An electronic exchange system comprises an electronic exchange system for private branch exchanging, multifunctional telephone sets operating as wired extension terminals, public network main lines of a public telecommunication network that are cores for connecting the central telephone electronic exchange system and said electronic exchange system, leased or private lines, cell stations, a control terminal and portable stations of radio slave units for the cell stations. If an incoming call is not forwarded to the called portable station because the portable station does not respond, the incoming call is stored in a predetermined memory arranged with the electronic exchange system, which connects the portable station and the calling terminal once the portable station restores it communicable state.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electronic exchange system for a plurality of portable stations such as portable telephone sets and, more particularly to an electronic exchange system capable of suitably controlling a portable station which does not reply to a call request.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electronic exchange system is a product of recent technological development in the field of electronics. It is highly intelligent and capable of executing sophisticated programs under the control of a central processing unit and hence can provide a number of different services other than exchange operations ordinary assigned to it. In recent year, there are available electronic exchange system that can connect not only wired terminals but also portable stations such as radio telephone sets.
In an electronic exchange system capable of exchanging a plurality of portable stations as well as a plurality of wired terminals, cell stations that operate as base stations for the portable stations are provided. The electronic exchange system communicates with a selected portable station via one of the cell stations. The cell stations are typically located at predetermined positions on the ground and provide telephone service for predetermined respective service areas, or calling areas, of the exchange so that any portable station located within that areas can communicate with the electronic exchange system. Consequently, a portable station located within the calling areas can originate a call to or be received a call from a wired terminal connected to the electronic exchange system or a portable station via one of the cell stations to establish a telecommunication channel between them.
Normally, a specific telephone number is assigned to each portable station and the electronic exchange system periodically checks the location of each portable station to find out in which one of the plurality of predetermined service zones, or calling areas, it is currently located. If there is an incoming call to a portable station, the electronic exchange system causes one of the cell stations in which service zone the called portable station is located, thereby calling the portable station. If the portable station responds to the call, the electronic exchange system sets up a telecommunication channel between the calling terminal and the called portable station so that the calling party and the called party can communicate with each other.
In order for the electronic exchange system to detect in which one of the calling areas of the electronic exchange system a portable station is located, the electronic exchange system periodically (or constantly) sends a response request command to each portable station and checks which cell station receives the response of the portable station. In addition, the electronic exchange system can also locate a specific portable station when the portable station sends a connection request by seeing which one of the cell stations receives the connection request. Normally, since a specific telephone number is assigned to each portable station, the portable station to which a response command is sent can be identified if the response from the portable station contains its telephone number. In recent years, however, with a digital system such as a PHS (personal handy phone system), each portable station sends a location registration request each time it moves from one calling area into another so that the electronic exchange system can locate the portable station when it receives the location registration request.
Thus, a conventional electronic exchange system for the cell stations and the portable stations, detects a position of all the portable stations controls data concerning their locations (location data). When a portable station is called, it identifies the calling area where the called portable station is located on the basis of the location data it has and transmits a call signal to the called portable station via the cell station of the identified calling area so that the called portable station is informed of the call.
However, if the called portable station is out of power (turned off) or it is out of the calling areas, that is it has moved out of the entire service area of the exchange system, it cannot respond to the call.
In such a case, the called portable station cannot ringing so that the user of the portable station cannot recognize the incoming call by any means. Consequently, as no telecommunication channel is established between the calling party and the called party, the calling party may eventually give up the call and feel unpleasant since he or she does not use a portable station.
Such a problem is attributable to the fact that the electronic exchange system does not store nor control any data on a call request if the called portable station does not send a response signal in return to the call request or if it cannot communicate with the electronic exchange system. As the electronic exchange system does not store nor control any data on the unsuccessful call request, it cannot send any information on the call request to the called portable station for ever because the exchange system is not adapted to handle such an abortive call if the called portable station does not send back a response signal.
Subscribers owning portable stations may be forced to turn off the terminals for some reason or another. They may forget to turn them on again or the batteries of the power sources of the terminals may run out without being recognized by the owners. More often than not, the subscribers may move out of the entire service area of the exchange system in the course of their daily behaviors. If they end up without recognizing incoming calls made to them, the better part of the benefit of owning such portable stations may be lost.
Thus, if the electronic exchange system calls a portable station and the called portable station does not send back a response signal to the electronic exchange system, the electronic exchange system does not store nor control any data on the unsuccessful call and therefore the subscriber who owns the portable station cannot recognize the call for ever. There may be may occasions where portable stations cannot send back a response signal to the electronic exchange system even if there is a call. So, while a portable station may be beneficial because of its handiness and portability, the high probability of abortive calls can significantly reduce this benefit.
Therefore there is a good reason to expect an electronic exchange system to be so adapted, if there is an unsuccessful call because of an inoperative condition of the called portable station and the terminal restores its operable condition, as to notify the calling terminal of the restored operable condition of the called portable station.
Additionally, conventional exchange systems are not provided with a functional feature of automatically searching and selecting an available channel for a called portable station if a specific channel assigned to it is busy. Since the number of channels of a radio communication is limited, the channel can more often be busy as the number of portable stations allocated to the channel increases so that a call may frequently end up in failure because the channel is busy.
In a private branch exchange system, subscribers of portable stations may normally be seated in the office and not a few wired extension telephone sets may be at hand to make the portable stations useless unless the portable stations and the wired extension telephone sets are made compatible without requiring cumbersome exchange operations. This may provide another reason that reduces the benefit of an electronic exchange system for portable stations. Furthermore, an opposite case in which it is easy to connect calling party with the portable station of the called party in place of the wired extension terminal may be occurred.

Electronic exchange system for portable stations


A surface light-emitting unit installed on a floor or wall of a structure is able to emit light from its surface for unique illumination effects. A surface light-emitting unit includes a transparent glass plate that can transmit light; a light-conducting plate installed below the glass plate; a light-emitting means having multiple light-emitting diodes of different colors and installed on the side face of the light-conducting plate; a light-diffusing/reflecting member installed below the light-conducting plate that diffuses and reflects the light; an emission-color selection means for selecting the light-emitting diode to be illuminated or blinked; a casing for providing the transparent glass plate at the top opening; a casing for installing above components; and a connection part that can be connected to other surface light-emitting unit installed adjacently.

Flush-type light-emitting devices that are embedded in a floor of a store, restaurant, etc., and emit light from its surface (top surface) are known. This type of light-emitting device is able to produce artistic and decorative effects using light and give visual entertainment to the customers, etc.
However, the above light-emitting device is buried in a floor of a building and therefore generally installed during the construction of the building. Considerable work is required if the device is to be installed in an existing floor. Therefore, the conventional light-emitting devices could not promptly satisfy the needs for producing artistic or decorative effects using light only during an event held in a store or specific program presented in an exhibition venue, and the prohibitive construction expenses required to install this type of light-emitting device also made the device unsuitable for such applications.
To easily achieve floor lighting, lighting devices that can be installed on an existing floor have been proposed. This type of device has a box-shaped casing with an open top, a plate-shaped reinforced plastic material installed in the top opening of the casing, a plate-shaped light-diffusing member installed below the reinforced plastic material, and a fluorescent tube or other light source for irradiating the light-diffusing member. A commercial AC power supply is used as a power source for irradiating the light source. By arranging multiple light-emitting units in vertical and horizontal rows, a large lighting system can be configured.
To supply operating power to the light sources of multiple light-emitting units and also control the light sources individually, lighting systems equipped with a dimming console that outputs DMX signal and a dimming panel that has dedicated transformers for supplying power and data to the multiple light-emitting units are known. The dimming panel has a power cable for connecting to the commercial AC power supply (such as 100 VAC), an input terminal for connecting to the dimming console and inputting DMX signal, and multiple output terminals for outputting direct-current power (such as 24 VDC) and data in accordance with the control by DMX signal, and by connecting a light-emitting unit to each output terminal the panel can control multiple light-emitting units via DMX signal.
However, the above lighting device requires a relatively tall casing and the top face of the lighting device, or the actual floor of the building, is relatively high, because the reinforced plastic material, light-diffusing member and light source must be stacked on top of one another in the casing. This not only limits the location for installing alighting device in terms of the height of the ceiling or entrance/exit, but it also creates a large height gap between the sections where a lighting device is installed and not installed, thereby posing a concern over stepping up/down the device by people walking on top.
In addition, since the above lighting device utilizes a fluorescent tube as its light source, the color emitted from the surface material becomes a monotone color. As a result, it is not possible to emit a desired color or change the color with the passage of time. Consequently, this lighting device could not fully produce a full-scale light fantasy or illusion, either, to arouse excitement in the customers.
When the casing of the above lighting device has a rectangular solid shape, multiple lighting devices can be arranged in vertical and horizontal rows. In other words, by combining multiple lighting devices in accordance with the floor area of the installation location a large lighting system can be configured. However, since each lighting device has a power cable extending from it that supplies power to the light source, combining multiple lighting devices requires each power cable to be connected to mains power (outlet). This made the wiring of power cables more complex, reduces the aesthetic effects, and sometimes made it difficult to interconnect the lighting devices.
In addition, the reinforced plastic material installed in the top opening of the casing scratches easily due to contact with the edge of a heal or umbrella worn/held by people walking on top, and the scratched areas tend to become clouded. For this reason, there arise concerns that transparency would be lost with the passing of time, thereby making the illumination look darker despite the brightness of the light source remaining the same. There are also concerns that clouding would reduce the esthetic look. Surface clouding can be suppressed by using reinforced glass in place of reinforced plastic material, but glass is generally slippery and might cause people walking on top to trip.
In the conventional technology, in a lighting system configured by arranging multiple light-emitting units in vertical and horizontal rows, each light-emitting unit is connected directly to an output terminal on the dimming panel in order to transmit operating power and data from the dimming panel to each light-emitting unit. Therefore, the dimming panel has to include as many cables (power lines) as the number of light-emitting units, and these cables have the length required for connecting the light-emitting unit installed farthest from the dimming panel. This made it easy for the multiple cables to get tangled with one another and often resulted in a complex wiring layout. Particularly since the number and locations of light-emitting units vary depending on the size and shape of the floor on which they are installed, there are also cases where the cables are unnecessarily long or too short to connect the respective light-emitting units. Further, the complex cabling sometimes reduces the aesthetic effects and made it difficult to interconnect the light-emitting units.
In addition, the enclosure of the dimming panel used in the above lighting system is large because it has many transformers. This made it difficult to install the dimming panel near the installing system, and in many cases the panel has to be installed away from the light-emitting units or in an exposed condition. If the panel has to be installed away from the light-emitting units, an extension cable or other means is required, which added to the complexity of wiring. Further, installing the panel in an exposed condition often makes the appearance unattractive and consequently the artistic effect by light. Since the number of light-emitting units connectable to one dimming panel is not infinite but generally limited to around 20 units, multiple dimming panels are required when configuring a lighting system combining more light-emitting units and this limits the installation location.


