A winding station of a textile machine for producing cheeses is equipped with a device for pickup and transfer of a yarn from a cop to a splicer for joining to a yarn from a cheese, the pickup and transfer device comprising an air-blowing fitting, a pivot tube and a suction fitting connectable via a gripper tube to a suction source. The suction fitting is positioned outside of the normal yarn path and a yarn control device is arranged in front of the suction fitting in the area of the normal yarn path. A yarn end loosened from a spinning cop is pneumatically conveyed to the gripper tube and is threaded into the yarn control device by means of the pivoting of the gripper tube into an intermediate position and the simultaneous pivoting of the pivot tube into an operating position. If a yarn control signal is not present, no yarn splicing attempt is made and a fresh yarn pickup attempt is immediately started, i.e. the pivot tube and the gripper tube directly return into their yarn transfer or yarn pickup position.

Textile yarn winding machines which wind yarn into packages, commonly referred to as cheeses, are known to comprise winding stations having a device for picking up the yarn end of a spinning cop to be rewound utilizing a mechanism for pneumatically loosening and transferring the yarn end of the spinning cop to a gripper tube charged with suction air which, in turn, places the yarn end into a splicing device. Winding stations embodied in this manner are known, for example, from German Patent Publications DE 38 12 643 A1 or DE 42 41 992 A1.
German Patent Publication DE 38 12 643 A1 describes a device having a cover, which encloses the spinning cop in the unwinding position, and an unwinding balloon guide disposed above the cover. A pressurized air blowing nozzle moves the yarn end from the cop to a transfer tube, which is parked in a stand-by position. The transfer tube is pivotable to move into a position centered above the unwinding balloon guide and can be charged with suction air to aspirate the yarn end from the cop. The transfer tube subsequently transfers the aspirated yarn end to a splicing device. Among other things, it is disadvantageous in this known device that the transfer tube is positioned directly in the yarn path for picking up the yarn end, which has negative effects particularly in connection with a yarn break detection circuit.
In the device in accordance with DE 42 41 992 A1 a yarn catching funnel is installed above a delivery bobbin disposed in a waiting position and transitions into a tube-shaped connecting element with a lateral aspirating opening. The yarn catcher funnel and the connecting element together have a slit-like opening facing in the cop direction through which the yarn end can pass. A pivotably seated gripper tube can be docked on the lateral aspirating opening of the connecting element to draw the yarn end into the funnel.
This known device makes it possible to prepare the yarn end of a delivery bobbin for respooling in advance so that the respooling process can be immediately started as soon as the spinning cop is moved into a respooling delivery position. However, problems can occur in this device if a yarn break occurs in a spinning cop while being unwound in the delivery position, since it is necessary for repairing the yarn break to employ the gripper tube which has already grasped the yarn end of the cop parked in the waiting position, which can lead to complications.
A further device installed at the winding stations of an automatic cheese winder is described in German Patent Publication DE 44 22 596 A1, wherein the presence of a yarn end pulled off the cop is detected by means of a sensor when the yarn is grasped by a yarn gripper element and initiates a dynamic yarn signal in the sensor to indicate the presence of the yarn end. If the presence of the yarn end is detected, a previously initiated yarn end connection process is continued, while in the absence of an appropriate yarn detection signal the yarn end connection process is interrupted and a cop changing procedure is initiated.
With this known device, the control of the yarn gripping elements required for the yarn end connection process, as well as the control of the service elements employed in connection with a cop changing process, is performed mechanically, i.e. by means of cam disk packages, which are acted upon by a common drive. Such cam disks as a rule perform a 360.degree. rotation during each yarn end connection process and accordingly are mainly designed for a predetermined direction of rotation. Hence, problems can occur with these known devices in stopping the yarn connection process in the absence of the dynamic yarn signal and returning the cam disk packages immediately into their starting "zero" position.
In addition, automatic cheese winders are known from the later published German Patent Publication DE 195 39 762.2, whose winding stations have separate drives for a yarn connection device and for a cop changing device. In this case, the drive for the cop changing device comprises a step motor, which can be controlled by a winding station computer for driving a cam disk package via a gear arrangement for actuating various manipulating devices as well as for stepping a round magazine for receiving spinning cops. By employing a separate step motor for the cop changing device, the cam disk package for the yarn connection device and the cam disk package for the cop changing device can be mechanically separated, so that a largely independent operation of the respective manipulating devices is possible, for example, with separate forward and return movements.

Winding station of a textile machine for producing cheeses


The present disclosure provides a method executed by user equipment, the method including: submitting, by a transmitting side of an Acknowledged Mode Radio Link Control (AM RLC) entity, to a lower layer an Acknowledged Mode data Service Data Unit (AMD PDU) including a poll. The method further includes: updating, by the RLC entity, a poll send state variable to the highest sequence number of an Acknowledged Mode Radio Link Control Service Data Unit (RLC SDU) submitted and awaiting acknowledgments. Furthermore, the present disclosure further provides corresponding user equipment.

A new research project on 5G technical standards (see non-patent literature: RP-160671: New SID Proposal: Study on New Radio Access Technology) was proposed in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) RAN #71 plenary session held in March 2016. The goal of the research project was to develop a New Radio (NR) access technology to meet all of the application scenarios, requirements, and deployment environments of 5G. NR has three main application scenarios: enhanced mobile broadband communications, massive machine type communications, and ultra-reliable and low-latency communications.
It was agreed in the 3GPP RAN2 #96 meeting held in October 2016 that NR Radio Link Control (RLC) entities do not support cascade operations. It was agreed in the RAN2NR Adhoc #2 meeting held in June 2017 that split bearers can adopt data preprocessing similar to that of single carriers. It was agreed in the RAN2 #99 meeting held in August 2017 that NR UE can perform data preprocessing on an uplink split bearer before receiving a lower-layer request (or a data sending request) and deliver data (namely, preprocessed data) to a lower layer before receiving the request from the lower layer. It was agreed in the RAN2 #99bis session held in October 2017 that an RLC entity discards an RLC SDU only when none of segments of the RLC SDU is transmitted over an air interface or mapped to a transmission block or transmitted in a transmission opportunity from a lower-layer notification. It was agreed in the RAN2 #100 meeting that the send state variable TX_Next is used to hold a sequence number to be assigned for the next newly generated AMD PDU, and the initial value thereof is 0; in addition, when an AMD PDU with the sequence number being TX_Next is constructed and the AMD PDU contains an RLC SDU or the last segment of an RLC SDU, TX_Next is updated. The conclusions reached in the previous meetings will affect a processing process of a poll flow at a transmitting side of an AM RLC entity.

Wireless communication method and device


An optical fingerprint image input device for a mobile apparatus includes: a plate-shaped fingerprint contact member; a distortion correcting member for correcting distortions; light sources disposed at both sides of the fingerprint contact member, other than an inclined surface or a back light source in a liquid crystal display element; focusing means disposed at an inclined surface side of the distortion correcting member; and an image sensor. In other words, the fingerprint contact member and the distortion correcting member having respective set-up inclined angles are disposed to discern sweat, water or oil and to correct a trapezoidal distortion which is a disadvantage that occurs when a thin fingerprint contact medium is used, and to form a lens system comprised of a cylindrical lens and a spherical lens for adjustment of a ratio of transversal to longitudinal widths of an image.

In general, there are three methods of obtaining fingerprint information from human beings, namely, indirect method, optical method and non-optical method. The indirect method involves the use of scanners or cameras for scanning or photographing fingerprints printed on a paper, and the non-optical method utilizes the principle of electric field.
The most efficient and common method is the optical method. As shown in FIG. 1, an apparatus for optically inputting fingerprints includes a light source (1) for illuminating light on a fingerprint region, a diffusing plate (2) for diffusing light generated from the light source (1), a prism (3), a lens (4) for forming a fingerprint image to be formed on a fingerprint capturing surface (3-a) of the prism (3), and an image sensor (5) for converting the fingerprint image formed on the lens (4) to an electrical signal.
In the optical fingerprint input apparatus thus described, when the fingerprint region touches the fingerprint capturing surface (3-a) of the prism (3), light beams from the light source (1) are reflected from and absorbed in the ridge lines and valleys, where the reflected light beams are incident on the prism (3), images of which are formed on the lens (4), and the light beams having their images formed on the lens (4) are incident on the image sensor (5) to allow the images of the fingerprint to be inputted.
However, there is a drawback in the optical fingerprint input apparatus thus described according to the prior art in that miniaturization of the apparatus is restricted by the thickness of the lens, making it difficult to be integrated with other apparatus.
In order to cope with the above-mentioned drawback, a prism is thinned to form a thin plate. However there arises another drawback in that an angle of an inclined surface becomes larger as the thickness of prism is thinned to proportionally produce a worsened trapezoidal distortion of the fingerprint images, making it impossible to be applied to mobile apparatus where a thin-light-miniaturized look is valued high as in cellular phones.
There is still another drawback in that oil from a human's hand or face can stain a fingerprint contact region of an optical fingerprint input apparatus when the apparatus is applied to a cellular phone, making it difficult to distinguish between oil information and fingerprint information and to verify fingerprints.

