A trocar system is provided for use in obtaining access into a body cavity for laparoscopic/endoscopic procedures. The trocar system includes a protective housing releasably secured to a trocar housing. An obturator shaft is slidably mounted within the housings and has a stylet at an end thereof terminating at a sharp tip. The obturator shaft is movable in a direction of movement between a retracted position, wherein the sharp tip is retracted into the protective housing, and an extended position, wherein the sharp tip extends out of the protective housing. The trocar system also includes a latching and release mechanism provided within the trocar housing for latching the shaft in its extended position and for releasing the shaft to allow retraction thereof to its retracted position. This latching and release mechanism includes a slide plate movable between first and second positions for permitting movement of the obturator shaft between its retracted and extended positions.

The use of trocars to obtain access into a body cavity for laparoscopic/endoscopic procedures is well known. These types of procedures are currently in use extensively in such procedures as appendectomies, herniorrhaphies, and gall bladder surgery as large incisions in the cavity wall to obtain access to the body member are not necessary.
A trocar generally comprises a trocar housing, a stylet (i.e., a pointed instrument for penetrating a body cavity wall), and a protective housing or cannula surrounding the stylet. The trocar is used to penetrate the body cavity to provide a passageway into the interior thereof such that instruments used during surgery can be extended through the cavity wall to the surgical site. These instruments can include video probes, cutters, surgical staplers, etc.
As a result thereof, in cutting through the body tissue, muscle and membrane of the body cavity wall, resistance to the cutting edge of the trocar is encountered. However, once the tip of the trocar extends through the cavity wall into the body cavity, the resistance to the cutting force of the trocar is significantly reduced. In accordance therewith, trocars in the past have been designed to attempt to obtain a retraction of the sharp tip immediately upon entry of the sharp tip into the body cavity. Without appropriate means to retract the sharp tip, the sharp point could extend further into the body easily injuring a body member. Since the trocar system employs relatively minor incisions in the cavity wall, if a body member is accidentally punctured, the puncture may not become readily apparent until after the laparoscopic/endoscopic procedure. Such a puncturing of the body member will at the very least impede the patient's recovery from the laparoscopic/endoscopic procedure and could mandate corrective surgery.
In the past, prior trocar systems have attempted to provide for retraction of the sharp tip into a protective tube or cannula once the sharp tip enters the body cavity of the patient. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,280 to Lander, a protective tube is positioned over the sharp tip of the stylet to protect the patient from unwarranted cutting, and additionally, the surgeon from injury due to inadvertent contact with the sharp tip. A concentric protective tube is slidably spring-biased in U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,280 to cover the sharp tip of the trocar. In use, the protective tube moves proximally to expose the sharp tip to allow it to puncture the cavity wall. After the sharp tip of the stylet and the protective tube pass fully into the body cavity, the protective tube is able to slide distally under the force of the spring to once again cover the sharp tip of the stylet to prevent inadvertent tissue injury.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,773 to Yoon relates to a trocar system wherein the sharp tip of the stylet, which protrudes from a protective housing for the purpose of puncturing tissue, also carries pressure sensors which signal the reduction of pressure due to the sharp tip passing through the cavity wall into the cavity body. This signal causes a solenoid, located within the protective housing, to become energized and thereby disable a detent which retains the stylet in an extended position, thus allowing a pre-tensioned spring to retract the stylet into the protective housing.
The trocar systems of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,535,773 and 4,902,980, however, have been found to be disadvantageous in implementation. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,980 requires that the protective tube in conjunction with the stylet pass fully through the cavity wall in order to invoke its protective features. Thus, the sharp tip does not retract at the moment of peritoneal penetration thus increasing the chance that the sharp tip will extend further through the body cavity puncturing a body member.
A disadvantage of the trocar system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,980 is that since the protective housing surrounding the sharp tip of the stylet penetrates fully through the cavity wall with the stylet into the body cavity, the protective housing can capture body tissue of the cavity wall therein. Obviously, such retainment of tissue can hinder the withdrawal of the protective tube from the cavity wall as the cavity wall trapped by the tube may lead to further complications.
Even though U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,773 teaches a means of retracting the stylet within the housing when the sharp tip enters the body cavity, the impracticality of providing pressure sensors on the stylet and the unreliability of the solenoid together with the need to provide electrical power along with the associate costs of these additional parts combine to make this approach extremely impractical. Additionally, since the necessary sensing equipment for the trocar system of U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,773 is remote from the trocar housing, the retraction of the stylet is delayed thereby reducing the reliability of the trocar system disclosed therein.


The subject matter disclosed herein relates to determining a photosensor operating point.

Modern communication networks, comprising telecommunications and data communications, may incorporate optical signals with electrical signals. For a variety of reasons, one may therefore convert optical signals to electrical signals, or vice versa throughout various stages of a communication network. For example, a termination of a fiber optic trunk line may involve a conversion of its optical signals into electrical signals that subsequently become routed into electrical-based equipment. Afterward, the electrical signals may be converted back to optical signals. Optical transceivers are generally used to convert between electrical and optical signals.
Industry consensus has resulted in optical transceiver modules that meet common electrical, management, and mechanical specifications. Such a module is commonly referred to as a small form-factor pluggable (SFP) module. One newer high-speed variant is commonly referred to as an XFP module.
As data rates grow beyond 10 Gb/sec, positive-intrinsic-negative (PiN) photodiodes used as a photosensor in a receiver portion of transceiver systems are increasingly being replaced by avalanche photodiodes (APD) for improved receiver sensitivity. But using an APD may involve careful finesse of its operating conditions, including drive bias voltage or temperature compensation, for example.
Proposal SFF-8472, Rev 10.3, released Dec. 1, 2007 (available at ftp://ftp.seagate.com/sff), for example, describes an enhanced functions monitoring interface for optical transceivers, which allows real time access to an SFP/XFP module to monitor its operating parameters, such as temperature and component drive currents, just to name a few examples.
Bit error ratio (BER), the result of dividing the number of bit errors by the total number of bits in a stream, may be used to identify the performance of a communications component, such as an optical transceiver, for example. If bit errors exceed desired limits, one may wish to distinguish between the many possible error sources to identify what problems exist and to what degree.


A handy-stick type vacuum cleaner is disclosed. The disclosed vacuum cleaner comprises: a first part for collecting dust included in air suctioned to the inside through a suction hole; and a second part including a suction motor and a handle, wherein the first and second parts are hinge-connected so as to communicate with each other.

Generally, handheld type, stick type, and handy-stick type vacuum cleaners are smaller than canister type and upright type vacuum cleaners, so that they are light and easy to handle. In addition, these vacuum cleaners are equipped with a rechargeable battery for self-power supply, and are often wireless.
In the case of such a wireless vacuum cleaner, it may clean the widow frame, the bookcase, the sofa, and the like as well as the bottom surface (for example, the floor) more easily than a vacuum cleaner used by a wire.
In this case, the position and orientation of a user's hand, wrist, and arm using the vacuum cleaner may be changed depending on the place and position where dust is sucked.
In other words, because the handle is fixed to the main body, it is often necessary to twist the wrist or arm in order to perform cleaning in a direction desired by the user. As a result, a large load is applied to the wrist or arm during cleaning, which causes the user to feel fatigue easily.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


