Disclosed is a composition for the prophylaxis or therapy of intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants comprising mensenchymal stem cells. Functioning to prevent ventricular dilatation and reduce the level of inflammatory cytokines in cerebrospinal fluid, the composition comprising mesenchymal stem cells is advantageously useful for the prophylaxis or therapy of intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants. Accordingly, the composition is effectively preventive of hydrocephalus which occurs subsequent to intraventricular hemorrhage. In addition, the composition makes not only a histological and biochemical recuperation in the intraventricular hemorrhage-injured brain, but also significantly improves sensory motor functions. Mesenchymal stem cells can be used as an effective therapeutic agent because they are less prone to induce immune rejection responses and are highly likely to secrete proliferative, differentiative, and regulatory factors. Hence, mesenchymal stem cells are expected to play a critical role in the therapy of intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a composition for the prophylaxis or therapy of intraventricular hemorrhage and hydrocephalus in preterm infants, comprising mesenchymal stem cells.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to the WHO, preterm infants are babies born before completing 37 weeks gestation or before 259 days from the first day of the last menstrual period. Regardless of gestational age, low birth weight (LBW) is defined as a birth weight of a liveborn infant of less than 2,500 g, very low birth weight (VLBW) as a birth weight of a liveborn infant of less than 1,500 g, and extremely low birth weight (ELBW) as a birth weight of a liveborn infant of less than 1,000 g. Underdeveloped lungs make it difficult for preterm infants to breathe by themselves. In many cases, preterm infants further suffer from various diseases due to many other premature organs. The most representative among neurological diseases of preterm infants which leave complications for a long period of time or for their lives is intraventricular hemorrhage. Once intraventricular hemorrhage occurs, blood flows to the brain's ventricular system. Intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants is often described in the following four grades:
Grade 1—bleeding occurs just in the germinal matrix below and adjacent to the ventricles.
Grade 2—bleeding also occurs inside the ventricles.
Grade 3—ventricles are enlarged by the blood.
Grade 4—there is bleeding into the brain tissues around the ventricles.
Grades 1 and 2 are most common in preterm infants, and often there are no further complications because blood left after slight hemorrhage is for the most part absorbed and spontaneously healed. Grades 3 and 4 are the most serious and may result in long-term brain injury to the infant, with the accompaniment of complications including, for example, hydrocephalus (an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the ventricles), convulsion, and cerebral palsy. With cerebral palsy, patients exhibit physical disability in development, chiefly in various areas of body movement, notably in the limbs, for a long period of time and often for their lives.
Intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants is quite different from the intracranial hemorrhage frequently observed in adults in terms of cause, bleeding locus, pathological physiology, and therapeutic modality. No certain therapy has yet been established for intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants, which is one of the greatest barriers to preventing or treating neonatal complications. In adults, primary spontaneous cerebral hemorrhage is, for the most part, intracerebral hemorrhage which occurs due to a spontaneous rupture of cerebral vessels. By contrast, almost all cases of cerebral hemorrhage in preterm infants are accounted by the intraventricular hemorrhage which occurs when small vessels around the germinal matrix burst and bleed into adjacent ventricles. Turning to anatomic correlations, there is a difference in the primary outbreak site of cerebral hemorrhage between adults and preterm infants. In adults, the most frequent location in terms of the occurrence of cerebral hemorrhage is at the level of the basal ganglia which are supplied by the cerebral artery bifurcations, whereas the germinal matrix, a highly vascularized, fragile region of the brain, is the most frequent location. Also, the difference of intracerebral hemorrhage between adults and preterm infants is found at mechanisms and pathophysiology. The anatomical and physiological prematurity of organs in preterm infants does not ensure constant blood pressure for the brain, so that cerebral vessels are greatly modulated in pressure. Preterm infants are also more prone to developing hyperglycemia or suffer from a rapid change in blood electrolyte level because of their decreased ability to regulate their blood sugar and electrolytes. In addition to these, other problems with physiological prematurity, such as insufficient regulatory ability in response to a body temperature change, a change in body's acidity with respiratory and metabolic conditions, etc., may induce intracerebral hemorrhage. In contrast, most causes of adult intracerebral hemorrhage are caused by tumors, traumas, and vascular diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, etc. Thus, differences between adults and preterm infants not only in the cause and type of intracerebral hemorrhage, but also in their anatomy and pathophysiology, require different therapies. In recent years, extensive studies have been done on the use of stem cells in therapy for cerebral infarction and hemorrhage. However, the application of stem cells to the therapy of intracerebral hemorrhage in preterm infants has not been previously reported, despite the high incidence.
There are reports that, of various kinds of stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells do not elicit alloreactive lymphocyte proliferative responses and that infusion or implantation of allogeneic, major-histocompatibility-mismatched mesenchymal stem cells into baboons has been well tolerated. The low immunogenic nature of mesenchymal stem cells is attributed to the fact that their cytokines and other secretions act to suppress immune responses of surrounding environments.
Given the background, the present inventors made a rational deduction that the use of mesenchymal stem cells, not autogenic, but allogeneic, in the prophylaxis and therapy of intraventricular hemorrhage and its hydrocephalus complications in preterm infants is ideal and most reasonable, and proved the deduction true in animal tests for the first time, which led to the present invention.

Composition for treating intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants comprising mesenchymal stem cells


A semiconductor wafer is placed in a chamber of a film-deposition apparatus, and gas in the chamber is exhausted from a gas exhaust outlet. Then, with interrupting the exhaust, an inert gas is introduced into the chamber so that the chamber has a pressure of 133 Pa or higher and lower than 101325 Pa, and then a mixed gas of an inert gas and a source gas for depositing a metal oxide film is introduced into the chamber. Then, after exhausting the gas in the chamber, an oxidation gas is introduced into the chamber to react with the molecules of the source gas absorbed on the semiconductor wafer to form a metal oxide film on the semiconductor wafer. By repeating these steps, a metal oxide film having a desired film thickness is deposited on the semiconductor wafer with a film-thickness distribution by an ALD method.

In recent years, along with the advance of miniaturization of MIS transistors configuring semiconductor integrated circuits, thinning of a gate insulating film of MIS transistor made of silicon oxide has been advanced rapidly. Meanwhile, when the film thickness of the gate insulating film gets thinner, due to a quantum effect called direct tunneling, a gate leakage phenomenon gets significant, in which electrons in a silicon substrate are escaped through the gate insulating film to a gate electrode.
To get around this problem, a study to replace the gate insulating film material by an insulating material (high-k material) having a relative permittivity (dielectric constant) higher than that of silicon oxide (SiO2) has been considered. This way is advantageous because the actual physical film thickness can be increased by multiplying [permittivity of the high-k film divided by permittivity of the silicon oxide film] by itself when the gate insulating film is formed of a high-k material, even with a same equivalent silicon oxide film thickness, resulting in a reduction of the gate leakage current. As a high-k material, hafnium oxide and aluminum oxide have been considered, for example.
In addition, one example of a method of depositing a film having a thin film thickness as a gate insulating film with excellent controllability is ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) method. Technologies regarding this ALD method are disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2006-169556 (Patent Document 1) and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2005-235967 (Patent Document 2).

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device that includes forming metal oxide film on semiconductor wafer


A folding top used on various pedestals is made in two sections that abut along a parting line and are urged toward the parting line by an elastic cord that provides a resilient force at two spaced locations along the parting line. The cord is a peripheral type cord that fits into a receptacle encircling the countertop on an underside thereof and within the periphery. The countertop has a flange that fits over the top of the pedestal for mounting in place and using it as a countertop. The countertop is foldable when the two sections are separated along a parting line for storage and transportation, and the pedestal is for storage cases used for storing and transporting display panels and display panel frames.

The present invention relates to a two-piece countertop assembly that is designed specifically for use in trade show booths and which will mount on top of a case in which components of trade show booths are transported, to provide a working counter surface at such trade show booth.
Movable partitions used for erecting various trade show booths that have collapsible frames covered by panels forming a skin, and which fit into a storage and transport case are well known in the art. The storage cases are designed to be very compact, and store the collapsible frames as well as panels that will roll or fold and which attach to the frames. The case or cases are generally put aside when the booth is erected, and are not used then until the booth is again disassembled. Use of table space is desired in these booths for various functions, and the present invention provides for a collapsible, automatically erecting, and usable top that will form a counter that rests on the storage cases to utilize the cases as a pedestal for the counter. The countertop is easily removed and replaced onto the storage cases, and can be folded easily as well.

Removable and foldable countertop assembly


A cardiac rhythm sensor positioned on or close to the heart senses electrical or mechanical activity and transmits a cardiac rhythm signal wirelessly to a subcutaneous ICD. Arrhythmia detection and delivery of therapy are performed by the SubQ ICD based upon the cardiac rhythm signal received from the sensor.

