A hydraulic pump system is provided that includes a pump driven by an electric motor. The electric motor includes windings that receive power from a power source. In one example, a temperature sensor is arranged in proximity to hydraulic fluid associated with the pump, such as at an input of the pump. In another example, the temperature sensor measures the ambient temperature to predict the viscosity of the pump based upon cool down rates of the system. A controller monitors a temperature at the temperature sensor and commands power to be provided to the windings to generate heat. Electric motor power consumption can be monitored to determine viscosity. The heat reduces the viscosity of the hydraulic fluid. Bleed air may be selectively provided to a casing associated with the hydraulic fluid in response to a command from the controller. The controller actuates a valve to regulate the flow of bleed air to the casing to provide supplemental heat to the heat provided by the windings. In this manner, the viscosity of the hydraulic fluid is more efficiently managed to provide desired startup of the pump in cold conditions.

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for managing the temperature of a hydraulic pump that uses an electric motor.
In aircraft and other applications, electrical motor driven pumps are used to provide or supplement hydraulic power for actuators and other hydraulically or fluid powered components. In many cases, these pumps are inactive for long periods in cold environments and then are expected to startup rapidly and provide full performance in a very short period of time.
In cold environments, the hydraulic fluid becomes very viscous so that starting the pump under sustained cold conditions is difficult. To decrease the viscosity of the fluid and enable desired startup of the pump, it is typical to either run the pump continuously or to provide the pump with a continuous flow of hot gases, typically bleed air from a turbine engine. Continuously running the pump decreases the life of it and the electric motor. Providing a continuous flow of bleed air decreases the efficiency of the source providing the bleed air.
To avoid the above problems, power sufficient to provide a stall torque to the electric motor has been used to generate heat using the windings of the electric motor. Similar to the solutions described above, the power is provided to the electric motor continuously, which is inefficient. What is needed is an efficient hydraulic pump and electric motor system that reduces the viscosity of the hydraulic fluid on an as-needed basis.

Temperature management for electric motor driven pump


Methods of fabricating improved gemstones and gemstones thus obtained are described. Roughness is introduced on facets of a gemstone through application of nanometer and/or micrometer sized features, to provide the facets with a hazy white-colored appearance. Alternatively, millimeter-sized reflective features can be applied on the facets, to form a gemstone with improved scintillation or play of light.

The above mentioned U.S. Ser. No. 11/635,386 describes methods for increasing brilliance and/or fire of a gemstone (e.g., diamond) using a combination of periodic nano- and micro-sized features, which form a diffractive optical element disposed on or in the body of the gemstone. Each size produces its own effect in the light path of the gemstone.

Gemstones and methods for controlling the appearance thereof


Self-pumping hydropneumatic shock absorber with internal level control, with an oil-filled working cylinder under the pressure of gas cushions and with a damping piston, which is attached to the end of a hollow piston rod and can slide back and forth in the working cylinder, the hollow space in the piston rod serving as the pump space of a pump rod attached to the working cylinder. Oil is drawn from a reservoir space when the piston rod travels outward and into the working space when the piston rod travels inward, and where a control opening is provided in the pump rod to compensate for pressure differences between the working spaces. At least one throttle acting as a function of pressure is provided in the pump space between the high-pressure gas cushion and the low-pressure gas cushion.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to a self-pumping hydropneumatic shock absorber with internal level control, with an oil-filled working cylinder under the pressure of gas cushions and with a damping piston, which is attached to the end of a hollow piston rod and can slide back and forth in the working cylinder, the hollow space in the piston rod receiving a pump rod attached to the working cylinder, where oil is drawn from a reservoir space when the piston rod travels outward and into the working space when the piston rod travels inward, and where a control opening is provided in the pump rod to compensate for pressure differences between the working spaces.
2. Description of the Related Art
US 2005/0189186 discloses a self-pumping hydropneumatic shock absorber with internal level control wherein the damping piston is installed with freedom of axial movement in a working cylinder, where this damping piston is subjected to the pressure of a high-pressure gas cushion and of a low-pressure gas cushion. The damping piston is mounted on the end of a hollow piston rod, where the hollow space in the piston rod is designed as a pump space. A pump rod attached to the working cylinder projects into the hollow piston rod, so that, when the piston rod travels outward, it draws oil from a reservoir space, and when it travels inward, it transports this oil into the working space. When the vehicle reaches the desired level, a control opening is released, so that the pressures are equalized inside the shock absorber. The actual throttle in this case is designed as a bypass, where the flow of oil from the high-pressure space to low-pressure space is determined by a predetermined cross section of the bypass. In cases such as this where the cross section is fixed, the quantity of oil which can flow through the bypass is highly dependent on pressure. This pressure dependence is basically undesirable.


Disclosed is a method of inhibiting the formation of scale on reactor surfaces in contact with a polymerizing vinyl monomer. The reactor surfaces are contacted with a composition that contains, as a scale reducing agent, an acidic hydrazone condensate or a salt thereof. The scale reducing agent can be added to the polymerizing monomer or it can be placed in a composition containing a surfactant and an inorganic binder and the composition can be applied to the reactor surfaces or added to the monomer.

This invention relates to the reduction of scale in the polymerization of vinyl monomers. In particular, it relates to the use of an acid hydrazone condensate or a salt thereof for that purpose.
During the polymerization of vinyl monomers, such as polyvinyl choride (PVC), tenaciously-adhering polymer scales frequently form on reactor components that come into contact with the monomer, such as the inner walls and stirrer. The reactor has to be cleaned between each batch by scraping, pressure-washing, or solvent cleaning. As a result, there is a considerable amount of reactor downtime as well as increased costs associated with maintaining a polymerization-ready reactor, which increases the overall operating cost of the process. Moreover, an operator who attempts to physically remove the scales risks exposure to harmful monomer trapped in the scales. Scale deposition also lowers polymer yield, reduces heat transfer efficiency during heating and cooling, and lowers monomer efficiency and general process control. When scales flake off and mix with the polymer, the polymer has poorer processing properties and finished products made from it are inferior. A number of different additives are known that reduce scaling, but many of them increase the yellowness of the polymer, which is unacceptable to many customers.


An electrically resistive heating element for liquids and a method of fabricating same. The heating element comprises a substrate formed of an electrically insulating material or formed of an electrically conductive material provided with an electrically insulating coating, whereby in both cases the substrate presents an electrically non-conductive surface on at least one side. First and second laterally spaced contact areas are disposed over the electrically non-conductive surface and a thermally sprayed resistive oxide layer is applied to the electrically non-conductive surface and disposed over or under parts of the contact areas to enable an electric current to be passed through the resistive oxide layer via these first and second contact areas.

The present invention relates to electrical heating elements and is concerned in particular with electrical resistance heating elements, principally for use in domestic appliances which involve the heating of liquids for food preparation such as kettles, heating jugs, coffee percolators and the like, and are of the type which do not intrude into the volume of liquid to be heated.
Conventional electrical liquid heating elements fall into two general categories.
The first category comprises sheathed elements consisting of a metal tube along the longitudinal axis of which is situated a conventional spiralled wire element and which in use an oxide as a means of providing dielectric (electrical insulation) between the tube and spiralled element. These sheathed elements are generally formed into some form of loop or spiral and are situated in the bottom of a vessel designated for liquid heating. As such they intrude into the volume of the liquid to be heated.
The latter elements are generally used for heating only one liquid, almost always water, as their convoluted shapes make them difficult to clean and completely remove traces of one type of liquid, should they be required to be used with a second.
In addition, the need to have an outer metal sheath to separate the spiralled wire element from the liquid and to have a dielectric oxide filling to separate metal sheath from element, have the result that such elements are of relatively large mass and low surface area, which combine to reduce their operational efficiency in heating liquids.
The second category of known elements comprises those which consist of a flat plate, forming the base of the heating vessel, through which heat flows from element to liquid. Such elements do not intrude into the volume of liquid to be heated.
This second category of element may be subdivided into two types, namely, those which simply use a conventional sheathed element fixed to the back of a flat plate, which then acts as a heat sink, and a second type which may be classified generally as thick film resistive heating elements.
The conventional approach to the formation of thick film elements is to utilise a metal substrate, onto the surfaces of which is applied a dielectric coating, usually a glaze. Screen printing techniques are employed to deposit an ink, consisting of a solvent and a mixture of metals and/or metal oxides, to one coated surface in the form of an element configuration comprising one or more printed circuit conductive tracks. The printed item is then fired to drive off the solvent and to melt the resistive particles of metal and/or oxide. A final dielectric coating, usually a glaze, is then applied to the screen printed element configuration to act as a protective layer.
Whilst these conventional sheathed and screen printed thick film elements may be very adequately used to heat liquids, they are subject to various constructional and operational disadvantages, some of which are listed as follows.
Because of the need to use an oxide dielectric filler in sheathed elements, the spiralled resistive wire which generates the heating effect is required to run at temperatures well in excess of those required to boil liquids. As a result, such elements are very prone to overheating and burn-out if operated without sufficient volume of surrounding liquid. In addition, their relatively high thermal mass detracts from their operational efficiency, as a large proportion of the heat initially generated goes directly into raising the temperature of the dielectric metal oxide and metal sheath and not into the liquid. This reduces the liquid heat-up rate.
In order to utilise sheathed elements in a flat plate configuration, it is necessary to combine then into another supporting metal plate, or layer. This plate, or layer, is usually of aluminium and serves as a heat sink, in effect providing a larger surface area over which the sheathed element may dissipate the heat energy being generated. The combination of aluminium plate, or layer, is then attached to the metal plate forming the base of the heating vessel. Whilst increasing the heat dissipating area of the sheathed element, this aluminium plate substantially increases the thermal mass of the system, which in turn detracts from the operational efficiency as it requires more energy initially to preheat it, before heat is transferred to the liquid.
The combination of sheathed element and aluminium layer, or plate, is also prone to operational failure where there is inadequate attachment of the sheathed tube to the aluminium plate. At any points of inadequate attachment, the heat being generated by the sheathed element cannot be fully dissipated to the aluminium plate acting as a heat sink. As a result, the temperature of the sheathed element at such points may rise to quite high levels. The localised thermal expansion associated with these "hot spots" may result in element failure or a progressive detachment of the element from the aluminium plate, which serves to exacerbate the over-heating problem and accelerate element failure.
It is also known that there are constructional and operational problems associated with the existing screen printed thick film electrical resistance heating elements, which may be summarised as follows.
(a) Variations in the thickness or consistency of the conductive/resistive ink, as applied during the screen printing process, will result in unevenness in the final resistive element track. Such localised unevenness may result in the generation of "hot spots" within the elements track, leading to failure in operation.
(b) The presence of any defects or holes in the final protective glaze layer, such as those due to the presence of solvent traces, allow the resistive tracks to be locally oxidised, forming localised hot spots and leading to track failure.
(c) The screen printed elements are of a tracked form, usually spiralled. The tracks are discrete and usually are subdivided into parallel paths, and so configured as to cover the maximum amount of substrate area as possible. Despite this configuration, only a relatively small proportion of the substrate area is actually covered by the element in practice and in consequence the operating temperatures need to be well above the boiling points of the liquids being heated in order to achieve good heat transfer through the substrate.
(d) Another factor which deleteriously affects heat transfer from element to liquid is the combination of the metal substrate and the glazed insulating layer. Generally, the metal substrate which has been used is stainless steel, which has a poor coefficient of heat transfer when compared with say copper or aluminium.
The present invention seeks to overcome or substantially reduce the problems described above associated with the known configurations and manufacturing techniques.


