A disinfectant or preservative composition particularly adapted for use in ophthalmic preparations such as contact lens disinfecting, cleaning, cushioning, wetting, soaking and reconditioning solutions and additionally in topical medications and tear substitutes, which uses a hydrophilic polymeric antimicrobial agent, namely poly[oxyethylene(dimethylimino) (ethylene dimethylimino)ethylene dichloride] with additional agents including EDTA and alkali salts thereof and a boric acidborate buffer system.

Compounds used to disinfect ocular prostheses such as contact lenses or employed to preserve ophthalmic formulations designed to be applied directly to the eye or to objects which are in direct contact with the eyes, must be non-irritating and free of any detrimental side effects. Yet, they must be sufficiently effective against bacteria and fungi to ensure the sterility of such prostheses or guarantee a reasonable shelf-life of the ophthalmic formulations and thereby prevent infections. The inherent conflict between antimicrobial efficiency on the one hand, and non-irritancy on the other has lead to compromises. The conventional microbial agents which can be found in ophthalmic formulations comprise:
Benzalkonium chloride, benzethonium chloride, benzyl alcohol, chlorobutanol, chlorhexidine digluconate or diacetate, methyl and propyl hydroxybenzoate (parabens), phenylethyl alcohol, phenylmercuric acetate or nitrate, sorbic acid, and thimerosal.
Presently there are two polymeric preservatives used in ophthalmic products, Polyquad brand and Dymed brand. Polyquad brand is alpha-4[1-tris(2-hydroxyethyl) ammonium chloride-2-dibutenyl] poly[1-dimethyl ammonium chloride-2-dibutenyl]-.omega.-tris (2-hydroxyethyl) ammonium chloride. Dymed brand is poly[aminopropyl-bis(biguanide)]or poly[hexamethylene-bis-(biguanide)] and has a lower molecular weight, and hence, is a considerably smaller molecule. Although non-irritating, neither compound is effectively fungicidal at the concentrations employed in ophthalmic formulations and both compounds require additional agents to achieve such an effect.
Some attributes of a disinfectant/preservative, which would be very desirable from an ophthalmic point of view, are:
1) Bactericidal and fungicidal activity at concentration levels which are much lower than those likely to cause damage to mammalian cells, i.e. selective toxicity.
2) Nonirritant to the ocular surface upon topical application.
3) Innocuous toward corneal epithelial or endothelial cells.
4) Effective in the physiological pH range, i.e. pH 6-8.
5) Not acting as a sensitizing agent to ocular tissues unlike thimerosal and chlorhexidine.
6) Readily soluble in aqueous solution.
7) Chemically and thermally stable in aqueous solution and able to withstand autoclaving (20 minutes at 120 degrees centigrade).
8) Possessing prolonged chemical stability in aqueous solution at physiological pH's (acceptable shelf-life).
9) Not absorbed into the polymer matrix of hydrogel lenses thereby not accumulating within the matrix of the lens nor leaching into the ocular tissues upon application of the lens to the eye.
10) Not adsorbed adversely onto the surface of the contact lenses, so as to diminish the water wettability of such lenses, nor increases the water/lens interfacial tension appreciably and thereby reduce lens ocular compatibility and perceived in-eye comfort.
11) Not interfering with the solubility or other properties of the components of the ocular formulation to be preserved such as contact lens wetting, film forming, and viscosity-modifying agents or therapeutic agents.
12) Neither absorbed into nor adsorbed onto the polymers used in the construction of eye-dropper containers (bottles).
13) Not absorbed systemically, i.e. by the bodily organs via the circulatory system.
14) Free of toxic heavy metal ions which may act as cumulative poisons in the body.
It is important to note here that none of the earlier listed presently available preservatives fulfill all of the above criteria especially those listed as items 9 and 10.
The monomeric antibacterial agents listed earlier cannot be added to ophthalmic formulations likely to be used by patients who wear hydrogel contact lenses because the small molecular size of these agents enable them to penetrate pores of hydrogels, the polymeric matrices of the hydrogel materials. The antimicrobial agent accumulated within the lens matrix would eventually leach into the tear film upon application of the lens to the eye. The pore size in poly(hydroxyethylmethacrylate) [poly(HEMA)] gels used in the fabrication of hydrogel lenses is approximately 30-50 Angstroms, as reported in Hydrogels in Medicine and Pharmacy, Vol. II, Polymers. Ed. Peppas, N. K., CRC Press, Inc. To prevent the absorption of antimicrobial agents into such lenses the use of polymeric anti-microbial agents has been suggested namely by Andrews, J. K. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,304,894 and Stark, R. L. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,791.
Until recently, virtually all of the commercially available hydrogel lenses were fabricated from neutral polymeric materials such as poly(HEMA). However, the introduction of disposable lenses, such as those sold under the brand name `Acuvue` by Johnson and Johnson, Inc., has led to the reintroduction and widespread use of a contact lens material fabricated by the anionic Etafilcon A and containing methylmethacrylic acid groups. Such lenses are not ideally suited for use with ophthalmic solutions containing polyquaternary ammonium antimicrobial agents, since the latter agents react electrostatically with the surfaces of such materials.
