The disclosure provides a method for immunotherapy of a cancer patient, comprises administering to the patient an Ab that inhibits signaling from the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling pathway, or a combination of such Ab and an anti-CTLA-4 Ab. This disclosure also provides a method for immunotherapy of a cancer patient comprising selecting a patient who is a suitable candidate for immunotherapy based on an assessment that the proportion of cells in a test tissue sample from the patient that express PD-L1 on the cell surface exceeds a predetermined threshold level, and administering an anti-PD-1 Ab to the selected subject. The disclosure additionally provides rabbit mAbs that bind specifically to a cell surface-expressed PD-L1 antigen in a FFPE tissue sample, and an automated IHC method for assessing cell surface expression in FFPE tissues using the provided anti-PD-L1 Abs.

Human cancers harbor numerous genetic and epigenetic alterations, generating neoantigens potentially recognizable by the immune system (Sjoblom et al., 2006). The adaptive immune system, comprised of T and B lymphocytes, has powerful anti-cancer potential, with a broad capacity and exquisite specificity to respond to diverse tumor antigens. Further, the immune system demonstrates considerable plasticity and a memory component. The successful harnessing of all these attributes of the adaptive immune system would make immunotherapy unique among all cancer treatment modalities. However, although an endogenous immune response to cancer is observed in preclinical models and patients, this response is ineffective, and established cancers are viewed as "self" and tolerated by the immune system. Contributing to this state of tolerance, tumors may exploit several distinct mechanisms to actively subvert anti-tumor immunity. These mechanisms include dysfunctional T-cell signaling (Mizoguchi et al., 1992), suppressive regulatory cells (Facciabene et al., 2012), and the co-opting of endogenous "immune checkpoints," which serve to down-modulate the intensity of adaptive immune responses and protect normal tissues from collateral damage, by tumors to evade immune destruction (Topalian et al., 2011; Mellman et al., 2011).
Until recently, cancer immunotherapy had focused substantial effort on approaches that enhance anti-tumor immune responses by adoptive-transfer of activated effector cells, immunization against relevant antigens, or providing non-specific immune-stimulatory agents such as cytokines. In the past decade, however, intensive efforts to develop specific immune checkpoint pathway inhibitors have begun to provide new immunotherapeutic approaches for treating cancer, including the development of an antibody (Ab), ipilimumab (YERVOY®), that binds to and inhibits Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Antigen-4 (CTLA-4) for the treatment of patients with advanced melanoma (Hodi et al., 2010) and, as described herein, the development of Abs that block the inhibitory PD-1 pathway.
Programmed Death-1 (PD-1) is a key immune checkpoint receptor expressed by activated T and B cells and mediates immunosuppression. PD-1 is a member of the CD28 family of receptors, which includes CD28, CTLA-4, ICOS, PD-1, and BTLA. Two cell surface glycoprotein ligands for PD-1 have been identified, Programmed Death Ligand-1 (PD-L1) and Programmed Death Ligand-2 (PD-L2), that are expressed on antigen-presenting cells as well as many human cancers and have been shown to downregulate T cell activation and cytokine secretion upon binding to PD-1 (Freeman et al., 2000; Latchman et al., 2001). Unlike CTLA-4, PD-1 primarily functions in peripheral tissues where activated T-cells may encounter the immunosuppressive PD-L1 (B7-H1) and PD-L2 (B7-DC) ligands expressed by tumor and/or stromal cells (Flies et al., 2011; Topalian et al., 2012a). Inhibition of the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction mediates potent antitumor activity in preclinical models (U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,008,449 and 7,943,743), and the use of Ab inhibitors of the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction for treating cancer has entered clinical trials (Brahmer et al., 2010; Topalian et al., 2012b; Brahmer et al., 2012; Flies et al., 2011; Pardoll, 2012; Hamid and Carvajal, 2013).
The promise of the emerging field of personalized medicine is that advances in pharmacogenomics will increasing be used to tailor therapeutics to defined sub-populations, and ultimately, individual patients in order to enhance efficacy and minimize adverse effects. Recent successes include, for example, the development of imatinib mesylate (GLEEVEC®), a protein tyrosine kinase inhibitor that inhibits the bcr-abl tyrosine kinase, to treat Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML); crizotinib (XALKORI®) to treat the 5% of patients with late-stage non-small cell lung cancers who express a mutant anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene; and vemurafenib (ZELBORAF®), an inhibitor of mutated B-RAF protein (V600E-BRAF) which is expressed in around half of melanoma tumors. However, unlike the clinical development of small molecule agents that target discrete activating mutations found in select cancer populations, a particular challenge in cancer immunotherapy has been the identification of mechanism-based predictive biomarkers to enable patient selection and guide on-treatment management. Advances in validating PD-L1 expression as a biomarker for screening patients for anti-PD-1 immunotherapy are described herein.

