A pair of ultrathin slide rails capable of rapid installation and removal are disclosed. The slide rails are specially configured to provide an ultrathin three-section slide rail mechanism. Switchable auxiliary pins are inserted into threaded holes formed in bent sections at both ends of each slide rail, allowing the slide rails to be rapidly positioned in positioning holes of slide rail posts of a chassis and secured in place by fastening screws. The fastening screws are replaceable by resilient fasteners provided on the bent sections at both ends of each slide rail so that the slide rails can be rapidly installed and removed by virtue of the resilient fasteners and the auxiliary pins.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to slide rails, and more particularly, to ultrathin slide rails which are capable of rapid installation and removal and are designed particularly for being installed in the chassis of computers, electric appliances or medical equipment. The slide rails are specially configured to provide an ultrathin three-section slide rail mechanism such that rapid installation and removal of the slide rails are achievable through auxiliary pins and resilient fasteners.
2. Description of Related Art
Slide rails are commonly used with a variety of apparatuses, such as industrial computers, servers and control devices of electric appliances, to provide operational flexibility and efficient use of space while enabling easy expansion or maintenance. For an apparatus to use slide rails, symmetric slide rail posts are generally built in a chassis of the apparatus, so that plural sets of symmetric slide rails, along with hosts (e.g., industrial computers) secured thereon, can be installed across the corresponding slide rail posts in such a way that contraction or extension of the two- or three-section slide rails allows the laterally or vertically stacked hosts to be pushed into the chassis for use or pulled out therefrom for expansion, replacement, inspection or maintenance.
A pair of conventional slide rails are each composed of a set of inner and outer rail sections that are contractible and extensible for adjusting a length of each slide rail In consideration of the extended length and structural strength of the slide rails, a two- or three-section slide rail typically has an overall thickness of about 12.7 to 13 mm. However, a slide rail according to the present invention that is capable of full extension has a combined core thickness of only about 5.2 to 5.8 mm. Practically speaking, a pair of thinner slide rails not only save more room for use, but are also more advantageous during manufacture, storage or transportation.
In addition, the conventional slide rails are generally secured to the slide rail posts of a chassis either by screws passing through bent sections formed at both ends of the slide rails and the slide rail posts, or by fastening blocks which fasten the slide rails to fastening holes of the slide rail posts, so that hosts secured on the slide rails are allowed to slide into or out of the chassis as described above.

Ultrathin slide rail capable of rapid installation and removal


A backlight apparatus of an edge light type includes at least one elongated luminescent source, a holder in which the luminescent source is provided and a housing in which the holder is provided. A supporting component is attached to an end of the elongated luminescent source for securing the luminescent source in the holder. The supporting component has a projecting section that projects outward from the holder such that the projecting section is thermally connected to the housing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a backlight apparatus, and a liquid crystal display (LCD), and especially relates to a backlight apparatus including a luminescent source that generates heat, such as a fluorescent lamp, and an LCD that employs the backlight apparatus.
Conventionally, CRT (cathode-ray tube) displays have been used. In recent years, use of thin displays that employ an LCD panel has been progressing. Display quality of the LCD has been enhanced, and enlargement and higher brightness of the displays are desired for television use, etc. With requirements of brighter LCDs increasing, demands are increasing for a backlight apparatus that can provide the illumination for the enlarged and brighter liquid crystal panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional LCDs have been used mainly by notebook PCs, when up to about 13 inch displays are the main thrust with a screen brightness of around 150 cd/m2 and a resolution of XGA. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an LCD 1A that is an example of a conventional LCD.
The LCD 1A is configured with a liquid crystal panel 2A, a housing 5, a backlight apparatus 10A, etc. The housing 5 holds the liquid crystal panel 2A and the backlight apparatus 10A through a resin frame 6 and a backboard 9. Here, the backlight apparatus 10A gives predetermined brightness to a display of the liquid crystal panel 2A by illuminating the liquid crystal panel 2A from the back.
The backlight apparatus 10A generally includes a fluorescent light bulb 3 serving as a light source, a light guide board 4 that guides the light from the fluorescent light bulb 3 to the liquid crystal panel 2A, and a holder 7 that reflects the light from the fluorescent light bulb 3 to the light guide board 4, while supporting the fluorescent light bulb 3 via a rubber holder.
In the fluorescent light bulb 3, mercury is enclosed in Ar gas or Ne gas, and, on the wall of the fluorescent light bulb 3, a fluorescent material is applied. Mercury gas generates ultraviolet rays during electric discharge, and light is generated when the ultraviolet rays hit the fluorescent material.
The light guide board 4, made from acrylic resin, collaborates with an optical sheet 8 installed, and transmits the light from the fluorescent light bulb 3 and distributes the light all over the liquid crystal panel 2A. In the case of the LCD 1A that provides a relatively small screen size (about 13 inches), where no particularly high resolution and no particularly high screen brightness are required, the backlight apparatus 10A is provided only on one side of the light guide board 4, and only one fluorescent light bulb 3 is provided.
A larger screen size, 14 to 15 inches, has been used for the monitor of a desktop PC. FIGS. 3 and 4 show an LCD 1B that provides a relatively large screen size, for which resolution of SXGA and screen brightness of about 250 cd/m are required. For this reason, two backlight apparatuses 10B are installed in the LCD 1B, such that one of the backlight apparatuses is provided on each side of the light guide board 4. Further, each backlight apparatus 10B includes two fluorescent light bulbs 3. However, with infusion of DVD drives, users require that PC monitors provide even larger screens and higher brightness for movie viewing and so on.
In order to increase the screen size and brightness, there is a problem to solve. That is, the fluorescent light bulb 3 provided in the backlight apparatus 10B generates heat with luminescence. Especially in both ends of the fluorescent light bulb 3 where electrodes are installed, temperature can rise higher than 120 degrees C., when a large electric current is provided in order to obtain a high brightness. For this reason, some conventional solutions provide a rubber holder made of a heat-conductive material at both ends of the fluorescent light bulb 3, such that heat can be dissipated to the holder 7.
Nevertheless, the heat generated by the fluorescent light bulb 3 cannot be sufficiently dissipated by the holder 7 via the rubber holder, causing lowering of the brightness of the fluorescent light bulb 3, and breaking of a solder joint that connects the electrode section and wiring. Another solution has been to provide a larger holder 7 for more efficient heat dissipation, however, it causes dimensions of the LCDs 1A and 1B to become large.
The present invention is made in view of the above-mentioned point, and it aims at offering a backlight apparatus that can efficiently dissipate the heat generated in the luminescent source, and an LCD that employs the backlight apparatus.

Backlight apparatus, and a liquid crystal display (LCD) therewith


A cellular phone and a guidance display program enable an enhancement of operability when operating the cellular phone, corresponding to an event. An occurrence of an event is detected, guidance information corresponding to the event is searched out of a guidance storage unit. A standby-image corresponding to the guidance information is generated and then displayed, and guidance is displayed in the standby-image. When accepting an operation displayed in the guidance, a process corresponding to the event is executed.

The present invention relates to a technology of displaying guidance for a key operation etc on a standby-screen of an information processing terminal.
The category of the information processing terminals according to the present invention includes a cellular phone, a PHS (Personal Handy phone System), a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a PC (Personal computer) and so on.
Up-to-date various kinds of devices such as the cellular phone or the PDA are utilized as the information processing terminal.
The information processing terminals implement a multiplicity of functions such as management of schedule, access the Web, and a communication (a call). Utilization of these functions involves selecting and executing a target function by manipulating an operation key.
For example, in a cellular phone, a dialing function of a telephone number, a function of delivering and receiving an e-mail and a function of hearing an answering recording are executed by pressing keys assigned these functions and selecting a selection menu displayed as an option of each function by use of a menu key.
The cellular phone or the PDA is limited in terms of the number of implementations of keys assigned the respective functions and the menu key in order to design the cellular phone in a portable size.
Therefore, a contrivance is that a larger number of keys are laid out by downsizing each key to the greatest possible degree, and a plurality of functions are assigned to one single key.
Particularly as the cellular phone has come to have highly sophisticated functions over the recent years, this tendency becomes more conspicuous.
If the multiplicity of small keys are laid out as described above, however, an area for displaying each key function naturally narrows, with the result that a user might feel it difficult to recognize which function each key corresponds to. Especially in this case, fresh users and aged users are hard to manipulate the keys, and this is not preferable in terms of promoting the universal design.
Further, if the plurality of functions are assigned to one single key, the user needs an operation for selecting which function among the plurality of function after pressing this key, and therefor a problem is that the operation becomes complicated enough not to recognize.
For example, on a general type of cellular phone, when receiving the e-mail during a standby status, a piece of guidance [a mail is received] is displayed on a standby-screen.
This guidance enables the user to know that the mail has been received. There arises, however, a problem that the way of indicating which operation the user performs next for reading this mail can not be known from such a display.

Information processing terminal displaying guidance for a key operation on a standby-screen


A catalyst, e.g., a cracking catalyst, and a part of the regeneration fumes are drawn off from the dense catalytic bed of a second regenerator (9) and are introduced by force of gravity into an external exchanger (21) at a junction point beneath the level of the dense bed of the second regenerator. The heat exchange takes place in the bottom part of the exchanger below the junction point. Between the bottom end of the exchanger and the region above the junction point a dense bed zone is formed at a level which is substantially at the height of the dense bed in the regenerator and a discharge zone (27), of suitable size, for the regeneration gases and fluidization gas. The gases and fumes from the exchanger are removed in the diluted fluidized phase from the second regenerator through a conduit (28), while the catalyst is recycled in to the bed of the first regenerator through a conduit (34).

