The invention provides methods of operating thermal equipment, for example, gas turbines and methods for protecting hot parts of thermal equipment from, for example, corrosion by ash from an alkali metal or from lead; fouling by ash of an alkaline-earth metal, lead or a transition metal; and the combined effects of an alkali metal, lead, an alkaline-earth metal or a transition metal.

In what follows, gas turbines are taken as reference thermal equipment and the following terminology is adopted:                the term "combustion fluid" refers to any liquid or gaseous fluid which is introduced into the combustion chamber of the thermal equipment, which category includes: (i) liquid or gaseous fuels and, by extension, fuels employed in particulate form, such as pulverized coal or sawdust, which may be injected under pressure into the combustion chambers and the physico-chemical characteristics of the combustion of which are similar to those of fluid fuels; (ii) the oxidizer (or combustion air) and (iii) certain auxiliary fluids such as: atomizing air, used to spray the liquid fuel into the combustion chamber; a fluid possibly used to introduce a combustion additive; water or steam possibly used to obtain particular effects, such as a reduction in NOx emissions ("deNOx steam or water") or an increase in power of the turbine;        the term "firing temperature" of a gas turbine refers not to the temperature within the flames but that of the combustion gases at their entry into the expansion turbine. This is a particularly important design parameter of gas turbines as it determines the maximum efficiency thereof;        the "hot parts" of thermal equipment are the components placed in the hot gas stream and comprise, in particular: the walls of the combustion chamber and its components, the combustion gas ducts and, depending on the type of equipment, the expansion turbine, the cylinders and pistons, tubes and walls of heat exchangers, etc. For example, in third-generation gas turbines, the firing temperature of which may reach 1400° C., the hottest parts are the components of the combustion system and of the expansion turbine, and mainly the parts of the first stage: stationary blades ("inlet guide vanes") and moving blades ("rotor blades"). Metallurgical constraints dictate that these components be internally cooled so that their skin temperature (i.e. the temperature of their walls) is below that of the combustion gases. In general, the temperatures to which the walls of the hot parts are exposed depend on many factors, among which are the type of equipment, its design (types of materials; presence or absence of internal cooling and surface heat shields) and its operating conditions. The temperature level may be considered to be between 800 and 950° C.;        "traces" denote residual concentrations of certain elements introduced into the combustion chamber;        "corrosive metals" comprise, in the present context, alkali metals (in particular Na and K) and lead, the ash of which causes, as primary effect, high-temperature corrosion of metal alloys; their ash and their deposits will also be termed "corrosive";        "fouling metals" or "Mf" essentially comprise alkaline-earth metals (particularly: Ca and Mg) and certain transition metals (particularly Cu, Ni and Zn), the ash of which tends to be deposited on the hot parts and to cause, as primary effect, fouling phenomena, i.e. the appearance and progressive growth of layers of hard deposits adhering to the hot parts; their ash and their deposits will also be termed "fouling"; lead also belongs to the category of fouling metals; and        "deleterious metals" comprise corrosive metals and fouling metals; their ash and their deposits will also be termed "deleterious".
In thermal equipment, the combustion fluids often contain traces of certain deleterious metals which threaten, depending on the case, the metallurgical integrity of said equipment (in the case of corrosive metals), their energy performance (in the case of fouling metals) or both these aspects at the same time (in the presence of both types of metals). In particular, it should be stressed that the materials balance of deleterious metals must be considered within the combustion gases in which the hot parts are located or, which is equivalent, in the combustion chamber where the potentially contaminated combustion fluids are mixed together.
Among corrosive metals are alkali metals: traces of sodium and potassium are frequently conveyed by the combustion fluids, particularly by a liquid fuel or by "deNOx water", the traces usually being in the form of chlorides. In the flames, these chlorides react with sulphur brought by the fuel or the ambient air, so as to form the corresponding alkali metal sulphates, namely Na2SO4 and K2SO4. In the molten state, alkali metal sulphates constitute electrolytic media that are highly aggressive with respect to metal alloys and are capable of corroding those portions of hot parts on which they are deposited and remain for a long enough time. The melting point ("Tm") of pure Na2SO4 is for example 884° C., which temperature, as will be indicated below, may greatly decrease in the presence of other metal salts. In addition, it should be noted that liquid films of alkali metal sulphates are relatively fluid and therefore tend to flow along the walls under the effect of the gas streams that permanently sweep the hot parts. This reduces their chance of being lastingly attached to defined metal portions so that the cases of high-temperature corrosion are less frequent than if these films were to be stationarily attached to the same metal portions. Moreover, molten alkali metal sulphates have a non-negligible vapour pressure at high temperature, so that their deposition on the hottest parts (for example those of the first stage of an advanced-technology gas turbine) may be reduced by this vaporization phenomenon. However, in this case, sulphates are deposited on other parts, located further downstream, which are less hot.
The types of corrosion caused by alkali metal sulphates are usually called "type I" or "type II" high-temperature corrosion depending on their mechanism. In type I corrosion, the metal attack is uniform, with no pitting formation, whereas type II corrosion is characterized by the appearance of surface pitting and by the existence of an "induction period" before manifestation of the corrosion. This induction period corresponds to the pitting incubation time, which is shorter the more aggressive the medium and the lower the intrinsic resistance of the alloy, determined in particular by its chromium content.
Apart from the primary factors formed by the temperature and the alkali metal content in the combustion gases, other parameters are involved in type I or type II corrosion rates. Two factors are particularly important, as the Inventors have observed:                the SOx (i.e. SO2 and SO3) concentration in the combustion gases—increasing this concentration accelerates the corrosion and in particular shortens the induction period that precedes the appearance of pitting in type II corrosion; and        the type of alloy: in fact, two main types of superalloys are used in the construction of gas turbines, namely, on the one hand, alloys called "chromia-forming alloys" developed in the 1960s and 1970s and typically used in the form of polycrystalline alloys in first- and second-generation turbines, these chromia-forming alloys developing, on their surfaces, passivation layers rich in chromium oxide (Cr2O3) which protect, within certain limits, the substrate from attack by molten sulphates and, on the other hand, so-called "alumina-forming" alloys which were developed more recently and are being used increasingly often in the fowl of single-crystal alloys in third-generation gas turbines, which have very high firing temperatures, these alumina-forming alloys developing surface layers rich in alumina which give them, compared with chromia-forming alloys, enhanced hot refractory and mechanical properties, but they have a much lower resistance to high-temperature corrosion.
With regard to fouling, several types of metals have effects to various degrees:                traces of calcium and magnesium generate calcium sulphate (anhydrite: CaSO4) ash and magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) ash, and also magnesium oxide (MgO), said traces generally coming from the fuel or from "deNOx water"—CaSO4 has a very pronounced fouling effect; and        traces of transition metals, which generate ash based on oxides and oxisulphates, may be provided by water contained in one of the combustion fluids. For example, the moisture contained in the combustion air or in the atomizing air could be in contact, upstream of the combustion chamber, with a galvanized or carbon steel structure, or else with a brass or cupro-nickel exchanger, and become laden with zinc, copper or nickel.
Finally, lead occupies a particular position among the deleterious metals, it being possible for lead-containing ash to have both a fouling role and a corrosive role. Traces of lead that may be encountered, albeit quite rarely, in certain fuels derived from petroleum (naphthas, gasoils) generally derive from accidental contamination by lead-containing petrol. Depending on the conditions (sulphur content of the fuel, temperature, presence or absence of alkali metals, etc.), the lead-containing ash may be fusible (the most general case) or refractory:                pure lead sulphur (PbSO4) has a high melting point (Tm: 1075° C.) and is capable, when present in a high enough concentration, of generating fouling deposits;        nevertheless, depending on the temperature and the sulphur content of the fuel, PbSO4 usually undergoes a desulphurization process, to form a series of oxisulphates having decreasing melting points: (i) PbO—PbSO4 (Tm: 965° C.), (ii) 2PbO—PbSO4 (Tm: 932° C.), (iii) 4PbO—PbSO4 (Tm: 800° C.) and, finally, (iv) PbO (Tm: 885° C.). These phases are known for their very great corrosivity at high temperature.
Lead is therefore a metal which is both very corrosive and potentially fouling.
The fraction of ash resulting from the fouling metals, and deposited on the hot parts, undergoes a sintering phenomenon by prolonged exposure to high temperature: the deposits thus tend to become both hard and adherent, which, combined with their insolubility in water (or even their possible tendency to agglomerate and harden upon contact with water) makes them very difficult to remove and justifies their being called fouling deposits. Their main effect is the degradation in the performance of the thermal equipment, which degradation progressively increases as they accumulate, thereby resulting in: (i) a reduction in heat exchange coefficients; (ii) a deterioration in the aerodynamics of the gas flows; and (iii) in extreme cases, a reduction in hot-gas flow passage areas. It may then prove necessary for the thermal equipment to be partially dismantled, so as to manually restore its state of cleanliness and its performance.
In reality, traces of corrosive metals and fouling metals are usually present simultaneously, and secondary deleterious effects may result from a combination thereof. Firstly, attachment of anhydrite CaSO4 particles on the walls is facilitated by traces, even minute traces, of molten alkali metal sulphates. Secondly, the sulphates resulting from fouling metals (Mf) often combine with those of alkali metals (Ma) to give double sulphates of the MfSO4-Ma2SO4 type or even triple sulphates of the MfSO4-Ma2SO4-Ma′2SO4 type, which hereafter will be called "complex salts". These complex salts often have initial melting temperatures (or solidus temperatures) below the wall temperature of the hot parts, which enables them to adhere thereto.
For example:                CaSO4 (Tm˜1450° C.) forms, with Na2SO4 and K2SO4, complex salts of the (Na,K,Ca)(SO4) type, the three eutectics, two binary and one ternary, of which have the following respective compositions:
50% Na2SO4-50% CaSO4 (Tm: 916° C.);
62% K2SO4-38% CaSO4 (Tm: 867° C.) and
31% Na2SO4-29% K2SO4-40% CaSO4 (Tm˜800° C.);                MgSO4 likewise forms three eutectics:
56% Na2SO4-44% MgSO4 (Tm: 662° C.);
72.5% Na2SO4-27.5% MgSO4 (Tm: 750° C.),
13% Na2SO4-55% K2SO4-32% MgSO4 (Tm: 670° C.);                PbSO4 forms, with Na2SO4, the eutectic:
53% Na2SO4-47% PbSO4 (Tm: 730° C.);                ZnSO4 forms the eutectic:
45% Na2SO4-55% ZnSO4 (Tm: 472° C.);                NiSO4 forms the eutectic:
62% Na2SO4-38% NiSO4 (Tm: 665° C.) and                CuSO4 forms the eutectics:
53% Na2SO4-47% CuSO4 (Tm: 537° C.) and
55% K2SO4-45% CuSO4 (Tm: 460° C.).
It should be noted that, although magnesium, lead and transition metal (Cu, Zn, Ni) sulphates are of limited thermal stability and decompose into oxisulphates or oxides at high temperature, they are stabilized when they are combined with alkali metal sulphates in the above complex salts. Moreover, these combinations reduce the vapour pressure and consequently the vaporization of alkali metal sulphates and therefore tend to accentuate their corrosive effect. Finally, whereas molten alkali metal sulphates are very fluid in the pure state and tend to flow along the hot walls, these complex salts are in general viscous or even have a "pasty" consistency. Consequently, not only do they become attached more easily to the metal walls and participate in the fouling and corrosion processes, but they also play in turn the role of "adhesive" with respect to various liquid or solid particles that may strike said walls. This leads to local build-up of scoria and to aggravated fouling and/or corrosion effects. To summarize, there are secondary deleterious effects which may be termed "synergistic" and which result from physico-chemical interactions between the ash of the various deleterious metals. While alkali metal sulphates play the role of fluxing agents with respect to particles containing fouling metals, the sulphates of fouling metals play the reverse role of "thickeners" with respect to the first sulphates. Lead may itself play both these roles or act in combination with the other deleterious metals.
In what follows, "oxisulphate-containing ash" will be used, for the sake of simplification, to denote all of the following compounds: sulphates, oxisulphates, complex salts and oxides of deleterious metals present at the combustion chamber exit.
Among the drawbacks that have been described above, high-temperature corrosion has the most dangerous effects as it may lead to hot parts fracturing, which occurs not only unexpectedly but may also cause, in the case of rotating machines, a cascade of destructions resulting in very expensive repairs and lengthy down-times of the equipment.
Lead contamination is rare but may be substantial, and at the present time there exists no method of inhibiting lead-induced high-temperature corrosion.
The other deleterious metals are practically always present in the trace state and their strict absence is very difficult to ensure under industrial exploitation conditions of thermal equipment. For example, even if the operator could provide, for a certain extra-cost, a gasoil free of metal contamination, especially free of sodium, this level of purity cannot be guaranteed during the subsequent transportation phases (the problem of keeping pipelines, wagons or tankers clean) and may also become degraded in the storage tanks of the power station through the tank "breathing" effect (ingress of air as a result of variations in level and in day/night temperature cycles).
From another standpoint, biofuels consisting of either a primary biomass (wood, straw, agricultural production residues, vegetable oils obtained by trituration of oleaginous grains, etc.) or a secondary biomass (ethanol, vegetable oils methyl esters (VOME), etc.), which biomasses are having to be developed as substitutes, or as complementary fuels, for fossil fuels in various types of thermal equipment, are very often contaminated with metal. For example, in the case of a primary biomass and VOME biofuels, calcium is mainly found as fouling metal and potassium as corrosive metal. Even if the biofuels have a very low sulphur content owing to their plant origin, their sulphur contents, of the order of a few mg/kg, which are added to the residual sulphur contents provided by the ambient air, are in general sufficient to produce oxisulphate-containing ash in the flames. As a consequence, biomass combustion has potentially deleterious effects on thermal equipment, which are similar in their nature to those of fossil fuels, but with potentially more intense effects because of the higher original metal contamination levels.
There is therefore an increasing conflict between, on the one hand, the requirement—dictated by the design of thermal equipment with the highest performance, including modern gas turbines—to supply very pure and therefore expensive fuel and, on the other hand, the need to maintain operating costs at a sustainable level.
Moreover, because of the ever lower levels of metal contamination required by gas turbines of the latest generation because of their increasing firing temperatures, the problems described above may affect not only units burning liquid fuels but also those which burn very pure commercial gases and that are installed in marine or industrial atmospheres, i.e. in salt-contaminated environments, knowing that the techniques currently available for removing these salts from the air are very expensive and their efficiency is tricky to control.
With regard to corrosion by alkali metals and more particularly by sodium, the patents FR 1 207 857 from Continental Oil (1959) and U.S. Pat. No. 3,018,172 from Tillman (1962) on the one hand teach the beneficial effect provided by aluminum compounds—aluminum being termed in what follows an "active" metal—over trial times of 50 hours and, on the other hand, disclose Al/Na doses of between 2 and 6 by weight. However, the Inventors have observed that such a protection method has shortcomings in a great number of situations:
(a)—either in the case of durations greatly longer than 50 hours, corresponding in fact to industrial operating conditions of the equipment. For example, in one of the trials carried out by the Inventors, test specimens made of a nickel-based superalloy GTD111 were kept in prolonged contact at 900° C. with a sodium sulphate bath to which alumina had been added in an Al/Na mass ratio of 2.5, which specimens, after 200 hours, suffered intense pitting corrosion. This aspect could not have been observed by Tillman, the test times for which did not exceed 50 hours, which is shorter than the pitting induction period prevailing under these conditions;
(b)—or in the presence of fouling metals tending to form "complex sulphates" with alkali metal sulphates according to the mechanisms described above. For example, in another trial carried out by the Inventors, the 50% Na2SO4/50% CaSO4 eutectic mixture (Tm: 916° C.) resulted, at a temperature of 950° C., in pitting of the GTD111 test specimens more rapidly than in the absence of calcium, for the same Al/Na dosage; moreover, a highly viscous layer of the eutectic was observed to form at high temperature around the part, which, after cooling, left a highly adherent coating;
(c)—or in the presence of high SOx contents in the combustion gases (due to the high sulphur contents of the fuel). In another series of trials carried out by the Inventors, an Al/Na mass dosage of 3, which had provided effective protection of the GTD111 superalloy at 900° C. over a duration of 400 hours, for a 50 ppm SOx content, allowed pitting to develop after about 300 hours when this content was adjusted to 200 ppm; and                (d)—or, finally, in the case of alumina-forming superalloys. For example, the Inventors have observed that an Al/Na dosage of 3, which correctly protected the GTD111 alloy (containing 14% Cr and 3% Al), at 900° C., over a period of 400 hours and in the presence of 50 ppm of sulphur, gave poor results with the alumina-forming alloy N5 (containing 7.6% Cr and 6% Al) under the same conditions.
The Inventors have also observed that the sodium sulphate used during the tests is unaltered at the end of the trials, which indicates the absence of a reaction between the sulphate and the alumina used or the aluminum salt used (which releases alumina when hot).
To summarize, the Inventors' analysis of the close links between the fouling and corrosion processes at high temperature shows that it is not a question of seeking to remedy the two effects independently, but rather, on the contrary, of having to address the causes of both problems simultaneously. This simultaneous approach would be a novel approach for maintaining integrity and performance in thermal equipment.
Moreover, the work carried out by the Inventors clearly confirms the beneficial effect of aluminum in the high-temperature corrosion by alkali metal sulphates. However, it also shows that long-term protection is very difficult to achieve. In particular when the corrosive conditions of the trial are exacerbated (using either a higher SOx content or a corrosive medium containing a fouling metal) or else when a less-resistant superalloy is used, the aluminum dosage must be increased and it is difficult to define a dosage which provides protection over a long period, knowing that the corrosion trials to be carried out then become very long (and expensive) owing to an increase in the pitting induction period. The results of these studies also suggest that the permanence of the risk of pitting corrosion may be linked to the absence of a chemical reaction between the aluminum and the alkali metal sulphate, which therefore retains its corrosive properties.
Finally, no method exists at the present time for modifying the ash that enables the fouling effects of alkali-earth and transition metals to be eliminated.