Apparatuses, systems, and methods for implementing a computerized garment photography system are described. A garment is placed on an exterior surface of the mannequin. The mannequin is controllable to assume a series of size combinations via one or more moveable portions of the robotic mannequin. One or more image capture devices capture a plurality of images of the mannequin as the mannequin assumes the size combinations. A fit adjustment mechanism adjusts a placement of the garment on the exterior surface of the mannequin during the automated photography process.

Online shopping has transformed retail in many areas. But apparel is one area where consumers have not fully adopted the online shopping model. Clothing returns are high, and it is believed that many customers abandon online clothing purchases prior to completing them. As a result, some online retailers have generous return policies for clothing that does not fit in order to make the customer more comfortable with purchasing clothing online.
Compounding this problem is the fact that there is no size standardization in the apparel industry. For example, a size "8" from one clothing manufacturer is not necessarily the same as a size "8" from another manufacturer, making it difficult for a consumer to know whether a garment purchased online will fit. Also, a pant size reported by the manufacturer to be 32 inches in the waist and 34 inches in the inseam does not provide information about how much room the pants have in the thigh, for example.

Automated garment photography with fit adjustment


A semiconductor memory device including a substrate on which a memory cell array portion and a peripheral circuit portion for the memory cell array portion are provided, the surface of the memory cell array portion being higher than the surface of the peripheral circuit portion. A glass layer is formed on the peripheral circuit portion with the glass layer having a predetermined thickness for offsetting the difference in height between the surface of the memory cell array portion and that of the peripheral circuit portion, so as to provide a substantially even surface over the memory cell array portion and the peripheral circuit portion. A metal wiring for the memory cell array portion and the peripheral circuit portion is formed in a predetermined pattern on the substantially even surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor memory device (such as DRAM and SRAM) comprising a memory cell array potion and a peripheral circuit portion.
2. Description of the Related Art
As higher-density and larger-scale integration is pursued in an LSI memory, the structure thereof has tended to extend in three dimensions. Accordingly, the height of its memory cell array portion has increased, resulting in a greater difference in level between the memory cell array portion and the peripheral circuit portion including a decoder, a sense amplifier, and an input-output buffer. The difference in height leads to an uneven surface, which may cause problems in the fine processing of wires installed over the memory cell array portion and peripheral circuit portion, such as the breaking of a wire or the increase in resistance value due to the non-uniform width of a wire.
In order to reduce the difference in level mentioned above, the prior art has adopted a method in which the surface of a predetermined region of the substrate is previously removed to form a hollow portion for the memory cell array portion (e.g. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. SHO 63-266866(1988) and SHO 63-132471(1988)). The conventional method will be described below.
First, as shown in FIG. 2A, the region of the substrate for the peripheral circuit portion is masked with a layer of Si.sub.3 N.sub.4, so as to exclusively oxidize the region of the substrate for the memory cell array portion by thermal oxidization.
In the drawing, the substrate 1 of Si and a layer 2 of SiO.sub.2 are shown. The SiO.sub.2 layer 2 is subsequently removed in a HF solution, so that a hollow portion for the memory cell array portion can be formed in the substrate (FIG. 2B). After the formation of a memory cell array on the hollow portion and transistors in the peripheral circuit portion, the memory cell array portion and the peripheral circuit portion are coated with a BPSG layer which is then heat-treated to provide an ever surface (FIG. 2C). In FIG. 2C, the difference in level d.sub.2 before the wiring step and a layer 3 of BPSG are shown. Thereafter, the metal wiring 4 is provided on the BPSG layer as shown in FIG. 2D.
The method, however, is disadvantageous in that the substrate is damaged through the formation of the hollow portion. That is, the local growth of the SiO.sub.2 layer 2 for the hollow portion causes great stress in the Si substrate during the oxidization treatment. As a result, there were some cases where the operation as a memory device was adversely affected. Moreover, a on period of treatment is required to obtain a sufficiently deep hollow portion, which is not appropriate for mass fabrication.


An integrated circuit chip having circuitry to adjust its threshold voltage between a plurality of threshold voltages for interfacing to integrated circuit chips having different supply voltages. The integrated circuit chip also includes circuitry for communicating its threshold voltage level to a second integrated circuit such that the second integrated circuit may set its threshold voltage prior to receiving logic communications from the integrated circuit. The present invention also discloses an integrated circuit that detects the logic level of incoming logic communications and adjusts its threshold voltage accordingly.

Several different integrated circuit technologies are available to circuit and system designers in which to realize their designs. These technologies include, for example, bipolar transistor-transistor logic (TTL), complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), bipolar-CMOS (Bi-CMOS), gallium arsenide (GaAs), and others. As would be expected, integrated circuits based on differing technologies are often required to operate within a single system and hence must communicate one with another. A common problem that must be dealt with is the differing voltage and logic levels associated with the differing technologies or between differing circuit families within a single technology. This problem is sometimes further exacerbated by supply voltage levels which may vary significantly, not only between different technologies but even amongst circuits of like technologies.
Thresholds of the input circuits need to be compatible with the input signal levels from the external source.
Patent application Ser. No. 08/769,976, A LOW VOLTAGE INPUT BUFFER FOR ASYMMETRICAL LOGIC SIGNALS filed Dec. 19, 1996, of common assignee herewith discloses an input buffer circuit for responding to logic signals centered around a known fixed threshold which respond to input signal levels from an external circuit and translate these into needed logic levels for the internal circuits. What is needed is an integrated circuit which responds to a multiplicity of logic thresholds.

Method and apparatus for interfacing integrated circuits having different supply voltages

International Business Machines Corporation


A transmission equipped with a cable-type shift device comprises a control shaft to control a shift change with rotation and axial-direction movement thereof, an outer lever to be rotated by a shift-direction operation of a change lever, and a counterweight to rotate with the rotation of the control shaft, but not to move with the axial-direction movement of the control shaft. The counterweight includes first and second weight portions, an arm portion to interconnect these weight portions, and a support axis disposed so as to extend vertically. The support axis rotatably supports a substantial gravity center of the first and second weight portions and the arm portion. Accordingly, the counterweight can be supported smoothly and the shift feeling can be improved properly with a relatively small force for the select-direction operation of the change lever.

The present invention relates to a transmission equipped with a cable-type shift device.
Conventionally, the transmission equipped with the cable-type shift device is known (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,194). In this kind of shift device, a counterweight is constituted so as to rotate with operation of a change lever, and an inertia of the counterweight improves shift feeling.
However, in the conventional shift device, the counterweight is provided at one tip end of a support arm which is supported at a rotational axis. Accordingly, a relatively large moment caused by the counterweight acts on the rotational axis, so that a smooth support would be deteriorated with the frequent rotation.
Also, since the counterweight is constituted so as to move vertically with select-direction operation of the change lever in the conventional device, the select-direction operation of the change lever would require a relatively large force, and thereby the shift feeling would not be appropriate.
Meanwhile, in order to obtain effectively a sufficient inertia of the counterweight, it is necessary to provide a space for the counterweight which can rotate without interference with any other vehicle components. However, various components are generally disposed in an engine room, and therefore the layout of the counterweight needs to be designed properly.

