Some embodiments are directed to a novel electronic device which detects the load level of gas in liquid state contained in tanks, through the magnetic field generated by the magnets used in floater mechanical systems which are incorporated into the containers, sending information by a remote interface, which communicates via the internet, or through a local network, to any computer or smart device. The versatility of the disclosed device, allows it to be adapted into any type of tank which uses the floating mechanical system with a magnet, being the ideal solution for monitoring gas consumption in places where access to the gas container is difficult or risky.

Some embodiments relate to a novel electronic device which detects the load level of the gas in liquid state which is contained in tanks, by the magnetic field generated by the magnets used in mechanical systems of the floater incorporated within the containers, sending the information by a remote interface, which communicates via the internet, or through a local network, with any computer or smart device.
To check on the load level of the gas in liquid state within the containers, they must be constantly monitored visually, in order to recognize changes in the load level within the container itself.
Currently, in order to determine the load level in gas containers, as is the case in stationary LP gas tanks, an analog reader is employed, which is placed on the outer surface of the tank, which, is based on a mechanical component, composed of a floater which is placed in the inner part of the tank. Both, the gas level reader, as well as the supply valve of the container, are usually placed on the upper part of the tank, which is completely sealed in order to avoid leaks.
The mechanical system for measuring the gas load level, consists of a floating part coupled to a rod with a gear, which itself, is coupled unto a second gear which causes a magnet to turn; the movement of the magnet, is proportional to the displacement of the floater caused by an increase or decrease in the level of the liquid within the inner part of the container.
The position of the magnet therefore reflects a measurement, which is translated into the corresponding percentage to the actual gas level contained in a liquid form within the tank.
According to the safety requirements, the floater mechanical device, the gear and the magnet are found completely incorporated within the inner part of the tank, causing that any error in the functioning of the mechanical system be contained within the tank, which prevents creating a gas leak.
The position of the magnet of the mechanical device is used for obtaining a numerical value used in various interpretation systems. Such systems allow the user to know the load level of the container reported by the mechanical system and thus, the percentage of gas within the container itself.
Various known mechanisms exist for the interpretation of the position of the magnet, which itself reflects the position of the floater.
The simplest and most basic manner for interpreting the position of the inner magnet is by using a second outer magnet, coupled by a magnetic field to the inner magnet. The outer magnet is found within the inner part of a plastic dial cover, which typically is in a numbered disc shape; the outer magnet, is itself coupled to an indicating needle, which is placed at the center of the numbered disc for indicating the load level of the tank.
The magnetic field of the inner tank causes the lines of the magnetic field of the outer magnet, to become aligned with it, causing the positions of both magnets to coincide. The outer magnet, by a small hand, graphically indicates the percentage level of the gas in a liquid state contained within the stationary tank.
Other ways of obtaining the reading of the load level of the containers of gas in liquid state which are known in the field, send the reading obtained by the analog reader through a cable towards a remote screen, on which the percentage level of the gas in liquid state contained within the tank is shown numerically.
The device, object of present invention, employing the communication protocols incorporated within the so called smart devices which currently exist, such as is the case with mobile cell phones, PDAs and others, is capable of sending in a wireless manner, the reading information obtained from the analog meter to either fixed devices and/or mobile devices, using the Internet, or yet, creating a local network through Bluetooth, WiFi, etc.
The current smart devices may connect themselves to networks or communicate amongst each other, through various known communication protocols known in the art, such as is the case with Bluetooth, WiFi, etc, which allow the synchronizing of systems at long distance and the exchange of information in real time.
Current mobile devices allow the synchronization with personal computers, to update applications and exchange data through the internet, which it itself, allows managing of files and the ability to control the devices remotely.
The electronic device for detecting the magnetic field which indicates the level of gas in stationary tanks and the sending of data in a wireless manner of present invention, is easily coupled over, or next to, the analog reader of the tank which uses the floater mechanical systems for measuring its load level.
The electronic sensor of the device of present invention, is capable of measuring the magnetic field produced by the inner magnet of the analog reader of any tank that uses floater mechanical systems, sending the obtained information, by a remote interface, which is capable of communicating with any computer or smart device, through the internet, or yet, through a local network created for such purposes.
A new method is described for the reading of the level of gas in liquid form contained in tanks, by an electronic device which interacts through a remote interface and which communicates through the internet with any computer or smart device.
A magnetic field electronic sensor which is capable of measuring the direction of the magnetic field produced by the inner magnet found in the inner part of a container; the sensor is found in an electronic card, which additionally includes a microprocessor and a telecommunication antenna for implementing a wireless communication protocol.
The electronic card sends information gathered by the sensor to a mobile device, in the mobile device, through an application, are displayed the levels of gas in a liquid state which are contained within a stationary tank.
The electronic card is made up of the following features:                An electronic magnetic field sensor, which is capable of reading the magnetic field and which is placed near the magnet which is found within the inner part of the tank. The sensor is capable of measuring the magnetic field in three dimensions and, thus, provides information useful for undertaking corrections to the readings;        A microprocessor which is charged with interpreting the information gathered by the sensor. The microprocessor processes the information taking into account the readings in three dimensions for correcting errors caused by the position in which the sensor is placed. After having undertaken the corrections, the microprocessor converts the gathered information into an appropriate format, for later transmitting it wirelessly using an appropriate communication protocol;        A wireless transmission module, which receives the information which has been formatted by the microprocessor and sends it to a mobile device to be displayed.
The electronic card, together with the interface allows the display of the numeric value which represents the gas level in liquid state contained in the stationary tank.
The interface incorporates a wireless receptor, which allows for visualization in a remote manner without physical connecting cables, of the level of gas in liquid state contained within the tank.
The electronic device object of present invention is capable of undertaking periodical measurements of the gas level, as well as storing information in an inner memory.
The connection with the remote interface is undertaken automatically when this is found within the range of connection of the communication protocol, storing in the inner memory the information downloaded and received from remote interface.
Using an adequate telecommunication protocol, the interface is capable of sending the information obtained to a data base designed for this purpose, to store them and identify them, according to the place where they were generated, thereby allowing the identifying of different users.
Using the information provided by the electronic card and the location thereof, statistical information regarding the gas consumption habits of a user can be generated. The information may be consulted through remote interface.
The electronic card is powered by batteries, which provide the energy for the functioning of the sensor, microprocessor and telecommunication module. The batteries ensure the uninterrupted functioning of the device object of some embodiments.
Other objectives, advantages and features of some embodiments as described herein, will become apparent for persons of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the disclosure outlaid further.

Electronic device for detecting a magnetic field indicating the gas level in stationary tank and wireless data sending


In one embodiment, a device in a network assigns packets from a communication transmitted via the network to time windows over a period of time. The device determines a transmission performance metric for each of the packets in a particular time window and calculates, for each of the time windows, local disturbance scores, which are based on the transmission performance metrics for the packet in the time windows. A particular local disturbance score for a particular time window maps the transmission performance metrics for the packets in the time window to a perceived quality metric. The device determines a distortion score for the communication by aggregating the local disturbance scores for the time windows over the period of time.

Interactive multimedia applications (e.g., video conferencing, online mobile gaming, real-time video monitoring, etc.) are often transmitted over a variety of different networks. Some networks may be prone to transmission errors, and the resulting degradation of the streaming media can impinge the user experience. It is important to characterize and quantify the impact of the degradation of streaming media on application performance. A quality scoring system can then be used to assess the overall quality/health of the entire system.
In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing.

Content-independent evaluation of streaming media based on packet transmission performance


An insulation is formed on a substrate of a material having a first conductivity type. A gate material is formed on the insulation. A portion of the gate material is removed thereby creating forming mesa type gate structures from remaining positions of the gate material. The mesas are then insulated. A channel forming layer, of a material having a second conductivity type, is formed between the produced mesas. Finally, a source of a material having the first conductivity type is formed on the channel forming layer.

This invention relates to semiconductor fabrication technology and products and specifically to the production of an insulated gate, vertical MOSgated transistor (xe2x80x9cMOSFETxe2x80x9d) using a mesa-type buried gate.
MOSgated devices are well known and include such devices as power MOSFETS, IGBTs, gate controlled thyristors and the like. In these devices, a source and drain layer are connected by a channel layer. A MOSgate forms a depletion region in the channel layer thereby allowing or preventing movement of carriers through the channel from the source to the drain.
In such devices, the gate and the channel region are either lateral or vertical relative to the plane of the channel. So called trench devices employ a vertical channel. Generally, this requires plural spaced narrow deep trenches into the semiconductor device substrate. A gate oxide lines the walls of the trench and the trench is then filled with a conductive polysilicon gate electrode filler.
Trench type MOSgated devices and have a low gate capacitance which is very useful in many low voltage applications. However, their fabrication is difficult and expensive, particularly due to the need to etch the deep trenches and fill them with a polysilicon gate filler. This process is complicated by the need for plural mask steps which must be aligned with great accuracy.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a method of inexpensively manufacturing a MOSgated device which does not require etching deep, narrow trench in silicon.
In accordance with the invention, a MOSgated device, such as a MOSFET, is formed by first depositing a conductive polysilicon layer atop and insulated from a silicon substrate and then etching away portions of the polysilicon thereby leaving polysilicon mesa-type structures which will act as gate structures. A gate oxide is then formed along the vertical sides of the polysilicon mesa structures. The space between the polysilicon mesas is then filled with epitaxially deposited silicon (which defines the channel regions) and their tops receive source regions and are enclosed by an insulation oxide. Source contents are then connected to the source regions and channel regions and a drain contact is connected to the bottom of the substrate. Thus, with the novel fabrication process of the invention, a novel MOSgated device can be formed with simple, well known process steps etching the polysilicon layer and not the silicon. Moreover, the technique of the invention only requires the use of only three masks with no critical alignment thus reducing cost and increasing reliability of the process.