Clinical impressions suggest that such polyquaternary ammonium disinfectant solutions do indeed adsorb to the surfaces of certain soft lens materials, especially anionic materials, and cause ocular discomfort. It is essential for the lens to retain its wettability and low interfacial tension against tear, and allow a continuous film of tear fluid covering, in order to remain acceptable to the contact lens wearer.
Interaction between the positively charged hydrophilic polyquaternary ammonium groups of anti-bacterials and anionic lenses causes the lens surface to become covered with a layer of hydrophobic polymer and may lead to dewetting. Hence, agents which act to lower the critical surface tension of a contact lens should be avoided when formulating ophthalmic products used for disinfecting, cleaning, cushioning, and reconditioning contact lenses or in ophthalmic medications likely to be used in patients who wear contact lenses, e.g. artificial tears and vasoconstrictors.
Ellis, E. J. et al U S. Pat. Nos. 4,168,112 and 4,436,730 disclose the treatment of hard and soft contact lens materials bearing a surface electric charge with a solution comprising hydrophilic polymers possessing an opposite charge in order to form a layer of hydrophilic polyelectrolyte complex and enhance surface wettability. These patents teach the use of polyionene polymers and cationic polyethylene imine to that effect. However, they do not teach the use of the polyionene copolymer, or the use of copolymers formed from cationic and nonionic monomeric components, nor do they teach dimethylimino ethylene as a cationic monomer, either as part of the homo or co-polymer as will be disclosed below.
The results of comparative tests set out in Table IV below indicate that the polyionene present in the Polyquad brand does not facilitate the wetting of contact lens surfaces. Therefore, the disclosure by Ellis et al that polyionenes as a group may be considered as useful agents for facilitating the wetting of anionically charged contact lens matrices including soft lenses is not supported. We found that only particular polyionenes possess the ability to wet the surface of anionically charged contact lens surfaces well. It is never obvious from the molecular structure which polyionene is likely to possess this coveted property. Structure-activity relationship of copolymers cannot be directly inferred from the functional properties of their monomeric constituents due to the potential for multiple orientations within such large molecules. This can only be defined experimentally. Hence, it is not evident, and indeed undefined, in the disclosure of Ellis which polyionenes are capable for facilitating the wetting of contact lenses.
The homopolymer of ethylene oxide is cited as a means of wetting anionic surfaces by Ellis et al in U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,261 but only by means of hydrogen bonding and not, as we found, as part of a copolymer combined with a cationic monomer where the molecular binding to lens occurs electrostatically.
The disclosures made by Ellis et al are solely concerned with the use of polycationic polymers, including polyquaternary polymers and polyionenes as a means of enhancing the wettability of contact lenses and do not suggest that they may act additionally as antimicrobial agents in ophthalmic solutions such as contact lens care solutions. The presence of accepted ophthalmic preservative agents, such as benzalkonium chloride, in the formulations shown in the examples of the cited patents of Ellis et al further indicate that said invention relates solely to a means of wetting contact lenses. Furthermore, it is not recognized by the inventors that certain polyquaternary agents such as benzalkonium chloride at low concentrations may act as dewetting agents, i.e. they convey to the solid surface hydrophobic properties.
In comparison we have found that the polyionene in certain compositions surprisingly possesses both antimicrobial properties and an ability to enhance rather than diminish the wetting characteristics of contact lenses especially the anionically charged lens surfaces, and thus offers unique advantages over the previously listed disinfectants and preservatives which are conventionally used in ophthalmic formulations.
Although, Stark, R. L. expressly teaches the use of a polyionene antimicrobial agent for disinfecting contact lenses and preserving ophthalmic solutions including ophthalmic medicaments in U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,791, (Polyquad brand) and Ogunbiyi et al expressly teach the use of a polymeric biguanide as a method of disinfecting contact lenses in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,986 (Dymed brand), neither patent teaches or suggests the use of the polymer described in the present invention.
While there may be many industrial and even pharmaceutical disinfectants and preservatives available, their suitability to ophthalmic applications is never obvious and their potential must be first recognized, then carefully formulated and clinically tested to achieve a satisfactory balance of efficacy, safety and contact lens compatibility.