Method of operating thermal equipment fed with aluminum and titanium in order to reduce high-temperature corrosion and fouling


A toner layer regulating system for an electrophotographic image forming apparatus comprises a toner carrier; a metallic toner regulating member having a stress-strain curve prior to assembly with an elastic region, an inelastic region, and an initial yield stress value; and the toner regulating member supported in cantilevered fashion against the toner carrier so as to form a toner nip therebetween with an applied stress on the toner regulating member greater than the initial yield stress value. The metallic toner regulating member may comprise a metallic substrate and a coating thereon; the coating helping to form the toner nip. By deflecting the toner regulating member, when installed, by an amount that induces strains falling outside the elastic region of the corresponding stress-strain curve, the toner regulating system is less sensitive to geometrical variances.

The present invention is directed generally to the field of electrophotographic printing, and more particularly to a flexible toner regulating member.
One step in the electrophotographic printing process typically involves providing a relatively uniform layer of toner on a toner carrier, such as a developer roller, that in turn supplies that toner to photoconductive element to develop a latent image thereon. Typically, it is advantageous if the toner layer has a uniform thickness and a uniform charge level. As is known in the art, one common approach to regulating the toner on the toner carrier is to employ a so-called doctor or metering blade. While there have been a number of doctor blade designs proposed in the art, there remains a need for alternative designs that address the special concerns of the electrophotographic development process.