Cancer immunotherapy by disrupting PD-1/PD-L1 signaling


A stack of plastic foil bags has a flap projecting beyond a filling opening on one broad side of the each bag which has a corner region delimited by perforations and formed in the corner region with at least one interlocking point for joining the bags in the stack and a stack-incorporation means separate from the interlocking point and enabling assembly of the bags into the stack.

Our present invention relates to a stack of multiple plastic foil bags and to a method of making that stack. More particularly, the invention relates to bags of the type which are used with automatic packaging machines and in bags which are individually pulled from the stack and separate along perforation lines from a bag residue which remains as part of the stack.
In the continuous production of bags it is generally known to collect the bags which are made together to form stacks or pads each with a predetermined number of bags. The collection device can be, for example, a pin-type stacking conveyor with a horizontally-moving conveyor chain carrying pins on which the individual bags are stacked. Openings are stamped or punched into the bag at distances corresponding to the spacing of a pair of stacking pins and the bags are placed over those pins by threading the pins through the openings.
It is also known to hold bags of a stack together by means of a wire bracket which has its shanks traversing the openings formed in a flap part of the bag. For this purpose the bag stack can be lifted from the stacking pins of the pin-type stacking conveyor and placed over the shanks of the wire bracket or the shanks of the wire bracket can be inserted through the holes in the stacked bags to allow the wire bracket to be used to remove the stacks from the pins.
The ends of the wire bracket can bear upon front and rear cover sheets which are provided between the bracket ends and the plastic bags and the stack can be secured by safety plates or rubber plugs fitted onto the shanks of the wire brackets. The steps involved are usually performed manually by an operator.
Mention should be made of the fact that such bags are generally provided with unilateral flaps and the suspension holes are customarily provided in those flaps. The term xe2x80x9cunilaterallyxe2x80x9d is used to indicate that the flap is generally an extension or provided as a separate part of one of the broad walls of the bag, the other broad wall terminating at an edge which can be pulled away from the first-mentioned broad wall to form the filling opening of the bag. The bag stacks hitherto provided are expensive because of the need for auxiliary materials, like the wire stirrup and the front and rear cover sheets or the plates or plugs. Furthermore, the bag stacks themselves are difficult to package and transport largely because of the presence of the wire stirrup. When product is to be introduced into the bag in an automatic-packaging machine, the flap part is usually turned off along the bag opening and can result in a sloppy appearance of the bag since the front edge is no longer smooth. In some cases, moreover, the wire bracket or stirrup must be returned to the manufacturer for recycling.
It is also known, in the production of bag stacks, to interlock the bags by pressing one of the bags into the other at interlocking points at the corners, usually of flaps of the type described. The interlocking approach simplifies the packaging of the bags and makes the separation of the bags from the stack somewhat neater and frequently simplifies bag production. There is no need for the brackets and stirrups and thus the manufacturing and handling of the stacks can be more cost-effective, especially since the cost of the wire brackets and of their return to the manufacturer of the bags is eliminated.
Nevertheless the production of stacks of bags is capable of improvement.
It is the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved bag stack which ensures a more aesthetic appearance of the bags after separation from the stack and more economical fabrication of the stack than has been the case hitherto.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method of making a bag stack, particularly for use in the machine packaging of goods.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a method of stacking plastic bags of film or foil whereby drawbacks of earlier bag stacks are avoided and, in addition, to provide an improved bag stack with the advantages gained by that method.
These objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are attained, in accordance with the invention in a bag stack formed from bags having a unilateral flap which is provided in corner regions with separating lines of perforations and within the corner region, the means for retaining the bags in a stack, e.g. the hole along the margins of which the bags of the stack can be held together.
According to the invention, within the corner region bounded by the perforations and thus within the tear-off segments of the flap, a means for incorporating the bags in the stack can be provided, for example, in the form of cross-shaped or star-shaped seal arrangements.
According to the invention, the bag flap is placed over a stack of pins of the collection device so that the collection is hugged by the lobes separated by the cross-shaped or star-shaped array of slits and, once the stack is formed on these pins, the bags of the stack are held together, also within the corner region delimited by the perforations.
The star-shaped or cruciform array of slits, referred to here as the means for stack incorporation, are arranged in corner areas of the flap delimited by the perforations and thus in a pair of segments which remain behind when the remainder of the flap is separated from the corner segments but stack-incorporation means of this type has precisely defined contours which snugly grip the stacking pins by the lobes which are spread apart as the stacking corporation means are forced over the pins. The result is an optimal suspension of the individual bags on the pin and support for the bags as they are padded together.
Another advantage of the provision of the slit arrays within the corner areas delimited by the perforations and of providing the actual attachments of the bags together in these areas, is that the bag can be separated from the two corner segments which remain on the stack significantly more neatly than has been the case.
Furthermore, the system of the invention provides a central area of the flap between the perforations which is free from discontinuities, holes, slits and the like and which can be used to receive print, for labeling or the like, without disturbance resulting from such discontinuities.