Antimicrobial agent for opthalmic formulations


A method and apparatus includes a real time event engine that monitors event signals. A real time event detector within the real time event engine detects when the real time event occurs. Thereupon, real time event commands within a real time event command buffer are fetched and consumed by the command processor in response to the occurrence of the real time event. The real time event detector contains a plurality of control registers, which contain an event selector register, a real time command buffer point register, and a real time command buffer length register. A driver may program the registers, whereupon a singe real time event detector may be used in conjunction with a plurality of real time event command buffers.

Computers are known to include a central processing unit (CPU), main memory, interconnecting buses, and video graphics circuitry. The tasks that a computer can process have increased proportionally with the increase in processing power and memory storage capabilities. Furthermore, as the number of tasks increase, systems are required to operate more quickly and efficiently, including the manner in which processing commands are transmitted and executed within the system.
When a command processor receives system commands from a command buffer, the processor provides these commands to be executed by the specific engines, such as a video rendering engine, a direct memory access (DMA), or a display device. The command buffer usually acts within a first-in first-out (FIFO) order. Therefore as a new command is provided from a host, all previous commands already within the buffer must be processed before the new command is executed.
A problem arises when a specific command needs to be executed, at a specific time or in relation to another executed command. Often times, when a specific command or external event occurs, the system will seek to execute a related command usually related to the previous command or the external event. In a conventional command processing system, the first-in first-out processing steps prevent the related command from being processed until all other commands within the queue or buffer are executed.
To overcome the problem of a specific command needing to be executed within a specific time, typically, systems have been developed having multiple command buffers having variant priority levels. Within the multiple priority buffer system, a specific command can be labeled with a priority tag. The priority tag then determines from which command buffer the command processor receives the processing command. For example, the system may choose to execute all high priority commands when the system processor determines the system is operating at a peak state, and then may choose to execute the low priority commands when the system is more capable to execute the lower priority commands. The multiple priority command buffer systems fail to provide for the synchronization of multiple events, the system must choose to execute low or high priority events, but cannot synchronize the occurrence of a specific high priority event with a specific low priority event or multiple high priority or low priority events.
In an attempt to provide synchronization between multiple commands, another solution is the insertion of a wait-until step within the command processing system. Typically, these systems will execute a specific command, and then stall the command processor until a specific event occurs. A problem occurs when a command processing unit is subject to a wait-until command, the processing system is essentially stalled until the event occurs, thus creating an inefficient processing system and can thereby substantially reduce the speed of the processing system. As such, synchronization may be achieved, but at the cost of processing efficiency.
Moreover, typically this system can only handle a single specific synchronization through the execution of multiple commands, at one time. Therefore, the processing system is extremely limited when multiple wait-until event scenarios arise.
Consequently, there exist a need for a command processing system whereupon the occurrence of multiple events may be properly synchronized without reducing system efficiency.

Method and apparatus for processing real-time command information


Disclosed are an array substrate and a manufacturing method thereof, a display panel, a display device and a pixel driving circuit. The array substrate includes: a base substrate; and a wiring layer and an effective light-emitting layer formed and stacked on the base substrate sequentially, wherein the wiring layer includes a first wiring and a second wiring, an orthographic projection of the first wiring on the base substrate overlaps an orthographic projection of the effective light-emitting layer on the base substrate to form a first overlapping area, an orthographic projection of the second wring on the base substrate overlaps the orthographic projection of the effective light-emitting layer on the base substrate to form a second overlapping area, and the first overlapping area and the second overlapping area are respectively located on both sides of a central line of the orthographic projection of the effective light-emitting layer on the base substrate.

In recent years, with the progress of display technology, organic light-emitting diode (Organic light-emitting Diode, abbreviated as OLED) displays are one of the hot spots in the field of flat panel display research. More and more active matrix organic light-emitting diodes (Active Matrix Organic light-emitting Diode, abbreviated as AMOLED) display panels have entered the market. Compared with conventional thin film transistor liquid crystal display (abbreviated as TFTLCD), AMOLED has faster response speed, higher contrast and wider viewing angle. With the development of display technology, more and more electronic devices have begun to use bendable and flexible OLED display screens that are thin and have good impact resistance.

Array substrate and manufacturing method thereof, display panel, display device and pixel driving circuit

CHENGDU BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


An article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface and a clip operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall interconnecting the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate. The retaining leg moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet.