Catalytic cracking processes convert hydrocarbon charges into lighter products such as gasolines. To begin with, the charges are quite light like gas oils, for example, and in order to obtain a maximum conversion efficiency from the very active zeolite catalysts it is necessary to draw off the maximum amount of coke deposited on the catalysts which rendered them less active during a regeneration stage at a temperature of between 520.degree. and 800.degree. C.
Due to the pressing for fuels, those within the refining industry have become interested in increasingly heavy charges comprising hydrocarbons with a high boiling point, such as a boiling point which is above 550.degree. C., for example, and with a high Conradson carbon or a significant metal concentration. A large amount of coke and hydrocarbons can thus become deposited on the catalyst during the catalytic cracking phase, and regeneration of the catalyst by combustion can cause significant heat discharge which can adversely affect the apparatus and render the catalyst inactive, particularly during lengthy exposure to temperature above 800.degree. C. Controlled regeneration of the catalyst is therefore imperative. The problem occurs in particular when a process involving a technique in existence for a long time which basically treats conventional hydrocarbon charges is used for much heavier charges.
One of the aims of the invention is therefore to propose a regeneration process and apparatus with controlled cooling of the catalyst in a catalytic cracking unit with a view to treating heavy charges.
Another object of the invention is to make an apparatus easier to use.
The prior art is illustrated by the following patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,614,726 discloses an apparatus which has a regenerator, wherein the regeneration temperature is controlled by an external heat exchanger with descending flow through a bundle of tubes.
The cooled catalyst is recycled to the regenerator through a conduit for circulating the catalyst upwardly in fluidized state, in the dense bed of this regenerator. The catalyst in the exchanger is kept in the dense bed by a fluidization gas which flows counter-currently to the direction of flow of the catalyst, and fluidization gas is either entrained with it when flow is very weak, or is removed via the intake line for the catalyst. This counter-current circulation of the gas disrupts flow of the catalyst in the intake tube and in the exchanger, and the heat exchange is not at a maximum.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,443,245 discloses a regenerator on two levels, comprising an external exchanger with lateral intake of the hot catalyst coming from the upper level which is a storage zone.
The cooled catalyst is recycled through a conduit, which receives regeneration air and the used up catalyst, in a zone at the lower level where combustion takes place. Therefore, functioning of the regenerator and of the exchanger are closely connected since the return of the cooled catalyst to the regenerator is dependent on the flow of fluidization air used for regeneration and which circulates in said conduit. This patent also discloses a small tube above the exchanger which opens into the dense bed of the exchanger in such a way that discharge of the gas and fumes cannot be complete in view of the presence of the catalyst in this tube. The catalyst circulation with backmixing phenomenon can then appear. Discharge of the gas deteriorates as the exchange bundle meets the upper end of the exchanger. The mixture does not have to be homogeneous, and therefore an upper zone exists where the catalyst stagnates and where it is not properly regenerated. This mans that heat exchange is reduced.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,923,834 discloses a "backmixing" process where an upper tube opening into the intake conduit into the catalyst exchanger which circulates in dense bed enables the catalyst to be returned from the exchanger into the storage chamber of the regenerator. This patent is therefore concerned with cooling by "backmixing and not with a solution to a problem connected with the removal from a heat exchanger of fumes and fluidization air permitting optimization of the heat exchange operation.
Finally, the prior art is illustrated by the patent French Patent 2628342 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,965,232) which discloses an external system for cooling the catalyst in a unit comprising a double regeneration of the spent catalyst providing for a catalytic cracking apparatus, the two regenerators providing for separate removal of the combustion effluents, the catalyst circulating from the second regenerator to the first via the heat exchanger. The technical problem is also concerned with finding a maximum heat exchanger. In fact, the catalyst is not supplied properly to the heat exchanger through an inclined conduit because of a quasi-absence of space for release of the fluidization gas from the catalyst in the exchanger, which means that the fluidization gas tends to rise in the conduit in the form of bubbles, therefore acting against flow of the catalyst.
The present invention aims to remedy the drawbacks mentioned hereinabove and to permit significantly improved results.

Process and heat exchange apparatus for solid particles for double regeneration in catalytic cracking


A wire includes a core wire, an insulating coating that covers an outer periphery of a non-distal end region as a part of the core wire other than the distal end region, and a distal end seal part that is disposed separately from the insulating coating and seals the distal end part of the distal end region of the core wire. The core wire is exposed between the distal end seal part and the insulating coating. The distal end seal part includes a tubular distal end cover part that covers an outer periphery of the distal end part and a welded part that is crushed in an orthogonal direction orthogonal to a wire direction and is closed by welding.

Japanese Patent No. 5418332 discloses a wire with a terminal fitting 102 in which a female terminal fitting 101 is attached to an aluminum wire 100 as shown in FIG. 21 of the present application. The aluminum wire 100 includes a core wire 103 and an insulating coating 104. The core wire 103 is composed of a stranded wire obtained by twisting a plurality of element wires made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy. The insulating coating 104 is made of a synthetic resin and covers an outer periphery of the core wire 103. The female terminal fitting 101 is formed by pressing a plate made of a copper alloy. When the core wire 103 of the aluminum wire 100 and the female terminal fitting 101 are made of metals dissimilar from each other, the core wire 103 may be dissolved due to known galvanic corrosion. In order to solve this problem, in Patent Literature 1, the above galvanic corrosion is prevented by a resin cap 105 covering the core wire 103 that is exposed in a state in which the female terminal fitting 101 is attached to the aluminum wire 100. The resin cap 105 is obtained by heat-welding a separate coating, which has been separated by peeling the insulating coating 104.

Japan Aviation Electronics Industry, Ltd.


Disclosed herein are treated fumed silica particles comprising a modified polydialkylsiloxane on the surface thereof, a method for preparing treated fumed silica particles, and a rheological system comprising a polar liquid and treated fumed silica particles. Also disclosed are toner compositions comprising toner particles and treated fumed silica particles comprising a modified polydialkylsiloxane.

Structured fluids with a relatively high resistance to flow (yield stress) are highly demanded in the adhesives, gel coats, composites, and coatings markets. One method of modifying the rheological properties of such compositions is to incorporate particles, particularly fumed silica particles, into the composition. Fumed silica has a low bulk density and high surface area, and its three-dimensional structure results in viscosity-increasing, thixotropic behavior when used as a thickener or reinforcing filler. When used in a matrix (e.g., polymer, solvent, resin, etc.), the flow properties of the composition are determined by particle-matrix and particle-particle interactions. In order to obtain desirable properties, the particle-particle interactions must be strong enough relative to the particle-matrix interactions to form a network of particles in the composition. If the particle-particle interactions are weaker or smaller in number than the particle-matrix interactions, the system will act as a suspension and a network will not be formed. Thus, in polar systems, highly hydrophobic particles have been used as rheological control agents. However, highly hydrophobic particles can be difficult to disperse in a polar matrix, and may tend to remain agglomerated as they were in the powder form, thereby reducing the number of contact points that are necessary to create a strong network. This not only creates difficulties in processing, but also may result in sub-optimal initial or retained yield-stress properties. Thus, there is a need for treated silica particles that can provide improved rheological performance.
Electrophotographic image formation comprises developing an electrostatic latent image formed on a photoreceptor with a toner comprising a colorant dispersed in a binder resin, transferring the toner image to a receiving paper, and fixing the transferred toner image by means of, for example, a hot roll. The photoreceptor is cleaned after the transferring step to prepare for the next latent image formation.
Silica particles are often combined with toner particles to improve one or more selected properties of the toner particles, including fluidity, transferability, fixability, and cleaning properties. Typically, the silica particles are subjected to a chemical treatment to render the surface of the particles hydrophobic. However, there is a continued need for developing treated silicas to provide desired properties applicable for toner compositions.


An onboard davit assembly for launching a boat from a ship is disclosed. In at least one embodiment, the assembly includes two spaced apart davits, each davit including a substantially horizontal boom, a hoist cable extending downwards from a suspension frame on the boom and including at least one fixation device at its lower end to which the boat can be attached. In at least one embodiment, the assembly is arranged such that the booms are movable between an inward position wherein the suspension frames extend inboard and an outward position wherein the suspension frames extend outboard, wherein the booms extend from an onboard vertical pivot axis and can rotate in a horizontal plane around the pivot axis, and wherein the suspension frames are movable along the booms such that a distance between the suspension frames remains constant during rotation of the booms between the two positions when the boat is moved from a parking position to a launching position.

1. Field
The invention relates to an onboard davit assembly for launching a boat or the like from a ship, comprising two spaced apart davits, each davit comprising a substantially horizontal boom, a hoist cable extending downwards from a suspension frame on said boom and having fixation means at its lower end to which the boat can be attached, wherein the assembly is arranged such that the booms are movable between an inward position wherein the suspension frames extend inboard and an outward position wherein the suspension frames extend outboard. Where the current invention is described as an onboard davit assembly for launching a boat from a ship, this is to be understood to comprise davit assemblies for onshore purposes as well. The term ship can in this respect be replaced by quay or wharf, and the term onboard can in this respect be replaced by onshore, throughout the description and the claims.
2. Description of the Related Art
Such a davit assembly is described in WO 01/51348. The booms of the known davit assembly are parallel telescopic booms which can be extended and retracted between the two positions. It is however difficult to provide a reliable connection between the fixed part and the telescoped part of the telescoping booms in the telescoped position, such that the boom will not break when the boat is suspended outboard. This requires either a very strong and thereby heavy construction, or a large overlap between the telescoping part and the fixed part. In the latter case the telescoping boom must be substantially longer than the width of the boat to be launched, and such a construction thereby takes much extra room of the ship. Although in some cases it is possible to contain the extra (overlapping) length of the boom in an unused space or compartment of the ship, it is in any case an obstacle that must be taken into account.