Transmission equipped with cable-type shift device


MEMS Sensor Systems and Methods are provided. In one embodiment, a method for producing a six degree of freedom inertial sensor is provided. The method comprises fabricating a first silicon wafer segment having at least one inertial sensor pair, the at least one inertial sensor pair comprising one or both of a pair of orthogonally oriented accelerometers and a pair of orthogonally oriented gyroscopes; fabricating a second silicon wafer segment having at least one inertial sensor, the at least one inertial sensor comprising one or both of an accelerometer and a gyroscope; assembling together the first silicon wafer segment and the second silicon wafer segment such that the at least one inertial sensor pair and the at least one inertial sensor are oriented orthogonal to each other; and bonding the first silicon wafer segment to the second silicon wafer segment.

Fabrication of micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) is being refined every day, creating a multitude of single-axis sensors. Multi-axis sensors are currently production limited to 2-axis with the optimal 3-axis design efficiently unattainable for measuring 6 degrees of freedom (6-DOF). Although inertial measurement units (IMUs) are available that provide 6-DOF capability, they are composed of multiple individual sensors assembled in a 3-axis triad. Inherently, misalignment errors result from even minor imperfections during this assembly process. Additionally, as IMUs today are constructed from multiple individual accelerometers and gyros, their implementation methods are more expensive and error prone.
For the reasons stated above and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the specification, there is a need in the art for techniques of reducing misalignment errors in micro electro-mechanical systems.


The present invention is directed to processes for preparing oxycodone base and oxycodone hydrochloride compositions having less than 10 ppm of 14-hydroxycodeinone.

Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic, μ-opioid receptor specific ligand with clear agonist properties.1 In man, oxycodone may produce any of a variety of effects including analgesia. Parenteral oxycodone was used mainly for the treatment of acute postoperative pain whereas combinations, for example oxycodone and acetaminophen, were used for moderate pain. 1 E. Kalso, Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, Volume 29, Issue, Supplement 1, May 2005, 47-56
Examples of immediate release (IR) products containing oxycodone include Percocet®, Percodan®, Roxocet®, and generic equivalents thereof. Examples of sustained-release (SR) dosage forms include Oxycontin® and generic equivalents thereof.
Oxycodone is most commonly derived from thebaine, a minor alkaloid in the papaver somniferum poppy, and from thebaine analogues prepared from codeinone 14-Hydroxycodeinone is the immediate precursor to oxycodone in these syntheses.
Thebaine can be obtained from extraction from the poppy plant papaver somniferum. However, since morphine is the major alkaloid, which accumulates in the capsules of the papaver somniferum plant, the supply of thebaine from this source is limited to some fraction of the demand for morphine. The major source of natural thebaine currently is the concentrated poppy straw (CPS) from a stably reproducing papaver somniferum plant which has been exposed to a mutagenizing agent such that the straw contains thebaine and oripavine constituting about 50% by weight or greater of the alkaloid combination consisting of morphine, codeine, thebaine and oripavine2. 2 A. J Fist, C. J. Byrne and W. L. Gerlach, US 2004/0197428 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,723,894, 6,376,221, and 6,067,749
Thebaine has also been prepared by total synthesis routes, which are difficult and expensive3. Thebaine has also been prepared by the methylation of codeinone in the presence of strong base4,5 and oxidation of codeine methylether6. 3 U.S. Pat. No. 4,613,668 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,8134 A. Coop and K. Rice, Heterocycles, 49, 1998, 43-47.5 B. Mudryk, C. Sapino, A. Sebastian, EP 0889045 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,742 B16 R. Barber and H. Rapaport, U.S. Pat. No. 4,045,440
Purified thebaine is normally used for conversion to oxycodone but the use of thebaine CPS directly for the manufacture of oxycodone has also been disclosed7,8. 7 See claims 9 and 10 of A. J. Fist, C. J. Byrne & W. L. Gerlach, U.S. Pat. No. 6,376,221 B18 C. A. Francis, Z. Lin, C. A. Kaldahl, K. G. Antczak, V. Kumar, U.S. Pat. No. 7,071,336
Oxidation of the thebaine may alternatively be performed using potassium dichromate in acetic acid9, performic acid10, hydrogen peroxide in acetic acid9 or peracetic acid11. Improved yield, however, has been reported to be obtained by oxidizing with m-chloroperbenzoic acid in acetic acid-trifluoroacetic acid mixture12. 9 Freund et al, J. Prakt. Chem., 94, 135, (1916).10 Krassnig, Hederer, Schmidhammer, Arch. Pharm. Med. Chem., 1996, 32511 Snuperak et al., WO 2006/019364 A112 Hauser et al., J. Med. Chem., 17, 1117 (1974) and Schwartz, U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,813
14-Hydroxymorphinans have also been prepared from thebaine analogues derived from codeine without a thebaine intermediate13. 14-Hydroxycodeinone, the precursor to oxycodone, has been prepared from codeinone dienol acetate14 the ethyl dienol ether and the tert-butyl dimethylsilyl dienol ether of codeinone5. 13 Schwarz & Schwartz, U.S. Pat. No. 4,472,253 and N D Wallace, J. Med. Chem., 24, 1525-1528, 1981.14 B-S. Huang, Y. Lu, B-Y. Ji, A. S. Christodoulou U.S. Pat. No. 6,008,3555 B. Mudryk, C. Sapino, A. Sebastian, EP 0889045 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,742 B1
The most common method for the conversion of 14-hydroxycodeinone to oxycodone is catalytic hydrogenation using a noble metal catalyst, preferably palladium, and hydrogen gas9. Reduction of 14-hydroxycodeinone to oxycodone has also been performed using diphenylsilane and Pd(Ph3P)/ZnCl2 or with sodium hypophosphite in conjunction with a Pd/C catalyst in aqueous acetic acid.15 Oxycodone may be prepared from thebaine by: dissolution of thebaine in aqueous formic acid, oxidation treatment with 30% hydrogen peroxide16, neutralization with aqueous ammonia to yield 14-hydroxycodeinone and hydrogenation of the 14-hydroxycodeinone in acetic acid with the aid of a palladium-charcoal catalyst.17 9 Freund et al, J. Prakt. Chem., 94, 135, (1916).15 F-T Chiu, Y. S. Lo U.S. Pat. No. 6,177,56716 Seki, Chem. Pharm. Bull. 18, 671-676 (1970).17 Remington's Pharmaceutical Sciences, 1041, (1975).
Oxycodone has also been prepared from thebaine bitartrate and codeinone ethyldienol ether by oxidation with hydrogen peroxide in formic acid and isopropanol, followed by catalytic hydrogenation5. Oxycodone has also been prepared by the oxidation with peracetic acid of codeinone dienol silylether in organic solvents to give 14-hydroxycodeinone, followed by catalytic hydrogenation in acetic acid solution15. 5 B. Mudryk, C. Sapino, A. Sebastian, EP 0889045 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,742 B115 F-T Chiu, Y. S. Lo U.S. Pat. No. 6,177,567
During the oxidation of thebaine to give 14-hydroxycodeinone, several by-products are formed. In particular, 7,8-dihydro-8,14-dihydroxycodeinone (DHDHC) is formed by acid catalyzed aqueous hydrolysis of 14-hydroxycodeinone as shown in Scheme 1.
                Reaction scheme of the process used to produce oxycodone from thebaine
It was previously noted that DHDHC is easily converted to 14-hydroxycodeinone18. This conversion occurs during the conversion of oxycodone base to oxycodone hydrochloride, thus 14-hydroxycodeinone is present in the final oxycodone hydrochloride. Oxycodone hydrochloride is available from a number of suppliers including Noramco Inc., and Mallinckrodt. Current commercially available oxycodone hydrochloride API and oxycodone hydrochloride prepared by known procedures have levels of 14-hydroxycodeinone of greater than 100 ppm. 18 Weiss. J. Org. Chem., 22, 1505, (1957)
Recent ICH guidelines suggest that there is a requirement for an oxycodone hydrochloride composition containing reduced amounts of 14-hydroxycodeinone relative to current commercially available oxycodone hydrochloride.
14-Hydroxycodeinone belongs to a class of compounds known as α,β-unsaturated ketones. The class of compounds known as α,β-unsaturated ketones have been designated as potential gene-toxins19 due to their susceptibility to the Michael addition reaction (addition of nucleophiles to the 1(β) position of an α,β-unsaturated ketone)20. 19 "Genotoxic impurities in Pharmaceuticals", accepted for publication in Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, Dec. 5, 2005.20 March's Advanced Organic Chemistry, Jerry March and Michael B Smith, John Wiley & Sons 2001, pages 1022-1024
A recent patent application assigned to Euro-Celtique discloses reducing the levels of 14-hydroxycodeinone in oxycodone hydrochloride by re-submitting the product to conditions similar to those of the original hydrogenation21. In addition to reduction by hydrogenation, the α,β-double bond adjacent to the carbonyl function can be reduced by other means such as transfer hydrogenation (using formic acid, isopropyl alcohol, cyclohexene, indoline, sodium borohydride, tetrahydroquinoline, 2,5-dihydrofuran, phosphoric acid or combinations thereof) and reduction by sodium hydrosulphite22. Dissolving metal reductions (zinc or magnesium[Clemmenson reduction]) convert 14-hydroxycodeinone to a number of products including mainly dihydrohydroxythebainone23. In addition, the potential gene-toxin activity of α,β-unsaturated ketones can be mitigated by subjecting them to the type of reaction (Michael addition) which makes them potential gene-toxins in the first place. One of the most potent nucleophiles in biological systems is the thiol group (—SH), which is present in the amino acid cysteine, which in turn is common in proteins and often critical to protein folding and therefore its biological activity. Cysteine has been shown to react with α,β-unsaturated ketones at the 1(β) position of the double bond, thereby saturating the double and rendering it incapable to accept further nucleophiles at this position and therefore no longer gene-toxic24 21 R. Chapman, L. S. Rider, Q. Hong, D. Kyle & R. Kupper, US 2005/0222188 A1.22 M. Freund, E. Speyer, U.S. Pat. No. 1,479,293.23 R. E. Lutz, L. Small, J. Org. Chem. 4, 220 (1939). See also Banerjee, A. K.; Alvarez, J.; Santana, M.; Carrasco, M. C. Tetrahedron, 1986, 42, 6615.24 See Cysteine conjugate of morphinone: Nagamatsu, Kunisuke; Kido, Yasumasa; Terao, Tadao; Ishida, Takashi; Toki, Satoshi; Drug Metabolism and Disposition (1983), 11(3), 190-4
14-hydroxycodeinone may also be formed during the conversion of oxycodone base to oxycodone hydrochloride due to the conversion of DHDHC to 14-hydroxycodeinone by dehydration (see Scheme 1). The Euro-Celtique patent teaches that this conversion is promoted by excess hydrochloric acid and the 25 resulting 14-hydroxycodeinone is converted to oxycodone hydrochloride by catalytic hydrogenation21. 21 R. Chapman, L. S. Rider, Q. Hong, D. Kyle & R. Kupper, US 2005/0222188 A1.

