A belt fixing unit, an image forming apparatus, and a toner material are disclosed capable of obviating undesirable fixing belt deformation and low image quality. The belt fixing unit includes a fixing roller, a heating roller, a fixing belt, and a pressing roller in contact with the fixing roller to form a fixing nip having the fixing belt intervening there between, the fixing belt including at least a base member formed of a heat-resisting resin having a thickness of 90 μm or smaller and acted upon by a tensile force of 0.49 N/mm or less. The toner is a low-melting point toner formed by subjecting a toner preparatory solution containing at least a prepolymer having a functional group containing a nitrogen atom, a polyester, a colorant and a releasing agent dispersed in an organic solvent to extension and/or crosslinking reactions in an aqueous medium.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a belt fixing unit, an image forming apparatus incorporating the fixing unit, and a toner material suitably used in the fixing unit capable of obviating undesirable fixing belt deformation and concomitant results of partial underdevelopment of electrophotographic images.
2. Discussion of the Background
As to an image fixing process undertaken in an image forming apparatus making use of electrophotography and electrostatic recording, a heat roller fixing unit is known, including a fixing roller having an internal heat source and a pressing roller pressed against the fixing roller. An image transfer sheet carrying an unfixed toner image is conveyed through a fixing nip between the fixing roller and the pressing roller, whereby the toner image is fixed onto the transfer sheet. The toner fixation is therefore carried out by heat transferred from the fixing roller and pressure applied by these rollers.
In the image fixing process, a toner, comprising at least resin materials, is melted to be fixed through either contacting the surface or penetrating into the texture of a transfer sheet under constant pressure.
It is known that the quality of fixed images depends more on the degree of toner melting than on the applied pressure. That is, toner melting conditions primarily determine the resulting quality of a fixed image.
As mentioned above, an unfixed toner image is conveyed in a conventional fixing unit through a fixing nip between the fixing roller and the pressing roller. The fixing nip comprises a pressurized portion at a high temperature generated by a heated roller brought to a close contact with a pressing roller, whereby the process of melting the toner and applying a pressure is performed while conveying a transfer sheet through the fixing nip.
In the fixing process utilized in a conventional image forming apparatus, the sheet conveyance speed generally ranges from 100 to 500 mm/s with the fixing nip width ranging from 4 to 10 mm.
In the heat roller fixing unit, a roller fixing method has been used in which a pressing roller formed with an elastic member on its surface roller is brought into contact with a fixing roller provided internally with a heat source.
Since the fixing nip in the roller fixing method is formed with the rollers contacting each other, the length of the fixing nip is inherently limited, and the linear speed of the fixing and the pressing rollers is relatively slow. Therefore, this method is not suitable for use in a high speed image forming apparatus.
Besides the roller fixing method, a belt fixing method has recently come into widespread use as exemplified by Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-307496.
In contrast to the roller fixing method having a limited fixing nip length, the belt fixing method offers the advantage of a wider nip length as an improved feature among other important requirements of the image fixing process.
This fixing nib length corresponds to a range in which a toner is melted to be pressed to a transfer sheet under high temperature and pressure. In order to increase the nip width over a certain level in the roller fixing method, the roller diameter has to be larger, undesirably increasing the overall size of the image forming apparatus.
In the roller fixing method, by contrast, the fixing nip can be formed by utilizing a flexible belt wound around a roller having a relatively small diameter. As a result, a fixing nip having a sufficient width can be formed even in a small space in the apparatus.
The belt fixing method, however, has a drawback, as discussed next.
In a relatively small image forming apparatus of low productivity, small diameter rollers are suitably used. When the image forming apparatus and its units, such as the belt fixing unit in particular, are kept on a stand-by state for a prolonged period time, the fixing belt experiences high tensile stresses, and portions of the belt disposed along respective circumferential surfaces of the rollers may experience plastic deformation.
If the deformation is not easily restored after the system resumes operation, this deformation may cause several problems such as, for example, the irregularity in the rotation of the fixing belt and in the adherence to the heating roller. This may result in uneven heat conduction and concomitant results of partial underdevelopment among others.
This difficulty may seemingly be avoidable by increasing the tensile force applied to the fixing belt. Since the deformation can be released with more ease by increasing the tensile force, this measure may be allowed to some extent. In order to increase the tensile force, the members supporting the fixing belt, such as heating roller, fixing roller and others, also have to be reinforced accordingly.
Such reinforcement, however, will result in the increase not only in the volume of the rollers but also in heat capacity of the apparatus as a whole. As a result, since the time for heating increases, not only accessibility and serviceability worsen, but, the overall energy consumption of the apparatus increases.
It is desirable, therefore, to provide a belt fixing unit, an image forming apparatus incorporating the fixing unit, and a toner material suitably used in the fixing unit capable of obviating undesirable fixing belt deformation and partial underdevelopment of electrophotographic images.

Belt fixing unit with heat-resisting resin base member and image forming toner for use in the fixing unit


A developing agent replenishing apparatus includes a developing agent receiving port for receiving a developing agent from a replenishment cartridge which stores developing agent when the cartridge is mounted and a conveyor for conveying the developing agent received in the receiving port to a developing device. The developer agent receiving port has a receiving opening and the replenishment cartridge has a replenishment opening. Cylindrical expandable covers are provided at the receiving and replenishment openings for opening or closing these openings.