A semiconductor device (10) has a multilayer leadframe (14) with two full voltage planes, specifically an upper voltage plane (16) and a lower voltage plane (18). A semiconductor die (12) is mounted to the upper voltage plane. Bond pads (13) of the die are electrically coupled to appropriate leads (20a, 20b, and 20c) using conductive wires (22). Upper voltage plane (16) is provided with at least one opening (28) to allow passage of a conductive wire through the opening in order to electrically couple a bond pad or a lead to lower voltage plane (18). The voltage planes are attached to the leadframe using welded conductive tabs (24), an electrically insulating adhesive layer (26), or both.

High performance semiconductors devices are often packaged in expensive ceramic or metal packages for enhanced electrical performance, at least during the initial stages of product introduction. However as the selling price of the device is driven down, the use of such packages by a semiconductor manufacturer becomes cost ineffective. One of the most common approaches to alleviating packaging costs of high performance devices is to use a plastic package. However, high performance devices have a relatively large pin-count which is not easy to accommodate in a plastic package using conventional single layer leadframes. Use of single layer leadframes in high pin-count devices creates high inductance levels between leads, resulting in undesirable signal noise during simultaneous signal switching. Furthermore, in order to handle the large currents used in high performance devices, a single layer leadframe requires a larger number of power and ground leads, and thus a larger number of power and ground pads on a die, to distribute the additional current. Increasing the number of leads and number of pads contradicts a goal of semiconductor manufacturers which is to minimize device size.
Some semiconductor manufacturers have been able to produce relatively low-cost plastic packages for high performance devices which overcome the above disadvantages by utilizing multilayer leadframes. Conventional multilayer leadframes typically include either a power or a ground voltage plane on which a semiconductor die is mounted. The voltage plane is usually formed from conventional leadframe materials, such as copper, a copper alloy, or a nickel-iron alloy, and is attached to a more or less standard single layer leadframe. Attachment of the voltage plane to a single layer leadframe is often accomplished by using a non-conductive adhesive tape, but may also be done by welding a portion of the plane to one or more leads of the leadframe. While a multilayer leadframe having a full voltage plane is an improvement over conventional single layer leadframes in terms of electrical performance, a disadvantage with such leadframes is that a manufacturer is limited to having either a power plane or a ground plane, but not both.
Another known semiconductor device having a multilayer leadframe combines a first full voltage plane with a second partial voltage plane to improve electrical performance over the one-plane multilayer leadframe design discussed above. In the device, a full voltage plane is attached to a single layer leadframe in a manner similar to that described above. In addition, an annular voltage plane is attached to the top of the full voltage plane, for instance by a non-conductive adhesive tape. A semiconductor die is positioned in the central opening of the annular plane and is attached to the full plane. Power bond pads of the die are wire bonded to one of either the annular plane or the full plane, while ground pads are wire bonded to the remaining voltage plane. A semiconductor device utilizing a multilayer leadframe with one full voltage plane and one partial voltage plane has improved electrical performance over a device having only a single voltage plane. However, a semiconductor manufacturer sacrifices electrical performance because either a power plane or a ground plane is limited in area due to the annular shape of one of the voltage planes.

Semiconductor device having a multilayer leadframe with full power and ground planes


This invention relates to a semi-batch process for the production of polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols. These polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols have hydroxyl (OH) numbers of from 112 to 400. This process comprises establishing oxyalkylation condition in a reactor in the presence of a DMC catalyst, continuously introducing alkylene oxide and a suitable starter into the reactor, and recovering an oxyalkyated polyether polyol. The oxyalkylation initially occurs at a temperature that is sufficiently high enough to avoid or prevent deactivation of the DMC catalyst, or for from 2% to 50% of the total oxide feed amount, and the oxyalkylation is then continued at a lower temperature.