Process for preparing oxycodone having reduced levels of 14-hydroxycodeinone


A plasma addressed liquid crystal display system (10) includes improved electrode structures (90, 100, 130) that are nonuniform parallel to their surfaces and may also be nonuniform perpendicular to their major surfaces. The nonuniformities include surface nonuniformities (92, 94), bulk nonuniformities (108, 110, 112, 112), and geometric nonuniformities (132, 134). Electrodes having such nonuniformities provide localized sites of preferential and nonpreferential surface and bulk properties of the electrodes, which, in turn, provide improved and locally tailored plasma discharge characteristics. PALC displays having the nonuniform electrodes have improved quality because of reduced firing voltages in one plasma channel region compared to another, reduced sputtering damage, reduced total current between electrodes, decreased discharge initiation time, and decreased ionized gas decay time.

Systems employing data storage elements include, for example, video cameras and image displays. Such systems employ an addressing structure that provides data to or retrieves data from the storage elements. One system of this type to which one embodiment of this invention is particularly directed is a general purpose flat panel display having storage or display elements that store light pattern data. Flat panel-based display systems present a desirable alternative to the comparatively heavy, bulky, and high-voltage cathode-ray tube-based systems.
A flat panel display comprises multiple display elements or "pixels" distributed throughout the viewing area of a display surface. In a liquid crystal flat panel display the optical behavior of each pixel is determined by the magnitude of the electrical potential gradient applied across it. It is generally desirable in such a device to be able to set the potential gradient across each pixel independently. Various schemes have been devised for achieving this end. In currently available active matrix liquid crystal arrays there is, generally, a thin film transistor for every pixel. This transistor is typically strobed "on" by a row driver line at which point it will receive a value from a column driver line. This value is stored until the next row driver line strobe. Transparent electrodes on either side of the pixel apply a potential gradient corresponding to the stored value across the pixel, determining its optical behavior.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,896,149 describes the construction and operation of an alternative type of active matrix liquid crystal array, referred to as a plasma addressed liquid crystal ("PALC") display. This technology avoids the cumbersome and restrictive use of a thin film transistor for every pixel. Each pixel of the liquid crystal cell is positioned between a thin dielectric barrier and a conductive surface. On the opposed side of the thin barrier an inert gas is stored that may be selectively switched from a nonionized, nonconductive state to an ionized conductive plasma through the application of a sufficient electrical potential gradient across the gas volume.
When the gas is in a conductive state, it effectively sets the surface of the thin barrier to ground potential. In this state, the electrical potential across the pixel and thin dielectric barrier is equal to whatever voltage appears on the conductive surface. After the voltage across the gas volume is removed, the ionizable gas reverts to a nonconductive state. The potential gradient introduced across the pixel is stored by the natural capacitances of the liquid crystal material and the dielectric barrier. This potential gradient remains constant regardless of the voltage level of the conductive surface because the thin barrier voltage will float at a level below that of the conductive surface by the difference that was introduced while it was grounded.
Viewed on a larger scale, a PALC display includes a set of channels formed in an insulating plate and containing inert gas under a top plate that contacts the tops of the ribs forming the channel and is sealingly connected around the periphery with the insulating plate. Parallel electrodes extend along the length of each channel at opposed sides. During operation, the gas is ionized and thereby rendered a conductive plasma by the introduction of a large potential gradient between opposed electrodes. This operation occurs many times per second while the display is in operation.
Proper operation and manufacturability of a PALC display depends to a large degree on the electrical and physical properties of the electrodes. For example, to avoid differences in electrical potential along the length of the electrodes during the ionization of the gas, it is desirable that the resistance per unit length of the electrodes be no more than 2 ohms per centimeter (5 ohms per inch). To achieve this small value of resistance per unit length with the tiny cross-sectional area that is available for the electrodes, highly conductive metals such as gold, silver, copper, and aluminum are used.
However, such metals are prone to oxidation and life-reducing sputtering problems. To reduce fabrication costs and prevent sputtering and other problems, copper electrodes are typically employed that are covered with one or more coatings that resist oxidation and sputtering. Other coatings may also be applied to limit discharge current, uniformly distribute the discharge current, improve electrode emission, reduced ionization voltages, decrease discharge initiation time, and decrease ionized gas decay time.
The coatings are applied uniformly to the entire electrode or electrodes and, therefore, do not solve manufacturability or operational problems that are localized to a particular portion of an electrode, such as an end, center, or edge. Moreover, with so many coatings, manufacturing costs and fabrication problems are increased and situations may exist in which certain coatings interact with or reduce the effectiveness of other coatings.
What is needed, therefore, are electrode structures that are readily manufacturable, have low resistances per unit of length, and provide solutions to a variety of electrode-related manufacturing and operational problems, many of which may be localized to particular portions of the electrodes.

Electrode structures for plasma addressed liquid crystal display devices


A system for detecting an epileptic seizure in a prone person, comprising:                at least one motion sensor with at least one measurement axis having fastening means for securing said motion sensor to said person;        first means for determining a first probability of at least a first state transition diagram of the nocturnal activity of a prone person with respect to data representing the measurement signals of the motion sensor, said first diagram comprising predetermined probabilities of oriented transitions between two different or identical states, the probabilities of the states of said first diagram being predetermined; and        second means for determining a second probability of at least a second state transition diagram for an epileptic seizure with respect to data representing the measurement signals of the motion sensor, said second diagram comprising predetermined probabilities of oriented transitions between two different or identical states, the probabilities of the states of said second diagram being predetermined.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system and method for detecting an epileptic seizure in a prone epileptic person.
Epileptic seizures are caused by dysfunctions of the brain which may be manifested in various ways. This disorder affects between 0.5% and 1% of the population. 70% of these patients can control their epileptic seizures by using antiepileptic medication. For the other 30% of patients, surgery may be envisaged to remove the epileptic region, in other words the parts of the brain that trigger these seizures, in order to ensure that the patient has no more seizures.
Many of the symptoms of an epileptic seizure are motor symptoms. These symptoms can be recorded and analyzed using various devices such as video or motion sensors, in order to determine the nature of a patient's seizure or detect a seizure for reasons of safety.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are known video processing methods for quantifying the motor activity of a patient during a seizure. For this purpose, markers are placed on the patient. The main advantage of this type of method is that cameras are already in use in most hospital rooms. The problems associated with these methods are due to the fact that it is difficult to analyze movement automatically from a two-dimensional image, and uncertainties can arise if the marker disappears from the field of view. Furthermore, these types of method can only be used in a room where a camera is available.
Another approach to the motor characterization of epileptic seizures is the use of inertial/magnetic sensors. These sensors have made it possible to extract relevant data concerning human movements by the processing of multidimensional signals. Many applications have thus been developed using these low-cost, non-invasive sensors. The best-known of these is undoubtedly the analysis of posture and walk, as described for example in "A magnetometer-based approach for studying human movements", by S. Bonnet and R. Heliot, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 54, no. 7, 2007, which proposes a 3D magnetometer-based process for the real-time evaluation of an inclination of the body to detect movements such as a change of position from seated to standing. The characterization of movements caused by neurological factors has also been investigated: for example, accelerometers have been used for Parkinson's disease and the detection of hand tremors, as described, respectively, in "The measuring set and signal processing method for the characterization of human hand tremor," by A. Chwaleba, J. Jakubowski and K. Kwiatos, CADSM, 2003, and "Triaxial accelerometry: a method for quantifying tremor and ataxia," by J. D. Frost, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 25, no. 49, 1978.In relation to epilepsy, the documents, "The potential value of 3d accelerometry for detection of motor seizures in severe epilepsy," by T. Nijsen et al., Epilepsy and Behavior, vol. 7, 2005, and "Detection of subtle nocturnal motor activity from 3d accelerometry recordings in epilepsy patients," by T. Nijsen et al., IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 54, 2007, focus on the distinction between nocturnal movements and seizure movements. Thus sensors are attached to a patient to detect a period in which motor activity occurs. One of the assumptions of this system is that the person does not read or visit the bathroom while the system is active.
These systems are used to detect long periods of motor activity, and can therefore only operate in strictly controlled conditions; in the conditions of everyday life, their capacity to detect an epileptic seizure is very limited.