Electrophotographic toner regulating member with induced strain outside elastic response region


A process for producing a semiconductor substrate is provided which comprises steps of forming a porous layer on a first substrate, forming a nonporous monocrystalline semiconductor layer on the porous layer of the first substrate, bonding the nonporous monocrystalline layer onto a second substrate, separating the bonded substrates at the porous layer, removing the porous layer on the second substrate, and removing the porous layer constituting the first substrate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for producing a semiconductor substrate. More specifically, the present invention relates to a process for producing a monocrystalline semiconductor on a dielectric-isolated or insulative material, or a monocrystalline compound semiconductor on a semiconductor substrate. Further the present invention relates to a process for producing an electronic device or an integrated circuit formed on a single crystalline semiconductor layer.
2. Related Background Art
The technique of formation of monocrystalline Si (silicon) semiconductor on an insulative material is well known as silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technique. A device prepared by the SOI technique has various advantages which are not achievable by a bulk Si substrate in usual Si integrated circuits, as noted below:
1. Ease of dielectric isolation, and possibility of high degree of integration' PA1 2. High resistance against radioactive ray; PA1 3. Low floating capacity, and the possibility of high speed operation; PA1 4. The welling process is unnecessary; PA1 5. Preventability of latch-up; and PA1 6. Possibility of producing a complete depletion type field-effect transistor to name a few. PA1 1. A first process which includes surface oxidation of a monocrystalline Si substrate, local exposure of the Si substrate by opening a window, and epitaxial growth of Si laterally from the exposed portion as the seed to form an Si layer on SiO.sub.2. (Si layer deposition on SiO.sub.2). PA1 2. A second process including SiO.sub.2 formation beneath a monocrystalline SiO.sub.2 substrate, utilizing the SiO.sub.2 substrate as the active layer. (No Si layer deposition). PA1 1. An oxidation film is formed on a monocrystalline Si substrate which has V-shaped grooves on the surface formed by anisotropical etching; a polycrystalline Si layer is deposited in a thickness approximate to that of the Si substrate on the oxidation film; and the back face of the Si substrate is ground to form a monocrystalline Si region isolated dielectrically by surrounding with the V-shaped grooves. This method involves problems in controllability and productivity in deposition of polycrystalline Si in a thickness of as large as several hundred microns, and in removal of the monocrystalline Si substrate by grinding at the back face to leave an isolated active Si layer only. PA1 2. An SiO.sub.2 layer is formed by ion implantation into a monocrystalline Si substrate (SIMOX: Separation by ion implanted oxygen). This is the most highly advanced method in view of the matching with the Si process. This method, however, requires implantation of oxygen ions in an amount of as much as 10.sup.18 ions/cm.sup.2, which takes a long time, resulting in low productivity and high wafer cost. Further, the product has many remaining crystal defects, and does not have satisfactory properties for the industrial production of a minority carrier device. PA1 3. An SOI structure is formed by oxidation of porous Si for dielectric isolation. In this method, an N-type Si layer is formed in an island-like pattern on a P-type monocrystalline Si substrate surface by proton ion implantation (Imai, et al.: J. Crystal Growth, Vol. 63, p. 547 (1983)) or by epitaxial growth and patterning, and subsequently only the P-type Si substrate is made porous by anodic oxidation in an HF solution to surround the island-patterned N-type Si, and the N-type Si island is dielectrically isolated by accelerated oxidation. In this method, the isolated Si regions are fixed prior to the device process, which may limit the freedom of device design disadvantageously. PA1 4. Different from the above conventional SOI formation, a method has recently come to be noticed in which a monocrystalline Si substrate is bonded to another thermally oxidized monocrystalline Si substrate by heat treatment or use of an adhesive to form an SOI structure. This method requires uniform thinness of the active layer for the device: namely, formation of a film of a micron thick or thinner from a monocrystalline substrate of several hundred microns thick. This thin film may be formed by either of the two methods below.
The process of forming the SOI structure has been actively studied for several decades. The results of the studies are summarized, for example, in the paper: Special Issue; "Single-crystal silicon on non-single-crystal insulators"; edited by G. W. Cullen, Journal of Crystal Growth; Vol.63, No.3, pp.429-590 (1983).
SOS (silicon on sapphire) is known and is produced by heteroepitaxial growth of silicon on monocrystalline sapphire by CVD (chemical vapor deposition). The SOS technique, which is successful as one of SOI techniques, is limited in its application, because of many crystal defects caused by mismatch of the lattice at the interface between the Si layer and the underlying sapphire, contamination of the Si layer with aluminum from the sapphire substrate, expense of the substrate, and the difficulty of large-area substrate formation.
Recently, studies are being made to produce the SOI structure without using a sapphire substrate. The studies are classified roughly into the two processes below:
The device formed on a compound semiconductor exhibits performances, such as high speed, and luminescence, which are not achievable by Si. Such types of devices are formed by epitaxial growth on a compound semiconductor substrate such as GaAs. The compound semiconductor substrate, however, has disadvantages of high cost, low mechanical strength, and difficulty in the formation of a large-area wafer. Accordingly, heteroepitaxial growth of a compound semiconductor on an Si wafer is being studied to attain low cost, high mechanical strength, and ease of production of a large-area wafer.
The above-known process 1 (Si layer deposition on SiO.sub.2) includes methods of direct lateral epitaxial growth of monocrystalline Si layer by CVD; deposition of amorphous Si and subsequent heat treatment to cause solid-phase lateral epitaxial growth; melting recrystallization to grow monocrystalline layer on an SiO.sub.2 by irradiation of amorphous or polycrystalline Si layer with a focused energy beam such as an electron beam and laser beam; and a zone melting recrystallization in which a bar-shaped heater is moved to scan with a belt-like melt zone. These methods respectively have advantages and disadvantages, involving problems in process controllability, productivity, product uniformity, and product quality, and are not industrialized yet. For example, the CVD method requires sacrificial oxidation, giving low crystallinity in the solid-phase growth. The beam annealing method involves problems in processing time of focused beam scanning and in controllability of beam superposition and focusing. Of the above methods, the zone melting recrystallization is the most advanced method, and is employed in relatively large scale integrated circuits. This method, however, still causes crystal defects in subgrain boundaries, and is not successful in the production of a minority carrier device.
The above known process 2 in which the Si substrate is not utilized as the seed for epitaxial growth includes the four methods below:
1. Thin film formation by grinding; and PA2 2. Thin film formation by selective etching.
The grinding method does not readily give a uniform thin film. In particular, formation of a film of submicron thickness results in thickness variation of tens of percent. This irregularity is a serious problem. With a larger diameter of the wafer, the uniformity of the thickness is much more difficult to attain.
The etching method is regarded to be effective for uniform thin film formation. This method, however, involves the problems of insufficient selectivity of about 10.sup.2 at the highest, inferior surface properties after etching, and low crystallinity of the SOI layer because of the employed ion implantation, epitaxial or heteroepitaxial growth on a high-concentration B-doped Si layer. (C. Harendt, et al.: J. Elect. Mater., Vol. 20, p. 267 (1991); H. Baumgart, et al.: Extended Abstract of ECS 1st International Symposium of Wafer Bonding, pp. 733 (1991); and C. E. Hunt: Extended Abstract of ECS 1st International Symposium of Wafer Bonding, pp. 696 (1991))
The semiconductor substrate which is prepared by lamination requires two wafers essentially, and a major part of one of the wafers is discarded by grinding or etching, thereby wasting the resource. Therefore, the SOI prepared by lamination involves many problems in controllability, uniformity, production cost, and so forth in conventional processes.
A thin Si layer deposited on a light-transmissive substrate typified by a glass plate becomes amorphous or polycrystalline owing to disorder of crystallinity of the substrate, not giving high performance of the device. Simple deposition of Si does not give desired quality of single crystal layer owing to the amorphous crystal structure of the substrate.
The light-transmissive substrate is essential for construction of a light-receiving element such as a contact sensor, and projection type of liquid crystal image-displaying apparatus. Additionally, a driving element of high performance is necessary for higher density, higher resolution, and higher precision of the sensor and of the image elements of the display. Consequently, the element provided on a light transmissive substrate is also required to have a monocrystalline layer of high crystallinity.
Amorphous Si or polycrystalline Si will not give a driving element having the required sufficient performance because of the many defects in the crystal structure.
As mentioned above, a compound semiconductor device requires essentially a compound semiconductor substrate. The compound semiconductor substrate, however, is expensive, and is not readily formed in a larger size.
Epitaxial growth of a compound semiconductor such as GaAs on an Si substrate gives a grown film of poor crystallinity owing to the difference in the lattice constants and the thermal expansion coefficients, thereby the resulting grown film being unsuitable for use for a device.
Epitaxial growth of a compound semiconductor on porous Si is intended for mitigation of mismatch of the lattices. However, the substrate does not have sufficient stability and reliability owing to the low thermal stability and long-term deterioration of the porous Si.
In view of the above-mentioned problems, Takao Yonehara, one of the inventors of the present invention, disclosed formerly a novel process for preparing a semiconductor member in European Patent Publication No. 0469630A2. This process comprises the steps of forming a member having a nonporous monocrystalline semiconductor region on a porous monocrystalline semiconductor region; bonding the surface of a member of which the surface is constituted of an insulating substance onto the surface of the nonporous monocrystalline semiconductor region; and then removing the porous monocrystalline semiconductor region by etching. This process is satisfactory for solving the above-mentioned problems. Further improvement of the disclosed process for higher productivity and lower production cost will contribute greatly to the industries concerned.

Process for production of semiconductor substrate


A method, a system, and a computer program product are provided for generating route data of one or more routes through an area. The method includes obtaining from a map database, a plurality of map-matched links corresponding to area and determining one or more first links and one or more second links from the plurality of map-matched links. The method further includes searching the map database, in the downstream of each of the first links for one or more missing downstream links and searching the map database in the upstream of each of the second links for one or more missing upstream links, and generating the route data of the routes based on the first link, the second link, the missing downstream links, the missing upstream links, and the plurality of map-matched links.