An improved support element for a shelf divider, label, and sign holder system. The support element includes a substantially U-shaped rigid plastic shell which may be adhesively affixed to the upper surface of a shelf to support a shelf divider. The support element includes elongated flexible ridges or beads within a support element channel, the free ends of which are spaced from and face the interior surface that defines the channel. The ridges are compressible to exert a gripping force on the item to be retained. The support element can also be part of a label and sign holder system. Both a single and double-facing support element is provided to interact with a label holder locking strip.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an integrated shelf divider, label and sign holder system and relates more particularly to an improved elongated universal support element, one or more of which may be adhesively affixed to a horizontal or vertical mounting surface, having elongated flexible semi-cylindrical ridges or beads located within a support element channel. The support element includes a cover portion and a mounting, or base, element. The ridges serve to removably retain the item to be supported or mounted within the support element channel. One such item is a shelf divider for merchandise shelving. Another such item is a label holder or combined label and sign holder.
A pair of such support elements can be affixed to the upper surface of a shelf, parallel the front and back longitudinally extending edges of the shelf, and in spaced relationship to each other. Opposed end mounting flanges of one or more elongated shelf dividers can then be slid between the flexible ridges of the support elements and the mounting, or base, element, to position upstanding divider elements generally perpendicularly to the front and back edges and the upper surface of the shelf.
In addition, the universal support element of this invention can be mounted generally horizontally, on a vertically extending surface to secure a sheet of material, which may be formed of paper, cardboard or plastic, to the surface for display of a message or sign to a passerby. Alternatively, a universal support element according to this invention can be secured to the undersurface of a generally horizontally extending shelf, adjacent the front edge thereof, to receive mounting portions of a label holder between the flexible ridges of the support element and the mounting element.
The universal support element of this invention can also be mounted on a horizontal shelf near the free edge thereof where the opening of the support element channel faces outwardly to receive a label holder and/or label and sign holder having a novel interlocking elongated locking strip arrangement. In yet another embodiment, a bidirectional dual support element is provided where back-to-back support elements have their channels facing in opposite directions to serve both as a holder for a label or sign holder, as well as a holder for a shelf divider.
2. Description of the Related Art
Shelf divider systems, such as those for retail store shelving, are well known in the art. One such shelf divider system is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,097 entitled "Universal Shelf Divider, Label and Sign Holder System" which is assigned to the assignee of the present application. The '097 patent discloses a support element in combination with shelf dividers for mounting the shelf dividers to a shelf surface. The shelf dividers disclosed in the '097 patent are substantially identical to those used and described herein and, indeed, the shelf dividers of such '097 patent may be used with the improved support element of the present invention. The prior art '097 patent discloses a support element having an extended cover portion of substantially V-shape with a mounting, or base, element that is integral with the cover portion, but extends only part way along the overall width between the inner and outer edges of the cover portion. The cover portion includes a pair of flexible fingers that are greater in distance between the cover portion, from which they extend, to the base member. Thus, when the base member is secured to a mounting surface, the flexible fingers are compressed and directly engage the mounting surface in compression. There is no gap between the flexible fingers and the mounting surface.
As described in the '097 patent, when the item to be mounted or secured, such as the flange of a divider, is inserted into the support element, the item is captured between the flexible fingers and the mounting surface itself. The item to be supported can be inserted only part way into the support element. The item cannot be inserted all the way into the support element to the edge portion that connects the cover portion and mounting element. As a result, there are certain disadvantages with such a support element. In particular, the support element width must be relatively wide so as to accommodate the width of the base member and the adjacent width formed by the cover portion overlying the mounting surface. Further, the item to be inserted and captured can only be inserted approximately half way along the width of the support element. Thus, when a pair of support elements are mounted on front and back edges of a shelf, they take up a substantial portion of the shelf space. Still further, the divider member that is inserted and retained by the support elements cannot extend substantially the entire width of the shelf.
Similar disadvantages can be found when the '097 patent support element is used to support a label or sign. The overall width of the support element is wider than desirable and the label or sign to be inserted cannot be inserted substantially fully along the width of the support element.
Moreover, the support element disclosed in the '097 patent can be affixed to a shelf in a direction facing inwardly to support a shelf divider or outwardly to support a label holder or label/sign holder. A single shelf divider cannot perform both functions. Thus, if the support element is affixed to a shelf and oriented inwardly or toward the back of the shelf, it can be used only to support a shelf divider and not as a support for a label holder or label/sign holder.

Universal support element for universal shelf divider, label and sign holder


Various systems and methods for an all-in-focus implementation are described herein. A system to for operating a camera, comprising an image sensor in the camera to capture a sequence of images in different focal planes, at least a portion of the sequence of images occurring before receiving a signal to store an all-in-focus image, a user interface module to receive, from a user, the signal to store an all-in-focus image, and an image processor to fuse at least two images to result in the all-in-focus image, wherein the at least two images have different focal planes.

In photography and cinematography depth of field (DOF) refers to the front-to-back range of focus in an image. In a picture with a large DOF, the foreground, middle, and background are all in focus. Conversely, a picture with a shallow DOF may only have one plane in focus. In conventional cameras, a large DOF may be achieved with a small camera aperture. In some digital cameras, several planes of focus may be captured in quick succession and combined to produce an all-in-focus image.


A manually operable pill crusher device for use with pill pouches. A base includes a crushing surface over which a head is mounted. A handle is attached to a cam inside the head, and the head has a slot that permits the handle to move from a horizontal position to a vertical position. The cam is mounted inside a ram which slideably moves axially inside the head from a raised position in the head when the handle is vertical to a lowered position when the handle is horizontal. The ram includes a crushing surface engaging surface. The head also includes a slot through which a pill in a pouch can be inserted on to the crushing surface when the handle is raised. Lowering the handle then crushes the pill with axial force directly over the crushing surface, avoiding any cocking or arcuate pressure on the pill.

In many instances, persons needing to take medicine on a regular basis need to take it in liquid form, for various reasons. The patient may have difficulty swallowing or the taste of the medicine in pill form is unpleasant. In some cases, there is a need to disguise the existence of the medicine, such as for a child under the care of a nurse or doctor.
It is also common for a person to take more than one medicine at one time, such as a medicine to regulate blood pressure and another to reduce cholesterol. Vitamins and other supplements may also be taken at that time. Patients may prefer to take all of the medicine one liquid form, rather than taking a number of pills separately.
In hospitals, nursing homes and extended care facilities, the nurse or other attendant may have a large number of patients to treat on a daily basis. Reducing medication to a single does increases efficiency and reduces costs.
There are a number of medicines that come in pill form only. In any of these situations, it has become a common practice to crush or pulverize the pills, keeping them in a pouch or bag. One example of an effective bag or pouch for pills that are to be crushed or pulverized is shown in my co-pending Design Patent Application having Ser. No. 29/256,992, filed Mar. 27, 2006, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
In order to crush or pulverize the pill in the pouch, the pill is inserted into the pouch and pressure is applied to the pill. If only one pill for one patient is being crushed, any hard object can be used. However, in institutional work, as noted above, devices have been designed that crush or pulverize pills in pouches by action of an anvil and platen that come together to crush the pill between them.
One such device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,637, which operates using a floating pivot point such that movement of the handle moves the platen through an arc to contact with the anvil, and the pill is crushed. The design uses a base, an anvil integral to the base, a handle, a platen and a compression link and all have three moving parts. The platen strikes the pill in the pouch before it is parallel to the anvil, arcing into the pouch as it moves about the pivot. It is possible for portions of the pill to shatter and slide up into the bag opening, thereby spilling. There is also a concern that the use of a pivot may, over time, become out of alignment and the effectiveness. Since all of the pivoting components are in a compact space, the handle, which should not be longer than the base to avoid protruding past the base, the force for crushing is limited by the handle length.
It would be of advantage in the art if a pill crushing device could be provided that contacted the pill in the pouch in a direction perpendicular to the surface against which the force is directed.
Yet another advantage would be if a pill crushing device could be provided that uses fewer moving parts and those parts remain aligned over long periods of use.
It would also be of advantage if a longer handle could be provided.
Still another advantage would be to produce a pill crushing device with few moving parts, for longer life and easier manufacturing time and expense.
Other advantages will appear hereinafter.


The present invention relates to compound of formula (I), their method of preparation and use thereof in particular in the fields of optoelectronic, photonic, photovoltaics and biology.

π-conjugated organic molecules (cyclic and/or linear) are widely used in the field of photonics, organic electronics including photovoltaics, optoelectronics and biology due to their geometrical and electronic structures which give them unique properties. The optic and electronic properties of those π-conjugated organic molecules are linked to a parameter named HOMO-LUMO gap (Eg) which corresponds to the energy difference between the Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital (HOMO) and the Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital (LUMO). This gap should be as low as possible for the above-mentioned applications.
The molecules presenting a low Eg gap are often molecules of high dimensions. However, those molecules are weakly soluble which could be a huge limitation for the above mentioned applications. It is thus important to find new π-conjugated molecules that could present a low Eg gap and which could be soluble in organic medium and water.
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a form of phototherapy using nontoxic light-sensitive compounds that are exposed selectively to light, whereupon they becomes toxic to targeted malignant and other diseased cells, and thus can be used in the treatment of cancer for example. Most modern PDT applications involve three key components: a photosensitizer, a light source and oxygen. The wavelength of the light source needs to be appropriate for exciting the photosensitizer to produce reactive oxygen species. The combination of these three components leads to the chemical destruction of any tissues which have either selectively taken up the photosensitizer or have been locally exposed to light. This method has some disadvantages since only cancers accessible to light can be treated such as cancers near the surface of the skin (for example red light only has a penetration of about 1 cm in living tissues). In order to treat other cancers which require a higher penetration into the tissues, the photosensitizer used should absorb in the near infrared region (NIR region) as those radiations penetrate more deeply in the skin.
Regarding photovoltaic technology, about 50% of the solar energy is in the near infrared region. Thus one of the major limiting factors for organic solar cells is the gap between the spectral absorption of the active layer and the solar emitting spectrum. The organic devices actually use various molecules in order to absorb the major part of the solar energy (from visible to near infrared). The use of a unique organic molecule absorbing on a large scale would enable an improvement in yield and costs. Organic solar cells are based on a blend or an electron donor and hole transporting material (such as polythiophene) mixed with an electron acceptor and electronic conductor material (generally fullerene derivatives). Most of the photovoltaic cells actually used are based on silicon. However, this material is expensive and difficult to recycle. Dye-photosensitized solar cells, also called Grätzel (or Graetzel) cells, have been developed based on sensitized inorganic/organic hybride semi-conductors instead of silicon. In Grätzel cell, upon photo absorption, the dye injects an electron in the conduction band of the semi-conductor. These cells especially implement less expensive material, simple and low cost production techniques. Modules obtained are semi-flexible and semi-transparent which also open larger fields of application. There is thus a need to develop dyes for this type of solar cells which can have an improved photoconversion efficiency.
Among the π-conjugated molecules, porphyrins are probably the most important and adaptable macrocycles. The major research activity on porphyrins covers a broad area ranging from chemistry, materials science, physics, biology, engineering and medicine. Porphyrins are highly conjugated heterocyclic macrocycles composed of four pyrrol subunits interconnected via one-atom bridges forming a 16-membered central ring. These porphyrins present 18 delocalized π-electrons. However, these porphyrins do not absorb in the NIR region.
Also known from Muranaka et al (JACS, 2012, 134, 190-193) are analogues of hemiporphyrazine which absorb in the NIR region. However, these compounds are not versatile since their modifications are very limited. Indeed, it should be very useful to modify the macrocyclic molecule in order to modulate the Eg gap, the control the solubility, the geometry . . . .
As a consequence there is a need to provide new macrocyclic molecules having small dimensions, low Eg gap, absorptions in the NIR region, and for which properties can be easily tailored upon chemical modifications (i.e. which are versatile).