This invention relates to a semi-batch process for the production of polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols. These polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols have hydroxyl (OH) numbers of from 112 to 400, preferably from 125 to 350, and more preferably 150 to 325. This process comprises establishing oxyalkylation conditions in a reactor in the presence of a DMC catalyst, continuously introducing alkylene oxide and a suitable starter into the reactor, and recovering an oxyalkyated polyether polyol. The oxyalkylation initially occurs at a temperature that is sufficiently high to avoid or prevent deactivation of the DMC catalyst during the initial phase of the low molecular weight starter co-feed, and is then continued at a lower temperature. This invention also relates to polyurethane foams prepared from the polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols described herein and to a process for preparing these foams.
Base-catalyzed oxyalkylation has been used to prepare polyoxyalkylene polyols for many years. In such a process, a suitable hydroxyl group containing low molecular weight starter molecule, such as propylene glycol or glycerine, is oxyalkylated with one or more alkylene oxides; such as ethylene oxide or propylene oxide, to form a polyoxyalkylene polyether polyol product. Because it is possible to employ a low molecular weight starter, the build ratio (polyol weight/starter weight) is relatively high, and thus the process effectively utilizes reactor capacity. Strongly basic catalysts such as sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide are typically used in such oxyalkylations.
Thus, most of polyoxyalkylene polyols useful in synthesis of polyurethane polymers, as well as those suitable for other uses, contain substantial amounts of oxypropylene moieties. As those skilled in the art are aware, during base-catalyzed oxypropylation, a competing rearrangement of propylene oxide to allyl alcohol generates monofunctional species which also become oxyalkylated, producing a wide range of polyoxyalkylene monols with molecular weights ranging from that of allyl alcohol itself or its low molecular weight oxyalkylated oligomers to polyether monols of very high molecular weight. In addition to broadening the molecular weight distribution of the product, the continuous generation of monols lowers the product functionality. For example, a polyoxypropylene diol or triol of 2,000 Da equivalent weight may contain from 30 to 40 mole percent monol. The monol content lowers the functionality of the polyoxypropylene diols produced from their "nominal" or "theoretical" functionality of 2.0 to "actual" functionalities in the range of 1.6 to 1.7. In the case of triols, the functionality may range from 2.2 to 2.4. As the oxypropylation proceeds further, the functionality continues to decrease, and the molecular weight growth rate slows. For these reasons, the upper practical limit for base-catalyzed polyoxypropylene polyol equivalent weight is just above 2,000 Da. Even at those modest equivalent weights, the products are characterized by low actual functionality and broad molecular weight distribution.
The monol content of polyoxyalkylene polyols is typically calculated by measuring the unsaturation as described in, for example, ASTM D-2849-69, "Testing of Urethane Foam Polyol Raw Materials", as each monol molecule contains allylic termination. Levels of unsaturation of about 0.060 meq/g to in excess of 0.10 meq/g for based-catalyzed polyols such as those described above are generally obtained. Numerous attempts have been made to lower unsaturation, and hence monol content, but few were successful.
In the early 1960's, double metal cyanide ("DMC") complexes, such as the non-stoichiometric glyme complexes of zinc hexacyanocobaltate, were found which were able to prepare polyoxypropylene polyols with low monol contents, as reflected by unsaturation in the range of 0.018 to 0.020 meq/g. This represented a considerable improvement over the monol content obtainable by base catalysis.
In the 1970's, General Tire & Rubber Company, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,505, described the preparation of high molecular weight dials, trials etc., using double metal cyanide (DMC) catalysts. The low catalyst activity, coupled with catalyst cost and the difficulty of removing catalyst residues from the polyol product, prevented commercialization of the products.
In the 1980's, interest in DMC catalysts resurfaced, and improved DMC catalysts with higher activity coupled with improved methods of catalyst removal allowed commercialization for a short time. The polyols also exhibited somewhat lower monol content, with unsaturations in the range of 0.015 to 0.018 meq/g. However, the economics of the process were marginal, and in many cases, improvements expected in polymer products due to higher functionality and higher polyol molecular weight did not materialize.
In the 1990's, DMC catalysts were developed which exhibited much greater activity than was previously possible. Those catalysts, described for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,470,813 and 5,482,908, allowed commercialization of DMC-catalyzed polyether polyols by ARCO Chemical Company under the ACCLAIM trade name. Unlike the low unsaturation (0.015-0.018 meq/g) polyols prepared by prior DMC catalysts, these ultra-low unsaturation polyols often demonstrated dramatic improvements in polymer properties, although formulations were often different from the formulations useful with conventional polyols. These polyols typically have unsaturation in the range of 0.002 to 0.008 meq/g.
As understood by the skilled artisan, one drawback of DMC-catalyzed oxyalkylation is the difficulty of using low molecular weight starters in polyether synthesis. Polyoxyalkylation of low molecular weight starters is generally sluggish, and often accompanied by catalyst deactivation. Thus, rather than employing low molecular weight starter molecules directly, oligomeric starters are prepared in a separate process by base-catalyzed oxypropylation of a low molecular weight starter to equivalent weights in the range of 200 Da to 700 Da or higher. Further oxyalkylation to the target molecular weight takes place in the presence of DMC catalysts. It is known, however, that strong bases deactivate DMC catalysts. Thus, the basic catalyst used in oligomeric starter preparation must be removed by methods such as neutralization, adsorption, ion exchange, and the like. Several such methods require prolonged filtration of viscous polyol. The additional steps required to remove catalyst from the oligomeric starter can add significant process time, and thus cost, to the overall process. Furthermore, the higher molecular weight of the starter lowers the build ratio of the process significantly, thereby decreasing reactor utilization.
Another drawback associated with oxyalkylation with DMC catalysts is that a very high molecular weight component (i.e. high molecular weight tail) is generally observed. The bulk of DMC-catalyzed polyol product molecules are contained in a relatively narrow molecular weight band, and thus DMC-catalyzed polyols exhibit very low polydispersities, generally 1.20 or less. However, it has been determined that a very small fraction of molecules, i.e., less than 1,000 ppm, have molecular weights in excess of 100,000 Da. This very small, but very high molecular weight, fraction is thought to be responsible for some of the anomalous properties observed with ultra-low unsaturation, high functionality polyols. These ultra high molecular weight molecules do not significantly alter the polydispersity, however, due to the extremely small amounts present.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,777,177 and 5,689,012, disclose that the high molecular weight "tail" in polyoxypropylene polyols may be minimized by continuous addition of starter ("CAOS") during oxyalkylation. In batch and semi-batch processes, low molecular weight starter, e.g., propylene glycol or dipropylene glycol, is added continuously as the polyoxyalkylation proceeds rather than all being added at the onset. The continued presence of low molecular weight species has been found to lower the amount of high molecular weight tail produced, while also increasing the build ratio, because a large proportion of the final polyol product is derived from low molecular weight starter itself. Surprisingly, the polydispersity remains low, contrary to an expected large broadening of molecular weight distribution. In the continuous addition process, continuous addition of starter during continuous rather than batch production was found to also result in less low molecular weight tail, while allowing a build ratio which approaches that formerly obtainable only by traditional semi-batch processing employing base catalysis.
The addition of glycerin or other low molecular weight starters can lead to sluggish reaction (as shown by higher reactor pressure) and frequently results in deactivation of DMC catalysts. It has also been found that low molecular weight starters such as glycerin, when employed in either the batch-type continuous addition of starter process, or the continuous-type continuous addition of starter process, are frequently not capable of forming a polyether of the desired molecular weight, or when such a polyether can be obtained, the product characteristics such as amount of high molecular weight tail, polydispersity, etc., are less than optimal. When preparing polyols in the low molecular weight range of about 260 to 2500, the ratio of glycerin or other low molecular weight starters to propylene oxide is higher than it is when making high molecular weight polyols. It appears that glycerin and other low molecular weight starters can act as inhibitors and stress the catalyst. Any other effects may be more evident under these stressed conditions. Because glycerine can be derived from plant or animal matter by base-dependent processes, it contains one or more basic contaminants which may cause a loss of DMC catalyst activity. This is recognized by McDaniel et al in U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,978. This reference discloses adding very small amounts (i.e., up to about 100 ppm) of acid to the glycerin initiator prior to its introduction into the reactor as continuously added starter to neutralize the basic contaminants. Even synthetic glycerin may have trace residues of base from the manufacturing process. Other methods described therein as useful include adsorption by acid adsorbents, and ion-exchange to either neutralize the impurities or to exchange them for acidic moieties. The addition of acid is the preferred method of U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,978 for increasing the DMC catalyst's ability to resist deactivation during CAOS feeds at high CAOS/oxide ratios.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,919,575 describes a process for preparing lower molecular weight DMC catalyzed polyols which requires the addition of excess acid to a CAOS feed stream. The amount of acid added is in excess over the amount required for neutralization of the basicity of a low molecular weight starter. This process may require less catalyst than was previously necessary. This process allows the manufacture of lower molecular weight DMC catalyzed polyols (i.e. 250 Da to 2500 Da) than is possible using non-acidified CAOS feeds. The amount of acid added is typically in excess of 100 ppm, based on the weight of the low molecular weight starter.
In spite of these recent advances in DMC catalysis and processes for preparing polyoxyalkylene polyols with DMC catalysts, other ways to avoid or prevent deactivation of DMC catalysts when using low molecular weight starters are highly desirable. New methods and processes for producing low molecular weight polyoxyalkylene polyether polyols from DMC catalysts from low molecular weight starters that do not require limiting the amount of water present in reactants are in demand.
Advantages of the present invention include the ability make low molecular weight polyols using DMC catalysis at low catalyst levels without having to control the water level in the glycerin (or other LMW starter) to a very low value.

Method to increase the resistance of double metal cyanide catalysts to deactivation


A driving system for driving a brushless motor effects a rotation control of a rotor by sequentially switching application of a current to magnetic coils disposed in a stator in response to a detection signal from a pole-position detector. The driving system comprises a controlling circuit for generating a driving signal, an inverter control circuit for controlling application of the current to the coils by adjusting opening and closing of switching devices in response to the driving signal, and a rotational speed sensor. The controlling circuit generates a braking signal when a rotational speed of the rotor is beyond a predetermined value, and transmits the braking signal to the inverter control circuit. The inverter control circuit effects a braking control in response to the braking signal by application of the current to at least one coil except those coils being excited upon reception of the braking signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improvement of a driving apparatus for driving a brushless motor, and more particularly to the driving apparatus for driving the brushless motor that provides a stable rotational speed by a smooth braking.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a brushless motor is becoming increasingly common in place of a DC motor with a brush. The brushless motor comprises a commutation system that electromagnetically detects a rotation of a rotor and switches application of a current to magnetic coils, instead of a mechanical commutation system that comprises a mechanical brush and a commutator. Thus, the brushless motor, compared with the motor provided with the mechanical commutation system, has advantages of a reduction of a noise resulting from the rotation and a high durability.
The brushless motor is employed as a driving source for various kinds of apparatus such as conveyor lines.
In the conveyor lines incorporating the brushless motor, not only a flat conveyor line but also an inclined line is formed. However, in the inclined conveyor line, specifically in a line having a descent inclination, a conveying speed of an article is increased by a force of gravity at the descent inclination part, resulting in increasing the brushless motor's rotational speed along with the increase of the speed of the articles. It has caused problems such as an increase of an impact when making the accelerated articles to stop, and/or an increase of an inertia resulting from the increase of the conveying speed, thereby making a stop position unstable.
In order to prevent the brushless motor from the increase of the rotational speed resulting from such an external force on the motor, several means for a braking control so as to reduce the rotational speed are previously suggested. For example, a patent document specified below discloses a construction that effects a braking by reversing a rotational direction with maintaining application of a current to the brushless motor.
Patent Document: Japanese Patent Laying-Open Gazette No 06-276785.
However, the braking control disclosed in the patent document requires application of a large excitation current so as to reverse the rotational direction, and causes a remarkable increase of the electrical current. Further, on starting the braking control, an abrupt braking force acts against the rotation at that time, resulting in a vibration and an impact, which generates noise, so that the improvement has been expected.

Driving apparatus for driving a brushless motor


According to one embodiment, a data processing device, includes: a request receiver, a buffer, a first circuitry and a second circuitry. The request receiver receives a write request containing a first key and first data. The buffer temporarily buffers the first data contained in the write request. The first circuitry, according to a buffering status of the first data in the buffer, reads second data which is partial data of the first data that is not read yet out of the first data buffered in the buffer and generates a second key according to a position of the second data in the first data, based on the first key. The second circuitry associates a data structure containing the second data with the second key and adds the data structure into a data structure set whose elements are associated with second keys.