Road works or roadwork zones are typically found on a section of a road, an entire road, or a sequence of roads that are occupied for the purpose of, for example, road surface repairs, work on power lines, water works, etc. Roadwork zones may also be found when a major accident occurs and road debris from the accident needs to be cleared. Such roadwork zones are indicated to users of vehicles or autonomous vehicles using road signs, such as, "construction site" sign, "workers on the road" sign, "construction in progress", sign, "DANGER Roadwork" sign, "roadwork ahead" sign etc., or temporary signs such as traffic cones, barrier boards, etc. In some countries, the roadwork zones are indicated to the users of vehicles or autonomous vehicles using lane markings from a distance of the roadwork zone and speed limit signs from a distance of the roadwork zone. However, detection of the extent of the roadwork zones is subject to visibility, weather and lighting conditions, etc. Some vehicles may miss the lane markings while navigating through the roadwork zones as other vehicles may be obstructing the view or the lane markings may be occluded by water, mud, or snow. Information related to connectivity of roads through the roadwork zones may be missing or unordered due to discrete observations of the lane markings or the road signs from a plurality of vehicles. Accordingly, there is a need for deriving at least one route through a roadwork zone based on the discrete observations of the lane markings or the road signs for vehicles to safely navigate through the identified roadwork zone, even under reduced visibility conditions.

Methods and systems for route generation through an area


An optical transmission system includes a current and standby optical transmission lines for transmitting digital information signals in parallel. An information string phase difference detector detects the phase difference between the received digital information strings from the respective optical transmission lines. The optical transmission system also includes an optical receiver arranged in the receiving side for receiving the transmitted light signals. A controller changes the wavelengths of the light signals that are received by the optical receiver, based upon the detected phase difference which is detected by the phase difference detector.

i) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electro-optical transmission systems and, more particularly, to breakless electro-optical transmission systems.
ii) Description of the Prior Art
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 1-264426, published on Oct. 26, 1989, a conventional light transmission system is shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 only shows a pair of light transmission lines, but it should be appreciated that the system includes many such pairs. Only one pair is shown so as to simplify the discussion of the system. The pair of transmission lines includes a current transmission line 7 and a standby transmission line 8. The current transmission line 7 is the currently active line, and the standby line 8 is a reserve line that is used when the current transmission line is not functioning properly. The standby line 8 enhances the reliability of the system and enables the system to operate without interruption. Generally, these lines 7 and 8 are of different lengths.
A multiplexer 1 allocates input digital information strings (i.e., strings of bits) that are supplied from a plurality of terminals (such as terminal equipment or low level multiplexers) to frames that are output. A frame is a logical structure that includes digital information strings from each of the terminals. The frames are often concatenated together into logical structures known as multi-frames. Hence, the multiplexer 1 multiplexes the digital information strings into predetermined bit positions within the multi-frame. In addition, frame synchronizing bits are provided at the beginning of each frame to designate the beginning of the frame.
Each terminal is assigned a particular time slot within each frame in which it may transmit digital information strings through the multiplexer 1. The multiplexer 1 receives digital information strings from the respective terminals in a predefined sequence that cycles through all of the terminals. For instance, in each frame the multiplexer 1 may accept eight bits from every terminal in a predefined sequence. These digital information strings are inserted into specific bit positions in the multi-frame.
In addition, a long frame pattern insertion circuit 2 inserts a long frame pattern (i.e. a multi-frame I.D. that identifies the multi-frame) into vacant bit positions within the multi-frame that is output from the multiplexer 1. The circuitry for the pattern insertion circuit 2 is shown in more detail in FIG. 2. The pattern insertion circuit 2 is composed of three main components: a timing signal generator 17, a long frame pattern generator 19 and a selector 21. The timing signal generator 17 indicates the time slot in which the long frame pattern is to be inserted into the multi-frame. The timing signal generator 17 sends an appropriate signal to the selector 21 so that the selector 21 chooses, as output, either the bit train from the multiplexer 1 or a long frame pattern that is produced by the long frame pattern generator 19. The timing signal generator 17 identifies a vacant time slot into which the long frame pattern is inserted. The timing signal generator 17 may be implemented as a frame counter. The long frame pattern generator 19 is responsible for generating the long frame pattern or multi-frame I.D.
The multi-frame has a length of at least two times the maximum transmission delay difference between the current light transmission line 7 and the standby light transmission line 8. This maximum transmission delay difference is the maximum difference between the time it takes a multi-frame to travel the length of the current light transmission line 7 and the time it takes the same multi-frame to travel the length of the standby light transmission line 8. This delay is determined during initialization of the system.
A sending side transmission line selector switch 3 transmits the digital information strings 100 of the multi-frame in parallel to the current and standby light transmission lines 7 and 8, in accordance with a branching instruction fed from a sending side data link circuit 6. The branching instruction designates what information is to be transmitted over the standby transmission line 8. In particular, as mentioned above, the light transmission system of FIG. 1 includes a number of current transmission lines 7. For purposes of efficiency, a single standby line may be designated for multiple current transmission lines. There are, therefore, multiple pattern insertion circuits 2 that pass information through the switch 3. The switch 3 serves primarily as a selector which selects what information is to be transmitted over the single standby transmission line 8. As such, the switch 3 may be realized as a conventional selector mechanism that is under the control of the branching instruction.
A pair of electro-photo transducers 4 each convert the electric signals of the sending information strings 100 output from the sending side transmission line selector switch 3 into light signals and send the resulting light signals in parallel down the current transmission line 7 and the standby light transmission line 8 towards a receiving side of the system.
At the receiving side, the transmitted light signals are received from the respective current and standby light transmission lines 7 and 8 by photo-electric transducers 9. The photo-electric transducers 9 convert the light signals received from the current light transmission line 7 and the standby light transmission line 8 into electrical signals that encode respective information strings 200 and 300. In addition, the photo-electric transducers reproduce bit synchronization clock signals 400 and 500 that are received from the current transmission line 7 and standby transmission line 8, respectively. A pair of long frame synchronization circuits 12 receive the respective information strings 200 and 300 and the respective bit synchronization clock signals 400 and 500 from the photo-electric transducers 9. The long frame synchronization circuits 12 use these input signals to separate the respective long frame pulses 600 and 700 from the data, and the circuits 12 output the long frame pulses to a pair of elastic store memories 16 and to a delay circuit 17. The long frame pulses 600 and 700 are used to reset the address of the memories 16 to the starting address. These long frame pulses designate the start of a new multi-frame.
The receiving information strings 200 and 300 are sent from the respective photo-electric transducers 9 to the data lines of the elastic store memories 16 and are written into the elastic store memories 16 at consecutive memory locations. The respective bit synchronization clock signals 400 and 500 are used as writing clocks for writing the digital information strings 200 and 300 into consecutive memory locations in the elastic store memories 16. The elastic store memories should each be able to hold one multi-frame.
In order to ensure synchronization of the receiving information strings 200 and 300 between the current and standby light transmission lines 7 and 8, the long frame pulse 600 is delayed by an amount of time equal to half the long frame pattern length, in the delay circuit 17, to obtain a delayed long frame pulse 800. This illustration assumes that the transmission time for the standby line 8 is delayed relative to the transmission time for the current line by one half of a multi-frame. The receiving information strings 200 and 300 are read out of the respective elastic store memories 16, upon receiving the delayed long frame pulse 800, using the bit synchronization clock signal 400 as a reading clock.
A receiving side transmission line selector switch 10 separates the information received from the memories 16 according to a separation instruction sent from a receiving side data link circuit 14. This data link circuit 14, like the sending side data link circuit 10, is used as a line for receiving and transmitting signals. These circuits 6 and 14 include a bit separating/inserting circuit for receiving and transmitting signals via a vacant time slot in the bit train.
The sending side transmission line selector switch 3 further separates the current light transmission line 7 in accordance with the separation instruction fed from the receiving side data link circuit 14 via the sending side data link circuit 6. A multiple selector 11 separates the multiplexed information string fed from the receiving side transmission line selector switch 10 into a plurality of information strings and outputs the separated information strings to a plurality of terminals.
In the conventional light transmission system, as described above, first, the synchronization of the receiving information strings between the current and standby light transmission lines is ensured by using one of the clocks read out of the pair of elastic store memories. Once the data is read from the elastic stores, the light transmission lines are switched in accordance with a breakless transmission line switching method. However, synchronization of the breakless transmission line switching method is controlled by using clocks read out of the memory and, hence, a large memory capacity is required relative to the transmission capacity. In addition, upon failure of the current line, the system must switch to the standby line. During the transition to the standby line, transmissions are often noisy and prone to error.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a breakless electro-optical transmission system that does not require a large memory capacity relative to its transmission capacity.
It is a further object of the present invention to reduce the noise and errors in optical transmissions in a breakless electro-optical transmission system upon failure of a currently transmitting line.


An improved corn wet milling process is disclosed. In a process in which corn kernels are steeped in an aqueous solution and are milled to facilitate the separation of the components thereof, in which starch from the corn is separated from gluten, and in which at least one aqueous gluten-containing stream is generated, the improvement comprises membrane filtration of an aqueous gluten-containing stream, producing a gluten-enriched retentate, and removing water from the gluten-enriched retentate, thereby producing a substantially dry gluten product. This improved process provides an economical means of recovering a higher percentage of the available protein for inclusion in high value products.