The present invention relates to implantable medical devices. In particular, the invention relates to a subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator (SubQ ICD) which receives a rhythm signal wirelessly from an implantable cardiac rhythm sensor positioned on or close to the epicardium.
Implantable cardioverter defibrillators are used to deliver high energy cardioversion or defibrillation shocks to a patient's heart when atrial or ventricular fibrillation is detected. Cardioversion shocks are typically delivered in synchrony with a detected R-wave when fibrillation detection criteria are met. Defibrillation shocks are typically delivered when fibrillation criteria are met, and the R-wave cannot be discerned from signals sensed by the ICD.
Currently, ICD's use endocardial or epicardial leads which extend from the ICD housing through the venous system to the heart. Electrodes positioned in or adjacent to the heart by the leads are used for pacing and sensing functions. Cardioversion and defibrillation shocks are generally applied between a coil electrode carried by one of the leads and the ICD housing, which acts as an active can electrode.
A SubQ ICD differs from the more commonly used ICD's in that the housing is typically smaller and is implanted subcutaneously. The SubQ ICD does not require leads to be placed in the bloodstream. Instead, the SubQ ICD makes use of one or more electrodes on the housing, together with a subcutaneous lead that carries a defibrillation coil electrode and a sensing electrode.
The absence of endocardial or epicardial electrodes make rhythm and arrhythmia sensing more challenging with the SubQ ICD. Sensing of atrial activation is limited since the atria represent a small muscle mass, and the atrial signals are not sufficiently detectable thoracically. Muscle movement, respiration, and other physiological signal sources and environmental noises also can affect the ability to sense ECG signals and detect arrhythmias with a SubQ ICD.

Subcutaneous ICD with separate cardiac rhythm sensor


An imaging device intended to be placed on board a satellite or an aircraft comprises at least two detector arrays that are arranged in the same focal plane. Each detector array itself comprises a unidirectional detector and at least one additional detector, produced on one same single-piece substrate dedicated to said detector array. The arrangement of the detectors in the focal plane is then carried out in a modular fashion, by positioning the respective substrates of the detector arrays. Several arrangements are proposed that are compatible with the unidirectional and bidirectional push-broom scanning modes.

The design of an imaging device for a space observation mission depends on the objectives of the mission, as well as the orbit of the satellite or the altitude of the aircraft carrying the device.
For example, observation of the Earth from a satellite in low circular orbit can be carried out during one single pass of the satellite within several adjacent strips parallel to the direction of travel of the satellite. By low orbit is meant an orbit for which the altitude of the satellite is comprised between 400 km (kilometers) and 1,000 km. Each observation strip is called a sub-swath in the jargon of a person skilled in the art. It corresponds approximately to a row of photosensitive elements of one or more detector(s) that is (are) used at the same moment to capture the image of an across-track segment of the sub-swath.
The total scan then results from a combination of the continuous acquisition of images within along-track segments of sub-swaths, and across-track offsets of the line of sight in order to swap from one sub-swath to another. Such a scanning mode is called "push-broom", and makes it possible to capture as an image an entire strip of the Earth's surface, called a swath, the width of which is approximately equal to that of a sub-swath, multiplied by the number of sub-swaths. In this manner, a swath width of 20 to 30 km can be obtained with a resolution on the ground ("ground sampling distance" or GSD) that is less than 1 m (meter), for example of the order of 0.5 m.
According to a first push-broom scanning mode, image acquisition for two along-track segments of sub-swaths that are covered one after another is carried out in the same direction of scanning. Said direction of scanning is thus the direction of travel of the satellite. Said first mode, known as "unidirectional push-broom" mode and shown in FIG. 1a, requires controlling rapid backward movements of the line of sight of the imaging device, between the successive acquisitions of two along-track segments of different sub-swaths.
A second scanning mode consists of covering successively acquired along-track segments of sub-swaths in opposite directions. Said second scanning mode, shown in FIG. 1b, is known as "bidirectional push-broom" mode. It makes it possible to reduce the dead time between the successive acquisitions of along-track segments of different sub-swaths, as the line of sight then describes a series of out-and-back movements parallel to the direction of travel of the satellite. Each period of dead time now corresponds only to the across-track shift of the line of sight from one sub-swath to the next, and to the reversal of the direction of scanning.
In FIGS. 1a and 1b, the references used have the following meanings:                S: satellite carrying the imaging device        100 imaging optics of the imaging device        A100 line of sight of the imaging optics        PF focal plane of the imaging optics        L rows of photosensitive elements in the focal plane        DL direction of the rows of photosensitive elements        F: swath on the surface of the earth        B: image capture scanning in the entire swath        F1-F5: sub-swaths        V: direction of scan in progress of an along-track segment of sub-swath, identified in the rest of the description by the direction of image motion in the focal plane.
The across-track offsets of the line of sight as well as any reversals of the direction of scanning can be executed in different ways known to a person skilled in the art. For example, they can be carried out using an orientable mirror arranged in front of the input of the imaging optics 100, or by varying the attitude of the satellite S in a manner synchronized with its travel in the orbit.
FIGS. 1a and 1b also show the orientation of the rows L of photosensitive elements in the focal plane PF. For the two push-broom scanning modes, unidirectional and bidirectional, the attitude of the satellite S is adjusted so that the rows L of photosensitive elements are perpendicular to the along-track direction of the swath F, the latter being parallel to the ground track of the orbit of the satellite S. As a result, the photosensitive elements of one same row L simultaneously receive the luminous fluxes originating from point sources of one same across-track segment of sub-swath.
Apart from the resolution and the swath width, the specification for an observation mission also comprises constraints on the following aspects: the duration of accumulation for each image point, the acquisition of image data simultaneously for several different wavelengths, the cost and weight of the imaging device, the positioning in relation to each other of all the detectors used, etc.
Implementing time-delay integration (TDI) detectors makes it possible to use a size of photosensitive elements that is small enough to obtain a fine ground sampling distance, with a total integration time that is itself compatible with low luminous flux levels. But image detectors of the TDI type in principle can only operate for sub-swath scanning, which is carried out so that the image moves on the detector in the row transfer direction of TDI operation. It is therefore not possible to use a single TDI detector in bidirectional push-broom scanning mode, if said TDI detector has one single row transfer direction.
The imaging device WorldView-2 made by DigitalGlobe solves this incompatibility between the unidirectional nature of most existing TDI detectors and the bidirectional push-broom scanning mode. To this end, the WorldView-2 device uses only TDI detectors which each has two possible row transfer directions that are opposite to each other. FIG. 2 shows the arrangement of the image detectors in the focal plane PF which was adopted for the WorldView-2 device. Two parallel rows of TDI detectors that are allocated to a panchromatic imaging channel with a broad transmission window and denoted by the reference 1 are arranged in the focal plane PF of the device, with parallel row transfer directions. Each TDI detector of the panchromatic channel can therefore be activated regardless of the sub-swath scanning direction. Additional detectors 2a-2h are each formed of a row of photosensitive elements. They are also of the TDI type with two possible row transfer directions. All the detectors 2a are combined with narrow spectral width filters around a first colour, those marked 2b with even narrower spectral width filters around a second colour, and so on for the detectors 2c-2h. The WorldView-2 imaging device thus combines obtaining a polychromatic image, i.e. capture with a broader spectral width, with eight so-called chromatic channels, i.e. with smaller spectral widths than the panchromatic channel, and with a fine ground sampling distance, produced by the panchromatic channel. The base pattern of the arrangement of the detectors is contained within the box in broken lines C. It is repeated along the direction of the rows of photosensitive elements, in order to increase the sub-swath width. The overlaps in the direction of the rows for detectors of the same type, and their offset in the perpendicular direction, make it possible to overcome a difficulty in respect of the space requirement within the focal plane PF, and to join the segments of image lines that are captured by different detectors.
Due to the row transfer in two directions that is used for the TDI detectors 1 of the panchromatic channel, each detector is produced on a different substrate, separate from that of the neighbouring detectors 1 or 2a-2h. Each detector 1 has two transfer registers and corresponding arrays of outputs of the detection signals that are situated at opposite ends of the columns of photosensitive elements of said detectors. The resulting space requirement for the connections of outputs of the detectors 1 of the panchromatic channel then prevents the production of one of said detectors 1 on a substrate common with some of the detectors 2a-2h of the chromatic channels.
For this reason, the WorldView-2 device comprises a very large number of separate substrates of image detectors, the arrangement of which in the focal plane at precise locations is particularly time consuming. Moreover, the relative positions of some of the substrates can vary unintentionally, thus producing errors of alignment between the images captured by the detectors.
In other imaging devices of different design, the arrangement of separate detectors in different focal planes requires spatially dividing the image formation beam produced by the imaging optics. Such a design with beam division is more complex, because it requires using additional optical components, and the weight as well as the space requirement of the imaging device are increased in consequence.