In recent years, advanced Web services represented by Web mail, social networks, and the like have rapidly come into widespread use. In such a Web service, when a Web server receives a Web page display request from a user, the Web server queries a backend storage of required data on individual texts, images, movies, and the like one by one, acquires the data, and transmits the data as a response to the user.
As such a storage, conventional file-system-based databases are used, but recent years have seen increasing use of object storages, in which unique URLs are specified to access content data, and which thus have a high compatibility with a contents access method over the Internet. Such an object storage employs a key-value store based I/F, with which a variable-length value is accessed with a unique variable-length key from a client device such as a Web server over Ethernet. In the case of Web servers, in general, the key is a URL and the value is content data. As to the key, an object ID is not variable-length but fixed-length, but basic principles are similar. Well-known systems include Ceph, Openstack, and the like as free software. In addition, as a storage device, an HDD or an SSD is used.
When an HDD or an SSD is used in combination with KVS (Key-Value Store) processing, owing to its poor random writing performance, a method called log structured writing is often used. In the log structured writing, couples of keys and values to be written (hereafter, described as key-values) are sequentially written on storage addresses in a receiving order of write requests. In the case of KVS processing using a hash table, a head address at which a key-value is written is saved to each entry in the hash table. If another writing of a key-value for the same key occurs, the address of a key-value that is written later is saved, and the key-value that is written later is used. The key-value that is written previously (or a key-value that is intentionally deleted) is overwritten with data subsequent on the address (the subsequent data is moved to the address at which the key-value existed) by garbage collection executed in the background, and a free space is increased accordingly.
Owing to the characteristics of the log structured writing, writing of one key-value cannot shift to writing of another key-value in the middle. For this reason, a key-value being written needs to be written to the last. Therefore, in the case where a key-value to be written is received over a network such as Ethernet, in particular in the case where the key-value is divided into a plurality of packets, writing the key-value in a storage cannot be started until the reception of all the packets forming the key-value is completely finished. The reason is that there is a risk that the reception of key-values stops in the middle due to network failure or a failure on a client device side. In addition, a network is shared among a plurality of communication connections (e.g., TCP connections), and a plurality of key-values may be simultaneously received from one or more client devices. In that case, a bandwidth occupied by a single communication connection is only a portion of the entire network bandwidth, and thus if receiving and writing are simultaneously performed, a writing speed is limited according to a speed of the occupied portion of network bandwidth. Therefore, from a viewpoint of efficient utilization of a storage performance, it is better to write key-values at once after the reception of the key-values is completely finished.
In the case where, in such a manner, the operation is to write key-values in a storage after the reception of the key-values is completely finished, a large-sized receiving buffer need to be prepared. For example, suppose that accesses occur from 1000 client devices (e.g., Web servers), assuming a large-scale data center or the like. When each client device is formed by, for example, two sockets (two CPUs), and each CPU includes 12 physical cores, this makes 24 threads per CPU virtual threading and 48 threads per client device, and the number of threads of all the client devices is 48,000. Assuming that a communication connection is made with each of these threads, and 1 MB of data, for example, is received from each of these communication connections simultaneously, this requires as much as a receiving buffer of 0.5 MB (average from 0 to 1 MB)×48000 connections=24 GB. While this is the case where the pieces of data are simultaneously received, which may be a rare case as an actual environment, the design for a memory may be made taking such a worst case into consideration.
In addition, in a method of securing a buffer memory in a fixed manner, it is needed to allocate buffers of a maximum data size for all the connections. For example, if the maximum data size is 1 MB, this requires 48 GB, which is twice as much as the above. In addition, if, during writing in the storage after the reception, the next reception is simultaneously received using, for example, a double buffer, this requires 96 GB of capacity, which is further twice as much.
Since the KVS processing is a basic function, this may be implemented as, for example, dedicated hardware logic. Since the hardware logic is not very good at dynamic memory allocation, the above-described fixed memory allocation may be performed, and the above double buffer configuration may be used for the pursuit of further performance. For this reason, the above-described 96 GB of capacity can actually come true in such a case. Such a buffer is typically implemented by a DRAM, and this results in a significant increase in cost.

Data processing device, data processing method, and non-transitory computer readable medium


Disclosed is a refrigerator. The refrigerator may include a main body having a storage space configured to store food, a door configured to selectively open and shield or close the storage space of the main body and including a first accommodation groove on one side and/or end and a second accommodation groove on another side and/or end, and a handle in or on a front side of the door, configured to be held by a user and including a first portion rotatably fixed or attached to a pivot in the first accommodation groove and a second portion in the second accommodation groove or withdrawn from the second accommodation groove by rotation of the first portion. The second portion is capable of being fixed or attached to a fixing member in the second accommodation groove when the second portion is withdrawn from the second accommodation groove.

A refrigerator is an apparatus aimed at the low-temperature storage of food and is configured for the cold storage or freezing storage of food. To this end, the refrigerator may include a cooling apparatus in which a cooling or refrigeration cycle has been implemented. The cooling apparatus is configured so that a refrigerant undergoes a compression-condensation-expansion-evaporation process. Cool air is generated as the refrigerant circulates in the cooling cycle. The cool air generated by the evaporator of the cooling apparatus is supplied to the storage space of the refrigerator. Food within the refrigerator may be stored under a required temperature condition as the cool air supplied to the storage space of the refrigerator is circulated by convection current. In general, the main body of the refrigerator has a rectangular shape having an open front, and the inside of the main body includes a cold room and a freezing room. Furthermore, a cold room door and freezing room door for selectively closing or shielding a corresponding opening is provided at the front of the main body.
The refrigerator may be basically divided into a top-mount type in which the freezing room is above the cold room, a bottom freezer type in which the freezing room is below the cold room, and a side-by-side type in which the freezing room and the cold room are laterally adjacent to one another and partitioned depending on the location of the freezing room and the cold room.
A handle capable of being held by a user is in or on the door of the refrigerator, and thus a user can open and shut the door of the refrigerator. In general, the handle of the door of the refrigerator extends from the front of the door so that the user can hold the handle. There is a danger that the handle may be damaged due to a collision or impact when the refrigerator is packaged and/or carried because the handle extends from the refrigerator as described above.
In a conventional technology, in order to solve this problem, the handle is packaged and carried separately when from the door, and a service technician or consumer directly assembles the handle after the refrigerator is delivered.
When assembling the handle and the door, the service technician or user may apply excessive force to the handle and the door when a plurality of screws are fixed to the door and the handle, or the handle is inserted into and/or fixed to a fastening hole in the door. Accordingly, when the handle and the door are assembled, a problem involving a defective handle, damage to the handle, or the damage to the door attributable to erroneous assembly may occur.


That deep brain stimulation can be used in the treatment of movement disorders and for identifying an area of the brain to be targeted by DBS in the treatment of movement disorders.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for treating movement disorders using deep brain stimulation (DBS), and to a method of identifying an area of the brain to be targeted by DBS in the treatment of movement disorders.
2. Description of Related Art
Movement disorders refer to a number of conditions including Hypokinesia (Parkinson's disease), Hyperkinetic disorders (L-dopa induced dyskinesia, Hemiballism and Chorea), Dystonia (generalized and localized) and Tremor (Resting, Postural and Action tremor).
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative movement disorder. The main symptoms are tremors, rigidity, slow movement (bradykinesia), poor balance and difficulty walking. The highest prevalence of PD is in Europe and North America with around 1 to 1.5 million people being affected in the USA. Caucasian populations are affected more than others, with a prevalence of around 120-180 per 100,000 people. Symptoms of PD may appear at any age, but the average age of onset is 60. PD is rare in young people and risk increases with age. The cause of the disease is unknown, but there may be genetic factors.
PD is associated with degeneration of several neuronal modulators in the midbrain that primarily affect the motor system. These include the midbrain dopaminergic nuclei, the serotoninergic median raphe nuclei, the noradrenergic locus coeruleus and the cholinergic pedunculopontine nucleus.
At present, there is no cure for PD. Medical treatment for PD relies on a variety of drugs that stimulate dopamine receptors and although this approach may be effective for 5-10 years, therapy is complicated by motor side effects including "on/off" fluctuations and dyskinesias. With progressive degeneration of the dopaminergic system and other neuronal modulators the patient develops fluctuating responses to medical intervention. Surgery may be contemplated in patients who are poorly controlled on best medical therapy.
Hyperkinetic Disorders are sudden rapid involuntary and purposeless movements that typically intrude into the patient's normal activity. These movements may be both axial and peripheral. Examples of hyperkinetic disorders include L-Dopa dyskinesia, which is a complication of PD, Chorea and Hemiballism, which may result from brain lesions involving the basal ganglia. There are no effective medical treatments for these conditions.
Dystonia is a postural disorder characterized by involuntary muscle contractions affecting various parts of the body including the limbs, trunk, shoulders, face and neck.
Tremor is involuntary oscillatory movements produced by alternating contractions of agonist and antagonist muscles. These movements can affect the proximal and distal limb muscles and also the axial muscle groups. Tremor can occur at rest, with the limb maintained in a particular posture and/or during movements. Tremor can occur as a sign of PD, and as a result of lesions of the basal ganglia, midbrain or the cerebellum, but its most common form is familial Essential Tremor (ET). Medical treatments tend to variably suppress rather than abolish tremor.
At present there are various surgical treatments available for movement disorders; however, many of them involve side effects. Movement disorders are due to abnormal patterns of neuronal firing permeating the motor pathways. Surgical treatment aims to disrupt the transmission of these abnormal patterns by destroying or lesioning motor pathways or nuclei or alternatively overriding the abnormal patterns with high frequency electrical stimulation. The latter treatment is known as Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) and is achieved by implanting an electrode into the pathways or nuclei in the brain and delivering pulsed electrical current to the tissue from an implanted pulse generator which is connected to the electrode.
A number of targets are known to be effective in the treatment of movement disorders. These include the Globus Pallidus Internus (Gpi), the Ventral Intermediate Nucleus (Vim) of the thalamus and the Subthalamic Nucleus (STN).
Lesions or DBS of the Gpi are effective for the treatment of PD, Dystonia and Hyperkinetic movements. This type of treatment has a modest effect on PD symptoms such as tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia and akinesia, but is effective in treating the motor side effects of L-dopa therapy such as dyskinesia and dystonia which allow the patient to continue on a high dose of medication.
Bilateral Gpi lesions/DBS are associated with worsening axial symptoms including deterioration in speech, swallowing and gait.
Lesions or DBS of the Vim are effective for the treatment of PD tremor but do not affect other symptoms of PD. Typically the Ventralis Intermedius (Vim) nucleus of the thalamus is the target of choice for the treatment of ET. Lesioning is reported to provide good contralateral tremor suppression. However recurrence may occur within weeks or years and long-term studies show that significant tremor persists in 17-32% of cases, (1-5). Bilateral lesions are associated with significant complications including permanent speech impairment in over 25% and memory and language dysfunction in over 50% of cases (5, 6).
Clinical studies suggest that DBS of Vim is as effective as lesioning in controlling ET (7, 8) but is likewise associated with side effects, particularly when carried out bilaterally with 30-50% patients suffering from dysarthria and dysequilibrium, (9-13) However the adverse effects associated with DBS are generally reversible by adjusting the stimulation parameters, though this may be that the expense of satisfactory tremor control. Patients treated with DBS are also reported to develop tolerance (habituation) to stimulation, despite increasing its amplitude. Patients are advised to turn the stimulators "off" at night and take stimulation holidays for weeks, in order to prevent tissue habituation, (2, 3, 14).
Lesioning of the subthalamic nucleus is known to improve tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia and akinesia and allows patients to reduce their medications, which in turn enables patients to reduce their medication. However, the Subthalamic nucleus is a small structure measuring 12 mm anteroposteriorly, 3 mm in width and 6 mm dorso-ventrally; and misplacement of a lesion can cause significant and permanent side effects. As a result, most centers prefer to implant DBS electrodes into the STN because side effects are generally reversible by reducing or stopping stimulation. DBS of the STN is currently the surgical treatment of choice for PD, nevertheless it is not without side-effects. Houeto et al., reported worsening of anxiety and depression following DBS of STN with a prevalence of anxiety in 75% of patients (15). Bemey et al., reported that DBS of STN can provoke depression in 25% with several having suicidal tendencies (16). Mania has also been reported (17). Some groups have, in addition, reported worsening of speech.
In addition to motor functions, the STN has limbic and associative functions. Disruption of these with DBS may contribute to worsening anxiety and depression seen with this treatment. Medial to the STN are fibers carrying cerebellar information to the thalamus and spread of current to these may interfere with information regarding precision movements of the larynx and hence cause worsening of speech. Stimulation of structures anterior and ventral to the subthalamic nucleus including the substantia nigra and area of Sano are associated with severe depression and mania/rage respectively.
Although bilateral simulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is currently regarded as the optimum target by many neurosurgical centers the most effective therapeutic contact on a quadripolar DBS lead transfixing the STN has been reported as being one positioned at the interface of the dorsal surface of the STN and the adjacent white matter tracts (1).
Murata et al., (27) describe stimulating the posterior subthalamic area for treating proximal tremor. The treatment area selected by Murata et al. is particularly close to the prelemniscal radiation. Stimulation of this area can result in severe side effects such as speech disturbances, difficulty with precision movements and postural problems
The inventor has found that movement disorders can be treated by using DBS on a part of the brain which has not previously been targeted. This treatment avoids at least some of the problems associated with some of the prior art methods.