An example gripper may include: a base; two or more fingers attached to the base, with each finger being movable towards, and away from, one or more others of the fingers; and one or more ports at the base or at one or more of the fingers to provide suction through a vacuum.

Robot grippers may be custom-developed for specific applications. General purpose robot grippers exist, which mimic the human hand, use jamming technology, or use vacuum pick-up. Mechanical hand-like grippers and jamming grippers may, in some cases, be too large to pick-up small objects. Vacuum pick-up may be limited by the amount of smooth area available on an object and the object's weight.


A hinge for kitchen cabinets and the like is disclosed. The hinge includes means for sequentially pivoting the door about two pivot axes. The hinge includes a sequencing link which locks certain hinge members for pivotal movement about a first pivot axis, then unlocks those members while locking others so that pivoting takes place about another pivot axis. An optional automatic door closing mechanism is also shown.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to hinges in general and more particularly to those having multiple pivotal axes and a sequencing link.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous hinges are known in the prior art. Multiple pivot axis hinges are also known. Some examples are U.S. Pat. No. 406,247 to Webb; U.S. Pat. No. 2,901,766 to Marquis; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,619,853 to Merrill.
Others teach the recessing of the mechanism into the door and cabinet to conceal the hinge.
Most prior art devices do not address themselves to the problem of providing both a compact hinge and one that can be completely hidden. The present invention achieves both these goals.
3. Objects and Advantages
A principal object of the invention is to provide a hinge that can be completely hidden.
A further object is to provide a hinge with dual pivot axes linked so as to provide sequential pivoting.
A further object is to provide a hinge which includes a floating sequencing link to induce and control sequential pivoting.
Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art.


To measure a characteristic of a multimode optical fiber, a light pulse source produces a light pulse for transmission into the multimode optical fiber. A spatial filter passes a portion of Brillouin backscattered light from the multimode optical fiber that is responsive to the light pulse. Optical detection equipment detects the portion of the Brillouin backscattered light passed by the spatial filter.