Imaging machine with several detector arrays and filters with different spectral transmission windows arranged in a focal plane


In a nurse administered medication dispensing system a mobile cart contains a plurality of doctor prescribed medication in accordance with a like plurality of patients scheduled to receive such medication. The medication containers stored in the cart is accessible by the nurse only in response to a patient ID code entered by the nurse into the keyboard of a cart supported microprocessor including a software program responding to the input code energizing mechanical components which obtains the medication from an onboard supply and transfers it to a specified nurse accessible cubicle or which releases secured medication dispensing units on or in the cart and records the time, date and quantity of medication dispensed.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to nursing care and more particularly to an electronic medication dispensing, accounting and record keeping system of patients in a hospital-type facility.
In some hospitals or clinics a serious problem frequently occurs when medication or treatment is performed on the wrong patient. Such problems may arise when the person dispensing or administering prescription drugs or injections or taking fluid samples identifies the patient by writing the patient's name and/or ID number on a slip of paper and for a variety of reasons, such as the transfer of patients to different beds and errors in marking the information on the slip of paper the wrong patient may be given the medication or treatment.
It is common practice for hospitals and other patient care facilities to maintain a patient identification system, usually comprising a temporary bracelet on the patient's arm, which contains his name and/or ID number. Unfortunately many times this identification is not cross referenced by the nurse or technician administering the treatment. In accordance with this invention, a unique identification system is disclosed in which the patient ID number is entered into the system record keeping apparatus in order to obtain doctor prescribed medication or other items necessary for the required treatment of the patient.
This cross check of patient and medication or treatment is recorded and transmitted to a designated central control station.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior patents generally disclose apparatus and systems for patent identification and correlation with doctor's orders and medication administering or laboratory results obtained.
Similarly, other prior patents provide a patient fluid input and output record to insure patient fluid balance.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,848,112 is an example of a patient identification system in which a coded ID bracelet, applied to the patient upon admission, is later utilized by programmed circuitry to identify and correlate drugs, the quantity thereof and/or treatment being administered to the patient which insures treatment of the proper patient.
This invention is distinctive over the above named patent by providing a nurse actuated mobile station which accompanies the nurse or technician on their rounds and which dispenses drug medication or treatment medication in response to the nurse entering a particular patient's identification data in the mobile station input facility which responds by dispensing doctor prescribed medication or treatment instructions.

Patient medication dispensing and associated record


This relates to methods and apparatus for estimating an object profile to improve accuracy of touch sensor panel input (e.g., reducing input position wobble for a stylus or finger translating on a surface over and between electrodes of a touch sensor panel). In some examples, the object profile estimation can begin with an initial profile estimate that can allow the object profile estimation to converge for a large range of possible input object sizes, shapes, distances, and/or orientations. The object profile information can use data from multiple frames of data acquisition as well as multiple pixels in the panel to construct the object profile estimate based on the input measurement. Specifically, the object profile can be estimated by measuring the object at various positions relative to touch pixels or nodes and gaps between touch pixels or nodes over multiple frames of sensor data and combining the measurement data of the multiple frames.

Touch sensitive devices have become popular as input devices to computing systems due to their ease and versatility of operation as well as their declining price. A touch sensitive device can include a touch sensor panel, which can be a clear panel with a touch sensitive surface, and a display device, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), that can be positioned partially or fully behind the touch sensor panel or integrated with the touch sensor panel so that the touch sensitive surface can cover at least a portion of the viewable area of the display device. The touch sensitive device can allow a user to perform various functions by touching the touch sensor panel using a finger, stylus, or other object at a location often dictated by a user interface (UI) being displayed by the display device. In general, the touch sensitive device can recognize a touch event and the position of the touch event on the touch sensor panel, and the computing system can then interpret the touch event in accordance with the display appearing at the time of the touch event, and thereafter can perform one or more actions based on the touch event.
As touch sensing technology continues to improve, touch sensitive devices are increasingly being used to compose and mark-up electronic documents. The effectiveness of detecting user input, however, can depend on the ability to accurately calculate the position of the input object (e.g., a finger, stylus, or other object) on a touch sensor panel. It can be advantageous to have a touch sensing device that can accurately calculate the position of styli as well as fingers at a similar level of precision.

Methods and apparatus for object profile estimation


A management system may include a reconciliation engine configured to reconcile a first instance of a resource object from a first data provider and a second instance of the resource object from a second data provider to obtain a reconciled resource object, and store the first instance, and second instance, and the reconciled resource object in datasets. The management system may include a context sensitive query engine configured to receive a context-sensitive query including context information identifying a source originally providing context sensitive data associated with a context-sensitive attribute, and retrieve the context sensitive data from one or more of the datasets based on the context information.

A typical enterprise may have a plurality of different data sources (providers) that populate data into a configuration management database (CMDB). The data may be stored into different data partitions (e.g., datasets) and later reconciled into one or more target partitions (e.g., pre-production dataset, production dataset, etc.) Generally, the reconciliation process may include identifying instances of resource objects, and then merging those instances to create reconciled resource objects. The reconciliation process may be based on various algorithms including but not limited to identification rules and/or merge precedence rules, for example. As a result of such merge precedence rules, it may be possible that attribute content from a specific data source may not be presented in the target dataset.
Currently, the CMDB may allow the retrieval of data from any data partition, but in order to combine data from more than one partition, two or more separate queries are executed and then transformation/merge operations may be applied on the results. However, the conventional storage/retrieval operations of the CMDB system makes the CMDB system more difficult to use, and as a result, people create workarounds by adding new attributes to resource objects in order to ensure that provider-specific data from the provider sources are included into the target partition. Therefore, the conventional approach is not entirely scalable and may not guarantee that the provider-specific data from a particular data provider will remain intact in the target dataset.

Storing and retrieving context sensitive data in a management system


A method of sizing, resizing or reshaping the interior of a prosthetic device includes placing a lightweight moldable or shape assuming, pliable material that adheres and hardens on the interior sides of a socket of a prosthetic device. An end of a residual limb is placed into the socket causing the moldable material to conform to the shape of the residual limb. The limb is maintained in position for a few minutes in the socket until the moldable material has sufficiently hardened. After hardening, the molded material is dressed down, sanded or feathered to remove any burrs or sharp edges. Low spots or holes may be filled in with more moldable material and the fitting process repeated.

When an amputation occurs or a child is born with a birth defect, the person is sometimes fitted with a prosthetic device that replaces a missing limb or other part of the body. These devices are commonly referred to as prosthesis. They are usually very expensive and come in a variety of shapes and sizes along with differing features. Typical costs associated with designing and producing a prosthetic device exceeds ten thousand U.S. dollars.
In order to better understand the invention at hand, it is necessary to understand the language used when describing certain parts of prosthetic devices.
A socket is the part of the prosthesis that comes in contact with the residual limb. Since a prosthetic device is personalized to a single residual limb, the socket is shaped to receive only a particular residual limb having a certain shape and size. That is to say, most prosthetic devices are produced for a single user and are therefore not mass produced.
Straps or a suspension lock is the portion of the prosthesis that fastens the prosthesis to the residual limb. The suspension lock may include a gel liner, a lock rod and a locking device such as a socket lock. Typically, the locking device is located in the shank of a leg prosthesis.
A lock rod is a pin or stud affixed at an end of the residual limb usually by a gel liner. The lock rod is inserted into a locking device for holding the prosthetic device onto the residual limb. It also provides a means for transmitting axial tension from the distal end wall of a gel liner through a locking mechanism and into the shank portion of the prosthetic device.
A socket lock includes a receptacle and a locking mechanism located below the socket for holding the prosthesis in place. Typically, the socket lock comprises a device that accepts the lock rod and secures it into place. A release allows the user to disengage the locking mechanism such that the prosthetic device can be removed from the residual limb.
A gel liner is a nylon sock for receiving a residual limb. The gel liner may include an integrated end fitting for accepting a lock rod or pin. It may vary in thickness throughout.
A shank is the part of the prosthesis between the knee and foot in a leg prosthesis. It ordinarily comprises metal pipe covered with foam or a hard, hollow tube.
A prosthetist measures or profiles the distal end of the residual limb to create a socket for the prosthesis. Modern advancements now allow many manufacturers to measure an end of the residual limb through the use of laser or other measuring devices.
Over time, many amputees experience shrinking of the residual limb due to reduced swelling and blood flow or muscle atrophy. This causes an inordinate amount of play between the edges of the socket and the residual limb which tends to lead to problems such as blistering or sores being created on the residual limb. To counter these problems, an amputee typically has a new prosthetic device designed and manufactured.