Optical finger print input device for mobile apparatus


The present disclosure discloses a search result displaying method and an apparatus. The method includes: obtaining a plurality of webpages according to a search request of a user, and performing proper noun recognition and word segmentation processing on a title of each webpage to obtain part-of-speech and extended information corresponding to a word segmentation result; determining core information of each webpage according to the part-of-speech and extended information corresponding to the word segmentation result; selecting webpages matching the search request from the plurality of webpages based on the core information of each webpage; and performing cluster analysis on the webpages matching the search request to generate a search result, and displaying the searching result to the user.

With the development of internet technology, a search engine is taken as a main way for searching network information by users. For example, a user may search for "Lamando F8" in a search engine to obtain search results related to "Lamando F8".
However, in the related art, as illustrated in FIG. 1, after the user input "Lamando F8" in the search engine, search results obtained according to "Lamando F8" by the search engine are concentrated on evaluation of "Lingdu F8". Therefore, the search engine only provides evaluation and price information of "Lingdu F8" to the user, and the search results provided by the search engine are not rich enough, with a high repetitive rate.

Search result displaying method and apparatus

BEIJING BAIDU NETCOM SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


An information reproduction system that provides an apparatus for reproducing audio/video information from an information recording medium having a tape form for example and circumventing problems associated with illegal copies of information recording media. If a match is found between the contents of identification data information read from a memory fixed to a cassette incorporating a magnetic tape and the contents of individual key data information stored in an information storage memory, a controller causes an information reproducing block to reproduce main information from the magnetic tape.

The present invention relates to an information reproducing apparatus for reproducing video and audio information recorded to information recording media having a tape or disc form and an information recording/reproducing apparatus for recording various kinds of information to information recording media having a tape or disc form and reproducing various kinds of information recorded to information recording media having a tape or disc form.
In the production fields of movies, music information, and broadcast programs, various kinds of digital information processing technologies such as computer graphics, data compression and decompression, and data synthesis for example have come to full utilization. And finished products are stored by recording them to information recording media such as magnetic tapes and magneto-optical discs. Today, huge amounts of information recording media (hereafter referred to digital information recording media) in which various kinds of information such as movies, music, broadcast programs are stored as digital content are available on the market.
These digital information recording media are advantageous in that, once originals have been produced, the originals may be copied with ease and comparably low cost and the copies may be copied again with ease, both originals and copies capable of being reproduced with comparatively high quality with many information reproducing apparatuses or information recording/reproducing apparatuses having similar functions. These advantages over analog counterparts one of the major reasons for the wide spreading of various kinds of digital information recording media.

Information reproducing apparatus and information recording/reproducing apparatus


A vision-controlled system and method thereof for detecting changes in a monitoring environment are disclosed. The system includes an image-capturing device for capturing an image; an image analyzer for receiving the captured image and analyzing the same to provide a control signal; and a controller coupled to the image analyzer for receiving the control signal and processing the same.

It is desirable to have control systems that are cost effective and can be deployed for a number of applications. However, most existing control systems are dedicated systems comprising a plurality of dedicated and expensive components. One such control system is a vision system. The vision system used for monitoring an object or environment provides information without physical contacts with the objects or environment being monitored. The vision system typically concerns with image processing which tends to involve complex calculation. Disadvantages with complex calculation include making use of large computer memory and high-speed computing processor in order to provide real-time responses.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a vision-controlled system that requires substantially less computer memory and nominal speed computing processor.

Vision-controlled system and method thereof


A heating device includes a heating unit and device electronics. The heating unit is configured to deliver heat to a user's body. The heating unit includes a substrate and a heating element supported by the substrate. The device electronics are coupled to the heating element and are configured to store a first heating profile that includes data indicating how power should be delivered to the heating element over a first period of time. The device electronics are configured to deliver power to the heating element according to the first heating profile. The device electronics are configured to wirelessly receive a second heating profile from an external computing device. The second heating profile includes data indicating how power should be delivered to the heating element over a second period of time. The device electronics are configured to deliver power to the heating element according to the second heating profile.

Heating therapy can be used to provide relief/rehabilitation for a variety of ailments, such as muscle ailments (e.g., soreness, tightness, or spasms), joint ailments (e.g., stiffness or arthritis), or other tissue ailments (e.g., tissue injuries). Heating therapy can be applied in a variety of manners, such as via direct contact with the skin (e.g., a hot cloth, pad, or hot water bath) or via infrared radiation. Heat therapy may increase tissue temperature, which may produce vasodilation that causes increased blood flow to affected areas, thereby increasing the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the affected areas. The therapeutic effects of heat may include a reduction in pain, stiffness, and inflammation in the affected areas.


A server of an operator of a resource is provided that includes a processor configured for operating a service provider application, which is configured for receiving one or more advertisements that are directed to one or more advertised products or services, and are received from one or more advertising merchants. The service provider application is also configured for receiving an indication of a mobile terminal attempting to access the resource of the operator, and for pushing one or more of the received advertisements from the operator to the mobile terminal in response thereto. The advertisement(s) having been pushed to the mobile terminal for consumption thereat, the service provider application is further configured for providing a user of the mobile terminal with a discount in a cost associated with the mobile terminal accessing the resource of the operator in response to at least a partial consumption of the advertisement(s).

The modern communications era has brought about a tremendous expansion of wireline and wireless networks. Computer networks, television networks, and telephony networks are experiencing an unprecedented technological expansion, fueled by consumer demand. Wireless and mobile networking technologies have addressed related consumer demands, while providing more flexibility and immediacy of information transfer.
Current and future networking technologies continue to facilitate ease of information transfer and convenience to users. The proliferation of local, regional, and global networks such as the Internet has availed a sea of information to society. These networking technologies have expanded to increasingly include wireless and mobile technologies. Through these networks, information can be downloaded to desktop systems, wireless systems, mobile systems, etc. For example, information available via the Internet can now be downloaded onto mobile wireless devices, such as cellular telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptop computers, etc.
Second generation wireless service, often referred to as 2G wireless service, is a current wireless service based on circuit-switched technology. In this regard, 2G systems, such as Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), use digital radio technology for improved quality and a broader range of services over first generation mobile technologies. Third generation wireless service, often referred to as 3G wireless service, refers to a set of digital technologies that promises improvements in capacity, speed and efficiency by deploying new packet-based transmission methodologies between terminals and the network. Users of 3G devices and networks will have access to multimedia services such as video-on-demand, video conferencing, and fast web access and file transfer. Existing and future services are, and will continue to be, provided by network operators who make services and applications available to mobile device users via the network.
As suggested, mobile wireless devices are quickly becoming ubiquitous. Many of these wireless devices support not only telephone calls, but also e-mail and other messaging (e.g., Short Messaging Service (SMS) messaging, Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) messaging, etc.), Web access, video/audio transmissions, games and the like. This enhanced functionality has also led to the ability to display electronic advertisements on these devices. And although techniques have been developed for generally providing advertisements to mobile wireless devices, it is typically desirable to improve existing techniques.

System and method for pushing advertisements


A beverage container cap is revealed. The beverage container cap includes a cap body movably disposed on top of a beverage container, a waterproof gasket fixed on bottom of a valve seat with a chamber, and a pivot valve mounted in the chamber of the valve seat. A liquid through hole and at least one vent are arranged at the waterproof gasket. When a hemispherical pivot part of the pivot valve is pivotally rotated within the chamber of the valve seat to make the beverage container cap in a closed or open state, at least one lug on the hemispherical pivot part is pressed against or away from the vent of the waterproof gasket. Thereby pressure in the beverage container is equal to the pressure of the atmosphere outside while beverage in the container flows out. Thus users can drink the beverage from the container smoothly.