There is provided a dielectric cavity antenna including: a multilayer substrate having an opening formed in at least a portion of a predetermined surface thereof; a dielectric cavity inserted into the multilayer substrate to radiate an electromagnetic wave signal through the opening; a feed line feeding power to the dielectric cavity; and at least one metal pattern formed in an inner portion of the dielectric cavity or on a surface thereof to thereby be electromagnetically coupled to the feed line.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dielectric cavity antenna having a reduced size without a change in a bandwidth or a resonance frequency by using reactance characteristics of a metal pattern.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, research into a near field communications transceiver for transmitting mass data, such as the next generation WiFi of 2.4 GHz/5 GHz, WPAN of 60 GHz, and an integrated solution in which WiFi and 60 GHz are combined, has been actively conducted both domestically and internationally. In the 60 GHz band, a relatively wide bandwidth of several GHz may be used without a license. Therefore, interest in a mass data transmission system application, using the 60 GHz band, and providing audio, video, and data services, as well as a simple audio service, has increased. In order to provide these various services, a size of a system module needs to be increased. Therefore, there is a need to reduce a size of an antenna in order to reduce the size of the system module.


A method of making a glove includes placing a flexible material into a contoured mold, direct molding a resilient material (e.g., a thermoplastic elastomer) onto the flexible material while the flexible material is in the contoured mold, and securing the flexible material to other materials to create a glove. The resilient material can be applied in liquid form and at least partially solidified while in contact with the flexible material. Direct molding can include forming the resilient material into an anatomical shape and forming perforations in the resilient material. The method can be used to create a cycling glove including a palm panel having a flexible material, a resilient material formed into an anatomical shape and co-molded to the palm panel, and a back panel secured to the palm panel. The glove can further include a facing material attached to the flexible material with the resilient material sandwiched in between.

The present invention relates generally to the field of cycling gloves and specifically to padding applied to cycling gloves.
Cycling gloves typically are made of a flexible material, such as woven or stitch fabric, leather, polyurethane, or other suitable material. In order to provide protection for the rider's hands, cycling gloves are commonly provided with a resilient material or padding, such as foam, gel, or other suitable shock-absorbing material. The resilient material is typically sandwiched, adhered, or stitched into a pocket of the glove.

Bicycle glove with direct-molded padding


An efficient photovoltaic cell, and its process of manufacture, is disclosed wherein the back surface p-n junction is removed from a doped substrate having an oppositely doped emitter layer. A front surface and edges and optionally the back surface periphery are masked and a back surface etch is performed. The mask is not removed and acts as an anti-reflective coating, a passivating agent, or both. The photovoltaic cell retains an untextured back surface whether or not the front is textured and the dopant layer on the back surface is removed to enhance the cell efficiency. Optionally, a back surface field is formed.