Prosthetic interior casting process and product


A recording apparatus includes a carriage capable of mounting and removing a head member, one side portion provided with a positioning unit for the carriage unit to position the head member, a head holding unit for holding the head member, being relatively movable with respect to the one side portion, an operational unit that engages with the head holding unit to move such head holding unit relatively with respect to the one side portion, a first biasing device for biasing the operational unit in the same direction as that in which the head holding member approaches the one side portion, a stopper arranged on the carriage for regulating the biasing force of the first biasing device in a given position, at the same time, causing the biasing force of the first biasing device not to be exerted on the operational unit in the given position, and a second biasing device for biasing the head holding unit in the direction in which such unit parts further away from the one side portion. With the structure thus arranged, a recording head can be removed from the carriage without any additional power from the user or the like once the operational unit is allowed to move to a given position where the stopper acts. The head removal is reliably executable just by one action.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a head member mounting and removing mechanism for detachably mounting a head member, and a recording apparatus provided with such head member mounting and removing mechanism.
2. Related Background Art
A recording apparatus having the function of a printer, copying machine, facsimile apparatus, or the like or a recording apparatus used as an output device of a complex electronics equipment or a work station, including a computer, word processor, or the like, is structured to record images on a recording material (recording medium) such as paper sheet or thin plastic sheet in accordance with image information. Depending on recording methods, such recording apparatuses are divided into those of ink jet recording type, wire-dot type, thermal type, laser beam type or the like.
For these recording apparatuses, a recording head is mounted on a head mounting unit (a carriage that moves a recording head serially if it is used for a serial printer, for example), and generally, the recording head is detachably mounted on the head mounting unit for the maintenance of the head, among others.
Hereunder, the description will be made of one conventional example of the head member mounting and removing mechanism for detachably mounting a recording head on a head mounting unit.
The recording apparatus described below is an ink jet type recording apparatus (an ink jet recording apparatus) that executes recording by mounting an ink jet recording head on its head mounting unit for recording by discharging ink from the ink discharge ports onto a recording medium. With an ink jet recording head of the kind, it is possible to execute recording of color images in high precision at higher speeds with lesser noises as the advantages and features thereof, and also, perform such recording at lower running costs. Further, as energy generating elements used for discharging ink, electrothermal transducing elements or electromechanical transducing elements are usable, but, particularly, a head using electrothermal transducing elements can be made more compact by the utilization of the semiconductor fabrication processes.
FIGS. 12A to 12D show types of a head cartridge integrally formed with an ink tank, which is regarded as one mode of an ink jet recording head of such kind as described above (hereinafter referred to as a recording head).
As shown in FIGS. 12A to 12D, a recording head 7 comprises an ink tank 73 and a head unit 71. The ink tank 73 is filled with a sponge impregnated with ink. For the head unit 71, there are arranged on an aluminum base plate 72, a silicon plate having a plurality of nozzles in a density of 360 per inch, heater elements, electrodes, and electric wiring formed on the plate, and a head substrate, a liquid chamber, an ink filter, an ink supply tube, and others.
As a structure to mount a recording head 7 such as described above on a recording apparatus main body, there has been proposed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 7-251547 a structure which will be described below.
FIGS. 13A to 13C are front views of the carriage unit having a recording head 7 shown in FIG. 12 mounted on it. FIGS. 14A and 14B are front views which show a mounting and removing mechanism for the recording head 7: FIG. 14A illustrates the state where the head is set; and FIG. 14B illustrates the state where the head is released. FIG. 15 is a side view which illustrates the structure of the contacting portion and others of the carriage unit.
As shown in FIGS. 13A to 13C, a head holder 51 that serves as a unit for holding the head is structured to mount the recording head 7 on it along a guide (not shown) arranged on the carriage 50, and to make it slidable in the left and right directions as looking at FIGS. 13A to 13C. For the head holder 51, a pressure unit 512 is provided to press the recording head 7 to the contact surface 503 and the positioning surface 504 (see FIG. 15) of the side plate 502 that forms one side portion planted vertically on the guide unit 511 in order to guide the recording head 7 and the carriage 50. Also, a guide arm 513 is arranged in a position opposite to the pressure unit 512 of the head holder 51. This guide arm 513 acts upon the recording head 7 when the head 7 is parted from the contact surface 503.
An operational hook lever 53 is rotatively fixed to the side plate 502 of the carriage 50. On the rotational center of the hook lever 53, a contact spring 54 is arranged to bias the hook lever 53 in the direction indicated by an arrow in FIGS. 13A to 13C. A hook cover 55 is fixed to cover the hook lever 53 so as not to allow the hook lever 53 to fall off from the carriage 50. As shown in FIG. 14A and 14B, the hook lever 53 and the head holder 51 are respectively provided with cams 516 and 531 that can abut upon each other. It is arranged that with the rotation of the hook lever 53, the head holder 51 is caused to shift in the left and right directions as looking at FIGS. 14A and 14B. Also, the biasing force of the contact spring 54 is exerted through the hook lever 53 to press the recording head 7 on the head holder 51.
As shown in FIG. 15, on the side plate 502 of the carriage 50, positioning fixtures 505a and 505b are arranged to position the recording head 7. Further, a contact unit is provided for the side plate to make the electrical contact possible with respect to the recording head 7.
Now, with reference to FIGS. 13A to 13C, the description will be made of the mounting and removing operations of the recording head 7 on and from the carriage 50 structured as described above.
In order to mount the recording head 7, the hook lever 53 is raised in the upper direction in FIG. 13B as looking at FIG. 13B so that the head holder 51 is caused to shift to the left to make it ready for a recording head to be mounted. In this state, the recording head 7 is mounted, and then, the hook lever 53 is rotated in the lower direction in FIG. 13A as looking at FIG. 13A to cause the head holder 51 to shift to the right side together with the recording head 7. In this way, the recording head 7 is positioned to make the electrical contact and related operations possible. In this state, the image formation is ready for a sheet material P to be used.
On the other hand, when the recording head 7 is removed from the carriage unit 15, the hook lever 53 is again raised in the upper direction in FIG. 13B as looking at FIG. 13B so as to shift the head holder 51 to the left side. Thus the guide arm 513 of the head holder 51 presses the recording head 7 to the left side, and then, the recording head 7 is made removable from the carriage unit 15.
However, in the carriage structured in accordance with the prior art, the hook lever abuts upon the hook cover due to the biasing force of the contact spring if the hook lever is raised as shown in FIG. 14B, because the cam that has checked the biasing force of the contact spring in the direction indicated by an arrow is caused to release its engagement. Therefore, the following problems are encountered when operating the mounting and removal of a recording head.
(1) Although the removal of the recording head is possible in a state that the hook lever has been raised, it is necessary for the user to continuously operate the hook lever until the lever is positioned upward.
(2) In order to obtain the released condition just by the user's slight upward pull of the hook lever, a spring should be provided for biasing the head holder in the releasing direction. However, since the contact spring has biased the hook lever to the hook cover side, there is a need for making the biasing force of such spring greater because of the fact that resistance to slide is present between the hook lever and hook cover.
If the biasing force of the aforesaid spring is made greater in order to overcome such resistance to sliding thus existing, the biasing force of the aforesaid contact spring cannot function as the pressure acting upon the head holder through the operation of the hook lever. Therefore, the pressure of the contact spring should be made greater. Then the problem again arises that the aforesaid resistance to sliding becomes greater still.

Mechanism for mounting and removing head member and recording apparatus provided with such mechanism


A device traps insects, such as flies, by attracting them to a lure or bait placed on a black/dark colored plate supporting the device. The device is composed of a base frame (13) with dark light blocking walls (21) raised above the plate and a combined hollow pyramid (12) and a cuboidal container (15) with light transmitting walls above the base frame (13). The device is thus designed to be dark at its bottom part and light at its upper part, thus inducing the insects which have entered to fly upwards towards the small opening (14) at the apex (9) of the pyramid (12). Those flies which fly through the opening (14) are then trapped within the container.

Fly-traps for catching and killing flies are well known. As flies are small elusive insects with well-developed flying capabilities, the task of catching them has always been a difficult one. Simple fly papers rely on adhesive to trap flies by chance encounter with the wings or body of a fly. More sophisticated devices are also known such as the electrically-powered fluorescent tube which makes use of a purplish light and electric current to electrocute flies. This type of device requires the use of electricity and is not usable out doors where there is no electrical supply. Some devices are not particularly effective because the odour of destroyed flies repel other flies.
A general object of the invention is to provide an improved form of device for trapping insects such as flies. Examples of prior art insect traps are described in GB-A-2258130, GB-A-1580233, GB-A-2230172 and U.S. Pat. No. 1,606,568.

No. 28, Lorong Permata 4/1, Jalan Permata 4, Taman Permata


An apparatus may include a drift tube assembly, arranged to transmit an ion beam. The drift tube assembly may include a first ground electrode; an RF drift tube assembly, disposed downstream of the first ground electrode; and a second ground electrode, disposed downstream of the RF drift tube assembly. The RF drift tube assembly may define a triple gap configuration. The apparatus may include a resonator, where the resonator comprises a toroidal coil, having a first end, connected to a first RF drift tube of the RF drift tube assembly, and a second end, connected to a second RF drift tube of the RF drift tube assembly.