The present invention relates to a beverage container cap, especially to a beverage container cap that includes a pivot valve and a waterproof gasket used in combination with each other to form a closed state and an open state. A liquid through hole and at least one vent are formed integrally on the waterproof gasket.
There is a portable beverage container available on the market. The beverage container is disposed with a cap easily operated to switch between a closed state and an open state, such as the cap revealed in U.S. Pat. No. D653,081, U.S. Pat. No. D688,093, U.S. Pat. No. 8,276,776, U.S. Pat. No. D547,607, U.S. Pat. No. 7,533,783, U.S. Pat. No. 8,191,727, U.S. Pat. No. 8,469,226, U.S. Pat. No. 8,622,237, U.S. Pat. No. 8,777,048, etc. The cap mentioned above mainly includes a cap body, a waterproof gasket, and a pivot valve. These parts are formed integrally by injection molding or extrusion molding. The waterproof gasket is made from flexible resin such as silicone while the cap or pivot valve is made from hard plastic material. The waterproof gasket and its mold are produced apart from the cap/or the pivot valve.
Take the cap revealed in U.S. Pat. No. D653,081 as an example. A liquid hole of the waterproof gasket is correspondingly fitted on a fluid hole of the cap while the pivot valve is tightly pressed against the liquid hole of the waterproof gasket and is able to be rotated pivotally and switched between a closed position and an open position. Thereby users can operate the pivot valve to switch from the closed state (not allowing users to drink) to the open state (allowing users to drink), or vice versa.
However, the above cap has the following disadvantages while in use. First the cap is arranged with a fluid hole and a vent hole. Thus pressure in the container is equal to the pressure of the atmosphere outside while fluid in the container flows out and users can drink fluid in the container smoothly. The fluid hole of the cap is directly corresponding to the liquid hole of the waterproof gasket and is opened/or closed by the pivot valve. Once the cap is further arranged with a vent hole, another special waterproof gasket for the vent hole is required. The special waterproof gasket for the vent hole is closed or opened along with the pivot valve. Thus not only production cost (such as the mold) is increased, the cost of installation is also raised. Moreover, the waterproof gasket for the vent hole has a smaller size. Thus it's not only difficult to install but also easy to fall off in use. There is a choking risk once the user swallows the small waterproof gasket. There is room for improvement and a need to provide a cap with new structure.


A universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion (10) easily envelopes all surrounding areas of the shopping cart seat giving complete coverage over the handle, seat, sides, top edges and back. The adjustable perimeter seam (25) allows easy adaptability to various size shopping carts. This cushion provides a child riding in a shopping cart seat, with a comfortable, safe, and sanitary environment. Safety seat belts (19) are installed for the child's safety and security and an adjustable perimeter seam (25) simplifies and expedites the installation and removal of the cushioned cover. An elastic strap (26) secures the cushion when rolled for easy, compact storage. Sanitation is maintained by an easy, washable material and design. The cushion provides protection from being pinched, scratched or harmed by the hard movable shopping cart seat and protection from the results of various weather conditions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the general field of utilitarian child comfort and cleanliness devices. This invention relates to the utilitarian protection, safety, and comfort of a child when seated in shopping cart seats as those made available in retail establishments.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are several types of shopping cart seat covers to provide comfort and protection which are known in prior art.
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Patentee Date ______________________________________ 3,578,380 Jacobus May 11, 1971 4,666,207 Quartano May 17, 1987 4,805,937 Boucher/Mitchell Feb. 21, 1989 5,238,293 Gibson Aug. 24, 1993 ______________________________________
Jacobus (U.S. Pat. No. 3,578,380) discloses a sanitary cover 31 formed of a lightweight, pliable sheet of material configured to fit the shopping cart seats. A double back portion 32 of the sheet slides over the back portion of the shopping cart seat, a center portion fits the sides, bottom and front of the seat with openings in the front to match openings in the cart seat, and an edge portion disposable over the top cart bars and handle. Ties are provided to hold the cover on the cart seat and elastic is stretched about the top edge.
Quartano (U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,207) discloses a seating and back cushion and a cushioned groin protecting link attached to a chest protecting element and a means to stabilize a child against lateral movement when seated on a shopping, cart shelf.
Boucher/Mitchell (U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,937) discloses a handle, seat cover and lower sides with VELCRO fasteners for securing strip around handle of conventional shopping carts. This padded cover provides protection against germs and diseases.
Gibson (U.S. Pat. No. 238,293) discloses a quilted cover comprising a sheet of three rectangular panels. The first rectangular panel located at the rear end of the sheet is held around the handle of the shopping cart with fastener strips and the forward end of the sheet having a second rectangular panel, the sheet having a central panel extending between the first and second rectangular panels, the second rectangular panel being folded downward and beneath the central panel along a fold line where the central panel connects with the second rectangular panel, the vertical side edges of the second rectangular panel being stitched to bottom surface of the central panel, the fold-back and stitched second rectangular panel forming a pocket which slides over a portion of the cart on a pivotal back member that folds away from the handle portion of shopping cart.
Though the above patents provide advantages, there are a number of disadvantages:
(a) Above devices require multiple points to secure the installation of seat covers. This makes installation time-consuming and difficult while handling a child.
(b) Velcro closures and snaps are easily undone, where accessible, as the child matures and masters new talents. After much use with lint accumulation, Velcro may lose their effectiveness.
(c) Side edges of some shopping cart seats are unprotected and accessible for children to touch or mouth.
(d) In addition, some children nap to the side of the cart where little or no cushioning or protective covering is provided.
(e) Sliding the pocket of the fabric over the back of the shopping cart is time-consuming and does not allow an expedient installation and removal of the cushion.
While the above-mentioned patents cover, protect, and cushion shopping cart seats, there is currently no device available as ascertained from the Public Records which provides the uniqueness and adaptability of an adjustable perimeter that would provide the versatility of easily covering the entire seating area and cushioning various sizes and shapes of shopping carts, as well as the expedient installation and removal of the cushion.
OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES
The present invention has a new, uniquely, adjustable perimeter and provides an improved and more complete covering and cushion for a shopping cart seat and has all the advantages of the prior art handle and seat covers and yet, none of the disadvantages. Only this universal, adaptable cushion can be placed easily over the seating area of the shopping cart. The enclosed drawings illustrate these improved concepts of the present invention which is a universal, adaptable, cushioned cover that stretches over the shopping cart handle, extends across the seat, sides, top edges and back of the infant seat encompassing the entire shopping cart seat. Accordingly, several improvements, objects, and advantages of our present invention are:
(a) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion which has new, improved advantages and all the advantages of the prior art handle and seat covers and has none of the disadvantages;
(b) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion which may be adjustable to various shopping cart seats but not limited to the conventional shopping cart;
(c) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which may be easily and efficiently produced and marketed;
(d) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which is of a durable, reliable, and washable construction;
(e) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which is susceptible to low cost of manufacture with regard to material, simplicity of design and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible to low prices for sale to the consuming public, thereby making the universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion more economically available to the buying public;
(f) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which provides a comfortable, safe, and more sanitary environment;
(g) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart that uniquely provides enhanced comfort and safety over the handle, seat, sides, top edges and back of the shopping cart seat;
(h) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which provides a child's seat belt restraint system;
(i) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart to facilitate easy, fast, and efficient installation and removal of the cushion;
(j) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart with an elastic strap that stretches around the rolled cushion for easy and compact storage; and
(k) to provide a new and improved universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion for a shopping cart which includes a strap with a fastener for attaching toys and other miscellaneous items to the cushion.
This invention is not limited in its application to the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, phraseology and terminology employed herein are for description and should not be regarded as limiting. Further, the abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way.
Please refer to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention for a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages, improvements, and specific objects attained by its users.

Universal, adaptable shopping cart cushion


A display system for an aircraft includes a processing unit configured to determine runway lighting information for runway lighting associated with a selected runway and to generate display commands based on the runway lighting information. The runway lighting is located at a first location relative to the selected runway. The display system further includes a display device coupled the processing unit for receiving the display commands and operable to selectively render first symbology representing the runway lighting information at a second location relative to the selected runway.

Computer generated aircraft displays have become highly sophisticated and are used as primary flight displays to provide flight crews with real-time visual representations of flight management, navigation, and control information in a single, readily interpretable display. As a result, such displays have become effective visual tools for controlling aircraft, reducing pilot workload, increasing situational awareness, and improving overall flight safety.
Landing is typically the most demanding aspect of flight. During the landing approach, the pilot must evaluate if the aircraft may safely land or if the landing attempt should be aborted. The time allocated to this task is very limited given the airspeed of the aircraft and the typical or nominal reaction time of the pilot. The landing operation may be further complicated during low visibility or nighttime conditions. Although conventional display systems provide various types of information about the landing environment, such displays are typically not as helpful during landing situations, particularly in tasks such as anticipating and identifying airport lighting information.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide systems and methods with additional and/or more convenient flight information on an aircraft visual display during a landing operation. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.

Aircraft systems and methods to display enhanced runway lighting


A safety razor handle assembly including a safety razor having a handle and a razor blade head. The assembly including an elongated body portion, a hand gripping portion affixed to one end of the elongated body portion, and a safety razor engaging portion affixed to the other end. The razor engaging portion engaging the handle of the safety razor so that the handle of the safety razor extends axially from the elongated body portion and the blade head of the safety razor extends laterally beyond the safety razor engaging portion.