An optical time domain reflectometry (OTDR) system can be used to measure values of a physical parameter of interest along an optical fiber. In one application, the optical fiber can be deployed in a wellbore that is used to produce fluids from a reservoir in a subterranean structure, where the reservoir can include hydrocarbons, fresh water, or other fluids. Examples of physical parameters that may be of interest include temperature, strain, and other parameters. One type of OTDR system is the Brillouin OTDR system, which takes measurements based on Brillouin scattering.
Brillouin scattering is an inelastic phenomenon that results from the interaction of incident optical photons (of an incident optical signal) with acoustic phonons in the medium (the optical fiber) (Brillouin scattering occurs in media other than optical fibers). This interaction induces a counter-propagating optical wave (reflected or backscattered optical signal) having a frequency (Brillouin frequency) that is shifted from the frequency of the original incident optical wave. Brillouin scattering in an optical fiber is sensitive to both temperature and strain changes in the optical fiber.
Conventionally, Brillouin OTDR acquisition systems are designed to be used with single-mode optical fibers. The reason for the preference of single-mode optical fibers in conventional Brillouin OTDR systems stems from the relatively close frequency spacing between the Brillouin backscattered light and the probe pulse that is transmitted into the optical fiber, and the techniques used for separating probe and Brillouin signals are generally specific to, or more effective in, single-mode fibers than multimode fibres. However, requiring that Brillouin OTDR acquisitions be made with OTDR systems having single-mode optical fibers results in reduced flexibility of such OTDR systems.