As is known, individuals often refer to sheet or page of material when working on a computer. Alternatively, individuals often like to display various sheets of material such as pictures, calendar pages, notes or the like in their office space. Typically, an individual can insert a thumb tack or pin through the sheet of material to be displayed and into the vertical surface. It can be appreciated that the thumb tack may damage the sheet of material and/or the vertical surface in which the thumb tack is inserted. Alternatively, a user may use tape to affix the sheet of material to the vertical surface. Once again, it can be appreciated that the tape may damage the sheet of material. Further, tape often has insufficient adhesive force to support a sheet of material on the vertical surface for a prolonged period of time. As a result, the sheet of material may fall from the vertical surface.
Various attempts have been made to develop an article holder for supporting sheets of material and loose papers for display on a vertical surface. By way of example, the Rios, U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,422 discloses an article holder utilizing a backing member and a first portion movable relative to the backing member. A hinge interconnects the first portion and the backing member and biases the first portion towards the backing member in a spring-like fashion. A second hinge interconnects the first portion to a second portion that is movable relative to the first portion and extends into a cavity between the first portion and the backing member. The second hinge also biases the second portion towards the backing member. As a result, the article member maybe held between the second portion and the backing member.
Although functional for its intended purpose, the article holder disclosed in the '422 patent is somewhat cumbersome to manufacture. In the first embodiment, the article holder in the '422 patent includes a backing member formed from first and second layers. Alternatively, in the second embodiment wherein the backing member, first portion and second portion are formed from a single layer, a reinforcing means is required to add sufficient strength to the article holder. As a result, it is highly desirable to provide an article holder that is simpler and less expensive to manufacturer than the article holders in the prior art.
Therefore, it is a primary object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface.
It is a further object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface that is simple to utilize and inexpensive to manufacture.
It is a still further object and feature of the present invention to provide an article holder for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface that is more durable than prior article holders.
In accordance with the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has an inner surface and upper edge. A clip operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall. The face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge and a lower edge. The upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg is moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet.
The upper wall of the clip is generally perpendicular to the backing plate. The face plate of the clip is movable between a first, generally flat configuration with the retaining leg in the closed position and a second, generally arcuate configuration with the retaining leg in the open position. The upper wall of the clip is movable between a first, generally flat configuration with the retaining leg in the closed position and a second, generally arcuate configuration with the retaining leg in the open position.
The backing plate has a width and the face plate of the clip has a width. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip. The backing plate includes an outer surface and the article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.
In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has inner and outer surfaces and an upper edge. A flexible face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge and a lower edge. A flexible upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg is moveable between a closed position and an open position. In the closed position, the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate; the face plate is generally parallel to the backing plate; and the upper wall is generally perpendicular to the face plate and the backing plate. In the open position, the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate; the face plate has a generally arcuate cross-section; and the upper wall has a generally arcuate cross-section.
The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet. The backing plate has a width and the face plate of the clip has a width. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip. The article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.
In accordance with a still further aspect of the present invention, an article holder is provided for supporting a sheet of material on a vertical surface. The article holder includes a backing plate connectable to the vertical surface. The backing plate has inner and outer surfaces, upper edge and a width. A clip is operatively connected to the backing plate. The clip includes a face plate and an upper wall. The face plate has an inner surface, an upper edge, a lower edge and a width. The upper wall interconnects the upper edge of the face plate and the upper edge of the backing plate. The upper wall has an inner surface. A retaining leg extends from the lower edge of the face plate and has a terminal end. The retaining leg moveable between a closed position wherein the terminal end of the retaining leg engages the inner surface of the backing plate and the face plate is generally parallel to the backing plate, and an open position wherein the retaining leg is spaced from the inner surface of the backing plate and the face plate has a generally arcuate cross-section.
The upper wall is generally perpendicular to the face plate and the backing plate with the retaining leg in the closed position. The upper wall has a generally arcuate cross-section with the retaining leg in the open position. The inner surface of the backing plate, the inner surface of the face plate and the inner surface of the upper wall define a cavity for receiving a portion of the sheet. The width of the backing plate is greater than the width of the face plate of the clip.
The article holder may include an adhesive provided on the outer surface of the backing plate for affixing the backing plate to the vertical surface. Alternatively, the article holder may include a hook extendable through the backing plate and into the vertical surface for retaining the backing plate on the vertical surface. The hook includes first and second legs interconnected by a crossbar. The legs have first and second opposite ends and are generally parallel. The first ends of the first and second legs include hooked elements formed therein.