When women shave their legs it can be very difficult to reach all areas of the legs. This is especially true if the woman is either large or may have some physical handicaps. Also, it is often more convenient to perform the shaving in a shower or bath so that the skin remains moist for movement of the razor and so that hair is immediately removed. Bending over and twisting to reach all parts of the legs can be dangerous in a shower or bath since the person could slip and get hurt, as well as cut themselves.
It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved safety razor handle to eliminate bending and twisting during shaving of the legs.


Improved procedures for cardiopulmonary resuscitation of a victim of cardiac arrest are provided. In the resuscitation, the victim's chest is mechanically compressed and decompressed to stimulate the heart. The victim is induced to inspire and expire against insufflating breathing gas during the chest compression/decompressions. The breathing gases are adduced under pressure to promote the development of a positive coronary perfusion pressure.

The present invention relates to apparatus and procedures for medically responding to an abnormal cardiac event in a subject. In particular, the present invention relates to the emergency medical care of a subject or victim of cardiac arrest.
Cardiac arrest is an event in which a subject's heart abruptly or suddenly stops. The accompanying symptoms and often-unnoticed precursors of cardiac arrest include various heart arrhythmias (e.g., ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation, asystolia, and Pulseless Electrical Activity (PEA)). Other causes of cardiac arrest may include atherosclerotic heart disease, profound anaphylactic shock, major changes in the blood's electrolyte composition, or drug overdose.
Unattended cardiac arrest is generally fatal within a few minutes. However, prompt medical attention can have positive outcomes. If circulation of oxygenated blood through the body is re-established within a few minutes of cardiac arrest, then irreversible ischemic (lack of oxygen) damage to body tissue may be minimized or avoided.
In the common or traditional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) treatments, the victim or subject's heart is externally massaged or stimulated in order to recirculate blood through the subject's body. The subject is ventilated to provide airflow through the lungs for blood oxygenation. Further, a defibrillator, which sends a strong electric current through the heart, may be used to eliminate the arrhythmic impulses.
Traditionally, medically trained persons or resuscitators are required to administer or deliver CPR. Traditional CPR is delivered manually by alternately compressing the subject's chest by hand in a cyclical fashion, and breathing mouth-to-mouth into the subject's airways. Guidelines published by the European Resuscitation Council and the American Heart Association recommend a chest compression of about 20% of the sternum depth. The adult sternum depth can vary from about 175 mm to 260 mm. Thus, chest compression depths of 35 to 52 mm are recommended. Manually administering chest compressions of these depths can be strenuous and physically demanding, making it difficult to give CPR consistently or properly. Now automated chest compression/decompression devices (CPR devices) are available to mechanically stimulate the heart. These devices compress and decompress a subject's chest in a cyclical fashion. These devices may be incorporated in field portable CPR assemblies or systems (such as the LUCAS™ devices that are sold by assignee Jolife AB of Lund, Sweden).
The automated chest compression/decompression or CPR devices include a pneumatically driven compressor unit, which reciprocally drives a chest contact pad to mechanically compress and/or decompress the subject's chest. The subject is rested in a supine position during CPR administration. The compressor unit is mechanically supported vertically above the subject's chest so that the contact pad is in mechanical contact with the subject's chest about the sternum.
Other useful medical devices (e.g., defibrillators, and pacers) also can be used with the automated CPR devices for additional therapeutic measures. For example, electrical defibrillators may be used to defibrillate the subject's heart separately or in combination with mechanical stimulation of the heart. Barkalow et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,273,114 describes, for example, an apparatus that may be used for concurrent mechanical chest compression and defibrillation.
Respiratory arrest or otherwise diminished respiratory function often accompanies cardiac arrest. Restoring an adequate supply of oxygen through the subject's airways to oxygenate venous blood is as crucial for the subject's resuscitation as it is to recirculate blood through the subject's body by chest compression/decompressions. In traditional CPR administrations, the resuscitator breathes or blows into the subject's mouth to deliver oxygen into the lungs. Now, ventilation devices or aids are available for use during CPR administrations to improve or time the flow of oxygen to the lungs. Lurie et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,312,399 B1 describes, for example, an electro stimulator for stimulation of the subject's respiratory muscles during the CPR chest compression/decompressions. The stimulation of respiratory muscles causes the subject to gasp. This gasping increases the magnitude and duration of negative intrathoracic pressure (chest decompression) by which venous blood is drawn to the heart and lungs. The respiratory muscle stimulation may be electronically timed to occur during the mechanical chest decompression phase to match the gasping inspiration of air with the draw of venous blood.
Similarly, Lurie et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,692,498 discloses use of a pressure check valve to time air flow into a subject's lungs. The pressure check valve is supported in an endotracheal tube, which is installed in the subject's trachea. The valve allows air inflow only when the lung cavity or intrathoracic pressures fall below a threshold pressure, for example, during chest decompression. Accordingly, inflows of oxygenating air during CPR administration can be timed to occur at the same times as when venous blood flow is drawn into the heart by the low intrathoracic pressures.
Consideration is now being given generally to ways of improving or enhancing the efficacy of CPR measures or treatments. Attention is directed to non-invasive techniques and apparatus for oxygenating blood and re-establishing blood flow or circulation in a subject who is a victim of cardiac arrest.

Systems and procedures for treating cardiac arrest

Abstract: Electro-stimulation of the heart can be carried after positive coronary perfusion pressures have been achieved. The electro-stimulation can be defibrillation or heart pacing or both. The chest compression/decompression cycles and the electro-stimulation measures are synchronized to promote sufficiently body circulation of oxygenated blood in a subject suffering from cardiac arrest. Medical equipment systems are provided for implementing the CPR procedures.


The invention presents a method and apparatus for forming a restricted model from a system model to reduce the computational resources required to formally verify the system design, without substantially reducing the ability to test all system model functions, or properties. In general, the restricted model is formed by restricting the range of assumable values of system model variables and system model inputs to a restricted set of values, based on the values assumed by the system model variables and system model inputs during a partial search of the system model. The restricted model can then be fully searched by a conventional verification tool to identify system design errors. Advantageously, the restricted model requires less computational resources during a fall search than the original system model.

An ongoing problem in the design of large systems is verifying that the system will behave in the manner as intended by its designers. One approach has been to simply try out the system, either by building and testing the system itself or by building and testing a model of the system. Since there is no guarantee that an untested system will work as expected, building the system itself can be an expensive proposition. Thus, those skilled in the art have migrated toward building and testing a model of the system through software.
A system model can be said to be a computer program or block of code that, when executed, simulates the intended properties (i.e. functions and/or features) of the system. The computer program, or system model, is designed to accept inputs, perform functions and generate outputs in the same manner as would the actual system. Thus, by controlling the value of the system model inputs and monitoring the system model outputs, the functionality, or properties, of the system can be tested.
One method of testing a system model is called formal verification. In formal verification, the computer program (i.e. system model) is fed into a verification tool which converts the system model into a finite state machine. The finite state machine is a set of states and state transitions which mimic the operation of the system model in response to any given set of system model inputs. More specifically, each state represents a state the system model would enter given a set of inputs, and each state transition indicates the conditions (i.e. the value of system model inputs and system model variables) that must be met for the system model to transition from one state to another state.
A system model state machine can be used by the verification tool to test whether the system model behaves according to a set of expected behaviors (i.e. system properties). To do this, the verification tool controls and/or varies the system model inputs and monitors which states the system model enters as a result of the inputs. From this information, the verification tool can check whether the system model entered a state or a cycle of states which the designers of the system define as "bad" or unintended. If the system model enters a "bad" state or a "bad" cycle of states (i.e. repeatedly entering the same states over and over again), the system model is said to behave in a manner contradictory to that intended by the system designer.
Heretofore, in order to fully test every property or function of the system model through formal verification, the verification tool runs what is called a fall search of the system model state space (i.e. the set of states and transitions that comprise the system model state machine). A full search of a system model state space is a test wherein the system model inputs are varied such that each system model input takes on every value it can possibly assume during operation of the system model. That is, a fall search tests the behavior of the system model in response to every possible set of input values that the system model inputs can possibly assume when the system model is in operation. As a result, a full search insures that the system model behavior is tested under every set of conditions (i.e. every set of input values) that the system model can possibly undergo when in operation. Thus, a full search of a system model state space insures that every function, or property, of the system model is fully tested.
For example, a full search can be performed on a system model of a counter which increments a number, by one, up to ten each time it receives an input having a value of binary zero, and decrements the number, by one, down to zero each time it receives an input having a value of binary one. In such a system model, the numbers 0 through 10 represent the states the system model can enter, and the input values, binary zero and binary one, control the transitions between the states. When fully searching the system model, the search engine can start at a state representing the number 1 (i.e. state 1), vary As the input over the entire range of assumable values (i.e. binary one and binary zero) and identify the set of "next states" that the system model can possibly enter (e.g. state 0 when the input has a value of binary one, or state 2 when the input has a value of binary zero). Then, for each of the identified possible "next states," the inputs are again varied over the entire range of possible values to determine a new set of next states. This process is repeated until the search engine traces through the system model state space and determines that the system model can only enter a state (i.e. next state) that was already entered, or checked. Ultimately, if the full search finds that the system model did not enter an undesirable or "bad" state or set of states in response to a set of inputs, then the system model design is said to be error-free. That is, the system model is said to behave according to a design specification.
From this example, it is evident that running a full search to verify the behavior of a system model having one input with an assumable range of only two values (i.e. binary zero and binary one) can be an involved process, requiring a great deal of computational work. As a result, one can imagine that the more complex the system model becomes (i.e. the greater the number of system model inputs and/or the wider the range of assumable values for each input), the greater the chance that a computer-aided verification system will be incapable of handling the amount and/or complexity of the computations necessary to complete a full search. In fact, it has been found that verifying, or fully searching, such complex models with conventional verification tools can cause the verification tool to run out of computational resources (e.g. no more RAM available to the testing engine). When this happens, the verification tool may "lock-up" (i.e. stop the full search) without providing the tester with data as to whether the system model had behaved as expected for any part of the full search performed before the "lock-up." As a result, when fully searching such complex system models with conventional verification tools, the tester may be left with no way of determining whether the system model has a design error (i.e. can enter a "bad" state).
One solution to this problem is to reduce the size of the system model and run a full search of the reduced model. That is, a tester or programmer experienced in the details of the system model (i.e. how the system inputs and system variables affect the behavior of the system model) may eliminate portions of the system model (i.e. lines of code and/or system model inputs and variables) that appear to have no effect on a limited set of system properties (i.e. those system functions which the programmer decides are not critical to check). This may require, however, substantial time, effort and experience on the part of the programmer to insure that the system model is not reduced such that the reduced model fails to retain those portions that are critical for testing the designated set of system properties. In addition, although reducing the system model reduces the amount of computational resources required to check the system model, such a reduction prevents a full search from checking the behavior of all system model properties, or functions.