Deep brain stimulation of the zona incerta


A cannulated bioabsorbable tack has annular ribs configured to enhance fixation to invivo tissue and is particularly effective for attaching soft tissue to bone, such as ligaments or muscles. Apparatus including a trocar wire, an inserter and an impactor facilitates arthroscopic surgical procedures for inserting the tack invivo to attach or join the tissue.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to repair of bodily tissue in vivo and, more particularly, to method and apparatus for attaching soft tissue to bone during arthroscopic surgery of the shoulder and to a bioabsorbable tack therefor.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In open surgery a large incision is required to gain access to a surgical site causing increased trauma, long periods of immobilization and, consequently, long periods of rehabilitation and recovery. The disadvantages of open surgery are particularly troublesome in joint surgery, or arthrotomies, and more particularly in reattaching torn or severed soft tissue, such as ligaments or muscles, to bone in the shoulder.
Previous systems employed to reattach separated tissue to bone have utilized metal screw and washer combinations or metal staples. The use of metal fasteners necessitates surgical procedures for fastener insertion and in some cases for fastener removal. Other disadvantages from the use of prior art fasteners are that threaded screws have a propensity to back out from their implantation position, the screw heads and washers protrude from the attachment site creating a possible source of irritation to tissue in the body, and staples must necessarily be so sharp that they do not hold or anchor well in the bone and are subject to disengagement and bending.

Bioabsorbable tack for joining bodily tissue and apparatus for deploying same


An active device provides protection from the sun or other bright light source for improved vision, using a variable opacity medium that is electronically controlled to cast a shadow on an eye of a user and/or to otherwise reduce the amount of the light incident on the eye, thereby reducing glare. Miniature cameras monitor the user's eye movements and the scene in front of the user. If a bright light is detected, one or more dark spots is created in the variable opacity medium that acts as a shade or light filter for a pupil of the eye. The variable opacity medium, cameras, and associated electronics can be used in connection with eyeglasses (including sunglasses), as part of a device worn by the user (such as a helmet), a windshield, mirror, or other optical element having a view port through which light can be seen by the user.

Various devices and techniques exist to reduce glare from sunlight or other source of bright light. Reducing the glare serves to protect the eyes of a user or otherwise improves the vision of the user when looking through an optical element. For example, users can wear sunglasses, shaded goggles, or other type of shaded eyewear. As another example, some motor vehicles are equipped with rear-view mirrors and/or side-view mirrors that have "dimming" capability to reduce the glare from headlights of other vehicles. In yet other examples, windows in a home might be fitted with shades or curtains to block out sunlight.
However, such devices and techniques are deficient in several ways. For instance, such devices and techniques are generally manual or mechanical in nature that require constant user intervention to make adjustments in the amount of light being allowed to pass through and/or require other user intervention associated with their use. For instance, a user would have to repeatedly take off or put on sunglasses as the lighting conditions change. Similarly with blinds or curtains, the user would have to constantly adjust the openings of the curtains/blinds as lighting conditions change, so as to ensure that a desirable and comfortable amount of light is entering the room. With dimming mirrors in vehicles, the dimming affects the entire surface of the mirror, thereby possibly and undesirably reducing the visibility of other portions of the reflected image (outside of the other cars' headlights). That is, there may be undesirable visual field loss and reduced acuity due to darkening of the entire field of view.

Electrically controlled optical shield for eye protection against bright light


A head-mounted display (HMD) includes a housing defining an enclosure having an aperture. A is speaker positioned within the enclosure, the speaker having a back side facing an interior surface of the housing and a front side facing away from the interior surface of the housing, a back volume defined between at least a portion of the housing and the back side of the speaker for enhancing sound generated by the speaker. A sound conduit having an end open to the enclosure and extends outside the housing through the aperture. The sound conduit has another end open toward a rear direction to transmit the sound generated by the speaker.

The present disclosure relates to audio output in a head-mounted display (HMD).
The HMD can operate as part of, e.g., a virtual reality (VR) system, an augmented reality (AR) system, a mixed reality (MR) system, or some combination thereof. During operations of the HMD, the HMD is worn on a user's head and an audio output may be presented in connection with a video output. However, generating a high quality audio output directly from an HMD can be difficult. The housing size of the HMD may be limited to comfortably fit on the user's head. The housing, for example, may include with a front rigid body that holds a display panel and other electronic components. When the HMD is worn by the user, the front rigid body is positioned in front of the user's eyes, and thus separated by a distance from the user's ears. As such, conventional HMD systems have used separate headphones or other audio output devices for audio output instead of audio components integrated within the front rigid body, or other portion of the HMD housing.

Audio output assembly for a head-mounted display


There are provided a blood purification apparatus and a priming method thereof which can reliably perform air bubble purging of a blood purification device while workability is maintained during priming. During the priming, an air purging step is performed by causing a blood pump to perform reverse rotation, and electromagnetic valves and are brought into an opened state so as to open the overflow line (L) and a priming solution supply line and so as to discharge a priming solution from an overflow line while supplying a dialysate functioning as the priming solution from the priming solution supply line.