A parallel processing apparatus and method for processing data transferred between a plurality of processors each having a storage. Each of the plurality of processors corresponds a global virtual address in a global virtual memory space where a parallel processing between the plurality of processors is performed and a local virtual address in a local virtual memory space where an individual process in one of the processors is performed to an identical real address. Data is transferred from a first one of the plurality of processors to a second one of the plurality of processors by writing the data into the storage of the second processor according to the global virtual address or the local virtual address of the second processor, the second processor is notified of the global virtual address or the local virtual address of the transferred data, the notified global virtual address or the notified local virtual address is then translated into the real address which corresponds to the notified global virtual address or the notified local virtual address, data is read from the storage of the second processor to the second processor according to the translated real address, and the read data is calculated in the second processor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multiprocessor system in which processors communicate with each other to execute parallel processing and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for transferring and processing data in a multiprocessor system.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, computer systems operating at higher speeds and having larger capacities have been required. To satisfy this requirement, it is necessary to prepare a plurality of processors and to distribute processing among them to effect parallel processing. That is, parallel processing techniques have been needed.
As one multiprocessing technique using plural processors, a multiprocessor system has been proposed in which main storage is distributed among plural portions, controlled by their respective processors, which execute parallel processing. This multiprocessor system is known as a memory-distributed parallel processing system, for example. In this system, processors operate in parallel while exchanging data with each other via a communication system. Thus, all the processors operate concurrently to execute one process.
Generally, when a calculation is performed by such a multiprocessor system, data that is necessary for a first processor to execute the calculation is conveyed from those storage regions of the main storage which are ancillary to one or more second processors to the storage region of the main storage ancillary to the first processor. When the data required for the calculation is completely loaded into the storage region of the main storage ancillary to the first processor, the first processor executes the calculation. The result of the calculation is stored in the storage region of the main storage ancillary to a third processor which is to hold or store the result. In this case, it is not necessary that the first through third processors all be separate units. Sometimes, some of the processors are a common processor. The processor system carries out parallel batch processing according to a sequence of procedures described above. The processors repeatedly execute the above-described processing synchronously, whereby parallel processing is performed.
Specifically, before processors perform arithmetic operations, data is usually transferred between a first processor i for performing the arithmetic operations and a second processor j having data necessary for the arithmetic operations. In this case, in order to transfer the data, the first processor i transmits to the second processor j a request for the transfer. Then, the second processor j transfers data about reading to the first processor i. Alternatively, the second processor j causes data to be written to the storage region of the main storage ancillary to the first processor i.
In order to universally realize the logic of the above-described processing, transfer of data within the main storage is needed even if the first processor i and the second processor j are the same processor, because their respective real addresses in the main storage are different.
It takes a long time for a conventional multiprocessor systems to transfer data between processors or between storage regions. Hence, it has not been possible to execute parallel processing quickly. Consequently, there is a demand for a technique for shortening the data transfer time.

Multiprocessor system and parallel processing method for processing data transferred between processors


An attraction coil, a repulsion coil and a plunger are disposed in a magnetic path of an electromagnetic device. An starting flux generating section is disposed between the attraction coil and the repulsion coil in the magnetic path. A magnetic flux of the starting flux generating section is repulsed magnetically by a magnetic flux of the repulsion coil at a part of the magnetic path to start the plunger. The plunger is attracted to one of first and second magnetic path parts by electromagnetic forces generated from magnetic fluxes of the attraction coil and the repulsion coil.

The present invention relates to an electromagnetic device for starting a plunger by magnetic flux generated by an electromagnetic coil.
Japanese Patent Application Publications Nos. H05(1993)-55029 and 2002-8498 disclose examples of existing bidirectional electromagnetic devices. A bidirectional electromagnetic device of one of these examples includes a magnetic path, two exciting coils and a plunger surrounded by the magnetic path. The magnetic path includes a first magnetic path part, a second magnetic path part, a leg part, central magnetic path parts, and an intermediate magnetic path part. The leg part connects the first magnetic path part and the second magnetic path part. The intermediate magnetic path part projects radially inward from an intermediate part of the tubular leg part. The central magnetic path parts each extend inwardly in parallel with the leg part from central parts of the first magnetic path part and the second magnetic path part substantially halfway to the intermediate magnetic path part. The two exciting coils are disposed in the thus-structured magnetic path. The plunger is attracted to or detached from the central magnetic path parts by electromagnetic forces of the exciting coils.
In this example, when one of the exciting coils is supplied with exciting current, the plunger is actuated upward by a magnetomotive force from the first magnetic path part, and is attracted to the upper central magnetic path part. Then, when the supply of the exciting current to the one of the exciting coils is stopped, and the other of the exciting coils is supplied with exciting current, the plunger is actuated downward by a magnetomotive force from the second magnetic path part, and is attracted to the lower central magnetic path part.
For the actuation of the bidirectional electromagnetic device of this example, the magnitude of the magnetomotive force, which is a product of the winding number of each of the exciting coils and the supplied current, is so determined as to correspond to a force required to be generated for starting the plunger; and the shape and size of the plunger, the magnetic path and other elements are so determined as to prevent a saturation of magnetic flux generated by the magnetomotive force.