Davit assembly and a method for moving a boat


An aerobic and anaerobic treadmill exercise system including a treadmill apparatus, independent upper body exercise apparatus and independent lower body exercise apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to exercise machines, and, more particularly, to machines for performing both aerobic and anaerobic exercises.
2. State of the Art:
One goal of exercise is to enhance the strength and endurance of skeletal muscles. Another goal is to enhance the capacity and endurance of, for example, the heart and lungs.
Exercises are sometimes categorized according to their relative purpose or effectiveness in achieving a particular goal. For purposes of this application, those exercises most effective in strengthening skeletal muscles may be termed anaerobic or strength-conditioning exercises. Strength-conditioning exercises are also sometimes called weight-training exercises. Those which are most effective in enhancing cardiovascular performance or the condition of the heart and lungs may be termed aerobic exercises. It is usually desirable to include both aerobic and anaerobic exercises in an exercise program.
Aerobic exercises rely generally on rapid and extended repetitions of an exercise movement against low to moderate resistance. Running and jogging are examples of what are typically regarded as aerobic exercises. Treadmills and stepper-type machines are examples of machines for performing running, stepping or jogging-type exercised. United States Patents disclosing stepper-type exercise machines include U.S. Pat. No. 4,838,543 (Armstrong); U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,362 (Bull); U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,338 (Potts); and U.S. Pat. No. 4,909,504 (Yang).
Anaerobic exercises for muscle conditioning are usually performed by making a relatively few repetitive movements or repetitions (e.g., 10-30) against high resistance. Typically, anaerobic exercises involve a more static type of exercise in which the user pushes or pulls against a force which can be selected or adjusted consistent with the user's desires. For example, the exerciser may work against gravitational resistance by lifting free weights, or by lifting weights through an arrangement of pulleys, to develop increased strength. Weight machines are known which provide adjustable resistance for a selection of anaerobic exercises using different muscles and limbs. Such machines may include a bench portion so the user may recline to do, for example, press exercises, or sit to do, for example, leg lift exercises. Examples include the machines described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,809,972 (Rasmussen et al.); 4,898,381 (Gordon); 4,902,006 (Stallings); 4,861,025 (Rockwell); 4,799,671 (Hoggan et al.); 4,930,768 (Lapcevic); 4,919,419 (Houston); 4,915,379 (Sapp); 4,900,018 (Ish et al.); and 4,915,377, 4,744,559 and 4,678,185 (Mahnke).
For many users, a home exercise apparatus greatly facilitates the regular performance of an exercise program. It is, furthermore, highly desirable to have a single machine useful for both anaerobic and aerobic conditioning. Exercise machines that combine both aerobic and anaerobic exercise functions are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,477,071 (Brown et al.) discloses a rowing machine (aerobic) which can be reconfigured and used for performing anaerobic exercises. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,796,881 and 4,750,736 (Watterson) both disclose a rowing exerciser with a weight bench structure for anaerobic or strength exercises. U.S. Pat. No. 4,705,267 (Jackson) discloses a machine having a weight bench portion, a bicycle wind trainer and a rowing machine. In an early exercise device illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 881,521 (Wilson), a mechanical chair was adapted to convert into a variety of exercise devices, such as an inclined roller section, rowing machine and handle exercise assembly. Commercially known machines include the GYMPAC 1500 made by Diversified Products Corporation of Opelika, Ala. and the FLEX CTS and FLEX PLUS machines made by Proform Fitness Products, Inc. of Logan, Utah.
A wide variety of anaerobic machines have been devised. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,072,309 (Wilson) shows a machine which can be reconfigured to perform a number of different exercises. One form of this machine is available from SOLOFLEX of Hillsboro, Oreg. It has a grip or bar element adjustably mountable in height to a central post. The bar element is mountable to a fin which extends from the central post. The fin has adjustment holes for passage of a locking pin. The bar element must be repositioned or reconfigured to perform many of the different exercises. Further, the user's hair, clothing, or digits may become entangled in the operating structure of the SOLOFLEX device.
Even though machines are known that can be reconfigured for use for both aerobic and anaerobic exercises, such machines have not in the past involved a relatively small or compact structure that can be easily converted while readily useful for aerobic exercises such as walking or jogging.
Motorized treadmills are a recognized machine for performing aerobic exercise. Various improvements to treadmills have been made to enhance their utility and their appeal, including inclination and speed adjustments, programmed and programmable exercise routines, shock absorption, pulse monitoring and safety switches.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,962 (Street) illustrates one such treadmill. It shows a treadmill with a cable pull apparatus to exercise the upper body and apparatus to develop muscles used in ski poling, canoeing or kayaking, and rowing.
Further, illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,493 (Johnston) is a conventional treadmill apparatus which includes an auxiliary upper body exercise unit and a seat which, in turn, may be installed on the treadmill in a forwardly-facing or rearwardly-facing fashion to be used in conjunction with the auxiliary upper body exercise unit.
Another treadmill apparatus is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,440 (Lynch), which combines a treadmill with an upper body muscle-stressing device. The user may use the treadmill independently of an exerciser which utilizes weights, lifted by the user.
A similar apparatus is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,104,119 (Lynch), which combines a treadmill with an upper body exercise device and monitor. Rather than use weights in the upper body exercise device, hydraulic/pneumatic cylinders, springs, elastic bands or other suitable variable resistance means are incorporated.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,110,117 (Fisher et al.), a treadmill is illustrated having movable handles to be grasped by the user for exercising the upper body of the user while walking on the treadmill belt. The device of the '117 patent employs spring-loaded handles pivotally mounted on each side of the treadmill belt. The handles also extend upwardly through the side surfaces or chassis adjacent the treadmill belt.
A similar-type treadmill is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,622 (Wilkinson et al.) wherein the pivotally-mounted handles on each side of the treadmill belt incorporate adjustable resistance devices that incorporate resistance plates or disks to adjust the desired force for the user during the upper body exercises of the user.
Yet another treadmill-type exercise device is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,866 (Engel et al.), which includes a treadmill, slidable foot restraints to simulate cross-country skiing, reciprocating, pivotable foot paddles connected to pneumatic cylinders or resistance mechanisms to simulate stair climbing and a pivotable torso support to assist balance of a person during exercise.
Further, illustrated in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/954,299 filed Sep. 30, 1992, is a treadmill with upper body exercise system as currently sold by Proform Fitness Products, Inc. as the CROSS WALK.RTM. Dual Motion Cross Trainer machine.
Disclosed in the drawings and specification, the exercise arms may be mounted on the top or outside of the side rails of the treadmill. Also, the exercise arms may be connected by a cable, rope or the like through a resistance mechanism. Other configurations of exercise arms or their equivalent may include cables or ropes extending rearwardly from a resistance structure positioned forward of the tread of the treadmill. The resistance may be configured to allow the cable or ropes to be moved by the user separately or alternately against a resistance such as friction applied to a pulley or even weights.
While such prior-art devices provide a treadmill type of apparatus which may include different types of upper body exercise, such devices do not provide sufficient flexibility and opportunity for a user to have available a broad range of aerobic and anaerobic exercises in one exercise apparatus.


Laid-on paper delivered from a laid-on paper roll and laid on a toilet seat can be easily separated after use, not requiring hands. A toilet is provided with a delivery roller part for clamping the laid-on paper from a laid-on paper roll, the laid-on paper having perforated lines to cut off the laid-on paper for each amount of use, and the delivery roller part pulling out the laid-on paper by the rotation thereof and delivering the laid-on paper onto the toilet seat. A rear portion of the toilet seat is vertically movably provided and upwardly urgingly supported by springs in a rear part of the toilet. A brake mechanism for stopping the rotation of the delivery roller part due to the lowering motion of the toilet seat is also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a laid-on paper cut-off system for a toilet seat. For cutting off laid-on paper delivered onto the toilet seat. In a toilet or closet provided with a delivery roller part for pulling out the laid-on paper from a laid-on paper roll, the laid-on paper having perforated lines for cutting off the laid-on paper for each amount of use, and delivering the laid-on paper onto the toilet seat.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It has been a common practice that, in order to prevent unsanitary use by directly contacting the skin with the toilet seat and to alleviate coldness when sitting on the toilet seat, laid-on paper for the toilet seat is laid on the toilet seat for use. Heretofore, the laid-on paper has been stored, being superposed on one another in a storing box placed at a position close to a closet, and, when necessary, the laid-on paper has been taken out of the storing box one after one for use. However, recently a method has been practiced where the laid-on paper is rolled into a roll shape, pulled out of the roll and delivered onto the toilet seat. This laid-on paper has perforated lines for each amount of use, and the laid-on paper which has been used is cut off along the perforated line and disposed after the use.
However, there is a very troublesome problem in that cut-off of the laid-on paper after the use is performed one by one manually

Laid-on paper cut-off system for toilet seat


External power source for an implantable medical device implanted in a patient, the implantable medical device having a secondary coil operatively coupled to therapeutic componentry and method therefore. A modulation circuit is operatively coupled to a power source. A plurality of primary coils are operatively coupled to the modulation circuitry and physically associated with an article into which the patient may come into proximity. The modulation circuit drives at least one of the plurality of primary coils. A sensor is coupled to modulation circuit and is adapted to sense proximity of a component related to the implantable medical device. The modulation circuit commences operation to drive at least one of the plurality of primary coils when the sensor senses proximity with the component related to the implantable medical device.