Ion implantation is a process of introducing dopants or impurities into a substrate via ion bombardment. Ion implantation systems may comprise an ion source and a series of beam-line components. The ion source may comprise a chamber where ions are generated. The ion source may also comprise a power source and an extraction electrode assembly disposed adjacent the chamber. The beam-line components, may include, for example, a mass analyzer, a first acceleration or deceleration stage, a collimator, and a second acceleration or deceleration stage. Much like a series of optical lenses for manipulating a light beam, the beam-line components can filter, focus, and manipulate ions or ion beam having particular species, shape, energy, and/or other qualities. The ion beam passes through the beam-line components and may be directed toward a substrate mounted on a platen or clamp.
Implantation apparatus capable of generating ion energies of approximately 1 MeV or greater are often referred to as high energy ion implanters, or high energy ion implantation systems. One type of high energy ion implanter is termed linear accelerator, or LINAC, where a series of electrodes arranged as tubes conduct and accelerate the ion beam to increasingly higher energy along the succession of tubes, where the electrodes receive an AC voltage signal. Known (RF) LINACs are driven by an RF voltage applied at frequencies between 13.56 MHz-120 MHz.
In known LINACs (for the purposes of brevity, the term LINAC as used herein may refer to an RF LINAC using RF signals to accelerate an ion beam) in order to reach a targeted final energy, such as one MeV, several MeV, or greater, the ion beam may be accelerated in multiple acceleration stages. Each successive stage of the LINAC may receive the ion beam at increasingly higher energy, and accelerate the ion beam to still higher energy.
Depending on the number of drift tubes (acceleration electrodes) known acceleration stages may employ a so-called double gap configuration or a so-called triple gap configuration. An advantage of the triple gap configuration is that three acceleration gaps are provided within a given acceleration stage, allowing accelerated ions to increase energy by a maximum increase equal to 4 times the ion charge state times maximum rf voltage amplitude generated on the electrodes. For comparison, for the same ionic species a two-gap configuration may accelerate the ion beam to a maximum of 2 times the ion charge state times maximum rf voltage amplitude on the accelerating drift tubes. Thus, for a given maximum available drive voltage, a triple gap configuration may accelerate an ion beam to a target ion energy using fewer acceleration stages than a double gap configuration.
While the use of triple gap configuration within a given acceleration stage may present a more efficient configuration than double gap configurations, the size of LINACs is still relatively long, due in part to large resonator components needed to generate the high rf voltage on the drift tubes (acceleration electrodes).
With respect to these and other considerations the present disclosure is provided.

Resonator, linear accelerator configuration and ion implantation system having toroidal resonator


From a plurality of imaging units (110) which capture images of a vehicle periphery and from an image taken by any one of the plurality of imaging units (any one of 111, 121, 131, 141), a value corresponding to brightness of the image is calculated. Based on the calculated value, brightness of images obtained by the plurality of imaging units (110) is corrected by a brightness correction unit (120). After a predetermined coordinate transformation is performed on the brightness corrected images, the images are combined into a single image, and the single image is displayed together with the image taken by the one imaging unit (any one of 111, 121, 131, 141).

In recent years, systems have grown popular which include a camera mounted on a vehicle and provide a driver with an image of a vehicle periphery which can easily be a blind spot.
In particular, recently, systems such as the followings have been put to practical use: a system which provides an overhead image viewed from right above a vehicle and obtained through coordinate transformation of an image taken by a camera, and a system which has multiple cameras mounted on a vehicle, and provides a 360° image of a vehicle periphery by combining overhead images obtained by the coordinate transformation.
Such systems which combine images taken by multiple cameras into a single image have a problem that a composite image brings a feeling of strangeness because brightness is discontinuous at seams of images due to a type difference among cameras which constitute the system. Even with cameras of the same type, this problem also happens because the cameras differently work in automatic exposure correction, or a light amount decreases in proportion to a distance from the center of each camera.
To solve such a problem, techniques have been conventionally proposed which correct brightness of images taken by respective cameras so that image areas taken in common by adjacent cameras can have the same average brightness, and display the brightness-corrected image. (Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2)

Vehicle periphery monitoring device and vehicle periphery image display method


A method for storing data in a memory that includes a plurality of analog memory cells includes mapping the data to programming values, which are selected from a set of nominal programming values. The set of nominal programming values includes at least a first nominal programming value and a second nominal programming value, which is higher than the first nominal programming value. A part of the data is stored in the analog memory cells by programming at least a first group of the cells using the first nominal programming value. A statistical characteristic of the first group of the cells is measured after programming the first group of the cells using the first nominal programming value. The second nominal programming value is modified responsively to the statistical characteristic, and at least a second group of the cells is programmed using the modified second nominal programming value.

Several types of memory devices, such as Flash memories, use arrays of analog memory cells for storing data. Each analog memory cell stores a quantity of an analog value, such as an electrical charge or voltage, which represents the information stored in the cell. In Flash memories, for example, each analog memory cell holds a certain amount of electrical charge. The range of possible analog values is typically divided into regions, each region corresponding to one or more data bit values. Data is written to an analog memory cell by writing a nominal analog value that corresponds to the desired bit or bits.
Some memory devices, commonly referred to as Single-Level Cell (SLC) devices, store a single bit of information in each memory cell, i.e., each memory cell can be programmed to assume two possible memory states. Higher-density devices, often referred to as Multi-Level Cell (MLC) devices, store two or more bits per memory cell, i.e., can be programmed to assume more than two possible memory states.
Flash memory devices are described, for example, by Bez et al., in "Introduction to Flash Memory," Proceedings of the IEEE, volume 91, number 4, April, 2003, pages 489-502, which is incorporated herein by reference. Multi-level Flash cells and devices are described, for example, by Eitan et al., in "Multilevel Flash Cells and their Trade-Offs," Proceedings of the 1996 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM), New York, N.Y., pages 169-172, which is incorporated herein by reference. The paper compares several kinds of multilevel Flash cells, such as common ground, DINOR, AND, NOR and NAND cells.
Eitan et al., describe another type of analog memory cell called Nitride Read Only Memory (NROM) in "Can NROM, a 2-bit, Trapping Storage NVM Cell, Give a Real Challenge to Floating Gate Cells?" Proceedings of the 1999 International Conference on Solid State Devices and Materials (SSDM), Tokyo, Japan, Sep. 21-24, 1999, pages 522-524, which is incorporated herein by reference. NROM cells are also described by Maayan et al., in "A 512 Mb NROM Flash Data Storage Memory with 8 MB/s Data Rate", Proceedings of the 2002 IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC 2002), San Francisco, Calif., Feb. 3-7, 2002, pages 100-101, which is incorporated herein by reference. Other exemplary types of analog memory cells are Floating Gate (FG) cells, Ferroelectric RAM (FRAM) cells, magnetic RAM (MRAM) cells, Charge Trap Flash (CTF) and phase change RAM (PRAM, also referred to as Phase Change Memory—PCM) cells. FRAM, MRAM and PRAM cells are described, for example, by Kim and Koh in "Future Memory Technology including Emerging New Memories," Proceedings of the 24th International Conference on Microelectronics (MIEL), Nis, Serbia and Montenegro, May 16-19, 2004, volume 1, pages 377-384, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Several methods and systems are known in the art for determining the voltages, which are used for programming analog memory cells. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,301,151, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a programming method in which the voltage of a programming pulse is adjusted based on the result of a previous pulse. The expected change in the programmed value of a cell is compared to the measured change, and the difference used to improve the model of the cell after each programming pulse. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0058446, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes methods for erasing and programming Flash memory devices, in which some of the cells are pre-programmed so as to reduce a voltage range in which threshold voltages are distributed.
U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0159889, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a method for programming a Flash memory device, which includes a plurality of memory cells for storing multi-bit data. Memory cells that are programmed within a predetermined region of a threshold voltage distribution are detected. The predetermined region is selected by one of a first verify voltage and a read voltage and a second voltage. The first verify voltage is lower than the second verify voltage and higher than the read voltage. The detected memory cells are programmed to have a threshold voltage that is equivalent to or higher than the second verify voltage corresponding to each of the states.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,130,210, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes methods for programming a word line of multi-level Flash memory cells having three or more data levels per bit corresponding to three or more threshold voltages. An interactive programming algorithm programs the bits of the word line in two programming phases, a rough programming phase and a fine programming phase, so as to achieve compact threshold voltage distributions.
U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0183210, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a method for programming a Flash memory device, which includes a plurality of memory cells for storing multi-bit data indicating one of a plurality of states. The memory cells are subjected to a primary program operation. Those memory cells arranged within a specific region of respective states are subjected to a secondary program operation to have a threshold voltage equivalent to or higher than a verify voltage used in the primary program operation. Thus, although the threshold voltage distribution may be widened, a read margin between adjacent states may be sufficiently secured using the program method.

Adaptive programming of analog memory cells using statistical characteristics


The amount of toner remaining in each toner cartridge (20a-20d) of a printer (1) is estimated by incrementing a count when one pel is detected in each small region of the bit map. The printer senses toner out, after which the scale ascribed to one count is revised to reflect the actual count to toner out. Specifically, the count to toner out becomes the number representative of empty so that one-half of that count is interpreted as half full. The remaining toner in each cartridge is displayed to the operator at a gauge (21).

Displaying the quantity of marking material remaining in a printer or copier is widely achieved in a variety of ways. Typically, the imaging device operates by marking or not marking in grid pattern, each tiny square being termed a pel. It is known to count the number of pels at which ink is printed and the usage of marking material is computed from the number counted. The amount of the beginning or full supply of ink is known and the estimated remaining ink is that amount computed by subtracting the estimated usage. The estimation formulas took into account the size of the dots printed and the characteristics of the imaging device. However, prior to the foregoing parent application, no estimation formula was known which took into account actual usage history of the imaging device.
By taking into account actual usage history, the estimation formula is made more accurate. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of this application, only single sensing for toner/ink-out is employed, which is cost effective. Since the estimation formula is dynamically modified to reflect past usage, the amount of toner or ink remaining during use after resupply of toner or ink is determined with satisfactory accuracy. This is communicated to the operator by some display, which may be a standard gauge-face (alternatively by artificial voice message, panel display after operator inquiry or similar alternatives).