The present invention relates to a powder storing container containing powder, a developing agent cartridge which rotates to replenish a developing agent, a developing agent replenishing apparatus on which the developing agent cartridge is attached to supply a developing agent to a developing agent receiving port, and a color image forming apparatus loaded with a plurality of developing agent cartridges.
Heretofore, as a means to replenish a developing agent to a developing agent storing section of an image forming apparatus from a developing agent cartridge containing a developing agent, there has been known a device of a type wherein a developing agent cartridge is set in a main body when replenishing a developing agent, then developing agents in the developing agent cartridge are supplied to a developing agent receiving port, and after supplying is finished, the developing agent cartridge is removed from the main body. However, there has been a possibility in the replenishing method of the above-mentioned type that the developing agents are excessively supplied and overflow the developing agent receiving port because developing agents are supplied to the developing agent receiving port in a manner, which has required a means to prevent excessive replenishment of a developing agent. However, it is difficult to prevent excessive replenishment, and the conventional apparatus has been required to be high in cost and large in size, even if a means to prevent excessive replenishment can be installed on the apparatus. With the foregoing as a background, there has been developed a replenishing method of a type (Japanese Patent Application No. 088807/1994) published as Japanese Tokkai-Hei 7-295356 wherein a developing agent cartridge having therein a spiral-shaped protrusion is set in the apparatus main body, the developing agent cartridge is rotated around its central axis, developing agents are ejected from a developing agent outlet of the developing agent cartridge, and the developing agents are replenished to a developing agent receiving port. Since a developing agent cartridge is always loaded on the apparatus main body in the replenishing method of this type, it is possible to replenish developing agents to the developing agent receiving port by rotating the developing agent cartridge, when developing agents in the developing agent receiving port are reduced, which makes it unnecessary to prevent aforesaid excessive replenishment of a developing agent.
However, the developing agent cartridge and the developing agent replenishing apparatus which is loaded with the developing agent cartridge have the following problems.
(1) In the developing agent cartridge wherein it is mounted on or dismounted from a rotating force transmission member which transmits rotating force to the developing agent cartridge, while the developing agent cartridge is rotated, and an opening/closing cover provided at a developing agent replenishment opening is opened and closed respectively when the developing agent cartridge is mounted and dismounted, the opening is opened and closed when a cartridge fixing cover for the developing agent cartridge and a cartridge opening/closing cover are slid, but it is difficult that an entire circumferential surface of one cover comes in contact with that of the opponent cover. Therefore, there is a possibility that a developing agent exists in a clearance between both covers, which makes sealing of the opening/closing cover to be problematic.
(2) In the developing agent cartridge wherein it is mounted on or dismounted from a driving and rotating force transmission member by moving the developing agent cartridge horizontally, and an opening/closing cover of the developing agent cartridge or the like is opened and closed respectively when the developing agent cartridge is mounted and dismounted, when the outlet of the developing agent cartridge is closed, a recessed portion of the developing agent cartridge is engaged with a protrusion of the cartridge opening/closing cover. Under this structure, a part of the protrusion touches a circumferential surface of the developing agent cartridge when the opening/closing cover opens or closes, and therefore, considerable amount of force is required for opening/closing operations.
(3) Some of developing agent replenishing apparatuses are represented by one wherein an opening/closing cover which opens or closes a developing agent outlet is provided on a developing agent cartridge, and the opening/closing cover opens or closes when the developing agent cartridge is loaded on or unloaded from the apparatus, with the opening/closing cover and a developing agent cartridge loading section both being in contact with each other. However, if the position of this contact is not appropriate, the opening/closing cover can not be opened or closed smoothly in the course of an operation to load or unload the developing agent cartridge, resulting in the problem that an action to replenish to the apparatus main body can not be conducted, or developing agents overflow when the developing agent cartridge is removed.
(4) In a plurality of detachable cartridges which can be loaded on and unloaded from the developing agent replenishing apparatus provided on a color image forming apparatus, it is necessary to prevent a disadvantage that developing agent cartridges containing developing agents used for different apparatuses or developing agent cartridges containing developing agents of different colors are loaded, resulting in existence of different developing agents in the developing agent replenishing apparatus.
Further, in some of developing agent cartridges for replenishing developing agents by rotating, there is provided an opening/closing cover which opens and closes a developing agent outlet of the developing agent cartridge.
In such a cartridge, the opening/closing cover is required to be closed to cover the developing agent outlet so that developing agents remaining in the cartridge do not overflow when the cartridge is dismounted from an image forming apparatus.
However, it has also been a problem that poor sealing of the opening/closing cover caused developing agents to overflow and soil user's hands despite the closed opening/closing cover when the cartridge was removed.
Therefore, it has been necessary to design the structure of the cartridge by taking the sealing characteristics of the opening/closing cover into consideration.
With regard to the cartridge mentioned above, there has been a possibility that the opening/closing cover is accidentally opened during transportation to cause developing agents to overflow.
Accordingly, it has also been necessary to design the structure of a cap member to be attached to the cartridge so that the opening/closing cover is not accidentally opened during transportation.

Developing agent replenishing apparatus and cartridge


A support structure for a non-pneumatic tire and a tire incorporating such support structure. A continuous membrane extends between a radially-inner leg and a radially-outer leg. Joints and reinforcement may be provided on sides of the membrane. An annular band may be connected with the radially-outer leg. A wheel, hub, or other structure may be connected with the radially-inner leg.

The pneumatic tire is a known solution for compliance, comfort, mass, and rolling resistance. However, the pneumatic tire has disadvantages in complexity, the need for maintenance, and susceptibility to damage. A device that improves on pneumatic tire performance could, for example, provide more compliance, better control of stiffness, lower maintenance requirements, and resistance to damage.
Non-pneumatic tire or wheel constructions provide certain such improvements. The details and benefits of non-pneumatic tire or non-pneumatic wheel constructions are described in e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,769,465; 6,994,134; 7,013,939; and 7,201,194. Certain non-pneumatic tire and wheel constructions propose incorporating a resilient, annular shear band, embodiments of which are described in e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,769,465 and 7,201,194. Such non-pneumatic tire and wheel constructions provide advantages in performance without relying upon a gas inflation pressure for support of the nominal loads applied to the tire or wheel.
In some non-pneumatic constructions, vehicle load is applied to a wheel hub that is connected with an annular shear band through load bearing members in the form of e.g., multiple webs or spokes. These members can transmit the load to the annular shear band through e.g., tension, compression, or both. A layer of tread can be applied to the shear band to provide protection against the travel surface.
While non-pneumatic constructions have been proposed that provide various advantages, improvements in the ability of the non-pneumatic tire to carry loads and enhance passenger comfort while reducing mass and rolling resistance are still needed.

Reinforced resilient support for a non-pneumatic tire

COMPAGNIE GENERALE DES ESTABLISSEMENTS MICHELIN


A buffer circuit including current sources and switches to connect and disconnect current sources to an output node. The switches are controlled by voltage detectors for comparing an input signal with a reference level. When the reference level is a predetermined value, the amplitude of an output signal swings up to V.sub.CC and swings down to V.sub.EE.