Implantable medical devices for producing a therapeutic result in a patient are well known. Examples of such implantable medical devices include implantable drug infusion pumps, implantable neurostimulators, implantable cardioverters, implantable cardiac pacemakers, implantable defibrillators and cochlear implants. Of course, it is recognized that other implantable medical devices are envisioned which utilize energy delivered or transferred from an external device.
A common element in all of these implantable medical devices is the need for electrical power in the implanted medical device. The implanted medical device requires electrical power to perform its therapeutic function whether it be driving an electrical infusion pump, providing an electrical neurostimulation pulse or providing an electrical cardiac stimulation pulse. This electrical power is derived from a power source.
In some implantable medical devices electrical power can be transcutaneously transferred through the use of inductive coupling. Such electrical power or energy can optionally be stored in a rechargeable battery. In this form, an internal power source, such as a battery, can be used for direct electrical power to the implanted medical device. When the battery has expended, or nearly expended, its capacity, the battery can be recharged transcutaneously, via inductive coupling from an external power source temporarily positioned on the surface of the skin.
While many devices and techniques have been developed to provide transcutaneous energy transfer in order to power an implantable medical device and/or charge or recharge a battery associated with an implantable medical device, external chargers associated with such devices are sometimes cumbersome and generally require the patient to take some overt step in order to associate an external charger in proximity with an internal, secondary coil associated with the implanted medical device and to initiate steps and/or procedures to accomplish a transcutaneous energy transfer in order to charge or recharge the implanted medical device. In some cases, this may require the patient to consciously remain in contact with or in the proximity of the external charging device. Such charging techniques and equipment tend to limit the flexibility and/or mobility of the patient having an implanted medical device while the device is charging.
U.S. Patent Application No. US 2003/0078634 (A1), Schulman et al, Full-Body Charger For Battery-Powered Patient Implantable Device, attempts to solve the problem of a patient having multiple implanted devices to be recharged. Schulman et al '634 discloses a full-body charger for charging one or more battery-powered devices wherein such devices are configured for implanting beneath a patient's skin for the purpose of tissue, e.g., nerve or muscle, stimulation and/or parameter monitoring and/or data communication. A support structure, typically chair-shaped or bed-shaped, capable of supporting a patient's body while providing a magnetic field to one or more of the implanted devices using one or more coils mounted within for providing power to the implanted devices. As a result, a single, generally sequential, charging cycle can charge all of the implanted devices and thus minimize the charge time requirements for a patient and accordingly improve the patient's lifestyle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,212,430, Kung, Electromagnetic Field Source With Detection of Position of Secondary Coil In Relation To Multiple Secondary Coils, attempts to locate a secondary coil associated with a particular implanted medical device. Kung discloses an electromagnetic field source for providing electromagnetic energy to a secondary coil, including two or more primary coils that each carry a time-varying current to produce an electromagnetic field, and a controller that selectively provides current to one or more primary coils based on their position with respect to the secondary coil. The secondary coil may be implanted in a human recipient and used to provide power for the operation of a medical device, such as an artificial heart or ventricular assist device. The primary coils may be housed in furniture. For example, they may be housed in a bed mattress or mattress pad on which the recipient rests, or in a blanket for covering the recipient. The controller includes a proximity detector that identifies those primary coils that are closest to the secondary coil, and a current director that, responsive to the proximity detector, selectively direct time-varying current though the closest primary coils.

Passive charge of implantable medical device utilizing external power source and method


An optical gas concentration measurement apparatus is disclosed. The optical gas concentration measurement apparatus includes a thermally insulated enclosure that has a gas sample cell situated within. A thermally-insulating, light-guiding element passes through an access port of the thermally insulated enclosure and is configured to direct light from a light source outside of the thermally insulated enclosure to the gas sample cell. A light detector outside of the thermally insulated enclosure is optically coupled to the gas sample cell and an electronic assembly outside of the thermally insulated enclosure is configured to receive information from the light detector.

Currently, many chemical processes, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes, require exact gas concentration monitoring in a controlled high temperature chamber. Some of these chemical processes utilize optical gas concentration measurement sensors, such as nondispersive infrared (NDIR) gas concentration sensors, to monitor gas concentration. A typical NDIR gas concentration sensor includes a gas sample cell, an infrared (IR) light source, an IR detector, and an electronic assembly that receives information from the IR detector. The IR light source emits light through the gas sample cell and to the IR detector, and the amount of light transmitted from the IR light source to the IR detector can be used to infer a concentration of a gas within the gas sample cell. In some cases, gas temperature and pressure sensors are included in the NDIR gas concentration sensor and may send gas temperature and pressure measurements from the gas sample cell to the electronic assembly where gas temperature, gas pressure, and IR detector measurements can be used to infer the gas concentration within the gas sample cell.
However, high temperature environments, such as those found in many CVD processes, may significantly limit the lifetime of such NDIR gas concentration sensors, as well as many other types of gas sensor, since many of the electronic components experience dramatically shortened lifetimes when exposed to high temperatures, such as temperatures in excess of 100° C. Additionally, many gas sample cells of NDIR gas concentration sensors utilize reflective walls to aid in the propagation of light from the IR light source to the IR detector; however, such reflective walls lose reflectance over time due to contamination caused by the gas within the gas sample cell. This reflectance loss significantly impairs the performance of the NDIR gas concentration sensor, especially as the reflectance losses become multiplicative with multiple reflections.
There is therefore a need in the art for a new optical gas concentration measurement apparatus that addresses some of the current shortcomings, particularly those involved in measuring gas concentrations in high temperature environments and those related to reduced performance due to gas sample cell wall contamination.

Optical gas concentration measurement apparatus


This invention relates to compositions and methods for treating the skin containing retinoids and alpha hydroxy acids such as latic acid, malic acid, fruit acids and sugar-cane-derived acids, for mitigating the irratating effects of retinoids on the skin.

Skin care compositions containing retinoids have become the focus of great interest in recent years. Retinoic acid, also known as Vitamin A acid or tretinoin, is well-known for the treatment of such skin conditions as acne and products containing retinoic acid are commercially available in various forms from the Dermatological Division of Ortho Pharmaceutical corporation.
More recently, however, wider use of retinoids has been suggested for treatments other than acne such as, for example, the treatment of skin against photoaging and sun damage. Many individuals who have had a good deal of sun exposure in childhood will show the following gross cutaneous alterations in later adult life: wrinkling, leatheriness, yellowing, looseness, roughness, dryness, mottling (hyperpigmentation) and various premalignant growths (often subclinical). These changes are most prominent in light-skinned person who burn easily and tan poorly. These cumulative effects of sunlight are often referred to as "photoaging". Although the anatomical degradation of the skin is most advanced in the elderly, the destructive effects of excessive sun exposure are already evident by the second decade. Serious microscopic alterations of the epidermis and dermis occur decades before these become clinically visible. Wrinkling, yellowing, leatheriness and loss of elasticity are very late changes.
The problem of skin aging is addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,146 wherein Vitamin A acid in an emollient vehicle is suggested as a treatment. Further, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,805, it is suggested that a number of retinoids are useful for restoring and reversing sun damage of human skin.
When considering the use of retinoids in skin care products, it is believed that certain retinoids such as, for example, retinol (Vitamin A alcohol), would be preferred over retinoic acid. This is because retinol is an endogenous compound naturally occurring in the human body and essential for good growth, differentiation of epithelial tissues and reproduction. Retinol is also preferred because it has a much larger safety margin than other retinoids such as retinoic acid. Accordingly, attention has turned toward formulating skin care compositions which contain retinol. Such compositions have been proposed such as those disclosed in a pending patent application, U.S. Ser. No. 719,264, filed on Jun. 27, 1991 by Clum et al. and commonly assigned to the assignee of this application; the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
The benefits from the use of retinol as set out above notwithstanding, it has been noted that skin care compositions containing retinol to some degree exhibit undesirable skin irritation as manifested by flaking, erythema and dermal edema.
Accordingly, there is a need for a composition comprising retinol which manifests less retinol induced irritation.

Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products, Inc.


A method includes determining, by a first radio transceiver of an access-restricted environment, of first direction information of a first radio signal transmitted between the first radio transceiver and a wireless device. The method further includes determining, by a second radio transceiver of the access-restricted environment, of second direction information of a second radio signal transmitted between the second radio transceiver and the wireless device. The method further includes receiving, by the access-restricted environment, of angle information determined by an electronic key associated with the access-restricted environment. The method further includes determining, based on the first direction information, the second direction information and the angle information, whether the wireless device is a relay device or the electronic key. The method can be based, for example, on a Bluetooth technology.