System and method for detecting an epileptic seizure in a prone epileptic person

COMMISSARIAT A L'ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ALTERNATIVES


A projectile adapted for being discharged from a suitable firing device such as a gun, slingshot, cannon and the like. The device includes a three-dimensional shaped body constructed of a foam material and which may include such as a disc shaped, conical arrow shape or spherical ball shape. A plurality of LED lighting elements are supported within the foam material body at specified locations and are visible from a surface of the body. A battery is supported within the body and electrically communicates the LED lighting elements. A switch accessibly is located upon the body and selectively engages or disengages the battery with the lighting elements and in order to provide an illuminating effect to the projectile as it is discharged from the device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to foam projectile articles. More specifically, the present invention discloses a foam projectile article of a determined shape, capable of being discharged from a gun, slingshot, cannon or the like. The projectile articles exhibit any number of light illuminating elements, such as in particular LED elements, and which provide a maximum degree of durability and impact resilience.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art is well documented with examples of foam projectile discharge articles. One example of this is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,996,564, issued to Kotowski, and which teaches a disc discharging toy including a body having a hand grip. A plurality of resilient discs are secured within a magazine mounted on the body and in a stacked position. An imparted discharge force is provided by a drive roller to expel each disk in succession from the article. Additional examples of foam discharge articles are also illustrated in reference to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,471,967 and 5,611,322, both issued to Matsuzuki et al.
U.S. Design Pat. No. 422,100, issued to Zhang, teaches a disc support for an LED light bulb design. U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,964, issued to Chin-Chien, discloses a toy gun with a helically driven reciprocating barrel. Two discs are secured in the gun barrel and a roller is rotatably supported between the discs and has three helical grooves. Three tubes are slidably extended through one of the discs and are engaged with the helical grooves of the roller such that the tubes are moved in reciprocating action when the roller is rotated. Three light bulbs are disposed in the tubes, and the tubes are made of transparent materials having different colors such that the different colors are generated through the tubes when the light bulbs are energized.
U.S. Patent Application Publication 2002/0081939, published to Hornsby et al., teaches a system and method for launching glow-in-the-dark projectiles from a projectile launcher wherein the toy comprises projectiles exposed to light prior to being launched and a firing mechanism wherein a portion of the firing mechanism is positioned with the projectile prior to being fired from the launcher. In one embodiment, the firing mechanism comprises a light for exposing the projectile to radiation prior to being fired from the gun. The present invention is further well suited for use as a toy projectile launcher wherein the toy may be used in dark or low-light areas.

Foam projectile exhibiting an illuminating element


A turbine airfoil unit is described which enables an aircraft to ascend and descend vertically. Multiple turbine airfoil units may be arranged within a large disk-like structure and thereby overcome size limitations placed on helicopters by their rotors. One or more central engines providing a flow of air under pressure relative to ambient air supplies power to one or multiple turbine airfoil units. The pressurized air from the engines is funneled into the containing disk-like structure and distributed to all turbine airfoil units encompassed therein. The supplied air acts on the turbines to rotate the airfoils and thus create lift. The lift is transmitted to the disk-like structure and to the remainder of the aircraft by bearings between the turbine airfoil unit and the containing portion of the disk-like structure. The large disk-like structure is known in the popular culture as a flying saucer.

When an airfoil of appropriate design is moved through air, lift is provided to the airfoil and thereby to any structure attached thereto. In an airplane, the wings as well as other parts are such airfoils. The forward motion of the airplane provides the relative motion between airfoils and surrounding air. In a helicopter, the rotor blades are the airfoils that provide the lift. The helicopter engine turns a shaft which rotates the rotor blades providing lift. In the present invention the airfoils which provide lift are contained in a cylinder which rotates, thereby causing the airfoils to rotate. The cylinder is made to rotate by the passage of air through that portion of the cylinder which constitutes a circumferential turbine. The energized air is supplied by a piston engine turning a propeller, or a turboprop engine, or a turbofan engine, or a turbojet engine. The energized air so supplied is funneled by means of a cowling into a disk-like structure which distributes the energized air so supplied to each turbine of the turbine airfoil devices described. Vertical takeoff, flight, and landing is thus possible. The size of a helicopter is limited by the strength of the rotor shaft structures against centrifugal forces and by the velocity of the rotor tip relative to the speed of sound. Some helicopters have two rotors, but practical limits to increasing the size of vertical takeoff and landing craft utilizing current technology have been reached. Also the differential lift of helicopter blades relative to the air when the helicopter is in forward flight limits the speed of helicopters. The present invention overcomes these limitations by providing for multiple units to be assembled in a large air distributing disk. One or two central engines may provide the energized air needed for all the turbines in all the turbine airfoil units utilized. No shafting or gearing is required to translate the power of the central engines to each of the turbine airfoil units that provide lift. The increased weight required by the disk-like structure and turbines compared to rotors turned by a central shaft as in a helicopter is offset by the increased forward speed capabilities and by the ability of the invention to be scaled up to very large aircraft. The invention thereby makes real a branch of powered flight that has previously been only fanciful, the flying saucers.


The present invention provides methods of treating multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes mellitus and other autoimmune diseases by administering a soluble immune response suppressor (SIRS) peptide or a variant thereof to an individual having such disease. The SIRS peptide or variant reduces the severity of or frequency of relapse of multiple sclerosis and reduces the inflammation associated with multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of immunology. More specifically, the present invention relates to the uses of soluble immune response suppressor (SIRS) in the treatment of multiple sclerosis or other autoimmune diseases.
2. Description of the Related Art
Supernatant fluids from murine spleen cell cultures incubated with concanavalin A for 48 hours contain a factor, soluble immune response suppressor (SIRS), which suppressed plaque-forming cell responses to sheep erythrocytes in vitro (Tadakuma et al., 1976). Soluble immune response suppressor is non-dialyzable destroyed by high temperatures, pH 2, trypsin, chymotrypsin and absorbed by spleen and thymus which is suggestive of a glycoprotein. Supernatant fluids with the soluble immune response suppressor activity contained macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). The cellular site of action of the soluble immune response suppressor appeared to be the macrophage (Tadakuma et al., 1976; Aune et al., 1981). Exposure of splenic or peritoneal exudate macrophages to soluble immune response suppressor suppressed antibody responses by untreated splenic lymphoid cells, whereas exposure of splenic lymphoid cells to soluble immune response suppressor was without effect.
Animal modeling using the soluble immune response suppressor also showed anti-autoimmune effects. Young NZB/W mice treated with injections of soluble immune response suppressor of supernatant from mouse spleen cells exposed to concanavalin A showed decreased immunoglobin levels, less antibody to cell nuclei, less proteinuria and less renal pathology as compared with NZB/W mice receiving a control preparation. Soluble immune response suppressor administration beginning at an early age appears to be an effective therapy of the autoimmune disorder in NZB/W mice (Krakauer et al., 1977).
A comparable soluble immune response suppressor system also appears to function in humans. Human polyclonal plaque-forming cell responses by concanavalin A, leukocyte interferon or by suppressor cells activated by these agents is preventable by levamisole, ascorbic acid, catalase, or 2-mercaptoethanol, agents known to interfere with murine soluble immune response suppressor activity. Furthermore, concanavalin A, immune interferon, and leukocyte interferon induced T lymphocytes releases proteins which suppressed immune responses.
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells and OKT8 positive T suppressor cells incubated with human IFN-α decreased pokeweed mitogen-stimulated polyclonal immunoglobin production and inhibited proliferation in mixed lymphocyte cultures. Suppression mediated by these cells was prevented by catalase, ascorbic acid, and 2-mercaptoethanol. These results suggest that IFN-α activated suppressor T cells in human peripheral blood mononuclear cell cultures have certain similarities to IFN-β or to concanavalin A-activated murine suppressor T cells (Schnaper et al., 1983). The similarities between these human suppressor factors and murine soluble immune response suppressor show the existence of a human soluble immune response suppressor pathway. (Schnaper et al., 1984)
Soluble immune response suppressor appears to be a generalized immunomodulatory molecule. IL-1-induced leukocytosis was inhibited or blocked in a dose-dependent manner by soluble immune response suppressor when administered intravenously to CBA mice. An antipyric activity of soluble immune response suppressor was observed in rabbits injected intravenously with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (Zimecki et al., 1990). Soluble immune response suppressor given intravenously in one or two doses markedly reduced LPS-induced fever. Soluble immune response suppressor is a selective inhibitor of IL-1 activity with respect to T and B cells, rendering them unresponsive to IL-1 activation and/or maturation signals without reversing inhibition of autologous rosette formation induced by factors such as IL-4.
Chronic schistosomiasis mansoni is a helminthic infection characterized by cell-mediated anti-egg granulomatous reactions and a variety of associated immunoregulatory phenomena. There is a strong association between the presence of the soluble immune response suppressor in the serum, the production of the soluble immune response suppressor by intact lesions, and the chronic, immunomodulated stage of schistosomiasis mansoni. The presence of urinary soluble immune response suppressor suggest a possible role for soluble immune response suppressor in the suppressed immune responses often found in nephrotic syndrome with a striking correlation between detection of soluble immune response suppressor and the presence of steroid-responsive nephrotic syndrome.
Delayed Type Hypersensivity (DTH) responses to footpad injection of sheep red blood cells (SRBC) also was inhibited by soluble immune response suppressor. The action of putative regulatory cells to mixed lymphocyte cultures was blocked by antiserum to the N-terminal sequence of soluble immune response suppressor. Mice immunized with alloantigen developed two populations of suppressor cells, one of which is antigen nonspecific and inhibitable by anti-soluble immune response antigen nonspecific and inhibitable by anti-soluble immune response suppressor. Soluble immune response suppressor or soluble immune response suppressor-like proteins are produced during various diseases associated with suppressed immune responsiveness including acquired immune deficiency syndrome, schistosomiasis, and nephrotic syndrome. These data suggest that soluble immune response suppressor may have an important physiological role in regulating immune responses and cell division in general (Aune et al., 1982; Aune et al, 1985; Schnaper et al., 1985).
Three biologically active species of soluble immune response suppressor (SIRS) have been isolated at pH7, pH6, and pH5, SIRS-a7, SIRS-a6, and SIRS-a5, respectively, with nearly identical molecular weights of 11,000, when subjected to molecular sieve chromatography. The molecular basis for these isoforms is not clear yet, but it is consistent with earlier studies showing two separate messenger RNA species coding for soluble immune response suppressor (Webb et al., 1985). Soluble immune response suppressor requires a divalent metal ion, probably ferrous iron, for activity, suggesting that soluble immune response suppressor is also a metalloprotein (Schnaper et al, 1989).
Although the complete sequence of soluble immune response suppressor protein is not known, a putative N-terminal 21 amino acid sequence has been obtained for one of the less hydrophobic isoforms, soluble immune response suppressor-a7 (SIRS-a7). The sequence of SIRS-a7 is unique in mammals, but shows a remarkable homology to the family of short neurotoxins, e.g., short neurotoxin 1, found in sea snake, adder, and cobra species. A synthetic polypeptide based on the 21-residue sequence was also prepared and coupled to thyroglobulin or keyhole limpet hemocyanin to prepare rabbit antisera that neutralizes soluble immune response suppressor bioactivity and precipitate soluble immune response suppressor (Webb et al., 1990). Antisera specific for this sequence blocks the suppressive activity of Con A- or IFN-activated suppressor cells (Devens et al., 1988).
There is no conclusive indication from the prior art that soluble immune response suppressor or the putative N-terminal peptide or any variant thereof has therapeutic properties against multiple sclerosis or other autoimmune diseases. Specifically, the prior art is deficient in methods of using soluble immune response suppressor or the N-terminal peptide or any variant thereof as a therapeutic immunomodulator of multiple sclerosis or other autoimmune diseases. The present invention fulfills this long-standing need and desire in the art.