A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) is employed to output an analog signal which is directly applicable to analog equipment such as speakers. However to provide an output signal of the DAC to analog equipment, a buffer circuit is required to supply enough electric current drive the equipment.
FIG. 1 shows conventional buffer circuits.
Both of the bases of a first npn-bipolar transistor Q1 and a second pnp-bipolar transistor Q2 are connected to an input node 11. A collector of the first transistor Q1 is connected to a first power supply node 12, and an emitter of the first transistor Q1 is connected to a second power supply node 13 via a first constant current source I.sub.1. An emitter of the second transistor Q2 is connected to the first power supply node 12 via a second current source I.sub.2, and a collector of the second transistor Q2 is connected to the second power supply node 13.
A base, collector, and emitter of a third npn-bipolar transistor Q3 are connected to the emitter of the second transistor Q2, the node I.sub.2, and an output node 14, respectively. A base, collector, and emitter of a fourth pnp-bipolar transistor Q4 are connected to the emitter of the first transistor Q1, the second power supply node I.sub.3, and the output node 14, respectively.
FIG. 2 shows a relationship between an input signal V.sub.in and output signal V.sub.out of the buffer circuit shown in FIG. 1.
First, when a level of the input signal V.sub.in is between V.sub.BE and V.sub.CC -V.sub.BE with reference to a ground level (0V), all of the transistors Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4 are in a conductive state. Therefore, the output signal V.sub.out varies linearly in accordance with the input signal V.sub.in. V.sub.CC represents a power supply voltage, and V.sub.BE represents a threshold voltage of bipolar transistors.
Second, when the level of the input signal V.sub.in is higher than V.sub.CC -V.sub.BE with reference to the ground level (0V), a voltage across the base and emitter of the second transistor Q2 is lower than the threshold voltage V.sub.BE, and the second transistor Q2 is in a non-conductive state. Therefore, current of the second constant current source I.sub.2 flows into the base of the third transistor Q3, and the third transistor Q3 remains in the conductive state. A voltage across the base and emitter of the fourth transistor Q4 is lower than the threshold voltage V.sub.BE, and the fourth transistor Q4 is in a non-conductive state. Therefore, the output signal V.sub.out is clipped at a level of V.sub.CC -V.sub.BE.
Finally, when the level of the input signal V.sub.in is lower than V.sub.BE with reference to a ground level (0V), a voltage across the base and emitter of the first transistor Q1 is lower than the threshold voltage V.sub.BE, and the first transistor Q1 is in a non-conductive state. Therefore, all the current of the first constant current source I.sub.1 flows into the base of the fourth transistor Q4, and the fourth transistor Q4 remains in the conductive state. A voltage across the base and emitter of the third transistor Q3 is lower than the threshold voltage V.sub.BE, and the third transistor Q3 is in the non-conductive state. Therefore, the output signal V.sub.out is clipped at a level of V.sub.BE.
In the conventional buffer circuit, as described above, when the level of the input signal V.sub.in is lower than the threshold voltage V.sub.BE, the output signal V.sub.out is clipped at the level of V.sub.BE, and when the level of the input signal V.sub.in is higher than V.sub.CC -V.sub.BE, the output signal V.sub.out is clipped at the level of V.sub.CC -V.sub.BE. Namely, a dynamic range of the output signal is .vertline.V.sub.CC -2.times.V.sub.BE .vertline..
It is well known that the typical value for V.sub.BE of a bipolar transistor is 0.7V. Therefore, if the power supply voltage V.sub.CC is 3V, the dynamic range of the output signal is 1.6V (=3V-2.times.0.7V).
The narrow dynamic range leads to a distortion in the output signal. The distortion may be eliminated by attenuating the input signal. However, attenuating the input signal leads to deterioration in signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio. These problems are serious in low-supply-voltage circuits.