Measuring a characteristic of a multimode optical fiber


In a coiled wire medical lead structure, such as a transvenous, endocardial cardiac pacemaker and/or cardioverter/defibrillator lead, an improved mechanical structure for strengthening the lead to enable its intact removal by traction after a period of chronic implant, one or more normally relaxed, nonextensible filaments loosely contained within the insulating sheath and having proximal and distal ends mechanically coupled to the connector and electrode shank, respectively, of the lead operate as means for restraining the stretching of the lead body to a stretched length exceeding the relaxed, predetermined length by an amount sufficient to allow the lead to be stretched without breaking in its normal usage and during removal by traction. In certain embodiments, the filament may take the form of a loosely woven fabric sheath formed in a tubular shape and fitted in the space between the lead body outer sheath and one or more coiled wire conductors. The filament(s) or woven sheath may be embedded within or on the interior surface of the outer insulating sheath or an inner insulating sheath of a bipolar or multipolar lead.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to coiled wire medical lead structures, such as transvenous, endocardial cardiac pacemaker and/or cardioverter/defibrillator leads. More particularly this invention relates to an improved structure for strengthening such leads to enable their intact removal by forceful traction after a period of chronic implant, specifically without the need of special lead removal devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of transvenous pacing and cardioversion/defibrillation leads have been developed for endocardial introduction into different chambers of a patient's heart, typically the right ventricle or right atrial appendage, as well as the coronary sinus. These flexible leads usually are constructed having an outer polymeric sheath encasing one or more electrical, coiled wire conductors. One coiled wire conductor is typically attached at its distal tip to the shank portion of a tip electrode. In bipolar or multipolar leads, one or more further coiled wire conductors are provided in coaxial or co-linear relation to the first coiled wire conductor and are connected at its distal end to more proximally located, ring-shaped electrodes situated along the lead body. The proximal ends of each conductor are coupled to a connector which includes a single pin in unipolar leads and additional pins or in-line rings in bipolar and multi-polar leads.
The tip electrode is usually placed in contact with myocardial tissue by passage through a venous access, often the subclavian vein or one of its tributaries, which leads to the endocardial surface of the heart chambers. The tip electrode is held in place passively by trabeculations of myocardial tissue or actively through the use of an actively manipulated anchor or screw that penetrates the myocardium as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,209,019 and 3,974,834, assigned to Medtronic, Inc. The distal ends of many available leads include flexible tines, flanges, or finger-like projections which extend radially outward and usually are molded from and are integral with the distal portion of the insulating sheath of the lead, usually proximal to the tip electrode and distal from any ring electrodes. These passive fixation mechanisms allow surrounding growth of tissue and scar in chronically implanted leads to fix the electrode tip in position in the heart and prevent dislodgement of the tip during the life of the lead.
In "acute" placement of the electrode tip, a blood clot forms about the fixation mechanism and insulating sheath (due to enzymes released as a result of irritation of the trabeculations of the myocardial tissue by the presence of the electrode tip) until scar tissue eventually forms, usually in three to six weeks. Until scar tissue develops, the fixation mechanisms described above prevent early dislodgement of the lead tip.
Although the state of the art in implanted pulse generator and endocardial lead technology has advanced considerably, endocardial leads nevertheless occasionally fail for a variety of reasons such as the following: insulation failure; sensor failure; coiled wire conductor fracture; and an increase in electrode resistance beyond a desirable level. Also, in some instances, it may be desirable to electronically stimulate different portions of the heart than are presently being stimulated with leads already in place. There are a considerable number of patients who have had one or more, and sometimes as many as four or five previously and currently used leads in their veins and heart.
The risks of leaving unusable leads in the heart and venous path include the following: an increased likelihood of infection; a potentially fatal complication which may necessitate removal of the lead; obstruction to blood flow as in "SVC syndrome"; and an increased likelihood of the formation of blood clots which may embolize to the lung and produce severe complications and even death. In addition, extra leads in the heart can interefere with cardiac valve and mechanical function. Thus, it is desirable to remove old unusable leads. Finally, the presence of unused leads in the venous pathway and inside the heart can cause considerable difficulty in the positioning and attachment of new endocardial leads in the heart.
In patients where implanted leads fails, it is desirable that they be removed. However, surgeons usually have avoided attempts to remove previously implanted leads because the risk of removing them exceeds the risk of leaving them in. Heretofore, removal techniques in the replacement surgery typically have involved applying traction to the old lead either by grasping the exposed proximal end of the lead and attempting to manually pull the lead out of the vein, or by attaching the proximal connector end to a line and weight suspended by a pulley and allowing the steady traction to gradually pull the lead free from the patient's heart over several hours to days, as herein shown in FIG. 2 and described in numerous published papers, such as "Incarceration of Transvenous Pacemaker Electrode. Removal By Traction," by A. M. Bilgutay, et al., American Heart Journal, Vol. 77, No. 3, pp. 377-379, March 1969.
Grasping and applying traction on the proximal ends of the chronically implanted leads results in directing pulling forces substantially along the length of the lead. These pulling forces are transmitted through the lead to its distal tip. Because of the fibrosis enveloping the electrode, substantial resistance to the pulling forces is experienced, and stress is placed on the lead as well as the heart.
As described above, endocardial lead construction typically includes a polymeric insulating sheath, within which one or more electrical, coiled wire conductors are mounted and attached to distally located electrodes and proximally located connector pins. Unfortunately, these leads have typically been constructed in such a manner which tends to make their subsequent removal difficult. When subjected to pulling forces along its length, such a lead usually disassembles. The polymeric insulating sheath can break away from the proximal and distal ends of the lead while the coiled wire conductor is stretched until it breaks or has to be cut off at the venous access site. The exposed end of a coiled wire conductor, once extended and stretched, may present the risk of cutting adjacent tissue if left in place. In such cases, only open heart surgery can fully remove the lead.
A further complication of applying direct manual pulling force to the proximal end of the lead is the avulsion of the heart, which can induce arrhythmias or even lead to death. Thus, care must be taken to observe the procedure under fluoroscopy and to avoid either breaking the lead structure or causing avulsion of the heart.
Various techniques and lead removal tools have been proposed to temporarily strengthen the lead body during the attempted removal and/or to cut away the connective tissue and, in some instances, the fixation mechanism, leaving part of it in the heart. Such tools as are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,988,347, 4,574,800, and 4,582,056 typically involve the use of a special stylet inserted into the lumen of the coiled wire conductor having an expandable member at its distal tip for wedging into the distal coiled wire conductor at its connection with the tip electrode shank and applying traction to the combined lead and attached wire stylet. Furthermore, it has been proposed to employ a catheter advanced over the outer sheath of the lead to sever the connective tissue adhering to the sheath along its length and at its distal tip. Other procedures include special grasping tools for grasping the lead body, as described, for example, in "Percutaneous Removal of Ventricular Pacemaker Electrodes Using a Dormier Basket," by C. J. Foster, et al., in Int. Jr. of Cardiology, 21 (1988) 127-134, and publications cited therein.
The procedures employing these removal tools are relatively complex and expensive and are usually resorted to only in those instances where the application of traction has proven ineffective. It is therefore desirable to provide a removable lead construction which reduces the necessity of resorting to the use of special tools or procedures.