Soluble immune response suppressor polypeptides and treatment of multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases

THE BOARD OF REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SYSTEM


Methods are provided for the preparation of a sample using a digital microfluidic platform and the optional subsequent mass analysis of an extracted analyte. A sample is dried, optionally on a solid phase support, and contacted with digital microfluidic array. An analyte present within the dried sample is extracted into an extraction solvent by electrically addressing the digital microfluidic array to transport a droplet of extraction solvent to the dried sample spot. The extracted sample may be dried and subsequently processed on the digital micro fluidic array for derivatization. The digital microfluidic device may further include an integrated microfluidic channel having an output aperture, and the method may further include contacting a droplet containing extracted analyte with the microfluidic channel and applying a suitable electric field for generating nano-electrospray, thereby enabling the device to be directly interacted with a mass analysis device.

This invention relates to methods of processing of dried samples for subsequent analysis. Blood samples stored as dried blood spots have emerged as a useful sampling and storage vehicle for clinical and pharmaceutical analysis in a wide range of applications. For example, the Newborn Screening Ontario facility at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario evaluates dried blood spot samples from approximately 140,000 babies each year for 28 inherited diseases. In each screening test, a dried blood spot sample is collected and then mailed to facility for analysis by tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). Unfortunately, this technique is slowed by an extensive sample preparation regimen (including excision/punching, extraction, evaporation, resolubilization, and derivatization), and in addition, high-throughput screening typically requires robotic sample handling.
The success of dried blood spot sampling and MS/MS for newborn screening has led to a surge in popularity for similar techniques for a wide spectrum of applications in clinical labs and the pharmaceutical industry. Dried blood spot sampling methods allow for the collection of small amounts of sample and are convenient for long-term storage and cataloguing. MS/MS methods allow for the unambiguous identification and quantification of many different analytes in a single shot.
Unfortunately, the throughput and turn-around-time associated with this technique are problematic as a result of time-consuming sample preparation. In particular, the off-line sample preparation of blood spots on filter paper necessitates the labor intensive and time consuming steps of extraction via centrifugation, in which the analyte is obtained in a supernatant. Furthermore, the maintenance of instruments (sample preparation robots and mass spectrometers) and plumbing (capillary tubes and associated connections) requires many hours of laboratory-time, which reduces the throughput of such analyses. In addition, the costs are magnified by the scale of operation (for example, nearly 150,000 samples are processed a year in Ontario alone).

Method of processing dried samples using digital microfluidic device

The Governing Council of the University of Toronto


A configurable method and apparatus for implementing the various large memory instances commonly found in a user's design in a hardware logic emulation system is disclosed. No external boards or systems are required to implement typical memory instances. The method and apparatus sorts the memory instances in the user's input design, packing as many memory instances as possible into a physical RAM on the emulation boards. The method also counts the number of physical RAMs necessary to implement the plurality of memory instances. The method maps the memory instances into physical RAMs, and routes the address, data and control signals and controller circuit into a programmable logic chip.

Hardware emulation systems are devices designed for verifying electronic circuit designs prior to fabrication as chips or printed circuit boards. These systems are typically built from programmable logic chips (logic chips) and programmable interconnect chips (interconnect chips). The term "chip" as used herein refers to integrated circuits. Examples of logic chips include reprogrammable logic circuits such as field-programmable gate arrays ("FPGAs"), which include both off-the-shelf products and custom products. Examples of interconnect chips include reprogrammable FPGAs, multiplexer chips, crosspoint switch chips, and the like. Interconnect chips can be either off-the-shelf products or custom designed. Examples of emulation systems are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,109,353 to Sample et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,473 to Butts et al., both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Emulation systems are often used to verify large and complex designs for integrated circuit chips in which more than half of the transistors that will be used in the design are used to implement various memories in the user's design. These memories are also called memory instances. A comprehensive strategy for implementing memory in an emulation system is important to enhance usability of the emulation system and maximize the effective gate capacity of the emulation system. These memory instances that are present in integrated circuit designs have various depths, widths and varying numbers of read and write ports. Memories are typically classified by the number of memory locations they have (often referred to as the "depth" of the memory) and by the number of bits they can store in each location (often referred to as the "width" of the memory). For example, a memory circuit having thirty-two locations with each location containing eight bits and having two read ports and one write port would be called a thirty-two by eight, two Read, one Write port memory. The depth and width form the geometry of a memory instance. The number of read and write ports form the functionality of a memory instance.
Integrated circuit RAMs (also called RAM chips) are available in two common types; static and dynamic. A static RAM consists essentially of internal flip-flops that store the binary information, together with various decoding and encoding circuits. A dynamic RAM stores the binary information in the form of electric charges that are applied to capacitors. Dynamic RAMs also have various decoding and encoding circuits. These types of RAM integrated circuits have a fixed depth and width and typically have only a single read and write port. Therefore, they have disadvantages when directly emulating the various types of RAM instances commonly found in an integrated circuit or system design. For example, the architecture of a fixed RAM cannot be changed to implement a different design.
Prior art emulation systems implemented memory instances in one of two ways. Small memories were implemented using the memory resources present in the programmable logic chips that are a component of the emulator. These logic chips commonly have flip-flops and small static memories which can be combined in various ways to implement the memory instances found in a user's design. Larger memories were implemented using external boards or systems containing many static or dynamic RAM chips together with additional logic for routing address and data signals. An example of such a memory system is the CMM (Configurable Memory Module) available from Quickturn Design Systems, Inc. of Mountain View, Calif. These external boards or systems, however, are expensive and have only limited configurability. This makes it difficult to implement the large variety of memory instances commonly found in a user's design. Also, a large number of interconnect resources such as cables, switching chips and printed circuit board traces are required to interconnect the large number of signals required for a memory instance into the portion of the user's design residing in the emulation system. In addition, speed of the emulation system was typically limited by the inevitable delay resulting from the use of these interconnect resources.
Emulating multi-port memories adds additional difficulties. An example of a prior art method of implementing multi-port memories can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,448,522 to Huang, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Thus, there is a need for a configurable method for implementing, in an emulation system, a variety of large memory instances commonly found in a user's design while making no substantial changes to emulation hardware and without the need for external hardware such as memory boards. Such a variety includes memory instances which have both large and small geometries, and a variable number of read and write ports.

Method and apparatus for configurable memory emulation


It is an object of the present invention to provide a compressor that has a simple structure, produces a damping effect and improves aerodynamic performance.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a compressor.
2. Description of the Related Art
A compressor undergoes a large pressure load on the high-pressure side, while a blade is subject to vibration stress because of an exciting force resulting from possible irregular pressure variations occurring at the time of start-up.
For this reason, the following structure as described in e.g. JP-2007-193293-A has generally been employed. In a stator blade single-body where an outer shroud and an inner shroud are integrally formed, a plurality of stator blades adjacent circumferentially to each other are held with bolts by use of a seal holder. The seal holder is axially-halved and has a circumferential length of the inner shroud. In this way, rigidity is increased to improve damping relative to blade vibration.