The invention relates to a process for optimizing accesses to a database. This process allows client applications to request a CMIS-DB server, via an online configuration, to customize the generic representation for the object classes for which the access times must be optimized in order to reduce the search times for the object instances selected, by performing a step for configuring the physical storage of an object class to be optimized, which consists in the creation of an object instance of the storage definition class (mocStorageDefinition), in which are declared the attribute or attributes of the class to be optimized, which will be indexed when physically stored on a disk.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for optimizing accesses to a database.
2. Description of Related Art
Information Management Services for access to the information of an MIB (Management Information Base) are based on the CMIS standard (Common Management Information Service, ITU-T recommendation T X.710), which describes the operations that can be performed on specified objects in accordance with the model of the GDMO standard (Guidelines for the Definition of Managed Objects, ITU-T recommendation X.722).
The present invention uses the information management service in the CMIS standard. This service is attached to the CDSP (CMIS Dispatcher Process) (FIG. 4, 42), which is a service for exchanging CMIS packets between entities of the OpenMaster(trademark) platform. Which is an enterprise management software suite of BULL S.A., a French company, having offices at Louveciennes, France. OpenMaster(trademark) is a total enterprise-wide solution involving security, asset management, application deployment and system and network operations, all linked by an underlying, integrated, open and flexible architecture. Further information regarding OpenMaster(trademark) software suite can be obtained at http://www.openmaster.com. CDSP is a packet router for the management information service, i.e., a system for transferring data between two entities using the same protocol. The management applications call either agents (43a, 43b, 43c) or local services of the platform that make it possible to locally manage a Management Information Base (MIB) organized hierarchically in the form of an object tree, without network access. In these management information bases (MIB), all the resources are represented in the form of objects in an object tree, as represented in FIG. 2.
The objects themselves are grouped into classes. An object of a given class has a certain number of attributes, and each object instance has a distinguished name (DN). Addressing is done by means of a distinguished name (DN). For example, the DN of the object (51, FIG. 2) is xe2x80x9ca/a/bxe2x80x9d.
FIG. 4 represents the operation of an information management service. This service uses a two-level architecture. The first level is constituted by a manager entity (4) playing the role of a manager that must display and monitor resources, look up characteristics, etc. The second level is constituted by remote or local agent entities (43a through 43c), which maintain the objects to which the operations sent by the manager level are to be applied. The purpose of an agent is to maintain a model of the resource it manages, a standardized model journaled in an MIB. At least one agent is installed in each machine of the network and can control a set of local or remote resources under the direction of one or more managers. A manager communicates with each agent using a standard management protocol. The OpenMaster(trademark) management system marketed by the French company BULL, S.A. comprises one or more managers called ISM (Integrated System Management) and a plurality of agents (ISM Agent). Moreover, other agents marketed by other companies can be controlled by the OpenMaster(trademark) manager via standard protocols.
The manager-agent mechanism is based on an object model in which the modeling of a resource constituted, for example, by elements of the system, software, states, users, etc., is based on an object-oriented approach and structuring of the management information. The xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d equipment of a networked system (a computer, a printer, a circuit, etc.) is represented by abstract objects organized into a management information base (MIB). The characteristics of these objects (the name of a computer, the characteristics of the peripheral equipment, the status of this equipment such as a printer, etc.) are called the attributes of the objects.
The objects are divided into what are most often called MOCs (Managed Object Classes), in which each MOC represents a type of resource. The MOCs define the information that the MIB will contain for each type of resource, i.e., what attributes the object will have. The MOCs can be interpreted as being part of the xe2x80x9cschemaxe2x80x9d of the MIB. The manager records an object class MOC in the GDMO language, and it declares, among other things, the classes, and for each class, a list of attributes, name bindings, etc. This description is recorded in a GDMO object definition module attached to the manager ISM (41). Each MOC is instantiated in several MOIs (Managed Object Instances) representing the actual occurrences of this type of resource.
Take the example of three printers (Print1, Print2, Print3) represented by three object instances (P1, P2, P3) in a management information base (MIB). The attributes of the object representing the printer are xe2x80x9cprinter statusxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cuserxe2x80x9d. It is therefore possible to define an object class MOC xe2x80x9cprintersxe2x80x9d having xe2x80x9cprinter statusxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cuserxe2x80x9d as its attributes. The object instances (MOIs) of the class xe2x80x9cprintersxe2x80x9d can be the following:
The status of the resource Print activated without the current user in the instantiation of the above example. This example also includes the instances Print 2 and Print 3. An application such as xe2x80x9cISM Monitorxe2x80x9d supplied by the OpenMaster(trademark) management system (4) makes it possible to display the MOIs and their statuses. Likewise, ISM Monitor (46) can display, in table form, the attributes of any MOI, for example the attributes xe2x80x9cprinter statusxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9ccurrent userxe2x80x9d for any MOI of the MOC xe2x80x9cPrintersxe2x80x9d.
The entire set of managed objects forms a management information base (MIB).
A sub-tree directly attached to the root of the distinct tree of a management information base (MIB) is called an xe2x80x9cMIBletxe2x80x9d. In spite of the division into MIBlets, the management information base (MIB) of the OpenMaster(trademark) management system is recognized as a single composite entity, with all the MIBlets attached to the same MIB. An object MOI at the root of a MIBlet is called a xe2x80x9cRootletxe2x80x9d. The OpenMaster(trademark) manager views the distributed system through the objects of the MIB and the system is controlled by manipulating objects of the MIB and their attributes. The objects are visible via the agents or the object manager attached to the OpenMaster(trademark) manager, which map the equipment in an MIB in the form of an object tree. An agent can represent the status of a piece of equipment via a corresponding associated object represented in the MIB. This mapping can associate an object with several xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d pieces of equipment; likewise, a piece of equipment can be modeled in the form of several objects. The OpenMaster(trademark) manager (4) sends commands to the agents (43a through 43c) and the agents (43a through 43c) send responses to its commands and notify the OpenMaster(trademark) manager (4) of events through integrating agents (45a), using a protocol such as SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol, 45a), CMIP (Common Management Information Protocol, 45b), or others such as DSAC/AEP (Distributed Systems Administration and Control/Administrative Exchange Protocol) (45c). Each management protocol provides a certain number of simple operations; for example, the protocol CMIP provides all the functions of the CMIS standard, i.e., the following:
the manager (41) can read the attributes of an MIB object (the operation M-GET). The agent (43) responds to a query M-GET by providing information on the equipment;
the manager (41) can modify the attributes of an MIB object (the operation (M-SET). The agent (43) modifies the xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d equipment as a function of the new attribute values provided by the manager;
the manager (41) can create and delete objects of the MIB (the operations M-CREATE and M-DELETE);
the manager (41) can perform an action on an MIB object (the operation M-ACTION). The agent (43) performs an action on the equipment as a function of the action requested by the manager on the abstract object;
the agent (43) can notify the manager of an event taking place in an object of the MIB (the operation M-EVENT). The agent sends information on an event involving an abstract object in order to describe an event that took place in a xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d piece of equipment.
A management information base (MIB) has a strict tree structure hierarchy, which means that each object instance (MOI) has one and only one superior MOI. The tree formed by the management information base is called a xe2x80x9ccontainment tree.xe2x80x9d The managed object instances (MOIs) are named by their position in the containment tree in the following way:
Each MOI has a relative distinguished name (RDN) which differentiates the MOIs having one and the same superior (father) MOI. One of the attributes of each managed object class (MOC) is chosen to specify the RDN of the instance for a given superior MOI. This attribute, called the naming attribute, is identified in the GDMO templates known as name bindings. An MOC can have several potential superior name bindings, but each MOI uses only one of them. Each MOI also has a full distinguished name (Full Distinguished Name) that is unique in the MIB. The global distinguished name (DN) of an object consists of its relative distinguished name (RDN) joined with the distinguished name (DN) of its superior, which means that the distinguished name (DN) of a managed object instance (MOI) contains its own relative distinguished name (RDN), plus the relative distinguished names (RDNs) of all its superiors in the containment tree up to the root.
The management information base (MIB) makes it possible to establish relationships between objects other than the relationships established in the containment tree by distinguished names. These relationships are established using relationship attributes. These attributes contain the global distinguished names (DN) of other objects. They are used as references from one object to another.
One of the local object managers of the manager ISM-Manager is called CMIS-DB. It is responsible for storing part of the local MIB. The remanence of these stored objects is ensured by ISAM (Index Sequential Access Method) files. This ISAM technology, which describes the structures of records, is a method for accessing files structured in the form of records divided into one or more indexes and data.
When the application of the manager wishes to select one of the objects in order to perform a CMIS operation, for example an M-GET, it must specify the base object instance (BOI), the scope and the xe2x80x9cfilterxe2x80x9d as arguments of the operation.
The base object instance (BOI) makes it possible to identify an object in a management information base (MIB), which is the starting point for an evaluation of the scope-filter pair in the object tree. The scope selects a portion of the tree from this base object. For example, the scope xe2x80x9cWhole sub-treexe2x80x9d makes it possible to select all the sub-trees of a given object. Among all the objects in the scope, the objects selected are those for which the evaluation of the filter is true. The operation is performed on the objects actually selected. The manager sends an M-GET on the objects and CMIS-DB reads and returns to the application the value of the attributes of the objects selected.
In order to reach a base object instance (BOI), the manager CMIS-DB must go from father object to son object until it reaches the node of the base object. This navigation operation can be lengthy if, in order to go from one node to another, it is necessary to physically read all the sons of a node and choose from among them the one that has the right RDN, and so on. Once the computer has reached the base object instance, it must read the attributes of the objects of the base that correspond to the scope in order to be able to evaluate the filter in storage. The generic condition for storing objects imposed by the old version of CMIS-DB is to physically read all the selected objects belonging to the scope before evaluating the filter in storage. When there are a lot of objects subordinate to an object, performance can be quite poor. In order to understand the problem, it is important to remember that the generic storage in the previous versions of CMIS-DB made it possible to manage objects in the base without requiring a pre-declaration of their format in the server. This is an advantage over other systems, which first require compiling the description of the objects in the object base in order to be able to process them, and therefore does not make it possible to create an instance of the class of the objects if this class has not been described. CMIS-DB, on the other hand, performs this operation automatically, but the generic storage of the objects of the MIB by default results in the performance problems described above. CMIS-DB uses data structures that make it possible to generically create instances of any object class of the MIB on the physical disk of the system, without having prior knowledge of the description in accordance with GDMO.
In the generic representation of CMIS-DB, knowledge of the structure of the objects is obtained during the CMIS operations M-CREATE for creating instances, sent by the client applications to the server CMIS-DB.
It is the applications that correctly format the M-CREATE operations by using online the GDMO descriptions recorded in the OpenMaster(trademark) module, which compiles and stores the GDMO definitions of the objects managed by the manager ISM.
One object of the present invention is to offer a process for optimizing accesses to a database organized into trees, particularly for a management server managing a very large management information base (MIB), making it possible to perform complex operations on a very large number of objects while reducing the search times for the instances selected by the scope and filter arguments of CMIS operations.
This object is achieved by the fact that the process for optimizing accesses to a database is characterized in that it allows the client applications to request the CMIS-DB server, via an online configuration, to customize the generic representation for the object classes for which the access times must be optimized in order to reduce the search times for the object instances selected, by performing a step for configuring the physical storage of an object class to be optimized, which consists in the creation of an object instance of the storage definition class (mocStorageDefinition) in which are declared the attribute or attributes of the class to be optimized, which will be indexed when physically stored on a disk.
According to another characteristic, the process comprises a second step consisting of writing one ISAM (Index Sequential Access Method) file per managed object class (MOC) optimized, a specific file with its own index structure containing the representation of all the instances of this MOC.
According to another characteristic, the process comprises a third step consisting of analyzing the filters conveyed by the CMIS operations sent by the users in order to identify, in a pre-filtering step, whether or not the evaluation of this filter can be performed using one of the indexes set in the base.
According to another characteristic, the value of the physical indexes for indexing the attributes specified in the object instance of the class mocStorageDefinition corresponding to the MOC to be optimized includes the unique 4-byte long reference of the node of the father instance (fatherMOInodeRef) of the managed object instance and the sequence of the attributes 1 through i necessary to the managed object class to be optimized.
According to another characteristic, when a pre-filtering by the attributes indexed in the underlying database can be used, the query performer in the management information base (MIB query performer) determines the arguments of the physical read operation, making it possible to reread in the underlying base only the subordinates that are indexed by the values of the attributes selected for the pre-filtering.
According to another characteristic, the managed object class (mocStorageDefinition) makes it possible to specify a plurality of indexable attributes that will be physically stored in the index the moment the object is created.
According to another characteristic, the plurality of indexes described in the managed object class mocStorageDefinition can be reorganized at any time by assigning a different index level to one or more attributes or by activating or deactivating the indexes via the modification of the object of class mocStorageDefinition.
According to another characteristic, a query performing module of the information management service CMIS-DB, after detecting a possibility for pre-filtering through the knowledge of the mocStorageDefinition of each class optimized, performs the reading in the underlying database of only the objects of the scope that are indexed by the values of the attributes selected for the pre-filtering.
According to another characteristic, means are provided to allow the user to choose the most discriminating attribute or the attribute group by sorting the defined indexes in decreasing order.
According to another characteristic, the optimizer recognizes the filters than can result in a pre-filtering for the indexes; these are the filters constituted by an AND clause including:
an equality item in the attribute objectClass, a value equal to the identifier of one of the optimized MOCs,
a logical expression constituted only by AND clauses including comparison items in the attributes declared in the indexes of this optimized MOC.