Analogues of porphyrins, their method of preparation and use thereof

CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE


A method of arbitrating a system bus shared by a CPU, which is a first master device, and second and third master devices comprises storing a first bus occupancy rate for each master device and a variable bus occupancy rate. When an interrupt signal provided to the CPU is activated, a second rate for the CPU, which is a sum of the first rate for the CPU and the variable rate, and the first rates for the second and third master devices are applied to a bus arbiter. When the interrupt signal is inactivated, a third rate for the CPU, which is obtained by subtracting the variable rate from the first rate for the CPU, and the first rates for the second and third master devices are applied to the bus arbiter. A use priority of the system bus is controlled according to the rates applied to the bus arbiter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bus arbiter, and more particularly, to a bus arbiter for determining priorities for using a common bus using an interrupt signal or a privilege signal and a method thereof.
2. Description of Related Art
A data processing system including various functional blocks is typically implemented in a System On Chip (SOC) device. The SOC includes bus master devices, which share a common bus and/or memory. A bus arbiter controls access to the common bus so as to prevent, for example, bus master devices from simultaneously using the common bus.
FIG. 1 illustrates a data processing system 100 implemented as a SOC. The data processing system 100 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 102, which is a first bus master device, a second bus master IP1 104, a third bus master device IP2 106, a bus slave device IP3 108, and a bus arbiter 110. The CPU 102, the IP1 104, the IP2 106, and the IP3 108 share a system bus 120. Each of the IP1 104 and the IP2 106 can be a peripheral component interconnection (PCI) master controller, a direct memory access (DMA) controller, an Ethernet controller, or the like. The IP3 108 bus slave device can be, for example, a memory controller.
In the data processing system 100, the CPU 102, the IP1 104, and the IP2 106 send respective bus request signals REQ to the bus arbiter 110. The bus arbiter 110 determines a priority of bus use by selecting one from the CPU 102, the IP1 104, and the IP2 106 and sending a bus grant signal GNT to the selected device. The bus arbiter 110 determines a next master device to use the system bus 120, using an arbitrated priority list set in a conventional bus arbitration algorithm. An arbitrated priority list 210 of FIG. 2 can be stored in the bus arbitration algorithm.
In the arbitrated priority list 210, a certain bus occupancy rate (%) is set for each master device. The CPU 102 is assigned a%, the IP1 104 is assigned b%, and the IP2 106 is assigned c%. The a% for the CPU 102 is generally higher than the b% for the IP1 104 or the c% for IP2 106. Hence, in response to bus request signals REQ from the bus master devices 102, 104, and 106, the bus arbiter 110 controls the use of the system bus 120 so that a higher priority is given to the CPU 102 and a lower priority is given to the IP1 104 or the IP2 106.
In a Real Time Operation System (RTOS), which implements compression and decompression in real time, if the priorities of the bus mater devices 102, 104, and 106 are controlled in accordance with a fixed arbitrated priority sequence as shown in FIG. 2, the CPU 102 is always assigned a highest priority even when it has not requested use the system bus 120 to achieve fast processing. In other words, the RTOS cannot immediately respond to a bus request signal REQ from the IP1 104 or the IP2 106. Hence, the RTOS provides low bus use efficiency. Also, the RTOS cannot be expected to have high performance where the RTOS immediately responds to various operation patterns by dynamically switching the priority of use of the system bus 120 according to an adopted operating pattern.
Therefore, a need exists for a RTOS multi-processor system having improved system bus use efficiency.

Dynamic bus arbitration method and bus arbiter


A transconductance circuit, comprising: first and second field effect transistors, each having a drain, a source and a gate; wherein the first transistor is in a first current flow path between first and second nodes of the circuit, and is biased so as to operate in a saturation region of its transfer characteristic; the second field effect transistor is in a second current flow path between the first and second nodes of the circuit and is biased so as to operate in a linear region of its transfer characteristic; the gate of the first and second transistors are connected to receive an input signal; and wherein the second transistor is further in series with a voltage modulator adapted to reduce the drain-source voltage occurring across the second transistor in response to increased current flow in the second transistor.

It is often necessary to amplify an signal. A simple amplifier stage is shown in FIG. 1 wherein a field effect transistor 1 has an impedance 2 connected between its drain terminal and a positive supply rail 3. A source terminal of the field effect transistor 1 may be connected to a negative supply or ground rail either directly as shown or via a further impedance. A gate of the field effect transistor 1 is supplied with a DC bias voltage from a bias generating circuit 4 and an AC signal to be amplified which is decoupled from the bias circuit 4 via a decoupling capacitor 5.
For an ideal transconductor the current flowing in a current flow path through the transconductor would be linearly related to a control voltage applied to a control terminal of the transconductor, and the transconductor draws no current at its control terminal.
However, real transistors have characteristics which differ significantly from idealised devices. The field effect transistor is commonly used in transconductance amplifiers because it's input impedance is high. However it is well known that a field effect transistor has a drain-source current ID which for an idealised transistor exhibits the following characteristicsID=0 when Vgs−Vth<0  Equation 1where                Vgs=gate source voltage        Vth=threshold voltage of the FET
In a so called "linear region", also known as a "triode region" of the device characteristic where VDS is greater then zero but less than (Vgs−Vth) the drain current is as follows:
                              I          D                =                  β                                (                                                            (                                                            V                      gs                                        -                                          V                      th                                                        )                                                                  V                  DS                                            -                                                V                  DS                  2                                2                                      )                                              Equation                                                  2            where:                β is a constant which, amongst other things is proportional to the ratio of the FET channel width to the channel length.        VDS=drain-source voltage.
However once VDS exceeds (Vgs−Vth) the device enters its saturation region where
                              I          D                =                              β            2                                                        (                                                V                  gs                                -                                  V                  th                                            )                        2                                              Equation                                                  3            Following on from these idealised equations, we see that in the saturation region, the transconductance gm is
      g    m    =                    ⅆ                  I          D                            ⅆ                  V          gs                      =          β                    (                              V            gs                    -                      V            th                          )
However, real devices can deviate from these ideal characteristics.
FIG. 2a illustrates a transfer characteristic of a NMOS FET constructed having a gate dimension of 100 μm by 0.18 μm fabricated using a 0.18 μm CMOS technology as typically found in an integrated circuit, and showing the drain current as a function of the gate-source voltage. It will be seen that the transistor is essentially non conducting until the gate-source voltage exceeds the threshold voltage of the transistor which in this example is around 0.4 volts. From then on the current rises in a non linear manner until a gate-source voltage which is approximately 1 volt is reached and from then on the curve is approximately linear. In this final region the second and third order derivatives of drain current with respect to gate-source voltage have become reasonably small. However, these are all qualative rather than quantative assessments of the transistor's performance. It should also be noted that operating a transistor in this region can be relatively power hungry.
In these examples the drain-source voltage was held fixed at 1 volt.
The linearity of the response can be examined by looking at the derivatives of the curve IDS versus VGS shown in FIG. 2a. FIG. 2b shows the first derivative of drain current with respect to gate-source voltage, i.e. the transconductance, and it can be seen that between 0.5 volts and approximately 0.7 volts there is quite a marked change in the rate of change of current with respect to gate-source voltage corresponding to the curved area generally designated 6 in FIG. 2a. In this region the gradient of the curve looks substantially constant. However from about 1.2 volts onwards the first derivative is substantially constant. FIGS. 2c and 2d show the second derivative and the third derivative of the transfer characteristic of the transistor. These higher order derivatives represent sources of harmonic distortion when amplifying a signal, and represent sources of inter-signal mixing i.e. the creation of inter-modulation products when two or more signals having distinct frequencies are presented to the amplifier.
It is known that the distortion in small signal amplifiers can be represented by a Taylor series. If we consider only the lower order components of such an expansion, we haveID≈IDO+g1Vin+g2Vin2+g3Vin3where
      g    n    =            ⅆ              I        n                    ⅆ              V        gs        n            Where                n=1, 2, 3 . . .
It is known that the distortion resulting from the second derivative or the distortion resulting from the third derivative can be reduced to substantially zero provided the individual transistor is biased to a specific biased voltage which, unfortunately, is unique to that transistor. Thus, if a batch of identical circuits are made in a fabrication process, tiny variations from wafer to wafer and indeed from one transistor to another transistor within the same integrated circuit would mean that each transistor would have a slightly different bias point for, for example, reducing the third order derivative to zero even though the transistors were nominally identical.
Even so, it can be seen that if a transistor is biased to a point where the 3rd derivative is zero, the second derivative is still likely to have a significant non-zero value. Therefore this approach merely trades one source of distortion for another. In circuits, like that shown in FIG. 1, where no feedback is provided, the dominant source of third-order intermodulation products (IM3) is the 3rd order non-linearity, g3 shown in FIG. 2d. reducing g3 can be achieved, for example, by biasing the transistor to the point where g3 is zero.
In circuits having feedback the situation can become more complex. For transistors having a series-series feedback scheme (i.e. an impedance placed between the source terminal and ground) then there are two dominant mechanisms giving rise to third-order intermodulation products. These are                1) 3rd order non-linearity within the transistor as characterised by g3.        2) 2nd order non-linearity as characterised by g 2.
One might suppose that linearity could be achieved by merely operating a relatively large gate-source voltages where the drain -source current tends to become a linear function of the gate source voltage. Whilst this can work, it is a power hungry solution that is not suitable for a large number of applications, such as mobile radio or mobile telephones.
These non-linearities are particularly undesirable in amplifiers, such as radio frequency amplifiers, which may be required to amplify a relatively weak wanted signal, designated S in FIG. 3, in the presence of stronger interfering signals designated I1 and I2. In the scenario shown in FIG. 3 the frequency difference between the wanted signal S and the first interferer I1 is the same as the frequency difference between the interferer I1 and a second interferer I2. Thus non-linearities within the amplifier stage give rise to mixing of the interfering signals Iand I2 such that a new interfering signal I3 is generated within the amplifier which has the same frequency as the wanted signal S and which, as a consequence may impact on the ability of the receiver to recover the wanted signal S or which may inhibit reception of that signal completely.