This invention relates to an improved wet milling process for refining corn into useful products, in which recovery of proteins such as gluten is enhanced.
Corn kernels contain starch, protein, water, fiber, and other substances which can be separated to make various useful products. Gluten is one component of the kernel, and contains the majority of the protein that is present in corn, thus making it a desirable component for animal feed.
In order to refine the corn into end products such as starch, oil, and feed, a corn wet milling process is used. In general, kernels of corn are steeped in an aqueous solution under controlled conditions to soften the kernels and facilitate separation of the kernels' components. After steeping, the aqueous solution, referred to as steepwater, is drawn off. The corn kernel, swollen as a result of the steeping, is then coarse-milled to allow removal of the germ. Oil is removed from the germ and refined to make corn oil. The remainder of the germ is dried to form corn germ meal, or it may be used as an ingredient in corn gluten feed.
After the germ is removed, the remainder of the kernel is milled again to pulverize endosperm particles while leaving fibrous material nearly intact. Fiber is separated from the starch and gluten by screening. The fiber is then combined with the dried remains of the steepwater to make corn gluten feed.
The starch and gluten are then separated, in what is often referred to as the primary starch separation step, and the gluten is dried to form corn gluten meal. The primary starch separation is typically done by centrifugation, and produces a gluten-containing stream that typically comprises about 3-5% (by weight) total solids. This stream is usually sent through a gluten thickener centrifuge. This centrifugation produces a stream that is primarily water and a concentrated gluten stream (e.g., about 15% solids). Unfortunately, a significant amount of gluten is lost in this centrifugation step (i.e., is in the stream that is primarily water). The concentrated gluten stream is then usually sent to a gluten vacuum filter, further concentrating it, e.g. to about 38-43% dry solids. This concentrated stream is then sent to a gluten drier, to remove most of the remaining water (e.g., to about 90-95% dry solids). The dry end product is corn gluten meal.
Some of the starch is dried and may optionally be chemically modified before being sold to the food, paper, or textile industries. Corn sweeteners or ethanol are produced from the remaining starch.
Thus two of the main animal feed products of the corn wet milling process are corn gluten feed and corn gluten meal. Corn gluten feed is a medium protein, medium energy product. It is used in feeds or concentrates for cattle, poultry, and swine. It is commonly sold containing about 20% protein. Corn gluten meal is a high protein, high energy product. It is a valuable source of methionine to complement other commonly used protein sources in animal feed. Also, its high xanthophyll content makes it particularly valuable as an efficient pigmenting ingredient in poultry feeds. It is a particularly excellent feed ingredient for cattle, because it provides a high level of rumen-protected protein.
Because of its superior characteristics as animal feed, corn gluten meal can be sold for a significantly higher price than corn gluten feed. Therefore, corn refiners prefer to maximize production of corn gluten meal relative to corn gluten feed. In a typical wet milling process, significant amounts of gluten remain in end products other than corn gluten meal. However, this type of protein is too small to be recovered by centrifugation or conventional filtration.
Efficient means of concentrating and recovering the proteins from various aqueous process streams are important to the overall economics of the corn wet milling process.
Microfiltration and nanofiltration are techniques that have been used in the past in some starch-related applications. For example, European patent application 0,452,238 discloses using a nanofiltration membrane to filter a starch slurry, passing the dextrose in the slurry through the membrane while retaining the di-and trisaccharides, thereby producing a glucose syrup which is about 95% dextrose and 5% di- and trisaccharides. European patent application 0,176,621 discloses a process for obtaining glucose from thinned starch. The process includes a separation step that produces a glucose-enriched stream and a glucose-depleted stream. Membrane-based separation is disclosed as one suitable separation technique.
There is a long-standing need for enhanced recovery of proteins such as gluten in corn wet milling processes.

Process for recovery of protein from aqueous media in corn wet milling


This invention describes a novel method of producing bioactive recombinant proteins from plants. General methods of designing and engineering plants for expression and production of such proteins are also disclosed. Methods for the expression of Transforming Growth Factor-β (TGF-β) proteins, such as Müllerian Inhibiting Substance (MIS), in plants, and methods of producing recombinant proteins from plants are specifically disclosed. Furthermore, the present invention provides methodology for the direct expression and production of a bioactive C-terminal fragment of a TGF-β protein, such as C-terminal MIS. The new method is more cost-effective than other large-scale expression systems, by eliminating the need for costly cell culture and fermentation manufacturing facilities.

Proteins of the TGF-β family function as cytokines mediating many important embryogenic and immune functions including chemotaxis, production of extracellular matrix, regulation of cell growth and differentiation, and development and regulation of the immune system. Thus, these molecules could be used in a great variety of therapies if available in sufficient quantities. Epithelial ovarian cancers, for example, are the fifth most common malignancy in women. Each year approximately 26,600 new cases of epithelial ovarian cancer are diagnosed, of which 55% die of the disease annually. Studies have shown that Müllerian Inhibiting Substance (MIS), a TGF-β family member, may potentially be an effective therapy for the highly lethal advanced ovarian carcinomas. The current production systems for MIS, including mammalian and bacterial systems, however, are not capable of providing MIS at levels required for clinical trials or commercial applications. Not only are these systems incapable of directly producing the biologically active C-terminal MIS, these systems cannot produce adequate quantities of the holo-MIS precursor and suffer from additional disadvantages as well.
Although the biotechnology industry has directed its efforts to eukaryotic hosts like mammalian cell tissue culture, yeast, fungi, insect cells, and transgenic animals, to express recombinant proteins, these hosts may suffer particular disadvantages. For example, although mammalian cells are capable of correctly folding and glycosylating bioactive proteins, the quality and extent of glycosylation can vary with different culture conditions among the same host cells. Yeast, alternatively, produces incorrectly glycosylated proteins that have excessive mannose residues, and generally exhibit limited post-translational processing. Other fungi may be available for high-volume, low-cost production, but they are not capable of expressing many target proteins. Although the baculovirus insect cell system can produce high levels of glycosylated proteins, these proteins are not secreted, however, thus making purification complex and expensive. Transgenic animal systems are hindered by lengthy lead times for developing herds with stable genetics, high operating costs, and potential contamination by prions or viruses.
Prokaryotic hosts such as E. coli may also suffer disadvantages in expressing heterologous proteins. For example, the post-translational modifications required for bioactivity may not be carried out in the prokaryote host. Some of these post-translational modifications include signal peptide processing, pro-peptide processing, protein folding, disulfide bond formation, glycosylation, gamma carboxylation, and beta-hydroxylation. As a result, complex proteins derived from prokaryote hosts are not always properly folded or processed to provide the desired degree of biological activity. Consequently, prokaryote hosts have generally been utilized for the expression of relatively simple foreign polypeptides that do not require post-translational processing to achieve a biologically active protein.
The biochemical, technical, and economic limitations on existing prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression systems has created substantial interest in developing new expression systems for the production of heterologous proteins. To that end, plants represent a suitable alternative to other host systems because of the advantageous economics of growing plant crops, plant suspension cells, and tissues such as callus; the ability to synthesize proteins in leaves, and storage organs like tubers, seeds, and fruits; the ability of plants to perform many of the post-translational modifications previously described, the capability of plants for protein bioproduction at very large scales; and the ability to produce the protein in an environment free of human pathogens. Plant-based expression systems may be more cost-effective than other large-scale expression systems for the production of therapeutic proteins.
The present invention contemplates producing a bioactive TGF-β protein, such as the MIS protein, in a plant host system. The MIS protein of the present invention may be any full length MIS precursor (e.g., holo-MIS), the 140 kD homodimer from which the bioactive C-terminal homodimer can be released, or the bioactive C-terminal peptide fragment which acts as a inhibitor of ovarian cancer at the desired concentration, and which under pathological conditions, modulates the functional activities of individual cells and tissues.
The MIS of the present invention belongs to the Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily, which includes various TGF-β isoforms, GDF isoforms (Growth/Differentiation Factors), Inhibins, Activins, MIS (Müllerian Inhibiting Substance or Anti-Müllerian Hormone), BMP (bone morphogenetic proteins), dpp (decapentaplegic protein), Vg-1, and MNSF (monoclonal nonspecific suppressor factor). Proteins of this family share common features including sequence similarity, protein structure and post-translational processing, receptor interactions and biological function as cytokines. The MIS product of the present invention can act as a growth inhibitor of ovarian and other cancer cells originating in the reproductive organs of both males and females.
The MIS protein of the present invention has significant potential to serve as a novel, non-toxic and highly specific therapeutic agent for tumors of Müllerian origin. A wide variety of heterologous expression systems have been used in an attempt to increase yields of recombinant MIS protein. One system utilizes CHO cells transfected with the full length MIS coding sequence fused to the SV40 early promoter. Cate et al., 45 CELL 685-698 (1986). In this system, recombinant human MIS was secreted into the medium and recovered by immunoaffinity chromatography using a mouse monoclonal antibody to MIS. MacLaughlin et al., 131 ENDOCRINOLOGY 291-296 (1992); and Ragin et al., 3 PRO. EXPR. AND PUR. 236-245 (1992). Initial tests of the CHO-derived MIS showed that the majority of MIS was in a noncleaved (140 kD homodimer) form (Cate et al., 1986) which gave very limited antiproliferative activity in bioassays. Wallen et al., 49 CANC. RES. 2005-2011 (1989). However, additional steps involving MIS purification and proteolytic cleavage for C-terminal activation resulted in increased yields of bioactive protein. Kurian et al., 1 CLIN. CAN. RES. 343-349 (1995); and Ragin et al., 3 PRO. EXPR. AND PUR. 236-245 (1992). In vitro treatment with the protease plasmin has been used to generate complete cleavage and fully active MIS. In addition, enhanced cleavage efficiency was engineered into the MIS polypeptide by incorporating an arg-arg dibasic cleavage site in place of the native ser-arg site. Kurian et al., 1 CLIN. CAN. RES. 343-349 (1995). Stably transfected CHO lines which synthesize and secrete human holo-MIS have been developed. Kurian et al., 1995. However, scale-up to levels required for commercial production, or even for initial human clinical trials, has proven difficult and expensive using these systems. As a consequence, significant effort has been invested in analyzing alternative expression systems (E. coli, Pichia, baculovirus) for enhanced production of MIS. Although less costly, all of these systems were plagued with problems involving either production of insoluble aggregates or spurious proteolytic cleavage events and were less effective than the CHO-based expression system.
A number of additional observations support the need to search for more efficient means to produce MIS as an anticancer therapeutic. First, MIS activity is cleavage-dependent, and tumor cells in vitro do not have the ability to do this effectively. Thus, clinical applications may require administration of the fully activated form (C-terminal homo-dimer fragment). The apparent half-life of purified carboxyl-terminal MIS is short in vivo and thus, larger doses may be required. Attempts to express the C-terminal bioactive component directly in either bacterial or mammalian cell systems have been unsuccessful. It is not clear whether appropriate assembly of the C-terminal homo-dimer is dependent on the presence of the N-terminal pro-sequences or if its bioactivity in mammalian cells precludes effective bioproduction. The projected amounts of MIS required for initial in vitro and in vivo antiproliferative studies may be met by current protocols that involve CHO-based bioproduction of the holo-MIS and enzymatic activation in vitro. However, more effective strategies are needed to meet expected requirements for holo-MIS and carboxy-terminal MIS for later clinical trials and potential commercial markets. The method provided by the present invention will meet these needs by yielding more efficient and cost-effective means for producing bioactive therapeutic proteins that mimic the structure and biologically activity of authentic proteins.
Other objectives, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description. The detailed description and the specific examples, while indicating specific embodiments of the invention, are provided by way of illustration only. Accordingly, the present invention also includes those various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention that may become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