This invention relates to photovoltaic devices, particularly photovoltaic devices comprising thin layers of semiconductor materials, such as thin layers of monocrystalline or multicrystalline silicon. More particularly, this invention relates to photovoltaic devices comprising monocrystalline or multicrystalline silicon semiconductor materials. These devices which comprise doped wafers of monocrystalline or multicrystalline silicon convert light energy into electrical energy.
These photovoltaic devices, also known as photovoltaic cells, are used to convert light energy into electrical energy. Photovoltaic cells can be used to generate energy (solar cells) or they can be used as photodector elements in other devices. Photovoltaic cells are a source of renewable energy. However their use is limited by their electrical output. Typically, many photovoltaic cells are arranged in one or more panels or modules in order to generate sufficient power required for a desired commercial or consumer application. Photovoltaic cells having greater efficiency result in modules with greater electrical power output. Therefore, it is necessary to be able produce a large number of highly efficient photovoltaic cells. It would be very desirable to be able to reduce the manufacturing cost, increase the efficiency of light conversion, or both, of such photovoltaic devices. The photovoltaic cells of this invention are highly efficient in comparison to conventionally produced cells and the process of this invention allows these highly efficient cells to be produced more easily than conventionally produced photovoltaic cells.
Most photovoltaic cells are fabricated from either monocrystalline silicon or multicrystalline silicon. Silicon is generally used because it is readily available at a reasonable cost due to its use in the microelectronics industry and because it has the proper balance of electrical, physical and chemical properties for use to fabricate photovoltaic cells. During the manufacture of photovoltaic cells, silicon is doped with a dopant of either positive or negative conductivity type, and is typically cut into thin substrates, usually in the form of wafers or ribbons, by various methods known in the art. Throughout this application, the surface of the substrate, such as a wafer, intended to face incident light is designated as the front surface and the surface opposite the front surface is referred to as the back surface. By convention, positive conductivity type is commonly designated as "p" and negative conductivity type is designated as "n." In this application, "p" and "n" are used only to indicate opposing conductivity types. In this application, "p" and "n" mean positive and negative respectively but can also mean negative and positive respectively. The key to the operation of a photovoltaic cell is the creation of a p-n junction, usually formed by further doping the front surface of the silicon substrate to form a layer of opposite conductivity type from the doped silicon substrate. Such a layer is commonly referred to as the emitter layer. In the case of a p-doped substrate, the emitter layer would be formed by doping the front surface with an n-type dopant. The p-n junction is the interface between the p-doped region and the n-doped region. The p-n junction allows the migration of electron-hole pairs in response to incident photons which causes a potential difference across the front and back surfaces of a substrate wafer.
Fabrication of a photovoltaic cell generally begins with a p-doped substrate. The substrate, typically in the form of a wafer, is then exposed to an n-dopant to form an emitter layer and a p-n junction. Typically, the n-doped layer is formed by first depositing an n-dopant onto the surface of the substrate using techniques commonly employed in the art, such as spray on, spin on, chemical vapor deposition, or other deposition methods. After deposition of the n-dopant upon the substrate surface, the n-dopant is driven into the surface of the silicon substrate to further diffuse the n-dopant into the substrate surface. This "drive-in" step is commonly accomplished by exposing the wafer to heat, often in combination with a gas stream comprising oxygen, nitrogen, steam, or a combination thereof. The n-doped layer is commonly referred to as an emitter layer.
A p-n junction is formed at the boundary region between the n-doped layer and the p-doped silicon substrate. The p-n junction is required to allow the charge carriers to migrate in response to incident light. Ideally, the emitter layer would be limited to the surface of the wafer designed to be oriented towards incident light, which is referred to as the front surface, and, consequently, the p-n junction would be proximal to the front surface only. In practice, however, doping will also occur on the edges and the opposing surface of the wafer (the back surface). This results in an emitter layer which covers the entire surface of the wafer and a p-n junction proximal to the entire surface of the wafer from which an electric current cannot be drawn. It is therefore necessary to electrically isolate the front and back junctions. The wafer can be masked so that an emitter layer forms only on selected surfaces of the wafer. However, such masking requires additional time, materials, and handling, particularly if it must be removed later. It would be advantageous if such a masking step could be eliminated or combined with another process step.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,791 to Micheels et al. discloses the use of an excimer laser to isolate the front p-n junction. Micheels et al. use an excimer laser to form a trench on the back surface of the substrate. The trench is deeper than the n-doped layer and extends along the entire periphery of the back surface at a fixed distance from the edges of the back surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,158,591 to Avery et al., which is incorporated by reference herein, discloses a method to electrically isolate the front p-n junction by removing the p-n junction from the edges of the substrate without removing the front and rear p-n junctions. Isolation of the front p-n junction by removing the edge p-n junction is commonly referred to as "edge junction isolation." The edge junction isolation method disclosed by Avery et al. has come to be known as "coin stacking." In the coin stacking process, the photovoltaic cells are stacked face to face and the edges are removed. The edges can be removed by plasma etching, by wet chemical etching, by physical grinding or other known methods. U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,591 to Ruby et al., incorporated by reference herein, describes a process commonly used to fabricate photovoltaic cells. The process described by Ruby et al. includes an edge junction isolation step accomplished by the coin stacking process.
Use of the coin stacking method results in lower cost and higher production rate when compared to previous methods for isolating the front p-n junction but also has several disadvantages. The physical stacking of the wafers can cause some wafers to be damaged. It is advantageous to minimize the thickness of the silicon substrate because the silicon substrate is a significant portion of the cost and size of a photovoltaic cell. Unfortunately, the coin stacking method significantly limits the thinness of the wafers. The fraction of wafers that are damaged during coin stacking increases as the wafer thickness decreases. As a result, coin stacking limits the cost savings achievable through use of thinner wafers. Another disadvantage of the coin stacking method is that it decreases the area of the front surface of a photovoltaic cell. Ideally, removal of the edge junction would result only in the removal of the n-doped region. In practice, however, some additional depth is also removed from the edge. Typically, the useful surface area of the front surface is decreased by about 2 percent, resulting in a corresponding 2 percent decrease in the energy output of the photovoltaic cell.
Efficiency of a photovoltaic cell is determined by the capacity of the cell to convert incident light energy into electrical energy. Several modifications to the design and production of photovoltaic cells have been developed to increase conversion efficiency. Chapter 4 of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells, by Martin A. Green, Photovoltaics Special Research Centre, University of New South Wales, which is incorporated by reference herein, discusses photovoltaic cell developments that increase cell efficiency including the use of texturing, antireflective coatings, surface passivation, and back surface fields.
Texturing of a photovoltaic cell reduces reflection of incident light by the photovoltaic cell surface. By reducing reflection, more incident light is available for conversion by the photovoltaic cell. Texturing is typically accomplished by chemical etching and in particular by anisotropic etching of the silicon substrate. Antireflective coatings further reduce the reflection of incident light at the photovoltaic cell surface. Antireflective coatings are typically applied by forming an oxide or silicon nitride layer on the wafer.
Surface passivation increases efficiency of a photovoltaic cell by decreasing electronic activity at the surface of the photovoltaic cell. Several methods of surface passivation are known in the art, including the use of oxide or silicon nitride coatings.
Back surface fields increase the efficiency of photovoltaic cells. Back surface fields are particularly desirable for photovoltaic cells with thin substrates. Photovoltaic cells with thin substrates have many benefits, including reduced material requirements, lower cost and less weight, but also exhibit a decrease in efficiency, generally attributed to an increase in the diffusion of minority charge carriers to the back surface of the cell. Back surface fields decrease such diffusion of minority carriers and increase the current generated by majority carriers. U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,704 to Schlosser et al., incorporated by reference herein, discloses a method of creating a back surface field. Generally, a back surface field is created by incorporating a thin layer at the back surface which is heavily doped with a dopant of opposite conductivity type from the emitter layer.
There is a need for a photovoltaic cell with high efficiency and preferably one that can be fabricated at low cost. More particularly, there is a need for a photovoltaic cell manufacturing process that isolates the front p-n junction of a silicon or other semiconductor substrate without the increased cell damage of the coin stacking method. There is also a need for a photovoltaic cell manufacturing process that allows for the use of less silicon through thinner wafers. The process of this invention provides such a photovoltaic cell and process.

Photovoltaic cell and production thereof


A striker positioning assembly adjusts a striker mechanism on a door frame for latching a door. The striker positioning assembly includes a plate having a slot for receiving a projecting portion of the striker mechanism. The striker positioning assembly includes a fastener for temporarily fastening the plate to the door. The fastener allows for the plate to be removable after adjustment of the striker mechanism. The plate and slot are arranged such that closing the door into a desired position with respect to the door frame causes the striker positioning assembly to move the striker mechanism into a position on the door frame for latching the door in the desired position with respect to the door frame when the striker mechanism is secured on the door frame and when the striker positioning assembly is removed. Methods of adjusting the striker mechanism on the door frame are also provided.

The present disclosure relates generally to the installation of doors for vehicles, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for aligning a striker assembly with a latch for a door.
Vehicles often include doors having latches. These latches can engage a striker mechanism positioned on a door frame of the vehicle. To retain the door on the door frame in a closed position, the latch can engage and grip the striker mechanism by receiving a portion of the striker mechanism within a slot in the door. To provide for proper gripping and alignment of the door, the striker mechanism should be aligned to be received within the slot in the proper location. However, properly aligning the striker mechanism on the door frame is time consuming, tedious, and inefficient. Current methods for moving and adjusting the striker mechanism on the door frame include using a hammer and/or a crowbar to reposition the striker mechanism. As such, consistently accurate positioning of the striker mechanism can be difficult to achieve, and may damage the mechanisms. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide a striker positioning assembly method for properly aligning the striker mechanism with respect to the slot in the door that solves one or more of these problems.


A semiconductor memory device includes a substrate having a semiconductor element formed thereon, an interlayer dielectric layer formed above the substrate, a plug formed in the interlayer dielectric layer, an adhesion layer formed in a region including a region above the plug, and a ferroelectric capacitor formed above the adhesion layer and having a lower electrode, a ferroelectric layer and an upper electrode, wherein an oxidized layer is formed in a part of the adhesion layer at a side wall thereof.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to semiconductor memory devices and methods for manufacturing the same.
2. Related Art
It is important for semiconductor memory devices to prevent their plugs that electrically connect ferroelectric capacitors to semiconductor elements on a substrate from oxidation. A barrier layer composed of aluminum oxide or the like may be formed on side surfaces of a ferroelectric capacitor to prevent oxygen from penetrating the ferroelectric capacitor through its side. For example, JP-A-2003-110095 describes an example of related art. However, as the layer is additionally formed on the ferroelectric capacitor, a film forming step and a step of patterning the film are added, which complicates the manufacturing process. Also, as the barrier layer is additionally provided, the size of the ferroelectric capacitor becomes larger, which interferes with device miniaturization.

Semiconductor memory device and method for manufacturing the same


A solar-powered lighting/illumination fixture for hanging flower planters or potted flowers comprises a body that can be affixed through a central opening or the like to the hanging hardware of the planter. The lighting fixture has solar cells that charge internal batteries during daylight hours and drive lights that illuminate the planter during nighttime hours. The fixture can also be affixed with a spoke that will allow it to be supported in the ground to provide pathway lighting. The lighting is provided through LEDs which also may accommodate light filters that can provide different colors to change the mood of the setting, as well as being provided with an adapter to fit most hanging planters in the market and also provided with an attaching mechanism that allows the height of the lighting fixture above the planter to be adjusted.

The present invention is generally directed to a solar power illumination device and, more particularly, to a solar power an illumination device for outdoor hanging flower planters or potted flowers, which is economical and provides dual functionality of pathway solar lighting with an adjustable height feature.
Illuminating a hanging planter outside the home has been, in the past, a difficult and expensive process, requiring a substantial investment on the part of the homeowner or business owner, often requiring them to invest in an entire new, expensive lighting assembly.
Prior art planters that combine the hanging planter with a lighting system, as described in design patent D253,382, are difficult to transfer from one planter to another. Therefore, prior users were unable to illuminate their planters and potted flowers with lighting features provided with another planter.
Some devices are available in the marketplace which are characterized by having an expensive assembly comprising a basket for the planter, as well as an illuminating device attached to the basket. The cost of such structures is prohibitive and not easily adaptable for hanging planters. Homeowners and business owners would have to spend several times the cost to adapt prior art light systems for hanging planters. Thus, prior art illuminating devices are not adaptable to different hangers and cannot be used as a traditional pathway solar light.