Process for optimizing accesses to a database


An approach is provided for automatically updating a data type of a database column. Based on a database definition, category, and usage, the column is determined to be a candidate for a data type change. For first values in the column values, costs of processing queries using a new data type are determined to be less than other costs of processing the queries using other data types. For exception value(s) in the column values, costs of processing the queries using the original data type are determined to be less than other costs of processing the queries using other data types. The original data type is replaced with the new data type for the first values and the original data type is retained for the exception value(s). The first values are associated with a first schema and the exception value(s) are associated with a second schema.

The present invention relates to designing a database, and more particularly to updating a data type of a database column.
Database design includes organizing data according to a database model. A database design determines what data must be stored and how data elements interrelate. With SQL and NoSQL database development and with an increasing number of people working in application development on cloud databases, current approaches to database design attempt to address how to design a business database for application usage.

International Business Machines Corporation


A wavelength router that selectively directs spectral bands between an input port and a set of output ports. The router includes a free-space optical train disposed between the input ports and said output ports, and a routing mechanism. The free-space optical train can include air-spaced elements or can be of generally monolithic construction. The optical train includes a dispersive element such as a diffraction grating, and is configured so that the light from the input port encounters the dispersive element twice before reaching any of the output ports. The routing mechanism includes one or more routing elements and cooperates with the other elements in the optical train to provide optical paths that couple desired subsets of the spectral bands to desired output ports. The routing elements are disposed to intercept the different spectral bands after they have been spatially separated by their first encounter with the dispersive element.