An improved object-based image processing system and method which minimizes and improves predictability and control over regeneration and recalculation time when the user makes changes to operations. Image clips containing bitmaps of object results are stored to minimize repeated application of operations. Partial updates for modified operations are facilitated so that unnecessary regeneration of the entire region of operation is avoided. Greater user control is achieved by permitting the user to designate a temporary background image.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to image processing technologies and, more particularly, to an improved image processing system and method employing user-configurable virtual objects representing lenses and image processing operations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Related U.S. Pat. No. 5,425,137 (the '137 patent) describes an object-based image processing system and method wherein operations to be performed on the background image are defined in terms of a plurality of virtual lens objects, or "lenses". Each lens object represents one or more operations that are defined by user-specified lens attributes. One such attribute specifies the region of operation of the lens object. Other lens attributes specify the type and magnitude of operations to be performed on the underlying image within the defined region of the lens object. These operations may simulate actual physical lens behavior (such as enlarging or distorting the image) or they may be more abstract (such as making a color image black-and-white).
The user may also specify operations that are not part of lens objects. Such operations are still movable and modifiable in a similar manner as lens objects. This type of representation may be preferable for some types of operations, such as paint strokes. In the present application, the term "objects" refers to both lens objects and independent operations.
The user may specify any number of operations for a given lens object. Furthermore, the user may specify any number of objects (lens objects and/or independent operations) to operate on a given image. The regions of operation may or may not overlap one another, according to the user's preference. Objects are applied to the image in a user-specified order, so that overlapping objects form a virtual stack. When regions overlap one another, the transformed image that results from application of the first (or lowest level) object becomes input for subsequent (higher level) objects. Thus, as in a stack of real, physical lenses, lens operations and independent operations are cumulative.
Each image processing operation is recorded as an object so that it may be individually selected, modified, transformed or deleted without altering the original image. This facilitates user experimentation with various image processing options and combinations.
When objects overlap one another, the results of the first object's operations are in turn used as a source image for the second, overlapping, object's operations. A chain of operations represented by successively overlapping objects is thus formed. Any change in one of the operations in the chain may require re-application of one or more of the overlapping operations in the chain. One advantage of the invention described in the '137 patent is that when an operation is modified, the user is not required to keep track of other operations that will be affected by the modification or to manually redo work that is affected by the modification. Rather, the system performs automatic updates of the affected regions, including redoing any operations of overlapping objects as required.
When a change is made to an operation for a particular region of the image, some or all of the other operations for that region may have to be re-applied using new source image data. In order to facilitate automatic re-application, the invention described in the '137 patent maintains an object-oriented database of user operations containing information describing the sequence of operations and the area of application for each operation. Thus, referring now to FIG. 1b, there is shown a conceptual representation of the operation of the system of the '137 patent. Operations 102-110, represented by the letters A through I, are shown operating on particular regions of background image 101. The system attempts to optimize the speed of updating when operations change by selectively re-applying operations only to areas affected by the change. Thus, in the example shown in FIG. 1b, if the user modifies operation D 105, rather than re-applying the entire sequence of operations A through I to update the image, the system determines the minimum area of the image requiring update, and only reapplies operations affecting that area. In the example of FIG. 1b, only operations A, C, D, G, and H fall into the area affected by operation D. Therefore, after the change in operation D, only operations A, C, D, G, and H need to be re-applied. By avoiding unnecessary re-application of operations B, E, F, and I, the system more efficiently generates the new image.
Although the above-described scheme provides enhanced efficiency in updating images when operations change, as the number of operations that are performed on the same region of the image increases, the time it takes to re-apply those operations and update the image increases. The updating time is somewhat unpredictable to the user because it is affected by the number of operations that have to be re-applied, as well as by the relative complexity of those operations. For example, referring now to FIG. 2a, there is shown a background image 101 with four regions 201-204. A modification to operation 205 in region 201 is relatively slow to update, because there are many operations 209 in region 201 that must be re-applied. By contrast, a modification to operation 206 in region 202, or to operation 208 in region 204, would be relatively quick to update, because in each of these regions there are only two, relatively simple operations 210 and 206, or 212 and 208, to be re-applied. However, a modification to operation 207 in region 203 would be relatively slow to update because operation 211 is relatively complex and therefore takes longer to re-apply than does operations 209, 210, or 212. Since the user may not be aware of the number or complexity of underlying operations when making a change, there is unpredictability in the update time that will result from the change.
Furthermore, operations are not always stacked neatly on top of one another. For example, referring now to FIG. 2b, there is shown a background image 101 with three overlapping lens objects 213, 214, 215 containing operations. Because of the configuration of the lens objects, an update to an operation in lens object 215 may require updating of lens object 214, which in turn requires updating of lens object 213. Thus, nearly the entire background image 101 needs to be regenerated even when the change to one of the lens objects may be relatively small. This can lead to long recalculation delays as well as unpredictability in the update time.