Access-restricted environments should be protected against access by unauthorized persons. Criminals, for example, can attempt to gain access to the passenger compartment of a vehicle by means of a relay attack. Security concepts for protecting access-restricted environments are frequently based on ultrawide band (UWB) transmission technology, the use of which can incur high costs. Manufacturers of devices for access-restricted environments are constantly endeavoring to improve their products. In particular, it may be desirable to develop devices which meet certain security standards and can simultaneously be implemented at low cost. It may further be desirable to provide associated methods and electronic keys for access-restricted environments.

Methods, devices and electronic keys for access-restricted environments


The present invention includes methods for preparing anticoagulant polysaccharides using several non-naturally occurring, engineered sulfotransferase enzymes that are designed to react with aryl sulfate compounds instead of the natural substrate, PAPS, to facilitate sulfo group transfer to polysaccharide sulfo group acceptors. Suitable aryl sulfate compounds include, but are not limited to, p-nitrophenyl sulfate or 4-nitrocatechol sulfate. Anticoagulant polysaccharides produced by methods of the present invention comprise N-, 3-O-, 6-O-sulfated glucosamine residues and 2-O sulfated hexuronic acid residues, have comparable anticoagulant activity compared to commercially-available anticoagulant polysaccharides, and can be utilized to form truncated anticoagulant polysaccharides having a reduced molecular weight.

Heparins and other anticoagulant polysaccharides are a class of compounds that are commonly prescribed as drugs in clinical settings to prevent blood clotting. Typically, these compounds are isolated and purified from the internal organs of animals, such as pigs and cows. However, because of recent disruptions in the worldwide supply due to potential contamination of heparin (over 200 people died as a result of contaminated compounds in 2007 in the United States alone) and geopolitical tensions with global suppliers, there has been a recent push to synthesize anticoagulant polysaccharides in vitro.
Within the animal, sulfated polysaccharides, including heparin, are synthesized by the catalytic transfer of sulfate functional groups, also called "sulfo groups", from a sulfo group donor to a polysaccharide, which acts as a sulfo group acceptor. Each sulfo group transfer is catalyzed by a sulfotransferase enzyme, and there are often multiple sulfotransfer reactions catalyzed by multiple sulfotransferase enzymes to ultimately arrive at each sulfated polysaccharide product. Sulfotransferases are nearly ubiquitous in nature, and they exist in nearly all types of organisms, including bacteria, yeast, and animals, including humans. Similarly, sulfotransferase enzymes play an integral role in the sulfation of a wide array of sulfo group acceptors, including many types of steroids, polysaccharides, proteins, xenobiotics, and other molecules.
There are several polysaccharides that can be utilized as sulfo group acceptors, including, for example, dermatan, keratan, heparosan, and chondroitin. In particular, heparosan comprises repeating disaccharide units of 1→4 glycosidically-linked, glucuronic acid and N-acetylated glucosamine ([β(1,4)GlcA-α(1,4)GlcNAc]n) residues, any of which can be further modified by one or more enzyme-catalyzed deacetylation, sulfation, or epimerization reactions. Sulfation of heparosan-based polysaccharides can be catalyzed by up to four sulfotransferase enzymes to form heparan sulfate (HS), and when performed in a particular order along with deacetylation of one or more glucosamine residues and epimerization of one or more glucuronic acid residues, can be utilized to form heparin.
there are only a couple of molecules that can be utilized by sulfotransferase enzymes as sulfo group donors. The nearly ubiquitous sulfo group donor, including for each of the four HS sulfotransferases, is 3′-phosphoadenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (PAPS). These in vivo systems have evolved to exclusively utilize PAPS because it has a short half-life and can readily be synthesized and metabolized, as needed, by the organism. However, that same short half-life renders PAPS to be unsuitable for most in vitro syntheses, particularly in large scale syntheses, that utilize sulfotransferases because it can readily decompose into adenosine 3′,5′-diphosphate, which actively inhibits the sulfotransferases' biological activity.
Aryl sulfate compounds, such asp-nitrophenyl sulfate (PNS) and 4-methylumbelliferyl sulfate (MUS) have been identified as cheap, widely-available compounds that can be useful as sulfo donors with a very limited number of sulfotransferases to synthesize certain small molecule products (see Malojcic, G., et al. (2008) Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 105 (49):19217-19222 and Kaysser, L., et al., (2010) J. Biol. Chem. 285 (17):12684-12694, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties). Yet, only a small number of bacterial sulfotransferases have been shown to react with aryl sulfate compounds as sulfo group donors, and none of these react with polysaccharides, let alone heparosan-based polysaccharides, as sulfo group acceptors. As a result, when sulfotransferases are used in the in vitro synthesis of sulfated polysaccharides, PAPS must be included in the reaction mixture to effectively catalyze sulfo group transfer, and aryl sulfate compounds can only be used indirectly, to repopulate the system with PAPS (see U.S. Pat. No. 6,255,088, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety).
Consequently, there is a need to develop facile methods of synthesizing sulfated polysaccharides in vitro, particularly heparin, without utilizing PAPS as the sulfo group donor. In particular, the development of sulfotransferase enzymes that are capable of both reacting with aryl sulfate compounds as sulfo group donors and with heparosan-based polysaccharides as sulfo group acceptors would present a large step forward toward the development of large-scale syntheses of heparin in vitro.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods for synthesizing anticoagulant polysaccharides


A printed circuit card carrier permits exchange of a card during continuous operation of electronic equipment, and thus without the need to remove an upper part of the enclosure to gain access to the card for upward removal from a motherboard connector. The carrier includes a movable printed circuit card holder that slides along the carrier, perpendicularly towards and away from the motherboard. An actuator accessible from outside the equipment and the holder are coupled together such that motion of the actuator is directed into perpendicular sliding motion of the holder. This either removes the printed circuit card from the motherboard connector or installs it into connector, depending on the direction of motion of the actuator. The carrier is particularly adapted for cards meeting the PCI standard.

This invention is concerned with installation or removal of printed circuit cards into or from electronic equipment, without the need to suspend operation of the equipment.
Many pieces of electrical and electronic equipment are operated continuously during the installation or removal of printed circuit cards from the motherboard of the equipment. During such xe2x80x9chot swapping,xe2x80x9d it must be possible to access a card location without compromising safety, grounding, operation and electrical shielding of adjacent cards, and so forth. Cards usually stand generally perpendicularly to the motherboard and are connected to the motherboard by pins located on the edge of the card. Thus, there is a need to install or remove a card, without removing the enclosure of the equipment, by moving it in two distinct perpendicular directions: xe2x80x9cin then downxe2x80x9d in the case of insertion; xe2x80x9cup then outxe2x80x9d in the case of removal. The small sizes and close mounting of modular electronic equipment make this a difficult task in general, and lead to mis-alignment of installed cards in particular.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,377 (Lund et al.) addresses this situation with a card holder that both holds the card and slides on a card guide positioned within the enclosure, above the motherboard connector. Proper alignment with the enclosure during installation of the card guide is accomplished by (1) a rail that guides and holds the card holder from above, and (2) a pair of hooks that extend down from the guide and engage suitable features that prevent the card holder from additional motion. A horizontal cam arrangement below the motherboard moves the features (and thus, through the hooks, the card holder) to redirect horizontal force into vertical force, thus either installing the board into the motherboard connector, or removing it from the motherboard connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,585 (Barthel et al.) also show a card holder that holds the card and is suspended from an xe2x80x9cactuator barxe2x80x9d above the motherboard. Again, a horizontal cam arrangement, but located within the upper actuator bar instead of below the motherboard, redirects horizontal force into vertical force, thus either installing the board into the motherboard connector, or removing it from the motherboard connector.
One aspect of the invention is a method of installing or removing a printed circuit card during continuous operation of electronic equipment, and thus without the need to remove an upper part of the enclosure to gain access to the card for upward removal from a motherboard connector. The method relies on a generally immovable carrier that supports a movable actuator, which is coupled to a movable circuit card holder. Motion of the actuator is directed into perpendicular motion of the holder with respect to the motherboard. Thus, moving the actuator installs or removes the printed circuit card from its connector on the motherboard.
Other aspects of the invention are preferred embodiments that comprise a carrier positioned to be relatively immovable in the direction perpendicular to the motherboard. These embodiments also comprise a movable printed circuit card holder that slides along the carrier, perpendicularly towards and away from the motherboard. An actuator accessible from outside the equipment is movably supported by the carrier. The actuator and the holder are coupled together such that motion of the actuator is directed into perpendicular sliding motion of the holder. This either removes the card from its connector on the motherboard, or installs the card into the connector, depending on the direction of motion of the actuator.
One preferred embodiment of the actuator employs a sliding member having at least one angled slot coupled with force transfer tabs located on the card holder. Horizontal motion of the actuator produces perpendicular motion of the holder. Another preferred embodiment of the actuator comprises a rotatable shaft bearing at least one pinion gear engaged with a rack gear on the holder. Rotational motion of the shaft produces the perpendicular motion of the holder.
All aspects of the invention are particularly suitable for cards meeting the PCI standard, but this is not a requirement.