Method for detecting errors in models through restriction


A screen that displays images as a result of receiving projection light, includes: a plurality of plate components that are optically transparent and are provided apart from each other; a scatterer that is placed in a light scattering space that is formed between the plurality of plate components, and is formed by dispersing a light scattering material in a gas or liquid dispersion medium; a flow path that allows the scatterer to flow through the light scattering space; and a flow device that causes the scatterer to flow through the light scattering space.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a screen, a rear projector, a projection system, and an image display unit.
2. Related Art
In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in the popularity of projectors. In addition to front projection projectors that have become widely used principally in business presentation applications, recently, the level of recognition of rear projectors as a type of large screen television (i.e., PTV; projection television) has been increasing. The greatest advantage of the projection format is that, compared with direct view displays such as liquid crystal televisions and PDP and the like, products having the same screen size can be provided at a lower cost. However, costs are also coming down in direct view displays as well and a higher image quality is also being demanded from projector display units.
Projectors display an image on a screen by irradiating light that is emitted from a light source such as an arc lamp onto optical modulators of liquid crystal light bulbs, and then projecting projection light that has been modulated by the optical modulators onto a screen. At this time, not only are images displayed on the screen, but the entire screen appears to glare. This is because of luminance unevenness that is created by the interference of the light rays. This phenomenon is known as speckle noise, or 'scintillation'.
Here, the principle behind the occurrence of scintillation will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 29A and 29B, light irradiated from a light source 70 is transmitted through a liquid crystal light bulb and is projected onto a screen 74. The projection light that has been projected onto the screen 74 is diffracted by scattering materials 72 that are contained in the screen 74, and is diffused as a result of the scattering materials 72 behaving in the manner of a secondary wave source. As shown in FIG. 29B, two spherical waves that are formed by the secondary wave sources either intensify or offset each other in accordance with their relative phase relationship so as to appear as a light and dark fringe pattern (i.e., interference fringes) between the screen 74 and a viewer. If the focal point of a viewer is matched to an image forming surface S of these interference fringes, then the viewer would notice the interference fringes as scintillation that causes the screen to glare.
Depending on the viewer watching images formed on a screen surface, scintillation may cause an unpleasant view just as if a veil, or lace, or cobweb exists between the screen surface and the viewer. Moreover, the viewer views two overlapping images, namely, the images on the screen and the scintillation, and this creates considerable fatigue in an attempt to focus both the images. Accordingly, this scintillation ends up imparting considerable stress to a viewer which makes viewing almost unendurable.
Recently, advances have been made in the development of new light sources to replace known high pressure mercury lamps. In particular, expectations for laser light sources to become the light sources for next-generation projectors have heightened in view of their energy efficiency, color reproducibility, long life, immediate turning on, and the like. However, projection light on a screen from a laser light source has extremely high interference as a result of the uniformity of the phases of light rays from adjacent areas. Because the coherent length of laser light sources reaches as far as several tens of meters, if light from a single source is split and then resynthesized, lights that has passed through an optical path difference that is shorter than the coherent length and then been synthesized causes strong interference, resulting in an even more prominent scintillation (i.e., interference fringes) than that from a high pressure mercury lamp.
Accordingly, the reduction of scintillation has become an essential technology, in particular, for the manufacturing of projectors that use laser light sources.
The following technologies have been disclosed as measures for reducing scintillation.
JP-A-11-038512 describes a screen that has a three layer structure made up of a diffusion layer, a transparent layer (i.e., a lenticular lens), and a diffusion layer, and in which the screen diffusion has been optimized. By making the scattering layers more complex in this manner, the randomness of the interference unevenness increases. As a result, if there is an increase in the number of fine components contained in the unevenness (i.e., interference fringes that have a small spatial frequency), an effect can arise that, when there is some movement in the line of sight, there is integral averaging of the light due to the residual image characteristics of the human eye. In particular, when viewing dynamic images, because there are frequent movements in the line of sight a reduction in scintillation can be anticipated.
JP-A-2001-100316 describes a screen in which light, an electric field, a magnetic field, heat, stress and the like are applied to a light scattering layer, and the shape, relative positional relationships, and index of refraction of the light scattering objects contained in this light scattering layer are changed over time. By changing the scatter distribution and phase of scattered waves from a light diffusion layer over time in this manner, the prevention of the occurrence of scintillation can be anticipated.
However, in JP-A-11-038512, because the scatter state of the final scattering surface is fixed, the spatial phase distribution between a viewer and a screen that is created by interference between light rays emitted from each point on the scattering surface is also fixed, and the interference unevenness is also visible as a fixed image. Accordingly, the interference unevenness does not completely disappear, and almost no effect can be obtained, particularly in projectors that are equipped with high interference laser light sources. Moreover, in a structure that is based on this type of high scattering, because there is a possibility that image blurring will be generated coincidentally, it is not possible to solve the original purpose of obtaining a high image quality.
Furthermore, in JP-A-2001-100316, a huge amount of driving energy is required in order to change the shape, relative positional relationships, index of refraction and the like of light scattering objects. Moreover, when these driving devices are used, the energy transmission efficiency to the scattering layer is poor, and there is a possibility that vibration, noise, unwanted electromagnetic waves, and exhaust heat will be generated and prevent a pleasant viewing experience. Furthermore, in a structure in which the scattering layer moves in the focusing direction, the size of the image changes. As a result, the positions of contour lines of an image also changes in a horizontal direction and becomes a factor in causing image blurring.

Screen, rear projector, projection system, and image display unit


A pull down shelf assembly (20, 20a) for facilitating access to upper storage shelves (22, 22a). The shelf assembly includes a shelf guide track mechanism (24, 24', 24a, 24a') and the storage shelf (22, 22a) slidably mounted for movement between an extended position and a retracted position. A pantographic pull down mounting assembly (26, 26', 26a, 26a') coupled between a shelf mounting bracket (28, 28', 28a, 28a') and the track mechanism produces pantographic movement thereof between a deployed position, for increased access, and an elevated stored position. The pantographic assembly is mounted therebetween at locations producing near-horizontal pantographic movement of the track mechanism with the storage shelf carried thereby throughout an arcuate path between the deployed position and the elevated stored position. A spring biasing mechanism (38, 38', 38a, 38a') coupled between the mounting bracket and one of the arms biases the track mechanism toward the stored position. A shelf locking mechanism (42, 42', 42a, 42a'), positioned between the track mechanism and the storage shelf, locks the storage shelf in the extended position during movement of the track mechanism from the deployed position to the elevated stored position.