The following appendix is filed herewith as a part of the application and is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes:
Presentation, titled xe2x80x9cWavelength Router, also referred to as Wavelength Routing Element(trademark) or WRE,xe2x80x9d containing 28 pages (slides) on 7 sheets.
This application relates generally to fiber-optic communications and more specifically to techniques and devices for routing different spectral bands of an optical beam to different output ports. (or conversely, routing different spectral bands at the output ports to the input port).
The Internet and data communications are causing an explosion in the global demand for bandwidth. Fiber optic telecommunications systems are currently deploying a relatively new technology called dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) to expand the capacity of new and existing optical fiber systems to help satisfy this demand. In DWDM, multiple wavelengths of light simultaneously transport information through a single optical fiber. Each wavelength operates as an individual channel carrying a stream of data. The carrying capacity of a fiber is multiplied by the number of DWDM channels used. Today DWDM systems employing up to 80 channels are available from multiple manufacturers, with more promised in the future.
In all telecommunication networks, there is the need to connect individual channels (or circuits) to individual destination points, such as an end customer or to another network. Systems that perform these functions are called cross-connects. Additionally, there is the need to add or drop particular channels at an intermediate point. Systems that perform these functions are called add-drop multiplexers (ADMs). All of these networking functions are currently performed by electronicsxe2x80x94typically an electronic SONET/SDH system. However SONET/SDH systems are designed to process only a single optical channel. Multi-wavelength systems would require multiple SONET/SDH systems operating in parallel to process the many optical channels. This makes it difficult and expensive to scale DWDM networks using SONET/SDH technology.
The alternative is an all-optical network. Optical networks designed to operate at the wavelength level are commonly called xe2x80x9cwavelength routing networksxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9coptical transport networksxe2x80x9d (OTN). In a wavelength routing network, the individual wavelengths in a DWDM fiber must be manageable. New types of photonic network elements operating at the wavelength level are required to perform the cross-connect, ADM and other network switching functions. Two of the primary functions are optical add-drop multiplexers (OADM) and wavelength-selective cross-connects (WSXC).
In order to perform wavelength routing functions optically today, the light stream must first be de-multiplexed or filtered into its many individual wavelengths, each on an individual optical fiber. Then each individual wavelength must be directed toward its target fiber using a large array of optical switches commonly called as optical cross-connect (OXC). Finally, all of the wavelengths must be re-multiplexed before continuing on through the destination fiber. This compound process is complex, very expensive, decreases system reliability and complicates system management. The OXC in particular is a technical challenge. A typical 40-80 channel DWDM system will require thousands of switches to fully cross-connect all the wavelengths. Opto-mechanical switches, which offer acceptable optical specifications are too big, expensive and unreliable for widespread deployment. New integrated solid-state technologies based on new materials are being researched, but are still far from commercial application.
Consequently, the industry is aggressively searching for an all-optical wavelength routing solution which enables cost-effective and reliable implementation of high-wavelength-count systems.
The present invention provides a wavelength router that allows flexible and effective routing of spectral bands between an input port and a set of output ports (reversibly, also between the output ports and the input port).
An embodiment of the invention includes a free-space optical train disposed between the input ports and the output ports, and a routing mechanism. The free-space optical train can include air-spaced elements or can be of generally monolithic construction. The optical train includes a dispersive element such as a diffraction grating, and is configured so that the light from the input port encounters the dispersive element twice before reaching any of the output ports. The routing mechanism includes one or more routing elements and cooperates with the other elements in the optical train to provide optical paths that couple desired subsets of the spectral bands to desired output ports. The routing elements are disposed to intercept the different spectral bands after they have been spatially separated by their first encounter with the dispersive element.
The invention includes dynamic (switching) embodiments and static embodiments. In dynamic embodiments, the routing mechanism includes one or more routing elements whose state can be dynamically changed in the field to effect switching. In static embodiments, the routing elements are configured at the time of manufacture or under circumstances where the configuration is intended to remain unchanged during prolonged periods of normal operation.
In the most general case, any subset of the spectral bands, including the null set (none of the spectral bands) and the whole set of spectral bands, can be directed to any of the output ports. However, there is no requirement that the invention be able to provide every possible routing. Further, in general, there is no constraint on whether the number of spectral bands is greater or less than the number of output ports.
In some embodiments of the invention, the routing mechanism includes one or more retroreflectors, each disposed to intercept a respective one of the spectral bands after the first encounter with the dispersive element, and direct the light in the opposite direction with a controllable transverse offset. In other embodiments, the routing mechanism includes one or more tiltable mirrors, each of which can redirect one of the spectral bands with a controllable angular offset. There are a number of ways to implement the retroreflectors, including as movable rooftop prisms or as subassemblies including fixed and rotating mirrors.
In some embodiments, the beam is collimated before encountering the dispersive element, so as to result in each spectral band leaving the dispersive element as a collimated beam traveling at an angle that varies with the wavelength. The dispersed beams are then refocused onto respective routing elements and directed back so as to encounter the same elements in the optical train and the dispersive element before exiting the output ports as determined by the disposition of the respective routing elements. Some embodiments of the invention use cylindrical lenses while others use spherical lenses. In some embodiments, optical power and dispersion are combined in a single element, such as a computer generated holograph.
It is desirable to configure embodiments of the invention so that each routed channel has a spectral transfer function that is characterized by a band shape having a relatively flat top. This is achieved by configuring the dispersive element to have a resolution that is finer than the spectral acceptance range of the individual routing elements. In many cases of interest, the routing elements are sized and spaced to intercept bands that are spaced at regular intervals. The bands are narrower than the band intervals, and the dispersive element has a resolution that is significantly finer than the band intervals.
A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification and the drawings.


Holographic systems which shape coherent light beams are disclosed. These holographic systems may beam-shaping devices positioned in the path of coherent light beams to shape a coherent light beam into an essentially diffraction noise free coherent light beam of predetermined dimensions that has a continuous light beam profile of distinct intensity zones.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to holographic memory systems, and more particularly, to controlling the transmission amplitude profile of a coherent light beam in a holographic memory system.
2. Related Art
Developers of information storage devices continue to seek increased storage capacity. As part of this development, memory systems employing holographic optical techniques, referred to herein as holographic memory systems, have been suggested as alternatives to conventional memory devices.
Typically, holographic memory systems read/write data to/from a photosensitive storage medium. Such systems typically access holographic representations (i.e., holograms) substantially throughout the spatial extent of the storage medium. This allows holographic memory systems to advantageously store a large amount of data.
Holographic memory systems may be designed to record data as single bits of information (i.e., bit-wise data storage). See McLeod et al. "Micro-Holographic Multi-Layer Optical Disk Data Storage," International Symposium on Optical Memory and Optical Data Storage (July 2005). Holographic memory systems may also be designed to record an array of data that may be a 1-dimensional linear array (i.e., a 1×N array, where N is the number linear data bits), or a 2-dimension array commonly referred to as a "page-wise" memory system. Page-wise memory systems may involve the storage and readout of an entire two-dimensional representation (i.e., a page) of data.
Holographic memory systems typically involve the three-dimensional storage of holograms as a pattern of varying refractive index and/or absorption imprinted into the storage medium. In general, holographic memory systems operate to perform a data write (also referred to as a data record or data store operation, simply "write" operation herein) by combining two coherent light beams at a particular point within the storage medium. Specifically, a data-encoded light beam is combined with a reference light beam to create an interference pattern in the photosensitive storage medium. The interference pattern induces material alterations in the storage medium to form a hologram. The formation of the hologram is a function of the relative amplitudes, phase, coherence, and polarization states of the data-encoded and reference light beams. It is also dependent on the relative wavelength of the incident beams as well as the three-dimensional geometry at which the data and reference beams are projected into the storage medium.
Holographically-stored data is retrieved from the holographic memory system by performing a read (or reconstruction) of the stored data. The read operation is performed by projecting a reconstruction or probe beam into the storage medium at the same angle, wavelength, phase and position as the reference beam used to record the data, or compensated equivalents thereof. The hologram and the reconstruction beam interact to reconstruct the data beam. The reconstructed data beam is then detected by a sensor, such as a photo-detector, sensor array, camera, etc. The reconstructed data is then processed for delivery to an output device.
The large storage capacity of holographic memory systems has been made possible, in part, by the development of high performance photopolymer materials for use as the holographic storage medium. Photopolymer mediums allow fast and durable recording of many superposed holograms, increasing both the speed and storage capacity of holographic memory systems. Accordingly, it is desirable to develop holographic memory systems that efficiently write to and read from photopolymer storage medium.