Object-based image processing system and method


A homogenous toluene free catalyst system for producing a polyolefin elastomer possessing a unique combination of properties employing a particular type of a metallocene catalyst. The homogenous toluene free catalyst system having a co-catalyst for activating the metallocene pro-catalyst employing a specific molar ratio of the components of the co-catalyst blend to the metal of the pro-catalyst.

A need exists for a homogenous toluene free catalyst system for producing a polyolefin elastomer possessing a unique combination of properties employing a particular type of a metallocene catalyst. Also disclosed is a co-catalyst for activating the metallocene pro-catalyst employing a specific molar ratio of the components of the co-catalyst to the transition metal of the pro-catalyst. The present embodiments meet these needs.
The present embodiments are detailed below with reference to the listed FIGURE.

Process for the polymerization of alpha olefins and non-conjugated dienes using a toluene free homogenous co-catalyst system with metallocene pro-catalysts


A mold includes an ingot mold and a top core. The top core is disposed in and/or on the ingot mold. The top core forms, in part, a functional surface of a component formed in the mold and the ingot mold forms at least a sub-region of the functional surface of the component formed in the mold.

The present invention relates to an ingot mold, in particular for a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine, to a method for producing a component, in particular a cylinder head, and to the use of an ingot mold.
Ingot molds are reusable molds for casting metals and alloys. Cores are also required here in order for it to be possible for cavities and/or undercuts to be made in the castings which are to be produced. These cores often consist of sand and, accordingly, can be used only once. This increases the processing costs. Added to this is the fact that the cores, in particular the sand cores, influence the solidification of the melt as a result of their insulating effect, and it is therefore possibly the case that optimally directed solidification cannot be realized.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to specify an ingot mold, a method for producing a component, and the use of an ingot mold, which overcome the aforementioned disadvantages and are suitable, in particular, for producing cylinder heads for internal combustion engines.
The invention provides an ingot mold for a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine, wherein a top core is, or can be, arranged in and/or on the ingot mold and forms, in part, a functional surface of a component, in particular of a cylinder head, and wherein the ingot mold is designed to form, or to help to form, at least a sub-region of the functional surface. What is said hereinbelow applies, in particular, to a cylinder head of an internal combustion engine. However, the ingot mold, the method and the use are envisaged for, and can be applied to, the production of a wide variety of different parts or castings. Typical casting methods are, for example, gravity casting or low-pressure casting, wherein the materials used are preferably steel and, in particular, aluminum or aluminum alloys, for example also aluminum/magnesium alloys. The great advantage here is that the functional surface of the component, rather than being formed exclusively via the top core or via the ingot mold, is formed, as it were, by interaction of the ingot mold with the top core. This advantageously makes it possible to reduce the size of the top core to a minimum, which has a direct effect on the production costs since, accordingly, less molding material is required for the top core, which is produced preferably from sand.
According to a preferred embodiment, the functional surface is a cover flange of a cylinder head. The cover flange is intended to mean, in particular, that surface of the cylinder head which is oriented in the direction of the (subsequent) valve cover. The top core is advantageously configured, or designed, such that it forms merely a contour of the cover flange, whereas the other regions of the cover flange are reproduced by the ingot mold, in other words therefore by the permanent mold.
According to a preferred embodiment, the functional surface is a (subsequent) sealing surface of a casting. Further preferably, the functional surface has an open or closed progression. Particularly preferably, the surface is in meandering form or has curves, radii, bends, etc., and/or also rectilinear portions.
The ingot mold preferably has, or comprises, two movably arranged, in particular swing-action or pivotable, (permanent) molding parts, which can be displaced laterally in the direction of the top core. The top core can expediently thus be fixed straightforwardly between the molding parts, wherein according to one embodiment first of all the top core is arranged in place and then the two molding parts are swung downward. It should be mentioned here that, alongside the top core, other cores, e.g., a water-jacket core and an oil-chamber core, cores for the inlet and outlet channels, etc., are expediently, or can expediently be, arranged in the ingot mold. The cores are positioned, in particular, beneath the top core.
According to one embodiment, for the purpose of forming the functional surface, the top core and the molding parts have molding surfaces, which merge one inside the other without any offset. This expediently forms a stepless functional surface, in particular a planar cover-flange surface. As an alternative, it is also possible for an offset to be provided between the molding surfaces of the molding parts and the top core if required by the geometry of the functional surface.
According to one embodiment, a length of the top core corresponds to a length of the component along a longitudinal direction (of the component). This means that the top core is as long as the component, but at the same time advantageously has a width which is considerably smaller than the width of the component, since the ingot mold is provided here, in particular the two movably arranged molding parts thereof so to speak flank the top core here. As an alternative, the top core spans just part of a component length and the overall width thereof. As a further alternative, the top core spans neither the length nor the width of the component in full; rather, it is flanked on all sides by (permanent) molding parts.
According to one embodiment, the top core has a multiplicity of cylindrical or essentially cylindrical, or even conically tapering, feeders. The narrow top core, comprising the feeders, advantageously makes it possible to provide for solidification directed toward the same.
The feeders are preferably arranged one after the other along the longitudinal direction of the component, in particular of the cylinder head. This provides for optimum and uniform mold filling. In addition, the feeder volume can be kept very small. The minimal size of the top core means that the latter does not have an insulating effect, and optimally directed solidification in the direction of the feeders is made possible.
According to one embodiment, the top core has at least one molding element which is designed to form a bearing location in the functional surface, in particular a bearing tunnel in the cover flange. Rather than being completely flat or planar, the molding surface of the top core therefore expediently can have protrusions and/or set-back portions, in order for any additional geometries or shapes to be integrated in the functional surface. The bearing tunnel serves, in particular, to hold, and to bear, a camshaft.
According to one embodiment, at least one of the molding parts has at least one molding element which is designed to form a bearing location in the functional surface, in particular a bearing tunnel in the cover flange. What has been said in relation to the molding element of the top core applies here.
The invention is also directed to a method for producing a component, in particular a cylinder head of an internal combustion machine, comprising the following steps:
supplying an ingot mold and a top core; and
forming a functional surface of a component by the top core and, at least to some extent, by the ingot mold.
The advantage is that the or a functional surface of a component is formed, at the same time, by the ingot mold and a core, in particular a top core. This approach makes it possible for the top core, which is expediently formed from molding sand, to be formed to be as small as necessary and for the ingot molds and the corresponding molding parts of the ingot mold to be formed to be as large as possible.
The invention is also directed to the use of an ingot mold according to the invention or of a method according to the invention in the production of motor vehicles.
The advantages and features mentioned in conjunction with the ingot mold apply analogously and correspondingly to the method and to the use, and vice versa.
Further advantages and features can be gathered from the following description of an ingot mold with reference to the accompanying figures.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of one or more preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Ingot mold and method for producing a component