Transconductance circuit with improved linearity


A method for automatically identifying voice tags on an electronic device. After failure to initiate a communication using a voice input command, the user may then subsequently contact the recipient using an application program of the electronic device. The original audio of the voice input command may be identified as a potential voice tag for the now-identified recipient. The method includes: receiving, through a voice interface program, a voice input command, the voice input command including a command element and a content element; ending the voice interface program without performing the voice input command; receiving, through an application program, a user input which identifies data for executing an application program command; performing the application program command; and identifying audio of the content element as a voice tag associated with the data identified by the user input.

Voice recognition engines are used to translate spoken words into text, in order to execute desired user commands. Example voice recognition applications include voice dialling, call routing, home appliance control, in-vehicle applications, search, data entry, preparation of structured documents, and speech-to-text processing (e.g., word processors or emails).
With new laws banning driving and handling of electronic devices, using voice activated dialling (e.g. over a Bluetooth™ headset) has become more common. End-user experience is shaped by the ability of the voice recognition engine to accurately resolve the commands and the contact referenced. A major challenge of voice recognition engines is dealing with phonetic variations associated with names input in different origin languages and end-user accents. The detection accuracy problem is further amplified when the audio path is extended, for example going through the Bluetooth™ headset microphone instead of the resident microphone of the handheld phone.
Some conventional voice recognition engines are trained merely by having the user read a known paragraph at setup time.
Additional difficulties with some existing systems may be appreciated in view of the detailed description below.
Like reference numerals are used throughout the Figures to denote similar elements and features.

Method and system for automatically identifying voice tags through user operation


A universal plastic siding clip for attaching cables and wires to the outside of a building. The siding clip includes cooperating cable retention mechanisms for both horizontal cable spans and vertical cable drops thereby permitting the use of a single fastener for either or both types of cable runs. The retention mechanisms are spaced to avoid cable interference where both cable types are utilized and, further, to position horizontal cables closer to the wall surface thus making use of the intrinsic protection offered by overlapping siding planks while the vertical runs are spaced sufficiently outwardly from the wall surface to avoid interference with such overlapping planks. Cable recesses are provided to permit multiple and widely varying cable cross-sections and diameters in a single clip model. Further, the clip may be injection molded using simplified tooling without movable core members, side actions and similar apparatus that otherwise increases manufacturing costs.

The present invention relates to plastic clips for the retention of electrical wires and cabling against, generally, the exterior surface of a building. More specifically, the present clip falls within the family of fasteners intended to attach such wires and cables to a building surface without screws, nails or otherwise defacing the surface.
One common form of exterior siding comprises plural aluminum sections or wood planks arranged horizontally and in overlapping fashion. The interlace between adjacent sections defines a recess or receptacle into which a flanged (or barbed) portion of a clip may be inserted by urging the clip perpendicularly into the recess thereby securing same to the wall surface. Although not as common, siding may also be arranged in vertical sections. Whether vertical or horizontal, the recesses defined between adjacent sections are unidirectional, i.e. parallel, as are the corresponding, although perpendicular, paths for clip insertion. Thus, for any given wall surface, all siding clips must be inserted in the same direction.
It will be appreciated that this limitation restricts the placement of siding clips by forcing all siding clips to be oriented in a single, common direction. As most known clips are designed to receive wires or cables in a single orientation with respect thereto, multiple clip models are generally required--so-called horizontal and vertical clips--where both lateral as well as drop cable runs are contemplated. The present invention, on the other hand, pertains to a universal clip arrangement suitable for use on an aluminum or other planked siding having unidirectional, longitudinal interfaces therebetween while facilitating the retention of wires and cables oriented vertically, horizontally, or both.
A further limitation of many known clip structures is the relatively limited range of wire and cable sizes that any given clip can accommodate. Thus, a family of clip sizes must be provided, and, for each mounting orientation. By contrast, the present clip incorporates conventional cable ties for wire attachment (to the clip body portion) which ties, in turn, permit retention of a wide range of cable cross-sections. And further flexibility can be realized by selecting cable tie sizes according to the number and diameter of cables requiring attachment.
Clips employing cable ties for wire attachment are not unknown. One such clip, for example, is the anchor sold under the TAPIN trademark by Illinois Tool Works. This clip, however, is literally nailed to a wall surface thereby causing the associated problems of wall defacement and surface breach. The present clip does not, in the first instance, employ a surface-breach mounting arrangement. Further, the clip described herein permits retention of vertical as well as horizontal cable spans and, importantly, both spans may be accommodated with a single clip structure.
The lower portion of the clip (i.e. the portion closest to the wall surface) advantageously provides the support and retention of cables oriented generally parallel to the longitudinal siding sections or planks. In most installations these will be horizontal cable `spans`. More specifically, a cantilever armature member facilitates the "side-loading" attachment of cables to the clip body (using, as previously noted, a cable tie around the cables and armature member) whereby the cable tie may be cut or slipped-off the armature thereby allowing the installation, removal, replacement, and/or repositioning of horizontal cable spans without the necessity for a corresponding replacement or repositioning of a previously installed clip or any vertical cables connected thereto.
A further feature of the side-loading attachment is the orientation of the wire or cable adjacent the clip and immediately proximate the wall surface. In this manner the cable is positioned in the recessed region generally found at the interface between adjacent siding sections and protected by the raised portion of siding defined by the overlapping of one section on the other.
A wholly different "top-loading" retention is proposed for the vertical or "drop" cables that, in the first instance, spaces apart the respective horizontal and vertical cables (where the present clip is employed to advantageously position and attach cables in both orientations) while, secondly, positioning the drop cable sufficiently above the wall surface to assure that such cable will clear the ridges created by the previously discussed overlapping of adjacent siding sections. It will again be appreciated that the vertical drop cables may be attached or reattached to an installed clip without need for clip or horizontal wire removal or repositioning.
Both clip cable retention regions define contours or channels against or through which the respective span and drop cables are directed. These contours are importantly dimensioned and contoured to permit clip use with the widest possible range of cable and wire types and sizes.
The present clip is further and advantageously designed to facilitate the greatest economy in manufacture. Specifically, the clip is preferably fabricated utilizing conventional plastic injection molding technology and, to the end of further economy, the present clip--although being of complex design by reason of its treatment of orthogonal cables (i.e. along "x" and "y" axes) and spacing of such cables in yet a third dimension (i.e. along the "z" axis)--is designed whereby the molds may be of the simple parting type, that is, where complex and expensive side actions, lifters, slide locks, or similar tooling systems are not required. In this manner the tool is not only cheaper in its original manufacture, but less expensive to maintain, less likely to fail or require maintenance, and may be cycled more rapidly.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a siding clip for the retention of wires and cables against exterior wall surfaces that is economical to fabricate and effortless to install; that does not deface the wall surfaces on which it is mounted; provides for the retention of cables of multiple orientations, in particular horizontal and vertical; has the capability of retaining both such cables simultaneously; accommodates cables of widely varying cross-section and size; permits the attachment and reattachment of cables without a corresponding need to reposition or reattach the clip or other cables; positions cables close to the wall and in sheltered, protected relationship thereto, but spaces cables away from the wall as required to effect cable crossings and to avoid siding interferences for cables oriented transversely to the siding sections or planks; and, facilitates the manufacture thereof in an economical manner.
These and other objects are more fully explicated in the drawings, specification, and claims that follow.