In general, during dialysis treatment, a blood circuit is used which extracorporeally circulates blood collected from a patient and which returns the blood into the internal body of the patient. For example, the blood circuit is mainly configured to have an arterial blood circuit and a venous blood circuit which can be connected to a dialyzer (blood purification device) including a hollow fiber membrane. An arterial puncture needle and a venous puncture needle are attached to each distal end of the arterial blood circuit and the venous blood circuit. The respective needles are adapted to puncture the patient so as to perform extracorporeal circulation of the blood for the dialysis treatment.
Out of these blood circuits, a peristaltic blood pump is arranged in the arterial blood circuit, and the blood pump is rotated so as to feed the blood to the dialyzer side from the internal body of the patient. In contrast, an arterial drip chamber and a venous drip chamber are respectively connected to the arterial blood circuit and the venous blood circuit. The blood is adapted to return to the internal body of the patient after bubbles are removed.
In addition, a priming solution supply line for supplying a priming solution into the blood circuit is connected to an upstream side (that is, the arterial puncture needle side) further from the blood pump in the arterial blood circuit. Before the dialysis treatment, the priming solution is caused to flow into the blood circuit or configuration elements such as the blood circuit, the blood flow route of the dialyzer and the drip chamber connected to the blood circuit so as to be filled with the priming solution. According to this configuration, priming can be performed.
Air bubbles inside the blood flow route move upward when the priming is performed on the blood flow route of the dialyzer by using the priming solution. Accordingly, it is necessary to perform air bubble purging by causing a blood outlet to face upward and drawing out the air bubbles to the venous blood circuit side. In contrast, in a case where the priming is performed on a dialysis flow route by using a dialysate in this state, the blood and the dialysate flow in opposite directions. Accordingly, the dialysate flows from above to below, and flows in a direction opposite to a movement direction of the air bubbles. Therefore, the dialyzer is vertically inverted so that the dialysate flows from below to above. In this manner, more reliable air bubble purging can be performed by ensuring smooth movement of the air bubbles.
However, in a case where the dialyzer is vertically inverted when the priming is performed as described above, there is a problem in that workability becomes poor correspondingly and the priming is less likely to be automated. In order to solve the problem, in the related art, a blood purification apparatus has been proposed. In the blood purification apparatus, an overflow step of supplying the priming solution from the priming solution supply line to the venous air trap chamber via the venous blood circuit and discharging the priming solution from an overflow line by stopping the blood pump and by opening the overflow line and a circulation step of supplying the priming solution from the priming solution supply line to the arterial blood circuit via the venous blood circuit and the dialyzer by causing the blood pump to perform reverse rotation and closing the overflow line are sequentially performed in a state where a blood inlet of the dialyzer faces upward. In the circulation step, a venous air bubble detection device detects air bubbles so that the step proceeds to the overflow step (refer to PTL 1).

Blood purification apparatus and priming method thereof


The invention relates to a method for detection of an analyte in a test sample by a specific binding reaction among the analyte, a specific binding partner for the analyte, and an (immuno)reactant provided with a label, characterized in that the label is a lanthanide ion-ligand complex wherein the lanthanide ion is neodymium(III) ion (Nd3+), ytterbium(III) ion (Yb3+), or erbium(III) ion (Er3+) and the ligand comprises or is in contact with a sensitizing moiety which absorbs in the 400-1000 nm region, and preferably in the 400-800 nm region. Further, a diagnostic kit is disclosed as well as a method of detecting an analyte in a matrix of biomedical interest through an oligonucleotide, an antigen, or an antibody attached to a material, preferably core-shell latex or with specific binding sites wherein the antigen or antibody is labeled with the lanthanide ion-ligand complex and brought into contact with the analyte, after which the analyte with the lanthanide-ion complex is immobilized on the material, and, optionally, residual lanthanide-ion complex is removed, after which the sample obtained is irradiated with light in the 400-1000 nm region, and the emitted light from said sample is detected if said analyte is present in the matrix of biomedical interest.

The invention pertains to lanthanide ion-ligand complexes, in particular to neodymium(III) ion (Nd3+), ytterbium(III) ion (Yb3+), or erbium(III) ion (Er3+) ligand complexes, to the use of said lanthanide ion-ligand complexes for the manufacture of a diagnostic kit, to a diagnostic kit comprising the same, and to a method of detecting an analyte in a matrix of biomedical interest.
The use of metal chelates as luminescent probes is well-known in the art, and the use of such probes for diagnostic purposes has recently been commercialized, while the state of the art of the technique has been reviewed by P. G. Sammes and G. Yahioglu in Natural Product Reports, Vol. 13, pp. 1-28 (1996). Europium and terbium ions (Eu(III) and Tb(III), respectively), both members of the rare-earth lanthanide metals, are very suitable as luminescent probes because of their long-lived luminescence, which allows for interference-free detection. By using a time delay between excitation pulse and detection optimized for the rare-earth ion, short-lived scatter and background luminescence from the matrix can be effectively removed. Since the absorption coefficients of rare-earth ions are extremely low (1-10 I.mole−1.cm−1) direct excitation is very inefficient. In general, excitation therefore requires the aid of a chromophore as sensitizer. For Tb(III) and Eu(III) ions, which emit in the visible part of the spectrum, sensitizers requiring UV excitation have to be applied as a result of energy constraints (the triplet state of the sensitizer should be at least 1000 cm−1 above the accepting state of the lanthanide ion). The other lanthanides in chelated forms in solution which exhibit luminescence in the visible part of the spectrum are gadolinium, samarium, and dysprosium ions. The other members of the lanthanide metals are considered to be unsuitable as luminescent probes because they have much smaller gaps between the excited states and the ground state. When used as a luminescent probe, the lanthanides are coordinated to form complexes with ligands, which complexes often are unstable in aqueous solutions.
Attempts have been made to obtain stable chelates of Eu(III) and Tb(III) ions, for instance, as disclosed in WO 96/00901 wherein complexes of Eu(III) and Tb(III) ions with polynuclear heterocyclic aromatic compounds are described. These chelate-lanthanide complexes may be applied as labels or probes for diagnostics, and are capable of intense luminescence in the visible region. A drawback to these Eu(III) and Tb(III) ion-chelates, however, is the need to sensitize them at a relatively short wavelength (UV or near-UV), which requires expensive lasers. Moreover, the excitation energy used regularly interferes with the biological material which is used for diagnostic purposes, which more often than not is sensitive to light of the UV region. Further it is of advantage to have a metal ion which exhibits a long lifetime in the excited state, which requires minimization of quenching and back-transfer.
In Russian patent applications SU 1340087 and SU 1621720 ytterbium porphyrin complexes have been disclosed, which are used to enhance the contrast coefficient in in vivo luminescent investigations of malignant tissues in animals. These complexes are not suitable as diagnostic assays for detection of specific analytes, because they do not contain an (immuno)-reactant for attachment to said analyte. Further, these complexes are hardly soluble and have poor stability in water.

Diagnostic neodymium(III), ytterbium(III), or erbium(III) ion-ligand complexes


Generally discussed herein are systems, devices, and methods for malware analysis. In one or more embodiments, a method can include copying application layer data traffic to create copied application layer data traffic, forwarding at least a portion of the application layer data traffic to a destination client prior to a malware analysis of corresponding copied application layer data traffic, determining whether the copied application layer data traffic includes a specified property, and in response to a determination that the copied application layer data traffic includes the specified property, storing the copied application layer data traffic determined to include the specified property for subsequent malware analysis, the stored copied application layer data traffic including context data of the copied application layer data traffic.

Malware commonly enters a network enterprise through a number of vectors. One such vector is electronic mail (email). A challenge with malware analysis is figuring out a sufficient way to get access to potentially malicious content for scanning, such as without affecting network speed or other network traffic. One approach is using a man-in-the-middle (inline) mail transfer agent (MTA). In an inline approach, the email traffic is buffered. The buffered email is analyzed for malware and forwarded to a user only after passing malware analysis. Such an inline approach adds a delay between email receipt at the network and the email showing up in a user's inbox, regardless of whether the email includes malware. Time-sensitive emails can be delayed too long using an inline approach. Analyzing every email can be cumbersome and unduly tax computation resources.

Systems and methods for malware analysis of network traffic


An automobile safety device that includes an input wireable to the windshield wiper motor that automatically independently activates each headlight and the rear window defogger.

Driving in dark, rainy weather can be dangerous. In addition to the reduced visibility caused by rain striking the windshield, the high humidity can cause the windows in the vehicle to rapidly become fogged. In combination, these visual hindrances lead to the inability of the driver to see other automobiles and often results in an accident. It would be a benefit, therefore, to have a device that automatically activated the rear window defogger when rainy conditions are present. In addition, in order to increase the visibility of the automobile in rainy conditions it would also be a benefit to have a device that sensed rainy conditions and automatically activated the automobiles headlight system. It would of course be a benefit to have a device that could accomplish both of these tasks simultaneously.


Aspects of the present disclosure include a system comprising a computer-readable storage medium storing at least one program and a computer-implemented method for providing alternative recommendations using search context. Consistent with some embodiments, the method may include receiving a user search query and receiving a request to view an item included in a set of search results retrieved in response to the search query. The method may further include determining an alternative item recommendation using the search query and attributes of the item, and causing presentation of the item and the alternative item recommendation in response to receiving the request to view the item.

At e-commerce websites, primary means of navigation involve user initiated activities like browsing a category, searching by entering keywords, or filtering search results by selecting values for a set of attributes a system provides. These actions often require users to understand an ontology used in organizing an inventory to guess keywords that may lead to desired results. This process may be frustrating for users who are not familiar with content of the site or for users who only have a general sense of what they are looking for.
Recommendations provide an alternative approach to assist users in accessing relevant content. Unlike search engines that aim to answer user-formulated queries, recommendation engines provide content without requiring direct user input. Instead, conventional recommendation engines use inferred user interest to identify and provide content. These conventional recommendation engines infer user interest based on indirect information sources such as short-term session history, long-term user behavioral data, ontology the site uses to organize inventory, and the state of active inventory.

Personalizing alternative recommendations using search context


A method of managing an image catalog is performed by one or more servers. The process receives from a first user identification of one or more images in an image database. The image database is distinct from the servers. For each of the images, the process analyzes the image to extract keywords that describe the image and creates an index entry in the image catalog. The index entry includes the keywords. The process receives a query from a second user and matches the query to an index entry in the image catalog. The index entry corresponds to a first image in the image database. The process determines whether the second user is authorized to view the first image. When the second user is authorized to view the first image, the process retrieves the first image from the image database and transmits the first image to the second user.