A boom camera crane for film-and television-program shooting has a support; a boom turnable in vertical and horizontal planes, and a carriage for supporting a camera and reciprocatingly movable on the boom along the boom.

The present invention relates to machines for lifting loads, and in particular to machines to be used for movement of a camera during film-or television-program shooting.
A camera crane is known (RU-A-2,028,271) which has a boom arranged on a support so as to be turnable in vertical and horizontal planes and composed of at least two parts connected with one another by additional couplings. The crane also has a cantilever with a system of crane boom mass compensation (the counterbalance), central and lateral struts with rope pulleys on their end, and tension wires extending around the pulleys and having first ends connected with tensioning mechanisms arranged on the end of the cantilever and second ends connected with the additional couplings.
The device disclosed in this reference has a disadvantage that the camera arranged on the crane can be moved only in the vertical and horizontal planes so as to follow all movements of the end of the crane boom. Therefore, it can not provide use which are necessary for shooting an object located within a hemisphere circumscribed by an end of a crane boom radius.


A highly convenient display system is provided. A display system that enables a screen to be operated easily with a laser pointer is provided. A display system that enables a screen to be operated by a large number of people is provided. The display system includes a light-emitting apparatus and a display device. The light-emitting apparatus includes a means for emitting visible laser light and a means for emitting invisible light. The display device includes a display unit including a means for displaying an image and a means for obtaining positional information on a portion irradiated with the visible light, and a means for receiving the invisible light. The display system has a function of performing processing in accordance with the positional information when the invisible light is received.

In recent years, larger-sized display devices have been manufactured. Examples of uses for a large-sized display device include a television device for home use (also referred to as a TV or a television receiver), digital signage, and a PID (Public Information Display).
Light-emitting apparatuses including light-emitting elements have been developed, for example, as display devices. Light-emitting elements (also referred to as EL elements) utilizing an electroluminescence (hereinafter referred to as EL) phenomenon have features such as ease of reduction in thickness and weight, high-speed response to an input signal, and driving with a direct-current low voltage source, and have been used in display devices. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a flexible light-emitting apparatus including an organic EL element.

Display system, display device, and light-emitting apparatus


The invention relates to a vehicle seat for equipment with shoulder belts (24) connected to the seat backrest (21), comprising an energy absorbing device (1) acting on the seat backrest, wherein said energy absorbing device comprises deformable energy absorbing means (12), with at least one arcuate (13, 14) area of plastically fragmentable material, opposing the rotation of said seat backrest (21) with respect to a lower seat structure (20) in a first direction, corresponding to a forward-leaning movement of said seat backrest. The invention also relates to energy absorbing devices opposing the rotation of a first part (1) with respect to a second part (2) via deformable energy absorbing means (12) with an arcuate area (13, 14) of plastically fragmentable material, wherein the energy absorbing device comprises releasable retention means (16) subjecting every rotation of said first part with respect to said second part into a first direction to the reaction of said energy absorbing means and allowing the rotation of said first part with respect to said second part, into the direction opposite to said first direction, without acting on said energy absorbing means.

The invention relates to a mechanical device designed to dissipate kinetic energy, such as (part of) the kinetic energy of a vehicle seat (in particular an aircraft passenger seat) and its occupant, when involved in a survivable accident or incident (such as an emergency landing of an aircraft).
More particularly the invention relates to such a device which can be used in connection with vehicle seats provided with shoulder belts.
The expression "vehicle seat" as used in the present text refers to seats that are appropriate for road or other surface transport vehicles and for air transport vehicles; the vehicle seats to which the invention most suitably applies are seats for public transport vehicles and aircrafts.
Several energy absorbing systems for transport category aircraft seats have been proposed in the art.
Most of the know systems are however designed to absorb the energy in the underframe structure of the seat. Reference can for instance be made in this respect to the following patent publications: DE 440 57 53, GB 2243540, U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,984, U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,505, U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,103.
These known systems present serious drawbacks in view of the new standards for seats in transport category aircrafts issued in June 1998 by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the European Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA), to improve the chances of passenger survival in emergency landing. Essentially the new rules are contained in the FAR/JAR 25-561/562. Of utmost importance to the background of this Patent, is the section prescribing:    1. In § A and § B, the emergency landing conditions governing the design of the seat and restraint system supposed to protect the passengers.    2. In § C, a set of performance pass/fail criteria, related to the human body tolerance to impact loads, that must not be exceeded during the dynamic tests conducted in accordance with § A and § B of this section, in particular the Head Injury Criteria (HIC).
The above set of criteria for seats design is well known by the air transport industry and aircrafts & seats manufacturers since June 1986. It appears however that the new performance standards prescribed in § C didn't receive appropriate attention.
Most of the redesign effort was focused on the seat structure to comply with the § A and § B, leaving the protection of the occupants to a patchwork of partial measures for most of the requirements of § C, resulting in no solution regarding the HIC, with however the exception of an inflatable lap belt system, derived from the air-bag technology, associated to a conventional seat structure.
According to the new rules, the former impact load required to be sustained by the seat structure, and its tie-down to the floor, was raised from a 9 g static load to a dynamic impact pulse triangularly shaped, peaking at 16 g. To meet that condition, most seat manufacturers developed various means to absorb part of the kinetic energy involved, in order to smooth off the peak of the 16 g pulse at a level acceptable by both the structure of the seat and its tie-down to the floor.
This process has however its limitations:    Because the space available between seat rows is limited, to protect the egress path of the passengers in emergency conditions, the maximum stroke allowed to the seat structure by any type of energy absorption device is limited to 3 inches by the airworthiness authorities.    While this stroke might provide some smoothing off the peak dynamic pulse, it has practically no effect on the occupant excursion. Instead he will be allowed to pick-up speed relatively to the seat or the bulkhead in front, resulting in a secondary impact of the head which can be lethal.
In view of this, one approach to meet the new requirements will probably involve the use of shoulder belt type passenger seats in transport category aircrafts.
Only few energy absorption systems have been proposed which can affect the backrest of the seat and can therefore be used on such shoulder belt type passenger seats.
Thus, for instance, U.S. Pat. No. 6,209,955, involving a deformable back seat structure, U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,421 proposing multiple fragmentation pins on the back seat, U.S. Pat. No. 5,320,308 proposing a structural "breakover" device in association with a friction brake or clutch arrangement on the seat back, or EP 0 651 957 proposing a back seat structure with damping structural parts.
DE 19648974 proposes a rather complex energy absorption device, involving torsion bars and breakable connecting pieces, to be used on the underframe seat structure as well as at different levels of the back seat structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,688,662 on the other hand describes an energy absorber system on the interconnection of the seat bottom frame and the seat back frame The system utilises a pair of housings having facing cavities and a hollow deformable torsion member interconnecting the housings.
These state of the art energy absorption systems show several drawbacks with respect to the new criteria referred to above.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an absorption device which meets the following objectives:    1. To restrain the passenger's body in the required dynamic conditions by means of a shoulder harness, single or double, featuring one or two attachments at the top of the frame of the backrest, in association with a lap belt, as currently used in automotive or other applications (such as aircraft applications),            comprising rotation means allowing the backrest to break over when loaded forward by the shoulder belts, when the said loads exert a momentum exceeding a predetermined static resistance momentum on a specific part of the device. This component is working directly against the pivot axis of the backrest and is allowed a rotational, energy absorbing stroke, with the same angular amplitude than the backrest breakover, under constant application of the predetermined momentum;        to extend this protection to scenarios of successive impacts including the full range of loading less than, and up to, the ultimate required in a variety of directions, while keeping the energy absorption capacity to smooth off the peak of the impact pulses at the predetermined and built-in value.
To allow the return (or rebound) of the occupant to his initial raised up position after each impact breakover.    2. To perform all functions in normal use by the passengers and crew, in particular the control of the backrest recline as provided for in conventional seats.            The backrest recline control device is characterised by its integration with the breakover control system, working on the same backrest axle, sharing the space available with the energy absorption system in the breakover mode. Functionally the two systems are independent and provisions are made to avoid any interference in the range of designed angular motions of the backrest, either in recline or in breakover.            3. To provide for easy selection of recline and break-over angular limitations, as required by the cabin layout, and current regulations. Specific means to select the range of angular motions are provided, for use by the maintenance crew.    4. To make use of conventional technology in the design & manufacturing.    5. To design for the lowest possible weight and production cost    6. To design for a minimum maintenance cost    7. To be compatible with a conventional seat configuration & its installation in a current, pressurised, transport category aircraft

Energy absorbing device and shoulder belt-type vehicle seats comprising such energy absorbing device


A method is provided for producing a decorative part that has a closed cross-section having an external visible side and that has at least two support parts to be connected along a connecting joint. The support parts are held spaced at a distance from one another such that a gap is formed between the edges of the support parts which adjoin one another at the connecting joint. The support parts are inserted in at least two halves of a molding tool. A reaction plastic is injected into the molding tool, such that the reaction plastic penetrates the gap. The support parts are moved toward each other such that the gap closes while the reaction plastic is still liquid. The support parts are fixed against each other in this position at least until the plastic has sufficiently cured so as to form a bond seam in the connecting joint.