Universal horizontal and vertical siding clip


A sorting apparatus includes: a characteristic information obtaining unit which obtains characteristic information of each of packages; a first branching unit to a third branching unit each of which performs branching operation for forwarding a predetermined package among the packages to a corresponding one of a first branching conveyor to a third branching conveyor; an interval adjusting unit which adjusts an interval which is a distance between two packages, which are a current package and the next package, forwarded sequentially; a branch control unit which causes each of the first branching unit to the third branching unit to change the details of branching operations according to the characteristic information; and an interval control unit which causes the interval adjusting unit to increase the interval in proportion to the time required for the branching operation for the current package.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sorting apparatus which sorts packages by forwarding each of the packages which is being carried on a main conveyor to a corresponding one of the branch conveyors.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there are sorting apparatuses which sort packages which are being carried on their main conveyors such as roller conveyors according to the kinds, addresses, and the like of the respective packages.
For example, such sorting apparatuses include branch conveyors branching from their main conveyors, and forward packages which are being carried on their main conveyors to the branch conveyors for classifying the respective packages. The respective packages are sorted by the sorting apparatuses which perform such branching operations in this way.
In addition, it is desired that the sorting apparatuses can handle various kinds of packages. Therefore, the sorting apparatuses are required to securely forward such various kinds of packages to corresponding branch conveyors.
In view of this, there have been proposed techniques for securely forwarding such various kinds of packages to corresponding branch conveyors irrespective of the kinds of the products (for example, see Patent Reference: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-40174).
FIG. 7A is a diagram showing the outline of a conventional sorting apparatus.
As shown in FIG. 7A, a conventional sorting apparatus 100 includes a photoelectric sensor 102 on a path of a carriage conveyor 101 configured as a belt conveyor.
With this photoelectric sensor 102, it is possible to measure the length in the carriage direction of a package W which is being carried by the carriage conveyor 101.
In addition, the sorting apparatus 100 includes diverters 112 each of which is intended for forwarding packages to a corresponding one of branch conveyors 120. The details of the operation of each diverter 112 is changed according to the length in the carriage direction for the package W measured by the photo electric sensor 102.
FIG. 7B is a schematic plan view showing the operation starting timing of the diverter 112.
When the package W on the main conveyor 110 reaches a position which is along a side of a predetermined diverter 112 and is predetermined depending on the length in the carriage direction for the package W, the diverter 112 vibrates about an axis 116 inward at a predetermined speed.
The operation starting timing of the diverter 112 at this time varies according to the length in the carriage direction for the package W as shown in FIG. 7B.
In other words, as the length in the carriage direction for the package W becomes greater, the amount of forwarding the package W becomes greater. Here, the amount of forwarding corresponds to a forwarding distance between an entrance of the main conveyor 110 and a position at which the diverter 112 starts the operation for the package W.
As described above, the sorting apparatus 100 changes the operation according to the length in the carriage direction of a package. In this way, the sorting apparatus 100 can forward packages having different lengths to the corresponding branch conveyors 120.
Here, for example, even packages having approximately the same lengths may have characteristics different in terms of fall possibilities, damage possibilities, and the like.
Thus, a package may fall even in the case of changing the operation for forwarding the package to a corresponding branch conveyor (referred to as "branching operation" hereinafter) according to the length of the package by using the above-mentioned conventional technique.
As a matter of course, a certain amount of time is required for such branching operation. Thus, when plural packages, which are a current package and the next package, are sequentially supplied to the main conveyor, it is necessary to secure a proper interval between the current package and the next package which reaches a corresponding branch point immediately after the current package so as to prevent these packages from touching each other in the middle of the branching operation of the current package.
Accordingly, a conceivable countermeasure against this is to supply packages to a main conveyor spaced apart by a sufficiently long distance when the position in the branching operation is changed according to the length of the current package as in the conventional technique. This countermeasure makes it possible to prevent packages which are being carried sequentially from touching each other as described above.
However, the use of this countermeasure greatly decreases the number of sorted packages per unit time, thereby greatly decreasing the efficiency in sorting operations.


Methods are provided for forming uniformly thin layers in magnetic devices. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) can produce layers that are uniformly thick on an atomic scale. Magnetic tunnel junction dielectrics, for example, can be provided with perfect uniformity in thickness of 4 monolayers or less. Furthermore, conductive layers, including magnetic and non-magnetic layers, can be provided by ALD without spiking and other non-uniformity problems. The disclosed methods include forming metal oxide layers by multiple cycles of ALD and subsequently reducing the oxides to metal. The oxides tend to maintain more stable interfaces during formation.

Magnetic structures in integrated circuits and hard-disk read-heads include multi-layer devices comprising ferromagnetic films, conductive films and insulation films. These layered magnetic structures include magnetic tunneling junctions, spin-valve transistors and pseudo spin valves.
Most commonly, physical vapor deposition (PVD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes are used for deposition of these films. There are problems associated with these techniques; pinholes, film thickness non-uniformity and impurities at the film interfaces have caused devices to fail. For example, PVD results in three-dimensional growth of cobalt into islands on aluminum oxide, rather than two-dimensional film growth. In addition, ferromagnetic metals are rather sensitive to corrosion and thus require very careful treatment.
The problem of thickness non-uniformity can be mitigated using a chemical-mechanical polishing technique (CMP). A CMP technique for making a magnetic structure has been described in patent application WO 00/38191, published Jun. 29, 2000. Unfortunately, CMP causes oxidation of some ferromagnetic materials. The oxygen must be removed and the film restored to elemental metal. This reduction reaction should be effected at a low temperature (e.g., less than about 300° C.), as high temperatures can destroy the functionality of the device.
Magnetic random access memories (MRAMs) have many desirable properties. The magnetic polarity of the soft magnetic layer can be switched very quickly, in as little as a nanosecond. The MRAM cells can be packed close together; they can be scaled down to densities used for state-of-the-art DRAMs (dynamic random access memories). MRAM fabrication requires fewer mask steps than DRAM fabrication, thus simplifying production and saving time and costs. In addition, the MRAM is non-volatile. Unlike the DRAM, it is not necessary to supply the MRAM with continuous or periodic power. Once data has been written to the MRAM cell it will remain until it is rewritten and needs no additional power. Thus, it is expected that MRAMs have the potential to replace DRAMs, static RAMs (SRAM) and flash memory in a wide range of applications, such as cell phones, MP3 players, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and portable computers. The manufacturing of magnetic central processing units (MCPU) will also be feasible. MCPUs can be reprogrammed on the fly to match any specific task. Before this can happen, however, the remaining manufacturing problems of MRAM structures must be solved.
One form of a basic MRAM cell comprises a single current-sensing element and a three-layer magnetically functional sandwich. These cells are written to and read via current passing through adjacent conducting lines. In the sandwich a very thin, insulating or "tunnel dielectric" layer separates two magnetic layers. One of the magnetic layers is "soft," which means that relatively small magnetic fields can change the magnetic polarity of the material, i.e., the material has low coercivity. The other magnetic layer is "hard," which means that the polarity of the material changes only under the influence of a relatively large magnetic field, i.e., the layer has high coercivity. The magnetic fields associated with writing and reading currents in the conducting lines cannot change the magnetic polarity of the "hard" magnetic layer. Data is written to the soft magnetic layer of the sandwich by passing a current through two conductor lines that are electrically connected to the magnetic layers.
A single bit of data can be read from the sandwich by using an address line connected to one of the conductor lines. The address line can turn on a sense transistor, depending on the current level that tunnels through the magnetic sandwich. The level of the tunneling current depends on the polarity of the magnetic layers in the sandwich. When the polarity of the magnetic layers is parallel, higher current tunnels through the sandwich than when the polarity of the magnetic layers is antiparallel.
In the MRAM cell, the thickness of the insulating layer in the sandwich is in the nanometer range. The strength of the tunneling current through the insulator is very sensitive to the thickness of the insulator. For example, aluminum oxide insulating thin films may be just four atomic layers thick. Changing the thickness of the insulator by only a tenth of a nanometer may change the tunneling current by an order of magnitude. In addition, the insulator must have high dielectric strength to withstand the operating voltages and provide sufficient tunneling current.
MRAM structures are also sensitive to pinholes in the layers. These can short-out the magnetic memory cell, rendering the device non-functional. The MRAM layers are also temperature sensitive; defects can be expected if the layers are exposed to excessively high temperatures.
The tunneling dielectric can be made, for example, by plasma oxidizing an aluminum metal layer into aluminum oxide. Low surface diffusion of atoms prevents formation of islands and pinholes.
Spin-valve transistors are used as magnetic field sensors. Read-heads for hard-disks and MRAMs can comprise spin-valve transistors.
In a typical spin-valve transistor structure (Si collector/Co/Cu/Co/Pt/Si emitter), Co and Cu layers are deposited by sputtering. The optimum thickness of the Cu layer is about 2.0–2.4 nm. Improved flatness of the Co/Cu interface increases the magnetoresistance effect, which is desirable. The scattering probability of the hot electrons in the base is altered by a magnetic field.