Method and assembly for installation or removal of printed circuit card


According to the invention there is provided a compound the formula I;

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to novel, aromatic compounds and pharmaceutically-acceptable salts thereof which possess useful pharmacological properties. More particularly the compounds of the invention are antagonists of the pain enhancing effects of E-type prostaglandins. The invention also relates to processes for the manufacture of the aromatic compounds and pharmaceutically-acceptable salts thereof; to novel pharmaceutical compositions containing them; and to use of the compounds in pain relief.
2. Description of the Related Art
The compounds of the invention are useful in the treatment of pain such as the pain associated with joint conditions (such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis), post-operative pain, post-partum pain, the pain associated with dental conditions (such as dental caries and gingivitis), the pain associated with burns (including sunburn), the treatment of bone disorders (such as osteoporosis, hypercalcaemia of malignancy and Paget's disease), the pain associated with sports injuries and sprains and all other painful conditions in which E-type prostaglandins wholly, or in part, play a pathophysiological role.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) and opiates are the main classes of drugs in pain relief. However both possess undesirable side effects. NSAIDS are know to cause gastrointestinal irritation and opiates are known to be addictive.
Aromatic compounds which antagonize the pain-enhancing effects of E-type prostaglandins are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,811,459; 5,834,458 and 5,843,942. However, the need for compounds which relieve pain, without side effects, continues to exist.

Arylsulfanyl and heteroarylsulfanyl derivatives for treating pain

Abstract: wherein A, X, B, R1, R2, R3 and R4 are as defined in the specification.


A system and method for authenticating a user and creating and applying a user profile may include authenticating an administrator via an administrator identification. A user identification distinct from the administrator identification may be received, as well as a set of selected features associated with the user. A profile may be created and may include the user identification and the set of selected features. The profile may be applied in response to authenticating a user based on the user identification.

Car manufacturers continue to investigate ways to improve the security of a vehicle while allowing for personalized settings to be saved and recalled based on the identity of a user. Certain key transmitters may identify specific users. Each identified user may be associated with a set of predefined settings or preferences. However, there is a need for a more user-friendly system to establish and manage users and their respective settings. There is also a need for a system to efficiently authenticate users based on user input.

System for vehicular biometric access and personalization


A radio frequency signal transceiving method and device thereof are proposed. The method is configured for a radio equipment controller (REC) of a radio frequency signal transceiving device to exchange radio signals between a plurality of Baseband Units (BBUs) and a plurality of Radio Equipments (REs) that respectively connected to a plurality of Remote Radio Units (RRUs), and the method includes but not limited to the step of: receiving a first radio downlink signal at least, generating a first downlink control signal, modulating the first radio downlink signal at least into a first analog downlink signal at a first frequency according to the first downlink control signal, multiplexing the first analog downlink signal and the first downlink control signal into an integrated analog downlink signal, converting the integrated analog downlink signal into an optical downlink signal, and transmitting the optical downlink signal.

Radio interfaces such as Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) or Open Base Station Standard Initiative (OBSAI) standardizes the protocol interface between the radio equipment control (REC) and the radio equipment (RE) in wireless base stations, which allows Baseband Units (BBUs) and Remote Radio Units (RRUs) of the base stations could be separated, so that system capacity and flexibility could be improved thereby. However, one of the main drawbacks of these protocols is the bandwidth efficiency. For example, the CPRI consumes more than 9 GHz of bandwidth to transmit/receive 24 channels of 3.84 MHz W-CDMA signaling, it would be and it could be foreseen that the spectrum would be run out when wireless communication system of the base stations evolves MIMO mechanisms or evolutes to 4G or specifications beyond 4G.

Radio frequency signal transceiving device and method thereof, self-optimizing optical transmission device and method thereof

Industrial Technology Research Institute


A phase comparator has a flip-flop circuit and a logic circuit. The flip-flop circuit compares an input clock signal with a leading edge and a trailing edge of an input data signal to produce a leading phase comparison result signal indicative of a leading phase comparison result related to the leading edge of the input data signal and a trailing phase comparison result signal indicative of a trailing phase comparison result related to the trailing edge of the input data signal. The logic circuit produces an output up signal when both of the leading and the trailing phase comparison result signals indicate a lag phase of the input clock signal. The logic circuit produces an output down signal when both of the leading and the trailing phase comparison result signals indicate a lead phase of the input clock signal.

This invention relates to a phase comparator applied to a clock data recovery (CDR) circuit which mainly is integrated in a digital large scale integration (LSI) circuit and which is used in purposes necessary to operate at a high speed.
The phase comparators applied to the CDR circuit of the type described are composed of all of digital logic to be adapted to binary result outputs. Such types of the phase comparators are mostly adopted which are exemplified by ISSCC 2001 J. Savoi, B. Razavi, or the like. The phase comparators of the type described are generally called a bang-bang type in the art. The phase comparator of the bang-bang type is characterized in that it has a large gain and a large noise-resistance and it is easy to design to operate at a high-speed.
In the manner which will later be described in conjunction with FIG. 1, a conventional phase comparator of the type described comprises a flip-flop circuit consisting of first through third D-type flip-flops. The flip-flop circuit is supplied with an input data signal having a digital signal format and an input clock signal for use in data extraction. The input data signal is a received data signal. The first through the third D-type flip-flops are called first through third latch circuits, respectively. Each of the first through the third latch circuits has a data input terminal, a clock input terminal, and a data output terminal. The first latch circuit carries out a latch operation in synchronism with a trailing edge of a signal supplied to the clock input terminal thereof while each of the second and the third latch circuit carries out a latch operation in synchronism with a leading edge of a signal supplied to the clock terminal thereof.
The first latch circuit has a first data input terminal supplied with the input data signal and a first clock input terminal supplied with the input clock signal. The first latch circuit latches the input data signal in synchronism with a trailing edge of the input clock signal to produce a first latched signal from a first data output terminal thereof. The second latch circuit has a second data input terminal supplied with the input data signal and a second clock input terminal supplied with the input clock signal. The second latch circuit latches the input data signal in synchronism with a leading edge of the input clock signal to produce, as an output data signal, a second latched signal from a second data output terminal thereof. The third latch circuit has a third data input terminal supplied with the first latched signal and a third clock input terminal supplied with the second latched signal (or the output data signal). The third latch circuit latches the first latched signal in synchronism with a leading edge of the second latched signal (or the output data signal) to produce, as an output up/down signal, a third latched signal from a third data output terminal thereof.
That is, the conventional phase comparator of the type described compares a phase of the leading edge of the input data signal with a phase of the trailing edge of the input clock signal to produce the output up/down signal indicative of a phase difference between the input data signal and the input clock signal. In other words, the output up/down signal indicates one of lag and lead phases which the input clock signal has in comparison with the input data signal. When the input clock signal has the lag phase in comparison with the input data signal, the conventional phase comparator produces, as the output up/down signal, a signal having a logic "1" level indicative of an "up" state. When the input clock signal has the lead phase in comparison with the input data signal, the conventional phase comparator produces, as the output up/down signal, a signal having a logic "0" level indicative of a "down" state.
Inasmuch as the conventional phase comparator has structure where only one of phase difference related to the leading edge of the input data signal is reflected to a comparison result, it results in decreasing a phase margin on carrying out a clock recovery and it is difficult to obtain a sufficient noise-resistance for jitter variation, in the manner which will later be described in conjunction with FIGS. 5A through 5D.
Various other phase comparators of the type are already known. By way of example, a digital PLL (phase-locked loop) circuit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,696 issued to Yasushi Aoki et al. According to Aoki et al, the digital PLL circuit includes a phase comparing section composed of N phase comparators each of which comprises a flip-flop circuit. The flop-flop circuit has a data input terminal supplied with a sampled data and a clock input terminal supplied with a selected clock signal.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication of Tokkai No. 2000-68,991 or JP-A 2000-68991 discloses a clock recovery circuit which attains identification and regeneration of clock data without requirement of a high speed circuit. According to JP-A 2000-68991, the clock recovery circuit includes a phase comparator for detecting a phase difference between an input signal and a voltage controlled signal (a clock signal) supplied from a VCO (voltage controlled oscillator). The phase comparator comprises first and second D-type flip-flops, first and second AND gates, a delay circuit, and an adder. The first D-type flip-flop latches a data signal in synchronism with the clock signal to produce a first non-inverted latched signal and a first inverted latched signal. The first AND gate ANDs the data signal and the first inverted latched signal to produce a first ANDed signal. The second D-type flip-flop latches the first non-inverted latched signal in synchronism with an inverted clock signal to produce a second non-inverted latched signal and a second inverted latched signal. The second non-inverted latched signal is produced as a data output signal. The delay circuit delays the second inverted latched signal to produce a delayed signal. The second AND gate ANDs the first non-inverted latched signal and the delayed signal to produce a second ANDed signal. The adder adds the first ANDed rate, by using the AND gates, a phase difference detection is carried out only at leading edge or trailing edge of the clock signal.
An error-suppressing phase comparator is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,188 issued to Yoshiaki Kaneko. According to Kaneko, the error-suppressing phase comparator includes a phase comparator. When an edge of a recovered clock signal leads an edge of a data signal, the phase comparator produces a pulse of a down signal in order to delay the lead. When the edge of the recovered clock signal lags the edge of the data signal, the phase comparator produces a pulse of an up signal in order to advance the lag. At any rate, the phase comparator generates the pulse of the up signal or the down signal depending on lead or lag of a trailing edge of the recovered clock signal.

Phase comparator having a flip-flop circuit and a logic circuit


Detection of tissue response is provided with a high pulse repetition frequency. A sequence of separable signals is transmitted in one event. For example, pulses at different frequencies are transmitted as separate waveforms, but in rapid succession. As another example, coded transmit pulses are used. After transmission of the pulses, signals are received. Based on the different frequencies or coding, tissue response is measured at different times based on the receive event. Instead of one measure, a plurality of measures are provided for a given transmit and receive event pair, increasing the effective pulse repetition frequency for shear or elasticity imaging.