In motor vehicles, numerous decorative parts are employed which optionally also assume functional jobs in the interior of the vehicle, but which must in particular be of a high-quality optical appearance. This in particular applies to steering wheels and comparable components that comprise an external visible side and at least two support parts connected along a connecting joint. The support parts are provided with a decorative layer facing the visible side. The decorative layer itself is in turn provided with a transparent cover layer on the visible side. The decorative layer can be formed, for example, of precious wood veneer, woven, sheet metal, or the like whose optical appearance shows to advantage through the transparent cover layer. The transparent cover layer here also functions as a protection of the decorative layer and the provision of the desired haptic properties.
Taking into consideration the high demands of the optical and haptic qualities and resistance to ageing, the production expenditure for such decorative parts is high. The two support parts, including the decorative layers applied on it, must be connected or glued to each other at the connecting joint so neatly that a connecting seam is formed that is optically and haptically barely perceptible. This requires one or several complex working steps. In addition, the transparent cover layer, for which a thick-film clear varnish is often used, must be applied. In production, the latter requires a cost-intensive manual operation, in particular during reworking. Therefore, efforts are being made to produce the transparent cover layer by so-called "in mold coating" with an out-of-tool surface. In the process, the blank of the decorative part is placed into an injection mold, and the transparent plastic material is injected for forming the cover layer. In such production methods, two different plastics are employed.
In a first variant, a thermoplastic is fused in an extruder and injected into the injection mold at high pressure. Since the thermoplastic is formed of long-chain polymers and is highly viscous even in the form of a melt, high injection pressures and temperatures are required. The blank inserted in the mold must be able to withstand these pressures and temperatures which is why such a method cannot be employed for any decorative part. In particular, those decorative parts having a cross-section with a circumferentially enclosed visible side cannot be coated, as is the case, for example, with the rim of a steering wheel. The rim of a steering wheel typically has a supporting metal core around which shock-absorbing rigid foam is foamed. The rigid foam, including its decorative layer applied on the outer side, would yield under the influence of the high injection pressure, so that no dimensional stability and deformation resistance can be ensured.
As an alternative, so-called reaction plastics are employed wherein at least two separate plastic components are mixed in a mixing head arranged directly at the outer side of the injection mold, whereby then a chemical reaction is started that leads to a polymer reaction (polyaddition, polymerization). The mixed components are injected into the injection mold. As long as the polymer reaction is not completed, the viscosity of the mixture is low compared to a plastic melt, so that lower injection pressures can be applied. It is thus possible to also coat more sensitive blanks of decorative parts by injection.
Here, however, numerous disadvantages also arise: The curing or polyaddition process takes some time within which the blank coated by injection must remain in the injection mold thereby limiting cycle times in production. To nevertheless obtain a short cycle time, reaction plastics with a very short pot life of about four to seven seconds are prepared. The pot life is thus shorter than the cycle time during which the workpiece or the decorative part remains in the die. While the finished decorative part can then be removed from the mold, partly or completely cured plastic material is also present at the outlet of the mixing head and can lead to plug formation or clogging of the injection channel. At least, however, there is a risk in that individual cured particles get into the mold cavity during the subsequent injection operation and lead to optical impurities there and thus to a deterioration of product quality.
The high affinity of the reaction plastics to metal is also problematic. The injected plastic material tends to adhere to the surface of the mold cavity. Ejection of the finished component is difficult which is why parting agents must be used. In this case, however, despite any efforts, no real out-of-tool surface is formed because the additional use of a parting agent is required. One has also tried to provide the reaction plastic with a separating additive. The additive is initially uniformly distributed in the plastic material and develops its whole effect only after a certain time that it needs to deposit at the surface. With the aforementioned short pot lives, however, the available period is much too short to achieve a sufficient development of the separating effect of the additive.
A further problem not yet solved in prior art is that with decorative parts with at least two support parts, the latter must be precisely connected to each other in a complicated operation before the decorative layer is injected around them, so that the injection result is also satisfactory in the region of the seam. The at least two support parts must be joined to each other so neatly in a separate preparing working step, for example by ultrasonic welding or by gluing, that the decorative layers applied onto it also adjoin practically without any seam, while no detachments, fractures, and in particular impurities of the visible side occur, for example by the employed adhesive. Therefore, despite the high efforts, a cost-boosting amount of rejects is inevitable.

Method for producing a decorative part, and such a decorative part


Process for the purification of a chemically inert gas, containing at least one of the O.sub.2 and/or CO impurities, from at least one of the impurities, characterized in that:. a) the gas to be purified is passed through an adsorbent comprising at least one porous metal oxide, the gas having a temperature greater than or equal to -40.degree. C., PA1 b) a gas which is substantially purified from at least one of the O.sub.2 and CO impurities is recovered. Device for implementation of the process.

Inert gases, such as nitrogen and rare gases, namely helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon and their mixtures, are commonly employed in many industries, in particular the electronics industry. The latter industry very particularly requires the inert gases to be as pure as possible and in particular freed from their oxygen (O.sub.2) and carbon monoxide (CO) impurities.
Now, these inert gases, usually produced by cryogenic distillation, contain impurities of oxygen (O.sub.2) and/or carbon monoxide (CO) type, in proportions generally of greater than a few hundreds of ppb (parts per billion by volume).
Consequently, when it is desired to obtain an inert gas which is substantially free from its O.sub.2 and/or CO impurities, it is essential to subject this gas to a purification in order to remove the impurities.
Some processes for the purification of inert gases are known in the prior art.
Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 3,996,028 describes a process for the purification of argon by passing this argon through a synthetic zeolite of the type A which makes possible the adsorption of oxygen, the adsorption being carried out at a temperature of between -186.degree. C. and -133.degree. C.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,399 describes, for its part, a process for the purification of argon, in particular of liquid argon, which uses a molecular sieve, the oxygen, hydrogen and/or carbon monoxide impurities contained in the flow to be purified being adsorbed preferentially on a material composed of alumina/silica balls supporting a high percentage of nickel.
However, these various known processes exhibit many disadvantages. In particular, they do not make it possible to purify inert gases, such as nitrogen and rare gases, from at least one of their oxygen and carbon monoxide impurities to a level of the order of a ppb (part per billion by volume).
It is thus necessary to develop new processes which make it possible to arrive at such thresholds for the purification of the inert gases from their oxygen and/or carbon monoxide impurities.
Moreover, the known processes are limited from the viewpoint of the throughput of the inert gas to be purified, that is to say of the amount of the inert gas which can be purified during a given time period. Thus, the maximum throughput threshold achieved by the conventional processes generally lies in the region of a few hundreds of Sm.sup.3 /h.
It is thus necessary to develop processes which make it possible to obtain higher throughputs of substantially purified inert gases.
In addition, some known purification processes also exhibit the disadvantage of being employed at very low temperatures, often lower than -100.degree. C., which requires perfect thermal insulation of the purification device, in order to prevent any entry of heat, and thus generates a large increase in the production costs.
In order to minimize these production costs, it is thus desirable to design a process for the purification of inert gases which can be employed at a temperature greater than or equal to -40.degree. C. and which uses an efficient, commonplace and inexpensive adsorbent.

O.sub.2 /CO removal from an inert gas by adsorption on porous metal oxide

L'Air Liquide, Societe Anonyme Pour L'Etude et L'Exploitation des Procedes Georges Claude


A chip module cooling device includes two fluid circuits corresponding to inlet and outlet fluid circuits, respectively, wherein each comprises orifices and channel portions forming a tree structure, wherein branches represent the orifices, and nodes represent the channel portions, a branch linking a node to one child node only, wherein several nodes having a same parent node are sibling nodes and extends through L levels of the tree structure, with L≧3, and in fluidic connection with the other of the two fluid circuits, via channel portions corresponding to leaf nodes. For each fluid circuit, channel portions corresponding to sibling nodes are parallel to each other, and are not parallel to a channel portion corresponding to a parent node of the sibling nodes; and wherein channel portions of one of the fluid circuits are parallel to and interdigitated with channel portions of the other one of the fluid circuits.