Methods and devices for revascularization of a patient's coronary artery system which obviate the need to place the patient on cardiopulmonary bypass. A method is provided for revascularizing a patient while the-heart is beating, and includes performing at least one minimally invasive coronary artery bypass graft procedure, or other cardiac surgical procedure, and contemporaneously performing at least one catheter-based procedure in at least one coronary artery. The catheter-based procedure(s) may be either therapeutic or diagnostic or both, and may involve delivering at least one catheter to a coronary artery via a surgical or percutaneous opening in the thoracic cavity or via a percutaneous opening at a location peripheral to the thoracic cavity. The catheter-based procedure or procedures is performed contemporaneously with the bypass graft procedure, and specifically prior to, during, or after anesthetizing the patient for purposes of the bypass graft procedure. An arterial access device is also provided for central cannulation and direct intraoperative catheterization of a patient's coronary artery system on a beating heart. The device includes a tubular member, such as a cannula, having a proximal end and a distal end, and an elongated puncturing member, such as a trocar, which is slideably disposed within the tubular member. The puncturing member has a sharp distal end for puncturing through the wall of a coronary lumen. The arterial access device further includes a sealing member for engaging the coronary lumen wall at the puncture site in order to minimize the leakage of blood from the puncture site.

It is known that long-term relief from coronary artery disease and improved longevity may be achieved through complete revascularization of a patient who suffers from coronary artery stenosis or infarction of the myocardium. Revascularization by coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has long been the gold standard of total revascularization. In particular, a CABG procedure in which the left internal mammary artery (LIMA) is anastomosed to the left anterior descending (LAD) artery is well accepted as providing a superior survival rate. However, conventional CABG procedures have many drawbacks. Conventional CABG procedures require the patient to be placed on cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) support, and typically require either a sternotomy or major thoracotomy to be employed. It is well known in the medical community that CPB produces many deleterious effects to the patient. A stemotomy is highly traumatic to the patient, requiring a lengthy recovery period and having some risk of life-threatening infection. As for a major thoracotomy, a patient typically endures much postoperative pain from such a procedure. Additionally, the use of Heparin, which is commonly prescribed for anticoagulation during a CABG procedure, carries its own potential risks and complications which are commonly known to surgeons. Furthermore, a CABG approach is often limited where the subject artery or arteries have multiple segmental or diffuse stenoses (e.g., the apex of the LAD), or where the arterial size is unacceptable for grafting.
Consequentially, advanced catheter-based therapies, and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) in particular, have risen in popularity in order to provide less invasive means for treating coronary artery stenosis. These methods have the advantage of being less traumatic and require a shorter recovery time. However, they are not without their own limitations. It is known that PTCA carries a significantly higher restenosis and reintervention rates than a CABG procedure for the left anterior diagonal (LAD) artery, which provides the majority of blood flow to the left ventricle which is responsible for cardiac output to the vital organs. About 80-90% of patients suffering from symptomatic atherosclerosis require revascularization of the LAD. Accordingly, the use of catheter-based therapies alone to provide complete revascularization is limited in many cases.
Under certain conditions, operative transluminal coronary angioplasty (OTCA) has been used as an adjunct to CABG in the course of one operation. Most commonly, OTCA has been performed through the arteriotomy used for the grafting site, and then only in the context of standard CPB. Unfortunately, OTCA has not shown a proven record of long-term patency rates.
Considering all of the above, there is a need to for an improved method of revascularization which optimizes the individual advantages of CABG procedures and catheter-based interventions while eliminating some of the drawbacks of these procedures when performed independently of the other. Such a method would preferably involve a "hybrid" approach comprising a CABG procedure performed in conjunction with catheter-based interventions and/or diagnosis. The method would preferably eliminate some of the drawbacks of conventional CABG procedures and, in particular, would eliminate the need for CPB for the reasons discussed above. Applicant's copending U.S. patent application, entitled "Method for Coronary Artery Bypass" and having Ser. No. 08/419,991, discloses a method for performing "Minimally Invasive Direct Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting" (MIDCAB.TM.) on a beating heart, and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The MIDCAB method involves a direct access or "direct vision" approach in which bypass grafting is accomplished through a small surgical "window" in the patient's chest. This window is preferably a minimal thoracotomy formed by an intercostal incision generally less than 12 cm. Access to the heart is provided by a retractor which spreads the ribs both horizontally and vertically. Other access ports through the thoracic cavity may be employed if necessary but are not required. The MIDCAB method includes techniques which eliminate the need for CPB while still providing a substantially bloodless and stable operating field for ensuring a successful anastomosis. Most advantageously, the portion of the heart proximate to the vessel to be bypassed is stabilized, and a segment of the vessel is occluded, preferably both proximally and distally to the arteriotomy site. This is accomplished by providing ligating stay sutures at the appropriate locations of the vessel or by other more sophisticated stabilization means which are discussed in more detail below. The method is primarily directed to grafting the LIMA to either the LAD, the diagonal (Dx) and circumflex (Cx) arteries; the latter grafts being typically accomplished by means of a "T-graft" with the radial artery from the LIMA sequentially to the Dx and Cx arteries.
Furthermore, the MIDCAB approach is far less traumatic and less painful than conventional approaches which require CPB and employ a stemotomy or a major thoracotomy. Additionally, the MIDCAB method has been shown to obviate the need for Heparin or require only minor doses.

Methods and devices for minimally invasive coronary artery revascularization on a beating heart without cardiopulmonary bypass


A measurement device is for use with a current-type sensor unit, which, when applied with a driving voltage, is capable of reacting with a target substance for generating a sensor current that corresponds to a concentration level of the target substance, and includes: a driving unit operable to generate the driving voltage that includes alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) components; and a processing unit for receiving the sensor current from the current-type sensor unit, and operable to determine the concentration level of the target substance according to a peak-to-peak value of the sensor current received by the processing unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a measurement device, more particularly to a measurement device for measuring concentration of a target substance in a liquid sample.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional measurement system includes a driving unit 1 for generating a driving voltage, a current-type sensor unit 2 responsive to the driving voltage for generating a sensor current that is related to a concentration level of a target substance in a liquid sample 3, and a processing unit 4 for determining the concentration level of the target substance according to a result of integration of the sensor current generated by the current-type sensor unit 2.
Referring to FIG. 2, according to a conventional configuration disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,884, the driving unit 1 generates the driving voltage 2, which herein is a direct current voltage with a non-varying magnitude, as the current-type sensor unit 2 contacts the liquid sample 3. Theoretically, the sensor current has a magnitude that varies in a positive relation to the concentration level of the target substance. However, in practice, noise components in the sensor current may lead to reduced accuracy in the concentration level determined by the processing unit 4.
Take measurement of blood sugar as example, where the liquid sample 3 is a blood sample and the current-type sensor unit 2 is a glucose sensor. For a period of time after the driving unit 1 starts generating the driving voltage, the current-type sensor unit 2 reacts to both glucose and non-glucose substances in the liquid sample 3. Reaction of the current-type sensor unit 2 to the non-glucose substances may contribute to the noise components in the sensor current.
Referring to FIG. 3, in view of the above, U.S. Pat. No. USRE36268 discloses a conventional configuration in which generation of the driving voltage by the driving unit 1 is delayed relative to the configuration disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,884, such that the adverse effect of the noise components in the sensor current is relatively reduced.
Referring to FIG. 4, according to a conventional configuration disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,579, generation of the driving voltage takes place as the current-type sensor unit 2 contacts the liquid sample 3, and is subsequently paused for a predetermined time before being resumed. In this configuration, the processing unit 4 determines the concentration level of the target substance after generation of the driving voltage is resumed, thereby reducing the adverse effect of the noise components in the sensor current.
In each of the abovementioned conventional configurations, since the driving voltage is a direct current voltage, and the concentration level is determined based on a result of integration of the sensor current, accuracy of the concentration level determined by the processing unit 4 depends critically on stability of the current-type sensor unit 2 when applied with a direct current voltage. That is, if the current-type sensor unit 2 has poor stability when applied with a direct current voltage, accuracy of the concentration level thus determined will be poor.