The present embodiments relate to detection with ultrasound of tissue properties. Ultrasound may be used to detect a shear wave or displacement in tissue.
Shear is a viscoelastic property of tissue. The shear wave velocity of tissue may indicate useful information about the health of the tissue. Shear wave images may be generated. A characteristic of the shear wave in the tissue is determined for different spatial locations. An image of the characteristic as a function of space is generated. However, a large number of transmissions and receptions are used to estimate shear wave information in a large region, resulting in a slow frame rate.
Another tissue property or component of viscoelasticity is elasticity. Ultrasound imaging may operate in an elasticity imaging mode. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,107,837; 5,293,870; 5,178,147; and 6,508,768 describe methods to generate elasticity images using the relative tissue displacement between adjacent frames. The tissue strain is determined in response to a stress applied to tissue. The stress is applied externally, such as by manual pressure or by acoustic pressure. Strain or strain rate are detected for generating an elasticity image. Altered stiffness regions may be identified. However, strain is relative or qualitative. For example, different amounts of applied stress result in different amounts of strain. The amount of applied stress may be unknown or difficult to determine accurately.

High pulse repetition frequency for detection of tissue mechanical property with ultrasound


A fiber filling box divided into compartments by slotted divider walls, preferably comb-like divider fences with vertical tines extending downwardly from a top frame, is lowered onto an air-permeable conveyor over at least one vacuum box in a fiber filling station. A multi-axis controlled nozzle blows fiber material to different depths and/or densities in the individual compartments. The divider fences allow continuous intertwining of fibers between adjacent compartments, but sufficiently contain the fibers to maintain well-defined boundaries between different fiber depths and/or densities in the individual compartments. Hold-down plates are lowered onto the fiber material, the fiber filling box is lifted away, and then the hold-down plates are lifted to release a shaped fiber mass, which is then heated and compacted in a heating station to form a fiber preform. The hot fiber preform is then molded, compressed and cooled in a molding station to produce a molded fiber component.

In various fields or industries, three-dimensionally molded components are produced by arranging a mass of fibrous material, and then heating, press-molding and cooling the fibrous mass to produce the molded fiber component. In the automobile industry such three-dimensionally molded components of fiber material are used as interior finish and trim components, as a backing for such finish and trim components, and especially also as sound insulation or noise damping components for motor vehicles. For example, such molded fiber components are used as fire wall insulation to damp engine noise, and as a floor sound insulation or floor pan liner to damp road noise, drive train noise and other driving noises. These components also offer thermal insulation for the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle. Such acoustic damping or insulating components are also used in the motor vehicle trunk, head liner, door paneling or trim, package shelf and engine compartment. It has been found to be especially suitable to produce such sound insulation components as molded fiber components by three-dimensionally molding a fiber fleece material. These molded fiber components especially consist of thermally deformable (e.g. thermoplastic) synthetic fibers, or of a mixture of natural fibers and/or thermoset fibers together with thermoplastic fibers.
These molded fiber components are to be fabricated as rather large surfacial parts, which are correspondingly to be applied over large surface areas of the motor vehicle, such as the floor pan and the head liner. However, over their relatively large surface area, these components often must include distinct sub-areas that have different thicknesses and/or different densities of the fiber material, in order to achieve different sound-damping and sound-insulating characteristics at the corresponding different locations of the motor vehicle. It is further necessary that such molded components should be as light-weight as possible so as to avoid unnecessarily increasing the weight of the motor vehicle, or requiring an excessive amount of fibrous raw material and therefore unnecessarily increasing the manufacturing costs. Thus, it has become important to be able to fabricate such a molded fiber component with a precisely targeted variation of the thickness and the density of the fiber material in different sub-areas, to precisely meet the requirements respectively pertaining for the different sub-areas. It is also often necessary that such molded fiber components must include openings or cut-out areas for accommodating or fitting other parts of the motor vehicle.
It has long been known in the automotive industry that such molded fiber components with varying thicknesses and varying densities in different sub-areas can be produced by providing a uniform fiber base or substrate, and laying-up extra layers or blocks of fiber material onto the fiber base in particular areas that require a greater thickness and/or greater density of the fiber material. During the molding process, the additional fiber layers or blocks are adhesively bonded and laminated onto the fiber base, and the whole assembly is three-dimensionally molded at an elevated temperature, and then cooled to set or fix the molded configuration. Any required openings are cut-out thereafter by stamp-cutting, water jet cutting, or the like. Such a process is disadvantageous in view of the significant additional labor steps and associated extra cost.
To avoid the need for laying-up individual layers and/or blocks of fiber material, improved methods and apparatus have been developed, whereby a fiber fill material of loose fibers or strands is blown or sprayed onto or into a mold, which then three-dimensionally molds the accumulated fiber mass at elevated temperature, followed by cooling, in order to produce a fixed three-dimensionally molded fiber component. In this regard, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,942,175, 4,806,298 (as well as the related German Patent laying-open document DE 35 41 073), and U.S. Pat. No. 7,622,062 (as well as the related WO 2004/106042 and DE 103 24 735 and US 2007/0007695). Generally, these documents disclose similar basic aspects of a method and apparatus for producing a three-dimensionally molded fiber body. A mold including a lower mold tool and one or more upper mold tools with various different three-dimensionally contoured mold surfaces of perforated sheet metal is filled with a fiber mixture by blowing or streaming the fiber mixture into the mold. For example, this is achieved via a movably controlled fiber fill pipe into an open mold, or via a fiber injection nozzle into a closed mold. Then a hot airstream at about 200° C. is blown through the accumulated fiber material between the upper and lower mold tools, such that the synthetic plastic fibers of the fiber mixture partially melt and/or such that thermosetting binder materials are activated, whereby the meltable thermoplastic materials or the thermosetting materials form a binder for the other fibers of the fiber mixture. The fiber mixture is then three-dimensionally molded under pressure between the mold tools. Thereafter cooling air is blown through the molded fiber body in the mold so as to cool, stabilize and fix the molded shape of the resulting fiber pre-form. The fiber pre-form and/or the mold tools can be moved among various stations, e.g. a filling station, a heating station, and a cooling station, by a rotary table arrangement or by a linear slide table arrangement.
The abovementioned conventional methods and systems for producing three-dimensionally molded fiber components all suffer several disadvantages. It is especially a problem that these known methods have not been able to satisfactorily achieve the desired variation of the thickness and/or density of the fiber material at different sub-areas of the molded component, with sufficient accuracy and sufficient economy. Namely, the placement and positioning of the desired fiber quantity and fiber density in the different sub-areas, in relation to the prescribed molding contour, is rather complicated and difficult, and also rather inaccurate as to the location, especially at the areas of transitions of thickness or density, for example at transitions of the molding contour with a thickness jump from a small wall thickness (e.g. 8 mm) to a significantly larger wall thickness (e.g. 40 to 60 mm). Due to a rather inaccurate blowing-in or streaming-in of the fibers with an airstream while simultaneously applying vacuum suction in the three-dimensionally contoured mold tool, this leads to an excessive accumulation and layering or superposition of the applied fiber quantity in such areas of a contour transition. As a result, only rather inaccurate surface densities and thicknesses of the molded component can be achieved especially in the areas of contour transitions. It has not been possible to achieve an exactly determined position of such transitions of the thickness and/or the density of the applied fiber quantity, with precise boundaries between adjacent sub-areas having different thicknesses and/or densities. Furthermore, the need of a subsequent cutting step to produce the required holes or openings in the molded fiber component entails additional costs, due to the additional handling, additional equipment, additional tooling, and additional work steps. This disadvantageously increases the cost of producing the finished molded component. A further disadvantage is that the fiber material is introduced, heated, consolidated or compressed and molded, and finally cooled in the same mold tool, which thus requires this mold tool to be repeatedly heated and cooled. That in turn leads to a relatively high energy consumption and also relatively long mold tool and process step cycle times. Still further, the application of a vacuum through a perforated sheet metal mold tool, over the entire area of the component to be molded, leads to a relatively high consumption of the vacuum suction airflow, which again leads to relatively high energy consumption.
To achieve some improvement over such disadvantages of the above prior art, another fiber molding method and apparatus has also become known in the industry. In this method and apparatus, a perforated sheet metal molding shell is positioned on top of a conveyor belt. Vacuum is applied via a vacuum box to the upper side of the perforated molding shell selectively through plural trap-door vacuum valves that individually communicate with different segments of the perforated molding shell. The loose fiber fill material is blown horizontally into the space between the conveyor belt and the upper mold shell, while vacuum is applied successively sequentially through the individual trap-door vacuum control valves to successive sequential areas or segments of the mold shell beginning at the far end away from the fiber blow-in entrance. Thereby, the amount of vacuum airflow can be somewhat reduced, and the successive filling of the mold chamber with the fiber material successively from one end to the other is facilitated and made more uniform. While this produces a fiber mass with different thicknesses in different sub-areas, corresponding to the configuration of the upper mold shell, it is not possible to accurately produce significantly different fiber densities at different areas with distinct or crisp transitions of the fiber density precisely at predefined locations. After the molding shell is filled with fibers in this manner, the molding shell is lifted away, and the resulting fiber mass is transported by the conveyor belt into a hot air oven, where the fibers are heated and partially melted. After the heating process, the fiber mass is transported into a separate cooled mold station including upper and lower mold tools, between which the hot fiber mass is three-dimensionally molded into the desired final contoured shape and cooled so as to fix and stabilize this contoured shape. Thus, this process and apparatus involve a division of the processes into three distinct process cycle steps and three distinct stations, namely the first step and station for forming the fiber mass, the second step and station for heating the fiber mass, and the third step and station for the final molding and cooling of the fiber mass to form the fiber pre-form. This separation of the heating and cooling achieves economic advantages, because the total energy required for the heating and cooling can thereby be reduced. Nonetheless, the disadvantage remains, that it is not possible to achieve the desired variation of the thickness and density of the fiber mass with good precision especially at the predefined locations of the transitions of the thickness and/or density between adjoining sub-areas of the fiber pre-form that is to be produced.