The present invention generally relates to cooling devices for photovoltaic receivers and photovoltaic receivers equipped with such cooling devices.
Definitions of certain terms discussed herein are as follows:
Photovoltaics (PV) generate electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity through semiconductors exhibiting the photovoltaic effect;
A photovoltaic cell (or PV cell, also "solar cell" or "photoelectric cell") is a solid state device that converts energy of light directly into electricity by virtue if the photovoltaic effect;
A photovoltaic module (also "solar module", "solar panel" or "photovoltaic panel") is an assembly of connected photovoltaic cells;
A photovoltaic system typically includes an array of photovoltaic modules, an inverter and interconnection wiring;
A thermal collector (also "solar thermal collector") collects heat by absorbing radiations, typically sunlight's;
A heat exchanger is a device/piece of equipment to efficiently transfer heat from one medium to another;
In electronic systems, a heat sink is a component to cool a device by dissipating heat into a surrounding medium;
Solar thermal energy (STE) concerns technologies for harnessing solar energy for thermal energy (heat). STE differs from and is acknowledged to be much more efficient than photovoltaics, which converts solar energy directly into electricity;
Concentrated solar power (also "concentrating solar power" or CSP) systems use mirrors or lenses that concentrate a large area of solar thermal energy onto a small area, such that electrical power (also "power") can be produced when concentrated light is converted to heat, which drives a heat engine (e.g., a steam turbine) connected to a power generator. Common forms of concentration are: parabolic trough, dish Stirlings, concentrating linear Fresnel reflector and solar power tower.
Concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) systems use optics (e.g., lenses) to concentrate a large amount of sunlight onto a small area of solar photovoltaic materials to generate electricity. Concentration allows for production of smaller areas of solar cells.
CPV should not to be confused with CSP: in CSP concentrated sunlight is converted to heat, and then heat is converted to electricity, whereas in CPV concentrated sunlight is converted directly to electricity using photovoltaic effect;
Photovoltaic thermal hybrid solar collectors (also "hybrid PV/T systems" or PVT) are systems converting solar radiation into thermal and electrical energy. Such systems combine a photovoltaic cell, which converts photons into electricity, with a solar thermal collector, which captures the remaining energy and removes waste heat from the PV module. Two categories of PVT collectors are generally known:
PV/T fluid collector (air or liquid). In liquid collectors, a typical water-cooled design uses conductive-metal piping or plates attached to the back of a PV module. The working fluid is typically water or glycol. The heat from the PV cells are conducted through the metal and absorbed by the working fluid, which assumes that the working fluid is cooler than the operating temperature of the cells. In closed-loop systems this heat is either exhausted (to cool it) or transferred at a heat exchanger, where it flows to its application. In open-loop systems, this heat is used, or exhausted before the fluid returns to the PV cells;
PV/T concentrator (CPVT), wherein a concentrating system is provided to reduce the amount of solar cells needed. CPVT can reach very good solar thermal performance compared to flat PV/T collectors. However, main obstacles to CPVT are to provide good cooling of the solar cells and a durable tracking system.

International Business Machines Corporation


An elevated column base for supporting a wood column subjected to high mechanical loads and protecting the column lowermost portion from rot and other deterioration due to exposure to a tropical environment. The column base includes a stanchion, a diaphragm, and a cap, each monolithically molded from a thermoplastic. A first embodiment of the stanchion adapted for a 6.times.6 or 8.times.8 column includes a solid base portion with a cavity which is filled with concrete and plugged with the diaphragm. The stanchion has two pairs of side walls attached to the base portion. Opposed gussets attached to the upper portions of one pair stiffen the side walls against transverse loads. Most of the load carried by the wood column is borne by the concrete and by two horizontal bolts. The diaphragm acts to spread the load force to the base portion and side walls. The load on the diaphragm acts to create a seal against moisture entering the cavity. A second embodiment of the stanchion adapted for a 4.times.4 column does not include gussets. The cap has four lateral faces fitting closely over the stanchion side walls, and a top face with a square aperture formed by four flexible web portions pressing against the wood column. After the column lowermost portion is secured within the stanchion by the bolts, the cap is slid downwardly until the ends of slots in the lateral faces contact the bolts. Each cap bottom corner edge and trough then bound an aperture through which water collected above the diaphragm can drain.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to building construction supports, and more particularly, to an elevated base for supporting a wood column and protecting the column lowermost portion from rot and other deterioration due to exposure to moisture, heat, fungus, and parasites such as wood-boring insects.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wood has been a traditional material in the world's tropic and two temperate zones, especially where lumber is an indigenous product which is easily available locally. But in tropical regions such as Central and South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia, wooden structures are susceptible to deterioration from the effects of humidity, heat and ultraviolet radiation. Usually the lowermost portion (i.e., the base portion) of vertical wood columns which support a building is the most vulnerable structural element because it is most exposed to moisture. In buildings having side walls as in the temperate zones, water accumulates through seepage; in buildings on stilts as in the tropics, support column base portions are directly exposed repeatedly as rain water accumulates and evaporates. Therefore, the lifetime of a building depends largely upon how long its columns endure. Typically, the life of a wood column in the tropics is limited to about 20 years, with failure due to rot usually occurring where the column intersects the earth. But where rotting has been prevented, e.g., by placing a building on a solid foundation of stone, the building can last for hundreds of years. Concrete block construction is about 30-45 percent more expensive than wood construction. The cost spread depends both on the import tariff on bulk cement in a particular country and on the transportation cost of bagged cement or concrete blocks, which is particularly expensive if an oil refinery is not available for processing crude oil into gasoline for the truckers. Houses built in the tropics with concrete blocks can last about twice as long as wooden houses provided prudent construction techniques are used, e.g., coating exterior walls with stucco. In the late 1940's and 1950's, concrete blocks were extensively used. However, shoddy construction then has resulted in houses being abandoned now due to rapid deterioration. Although building practices in the tropics have been improved in recent years, particularly through the use of poured concrete instead of concrete blocks, the feasibility and affordability of new housing in a region often are largely determined not by local builders but by the concrete and trucking industries. Wood, although often in plentiful supply locally and offering the potential advantages of decentralized production and distribution by saw mills in forests and lumber yards in towns, remains a bad investment compared to concrete.
There is thus an urgent need, especially in the tropics, for a method of building houses from lumber available locally which can produce houses which will last at least as long as those built using concrete. The problems in achieving such longevity are preventing the wood support column base portion from rotting and providing a stanchion-type base to enclose and support the base portion which can withstand the high up-loads, down-loads and transverse loads to which the column would be subjected during hurricanes.
Bases to support wood and steel columns in the construction of buildings, and post bases used in the construction of wooden decks, porches and fences are known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,568,909 ("'909") to R. J. Timko discloses a mounting bracket for housing a wood post installed on a flat surface. The bracket includes a square tube having four side walls and open upper and lower ends, dimensioned to receive a wood post having a nominal four inch-by-four inch ("4.times.4") cross-section. The tube lower end is attached to a square base portion having a hole at each comer to receive a concrete anchor bolt, lag bolt or wood screw. The bolts or screws secure the base plate to a concrete porch, wooden deck or flat roof. The post is secured within the tube by nails each received through a hole in a side wall and driven into the post. An aperture in one side wall extending upwardly from the lower tube end allows water that enters the tube to drain.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,456,441 ("'441") to G. Callies discloses a post base for supporting a wood post relative to a concrete footing in which a seat member which receives the wood post bottom end is rotatably adjustable relative to an anchor member embedded and immovably propositioned in a poured concrete footing. The seat member has a base and two side flanges integrally formed with and generally orthogonal to the base. The base receives the post bottom end and the flanges engage two opposed post sides. The post is secured to the seat member by nails each received through a hole in a side flange and driven into the post. The base is rotatably attached to three expanded portions of the anchor member, two of which capture the base top and bottom sides, with the third forming a collar coinciding with a center opening in the base.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,165 ("'165") to L. D. Kenny discloses a molded plastic sleeve (or boot) which fits over the circumferential base of a wood post or pole embedded in the ground. The plastic sleeve forms a barrier intended to retard the decaying or rotting of the wood. The base of the post or pole must be reduced to fit into an opening in the sleeve. An umbrella-like rim at the top of the sleeve deflects excess moisture which may run down the post away from the sleeve. The sleeve has two vents each covered by a molded hood, extending from the sleeve base to several inches above the ground, which provide expansion areas for freezing should moisture accumulate in the sleeve.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,972,642 ("'642") to F. P. Strobl, Jr. provides a foot for supporting a wood post at the bottom of a hole in the ground which typically extends below the frost line. The plastic foot is monolithically molded and has a dish-shaped bottom wall configured to be supported by the earth at the bottom of the hole. Radial rib structures on the bottom wall distribute loads over the entire wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,644,713 ('"713") to J. F. Lehman is directed to a post anchor device to rapidly position and support a post in the ground. The device has a tubular ground engaging portion with a tapered end that is driven into the ground, and a post receiving portion with an upstanding bracket into which the post is received and secured by fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,776 ('"776") to K. Sato discloses a steel base plate for connecting a steel column of a steel structure to a concrete foundation. The base plate is formed by molding or die-forging without welding any ribs thereto to eliminate the risk of generating welding strain. A projection extending from a planar bottom portion provides a top surface whose shape is substantially identical to the cross-section of a column to be supported by the base plate. Smoothly curved sidewall portions at the junctions between the projection and bottom portion are intended to eliminate stress concentration. Holes in the base plate allow anchor bolts to extend therethrough.
None of these references addresses the problem of protecting a wood column from deterioration while also providing support against high mechanical loading. The '909 mounting bracket is adapted for housing a wood post installed on a flat deck so that the post lower portion is well away from the bare earth. The seat member of the '441 post base is above ground but no provision is made for protecting the post lower end from the environment. The '642 plastic foot supports a wood post in a hole in the ground whose lower portion is unprotected from contact with the earth. The '165 sleeve forms a barrier which protects the base of a wood post or pole buried in the earth, but does not provide support against loading. The '713 post anchor provides neither environmental protection nor structural support. The '776 column base member has high mechanical strength and rigidity, but houses a steel column in a steel structure rather than a wood column in a wooden structure.