Abstract: In a compressor including stator blades 4 circumferentially mounted to an inner circumferential surface side of a casing 6 forming a annular path; and an inner barrel 7 supported by the casing and arranged on the radially inside of the stator blade as a partition wall on the radial side of the annular path; the stator blade includes an outer shroud 10 mounted to an inner circumferential surface of the casing at a position facing the inner barrel, and an inner shroud 11 supporting a blade portion at an inner diameter side, the inner shroud being disposed in an annular groove formed in an outer circumferential surface of the inner barrel facing the inner shroud. The stator blade including the outer shroud 10, the inner shroud 11 and the blade portions 9 are formed in a monolithic structure by milling.


An electronic camera displays thumbnails corresponding to source files such as motion picture image files in one window. An operator intuitively performs simple operations on the thumbnails displayed in the window and corresponding source files by selecting, editing and rearranging the thumbnails within the window using drag and drop operations and a menu containing editing options. The operator can use a mouse or a touch screen to perform the drag and drop operations and to select editing options from the menu.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a source file editing apparatus that allows the operator to edit source files, selected as an object for editing, with a simple operation. In particular, the source file editing apparatus allows the operator to display image files as thumbnails on the display screen and to edit the desired image files through an intuitive operation only on the thumbnail display screen. For the purpose of this invention, "editing" is an operation of combining a plurality of files, which are selected as objects of editing, to create a single file. Existing pre-editing files may be replaced by a newly created file. Alternatively, existing files may be maintained while creating a new file through editing. Source files include any file that can be an object of editing, regardless of the pattern or substance of the information contained therein. However, the invention will be described using the example of an image file, for the purpose of simplifying the explanation.
2. Description of Related Art
Currently, image editing software is used for executing high-level image editing on a personal computer. Such software includes, for example, Premiere (manufactured by Adobe, U.S.A.). FIG. 20 shows an image editing screen using a conventional motion picture image editing software. The operator edits the motion picture image on the display area 51. The operator selects the motion picture image file that he wishes to edit from the storage medium through the menu bar 52.
A list of the selected motion picture image files is displayed in the window 53. The operator selects every motion picture image file that he wishes to edit one by one from the motion picture image file list 57. The contents of the motion picture image file selected in the window 53 are displayed on the image display window 54.
One by one, the operator repeatedly selects, by dragging-and-dropping motion picture image files from the window 53 for the time table 56. The operator can reproduce, stop, store or paste the selected motion picture image files through the control buttons 55. In this way, the operator edits a plurality of motion picture image files so that the motion picture image files are arranged in a time sequential order on the time table 56 and are continuously reproduced in the time sequential order when viewed as a motion picture.
Image editing with a conventional image editor (editing software), required a manipulation such as pasting the motion picture image reproduced on the image display window 54 to the time table 56 using the control buttons 55. The operator had to simultaneously display two or more windows on the display area 51. Thus, with such a conventional image editing software, it was difficult for the operator to perform image editing on a small-sized display screen.
When conventional technology is used to realize a small, portable source file editing apparatus, each displayed window is extremely small, which makes it difficult to distinguish the outline of the image. Accordingly, it is difficult for the operator to identify the images displayed in the windows. Moreover, since the window 53 that displays the motion picture image file list 57 is also very small, an operator will have difficulty quickly selecting an image file from the motion picture image file list 57. Furthermore, if a touch panel is used for selection of motion picture image files, the small size of the display windows in the display area 51 will prevent the operator from quickly selecting a desired image file because the tip of the operator's finger is large relative to the window area on the display screen.
Still further, in conventional image editing software, because editing is performed using many windows, it takes time for the operator to learn the editing operations. Conventional image editing software is complicated and can therefore be troublesome for operators, especially beginners, to skillfully use a multitude of windows.


The invention relates to an iron having a metal soleplate, which is provided with an anti-friction layer containing an inorganic polymer. To improve the scratch resistance of the anti-friction layer, a hard intermediate layer is provided between the predominantly aluminum part of the soleplate facing the anti-friction layer and the anti-friction layer.. This intermediate layer is preferably composed of aluminum oxide which is provided by means of an electrochemical treatment. The use of polymerized alkyl trialkoxysilane, in particular methyl trimethoxysilane, in the anti-friction layer makes it possible to obtain layers which are thicker and hence more scratch-resistant. In such layers, oxidic nano-particles and inorganic color pigments may be incorporated, which cause a further increase of the scratch resistance.

The invention relates to an iron having a metal soleplate, which is provided with an anti-friction layer containing an inorganic polymer. The invention also relates to a soleplate having an anti-friction layer which is suitable for use in an iron.
An iron of the type mentioned in the opening paragraph is known per se, for example, from European Patent Application EP-640,714 and its equivalent U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,765, commonly assigned with this application. Said patent application (and U.S. patent) more specifically describes an iron which is provided with a stainless steel soleplate, which is coated with a thin anti-friction layer of polysilicate. This anti-friction layer can be applied from a solution by means of a sol-gel technique.
It has been found that, under certain conditions, the scratch resistance of the anti-friction layer of the known iron is sub-optimal. For example, if use is made of an aluminum soleplate, the scratch resistance of the anti-friction layer is not satisfactory. It has been found that fractures can develop in the anti-friction layer if the anti-friction layer of such an iron is moved over sharp objects and, simultaneously, a pressure is exerted on it.


A head carriage apparatus includes a head carriage including a head being placed onto a disk for recording and reproducing information on the disk and having an extension and a connecting portion formed on the extension integrally with the head carriage, a lead-screw shaft having a lead screw in which a thread ridge and a thread groove are formed, the connecting portion being fitted in the thread groove of the lead screw, a drive part for driving and rotating the lead-screw shaft so that the head carriage is moved in a radial direction of the disk parallel to an axial direction of the lead-screw shaft, a guide shaft for guiding movement of the head carriage in a direction parallel to the radial direction of the disk, the head carriage being supported by the guide shaft at two supporting positions being located apart from each other in axial direction of the guide shaft, and a resilient part for pressing the lead-screw shaft in a direction facing the head carriage, the resilient part being fixed at one end onto the head carriage, the other end of the resilient part being brought into contact with the lead-screw shaft at a position corresponding with respect to the axial direction of the lead-screw shaft to a position at which the connecting portion is fitted in the thread groove of the lead-screw shaft. One of the two supporting points of the guide shaft is displaced to a forwardly moved point in order to downsize a disk drive unit in which the head carriage apparatus is accommodated.

The present invention generally relates to a head carriage apparatus, and more particularly to a head carriage apparatus in which a head carriage is driven and moved by rotation of a lead-screw shaft and the movement of the head carriage is guided by a guide shaft.
A head carriage in a head carriage apparatus is driven and moved by rotation of a lead-screw shaft for recording and reproducing information on a disk by mans of a head carried by the head carriage. A description of this head carriage apparatus will be given by referring to FIGS. 1 and 2. In FIG. 1, a head carriage apparatus 1 includes a head carriage 10 carrying a head 11, a guide shaft 5 for guiding movement of the head carriage 10 in a direction as indicated by an arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1, and a drive part 4 having a lead-screw shaft 2 which is coupled to the head carriage 10 and a stepping motor 3 which rotates the lead-screw shaft 2 so as to move the head carriage 10 in the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1. The guide shaft 5 is fixed to a disk unit (not shown) which is provided separately from the head carriage 10. The lead-screw shaft 2 is threaded so as to form a lead screw including a thread ridge 2b and a thread groove 2a on the threaded part of the lead-screw shaft 2.
This head carriage 10 has a carriage body 15 which is provided with an extension 12 extending transversely from a left-hand rear end of the carriage body 15 so that the extension 12 is brought in contact with a top of the lead-screw shaft 2, as shown in FIG. 2. This extension 12 is formed integrally with the head carriage 10 through a molding process of synthetic resin, and includes a downwardly projecting connecting portion 13 on bottom of the extension 12. The connecting portion 13 is fitted in the thread groove 2a of the lead-screw shaft 2 so as to apply a drive force from the thread ridge 2b to the connecting portion 13 of the carriage body 15 in a direction perpendicular to a flank of the threaded part of the lead-screw shaft 2 when the lead-screw shaft 2 is rotated. The axial direction of the lead-screw shaft 2 substantially accords with the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1.
The carriage body 15 of the head carriage lo is provided on the opposite side (the right-hand side thereof) with a guide portion 16 extending longitudinally in parallel to the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1, and this guide portion 16 is inserted into and guided by the guide shaft 5 in the axial direction of the guide shaft 5. Therefore, the head carriage 10 is moved in the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1, by the above drive force exerted by the lead-screw shaft 2 when the shaft 2 is rotated.
The above movement of the head carriage 10 in the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 is guided by the guide shaft 5 and supported at two supporting portions 16a and 16b of the guide portion 16. In order to stabilize this movement of the head carriage 10 in the direction as indicated by the arrow X1 or X2 in FIG. 1, the supporting portions 16a and 16b of the guide portion 16 are arranged apart from each other by an appropriate distance Lab which is large enough for stable movement of the head carriage 10. An intermediate portion of the guide portion 16 between the supporting portions 16a and 16b is formed into a hollow part.
As apparent in from FIG. 2, the head carriage 10 is provided with a leaf spring 14 on the bottom of the carriage body 15, and this leaf spring 14 is fixed at one end portion thereof to the carriage body 15 by means of a machine screw 17. The other end of the leaf spring 14 is a free end and the leaf spring 14 at this free end is brought into contact with an outer peripheral surface of the lead-screw shaft 2. The leaf spring 14 serves to apply an upwardly biasing force to the lead-screw shaft 2 against the extension 12 of the carriage body 15. In accordance with the upwardly biasing force by the leaf spring 14, a downward force from the connecting portion 13 is exerted onto the lead-screw shaft 2 against the leaf spring 14, thus preventing the connecting portion 13 from being easily separated from the thread groove 2a of the lead-screw shaft 2. As described above, the head carriage 10 of the conventional apparatus is supported by the guide shaft 5 at two supporting points A and B, corresponding to the supporting portions 16a and 16b of the guide portion 16, and also supported by the lead-screw shaft 2 at a supporting point C, corresponding to the connecting portion 13 of the carriage body 15.
Recently, downsizing a disk drive unit in which the above described head carriage apparatus is accommodated is becoming important for a manufacturer of disk drive products. One attempt to downsize a disk drive unit can be made by changing the relative position of a connector 13 in the disk drive unit, as shown in FIG. 3A, into a position, as shown in FIG. 3B. For this purpose the relative position of the guide portion 16 provided within the head carriage apparatus must be changed or displaced into the relative position shown in FIG. 3B. In the head carriage apparatus shown in FIG. 3B, the supporting point B of the guide portion 16 is moved to a position which is located on the same side as the supporting point A with respect to a line D passing through the supporting point C and being perpendicular to the axial line of the guide shaft 5. On the other hand, in the head carriage apparatus shown in FIG. 3A, the supporting point B is located on the side opposite to the supporting point A with respect to the perpendicular line D.
In the case in which the supporting point B of the guide portion of the head carriage is simply moved in a forward direction to the position, as shown in FIG. 3B, for downsizing the disk drive unit, there is a problem in that the head carriage is slightly rotated around an axis perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the head carriage and the head is erroneously placed at a position deviating from an intended accurate position relative to the disk. This may cause a malfunction to occur in the disk recording and reproducing performed by the disk drive unit.