Image collections are growing in size and are often in multiple locations. Image repositories may exist on local storage for mobile and desktop devices, dedicated network-attached storage (NAS), or on remote cloud services. Often images are duplicated and stored in multiple repositories because of the requirements of legacy tools that each want copies of your data in order to do their work. Social services, such as Facebook, Google+, and Twitter, are some of the largest cloud image repositories. It is becoming increasingly difficult to know the location and history of a given image. Without adequate location and history information of images, it is also difficult to conduct searches and provide an intuitive visualization of search results. Conventional methods attempt to move images into a central location and perform searches against the pooled images. These conventional methods are inefficient and create security risks. For example, moving image data creates risk in transit and exposes additional copies of the images to misappropriation.

Systems and methods of building and using an image catalog


To cool a grate block which forms a part of a grate for plants for the thermal treatment of waste material, a closed cooling space in the grate block below an upper wall supporting the waste material is filled with cooling water. Water feed lines and water drainage lines pass through the cooling space, end in the cooling space, and respectively have a plurality of outlet and inlet openings, so that, in addition to an effective cooling which greatly reduces the temperatures, an optimum distribution of cold water and hot water also takes place in the cooling space. Since thermal expansions in the material are dispensed with, only a few screwed-together grate blocks can form a grate-block row. The assembly and exchange of grate blocks are simpler and an undesired amount dropping through the grate between the grate blocks is eliminated to a great extent. Moreover, the grate blocks can be produced from a less high-alloy material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cooled grate block which forms a part of a grate for a plant for the thermal treatment of waste material.
2. Discussion of the Background
In related waste incineration plants, it is known that the waste material is conveyed on a grate through a combustion chamber and, during this process, it is dried and burnt. In addition to the transporting function, the grate also ensures constant thorough mixing of the waste material so that new surfaces of the waste material are subjected again and again to thermal treatment in the combustion chamber. For this purpose, a grate path has a plurality of grate-block rows arranged one after the other in the manner of steps, in each case fixed and movable grate-block rows following on from one another alternately. The waste material, for example refuse, located on the grate is pushed forward by a translatory movement of the movable grate-block rows and, at the same time, is thoroughly mixed. A grate-block row is formed in each case by a plurality of, generally 16 to 24, grate blocks which are suspended adjacently on a holding pipe and are braced with one another by means of a tension rod. The individual grate blocks are cooled by means of air flowing through which, at the same time, serves in combustion grates as an oxidation medium which is necessary for combustion.
Despite the air-cooling, the grate blocks are subjected to high thermal loading which results in great thermal stresses in the material of the grate blocks. Cracks may occur in the material, thus causing the risk of corrosion to rise. The grate blocks must be made of high-quality material, for example of high-alloy steel. Owing to the large thermal expansions, the size of the individual grate blocks is limited; a relatively large number of grate blocks is required in one grate-block row. It is disadvantageous in this case that certain portions of the waste material to be incinerated (bright metals, dust, etc.) drop through the gaps between the individual grate blocks, which gaps are formed by repeated expansion and contraction due to different block temperatures caused by the combustion sequence and the start up and shut down of the furnace, which portions of waste material then pass into the slag without having been burnt. If two or three grate paths are used next to one another, holders for the tension rods and seals for the leaking air must be arranged not only on the outer side of such a grate, but also between the grate paths. The exchange of individual grate blocks is thus complicated and requires long service times.


A sealed container especially adapted for medical usage to receive and dispense fluids without contamination has a two orifice closure system whereby contaminants are kept out by a microfilter when an inlet orifice is opened for additions, and by a valve when an outlet orifice is opened for withdrawals. The closure has an upper removable seal and a lower fixed seal spaced from the upper removable seal and cooperating therewith in defining an operative space compartment sealed from both the interior of the container and the outside. In some embodiments, the lower seal has inlet and outlet passageways joining the interior of the container with the operative space compartment. An independent seal accessible from the operative space compartment is provided for the inlet passageway which is associated with the microfilter for stopping ingress of contaminants into the container. The valve provided at the outlet passageway is accessible from the operative space compartment to control outflow. The upper seal is removable to give access to the seal for the inlet passageway and the valve for the outlet passageway. The invention includes a method of preparing the container. The container holds liquids shielded from any contaminant, allows introduction of that liquid additive or air and allows withdrawl of the contents while avoiding at all times contact with any contaminants. The container may be evacuated to permit controlled vacuum induced introduction of liquid additives and air through the filter into the container.

The invention deals with a hermetically sealed container, and aims primarily at the medical use of such container.
A first type of container currently in use includes a stopper, a membrane covering the stopper, and a cap crimped around the neck. The cap is precut so that a central portion may be removed uncovering a corresponding area of the membrane to which it gives access. The part of the cap that is left isolates hermetically the interior of the container with respect to the surrounding environment through the tight compression of the membrane over the stopper and through both against the neck. The stopper has two holes bored vertically in it. One is intended for the passage of the fluids to be withdrawn from the container, and the other is for the entry of the air that must replace those fluids.
Depending on the formulation, the contents may be placed inside the container either in an industrial plant for mass production, within a health care facility by completely extemporaneously compounding custom formulas, or by partial compounding by adding materials to the contents placed inside the container at the plant.
In the medical utilization of such containers in an ordinary environment, it is of critical importance in order to avoid detrimental effects on a patient's health such as septicemias and ischemias to avoid administering to the patients contents that have been contaminated by undesirable biologically active or inactive particles. Ischemias are caused by particles clogging smaller blood vessels, are particularly critical in certain organs and have been suspected by some to have some relation to certain forms of cancers.
At the industrial level, exacting procedures make it possible to end up with hermetically sealed containers free of any undesirable particle. This result is achieved thanks to sophisticated and expensive equipment handled by handpicked highly qualified professionals.
If a fluid is to be introduced into the container in a hospital setup, the operator pierces through the membrane with a hollow needle within a visual indicator or at the vertical of one of the holes mentioned, if existing in the stopper, and injects the fluid inside. This procedure involves the risk of contaminating the interior with undesired particles because the needle passing from the surrounding environment into the container may carry inside particles existing outside. Furthermore, the needle may also cut part of the membrane, the stopper or both, or it may allow the air outside to be sucked in because of the internal vacuum. Any germs reaching the fluids may proliferate even in the presence of preservatives.
For the administration of the container's contents to the patient, the membrane is broached at one of the two holes for the extraction of the fluids and at the other hole to permit the surrounding air to replace the departing fluid (replacement air). Some devices require one piercing only because they carry two canals on one stem; one canal allowing the fluids out and the other allowing the replacement air in.
A second type of container has only a single and smaller stopper without any hole bored in it nor any membrane on top of it. It is tightly compressed and kept in place by one or two crimped caps that are precut so that their central portion may be removed uncovering an equivalent area of the stopper. This stopper must again be pierced through its thickness for the extraction of its contents, either in a continuous manner (for slow perfusion), or repetitively in the course of time (vitamins, hormones, anibiotics), and to let in the replacement air. The larger containers usually are deprived of any internal gas when they leave the plant so that compounding is facilitated extemporaneously. However, air must be aspirated at the end of the compounding phase to eliminate the pressure differential before dispensing.
The containers of the second type are plagued by the same risks of contamination. With these two types of containers now in general use, any tampering with the original seals that is not very carefully monitored by a professional may cause at least a deformation of the elastic membranes letting in the surrounding air that may carry contaminants and suppress the pressure differential so helpful to compounding. As a matter of fact, this vacuum is necessary because it permits the insertion of additives without having to withdraw an equal volume of gas from inside. Furthermore, the presence of a vacuum at compounding or dispensing time after a long storage period is a very important safety check of air seepage and contamination.
To remedy these difficulties of extemporaneous utilization, one proposed measure is to include a rudimentary filter on the air inlet within the two-canal device mentioned earlier. However, this filter, which is close to the end to be inserted in the stopper, is regularly contaminated by the operator. It is common practice at the end of compounding to microfilter the full contents (post compounding microfiltration), particularly warranted in the case of large volume of fluids for parenteral fluid thereapy, or total parenteral nutrition, from which preservatives are barred.
In-line microfiltration is a common practice during dispensing of the fluids to the patient. These important microfiltrations are slow, tedious and leakprone, and they necessitate highly paid professionals using very expensive equipment.
The invention aims primarily at correcting these perplexing inconveniences and difficulties by providing a compact portable container with integrated shielding and operating features so that operations are rigidly limited and foolproof, resulting in continuously shielding the contents during the diverse manipulations.
Another object of the invention is to suppress the need for recreating very special environments at the time of utilization. The plant quality cannot be achieved without huge investments in equipment and professionals permanently on the alert.

Sealed container adapted for medical usage and method of sealing


The invention provides a cardiotropic formulation comprising a cardiac glycoside, a beta-adrenergic receptor stimulant nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, cytochrome C and inosine for use in conditions of heart failure.