Controlling the transmission amplitude profile of a coherent light beam in a holographic memory system


A bassoon equipped with a key mechanism is constructed by a tube which consists of a tenor joint, a double joint, a long joint and a bell joint. Herein, three sound holes corresponding to sounds of E, B.music-flat. and F.music-sharp. are located in the double joint. Three keys corresponding to E, B.music-flat., F.music-sharp. are provided to open or close the three sound holes respectively and are all manipulated by the fingering using only a thumb of a right hand of a performer. Herein, an E key which is the center of the three keys is specialized in construction. That is, the E key which is located to cover the E sound hole is constructed by a pad cup and a key body whose size is reduced as compared with the conventional one. Two recesses are formed at both sides of the key body respectively. In addition, two rollers are held by the two recesses above the pad cup. The rollers are located to partially overlap with the pad cup in a plan view, however, elevation of the rollers is different from that of the pad cup. An axial distance between the rollers is made smaller than an outer diameter of the pad cup. Thanks to reduction of the size of the E key as a whole, it is possible for the performer to move the thumb of the right hand from the E key to the B.music-flat. key or to the F.music-sharp. key with ease. Thus, it is possible to respond to fast passage with ease.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a key mechanism of a bassoon, and particularly to a structure of an E key to open or close a sound hole of E of a bassoon. This application is based on patent application No. Hei 8-317768 filed in Japan, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Prior Art
A bassoon (i.e., Fagott in German or fagotto in Italian) is a kind of woodwind instruments. The bassoon provides a key mechanism which operates to open or close sound holes which are arranged along a tube. A conventional example of the basson will be explained in conjunction with FIG. 3 and FIGS. 4A, 4B. FIG. 3 is a side view in left side of the bassoon; FIG. 4A is a plan view showing a part of the key mechanism whilst FIG. 4B is a front view of the key mechanism partially in section and partially broken away. As shown in the above figures, a tube 5 of the bassoon is constructed by a tenor joint 1, a double joint 2, a long joint 3 and a bell joint 4. A key mechanism 6 is provided around an outer periphery of the tube 5 to open or close sound holes each of which corresponds to each of prescribed notes (e.g., B.music-flat., B, C, C.music-sharp., . . . ). With respect to the key mechanism 6, an E key 7, a B.music-flat. key 8 and a F.music-sharp. key 9 are provided to open or close sounds holes 6a, 6b and 6c respectively, which correspond to the prescribed notes of E, B.music-flat. and F.music-sharp.. The keys 7, 8 and 9 are arranged in parallel in a width direction of the tube and in proximity to each other. Those three keys are selectively operated by the fingering using only a thumb of a right hand of a performer. The E key 7 is located at the center of the three keys. A structure of the E key 7 is shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B. Herein, the E key 7 provides a key body 11, which acts as a key lever and a pad cup 12 as well, and a pad P. The E key 7 is arranged to cover the E sound hole 6a. Rollers 13 and 14 are provided at both sides of the key body 11 in a free rotation manner. A hook 15 is formed as an integral part of the key body 11 and is a projection which projects from a part of the key body 11. A key rod 16 is provided in a free rotation manner at an outer periphery of the double joint 2. So, the hook 15 is supported by the key rod 16. Key levers 17 and 18 are provided for the B.music-flat. key 8 and the F.music-sharp. key 9 respectively and are arranged at both sides of the key body 11. Rollers 19 and 20 are provided for the key levers 17 and 18 respectively in a free rotation manner and are arranged to face with the rollers 13 and 14 of the key body 11 respectively. The rollers 13, 14, 19 and 20 are used to provide easy fingering for the thumb of the right hand of the performer with respect to the key body 11 and the key levers 17, 18. Incidentally, recesses 21 and 22 are formed at both sides of the key body 11 to hold the rollers 13 and 14 respectively.
The conventional example of the bassoon described above has a problem in terms of the fingering of the thumb of the right hand, as follows:
As shown in FIG. 4A, the rollers 13 and 14 of the E key 7 are arranged outside of the outer periphery of the pad cup 12. For this reason, a relatively long distance `L` should be provided between the rollers 13 and 14. Due to the long distance L between the rollers 13 and 14, a long distance should be inevitably provided between the E key 7 and the B.music-flat. key 8 and between the E key 7 and the F.music-sharp. key 9. When performing on the bassoon, the thumb of the right hand requires a certain range of movement from the E key 7 to the key lever 17 of the B.music-flat. key 8 or to the key lever 18 of the F.music-sharp. key 9. However, due to the long distance described above, the thumb of the right hand should move in a relatively broad range of movement. So, it is difficult for the performer to subjecting the thumb of the right hand to fast passage (e.g., rapid ascending of notes or rapid descending of notes) within the sounds (or notes) of E, B.music-flat. and F.music-sharp..


A torch valve for pressurized fuel includes a valve body having a central, axial bore and a valve needle threadedly mounted in the bore for selectable axial positioning in the bore. A inlet portion of the bore forms an inlet connectable to a source of pressurized fuel. A second portion of the bore carries the valve needle. An outlet passage communicates with the bore at a point approximately where the second portion joins the first portion. The outlet passage extends laterally from the bore to open at an outlet orifice on the outer surface of the valve body. The outlet orifice includes means for attaching a torch and igniter assembly to the valve body. The needle includes a stem that terminates in a needle tip. An annular ridge extends from the stem spaced from the tip and defines a first groove between the ridge and stem. A second groove is formed in the stem spaced from the first groove. Each of the first and second grooves carries a resilient sealing ring. The second groove and ring seal the outlet passage from the ambient environment. By positioning the needle valve with the first groove and ring between the outlet passage and the inlet, the outlet is closed from the inlet. A spring and pin arrangement is coupled with the needle on the inlet side of the valve body to regulate the pressure of gas in the outlet passage.

Valves for controlling the flow of fuel in torches are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,837 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,175. Typically, the primary shut off mechanism of such valves includes a valve needle tip making metal to metal contact with a valve seat formed in the valve body. The needle is threadedly connected to the valve body, and turning the needle advances the needle tip into contact with the valve seat. The last part of the movement which makes positive contact of the needle with the valve seat includes rotation of the needle tip against the valve body. A special lubricant is used on the contact surfaces of the needle and valve seat. Without the lubricant, galling of the surfaces of the valve seat and needle tip could occur. In addition, to ensure that the needle and valve seat form a reliable seal, the machining tolerances of these parts must be tightly controlled, which adds manufacturing expense.
The present invention provides an improved valve that eliminates these problems. A valve according to the present invention includes a valve body having a central, axial bore and a valve needle threadedly mounted in the bore for selectable axial positioning in the bore. A first or inlet portion of the bore includes an inlet connectable to a source of pressurized fuel. A second portion of the bore carries the valve needle. An outlet passage communicates with the bore at a point approximately where the second portion joins the first portion. The outlet passage extends laterally from the bore to open at an outlet orifice on the outer surface of the valve body. The outlet orifice includes means for attaching a torch and igniter assembly to the valve body.
According to the invention, the needle includes a stem that terminates in a needle tip. An annular ridge extends from the stem spaced from the tip and defines a first groove between the ridge and stem. A second groove is formed in the stem spaced from the first groove. Each of the first and second grooves carries a resilient sealing ring. The second groove and ring seal the bore from the ambient environment. By positioning the needle valve with the first groove and ring between the outlet passage and the inlet, the outlet is closed from the inlet. The needle may be moved toward the second end of the valve body to open the outlet passage to the inlet of the bore.
The seal according to the invention relies on contact between the resilient rings and the surface of the bore. The metal to metal contact and wear in conventional valves is thus avoided. Further, the sealing rings are inexpensive and easily replaced, if necessary.
According to another aspect of the invention, the outlet passage communicates with the bore at an outlet coupling portion having a first diameter. A sealing portion of the bore having a second diameter less that the first diameter extends from the outlet coupling portion toward the inlet. The outlet passage opens into the outlet coupling portion adjacent to a junction between the bore portions. In the closed position, the first groove and first resilient ring are positioned in the sealing portion with the ring in sealing engagement with a surface of the sealing portion of the bore.
According to another aspect of the invention, regulation of the pressure of gas in the outlet passage is achieved by a pin and spring arrangement disposed in the inlet portion of the bore. The inlet includes valve seat means. The pin includes a flange extending radially from the pin shaft. In a closed position, the flange engages the valve seat means of the valve body. The spring is disposed between the collar of the needle and the flange and biases the flange into the closed position. The spring force is adjusted according to the position of the needle in the bore, that is, as the needle is moved toward the inlet of the bore, the spring is compressed, thus increasing the spring force. As a result, increased gas pressure is required to overcome the spring force to allow gas to flow past the pin.