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


A process for enhancing a package for a compact disc and product produced by such a process are described. The process includes the step of inserting an object into a void space of a spine in a package for a compact disc. The object can include at least one three-dimensional object. The process can further include the steps of adding additional three-dimensional objects into the void space of the spine of the package for the compact disc. The product is an improved compact disc package which includes a compact disc package having a spine, the spine including a void space; and, an object included within the void space. The object can be three-dimensional. The package can further comprise additional three-dimensional objects included within the void space. A three-dimensional insert for a compact disc package that is dimensioned to fit within a spine of the compact disc package is also described. Matter, such as a liquid, can be included within the insert. The insert can further include at least one object included within the matter and can further include additional objects within the matter.

The present invention relates generally to packaging for compact disc products. More particularly, this invention pertains to a process for enhancing the packaging for a compact disc and a product made by the process.
It will be appreciated by those having ordinary skill in the field that the music industry goes to great lengths to market compact discs (CDs). Particularly, the music industry expends a great deal of resources and effort to include decorative art work on the cover of the CD package to draw the consumer's attention to the product. Indeed, the packaging of the compact disc product is often as important to the marketing of the product as the music recorded on the compact disc itself. This is equally true in other fields which sell compact disc recording media with pre-recorded information on the disc, including, but not limited to, the computer software industry and the motion picture industry. Indeed, with the current rapid pace of technological advancement, many other industries may well have the need to use compact disc packaging suitable for marketing efforts.
The standard compact disc package, an example of which is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,005, the contents of which herein are incorporated by reference, includes a spine which has a void space within. In the traditional packaging this void space includes only that which is a part of the two-dimensional art work included in the standard packaging. Thus, the void space is not utilized productively in the marketing of the compact disc product.
What is needed, then, is an improved compact disc package that takes advantage of the void space on the spine of the package. This packaging is presently lacking in the prior art.