Gene expression and production of TGF-β proteins including bioactive mullerian inhibiting substance from plants


A heat exchange furnace includes a surrounding wall disposed around a combustion furnace unit so as to define an annular heat exchange space therebetween. Upright buffer plates divide the heat exchange space into a plurality of air chambers communicated with each other. Upper and lower gas-guiding members are connected respectively and fixedly to upper and lower ends of the surrounding wall. Conduit sets are disposed within the heat exchange space, and cooperate with the upper and lower gas-guiding members so as to constitute cooperatively at least one serpentine gas flow path disposed within the heat exchange space.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a furnace, more particularly to a heat exchange furnace that include at least one serpentine gas flow path disposed within a heat exchange space.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a biomass heat exchange furnace 1 disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,510 is used to burn biomass to thereby generate high-temperature combustion gases. Ambient or fresh air is forced into the heat exchange furnace for heat exchange contact with the combustion gases. As such, the temperature of the combustion gases is reduced prior to exhaust from the heat exchange furnace. On the other hand, the ambient air is heated to form hot air that may serve as a heat source for various utilizations.
The heat exchange furnace 1 includes a heat exchange space 11 defined by a surrounding wall 12, and a plurality of conduits 13 disposed within the heat exchange space 11. A gas entrance chamber 14, an upper gas transfer chamber 15, and a gas exit chamber 16 are disposed above the heat exchange space 11. Two lower gas transfer chambers 17, 18 are disposed under the heat exchange space 11. The combustion gases flow through the conduits 13 and the chambers 14, 15, 16, 17, 18.
The aforesaid conventional heat exchange furnace 1 has the following disadvantages:                (1) The speed of air flowing through the heat exchange space 11 is rapid, thereby reducing the heat exchange efficiency of the heat exchange furnace 1.        (1) Since the upper gas transfer chamber 15 has a large volume, and since only one of the same is provided in the heat exchange furnace 1, the heat exchange efficiency of the heat exchange furnace 1 is further reduced.

Heat exchange furnace with serpentine gas flow path disposed within heat exchange space


A method of overwrapping a product having an outer wrapping of dielectric material; the method providing for feeding a sheet of dielectric overwrapping material past an opening of a passage for the product; feeding the product into engagement with the sheet and subsequently, together with the sheet, through the passage to fold the sheet into a U about the product; and stabilizing the sheet so folded by feeding the sheet and the product through an electric field.

The present invention relates to a product wrapping method.
More specifically, the present invention relates to a method of overwrapping, by means of a sheet of dielectric material, a product made at least externally of dielectric material, e.g. a product having an outer wrapping made of dielectric material.
The present invention is particularly advantageous for use on overwrapping machines, in particular machines for cellophaning packets or cartons of cigarettes, to which the following description refers purely by way of example.
On cellophaning machines of the above type, a sheet of transparent synthetic material, normally a sheet of polypropylene, is folded into a U about each product, comprising a carton or packet of cigarettes, so that two opposite portions of the sheet project beyond the product; which portions are subsequently folded one on top of the other on the product to form a tubular wrapping, which is completed by stably connecting the two portions to each other.
A major problem when designing cellophaning machines of the above type is ensuring each U-folded sheet adheres perfectly to the product for as long as it takes to fold and connect the projecting portions, and without damaging either the sheet or the product.


A lidar system for meteorological observation, in which pulsed laser light having a prescribed central frequency is emitted from a laser device and reflected light thereof is observed, includes: a spectral analyzer for spectrally analyzing reflected light for observation into light in the wavelength region of the laser light and light in wavelength regions other than the region of the laser light; a first and a second filter for selectively passing light centered on a first and a second frequency component among the light of the wavelength region of the laser light, respectively; a first and a second photodetection unit configured to detect the first and second frequency component light passed through the first and second filter, respectively; and a third and a fourth photodetection unit configured to detect the light of the wavelength region of the laser light and regions other than the region of the laser light, respectively.

LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is technology for observation of atmospheric states through the irradiation of an atmospheric region for observation with short-pulse laser light, and the measurement and analysis of the scattered light as a LIDAR signal. An Nd:YAG laser is generally used to emit the laser light for LIDAR observation. Types of scattering resulting from laser light irradiation include Mie scattering due to aerosols (suspended particles), Rayleigh scattering by component molecules of the atmosphere, and Raman scattering; these can be employed in analyses of the atmospheric temperature, spatial distribution of aerosols, atmospheric density, concentration distribution of atmospheric components, and other observed elements. In practice, such analyses are performed by solving equations, called LIDAR equations, which represent the LIDAR signals.
Mie scattering is a scattering phenomenon which is caused by substances of sizes approximately equal to the wavelength of the irradiated laser light. Rayleigh scattering is a scattering phenomenon caused by substances smaller than the wavelength of the irradiated laser light. Mie scattering signal components and Rayleigh scattering signal components are superposed in LIDAR signals from observation regions in which aerosols exist; in order to perform high-precision measurements using Rayleigh scattering LIDAR, Mie scattering signal components must be efficiently separated or blocked (spectrally analyzed). Techniques for spectral analysis of Mie scattering signal components generally employ iodine absorption filters as filters with high blocking rates. Spectral analysis techniques employing iodine absorption filters involve sweeping the single-frequency light wavelength so that the wavelength of the irradiated laser light matches a specific absorption spectra line of the iodine gas, then irradiating the atmosphere with the laser light, and guiding the LIDAR signal to the iodine absorption filter. By this means, the Mie scattering signal component contained in the LIDAR signal is absorbed by the iodine absorption filter, and only the Rayleigh scattering signal component is passed.
In addition, when a substance is irradiated with laser light, scattered light is observed at a wavelength different from that of the incident light. This is called Raman scattering. Raman scattering LIDAR is effective for observation of atmospheric temperatures and observation of water vapor distributions. For example, when analyzing atmospheric temperature, vibrational Raman scattering of nitrogen molecules and similar is used to determine atmospheric density, and analyses similar to that for Rayleigh scattering LIDAR is performed, or atmospheric temperature may be determined from the intensity distribution of rotational Raman scattering spectra. When analyzing water vapor distribution, vibrational Raman scattering by the water molecules constituting the water vapor and by the nitrogen molecules in the atmosphere is analyzed simultaneously, the rate of attenuation due to the atmospheric density is corrected, and the water vapor distribution is derived from the distribution of the average density of nitrogen molecules.
In order to perform high-precision observations using Rayleigh scattering LIDAR, the superposed Mie scattering signal component and Rayleigh scatting signal component must be analyzed efficiently. In the stratosphere at a height of 30 km or higher, the entire signal is due to Rayleigh scattering by molecules comprised by the atmosphere, and measurement is performed relatively simply; but in the troposphere, there exists intense Mie-scattered light due to aerosols, and the scattering intensity is not uniform. Thus, in order to perform LIDAR observation using Rayleigh scattering, for practical purposes, a Mie scattering signal component blocking rate extending to several decimal places is required.
On the other hand, when using spectral analysis techniques employing an iodine absorption filter, there may be the problem that the transmission characteristics of such absorption filters are unstable. This may arise mainly because the density distribution of the iodine gas in the absorption filter is not uniform, so that there may be instability in the absorption spectra characteristics.
In order to increase the finesse, which is a measure of the spectral resolution, of such a high blocking-rate filter, the filter is coated with a dielectric multilayer film with high reflectivity. However, if the reflectivity is increased through such a coating, the maximum transmittance of the filter is lowered, resulting in a critical drawback for the purpose of LIDAR observations entailing measurements of weak LIDAR signals.
In a conventional LIDAR system for meteorological observation, laser light sources suited to each individual observed element are employed in order to analyze the states of various observed elements. That is, in a conventional LIDAR system for meteorological observation, it has not been possible to use a single laser light source to simultaneously perform various LIDAR observations, to analyze the states of various observed elements. For example, in order to determine the water vapor distribution, use of differential absorption methods or vibrational Random scattering is effective. However, in the former differential absorption method, laser light at two particular wavelengths is necessary, and it was not possible to use these two different types of laser light for observation of other elements. Further, in the subsequent vibrational Raman scattering, the intensity of vibrational Raman scattering by water vapor is weaker by approximately three orders of magnitude than the intensity of Rayleigh scattering, and so in order to improve a signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio of the observation system, a high-output laser and large aperture optical telescope became necessary. As a result, the equipment size was increased, and cost performance was degraded. Also, in spectral analysis methods using the above-described using the above-described iodine absorption filter, there is an absorption spectra line in iodine near the second harmonic component (λ=532 nm) of Nd:YAG lasers, and so there may be the further problem that the laser light wavelength is constrained by absorption line.
Further, because laser light sources are used in LIDAR observations it is necessary to take sufficient account of safety for human beings (eye-safe characteristics). As such, in LIDAR observations, while selecting laser light which enables efficient observation of various scattering phenomena as described above, it is also necessary to develop a system which takes eye-safe characteristics into consideration.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to propose a new LIDAR system for meteorological observation and a meteorological observation method using same, in order to resolve the problems described above.
More specifically, a first object of the present invention is to realize a LIDAR system for meteorological observation which is capable of efficiently and stably separating or blocking superposed Mie scattering signal components and Rayleigh scattering signal components, in order to perform high-precision observations using Rayleigh scattering LIDAR.
Further, a second object of the present invention is to realize a LIDAR system for meteorological observation which is capable of using a single laser light source to simultaneously perform various LIDAR observations and analyze the states of various observed elements.
Furthermore, a third object of the present invention is to realize a LIDAR system for meteorological observation which, while capable of efficient LIDAR observations, also takes eye-safe characteristics into consideration.