Storage shelves positioned in high places are often inaccessible to certain groups of individuals. For instance, children, the elderly and persons of shorter stature often have difficulty or are unable to reach and retrieve items stored on shelves placed high up in storage devices. Tall hallway closets or wall mounted cabinets positioned above large household appliances pose particularly difficult problems. These individuals must precariously stand on stools, ladders or the like so that they may access the stored items from the upper shelves. This practice is often dangerous, especially for children and the elderly.
Moreover, these problems are magnified for the handicapped where top shelf accessibility is even more remote. When seated in their wheelchair, retrieval of any item outside of their immediate reach is extremely difficult. Hence, most of the middle to upper storage capacity of a storage device is of little use to a handicapped person without additional aid.
In an effort to increase accessibility to the upper shelving of conventional cabinets, particularly of the wall mounted type, storage assemblies may be retrofit with pull down devices which raise or lower the shelves so that these certain groups of individuals can reach or access the stored items. These devices generally include a pantographic framework pivotally mounted to a shelf or shelves which swing the shelves outwardly and downwardly from the upper cabinets to a deployed, lowered, position for more convenient access. Generally, these devices lower the shelves while maintaining an ordinarily level orientation. Typical patented, prior art, pull down retrieval systems set may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,058,846 to Close; 4,915,461 to Kingsborough et al.; 4,134,629 to Hansen; 4,076,351 to Wyant; 4,026,434 to Howard; 3,347,591 to Soroos et al.; and 159,501 to Cogswell.
While these assemblies may been adequate to permit access of the storage assembly from the raised position, most are deficient for one reason or another. For example, the prior art assemblies do not permit the shelves, once lowered, to be pulled or extended forward for additional access. This motion provides even greater access to the storage shelf because the shelf may be moved clear of the pantographic framework where the shelves are stacked atop one another. This is especially true in multiple shelf assemblies.
In addition, many of the assemblies are inherently complex, requiring an array of pulley and linkage mechanisms, and springs biasing systems necessary to raise and lower the shelves. The Hansen patent, for instance, discloses a pantographic framework having individual link members intercoupled between a wall mounted frame, a pull down shelf, the ceiling and a folding door. This complex linkage assembly, requiring numerous parts, is very difficult to use and assemble.
Other pull down assemblies provide costly and complex mechanisms which facilitate retraction of the deployed, lowered, shelf back to the stored position. The Kingsborough patent employs an electric motor coupled to the pull down linkage mechanism by a flexible cord which draws the lowered shelf back to the stored position. This mechanism is slow to use and must be reversed to deploy the shelf to the lowered position.
The Close, Wyant and Howard patents, on the other hand, disclose pull down storage assemblies including complex pulley mechanisms or spring biasing devices configured to bias the shelf toward the raised position. These prior art assemblies include coiled springs coupled between a stationary fixture, such as a wall mounting frame, and the pull down linkage mechanism. Upon deployment of the shelf to the lowered position, the coiled springs are extended which urge the shelves back to the elevated position. Accordingly, as the user pushes the lowered shelf upward to the elevated position, the spring biased device facilitates upward movement of the shelf.


A compound comprising one or more polysaccharide moieties each independently represented by the formula β(1→4)-[GlcNH—R]n-2,5-anhydromannose, wherein n is a positive integer from 3 to 500, and R is H or an acyl group, is described. The compound can be manufactured by (a) reacting chitosan with an acylating agent sufficient to partially N-acylate the chitosan, yielding a modified chitin/chitosan mixed polymer; and (b) reacting the modified chitin/chitosan mixed polymer with a deaminating agent to cleave the mixed polymer at the unacylated chitosan moieties. The compound can be used to immunize against fungal infection. Antibodies specific to the compound, and the use of such antibodies to protect against fungal infection are also described.

A dramatic rise in the incidence of invasive fungal disease in recent years, as well as the emergence of drug resistant and previously rare fungal species, has highlighted the need for broadly effective new therapeutic and prophylactic antifungal treatment strategies (3-5). The increased incidence of invasive fungal infection is partly attributable to an increase in the immunocompromised patient population, owing to the growing number of patients with disease associated acquired immunodeficiencies, those in critical care units, patients undergoing surgery or immunosuppressive treatment, and those receiving organ or cellular transplant therapies. Importantly, the risk factors that predispose individuals to invasive fungal disease do not preclude the possibility of mounting an effective immune response and responding favorably to immunotherapy (6, 7), giving promise to the development of effective vaccine or immunotherapy based approaches to meet this underserved medical need.
The two most prevalent pathogenic fungi affecting humans, Aspergillus and Candida spp., account for an estimated 8-10% of all health care acquired infections, with an attributable mortality of 30-40% (5, 8). Candida species are the fourth leading cause of nosocomial sepsis cases in the US and the rising incidence of invasive fungal disease from all pathogenic fungi represents a significant healthcare burden worldwide. Excess healthcare costs due to increased length of stay and treatment of hospital acquired fungal infections are in the range of US$1 thousand million annually in the US alone. Furthermore, comprehensive antifungal susceptibility testing of clinical isolates has made it evident that, despite advances in safe and effective antifungal drugs, all classes of currently available antifungal agents are subject to the emergence of resistant strains (5). Cryptococcal meningitis, an infection with the fungus Cryptococcus also known as cryptococcosis, is a very serious opportunistic infection among people with advanced HIV/AIDS. Cryptococcosis is not contagious, meaning it cannot spread from person-to-person. Cryptococcal meningitis specifically occurs after Cryptococcus has spread from the lungs to the brain. A global problem, worldwide, approximately 1 million new cases of cryptococcal meningitis occur each year, resulting in 625,000 deaths. Most cases are opportunistic infections that occur among people with HIV/AIDS. Although the widespread availability of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in developed countries has helped reduce cryptococcal infections in these areas, it is still a major problem in developing countries where access to healthcare is limited. Throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa, for example, Cryptococcus is now the most common cause of adult meningitis. Cryptococcal meningitis is one of the leading causes of death in HIV/AIDS patients; in sub-Saharan Africa, it may kill as many people each year as tuberculosis. (24).
These significant challenges of combating fungal disease point to the critical need for a highly effective pan-fungal vaccine as a valuable component of the anti-fungal arsenal. To date, two fungal cell wall carbohydrate components, β-mannan and β-glucan, have been explored as targets for anti-fungal vaccination. Conjugate vaccines composed of either linear β-(1→3)-glucan or β-(1→2)-mannotriose have been shown to confer protection against fungal disease, with efficacy in both active and passive immunization (9-11). In animal models of fungal disease, the β-glucan vaccine proved effective against C. albicans, A. fumigatus, and C. neoformans, validating the possibility of successful vaccination against multiple, disparate fungal pathogens (9, 12). Nevertheless, the production of effective vaccine responses requires careful consideration of the fine structure of the target antigens, as there is mounting evidence that one mechanism of immune evasion employed by fungal pathogens is the expression of immunodominant epitopes that induce non-protective or inhibitory antibody responses. These decoy epitopes ablate the efficacy of responses toward protective epitopes. For example, vaccines composed of linear β-(1→3)-glucan epitopes produce protective responses, while vaccines composed of β-(1→3)-glucans with β-(1→6)-glucan branches produce antibodies to both structures but do not confer protection against fungal disease (13, 14).
Moreover, the fundamental utility of the vaccine is dependent on the universality of target antigens. For example, the β-(1→2)-mannotriose epitope does not appear in all Candida species and the vaccine antigen employing this epitope relies on protective peptide epitopes to expand its utility (10). Considering the limited distribution of some cell wall carbohydrate epitopes and in view of the mechanisms employed by fungal pathogens to avoid productive immune responses to cell wall components, there is a need for a universally effective fungal vaccine. This invention is designed to target highly conserved fungal cell wall carbohydrate epitopes in order to provide a pan-fungal vaccine.
Chitin has not been examined as an antifungal vaccine target, largely for reasons related to its highly insoluble nature. Methods available in the art for degrading chitin into soluble fragments are not stoichiometrically controlled and it is thus difficult to modulate the degree of depolymerization.

Antibodies targeted to fungal cell wall polysaccharides


A semiconductor device is formed using a semiconductor substrate. A gate dielectric is formed over the semiconductor substrate. A gate electrode layer is formed over the gate dielectric. A patterned masking layer is formed over the gate electrode layer. A first region of the gate electrode layer lies within an opening in the patterned masking layer. The first region of the gate electrode layer is partially etched to leave an elevated portion of the gate electrode layer and a lower portion adjacent to the elevated portion. A sidewall spacer is formed adjacent to the elevated portion and over the lower portion. An implant is performed into the semiconductor substrate using the elevated portion and the sidewall spacer as a mask. The sidewall spacer and the lower portion are removed.