Solar power apparatus providing illumination to hanging flower planters or potted flowers


Disclosed herein is a piezoelectric type vibrator included in an implantable hearing device. The piezoelectric type vibrator comprises: a housing; a piezoelectric element portion formed at one end thereof with a free end and at the other end thereof with a non-free end, the piezoelectric element portion being at least partially disposed at the inside of the housing and including at least one piezoelectric element and terminals connected to both ends of the piezoelectric element; and a connection portion attached at one end thereof to one side of the inner wall of the housing and at the other end thereof to a non-free end of the piezoelectric element portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a piezoelectric type vibrator, and more particularly to a floating mass-type piezoelectric vibrator having a simple structure, an implantable hearing aid having the same, and a method of implanting the hearing aid.
2. Background of the Related Art
A hearing aid can be classified into a conventional body-worn hearing aid and an implantable hearing aid. The conventional hearing aid has a merit in that it can be easily mounted at an auricle and/or an acoustic pore of an external ear. However, the conventional hearing aid also has a demerit in that it does not satisfy a performance specification required for those who have more than severe hearing loss. The implantable hearing aid is suited for individuals with such severe hearing impairment. Such an implantable hearing aid can be divided into an implantable middle ear hearing device (IMEHD) and an implantable inner ear hearing device (cochlear implant).
The implantable middle ear hearing device typically includes a microphone and a vibrator. The research on the implantable middle ear hearing device is conducted intensively in view of the fact that it can effectively transfer a sound signal to persons who have sensorineural hearing loss because of its simple structure.
A human's ear is divided into three parts: external ear, middle ear and inner ear. An external sound is transmitted to the brain in the form of sound wave signal while sequentially passing through these three ear parts. Among these ear parts, the middle ear includes a tympanic membrane, a tympanic cavity and an auditory ossicle that consists of three small bones known as malleus, an incus and stapes. A vibrator for the implantable middle ear hearing device is mounted at the auditory ossicle so that it transmits an external audio signal to the inner ear as an acoustic vibration signal.
Such a vibrator for the implantable middle ear hearing device can be classified into an electromagnetic-transducer type one and a piezoelectric type one.
As one example of a conventional electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator, the Korean patent Nos. 282066 and 282067 disclose an electronic transducer for hearing aids implanted in the middle ear, in which vibration is generated by using an electromagnetic repulsive force caused by a coil and a magnet.
FIG. 1 illustrates one example of an electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator according to the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1, the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator 1 includes a case 10, a coil 30 arranged at the inside of the case 10, a pair of magnets 20a and 20b disposed within the case 10 in such a fashion that the magnets are partially surrounded by the coil 30, a pair of elastic members 40a and 40b each connected at one end thereof to the inner wall of the case 10 and connected at the other end thereof to one side of each of the magnets 20a and 20b. In this case, the magnets 20a and 20b are aligned such that identical magnetic poles thereof are opposite one another. When an acoustic current signal corresponding to an acoustic signal is applied to the coil 40 from the outside, the magnets 20a and 20b are vibrated in the transverse axial direction of the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator owing to the interaction between the coil 30 and the magnets 20a and 20b. This vibration is transmitted to the case 10 through the elastic members 40a and 40b, which is in turn transmitted to the auditory ossicle at which the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator is mounted. At this time, the auditory ossicle delivers an acoustic vibration signal to an auditory nerve cell. Such an electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator has an advantage in that since it is configured in a floating mass type, its installation is easy. That is, the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator is mounted at the auditory ossicle by means of a clamping member like a clip as an external constitutional element, and hence its easy installation is possible. However, the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator also has a problem in that it is not easy to manufacture since it includes complicated elements such as magnets aligned such that their identical poles are opposed to one another, a coil, a membrane, etc.
On the contrary, the piezoelectric type vibrator has a merit in that it is easy for accomplishing a desired purpose through relatively simple constitutional elements such as a lead wire for transmitting an external acoustic current signal to the inner ear, electrodes connected to the lead wire, a piezoelectric element disposed between the electrodes, etc. The piezoelectric type vibrator also has an advantage in that it is excellent in an acoustic vibration transmitting efficiency unlike the electromagnetic-transducer type vibrator having the magnets and the coil.
However, the conventional piezoelectric type vibrator also has a demerit in that it is difficult to mount. That is, in order to transmit the vibration generated from the piezoelectric type vibrator to the auditory ossicle, the vibrator must be fixedly connected at one end thereof to a certain region within the ear. For example, in case of a vibrator embedded in the Envoy® middle ear implantable system manufactured by St. Croix Medical Inc., the vibrator is mounted at one end thereof to one side of the tympanic bone and abuts the other end thereof against the auditory ossicle so that an acoustic vibration signal is transmitted to the auditory ossicle in response to the vibration of an piezoelectric element. However, such a conventional piezoelectric type vibrator still has a problem in that its mechanical construction is complicated which is designed for allowing an appropriate pressure to be maintained at the contact portions at the time of mounting one end of the vibrator to the tympanic bone and connecting its other end to the auditory ossicle, as well as allowing an otolaryngologist to easily perform the hearing aid implantation operation in a short time period.

Piezoelectric type vibrator, implantable hearing aid with the same, and method of implanting the same

Kyungpook National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation


Systems and methods utilize a display to provide universal remote control functionality. A menu of options appears on a display of a display device. A user can navigate the various options to control devices that are separate from the display device. The menu may be dynamically configured according to the context in which the display device is being used. The menu may be activated using a remote control device or other device and the menu may include options for controlling one or more devices that are absent from the remote control device.

The present invention relates generally to remote control devices and more specifically it relates to a remote control solution for devices, applications and content by combining a controller with an on-TV user interface that is adaptable to communicate with and control various devices and/or applications.
Remote control devices have been in use for many years. Remote control devices are utilized to operate various external electronic devices including but not limited to televisions, stereos, receivers, VCRs, DVD players, CD players, amplifiers, equalizers, tape players, cable units, lighting, window shades and other electronic devices. A conventional remote control is typically comprised of a housing structure, a keypad within the housing structure for entering commands by the user, electronic circuitry within the housing structure connected to the keypad, and a transmitter electrically connected to the electronic circuitry for transmitting a control signal to an electronic device to be operated.
The user depresses one or more buttons upon the keypad when a desired operation of a specific electronic device is desired. For example, if the user desires to turn the power off to a VCR, the user will depress the power button upon the remote control which transmits a "power off" control signal that is detected by the VCR resulting in the VCR turning off.
Because of the multiple electronic devices currently available within many homes and businesses today, a relatively new type of remote control is utilized to allow for the control of a plurality of electronic devices commonly referred to as a "universal remote control." Most universal remote controls have "selector buttons" that are associated with the specific electronic device to be controlled by the remote control (e.g. television, VCR; DVD player, etc.). Universal remote control devices allow for the control of a plurality of external electronic devices with a single remote control, thereby eliminating the need to have a plurality of remote controls physically present within a room.
Conventional universal remote controls are typically programmed using two methods: (1) entering an "identifier code" directly into the remote control, or (2) sampling the control signal transmitted by another remote control device. Neither method of programming a universal remote control is efficient and, therefore, many consumers either choose not to purchase a universal remote control or abandon the usage of an already purchased remote control.
Entering identifier codes into a remote control can be time-consuming and difficult for many users. If the user loses the "code book" that comes with the universal remote control he or she is oftentimes left with a useless universal remote control that he or she is unable to reprogram. Oftentimes a consumer is given four to eight different possible identifier codes for a particular brand of electronic device, thereby requiring the user to, through trial and error, determine the correct identifier code. Sometimes an individual believes he or she has entered the proper identifier code since one or two of the commands on the keypad work only to find out later that one or more commands do not work, with the electronic device since the proper identifier code was not entered.
Also, sampling of control signals is very time-consuming and difficult to ensure proper sampling. An individual must expend significant amounts of time sampling infrared signals from another remote control and saving these signals within the universal remote control, thereafter assigning the particular signal to a button on the keypad. This is very labor-intensive and the results are only as stable as the infrared code sampled.
There are also other problems with conventional universal remote controls that make them less desirable for consumers. For example, many universal remote controls have a large number of buttons, many of which may never be used, since the manufacturers attempt to have physical buttons for each possible command of each possible electronic device. Additionally, even when large numbers of buttons are included in the remote, the programming and compatibility of the remote with new devices are often limited.
Another problem with conventional universal remote controls is that the electronic components within these devices are relatively complex and expensive to manufacture, resulting in an increased cost to the consumer.
While these devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they are addressed, from the perspectives of cost, ease of use, and expandability, they are not optimal. Accordingly, there exist ongoing needs to provide remote control systems that can be applied to multiple devices in a more intuitive and expandable manner.