Various processes are disclosed for preparing procyanidin oligomers having (4,8)-interflavan linkages. In an improved process, a tetra-O-protected-epicatechin or -catechin monomer or oligomer is coupled with a protected, C-4 alkoxy-activated-epicatechin or -catechin monomer in the presence of an acidic clay instead of a Lewis acid. In a second process, a 5,7,3′,4′-tetra-O-protected or preferably penta-O-protected-epicatechin or -catechin monomer or oligomer is reacted with a tetra-O-protected or preferably penta-O-protected-epicatechin or -catechin monomer having a thio activating group at the C-4 position; the coupling is carried out in the presence of silver tetrafluoroborate. In third process, two molecules of a penta-O-protected-epicatechin or -catechin monomer activated with a 2-(benzothiazolyl)thio group at the C-4 position are self-condensed in the presence of silver tetrafluoroborate. An improved two-step process for preparing a C-4 alkoxy activated tetra-O-benzyl-protected, 8-bromo-blocked-epicatechin or -catechin monomer is also provided. The use of naturally-derived and synthetically-prepared procyanidin (4β,8)4-pentamers to treat cancer is also disclosed.

Condensed tannins (proanthocyanidins) are widespread in the plant kingdom, form part of the human diet, and display multiple biological activities that render them significant to health. Procyanidins have attracted a great deal of recent attention in the fields of nutrition, medicine and health due to their wide range of potentially significant biological activities. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that these compounds act as potent antioxidants in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo and may thus alter the pathophysiology of imbalances or perturbations of free radical and/or oxidatively driven processes in many diseases or directly interfere with many cellular processes. See Nijveldt, R. J. et al., Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2001, 74, 418. Initial observations also have shown that procyanidin-rich fractions extracted from defatted cocoa beans elicited in vitro growth inhibition in several human cancer cell lines. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,645 issued Sep. 10, 1996 to L. J. Romanczyk, Jr. et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.
Isolation, separation, purification, and identification methods have been established for the recovery of a range of procyanidin oligomers for comparative in vitro and in vivo assessment of biological activities, and currently some oligomers can be synthesized using time-consuming methods. For instance, previous attempts to couple monomeric units in free phenolic form using mineral acid as the catalyst in aqueous media have met with limited success. The yields were low, the reactions proceeded with poor selectivity, and the oligomers were difficult to isolate. See Steynberg, P. J., et al., Tetrahedron, 1998, 54, 8153–8158. An overview of the shortcomings is set out below.
The benzylated monomer was prepared from the free monomer using benzyl bromide in combination with potassium carbonate (K2CO3) and dimethyl formamide (DMF). See Kawamoto, H. et al., Mokuzai Gakkashi, 1991, 37, 741–747. The yield, however, was only about 40%. In addition, competing C-benzylation leads to a mixture of products, which make isolation of the benzyl-protected target monomer more difficult. Also, partial racemization of (+)-catechin at both the C-2 and C-3 positions was observed (see Pierre, M.-C. et al., Tetrahedron Letters, 1997, 38, 5639–5642).
Two primary methods for oxidative functionalization are taught in the literature. See Betts, M. J. et al., J. Chem. Soc., C, 1969, 1178 and Steenkamp, J. A., et al., Tetrahedron Lett., 1985, 3045–3048. In the older method, protected (+)-catechin was treated with lead tetraacetate (LTA) in benzene to produce the 4β-acetoxy derivative which was then successfully hydrolyzed to the 3,4-diol. Flavan-3,4-diols are incipient electrophiles in the biomimetic synthesis of procyanidins. The major drawback in the oxidative functionalization of the prochiral benzylic position was a low yield (30–36%) of the acetate during the lead tetraacetate (LTA) oxidation. The more recent method of oxidatively functionalizing the C-4 position relies on the use of 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone (DDQ). In this method, the protected monomer was treated with DDQ in methanol. This allows introduction of a methoxyl group at the C-4 position in a stereoselective manner. The yield was about 40–50%
There are a number of reports on the coupling reaction between monomers and their 3,4-diols in aqueous acid. These methods are unsatisfactory because of low yields, lack of selectivity, and difficulty in the purification from aqueous media. See Kawamoto, H. et al., J. Wood Chem. Technol., 1989, 9, 35–52 who report the titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) mediated coupling between 4-hydroxy-tetra-O-benzyl-(+)-catechin and 5 equivalents (eq.) of tetra-O-benzyl-(+)-catechin to produce a 3:2 mixture of 4α,8 and 4β,8 catechin dimers. This coupling leads to the 4β,8-dimer together with higher oligomers in yields that decrease with the increasing molecular mass of the oligomer.
Using a 2,3-cis-3,4-trans-flavan-3,4-diol, procyanidins B2 and B5 derivatives were synthesized. The diol was prepared by the acyloxylation of the C-4 benzylic function of a (−)-epicatechin tetramethyl ether with lead tetraacetate in a benzene solution. This oxidative functionalization of the C-4 position of the methyl-protected epicatechin monomer was improved by using 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone(DDQ) in methanol to introduce a methoxyl group at the C-4 position. The protected C-4 methoxy monomer was used in the synthesis of 4,8-linked linear procyanidin oligomers up to the trimers. See Steenkamp et al., Tetrahedron. Lett. 1985, 26, 3045–3048.
Procyanidin oligomers were prepared using a protected epicatechin or catechin monomer having, as a C-4 substituent, a C2–C6 alkoxy group having a terminal hydroxy group such as a 2-hydroxyethoxy group. The protecting groups used are those that do not deactivate the A ring of the monomer, e.g., benzyl protecting groups. See Kozikowski, A. P. et al. J. Org. Chem. 2000, 65, 5371–5381 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,207,842 (issued Mar. 27, 2001 to Romanczyk, L. J. et al.). The C-4 derivatized, protected monomer was coupled with a protected catechin monomer or protected epicatechin monomer to form a protected 4,8-dimer which was then deprotected or used for further coupling with another protected, C-4 derivatized epicatechin monomer to form protected higher 4,8-oligomers. If a 4,6-linkage was desired, the C-8 position of the protected catechin or epicatechin monomer was blocked with a halogen group prior to coupling with the C-4 derivatized, protected epicatechin monomer or oligomer. Higher oligomers having both 4,8- and 4,6-linkages were also prepared. The protected dimers or oligomers were deprotected, and if necessary, deblocked. The coupling was carried out in the presence of a protic acid or a Lewis acid such as titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4). The stereochemical nature of the interflavan bond was confirmed by the synthesis of a specifically protected derivative and its subsequent degradation reference. Unfortunately, titanium tetrachloride-mediated further chain extension of the epicatechin dimer leads to the formation of regioisomers. This is a serious drawback, not only in terms of yield, but also purity. Even though the 4β,8-trimers and 4β,8-tetramers were isolated in pure form, the same cannot automatically be expected for the larger oligomers, for which the number of possible isomers, and thus contaminants, grows rapidly.
One potential way of dealing with this problem is to carefully purify the chain-extended oligomer after each step in order to ensure that all chain-extended oligomers are at least derived from a single isomer of the starting oligomer. However, upon the titanium tetrachloride-mediated chain extension of the protected trimer (2 eq.) with the C-4 derivatized, protected monomer, not only were the protected tetramer, pentamer, and small amounts of higher oligomers formed, but the protected trimer was degraded to the monomer and dimer, which then participated in the chain-extension reaction, giving rise to regioisomeric oligomers such as small amounts of the protected 4β,6:4β,8-trimer. While the reaction conditions (methylene chloride/tetrahydrofuran (9:11), 0° C., 15 min, then room temperature, 140 min) were not optimized, the observation of this deleterious aide reaction warranted a search for a better synthetic approach.
Thus, there is a need for improved methods for synthesizing epicatechin or catechin oligomers, particularly the higher oligomers, and a process for using protected larger epicatechin or catechin oligomers as building blocks for chain extension to even larger oligomers.