An apparatus reminds an operator of a need to change water in a reservoir of a warewasher. A counter that counts operating cycles of the warewasher and a sensor provides signal indicating that the reservoir has been drained and refilled. A controller responds to the counter having a first threshold value by activating an annunciator to alert the operator that is it time to change the water. Thereafter when the counter has a greater second threshold value and the controller disables operation of the warewasher until the sensor indicates that the reservoir has been drained and refilled. Thus the operator is required to change the water in order to continue using the warewasher.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to automatic warewashers for kitchenware; and in particular to electronic control circuits for automatically operating the warewasher.
2. Description of the Related Art
Commercial kitchens have equipment to clean and sanitize glassware, dishes, silverware, pot, pans and cooking utensils, which are collectively referred to as "kitchenware." Such equipment, commonly known as a "dishwasher" or more generically as a "warewasher", has a cabinet defining an internal chamber into which trays of kitchenware are placed for washing. A washing and rinsing assembly within the chamber has a plurality of nozzles from which water sprays onto the kitchenware being cleansed. The lower part of the cabinet forms a reservoir that collects the water which is repeatedly circulated through the nozzles by a pump during the wash cycle. Then, fresh water from an external supply line is fed through the nozzles during a rinse cycle. When the rinse water flows into the reservoir, some of the reservoir water overflows into a drain thus replacing some of the water from the wash cycle.
Because the water is not completely drained from the reservoir for each wash cycle, food particles, grease and other debris from the kitchenware accumulates in the reservoir. As a result a human operator periodically (e.g. every two hours of operation) must manually drain and refill the warewasher to remove the accumulated debris and provide fresh water. Operators often forget to change the water or lose track of how long the time interval has been since the previous water change.
To solve this problem, various systems have been developed to remind the operator when to change the water. One such system, counted the number of wash cycles and upon the occurrence of a given number of cycles, provided a visual or audible warning to the operator indicating the need to change the wash water. For example, a lamp on a control panel illuminated and a buzzer sounded to provide that indication. However, operators often ignored this warning, pressed a reset switch and continued to wash dishes without changing the water in the warewasher. Failure to periodically drain and refill the machine with fresh water allows debris to accumulate to unsatisfactory levels which adversely affects proper cleaning of the kitchenware.
Therefore, there still exists a need for a control system that requires operators occasionally drain and refill the water in a warewashing machine.

Automatic control system for a kitchen warewasher


The claimed subject matter comprises a device to collect and preserve cells comprising of: (1) a collection container comprised of a tube having an open end and a closed end, a closure in the open end of the tube, a vacuum drawn to a predetermined level inside the container; and (2) compounds including an anticoagulant agent and a fixative agent, wherein the compounds are in a sufficient amount to preserve said cells' original morphology and antigenic sites without significant dilution of said cells, and thereby allowing said cells to be directly analyzed by a flow cytometer without further treatment. The claimed subject matter further comprises of a method of making a collection device for cells comprising of: (1) providing a tube having an open end and a closed end; (2) preloading compounds including: an anticoagulant agent, and a fixative agent into the tube, wherein the compounds are in a sufficient amount to preserve the cells' original morphology and antigenic sites without significant dilution of the cells, and thereby allowing the cells to be directly analyzed by a flow cytometer without further treatment; (3) inserting a closure into the open end of the tube; and (4) drawing a vacuum inside the tube to a predetermined level to form the collection device.

In biological and biochemical analysis, and related arts, it is often necessary to collect and preserve biological tissues (i.e., cells and cellular components), for useful periods of time. The collected and preserved cells are often utilized in a wide variety of applications, including but not limited to instructional aids and the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. For example, such cells are often utilized in histological, cytological, immunological, and proteinaceous studies and the like.
Various methods are known in the art for analyzing histological, cytological, immunological, and proteinaceous materials. For example, surface marker analysis has developed as a laboratory tool, which is particularly useful for clinical diagnosis through the investigation of immunostates, differentiation of cell types and development stages, and other cell processes. The expansion of uses for surface marker analysis has resulted in the use of flow cytometry and antibody probes to evaluate cellular properties. While other means of assaying for surface marker analysis exist, flow cytometry provides rapid, objective and quantitative assessment of surface markers. Furthermore, even though the microscope is still the conventional means for examining preserved and stained biological materials, biological materials may also be examined with a flow cytometer. The flow cytometer is an important method for examining a plurality of cells in a brief time.
Flow cytometry and flow cytometers are generally described in Keran's text, Flow cytometry in Clinical Diagnosis (1989). Flow cytometers operate in principle by multi-parameter analysis of heterogeneous cell populations (or cellular components) on a cell-by-cell basis. Flow cytometry allows biological and physical properties of cells and cellular components to be determined. In flow cytometry, cells in suspension are forced single file, via hydrodynamic focusing, through the path of a laser beam. Interaction of the cells with the laser beam scatters some of the light and causes excitation and emission from fluorescent molecules present on the surface or interior of the cell. A series of lenses collect the scattered or emitted light and pass it to a photomultiplier. Each photomultiplier measures a separate parameter. Parameters measured include: forward light scatter, which measures relative particle size; side light scatter, which measures relative granularity or other internal structure; and fluorescence emission. The optical signals are converted by a computer to a data display for analysis and interpretation. Cells collected and preserved using conventional methods and instruments generally require further dilution and/or treatment before they can be analyzed by flow cytometry. Thus, it is desirable in the art to obtain a method and a collection device that allow the cells to be directly analyzed by flow cytometry without further dilution and/or treatment. (There is need for a method to collect and transport human blood specimens for flow cytometric analysis. Current methods are inadequate in that the samples have to be analyzed soon after collection.)
The primary objective of tissue preservation is to provide as much structural detail of cells and components thereof as possible. To do this, it is necessary to maintain the cells in their original unaltered morphology so that maximum cellular detail may be observed. With the clinical application of immunostaining, there is also the requirement that antigens are not altered by the method of preservation. Thus, it is desirable in the art to obtain a method and a collection device that maintain the cells in their original unaltered morphology and preserve their antigenic sites.
The usual formulations for preservation of cells contain one or more agents, which react vigorously with the proteins of the cells to denature and insolubilize the components of the cell. Typical of this type of agent is picric acid, mercuric ions, formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde. In addition, some less toxic compounds can also be utilized which denature and stabilize the proteins such as acetic and formic acid. Unfortunately, the toxicity associated with such compounds renders their use less than satisfactory. For example, a 37% solution of formaldehyde, the most common of these fixatives, is a noxious gas which is also toxic, flammable, and carcinogenic. Although efforts are made when this chemical is used to protect workers and avoid contamination of the drainage system when disposed, these efforts are usually both expensive and inconvenient, and fixatives such as formaldehyde still present a danger to laboratory workers and health care professionals. Thus, it is highly desirable to develop a method and a collection device, which can preserve the cells in a low toxicity and non-flammable environment so that it can be used safely, effectively and conveniently in histological and other studies.
For even easier handling, it is also desirable to develop a method and a collection device that allow transportation (e.g., from the collection site to the analysis site) of the cells in ambient temperature.

Method and device for collecting and preserving cells for analysis


A vehicle stopping apparatus for stopping a target vehicle has a capture loop large enough to loop over a vehicle tire, attachment means provided over a portion of the capture loop to attach the portion of the capture loop to the vehicle tire, and a tether coupled to the capture loop. The vehicle stopping apparatus may have an anchoring device coupled to the tether, the anchoring device adapted to apply a resistive force on the tether. Furthermore, the vehicle stopping apparatus may have a deployment mechanism adapted to transfer the capture loop from a set position wherein said capture loop is folded in a bundle, to a deployed position wherein said capture loop is extended across the path of said vehicle tire.

Law enforcement officers are often faced with the task of pursuing suspects in vehicles. Numerous apparatus and methods for stopping fleeing vehicles have been disclosed in the prior art.
One method used in the prior art deploys various types of spike belts to puncture the tires of a vehicle, as in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,330,285, 5,536,109, and 6,048,128.
Another method used in the prior art delivers an electrical pulse to the engine of the fleeing vehicle. The electrical pulse can be provided either from a pursuing police car or from a fixed position along the road, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,619,231, 4,976,862, and 5,503,059.
A further method disclosed in the prior art requires that all vehicles be equipped with some form of receiver and engine shut off device, so that a police officer could disable the vehicle by remote transmission. Such systems are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,619,231, and 6,135,226.
An additional method for stopping a vehicle is to mount some sort of grappling apparatus to the front of a police car. The apparatus is designed to engage the bumper or undercarriage of the fleeing vehicle. One such system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,759.