the velocity that the fluid is flowing, the geometry of the flow, and the density and viscosity of the flowing fluid at flow conditions. This relationship is calculated as the Reynold's Number of the flowing fluid. The Reynold's Number is a dimensionless quantity that represents the ratio between the inertial forces in a flowing fluid and the viscous forces in a flowing fluid. It is frequently used to correlate various parameters relating to the behavior of flowing fluids.
The Reynold's Number (Re) is calculated by the following mathematical formula: EQU Re=DVp/.mu.
where D is the pipe diameter in feet; V is the liquid velocity through the pipe in feet per second; p is the liquid density in pounds per cubic foot; and .mu. is the liquid viscosity in pounds per foot per second. Robert H. Perry and Cecil H. Chilton, Chemical Engineer's Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 5th ed., 1973, page 5-4, FIG. 526. For a given flow geometry (e.g. flow in a pipe) empirical data related to the Reynold's number indicates whether the flow regime of a flowing liquid is laminar or turbulent.
Laminar flow occurs at low flow velocities, and is characterized by minimal radial mixing between microscopic elements of the flowing liquid. Further, laminar flow is characterized by different flow velocities for microscopic elements of the flowing liquid depending on the distance between the element of the flowing liquid and the wall of the pipe in which the liquid is flowing. Turbulent flow occurs a high flow velocities, and is characterized by extensive radial mixing and random variations in the flow velocities of microscopic elements of the liquid.
For a liquid flowing in a pipe the flow regime is generally laminar at Reynold's Numbers less than 3000, and turbulent at Reynold's Numbers greater than 3000. Typically, process streams in hydrocarbon processing plants have Reynold's Numbers in excess of 3000 and the liquids are flowing in a turbulent flow regime.
Reported studies have noted the degree to which axial dispersion will occur in flowing liquids in pipes. T. Sherwood, R. Pigford, and C. Wilke, Mass Transfer, McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1975, 137-141. These studies generally indicate that axial dispersion of a liquid in another flowing liquid correlates with the Reynolds number of the flowing liquid. Mass Transfer, supra at FIG. 4.17. More particularly the effective axial dispersion coefficient, which is a measure of the tendency for a liquid to axially disperse in another flowing liquid, will increase as the Reynold's Number for the flowing liquid increases.
Overall the concentration profile of a liquid injected into a flowing liquid in a turbulent flow regime will follow a Gaussian curve. Mass transfer, supra at 138 and FIG. 4.16. Very little dispersion will occur at a point near the point of injection, and dispersion will gradually increase as the liquid flows farther from the point of injection.
For example, for two batches of oil flowing through a 12-inch pipeline at a velocity of 4 feet per second, the second batch of oil will only disperse 750 feet into the first batch of oil after traveling 24 miles through the pipeline. Mass Transfer, supra at p. 140-41.
Referring to EXAMPLE 1 a test flow loop was constructed to study axial dispersion in a liquid flowing through a tube. Using a diaphragm pump, which provided an intermittent injection of red dye, it was observed that minimal dispersion of the red dye occurred 50 feet from the point of injection of the red dye into a flowing water stream. Further, large sections of the flowing water stream had no observable concentration of the red dye at all.
If this effect is scaled up to the size of typical plant streams it is evident that significant portions of a process stream will not contain any concentration of a treatment chemical. For example, consider an overhead line in a crude oil processing unit with a 10 inch diameter which carries a flowing liquid with a velocity of 100 feet per second. A positive displacement pump is used to inject a treatment chemical such as a corrosion inhibitor. The positive displacement pump is operated at 25 or 30 percent of its capacity because these pumps are typically sized to provide maximum extra capacity.
If the pump operates at 1 cycle per second and is adjusted to deliver 25% of its capacity the treatment chemical will only be injected for 1/8 of a second. The time period of no injection will be 7/8 of a second. During the injection period of 1/8 of a second the flowing process stream will move 12.5 feet, and a section 12.5 feet long will contain the treatment chemical. During the period of no injection the flowing process stream will move 87.5 feet and a section 87.5 feet long will contain no treatment chemical. Five seconds later the flowing process stream will have traveled 500 feet. At which time, based on the flow loop test, the treated section will have slightly expanded from 12.5 feet and the untreated section will have slightly decreased from 87.5 feet.
The combined effect of intermittent injection of a treatment chemical into a flowing process stream and the lack of axial dispersion of the treatment chemical in the process stream is that significant portions of the flowing process stream will have no concentration of the treatment chemical. This problem increases as the velocity of the flowing process stream increases relative to the cycle time of the pump used to inject the treatment chemical because the amount of nontreated process stream correspondingly increases. Thus, the effectiveness of the treatment chemical is reduced. In fact, the treatment chemical may not provide any benefit at all in these situations. Consequently, there is a need for a method that provides a continuous and constant injection of a treatment chemical into a flowing process stream.