A surgical instrument (100) for placement of a movement restriction device (10) for use in a surgical procedure for treating reflux disease in a patient. The instrument comprises a sleeve (113) and a holding device (111) configured to engage the movement restriction device, wherein the holding device is configured to be placed within the sleeve and be displaceable in relation to the sleeve. The instrument further comprises a first handling portion (101) connected to the sleeve, and a second handling portion (102) connected to the holding device. The handling of at least one of the first and second handling portion creates relative displacement of the holding device in relation to the sleeve, which disengages the holding device from the movement restriction device for performing the placement of the movement restriction device.

Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), or acid reflux disease, is a chronic condition resulting in mucosal damage in the esophagus produced by the recurring occurrence of acid reflux in the esophagus. This is commonly due to transient or permanent changes in the barrier between the esophagus and the stomach. This can be due to incompetence of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), transient LED relaxation, impaired expulsion of gastric reflux from the esophagus, or a hiatal hernia.
Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease can be treated in a number of ways, where surgical treatments are sometimes preferred over longtime medication. A standard surgical treatment is Nissen funduplication where the upper portion of the stomach is wrapped around LES to strengthen the sphincter and prevent acid reflux and to repair hiatal hernia. This procedure often done laparoscopically and is hard to perform transorally.
Another surgical treatment is to create an anti-reflux valve of fundus tissue. This treatment can be performed transorally, by using an endoscope to visualize the Z-line and attract tissue creating a suitable valve which is then fastened. Such treatment is hard and requires a skilled endoscopist. It includes numerous steps in each procedure, typically manipulating tissue more than two times and applying a plurality of individual fasteners to create an anti-reflux valve. Some patients also suffer from hiatal hernia which is an additional step to treat. This both increases time consumption of the endoscopist and each added step increase the risk of mistakes which can potentially be hard to undo.
From experience with implantation of medical devices, it is known that sutures between an implanted device and human tissue will not hold in the long term. For long term implantation of a device, there are two possibilities to keep the device in place. A first solution has been to suture human tissue to human tissue, to thereby keep the device in place. A second approach has been to provide sutures holding a device in place in the short term and to allow in-growth of human tissue into the device for holding the device in place over the long term.
A problem with providing an implantable device associated with the esophagus is that the outer surface of the esophagus is only comprised of esophagus muscle tissue, which is very easy to damage or migrate through. This is probably one reason why the Anglechik prosthesis described above has resulted in many complications, such as migration.
The stomach, on the other hand, has a serosa on its outside, thereby providing a much stronger membrane for suturing. Thus, suturing a device directly to the stomach wall provides a better result than suturing an implanted device to the esophagus.
Today, there exists a need for a long term treatment of GERD that is more effective than prior treatments and which does not result in any severe complications.
Surgical treatments in the upper gastrointestinal tract are today generally complicated to do in a minimal or non-invasive manner. The treatment's level of invasiveness depends on the arrangement of surgical instruments and the handling thereof. Thus, there exists a need for an instrument for performing surgical operations in a more effective way than prior instruments for surgical treatments in the stomach cavity.


There is provided mechanisms for causing a switch to an alternative beam pair link. A terminal device is configured with a trigger condition for beam link failure. A method is performed by the terminal device. The method comprises estimating, during communication with a network node over a current beam pair link, that performance of the communication would be better if using the alternative beam pair link instead of the current beam pair link for the communication. The method comprises reporting beam link failure of the current beam pair link to the network node, without the trigger condition for beam link failure of the current beam pair link being met, thereby causing the switch to the alternative beam pair link.

In communications networks, there may be a challenge to obtain good performance and capacity for a given communications protocol, its parameters and the physical environment in which the communications network is deployed.
For example, for future generations of mobile communications networks, frequency bands at many different carrier frequencies could be needed. For example, low such frequency bands could be needed to achieve sufficient network coverage for wireless devices and higher frequency bands (e.g. at millimeter wavelengths (mmW), i.e. near and above 30 GHz) could be needed to reach required network capacity. In general terms, at high frequencies the propagation properties of the radio channel are more challenging and beamforming both at the network node of the network and at the wireless devices might be required to reach a sufficient link budget.
Narrow beam transmission and reception schemes might be needed at such high frequencies to compensate the expected high propagation loss. For a given communication link, a respective beam can be applied at both the network-end (as represented by a network node or its transmission and reception point, TRP) and at the terminal-end (as represented by a terminal device), which typically is referred to as a beam pair link (BPL). One task of the beam management procedure is to discover and maintain beam pair links. A BPL (as defined by the beam used by the network node and the beam used by the terminal device) is expected to be discovered and monitored by the network using measurements on downlink reference signals, such as channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS) or synchronization signal block (SSB) signals, used for beam management.
The reference signals for beam management can be transmitted periodically, semi-persistently or aperiodically (event triggered) and they can be either shared between multiple terminal devices or be device-specific. In order for the terminal device to find a suitable network node beam, the network node transmits the reference signal in different transmission (TX) beams on which the terminal device performs measurements, such as reference signal received power (RSRP), and reports back the N best TX beams (where N can be configured by the network). Furthermore, the transmission of the reference signal on a given TX beam can be repeated to allow the terminal device to evaluate a suitable reception (RX) beam.
It could be that after a while, the beams of the current BPL no longer are the best, in terms of some quality criterion, for the communication between the terminal device and the network node.
There is therefore a need for efficient handling of BPLs.