Synthesis of oligomeric epicatechin and catechin-derived procyanidins


A closure wad is placed at the mouth of the launching end of a shotgun cartridge before the mouth is crimped down to seal the launching end of the cartridge. Both the walls of the closure cap and the walls at the mouth of the plastic envelope are crimped down together, thereby forming a substantially impermeable seal at the launching end of the cartridge. In addition, the inventive closure cap substantially reduces the detritus which is sometimes expelled when a launcher cartridge is fired.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to shotgun ammunition, and particularly to a system and method of sealing the launching end of a shotgun cartridge.
2. Description of the Related Art
The separate components comprising a conventional shotgun cartridge are shown FIG. 1A. Specifically, FIG. 1A shows the metal base 10 attached to the plastic envelope 20 which, when constructed, holds the propellant charge 30 tamped in the bottom of the cartridge next to metal base 10. In the center of metal base 10 is the primer which ignites the propellant charge 30 when struck by the hammer of the shotgun. The propellant charge 30 has a cushioning wad 40 also holding it in and separating the propellant charge 30 from the payload of this cartridge, which, in this case, is to be a less lethal projectile 50 comprised of a tubular sock-like body of fabric construction into which ballast material, such as lead shot, is filled, before the open end of the tubular sock-like body is tied off, as shown in FIG. 1A. The less lethal projectile 50 is held in the plastic envelope 20 of the cartridge by closure wad 60.
The launching end of the cartridge's plastic envelope 20 is typically sealed by either roll crimping or star crimping. FIG. 1B shows a sealed cartridge where roll crimping was used, i.e., the end walls of plastic envelope 20 have been rolled down in order to hold in closure wad 60 which can be seen at the launching end of the cartridge. FIG. 1C shows a sealed cartridge where star crimping was used, i.e., the end walls of plastic envelope 20 have been crimped, or bent, inwards in order to form a star-shaped seal at the launching end of the shotgun cartridge. When using a star crimp, it is possible to not use a closure wad 60, depending on the contents of the cartridge.
Plastic envelope 20 is typically made of high density polyethylene (HDP), although any appropriate material may be used, as is known to one skilled in the art. Propellant charge 30 is typically conventional black powder, although, once again, any appropriate propellant mixture may be used, as is known to one skilled in the art. In general, when any particular material is described in this application, it should be understood as an example, i.e., any material capable of performing the same function in the same manner is intended for use with the present invention. Similarly, when any particular method step is described in this application, it should be understood as exemplary, i.e., any manner of achieving the same function and/or result is intended to be covered by the present invention. Furthermore, it should be understood that a shotgun cartridge having a less lethal projectile as a payload is used as an example herein, and that the present invention may be applied to any type of cartridge, e.g., for a rifled or smooth-bore barrel, with or without a payload, which requires sealing of its launching end.
In the conventional shotgun cartridge, cushioning wad 40 is typically constructed of plastic, while closure wad 60 is typically constructed of plastic or fiber (e.g., paper). It should be noted that the prior art contains a wide variety of "wad" constructions, from simple discs of paper to plastic cylindrical containers which also hold at least part of a payload to more complex structures which completely surround and contain the payload (see, e.g., the wad in FIG. 3 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,164,903 to Bouza et al., the wad 5 in FIGS. 1 and 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,506,605 to Maki, or the wad 22 in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,484 to Billings, all of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety). Although only the roll and star crimps are shown in FIGS. 1B and 1C, respectively, any sort of crimping can be used to seal the launching end of the shotgun cartridge. Moreover, it is possible for a shotgun cartridge to have neither a closure wad per se nor a crimped launching end of the cartridge (see, e.g., the '903 patent cited above).
Further details concerning the exemplary prior art shotgun cartridge construction shown in FIGS. 1A-1B-1C can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,562 to Brunn et al. ("Method of Preparing a Low Lethality Projectile For Flight"), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Some of the purposes, usage, and functioning of such a less lethal projectile may also be found therein. However, this description of an exemplary prior art less lethal projectile cartridge is not intended to limit the possible embodiments of the present invention described herein.
There is at least one problem with the typical crimping of the conventional shotgun cartridge: the seal formed by the crimping may allow material from the external environment into the interior cartridge. For example, if exposed to rain, water may leak directly into the cartridge through the small hole (shown in FIG. 1C) which is typically formed at the center of the star crimp. If there is no closure wad 60, there will be nothing to stop the water. Even if there is a closure wad 60, it may be made of paper or cardboard, which may become sodden, thereby allowing moisture into the interior of the cartridge (and perhaps also causing the closure wad to disintegrate). Even if the closure wad 60 is made of a water-impermeable material, such as HDP, the friction seal made by the closure wad 60 and the star crimped or roll crimped material of the plastic envelope 20 will not be tight enough to stop fluids such as water from seeping through at least some of the areas of surface contact between the closure wad 60 and the plastic envelope 20.
Furthermore, the typical material used for the plastic envelope 20 of the cartridge, HDP, is particularly difficult to adhere to, and, accordingly, glues, pastes, and other binding agents are not useful if one attempts to glue the closure wad 60 and the plastic envelope 20 together. This difficulty in adhesion also means that a tight friction seal between the closure wad 60 and the plastic envelope 20 requires a great deal of force to create, and, once created, it is likely that a fluid would still be able to seep in through at least one permeation in the seal between the closure wad 60 and the plastic envelope 20.
Although the HDP of the plastic envelope 20 can be heat soldered (this is the way the plastic envelope is attached to the metal base 10 of the cartridge before the primer or propellant charges are inserted), heat soldering the launching end of the plastic envelope 20 once the cartridge contents have been inserted presents an obvious hazard.
The prior art has largely ignored the problems with forming a tight seal at the launching end of the cartridge. In fact, when the prior art refers at all to forming a tight seal, the seal being referred to is between the plastic envelope 20 and the cushioning or obturating wad 40 between the propellant charge 30 and the payload 50. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,506,605 to Maki (the '605 patent) uses an annular projecting rim on a solid plastic obturating wad to form a seal between the wad and the inner surface of the cartridge. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B (which are reproductions of FIGS. 1 and 2 in the '605 patent), the rigid wad 5 as shown alone in FIG. 2B comprises a cylindrical container 14 for shot (only shown lining the circumference of wad 5 in FIG. 2A) with V-shaped notches 15 as well as a base with a concave portion 10 which faces the propellant charge 4. The annular projection 5a of the base has a greater diameter than the remaining portions of wad 5. As shown in FIG. 2A, this annular projection 5a of the wad forms a seal with the inner surface of cartridge case in order "to prevent leakage of gases when the wad is located within the case 1 and which comes into contact with the inner surface 20 of the barrel 21 (FIG. 4) during the passage of the wad through the barrel" (col. 3, lines 3-8, the '605 patent).
In other words, the prior art wads that are directed to forming a tighter seal are directed to forming a tighter seal inside the cartridge to prevent the "leakage of gases" when the propellant charge ignites. These pieces of prior art barely mention the seal at the launching end of the cartridge: the '605 patent merely states that ". . . a quantity of pellets 6 is packed into the container 14 and are blocked with the paper disc cover 8 fitted to the opening end of the container 14 which is locked by crimp 7, or stopped by a so called starcrimp formed by folding the top end of the case inwardly" (col. 4, lines 46-51, the '605 patent). Thus, in the prior art, different wads forming different sorts of seals to keep in or otherwise manipulate the igniting propellant charge or flying payload are discussed, but the seal at the outer launching end of the cartridge is not described or discussed in any detail (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,974,770 to Clark, Jr.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,701 to Fiocchi; U.S. Pat. No. 5,408,931 to Tallman; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,701 to Stevens, all of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety).
Although some of these prior art seals, such as the one formed by rigid wad 5 and the inner surface of the shotgun cartridge shown in FIG. 2A, may possibly protect the propellant charge from moisture which has entered the cartridge through the launching end of the cartridge, they provide no protection for the payload which is located above the obturating wad. In the case of shotgun launcher cartridges, which have a propellant charge but no payload (because such cartridges are used to "launch" a payload, such as a grenade, attached at the muzzle end of the shotgun barrel), the moisture coming in through the launching end of the cartridge could completely neutralize the propellant charge. Furthermore, the remnants of the closure wad of a shotgun launcher cartridge can be expelled when the launcher charge is ignited, possibly striking or landing on a nearby object or person.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and system for sealing the launching end of a cartridge, such as a shotgun shell, which effectively seals the contents therein from the external environment and, in the case of a shotgun launcher cartridge, prevents the ejection of the detritus left from the closure wad.


Systems and methods for the detection of one or more target molecules, such as benzene, are described. The systems and methods may include a molecularly imprinted polymer film; a sensing material, wherein the molecularly imprinted polymer film comprises a polymer host with one or more binding sites for one or more target molecules. The molecularly imprinted polymer film may be coated upon the sensing material.

Molecular imprinting is a technique to produce molecule specific receptors analogous to those receptor binding sites in biochemical systems. A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) is a polymer that is formed in the presence of a template or target analyte molecule producing a complementary cavity that is left behind in the MIP when the template is removed. The MIP demonstrates affinity for the original template molecule over other related and analogous molecules.
Most MW materials are based on non-covalent interactions, most notably hydrogen bonding or electrostatic forces. Small aromatic molecules, such as benzene, being non-polar, may not present such opportunities for interaction with the polymer host. Although considerably weaker interactions than hydrogen bonding, π-π interactions or hydrophobic interactions are available to enhance the always present shape recognition (via van der Waals forces; as used herein, van der Waals forces are intended to include both dispersion forces and dipole-dipole interactions) of MW cavity binding sites.