Head carriage apparatus moved by a lead-screw shaft including resilient means for pressing the lead-screw shaft in a slanting direction toward the head carriage


A method of manufacturing an electronic circuit with an integrally formed capability of providing information indicative of a value of a current flowing in the electronic circuit, wherein the method comprises forming an electrically conductive wiring structure on a substrate, configuring a first section of the wiring structure for contributing to a predefined use function of the electronic circuit, and configuring a second section of the wiring structure for providing information indicative of the value of the current flowing in the electronic circuit upon applying a stimulus signal to the second section, wherein at least a part of the configuring of the first section and the configuring of the second section is performed simultaneously.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods of manufacturing an electronic circuit with a capability of providing information indicative of a value of a current flowing in the electronic circuit, to electronic circuits, and to a method of use.
2. Description of the Related Art
In electronics, a shunt denotes an electronic member with a defined value of the electrical resistance which performs a measurement of an electric current in an electronic circuit. The current which flows through a shunt causes a proportional voltage drop which can be measured.
Conventionally, shunts are mounted as separate electronic members onto a wiring on a substrate of an electronic circuit. This consumes a lot of cost, space and involves a high complexity during manufacture.
Hence, there is still potentially room to reduce manufacturing cost and simplify processing of electronic circuits with a current measurement capability.

Integration of current measurement in wiring structure of an electronic circuit


An overvoltage protection device for protection of an electrical or electronic device, with a housing, with input and output terminals for electrical conductors, with line paths which each connect one input terminal to one output terminal, with first arresters which are used for symmetrical protection between the active conductors and with second arresters which are used for asymmetrical protection between the individual conductors and the ground potential, the individual first arresters each being connected by their first terminal to a line path and by their second terminal to a common connecting point so that they are at a common reference potential and symmetrical protection between two conductors is implemented by two first arresters located in series to one another. The overvoltage protection device can also be used in signal circuits with several signal conductors and can guarantee reliable protection of a connected electrical or electronic device against overvoltages.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to an overvoltage protection device for protection of an electrical or electronic device, with a housing, with input and output terminals for electrical conductors, with line paths each of which connect an input terminal to an output terminal, with first arresters which are used for symmetrical protection between the active conductors and with second arresters which are used for asymmetrical protection between the individual conductors and the ground potential, the individual first arresters each being connected by their first terminal to a line path and by their second terminal to a common connecting point so that they are at a common reference potential and symmetrical protection between two conductors is implemented by two first arresters located in series to one another. In addition, the invention relates to an overvoltage protection arrangement having at least two overvoltage protection devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Interfaces in the field of measurement, control and feedback technology are far more sensitive to overvoltages than power supply systems. Sensitivity has increased to the degree to which the use of electronic components, especially transistors and thyristors in electrical devices, installation and systems has increased. Mainly, the integrated circuits used increasingly in electrical and electronic devices are greatly endangered by transient overvoltages.
Electrical circuits and electrical devices normally work without problems using the voltage specified for them, the rated voltage. This does not apply when overvoltages occur. Overvoltages are considered to be all voltages which are above the upper tolerance limit of the rated voltage. They also include mainly transient overvoltages which can occur due to atmospheric discharges, but also due to switching operations or short circuits in power supply grids, and can be metallically, inductively or capacitively coupled into electronic circuits. In order to protect electrical or electronic circuits, especially in measurement, control and feedback technology, against transient overvoltages, overvoltage protection elements have been developed which capture or limit overvoltage peaks. They are installed generally directly upstream of the signal inputs to be protected, in order to prevent the danger of overvoltage coupling on the line path between the overvoltage protection device and signal inputs of the devices.
In electrical and electronic devices, generally, the dielectric strength of the individual lines is distinctly higher relative to ground than between the individual active lines. Moreover, since the disturbances originating from the ground potential are generally of higher energy than coupled disturbances between the lines, overvoltage protection devices for protection of electrical or electronic devices often have two different types of arresters. The first arresters are used for symmetrical protection between the active conductors and the second arresters are used for asymmetrical protection between the individual conductors and the ground potential. The arresters for symmetrical protection are generally fine protection elements, especially suppressor diodes, which are characterized by short response times in the ms range and by low limiting voltages. The arresters for asymmetrical protection are conversely often gas-filled overvoltage arresters which have high discharge capacity.
These overvoltage protection devices for the field of measurement, control and feedback technology have been sold for many years by the applicant under product names "PLUGTRAB" (compare Phoenix Contact Prospectus "Overvoltage protection TRABTECH 2007, pages 60 ff). The known overvoltage protection devices are made especially as 2-channel or 4-channel devices to which two or four signal conductors can be connected so that with them symmetrical protection only between a maximum of four signal conductors can be ensured.


There is provided an information processing apparatus, which enables cover sheets and original data to be previewed in the case where facsimile transmission data comprised of original data and cover sheets attached thereto is previewed before transmission thereof to a plurality of destinations in a manner not giving a sense of incompatibility to the conventional display method and operating method which are applied to preview of data in producing multiple prints. In a personal computer as the information processing apparatus, a spooler temporarily stores facsimile transmission data in an intermediate code format, and a despooler generates facsimile transmission data changed from the data stored in the intermediate code format. A printer driver attaches cover sheets to jobs and acquires drawing data of the cover sheets for the respective jobs, and a spool file manager controls preview display according to setting information acquired from the data stored in the intermediate code format and a preview method selected on a CRT.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing system, a preview control method, and a storage medium that stores a program for implementing the method, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus, an information processing system, and a preview control method which can be suitably applied to broadcast communication in which the same data is transmitted to a plurality of destinations by the information processing apparatus, attachment of cover sheets to original data, and edition of original data and cover sheets in a system comprised of the information processing apparatus such as a personal computer and an image processing apparatus having a facsimile communicating function, and a storage medium that stores a program for implementing the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, information processing apparatuses are known which have a preview function of displaying transmission data to be printed by a printing apparatus on a display so that a user can review the data before transmission thereof. The transmission data is usually previewed as one-copy data irrespective of the number of prints produced from one page. The reason why the transmission data is previewed as one-copy data is that the same printing process as in one-copy printing in which the same page is printed in one copy is merely repeated in multiple-copy printing in which one page is printed in a plurality of copies so that confirmation of date for one copy suffices. Another reason is that preview of the transmission data as one-copy data prevents a user from being confused by a change in the number of previewed pages according to the number of prints.
The above prior art, however, has a problem as described below. A cover sheet is usually attached to transmission data in the case where data supplied from an information processing apparatus to an apparatus having a data transmitting function is transmitted to a destination via a communication medium. The prior art has a problem encountered when a cover sheet is thus attached to transmission data. Namely, when the same data is transmitted by broadcast communication, i.e. transmitted to a plurality of destinations, there is a case that the same original data are transmitted to destinations while different cover sheets are attached to the original data according to the destinations.
The case that different cover sheets according to destinations are transmitted includes, for example, a case where destination names are put on the cover sheets. In this case, the same data is not repeatedly transmitted to the destinations, but different cover sheets are attached to the data according to the destinations. That is, different data are transmitted to the respective destinations by adding cover sheet data to transmission data. The prior art cannot deal with this case, and only transmission data is previewed irrespective of the contents of cover sheets as is the case with multiple-page printing, and therefore, the entire data comprised of transmission data and cover sheets cannot be reviewed before transmission thereof.

Information processing apparatus and system having preview control, and method thereof, and storage medium storing program for implementing the method