Remote control system for connected devices


A method and device for the automated large scale preparation for testing of drug-drug interactions, particularly with determination of IC50 and Ki, as a screening tool enhancement for determining viability of large numbers of compounds as drug candidates. Small samples of specific probe substrates and new compound inhibitors are automatically dispensed en masse into multi-welled reaction plates which are prefilled with thawed human microsomes, buffer and cofactor. The reaction plates are incubated and the reaction products are tested within degradation time limits, for initial biological determinations of relevant interaction effects of the compounds. The device used for the preparations comprises computer controlled multiple liquid handling cannulas, micropipetting members, refrigeration, freezer and temperature controlled incubator units, vacuum filtration device, bar code tracking of the plates, transport mechanisms for movement and manipulation of multiwell plates and sample mixing elements with coordinated timing of all operations within limited time frame testing parameters.

This invention relates to an improved in vitro method for determining the potential for drug-drug interaction involving cytochrome P450s (CYP) with new chemical entities. This invention further relates to the in vitro determination testing of in vivo drug-drug interactions, particularly as they affect liver metabolism, as an initial or primary screen for compounds as drug candidates.
Unfavorable drug-drug interactions (DDI) are responsible for approximately 1-2% of clinically relevant DDI, which while a relatively small number, are nevertheless an important factor in determining whether a new chemical entity will successfully make it beyond a drug discovery program to development. In addition, the late discovery of a clinically significant drug-drug interaction (which would likely eliminate a drug from use) for an otherwise promising candidate could result in the significant economic waste of testing resources already expended on a project.
It is therefore important to screen for potential interactions early on, as well as to select the most appropriate in vivo studies. In this regard, drug interactions with cytochrome P450s (CYPs) are particularly important. CYP1A2, CYP2C, CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 represent greater than 90% of total hepatic P450 and nearly 80% of therapeutic drugs are metabolized by these same enzymes. Interaction with one or more of these enzymes in vivo would pose a potentially relevant event in the clinic. Recently, it has been established that in vitro systems have proven capable of predicting the likelihood of DDI as they allow identification of the CYPs responsible for metabolism as well as determination of the relative contribution to overall elimination of the inhibited pathways.
Since the number of molecules synthesized by pharmaceutical companies has dramatically increased with the utilization of combinatorial chemistry, there is now a shift in emphasis towards earlier implementation of higher throughput in vitro studies for metabolism or lead optimization. The prediction of drug-drug interactions of new chemical entities (NCEs) using in vitro methods, such as human microsomes (HLMs), hepatocytes or individual expressed CYPs has escalated both in importance and scale of use, as one way to reliably avoid potential interactions in vivo.
Actual DDI testing, such as determination of IC50 or Ki values, is relatively efficient and rapid. It is however, the preparation of the samples, to provide valid in vitro results that is the most exacting portion of the testing protocol and it is such preparation, within rigid short time limit constraints (as a function of testing material degradation), available personnel, equipment, and limited amount of material (microsome, compound samples, etc.), that has limited increased scale-up of initial evaluations and screening of compounds.
Current methodologies involving manual test sample preparation have proven inadequate with respect to increased throughput. A major factor for such inadequacy is the instability of the testing materials, particularly the microsomes which tend to decrease in activity by approximately one hour after being thawed and incubated from freezer storage. Unless the preparation, timing and testing are carefully controlled and coordinated, inaccurate results are likely to be obtained from materials that have not been prepared and tested within the available time window before significant loss of enzyme activity occurs.
Furthermore, due to the vast number of compounds to be tested for initial screening, it is viable to synthesize only small quantities of the compounds for such initial testing. In addition, there is the availability of only limited amounts of microsomes for the testing of the vastly increased number of compounds as would be required for the increased through-put. Accordingly, in addition to the time coordination required for scaled up testing, there is a need for adequately obtaining accurate test results with limited availability of testing materials.
Currently, manual preparations for determinations of DDI in vitro, are gaining in speed and efficiency through the use of 96 and 384 well plates and multi-well pipetting of test sample material. However, other operations of thawing of samples, incubation, plate transport, mixing, etc. are still done manually, with attendant problems of timing and coordination which limit the number of testing samples which can be reliably prepared.
At least four test plates are used in a single testing procedure or run (for compound/CYP enzyme substrate, reaction, filtration and collection) that involve the steps of thawing, preparation, incubation, mixing, and processing of inhibitor compounds being tested (NCEs) with a particular probe (cytochrome P450-specific substrates) and thawed microsomes which are buffered and provided with cofactor. Coordination and efficiency of handling of the various plates during processing is exponentially more difficult with the increased number of compounds being tested and the short time frame allowed for processing which does not change with the increase of tests for which the compounds are prepared.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an efficient time-coordinated automated system for preparing a large number of drug candidate compounds for drug-drug interactions testing as an initial screen for viability, within the time constraints of material degradation. Preparation includes the operations of material thawing and incubation, test well filling, mixing (with attendant reactions), and vacuum filtration and coordinated test plate transport to operational stations.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system which automatically effects the continuous requisite steps of preparation and test well filling with HLM (after thawing, buffering and addition of co-factor), addition of CYP-specific probe substrates and inhibitor compounds (NCEs) to be tested and controls; incubation, mixing, test tray or plate handling and transport to preparation, operation and testing stations, all within a time window needed, prior to actual testing, before the onset of material degradation.
It is still yet another object of the present invention to effectively minimize test sample amounts, particularly with availability of only small amounts of synthesized inhibitor compound samples and microsomes, by enhancing testing intra and inter reproducibility of standards and particularly with automated single concentration testing of compounds and enzymes.
Co-pending provisional application no. 60/193,717, filed Mar. 31, 2000, describes the use of single point concentrations for effective DDI determinations. The disclosure thereof is included herein in its entirety by reference thereto, which disclosure already minimizes the need for materials with attendant speed in obtaining results without any significant loss of accuracy in obtaining viable results and which utilization is further enhanced by the automation thereof.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a fully operational test preparation system which is self operable to the limits of its storage capacity of processed components and materials, without manual intervention.
Generally the present invention comprises a synchronized, time coordinated method and device for the fully automated multiple-plate in vitro preparation of compounds which are candidates for drugs (NCEs), for drug-drug interaction testing, particularly for testing involving cytochrome P450 (CYP), CYP1A2, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP2D6 and CYP3A4, as a step screening for viability in mammals and particularly humans. To facilitate the time coordinated preparation, non-degrading elements involved in the preparation are made ready prior to an actual test run with degrading materials such as microsomes. Thus, generally stable candidate compounds (NCEs) are preferably pre-mixed in multi-well plates with the CYP-specific probe substrates in the requisite permutations and combinations, for use during the test specimen preparation and reactions with the microsomes.
The method of the present invention comprises processing of one, and preferably offset or tandem pairs of testing plates, in a test run, of a predetermined number of single or test plate pairs, with the automated steps of:
a) retrieving frozen microsome samples from a freezer storage unit (with a storage condition of about xe2x88x9220xc2x0 C.), with a timed, automated mechanical transport mechanism, to a thawing site or unit (in a lesser preferred embodiment the temperature of the freezer unit itself is elevated to thawing conditions-without need for transport);
b) defrosting or thawing the frozen microsome samples, such as by exposure to 4xc2x0 C. ambient conditions and combining a measured portion (e.g., aliquot) of the thawed microsome samples with cofactor (e.g., NADPH and regenerating system) and buffer into a substantially homogenous mixture (M/C/B);
c) mechanically introducing (such as by aliquoting) a predetermined quantity of the combination (M/C/B) into each of individual wells of a multiwell reaction plate and preferably pre-incubating the combination;
d) automatically mechanically combining (such as by aliquot introduction) the (M/C/B) samples in the wells of the reaction plate with S/I solutions of preselected CYP specific probe substrate and inhibitor compounds (NCEs);
e) incubating the reaction plate with contained microsome samples (M/C/B), preselected CYP-specific probe substrate and inhibitor compounds (NCEs), to 37xc2x0 C. (for humans or other in vivo emulation condition for the particular mammal) for a pre-determined period of time to effect a reaction with resultant reaction products;
f) stopping any reactions which occur, at the end of the pre-determined period of time, purifying reaction products and using the reaction products in an analysis test for determining the extent of any drug-drug interactions relative to the respective inhibitor compounds (NCEs) and respective CYP-specific probe substrates;
wherein steps c-f are repeated for a pre-determined number of times as individual test runs, with pre-thawed microsome samples, wherein, simultaneously with the steps of paragraphs c-f of one run, additional microsomes are removed from the freezer unit, thawed, and held at a holding site, for immediate use in steps c-f of a subsequent test run, wherein timing of when the frozen microsome are initially removed for thawing during steps c-f is such that removal is at the same point in time during said steps of each of the individual test runs and wherein duration of thawing and any pre-incubation is the same for all of the runs and incubation periods are pre-calculated and adapted to be of the same duration in each of said pair of plates during a test run,
with the processing of plate pairs, while the first plate is in the first incubator, steps a-f are immediately repeated for the second plate of the first pair of the test run, with the pre-thawed microsome samples. In all cases, simultaneously with the steps of paragraphs a-f of one run (for the unit or for either of the pair as applicable), additional microsome samples are removed from the freezer unit, thawed, and held at a holding site, for immediate use in steps a-f of a subsequent test run. The timing of when the frozen microsome are initially removed for thawing during steps a-e is such that this removal is at the same point in time during said steps of each of the next test runs. In addition, duration of thawing is substantially the same for all of the runs and furthermore, to maintain synchronous operation, all pre-incubation (if any) and incubation periods are pre-calculated and adapted to be of the same duration per test run of unitary or pair of plates as applicable. It is understood that additional numbers of closely simultaneously processed plates per test run are simply scaled and timed accordingly.
After a single plate has been incubated or for a paired plate embodiment, once plate two has been returned to the incubator, the plates are then processed in series as described in steps g-i:
g) pre-determined amounts of the reaction products are mechanically transferred into individual wells of a multiwell filtration plate, and any reaction product is obtained such as by vacuum filtering; and the collection plate is covered and stored for subsequent analysis testing.
h) Step g is repeated for the second plate of a plate pair, as applicable.
i) Steps a-i are then repeated for any subsequent units or pairs of plates for drug-drug interaction testing.
After steps a-i are completed for all unitary or pairs of plates for drug-drug interaction testing, the stacked filtration collection plates are removed from the automated work station and the individual filtrates of the reaction products are sent for an analysis such as an IC50 or Ki test for determining the extent of any drug-drug interactions.
The testing preparation device of the present invention which is utilized to effect the above steps comprises a computer controlled and coordinated device having:
a) a freezer unit for storing microsomes or recombinant microsomes;
b) a thawing unit or site for thawing said microsomes prior to use of the microsomes in the preparation of testing samples (the thawing unit may also comprise a portion of the freezer which is capable of being heated to a thawing temperature);
c) timed computerized means for removing frozen microsomes from the freezer unit to the thawing unit for the thawing of the microsomes (or for conversion of the freezer unit to a thawing unit without removal);
d) means for the buffering of the microsomes and with addition of co-factor to the microsomes, such as with fluid introduction means which transfers a preset quantity of microsomes into a trough containing co-factor materials and buffer (M/C/B trough) and mixing means for the homogeneous mixing of microsomes, buffer and cofactor in said trough;
e) a computer controlled and timed manipulation and transport mechanism for the holding, transporting and removal of multi-well test plates to and from operational stations of said device and for positioning of the plates at said operational stations for appropriate operation thereat, with said test plates being any one of reaction plates, filtration plates and collection plates;
f) a first operation station with fluid introduction means for simultaneously filling a plurality of predetermined wells of a reaction plate with a preset quantity of M/C/B;
g) a second operation station for optionally pre-incubating MIC/B to a pre-determined elevated temperature for a pre-determined period of time, to facilitate subsequent reaction time;
h) a third operation station for combining microsomes in wells of said reaction plate with a cytochrome P450 enzyme substrate and an inhibitor compound (S/I);
i) a fourth operation station for incubating said combination in said reaction plate in step h) to a temperature of about 37xc2x0 C. for reaction thereof for a pre-determined period of time;
j) quenching means for stopping said reaction after said pre-determined period of time;
k) transfer means for transfer of reaction products from the wells of said reaction plate to wells of a filtration plate;
l) filtration means such as a vacuum for filtering the reaction product;
m) computerized timing means for synchronizing simultaneous operations with respect to each of the plates and the respective contents in the wells thereof, as well as timing of the thawing and pre-incubation, as appropriate, and incubation periods and initiation of thawing of microsomes for a subsequent test run;
n) a station for tracking test plates and contents thereof such as by reading a bar code identification to track each plate;
o) a holding area for each pre-thawed vial of microsomes for use in subsequent test runs;
p) the device further preferably comprises storage areas for maintaining plates for use in a pre-determined number of runs, with the respective plates being accessible by the manipulation and transport mechanism.
Solution transfer means are preferably embodied in multiple tip cannulas or pipettes which perform multiple aliquot operations.
It is understood that the term xe2x80x9cfillingxe2x80x9d refers to the act of filling and is not to construed as a completion of filling the entire volume of any well. The use of 37xc2x0 C. for incubation is relative to use of the present invention with human DDI testing and other in vivo emulation conditions are determined relative to the particular mammal.
The above objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more evident from the following discussion and drawings in which:

Method and device for drug-drug interaction testing sample preparation


The devices and methods shown provide for the minimization of extravasation during arthroscopic surgery. The extravasation minimization device allows a surgeon to drain excess fluids from the soft tissue surrounding the surgical field during arthroscopic surgical procedures.

During minimally invasive surgeries, surgical instruments such as trocars, cannulas, and optical medical devices, including endoscopes, cystoscopes, arthroscopes, laparoscopes, etc., are inserted through small incisions or portals in a patient's body or body cavity and manipulated to perform surgical procedures within the patient. Minimally invasive surgical procedures are safer than open surgery and result in quicker patient recovery, shorter hospital stays, and lower health care costs. Accordingly, minimizing invasiveness continues to be of importance, and there is a continuing need for devices and methods that achieve this objective.
One area that has benefited from minimally invasive surgical techniques is shoulder surgery. Shoulder surgery has evolved over the last several years from being an open surgical procedure to an arthroscopic surgical procedure. This evolution is the result of technological advances in equipment, instruments and implants.
During surgery, fluid is introduced into the surgical site to expand the joint and control bleeding. A major concern involving arthroscopic surgery of the shoulder is extravasation. Extravasation is the migration of interstitial fluid such as blood, irrigation fluids or medications into tissue surrounding an infusion site. Fluid escaping into the soft tissues of the shoulder and the periscapular region can have adverse effects on the patient. Some of these effects include tracheal compression, the accumulation of blood or clots in the joint (hemarthrosis), the forming of blood clots in veins (thrombophlebitis), arterial injury, nerve injury, the compression of blood vessels and nerves surrounding the joint (compartment syndrome), and infection. These effects cause longer recovery time as well as pain and discomfort in patients. Extravasation occurring during surgery can also cause premature collapse of the surgical field forcing surgeons to rush procedures. Because of the effects caused by extravasation, devices and methods are needed to reduce extravasation during arthroscopic shoulder surgery.


A device suitable for playing different types of information carriers, such as a CD and an MMCD, on which the information is recorded in a track pattern that has various physical parameters. The processing of the read signal for information reproduction, and the servo such as the drive motor and the servotracking, are to be set to the particular type of information carrier. For determining the type of information carrier, the device includes a discriminator. During a discrimination process, a read signal is generated without the servo tracking facility being in operation. Signal properties related to the physical parameters are then derived from the read signal, based upon which properties the type of information carrier is determined.

This invention relates to a device for reading an information carrier on which an information pattern is recorded in the form of substantially parallel running tracks of readable effects or features, the device comprising a read head for generating a read signal by scanning the information carrier at a scanning position, servo tracking means for keeping the scanning position on the track, and discriminating means for determining the type of information carrier, the information pattern having at least one different physical parameter for each type of information carrier.
Such a device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,724,492. This device is suitable for playing an audio Compact Disc (CD), a video Laser Disc with an FM-modulated audio signal (LD) and a video Laser Disc with a digital audio signal (LDD). During playback, the recorded information signal is recovered from the information pattern, while the signal processing and the settings of the servo means, among which drive motor control and servo tracking means, are to be adapted to the respective type of information carrier. For this purpose, the device includes discriminating means for determining a type of information carrier. The CD is distinguished on the basis of the diameter which is sensed by a sensor. The LD and LDD differ in recorded information pattern in the presence of the digital audio signal. To distinguish the LD from the LDD, the servo means are set, the disc is brought to speed and the read head is positioned over the track by the servo tracking means. Then, part of the information pattern is scanned during which operation the read signal is demodulated for recovering the information signal. A discrimination circuit finally detects the presence of the digital audio signal in that the frame sync occurs in the information signal.
A problem in the prior-art device is that for discriminating the types of information carriers in which only the information pattern is different, a complicated procedure is to be applied, which leads to the time-consuming determination of the type of information carrier.