This invention provides new lipoxin analogs, compositions containing these analogs, and methods of using these compounds and compositions for treating and preventing oral inflammation, including gingivitis, periodontitis, and other forms of periodontal disease. The invention also provides for methods of treating and preventing oral inflammation, including gingivitis, periodontitis, and other forms of periodontal disease with compositions containing COX-2 inhibitors. Further, the invention provides methods for preventing systemic diseases beyond theoral cavity that are related to periodontal disease using the compositions containing lipoxin analogs, COX-2 inhibitors, or both.

Periodontal diseases, ranging from gingivitis to more severe forms of periodontitis, are initiated by a bacterial infection followed by a host response that may lead to a highly degenerative oral disease including tooth loss and tissue damage (Page, R. C. (1998) Ann. Periodontol. 3, 108). The current treatments of periodontal diseases, which affect a large percentage of the population, involve primarily the use of compositions containing antimicrobial compounds or various non-steroidal antiinflammatory agents (NSAIDs).
Although bacteria appear to be essential for the causation of periodontitis, progression of periodontal disease is dependent on the host response to pathogens that colonize the tooth surface (Hart, T. C., et al. (1994) J. Periodontol. 65, 521). In turn, periodontal disease can be controlled chemotherapeutically by uncoupling host-mediated destruction rather than reducing the etiological load (Offenbacher, S. et al. (1993) J. Periodontol. 64, 432). Along these lines, a body of evidence has identified the inhibition of PGE2 formation and its presence at gingival sites as being relevant therapeutic interventions. For example, PGE2 generation from gingival homogenates is significantly inhibited by flurbiprofen (ElAttar, T. M. A., et al. (1984) J. Periodontol. 55, 536), and COX-derived eicosanoids in crevicular fluid (CF) are decreased in animals taking flurbiprofen (Smith, M. A., et al. (1993) Infection and Immunity 61, 1453; Offenbacher, S., et al. (1989) J. Periodontal Res. 24, 63). Flurbiprofen also reduced CF-PGE2 levels, gingival inflammation, tooth attachment loss and bone loss, and in some cases resulted in bone gain (Pauletto, N. et al. (1997) J. Can. Dent. Assoc. 63, 824). In humans, flurbiprofen dramatically decreased the CF-PGE2 levels (Abramson, M. M. et al. (1992) J. Periodont. Res. 27, 539). These findings suggest that NSAIDs may exert their pharmacological action of inhibiting COX derived proinflammatory eicosanoids within the periodontium and suggest that novel anti-inflammatory agents might be useful in managing periodontal diseases.
Polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN, neutrophils) are the most abundant immune cells recruited to early inflammatory periodontal lesions and are the most numerous host cells within the periodontal tissues (Hart, T. C., et al. (1994) J. Periodontol. 65, 521). The presence of Gram-negative oral pathogens represents the primary etiologic factor, however, the progression of periodontal disease is dependent on the host response to pathogenic bacteria that colonize the tooth surface. Hence, recruitment of PMN followed by aberrant release of inflammatory mediators not only contributes to the onset of periodontal disease and is associated with rapid and widespread tissue destruction (Daniel, M. A., et al. (1996) J. Periodontol. 67,1070), but can also be further amplified by the release of an array of inflammatory mediators by neutrophils within the periodontium.
It is well known that PMN participate in host defense against bacterial infections and are also involved in noxious inflammatory reactions (Weiss, S. J., et al. (1981) J. Clin. Invest. 68, 714; Babior, B. M. (1984) Blood 64, 959). Recruitment of neutrophils to the periodontium contributes to the progression of periodontal disease and to the destruction of periodontal tissues (Page, R. C. (1998) Ann. Periodontol. 3, 108; Daniel, M. A., et al. (1996) J. Periodontol. 67, 1070).
Several inflammatory mediators such as cytokines, chemokines and metalloproteases are associated with periodontal disease (Romanelli, R., et al. (1999) Infect. Immun. 67, 2319; Gainet, J., et al. (1998) Lab. Invest. 78, 755; Assuma, R., et al. (1998) J. Immunol. 160, 403). Other prominent mediators are the arachidonic acid derived products, including leukotriene B4 (LTB4) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) (Offenbacher, S. et al. (1986) J. Periodontal Res. 21, 101). Indeed, many of the pathophysiological events that occur in periodontal diseases can be explained to a large extent by the activities of lipid mediators (Solomon, L. M., et al. (1968) J. Invest. Dermatol. 51, 280; Raisz, L. G., et al. (1974) Prostaglandins 8, 377; Klein, D. C., et al. (1970) Endocrinology 86, 1436; Crunkhorn, P., et al. (1969) Br. J. Pharmacol. 36, 216; Collier, J. G., et al. (1972) Br. J. Pharmacol. 44, 374). For example, LTB4, a well appreciated and potent chemoattractant, also initiates the accumulation of leukocytes within inflamed sites, stimulates the release of granule-associated enzymes (Borgeat, P., et al. (1990) Clin. Biochem. 23, 459) and was recently found to stimulate bone resorption (Traianedes, K., et al. (1998) Endocrinology 139, 3178).
Along these lines, PGE2 is a very potent stimulator of bone loss, which is held to be a hallmark of periodontal disease (Zubery, Y., et al. (1998) Infect. Immun. 66, 4158). PGE2 is also well appreciated for its ability to directly mediate vasodilation, increase vascular permeability, enhance pain perception by bradykinin and histamine, alter connective tissue metabolism, and enhance osteodastic bone resorption (Tsai, C. -C. et al. (1998) J. Dentistry 26, 97). The levels of PGE2 are significantly elevated in the crevicular fluid (CF) of patients with periodontal infections, especially localized juvenile periodontitis, when compared to healthy sites. These levels correlate with disease severity and aggressiveness and constitute a reliable indicator of ongoing clinical periodontal tissue destruction (Offenbacher, S., et al. (1984) J. Periodontal Res. 19, 1). CF-PGE2 levels can also be used to predict future acute loss of periodontal attachment (Offenbacher, S., et al. (1986) J. Periodontal Res. 21, 101).
Pathophysiological responses that occur in periodontal diseases, including inflammatory cell recruitment, edema, pain, bone resorption and collagen destruction, can be mediated for the most part by effector molecules originating from the arachidonate cascade (Solomon, L. M. et al. (1968) J. Invest. Dermatol. 51,280; Raisz, L. G., et al. (1974) Prostaglandins 8,377; Klein, D. C., et al. (1970) Endocrinology 86, 1436; Crunkhorn, P., et al. (1969) Br. J. Pharmacol. 36, 216; Collier, J. G., et al. (1972) Br. J. Pharmacol. 44, 374). In particular, considerable evidence has demonstrated the importance of PGE2 in the pathogenesis of periodontal diseases. In vitro, PGE2 increases osteoclast numbers and bone resorption (Lader, C. S., et al. (1998) Endocrinology 139, 3157), decreases proteoglycan synthesis and increases metalloprotease production by cultured chondrocytes (Debrumfernandes, A. J., et al. (1996) Br. J. Pharmacol. 188, 1597). Bone resorption in vivo caused by three periodontal pathogens is mediated in part by PGE2, causing tooth attachment loss and bone loss (Zubery, Y., et al. (1998) Infect. Immun. 66, 4158). Prior to these findings, PGE2 was proposed as a reliable molecular indicator of ongoing periodontal tissue destruction that might be used to predict future acute periodontal attachment loss (Offenbacher, S., et al. (1986) J. Periodontal Res. 21, 101).
Prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase (cyclooxygenase, COX) catalyzes two reactions by which arachidonic acid is converted to PGH2, the common precursor of all prostanoids including PGE2. To date, two COX isoforms are known (Smith, W. L., et al. (1996) J. Biol. Chem. 271, 33157). COX-1 appears to support the levels of prostanoid biosynthesis required for maintaining organ and tissue homeostasis (Smith, W. L., et al. (1996) J. Biol. Chem. 271, 33157; Vane, J. R., et al. (1996) Scand. J. Rheumatol. 102, 9), whereas COX-2 expression appears to be restricted in basal conditions within most tissues and is up-regulated during inflammation or stress in a wide range of tissues (O'Banion, M. K., et al. (1992) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89, 4888; Seibert, K., et al. (1994) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91, 12013; Needleman, P., et al. (1997) J. Rheumatol. 24, 6). The finding that homogenates of inflamed periodontal tissues display an increased PGE2 synthetic capacity when compared to homogenates from healthy tissues suggests an increased COX activity is associated with periodontal tissues (ElAttar, T. M. A. (1976) Prostaglandins 11, 331; Albers, H. K., et al. (1979) Dtsch. Zahnarztl. Z. 34, 440; ElAttar, T. M. A., et al. (1982) Prostaglandins Leukot. Med. 8, 447; ElAttar, T. M. A., et al. (1984) J. Periodontol. 55, 536). Moreover, given the clearly deleterious actions of PGE2 on the integrity of tissues of the periodontal pocket, both the potential involvement of the inducible COX isoform (COX-2) in periodontal disease and potential role of novel lipid mediators are of interest in the pathogenesis of periodontal disease.
Lipoxins (LX) and aspirin-triggered LX (ATL) are arachidonic acid-derived bioactive lipids that are formed by interactions between individual lipoxygenases (LO) and appear to play an important role in downregulating neutrophil responses in inflammation (Serhan, C. N. (1997) Prostaglandins 53, 107). In the nanomolar range, LXA4 and its 15R epimer (15-epi-LXA4) triggered by-aspirin each inhibit fMLP- and LTB4-stimulated PMN adhesion and transmigration and hence represent potential counterregulatory signals operative in the resolution of inflammatory sites (Serhan, C. N. (1997) Prostaglandins 53,107; Serhan, C. N., et al. (1996) FASEB J. 10, 1147; Takano, T., et al. (1997) J. Exp. Med. 185, 1693; Serhan, C. N. et al. (1995) Biochemistry 34, 14609). Like most autacoids and lipid mediators, LX are rapidly generated, act within a local microenvironment, and are rapidly enzymatically inactivated. The roles of LX and ATL roles in vivo, were studied by using metabolically stable LX and ATL analogs that were designed to resist rapid enzymatic inactivation and mimic the in vitro actions of naturally occurring LX and ATL (Serhan, C. N., et al. (1995) Biochemistry 34, 14609).
In addition to confirming the presence of LTB4 and PGE2, (Tsai, C. -C. et al. (1998) J. Dentistry 26, 97), it was shown for the first time that LXA4 is produced by activated neutrophils from LJP patients. It was also shown that LXA4 is present within the crevicular fluid from periodontitis patients with active disease. These results are the first demonstration that LJP peripheral blood neutrophils are in a primed state for LX generation. This in vivo "priming" for up-regulated lipoxin profiles was also observed with neutrophils isolated from asthmatic patients (Chavis, C., et al. (1996) J. Exp. Med. 183, 1633) and can be mimicked in vitro with cytokine-priming of neutrophils from healthy donors (Fiore, S., et al. (1990) J. Exp. Med. 172, 1451).
It was recently reported that LXA4 and ATL analogs reduce leukocyte trafficking stimulated by TNF-α while concomitantly re-orientating the cytokine-chemokine aids towards an anti-inflammatory profile (Hachicha, M., et al. (1999) J. Exp. Med. 189,1923). LX-ATL can thus protect host tissues via multilevel regulation of proinflammatory signals.
Periodontal disease has implications beyond the deleterious effects on oral tissues and structural integrity. Thus, periodontitis represents a potential risk factor for increased morbidity or mortality for several systemic conditions including cardiovascular diseases, pregnancy complications, and diabetes (Page, R. C. (1998) Ann. Periodontol. 3, 108; Garcia, R. I., et al. (1998) Ann. Periodontol. 3, 339). Of great importance in this context, is the finding that the systemic presence of P. gingivalis up-regulates the expression of COX-2 (heart and lungs; FIG. 6) which is a marker of on-going inflammation (Herschman, H. R. (1998) Trends Cardiovasc. Med. 8, 145).
The recognition of the endogenous and multifaceted anti-inflammatory role of the lipoxins (Serhan, C. N. (1994) Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 1212, 1; Serhan, C. N. (1997) Prostaglandins 53, 107), combined with the findings that both lipoxin A4 and lipoxin B4 are rapidly deactivated by dehydrogenation (Serhan, C. N.; et al. (1993) Biochemistry, 32, 6313; Maddox, J. F. et al. (1998) FASEB J., 12, 487) or ω-oxidation (Sumimoto, H. et al. (1993) FEBS Lett., 315, 205; Mizukami, Y. et al. (1993) Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 1168, 87; Mizukami, Y. et al. (1994) Eur. J. Biochem, 224, 959), led to the design and synthesis of a number of LX analogs with increased biostability (Serhan, C. N. et al. (1994) Biochemistry, 34, 14609). Several LX analogs of this type were reported to have interesting biological properties and therapeutic potential (Serhan, C. N. et al. (1994) Biochemistry, 34, 14609; Takano, T. et al. (1998) J. Clin. Invest. 101, 819). The use of lipoxin analogs for the treatment and prevention of periodontal disease as well as related systemic diseases, however, has not been described previously.