Method for injecting treatment chemicals


A method of providing telephony services can include receiving a request to query a subscriber information data store to determine service description information for a call. The service description information can specify at least one telephony service associated with a subscriber for use in processing the call. The method further can include querying the subscriber information data store to determine the service description information, receiving the service description information from the subscriber information data store, and providing the service description information to a telephony service node to implement a telephony service specified by the service description information with respect to the call.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates to the field of telephony and, more particularly, to providing telephony services to subscribers.
2. Description of the Related Art
The delivery of most telephony services and features is tied to the directory number of a calling party or a called party. In fact, nearly all of the activities performed by a conventional telephony system, whether a circuit-switched telephone network such as the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or a packet-switched telephony system, are based on such directory numbers or network addresses as may be the case. The dialed directory number can be referred to as the DNIS in reference to directory number identification service, a service which identifies for a receiving party the number dialed by a calling party. The directory number of the calling party can be referred to as an ANI in reference to automatic number identification, the service which provides the receiving party with the directory number of the calling party.
When a calling party initiates a call to a receiving party, the DNIS and the ANI can be used to authenticate the call. Authentication can include tasks such as finding the ANI in a list of authorized subscribers and ensuring that the DNIS is valid. Taking another example, the switching of calls to and from a subscriber also can be achieved through the use of the subscriber's directory number. That is, if a calling party places a call to a receiving party, the call can be routed to the receiving party based on an area code and/or an exchange code of the DNIS.
The reliance of conventional telephony systems on the DNIS and ANI not only determines how features and services are to be implemented and delivered, but also dictates the mode of operation of other portions of the telephony system. In consequence, services provided by conventional telephony systems are tightly linked to the DNIS and ANI. For example, billing, interactive voice response; functions, call routing, call authentication, and subscriber information retrieval are predicated upon the DNIS and the ANI.
Given the mobile nature of today's society, however, providing subscribers with telephony services according to the DNIS and/or the ANI can have disadvantages. For example, as a subscriber moves from one location to another, the subscriber may utilize telephony equipment associated with a directory number and account that is different from that of the "mobile" subscriber. As a result, the subscriber can be blocked from accessing particular telephony services which typically are available to the subscriber when calling from a home or another number used by that subscriber. Moreover, if a subscriber does access one or more telephony services from a different number, for example while traveling, the account associated with the number from which the subscriber has called typically is billed rather than the subscriber.

Telephony service invocation using service descriptors

International Business Machines Corporation


In an exemplary embodiment, a window sill comprises a structural base having a first side and a second side, a fenestration cap attached to the structural base, a window frame mounted on the fenestration cap and finish elements applied to the structural base and adjacent to the fenestration cap. The window frame may be removed from the fenestration cap without disturbing the finish elements. Alternatively, a method of installing a window in a window opening comprises providing a window opening and preparing the window opening for receiving a fenestration cap, installing a fenestration cap by placement within and attachment to the window opening in a primary step, and installing a window within the window opening by placement within and attachment to the fenestration cap in a secondary step.

General contractors engaged in the construction of a commercial or residential building are responsible for scheduling various subcontractors to complete their assigned tasks in a timely manner. When a certain subcontractor's work is delayed for some reason, further delays may be caused for other subcontractors whose tasks are dependent on the first subcontractor. For instance, plumbing and electrical work must be completed before interior drywall can be hung; likewise painting and finishing cannot proceed until the drywall is hung. To the extent that a job can be planned so that as few subcontractors are dependent on the completion of each other's work as possible, a smoother job with fewer delays is likely to result.
While better scheduling and planning on the part of the general contractor can reduce these bottlenecks, some are unavoidable due to requirements imposed by current building materials. For example, fenestration openings are unfinished openings in the side of a building which will ultimately receive a window or door assembly. Currently, windows are delivered by the manufacturer having a frame which is attached to the framing members of the fenestration opening. Until this frame is installed, the finishing crews, which apply the exterior finish such as plastering to the building as well as the interior drywall crews, cannot complete their work. Accordingly, delays in shipment and installation of the windows and frames lead to significant problems in work scheduling for the building as a whole, which can potentially cause an entire job to fall behind schedule.
A need exists for a system and method which reduces the need for a high degree of coordination between subcontractors. With such a system and method, the burden on the window and door manufacturers to deliver on a tight schedule is reduced, and the general contractor regains a degree of control over his schedule without worrying about being held up by his custom window and door suppliers not delivering on time.

Universal fenestration cap system and method