Device for reading an information carrier, including a discriminator for determining the type of information carrier


In a method for permitting change of an electronic card without powering off and a communications device employing the method, the communications device includes a control module, a card connector for receiving the electronic card, and a trigger module. The method includes: when the communications device is in an on state, triggering the trigger module to generate a trigger signal to the control module; enabling the control module to determine a card insertion mode if it is detected that a state of electrical connection of the card connector with an electronic card changes from a disconnected state to a connected state after receipt of the trigger signal; and enabling the control module for supplying power to the electronic card inserted into the card connector upon determining the card insertion mode.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a communications device having an electronic card installed therein and a method for permitting change of the electronic card, more particularly to a method for permitting change of an electronic card without powering off, and a communications device employing the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile communications products are becoming indispensable for modern people, and there are currently available a number of communications systems. Since conventional single-mode handsets are incapable of supporting different communications systems, dual-mode handsets, such as those supporting the PHS system and the GSM system, or even multi-mode handsets, have been developed. With the fast development of communications technology, there are also the 3G system, the 3.5G system, or even the WiFi system. Therefore, multi-mode handsets capable of operating on different communications systems are in demand.
With reference to FIG. 1, for a conventional dual-mode handset 9, a user can put two SIM (subscriber identity module) cards 81, 82 supplied by different communications system service providers in the dual-mode handset 9 so as to be able to use the services provided by two different communications systems.
The dual-mode handset 9 includes a first electrical connector 921 disposed in a circuit module 911 provided in an interior of a housing 910 thereof. The first electrical connector 921 is disposed immediately below a battery module 93 for insertion of the first SIM card 81 (primary card) thereinto. A second electrical connector 922 is disposed at a lateral side of the housing 910 for insertion of the second SIM card 82 (secondary card) thereinto.
However, to install or remove the first SIM card 81, the handset 9 has to be powered off first. Then, the battery module 93 and a back cover 912 are removed to allow installation or removal of the first SIM card 81, which is rather troublesome. For the second SIM card 82, since there is no need to remove the battery module 93, the user may forget to power off the handset 9 before installing or removing the second SIM card 82, which may result in damage to the second SIM card 82. The conventional dual-mode handset 9 is therefore undesirable in terms of user convenience.

Method for permitting change of an electronic card without powering off and communications device employing the method


A tensioning arrangement uses a tendon to pull together (pre-stress) a hollow steel arm and a bracket in a localized area around the joint between the arm and the bracket in order to induce localized compressive stresses that will reduce the wind-induced, intermittent tensile stresses and hence minimize fatigue at the joint between the arm and the bracket.

Steel power transmission poles have steel arms to support electric conductors. The steel arms are often tubular in cross section with varying lengths that may reach 20 feet or greater. The steel arms project horizontally from the steel poles. The steel poles also have shorter steel arms, typically located at the very top of the pole, to support the ground wires, also referred to as the shield or static wire arms. Each of the steel arms is made of a steel shell (tube) and has a hollow interior. The steel arms are welded to a bracket, which is then bolted to steel plates that are welded to the steel pole. The tubular steel arms can be tapered or non-tapered.
Wind loads on these arms can cause the arms to vibrate. The repeated flexing at the welded joint creates fatigue stresses, which may cause fatigue cracking at the welded joint. In order to address this problem, the practice has been to secure the arms to the pole with tie down cables immediately upon installation. Also, the specifications for welding the arms to the brackets require a substantial weld which requires a substantial expenditure of time and material for the welding process.


A system is disclosed herein. The system having a backdrive assembly that includes a spring body retainer having a first body portion, the spring body retainer configured for rotational movement about an axis. A biasing member is provided that is configured to exert a backdriving force on the spring body retainer. A spring leg retainer is provided having a second body portion and a plurality of projections, the spring leg retainer being configured to incrementally apply a preload torque to the biasing member. A spring locking plate is operably connected to the spring leg retainer, the spring locking plate being configured to engage at least one of the plurality of projections.

Backdrive assemblies are used to return a mechanism connected to the assembly back to an initial position after being actuated. For example, a backdrive assembly may be used with a motor shaft, gear trains, or levers such as, for example, a vehicle door latch. The backdrive assembly includes a torsion spring that may be connected to and rotates, for example, a gear that back drives a complementary nut attached thereto by exerting a proportional and opposite twisting force to the gear. Convention backdrive assemblies that use torsion springs are not easy to assemble into the gear and/or the nut with a pre-load. These springs are assembled with the mechanism and must be twisted to create a specific torsion load. These springs may lose their pre-winding loads after removal of the assembly fixture from the mechanism. Typical issues include the springs popping up from the gear/nut, losing turns, or legs of the torsion spring disconnecting from the gear and/or nut.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a backdrive arrangement with a variable bias preload during manufacturing of the system. More specifically, it is desirable to provide a backdrive arrangement that employs a variable preload feature for retaining the backdrive biasing member to the assembly at a defined preload while at a rest position.

Backdrive assembly with a variable preload


A motor drive device includes a motor including a high-speed drive winding and a low-speed drive winding, a winding switching portion switching the connection states of the high-speed drive winding and the low-speed drive winding of the motor, a power conversion portion connected to the motor, and a plurality of case portions housing at least the motor, the winding switching portion, and the power conversion portion, while the plurality of case portions are coupled to each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motor drive device and a vehicle.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, a motor drive device including a motor including a high-speed drive winding and a low-speed drive winding is known. Such a motor drive device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2010-17055, for example.
In the aforementioned Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2010-17055, there is disclosed a motor drive device including a motor including a high-speed drive winding and a low-speed drive winding, a winding switching portion switching the connection states of the two windings of the motor, and an inverter (power conversion portion) connected to the motor.
In the conventional motor drive device including the motor, the winding switching portion, and the power conversion portion disclosed in the aforementioned Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2010-17055, the motor, the winding switching portion, and the power conversion portion are generally housed in separate case portions and placed separately.


A receiver circuit (12) includes a first gate (24) that receives an input signal (VIN0, VIN1) and has an output (32, 34) for providing an output signal (VG0, VG1). A shifting circuit (20) is coupled for shifting the common mode potential of the input signal to produce a shifted signal (VSH0, VSH1). A second gate (22) has an input (27, 28) that receives the shifted signal and an output coupled to the output of the first gate.

The present invention relates to semiconductor devices and, more particularly, to high speed circuits for receiving logic signals of multiple logic families.
Many electronic systems are implemented using integrated circuits of different logic families. For example, computer systems often use complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) circuits to perform computational functions, low voltage differential signaling (LVDS) circuits for disk drive data signals, and positive emitter-coupled logic (PECL) circuits for clock drivers. These logic circuits are typically incompatible with each other in the sense that voltage levels specified for circuits of one logic family do not fall within the voltage range specified for circuits of a different logic family. Hence, data is lost or noise immunity is substantially impaired. For this reason, a receiver-translator circuit often is used to translate between signals of different logic families.
Most previous receivers are configured to receive signals of only one logic family, so systems must utilize a different translator for each combination of distinct logic families. The result is a higher system cost because of the need to inventory multiple translators and, since fewer translators of each type are used, the lack of economies of scale.
Other previous translators receive signals from multiple logic families. While these devices operate at a high speed for signals from at least one logic family, their specified common mode input voltage range is limited, which results in a significant speed reduction for signals whose common mode levels fall outside the specified range.
Hence, there is a need for a receiver-translator circuit that can receive signals operating over a wider common mode range while maintaining a high speed operation regardless of the common mode levels of the incoming logic signals.

High speed receiver with wide input voltage range

Semiconductor Components Industries, L.L.C.


A laser beam printer having an image formation cartridge which is mounted in and dismounted from a printer body, and a light source for radiating a laser beam modulated in accordance with image data. The laser beam radiated from the light source enters the image formation cartridge from a front side of the printer body toward a rear side of the printer body. The image formation cartridge has a substantially non-reflective surface or alternatively a diffused surface around a laser beam receiving portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laser beam printer, and more particularly to a laser beam printer for forming a toner image on a sheet in an electrophotographic method.
2. Description of Related Art
In the art of laser beam printer, measures to protect an operator from a laser beam have been developed. For example, a shutter is provided in an optical system so as to prevent leakage of the laser beam from the printer, and a safety circuit is incorporated in a driving circuit of a laser beam source so as to stop electric supply to the laser beam source when the printer is opened.
The operator's safety must be guaranteed a hundred percent at any time. Therefore further safety arrangements are required which are always effective even if the above safety devices are inoperative.