Known in the are is a number of cardiotropic medicaments, in particular a pharmaceutical composition, Ildamen-novodigal (patent No. 3332 Arzneim . U.el,Forsch (Drug Res.),25,Nr.3 (1975), F. Stroman und R. Hempel. Kombination yon Oxyfedrin mit 3-acetildigoxin), which is referenced here as the prior art to a cardiotropic formulation of the invention known under trade name Refrakterin.
The Ildamen-novodigal formulation including 0.2 mg of beta-acetyldigoxin and 18 mg of oxyfedrin is in common use for treatment of a cardiac insufficiency including conditions associated with coronary circulatory failure. Depending on the severity of patient's condition a daily medication of the combination may be increased up to 0.6 mg of beta-acetyldigoxin and 36 mg of oxyfedrin, and the treatment period may be longed for 1 month. The action of the combination of beta-acetyldigoxin and oxyfedrin is based on a positive inotropic synergism. Such combination of beta-acetyldigoxin and oxyfedrin provides a considerable decrease in toxicity of the former, prevents the occurence of bradycardia and arrhythmia thereby increasing the patient's drug tolerance. However, despite wider range over curable and toxic doses of beta-acetyldigoxin combined with oxyfedrin, the gap between them is still small.
The usage of such combination may cause of intoxication, especially in cases of cardiac hypersensivity to glycosides, in patients with myocardial inflammations, particularly in patients with influenza-related or acute isolated myocarditis, and alcohol-drinker's cardiomyopathy.
The usage of beta-acetyldioxin in combination with oxyfedrin at a considerably lower dose than that of the ildamen-novodigal formulation in cardiomyocyte energy-deficient conditions, such as a well-defined heart insufficiency arising from a toxic-allergic myocarditis, may cause non-responsiveness of the myocardial contractile protein system (Tabl.2) which will aggravate the energy-deficient state of cardiac muscle cell (Tab.3).
If such compounds are used individually, the enhancement of myodynamia of contractile proteins are accompanied with a considerable rise in ATP, and yet CP (creative phosphate) decreases in content. (Tabl.3). As a consequence of the deterioration of a metabolic state, there occurs the activation of myocardial and cardiomyocyte degeneration (N. N. Kipshinidze et al., 1983, Materialy nauchnoi sessii NIl klinicheskoi i eksperimentalnoi terapii Minzdrava Gruzii). This phenomenon may be considered to be the basis of cardiac refractory reaction to the conventional methods of treatment.
The object of the present invention is to provide a cardiotropic formulation, which medicative effect together with a low toxicity, will allow one to restore myocardial contractile force and increase the compensation abilities in a well-defined and severe heart failure including cardiac insufficiency with refractory reaction to the conventional methods of treatment and to cut the time for attaining positive results.

Gldansky massiv, 4 mikroraion, korpus 101, kv. 28

plato Tsutsubidze, 4 mikroraion, korpus 16, kv. 60

Digomsky massiv, 1 kvartal, korpus 11, kv.5.


The DSP#A 5 specifies a read address for reading digital interference signal data stored in the buffer 4 to read the data, and executes the butterfly operation including a preset hamming windowing function coefficient to convert digital interference signal data to frequency data, then outputs the frequency data to the DSP#B 6.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data processor for a wavemeter which executes data processing to display optical frequencies/wavelengths of optical signals measured by the wavemeter and to a data processing method for the wavemeter.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a sudden increase in data communication demands has requested higher-capacity optical communications. In order to meet this request, the Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) transmission technology has come into service and has been upgraded actively. Higher-performance wavemeters are in need in order to evaluate transmission systems and optical devices utilizing the WDM transmission technology.
In a conventional wavemeter used for evaluating transmission systems and optical devices utilizing the WDM transmission technology, a series of processing described below used to be repeated sequentially: digital interference signal data obtained via A/D sampling of interference signals input from an interferometer is temporarily stored in a buffer; the digital interference data stored in the buffer is read by the Digital Signal Processor (DSP) to convert the data to frequency data; and the frequency data is further converted to optical frequency data or optical wavelength data.
Some of the conventional wavemeters utilize the fast Fourier transform (FFT) processing when the DSP converts digital interference data to frequency data. In the FFT processing, chronological digital interference signal data is divided by predetermined period and output as frequency data.
However, as a feature of the FFT processing, discontinuous points present in chronological digital interference data cause frequency data to be displayed in the data obtained via FFT processing. To cope with this, a conventional FFT processing includes a process in which digital interference signal data prior to FFT processing is multiplied by a hamming windowing function coefficient for correcting discontinuous points.
However, for a conventional wavemeter used to evaluate transmission systems or optical devices utilizing the conventional WDM transmission technology, digital interference signal data was multiplied by the hamming windowing function coefficient for correcting data discontinuous points in order to prevent occurrence of data discontinuous points in the FFT-processed frequency data, prior to FFT processing in which the DSP converted digital interference signal data to frequency data.
Thus, the DSP perform operation processing in which digital interference signal data is multiplied by the hamming windowing function coefficient then the FFT processing in which the resulting data is converted to frequency data. This places a considerable processing load on the DSP and prolongs the processing time, thus presenting a problem that the processing time from the A/D sampling to completion of a series of data processing is prolonged.
The processing after the DSP does not execute its own data processing until the data processing in the preceding stage is complete. This also prolonged the processing time from the A/D sampling to output of data processing results.
An object of the invention is to provide a data processor for a wavemeter and a data processing method for the wavemeter, wherein the processing in which the DSP multiplies digital interference signal data by the hamming windowing function coefficient and the butterfly operation processing in the first stage are executed in parallel in order to reduce time required for a series of data processing concerning the wavemeter.
According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a data processor for a wavemeter which processes interference signals of the optical signals in order to display optical frequencies/wavelengths of optical signals measured by the wavemeter, characterized in that the data processor comprises:
first data conversion means for converting the interference signals to digital interference signal data (for example, A/D sampler 3 in FIG. 1) and
second data conversion means for executing the fast Fourier transform processing including the hamming windowing function coefficient on digital interference signals converted by the first data conversion means to convert the digital interference signal data to frequency data (for example, DSP#A 5 in FIG. 2).
According to the aspect of the invention, in a data processor for a wavemeter which executes data processing to display optical frequencies/wavelengths of optical signals measured by the wavemeter, the first data conversion means converts the interference signals to digital interference signal data and the second data conversion means executes the fast Fourier transform processing including the hamming windowing function coefficient on digital interference signals converted by the first data conversion means to convert the digital interference signal data to frequency data.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a data processing method for a wavemeter which processes interference signals of the optical signals in order to display optical frequencies/wavelengths of optical signals measured by the wavemeter, characterized in that the data processing method comprises:
a first data conversion step for converting the interference signals to digital interference signal data and
a second data conversion step for executing the fast Fourier transform processing including the hamming windowing function coefficient on digital interference signals converted by the first data conversion step to convert the digital interference signal data to frequency data.
According to the another aspect of the invention, a data processing method for a wavemeter which executes data processing to display optical frequencies/wavelengths of optical signals measured by the wavemeter comprises:
a first data conversion step for converting the interference signals to digital interference signal data and a second data conversion step for executing the fast Fourier transform processing including the hamming windowing function coefficient on digital interference signals converted by the first data conversion step to convert the digital interference signal data to frequency data.
Thus, the processing in which digital interference signal data is multiplied by the hamming windowing function coefficient prior to fast Fourier transform processing can be omitted and the time required for a series of data processing concerning the wavemeter can be reduced, thus boosting the response time in displaying optical frequencies and optical wavelengths of optical signals.
In this case, according to the invention, a data processor for a wavemeter according to the first aspect of the invention, the second data conversion means may comprise storage means for storing the hamming windowing function coefficient.
According to the invention, the second data conversion means comprises storage means for storing the hamming windowing function coefficient.
In this case, according to the invention, a data processing method for a wavemeter according to the third aspect of the invention can be such that the second data conversion step stores the hamming windowing function coefficient in the storage means.
According to the invention, the second data conversion step stores the hamming windowing function coefficient in the storage means.
Thus, setting of an optimum fast Fourier transform processing depending on the characteristics of optical signals to be measured can be made with ease, thus facilitating change to specifications of the wavemeter.

Data processor and data processing method for wavemeter


One embodiment provides an apparatus, including: a processor; a housing including a plurality of slots; and a single piece card retainer, comprising: a back surface; a front surface comprising a plurality of independent projections, wherein each of the plurality of independent projections is flexible and aligns with a slot of the plurality of slots; and at least two connection points that connect the single piece card retainer to the housing, where the single piece card retainer rotates about the at least two connection points to open and close with respect to the plurality of slots. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Electronic components such as graphics cards, PCI express cards, etc. (herein "card(s)") are often provided within a card slot in a system (e.g., desktop computing system). A card is placed within the card slot and typically is moved within the card slot to mate with connectors, e.g., to attach to a circuit board. Card slots that are not in use typically have a card insert, which is a placeholder that covers the card slot.
Card retainers act to keep the card in place. The card is secured by the retainer by virtue of the retainer abutting the end of the card, e.g., distal to the end of the card that connects to the circuit board. The card retainer is designed to secure the cards within the card slots, yet permit the cards to be removed, e.g., by a reverse operation of card insertion.