Lipoxin analogs and method for the treatment of periodontal disease


A video generating apparatus includes: a segmentation unit dividing each of pictures included in an input video sequence into multiple regions as divided regions, and generating partial video sequences each having a set of the divided regions associated with one another between the pictures; a removal region determining unit determining, as a removal region, a region of at least one of the objects included in the input video sequence; an occluded region completing unit generating a completed video sequence by completing an image in an occluded region for each of the partial video sequences, thereby completing the partial video sequences and by superimposing the completed partial video sequences over one another, the occluded region being a region of an other object occluded in the removal region by the at least one object; and a video outputting unit outputting the completed video sequence.

Research and development has been conducted for techniques to generate, from an input video sequence including multiple objects, a video sequence or a still image by removing at least one of the objects. The techniques are basic ones to be commonly used for a wide range of applications, such as generating background images in image processing for monitoring cameras, generating sprite images in video coding, and completion of occluded region in generating multi-eye stereoscopic video images, as well as editing video sequences.
In editing a video sequence, described below is a typical procedure for generating a video sequence with an object removed. First, a user specifies an object to be removed from among multiple objects included in an input video sequence. Then, image processing is executed to complete an image (pixel value) of a region (occluded region) of another object occluded by the specified object.
Space-time completion is one of such techniques to complete an image in an occluded region. The space-time completion involves completing an image in an occluded region, based on an assumption that the image in the occluded region is found in a picture at a different time in the input video sequence. Specifically, the space-time completion involves searching a picture at a different time in the input video sequence for a region matching with the occluded region, and replicating the searched image in the similar region onto the occluded region (see Non-Patent Literature 1, or NPL 1 for example).
First, the technique in NPL 1 involves setting a space-time window to enclose an occluded region (region to be removed) in a temporal image included in a video sequence. Then, the technique involves searching multiple pictures included in the input video sequence for the matching region having the best matching color and motion with the color and motion in the space-time window. Then, an image in the searched matching region is replicated onto the occluded region. Hence, the technique in NPL 1 makes it possible to appropriately complete the image in the occluded region as far as the matching region is found in a different picture in the video sequence even though the occluded region is one for a dynamic object.

Video generating apparatus and video generating method

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.


A protective headwear assembly is provided having a built-in camera, including a camera lens disposed in a front portion thereof. The camera lens is configured to provide a downward orientation relative to a horizontal plane of the headwear so that the camera captures imaging near the feet of the wearer. In an exemplary embodiment, the headwear is adapted for use by skateboarders and provides, among other things, for the recording of tricks and feet placement/technique. The camera lens can be pivotally mounted to an outer shell of the headwear assembly.

Headwear are commonly used in a variety of alternative sports such as skateboarding, snowboarding, and rock-climbing. Generally, helmets are comprised of a hard outer shell usually made of plastic, and a cushioned inner layer usually made of foam or padding. Such helmets are made to withstand an anticipated level of impact, but light enough to not be restrictive for movement for the specified activity.
Participants in such sports enjoy video recording while engaged in an activity. Usually, another person would have to be present to record the participant. Although this type of video recording may be preferable, there are instances in alternative sports activities when it is difficult or inconvenient. For example, in certain activities such as snowboarding or rock-climbing, it may be difficult for the person video recording to be able to follow continuously the participant during the entire activity. Moreover, certain participants may prefer to video record the activity in their own perspective, not the perspective of another person. However, due to the nature of some activities, it may not be feasible, if not impossible, for the participant to be holding a video camera in their hands while engaging in that activity. Therefore, there is a need for a way for an individual engaging in an activity to video record it without having to hold a recording device.
To address this need, cameras that mount on helmets have been made known in the prior art. Commonly, the camera is separate from the helmet and is attached to the external shell of the helmet by a special mount or connector. However, this approach often significantly increases the overall weight of the helmet or creates an uneven distribution of weight that may cause a sense of imbalance. In alternative sports such as skateboarding, a participant wearing a heavy or disproportionately weighted helmet may be encumbered from doing tricks and special maneuvers that require absolute balance.
In addition, cameras that mount onto helmets protrude outwardly and may hinder the participant. For activities that require the participant to travel at high speeds, the protruding camera can cause wind resistance, creating drag and strain on the participant's head. A protruding camera can also be dangerous because there is a greater chance that it may be entangled or come into contact with something during the activity. Furthermore, expensive camera equipment is more likely to become damaged if it is protruding outwardly from a helmet.
Furthermore, the camera placement may give an undesired point of view. When cameras are mounted on the top of a helmet, the point of view may be directed too far into the distance. In other words, the participant's point of view at his eyelevel may be substantially different from the point of view several inches above eye level.
Moreover, cameras with a fixed field of view may not be desirable for some alternative sports. Within a single alternative sport, there are many subcategories of distinctly different activities. For example, there are many variations of skateboarding such as downhill longboarding, freestyle, street, and vert ("vertical") skateboarding. Each subcategory of skateboard requires a different field of view for recording. For instance, downhill longboarding, where a skateboarder rides down a steep hill at high speeds, a field of view nearly parallel to the horizontal plane of a helmet is required see into the distance. In contrast, vert skateboarding, where a skateboarder rides on a half-pipe ramp, a view nearly perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the helmet is required to see the ramp below the participant's feet.
In addition, for street or freestyle skateboarding, where a skateboarder rides at an outdoor or "street" environment, a plurality of perspectives required depending on the type of "trick" the skateboarder is recording. Street or freestyle skateboarding is often a fluid improvisation of a series of tricks based obstacles in the environment. Therefore, there is a need for a headwear with an built-in camera to provide a plurality of perspectives, as well as allow a user to quickly and change the camera perspective during the course of skateboarding.
It should, therefore, be appreciated that there is a need for headwear with an built-in camera providing plurality of perspectives, particularly a downward orientation relative to a horizontal plane of the headwear.

Protective headwear assembly having a built-in camera