1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to semiconductors, and more specifically, to a process for manufacturing a semiconductor data storage device.
2. Related Art
The challenge of forming electronic devices continues to increase as more functionality is put into a smaller area. From a cross-sectional view, the aspect ratio of gate electrode structures continues to increase with successive generations of electronic devices. Taller, thinner structures are more fragile and therefore more likely to be damaged during subsequent processing than structures with a lower aspect ratio or that are thicker. For example, when etching of layers above a source and a drain of a transistor occurs, the etching may remove more material than is desired. For small geometry transistors, the conventional etch processes may actually inadvertently remove portions of a source and a drain when it is desired to only remove an overlying layer of material, such as an overlying gate sidewall spacer. This inadvertent etching of the source and drain results in a pitted transistor structure in which the electrical properties of the transistor structure are significantly degraded. Conventional etch chemistries can readily damage other transistor elements such as undercutting a gate oxide. In addition to altering the electrical integrity of a transistor, gate oxide undercutting can also result in the lifting off of the entire gate structure during subsequent processing. Thus the increased miniaturization of semiconductor dimensions has created additional problems which are not present at larger device geometries.

Method of forming a semiconductor device having a removable sidewall spacer


Smooth navigation can be provided when switching between content oriented pages by presenting an intermediate page while the requested page is being received and rendered. The intermediate page can be the current page but without navigational features. Alternatively, the intermediate page can be an advertisement provided by the source of the requested page.

Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Internet websites and content oriented applications are commonly used today to disseminate information or to complete assignments and tasks. A user can navigate through the websites or content oriented applications by submitting requests for a new page of content. This request can be in the form of a user interface command such as clicking navigational links, manipulation of objects shown on the screen, or touch gestures. Based on the request, a new page of content can be presented. Periodically, there may be a long wait time between the request and the presentation of the new page of content. This can be due to the time required to retrieve the content and the time required to render the content, to name a few. During this long wait time a blank screen or a partially rendered page can be shown, both of which are undesirable to the user.

Smooth navigation between content oriented pages


A radiation detector is formed from a plasma panel that includes a front substrate, and a back substrate that forms a generally parallel gap with the front substrate. X (column) and Y (row) electrodes are coupled by gas discharge events to define one or more pixels. Impedances are coupled to the X and Y electrodes, and a power supply is coupled to one or both types of electrodes. Discharge event detectors are coupled to the impedances.

Many useful applications, such as the detection of radioactive material and computer-assisted tomography ("CAT"), rely on the detection of photon radiation, known as X-ray and/or gamma-ray radiation. Both of these types of high-energy photon radiation cause ionization and for the purposes of this disclosure the two terms, X-ray and gamma-ray, are used interchangeably. In terms of the detection of such ionizing radiation, the spectral region of greatest interest for most applications generally falls between the energies of about 20 to 2,000 keV (i.e., 0.02 to 2 MeV).
In the above spectral range of interest, the primary types of interaction are the photoelectric and Compton effects. The relative contribution from each can be determined in quantitative fashion a priori via the combination of the incident photon energy and the atomic number (i.e., Z-number) of the interacting atom. The photoelectric effect describes a single atomic absorption, whereas the Compton effect describes an inelastic scattering collision that simultaneously results in a Compton recoil electron and a Compton scattered photon. The latter can be inelastically scattered again and again, until the photon either exits or is "absorbed" by the interacting media. Of the two processes, the primary basis for the majority of known ionizing radiation detectors used in imaging applications at photon energies up to at least 200 keV is the photoelectric effect, which causes the initial production of a single "free-electron" and a corresponding positive atomic ion.
In order to detect ionizing electromagnetic radiation, several known sensing devices are commonly used. One of the earliest known electronic devices is the ionization chamber. Detection of radiation in an ionization chamber, such as a Geiger-Mueller ("GM") tube, is based upon electrical conductivity induced in an inert gas (usually containing argon and neon) as a consequence of ion-pair formation.
More recent and sensitive variations of sensing devices include high-pressure xenon ionization chambers, such as the tube disclosed in G. P. Lasche' et al., "Detection Sensitivity for Special Nuclear Materials with an Advanced High-Pressure Xenon Detector and Robust Fitting Analysis", IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci., 48 (2001), pp. 325-32, which is designed for portal inspection to detect the presence of 235U and 239Pu radionuclides. However, these devices are very expensive and like a GM-tube have no internal pixel structure, so cannot count "simultaneous" electrons created in different spatial regions of the tube, nor be internally configured to function as an imaging detector.
In contrast, a gas proportional scintillation counter ("GSPC") is an imaging device in which gaseous interaction primarily with low energy radiation in a high-voltage electric field causes secondary VUV photons that are detected by VUV-sensitive, photodiodes or photomultiplier ("PM") tubes. Some disadvantages of GSPC's are their limited energy detection range, required use of ultrahigh-vacuum technology and ultrahigh-purity gases, and very short device lifetimes as measured in months.
For thermal (i.e., slow, 2200-m/s) neutron detection, the two-dimensional microstrip gas chamber ("MSGC") is probably the most common known detector, although other related gas-based detectors such as multiwire proportional counters ("MWPC"), multitube position sensitive detectors ("PSD"), and GSPC's are also commonly used. However, these two-dimensional detectors are generally suitable only for large research laboratories that can support highly specialized detector groups, as they are often custom-built and can be difficult to maintain. In addition, they all require ultrahigh purity gas mixtures composed typically of 3He or 10BF3 as the neutron converter and CF4 as the quencher, and operate at positive pressures of about 3 to 20 atmospheres, presenting a potentially explosive hazard.
Several other known gas detector configurations have received considerable attention over the past few years including: gas electron multipliers ("GEM"), microgap chambers ("MGC"), and various combinations of MSGC and GEM detectors such as multiple-GEM, Micromegas and MICROMEGEM. The GEM structures operate in tandem with MSGC's to improve electron gain by charge pre-amplification.
The above-described gas detector configurations were developed primarily for use in detecting either low energy radiation (i.e. less than 10 keV), or very high energy particles (e.g., 300 MeV to 10 GeV pions) in particle accelerators. With regard to the various MSGC configurations (including the MSGC-GEM), they are designed to operate in the "Proportional Region" of the gas ionization curve, having a typical gas avalanche multiplication gain of ˜104.
Currently, the most effective radiation detector is generally considered to be a scintillation counter. The basic scintillation counter consists primarily of two components—a scintillation plate or crystal, optically coupled to a photomultiplier tube or a silicon photodiode. The scintillation plate or crystal contains phosphor type material that produces visible (or ultraviolet) photons upon the occurrence of an absorption/scattering event caused by incident ionizing radiation. Light from the scintillation material, which commonly is NaI(TI), is transmitted to the photocathode of the photomultiplier, which, through a series of dynodes, amplifies the electrical signal.
Compared to a GM-tube that can have a "dead-time" on the order of 100 μs (microseconds) between counting events, during which time any response to radiation is impossible, a scintillation detector generally has a dead-time of about 1 μs or less. Another advantage of the scintillation detector is that the number of emitted photons produced by the scintillation plate or crystal, upon interaction with ionizing radiation, is approximately proportional to the energy of the incident radiation.
Further, for imaging applications, the scintillation counter is position-sensitive, and can yield good quality, medium resolution images. However, the resolution is limited by several factors, including the plate or crystal thickness, the photocathode spatial resolution, and the spatial separation between the active region of the scintillation plate and the photocathode surface. For the detection of higher energy gamma radiation, higher atomic number (i.e., high-Z) materials are commonly used (e.g., LSO, BGO, CsI, etc.), and/or thicker scintillation crystals (e.g., 3 cm instead of 1 cm). In the case of thicker scintillation crystals, the increased thickness reduces image resolution.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need for a radiation sensor with high resolution capability, fast pixel response, minimal dead-time, improved radioisotope identification, and which can be manufactured in large sizes relatively inexpensively.

Plasma panel based ionizing radiation detector


A digital camera, comprising an image sensor and an optical system for capturing an image of a scene and a wireless communication system. User interface elements are provided enabling a user to select a sharing destination for a captured digital image. A plurality of network pathways are identified for communication with the sharing destination using the wireless communication system. A priority is determined for each of the network pathways and the digital image is transmitted to the sharing destination using the highest priority network pathway.