It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of manufacturing a self-emission unit including a self-emission module having self-emission elements formed on a substrate, and a frame for protecting the self-emission modules, without carrying out some troublesome steps, thus making it possible to manufacture the self-emission unit in a shortened time. Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved self-emission unit capable of being attached to an attachment base with a high precision. The self-emission unit has a self-emission module and a frame. The frame is provided to cover a part or the whole of the self-emission module so as to protect the same. Further, the frame has fastening sections for attaching the self-emission module to an attachment base. The frame is formed integrally with the self-emission module so that it is possible to avoid some troublesome steps and thus shorten manufacturing time. The foregoing structure also makes it possible to improve an attachment precision when attaching the self-emission unit to an attachment base.

The present invention relates to a self-emission unit and a method of manufacturing the same.
The present application claims priority from Japanese Application No. 2005-276216, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
There has been known a self-emission display panel formed by using self-emission elements such as organic EL (electroluminescent) elements. There has also been known a display panel such as a liquid crystal display panel formed by using liquid crystal display elements. Actually, a conventional display panel is usually received into a frame (holder) formed in an additional step called frame formation step. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-151376 has disclosed a portable terminal device whose display elements are received into a holder.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional self-emission unit 100J includes a self-emission module 10 and a protection frame 30J. The self-emission module 10 comprises a plurality of self-emission elements each having a basic structure including a luminescent functional layer containing a self-emission film, interposed between an upper electrode and a lower electrode formed on a transparent board (substrate) 21. The substrate 21 has lead-out wires 22 which are connected with the lower electrodes and the upper electrodes of the self-emission elements, also electrically connected with a driving circuit (driver) 23. The driving circuit 23 is electrically connected with a flexible wiring board (wiring substrate) 24. Further, a sealing member 25 is provided to air-tightly seal up the self-emission elements formed on the substrate 21, while a protection layer 26 is formed on the lead-out wires 22 and the driving circuit 23. In addition, an identifying information (type number) 27 is printed near the center of the sealing member 25.
On the other hand, the frame 30J is formed in a frame formation step, so that an opening 31 is formed on one side of the frame and claw-like fastening portions 32 are formed near the opening 31 for fixing the frame to the substrate 21, while fastening sections 33 are formed near the back side of the frame for fixing the frame 30J to a frame structure serving as an attachment base. Further, a wiring board receiving recess 34 is formed on one side of the frame 30J and an opening 35 is formed near the center of the frame 31.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are explanatory views showing an assembled self-emission unit 100J. In detail, FIG. 2A is a perspective view showing the back side of the self-emission unit 100J, FIG. 2B is another perspective view showing the front side of the self-emission unit 100J.
The substrate 21 and the frame 30J are assembled together. In detail, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 2A and 2B, an adhesive material 28 such as a double-sided adhesive tape is attached to the sealing member 25 so as to fit and thus fix the self-emission module 10 in the opening 31 of the frame 30J. At this time, the fastening portions 32 are engaged with the edge portions of the substrate 21 so as to fix together the substrate 21 and the frame 30J. Further, a reflection preventing polarizing plate 29 is disposed on the substrate 21. In such an assembled self-emission unit, an identifying information (type number) printed near the central portion of the sealing member 25 is visible from an opening 35 of the frame 30J. Afterwards, the assembled self-emission unit 100J is engaged into a frame structure such as cellular phone and fixed in position by virtue of the fastening sections 33.
As described above, the foregoing self-emission unit 100J requires an assembling process for assembling together the self-emission module 10 and the frame (holder made of resin) 30 formed in advance at a step different from a step for making the self-emission module 10, thus requiring an increased manufacturing time. Moreover, the assembling process requires a troublesome step for disposing an adhesive material 28 such as a double-sided adhesive tape between the self-emission module 10 and the frame 30J, forming another cause for an increased manufacturing time. Besides, during the assembling process, the edge portions of the transparent substrate 21 are likely to wound an assembling machine or a human operator performing the assembling operation.
In addition, the conventional self-emission unit 100J requires another step for adjusting an attachment position when assembling together the frame 30 and the self-emission module 10, and a further step for adjusting another attachment position when attaching the self-emission unit 100J to an attachment base. As a result, there would be only a low positional accuracy for the position of the self-emission module 10J with respect to an attachment base.

Self-emission unit with integrally formed module and protecting frame


A process for the adjustment of signals obtained from an image, in which analogue signals representative of the image are pre-emphasized and converted to digital signals. The digital signals are then de-emphasized and simultaneously or subsequently adjusted.

Film is the most common originating material for television programmes. There has to be therefore a method of sequentially scanning frames of film to convert them into electrical signals for broadcast. Specialist machines, referred to as telecine machines exist for this purpose. Such machines have been in existence since the 1920's. Current examples of such machines include the "URSA" machine, made by Rank Cintel Ltd., Ware, England, and the FDL-90 Machine, manufactured by Broadcast Technology Systems (BTS) of Germany.
It is well known that when film is exposed to light and processed, the light causes a change in the density of the film. The characteristic relationship between the density of the film and the light required to produce that density is referred to as the "Gamma Curve". Essentially, it is found that this characteristic, when plotted on natural logarithmic axes of exposure versus density has a substantially linear portion. The gradient of this linear region is actually referred to as the "Gamma value". This is described well by standard texts in the subject, such as "The Reproduction of Colour in Photography, Printing and Television", By Dr. R. W. G. Hunt (Fountain Press, ISBN 085242356).
It is also well known that when a television monitor, or cathode ray tube, is used as a viewing device, there is a similar characteristic with the electrical voltage used to drive the device and the light emerging from the face of the cathode ray tube. This characteristic is also linear in a `Log-Log` space. The typical value of gamma for a television monitor is approximately 2.5.
Thus, where a cathode ray tube is used as the illuminant for a telecine scanning system, if this light source is modulated, this device has a first gamma relationship, whilst the film to be scanned also has a gamma relationship, the detector to collect and measure the light may have a gamma characteristic, and finally the television monitor that the operator is using to view the image will also have a fourth relationship. In practice the CRT light source would probably be "fully on" and thus the gamma characteristics of this device may not be relevant. In any event, in the process of scanning film for television there are up to four separate gamma characteristics that need to be corrected for, apart from the change of characteristic necessary to artistically "lighten" or "darken" material. Various arrangements have been proposed for the alteration of the overall gamma relationship of viewed images. One such technique was used successfully by Rank Cintel in its Mk III telecine, of which over 1000 units have been sold. This is illustrated in FIG. 1. This technique involves an electrical circuit with a "logging" characteristic, followed by a second circuit with a "multiplication" function, with variable operand, followed finally by a third circuit of exponential characteristic. Because of the age of the Mk III telecine all of the above is implemented in analogue electronics, which is widely known to be prone to electrical drift, noise, and "hum". The "drift", caused by amongst other things the slow changing of electrical characteristic over time has to be counteracted by frequent realignment of the electrical circuitry by skilled personnel. Whilst various measures can be taken to reduce the impact of noise, analogue electrical circuitry will always suffer from this problem.
Film is available in two main forms. The first of these is positive film, which corresponds to slide or transparency film in laymen's language. This is characterised by a dark portion of the film corresponding to a dark portion of the original scene. The second form is negative film, which corresponds to the film used domestically to produce photographic prints. This type is characterised by the light portions of the film corresponding to the dark portions of the original scene. It is expected that both types of film can be transferred on a telecine machine. The discussion below will be solely in terms of positive film, although all of the principles involved work equally as well with negative.
Advances in digital electronic circuitry made it possible by the late 1980's to build an almost entirely digital telecine system. One such machine is the Rank Cintel URSA, launched in 1989. The function of this machine is shown in FIG. 2. After the light is received by an electrical photomultiplier tube, the resulting electrical signal is digitised through a high precision analogue to digital (A/D) converter device. This signal is then passed through a digital look-up table (LUT), which has been preloaded with a logarithmic characteristic. After this table, a digital multiplier chip can be used to perform the gamma adjustment, where the operand can be user-selected to effect the gamma change required by the operator. This is finally followed by another look-up table to exponentiate the multiplied signal.
Whilst this circuitry, being digital, does not suffer from the disadvantages of drift, it is known and observed that it inherently produces visible noise in the darker portions of the picture. This is because the analog to digital converter chips inherently produce noise, as shown in FIG. 4A. The speed requirement for these chips, being typically 18 MHz or higher, together with the precision of quantisation required means that even the best available chips show a fairly even noise characteristic throughout their range. By this, it is meant that the amount of noise produced by these chips is not significantly different at high or low parts of the electrical signal level. The desired overall effect of the gamma change is to produce an increase in the differential (or contrast) of the shadow tones; a typical gamma curve is shown in FIG. 4B. This has the undesirable effect of enhancing the visibility of the noise and quantisation problems in these shadow tones as shown in FIG. 4C.
One method of reducing this effect would be to utilise lower noise analog to digital converters. This is not possible at the moment, as the best available chips are already utilised.