Digital cameras capture, process, and store digital images. These digital images can be transferred to other devices for viewing, storage and printing. In many cases, digital images are captured and then "shared" over a network, such as the Internet, with family and friends.
Digital cameras can transfer user-selected images over wireless networks, as described in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 7,936,391 to Ward et al., entitled "Digital camera with communications interface for selectively transmitting images over a cellular phone network and a wireless LAN network to a destination," which is incorporated herein by reference. Ward et al. describe how a user of a digital camera can select one of a plurality of communications icons in order to transfer user-selected digital images from the digital camera to a selected destination over one of a plurality of communications networks. This patent also describes how the user-selected images can be identified using an "image utilization" file, which identifies the digital images to be transferred to the selected destination. In some embodiments, the image utilization file is an "Auto Transfer" file as defined in the well-known DPOF 1.1 standard.
It is known to provide a communication device for interconnecting a digital camera to a communications network, for example as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,750,902 to Steinberg, et al., entitled "Camera network communication device." This patent describes communications devices that can use various wireless communications technologies, including cellular connections and unlicensed wireless frequencies, to transfer camera data to multiple destinations.
It is known to utilize a wireless digital camera and cellular phone to provide a multi-point wireless link, for example as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,526,314 to Kennedy, entitled "Remote data storage and retrieval for portable electronics." This patent describes a Bluetooth-enabled camera that communicates to a cellular telephone, which in turn uses a 3G wireless link to remotely store digital images captured by the wireless digital camera on an Internet-connected remote storage device.
It is also known to provide wireless digital cameras that can transfer images to a "smart phone." For example, the Samsung SH100 digital camera sold by Samsung Electronics America includes a WiFi modem which can transfer images to other devices, including smart phones. By loading a custom software application (APP) on the smart phone, the smart phone can be used as a remote shutter release to control the capture of digital images by the digital camera.
It is also known to wirelessly transfer images from a digital camera to a smart phone in order to use the smart phone to share digital images over a cellular data communications network, such as a "3G" network. For example, the company Eye-Fi of Mountain View, Calif. sells a "Mobile X2" SDHC format memory card, which includes a Flash memory to store digital images captured by a digital camera. It also includes a WiFi modem to transfer the digital images over a WiFi network to a computer, a smart phone or a network connection to a sharing web site (such as FaceBook or YouTube).
While it is often desirable to wirelessly share digital images from digital cameras with various sharing destinations, it can be difficult to establish preferred connections from a digital camera to a preferred wireless network when several different wireless networks having different image-transfer related capabilities operate in the same location.
There remains a need to provide improved wireless digital cameras which can easily establish communications with a preferred wireless network, and enable user-selected images to be quickly and easily shared with multiple sharing destinations, no matter where the digital camera is located as images are captured.

Wireless camera with image sharing prioritization


An embodiment of a compound semiconductor device includes: a substrate; a compound semiconductor stacked structure of nitride over the substrate; a passivation film that covers the compound semiconductor stacked structure; a gate electrode, a source electrode, and a drain electrode at a level above the compound semiconductor stacked structure; and an Si—C bond containing film that contains an Si—C bond and includes a part between the source electrode and the drain electrode. The part contacts at least a part of an upper surface of the compound semiconductor stacked structure or at least a part of an upper surface of the passivation film.

In a compound semiconductor device, particularly in a high-power high-frequency device which includes a high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) of nitride such as GaN, a high electric field is apt to be applied to a periphery of a gate electrode. If a part of electrons accelerated by the electric field is transited and trapped by traps, the part of electron broadens a depletion layer and lowers a current. It is known that traps exist in an interface between a passivation film such as a silicon nitride film and a compound semiconductor layer, and inside and on a surface of a passivation film. Such a phenomenon is peculiar to a nitride semiconductor device and is called a current collapse. The current collapse lowers output characteristics of an amplifier such as output and efficiency. In a case where a structure of a gate electrode is of an overhang type, a depletion layer is hard to be broadened due to existence of traps during the off-time, and thus a gate leakage current is apt to increase.
[Patent Literature 1] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2011-192719.

Compound semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same


A die carrier for holding a die, such as a microdisplay die, may be electrically connected to a substrate by pressing the substrate against flexible, resilient leads of the die carrier. The package includes a housing and a shroud mounted to the housing. The substrate is inserted through a slot in the shroud and, within the shroud, engages against the flexible, resilient leads, thereby establishing an electrical contact.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a die package for connection to a substrate (such as a printed circuit board, a flexible printed circuit (FPC), or a flexible flat cable (FFC)) and, more particularly, to a die package for a die (such as a microdisplay die) that connects to a flexible printed circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A semiconductor die or chip is an electrical component on which a microcircuit is built. The microcircuits can be interconnected together on the printed circuit board to form larger electronic circuits for use in radios, televisions, compact disc players, and computers, to name just a few. Because the semiconductor die is fragile, it is encased in a semiconductor die package to protect it from the environment. If one were to look inside an electronic device, such as a computer, compact disc player, or cell phone, one would see one or more printed circuit boards on which semiconductor die packages are mounted and electrically interconnected.
The semiconductor die package includes a housing that holds the semiconductor die and conductive leads or pins that extend from the bottom or sides of the housing. The conductive leads are electrically connected to the semiconductor die within the housing. The outside ends of the leads are typically connected to conductive paths on the printed circuit board or plugged into a mating connector on the printed circuit board. This secures the semiconductor die package to the printed circuit board and permits electrical signals to pass between the semiconductor die and other components on the printed circuit board.
Recent breakthroughs in semiconductor technology have led to the development of microdisplays formed on a die. The microdisplay die generates a display, for example, of alphanumeric characters, graphics, or images, in response to electrical signals supplied to the die. The microdisplays may be used in, for example, small appliance displays (e.g., mobile phones and other portable devices), projection televisions, and projectors. The microdisplay dies should be mounted in a die package for protection from the environment. However, conventional package designs are insufficient for housing microdisplay dies. One problem is that microdisplays are sensitive to high temperatures. If a temperature threshold is exceeded the microdisplay die can warp, affecting the image quality of the microdisplay. For example, the temperature threshold of the microdisplay can be exceeded when package leads are soldered to a circuit board using conventional wave soldering techniques. In addition, if the package housing the microdisplay does not permit adequate cooling, the operation of the die itself or other dies within the housing may generate enough heat to cause damage. Moreover, different applications require different mounting and assembly schemes. Conventional solutions are not flexible enough to be convenient for different applications.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Die package for connection to a substrate


A method for preparing an electron donor biofilm carrier includes proportioning organic polymer basic raw material and functional modifiers in a range of set-point, mixing the materials, feeding the mixtures into a screw extruder, processing them into a bar-type material, and then cut the bar-type material into granules with the cutting machine, and feeding the granules into the screw extruder, processing them into pipes of various shapes according to the selected screw extruder heads, and then cutting the pipes according to the required size. The electron donor biofilm carrier is mainly used in anaerobic or anoxic suspended carrier biofilm technologies. Electron donors with a standard electrode potential below 100 Mv are used as the functional material for preparation of electron donor biofilm carrier.

Currently, as a typical representative of suspended carrier biofilm technologies, aerobic moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) and integrated fixed-film activated sludge (IFAS) have been successfully used as the favored biological treatment systems, owing to the improvement on nitrogen removal significantly. However, the application of low oxygen suspended carrier biofilm technologies is relatively limited due to some factors, such as slow anaerobic acclimation and mass transfer efficiency, low attached biomass rate, unstable anaerobic system, unbalanced C/N, difficult control of the operating conditions. In addition, the selection of suspended carrier is also one of key factors for the successful application of these suspended carrier biofilm technologies. Biofilm carriers are the places where microbes attach themselves to biofilm carrier surface and then accumulate quantity gradually through metabolism. Biofilm formation, biomass quantity, and the reactor treatment efficiency are affected by the performance of biofilm carriers directly. Up to now, there are many kinds of biofilm carriers. Dispersed carriers mainly include suspended carriers. The basic raw materials of suspended carrier are generally made up of polyethylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene, vinylon, etc. with a density slightly less than water. These suspended carriers show some innate drawbacks of electronegativity, poor hydrophilicity and bad biocompatibility, which cause the negative influence to the biofilm formation process. Therefore, the present disclosure provides a method for modifying the conventional suspended carrier used in low oxygen suspended carrier biofilm technologies.
The degradation of pollutants in bioreactor is essentially the redox processes occurring in microbes, and it is also a process of electron transfer. As long as the normal operation of the system is not disrupted, the addition of electron donors, electron acceptors or redox mediators that microbes can use is contributed to improve the performance of the related system. In the low oxygen environment, the Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP) value of the environment surrounding the obligate anaerobes and facultative anaerobes with an aerobic respiration is generally below 100 mV. So the standard electrode potential of the selected electronic donor should below 100 mV. Electron donors are divided into organic and inorganic parts. Organic electronic donors that microbes can use include pyruvate, propionate, acetate, glucose, starch, etc. While inorganic electronic donors include zero-valent aluminum, zero-valent tin, zero-valent zinc, sulfide, etc. The addition of these electron donors would bring many benefits to the bio-reactor. Regulating the pH of the system with these electron donors can construct a suitable survival environment for microbes. They also may enhance and maintain the system in an anaerobic or anoxic environment, promote the electron transfer process. Furthermore, the means is beneficial to promote the bacterial accumulation and the maturation and secretion of enzymes, thus inducing the enrichment of functional biofilm microbes.
Based on the above, the electron donor biofilm carrier was prepared by blending with electron donors. It is likely to show that the electron donor biofilm carrier offers superior performance in the wastewater treatment with low oxygen suspended carrier biofilm technologies.

Method for preparing electron donor biofilm carrier