The specification discloses an arrangement for hard wiring movable room divider panels, comprising enclosed raceways adapted to mount electrical appliances therein, and being connected with and extending generally between the legs of the panels. A panel-to-panel wiring connector extends between and is attached to the ends of adjacent raceways, and includes a protective outer shell with a longitudinally extending interior cavity therethrough in which electrical wires are received. The wiring connector has a split body for longitudinally opening the outer shell, laying the wires in the interior cavity, and closing the outer shell about the wires, and includes opposed open ends which communicate with the adjacent raceways, whereby the raceways and channels form an uninterrupted shield for the wires, so as to economically hard wire the panels by hand without requiring a conventional conduit type of installation.

The present invention relates to movable room divider panels, and in particular to a wiring arrangement therefor.
Freestanding, movable room divider panels are commonly used in offices and other areas to partition a large open space into a plurality of separate work stations. Because the panels are movable, they may be disassembled and rearranged to accommodate a wide variety of different working requirements.
One problem encountered with movable partition systems is the difficulty involved in economically and safely providing electricity to those work stations which require electrical power. Local building codes and utility inspectors typically do not permit users to run long length of electrical extension cords along the panels. Under such circumstances, the panels must be hard wired by hand, similar to conventional household wiring which is permanent, wherein flexible wires are threaded through the walls of the building and connected with switches, duplex outlets, and other electrical appliances and fixtures, by means of solder and tape joints, and/or solderless connectors with the joint located in an enclosed, rigid junction box. All exposed segments of the wire which extend along the outside of the building wall must be encased in a protective shield or conduit.
In movable partition systems, the wiring is preferably run continuous from one panel to the next. Even in those partition systems which include some type of wiring raceway attached thereto, the legs of the partition panels typically extend into or through the raceway, thereby destroying the protective integrity of the raceway for purposes of compliance with electrical code requirements. Further, that portion of the wiring which extends between adjacent panels must, under the above noted strict building codes, be fully shielded. Although both flexible and rigid conduit can be used with standard junction boxes to electrify the partition panels, it is very difficult to run the conduit through or along the panels in a neat, clean-cut manner without damaging the structural integrity of the panels. It is particularly difficult, if not impossible, to run fairly large conduit, such as one-half inch diameter conduit, through or around the vertical support posts and/or foot portions of freestanding partitions of the type having a supporting leg depending from the partition bottom edge at each end of the panel.

Arrangement for hard wiring movable room divider panels


Heterocyclic compounds, synthetic methods for preparing the same, and organic light-emitting display devices comprising the same are described. The subject heterocyclic compounds may comprise an aromatic ring or a heteroaromatic ring fused with a carbazole, dibenzothiophene, or dibenzofurane derivative, the compounds featuring rigid backbone structures with high glass transition temperatures and high melting points. The subject heterocyclic compounds may exhibit high electrical stability, improved charge transport ability, high heat resistance and improved light-emitting properties when used in organic light-emitting devices. Organic light-emitting display devices prepared according to the present invention exhibit lower driving voltages, increased luminescent efficiencies and longer lifetimes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to heterocyclic compounds and, more specifically, to fused ring heterocyclic compounds and organic light-emitting devices including the same. Additionally, the present invention relates to organic light-emitting devices including the subject heterocyclic compounds and having improved light emitting properties.
2. Description of the Related Art
Organic light-emitting devices (OLEDs), which are self-emitting devices, have advantages such as wide viewing angles, excellent contrast, quick response, high brightness and excellent driving voltage characteristics and can provide multicolored images. Due to these characteristics, OLEDs have been receiving a growing level of attention.
An existing organic light-emitting device has a structure that includes an anode disposed on a substrate, a hole transport layer (HTL), an emission layer (EML), an electron transport layer (ETL) and a cathode that are sequentially disposed upon one another. The HTL, the EML, and the ETL are normally formed of organic compounds. When a voltage is applied between the anode and the cathode, holes injected from the anode move to the EML via the HTL, and electrons injected from the cathode move to the EML via the ETL. The holes and electrons (carriers) recombine in the EML to generate excitons. When the exitons drop from an excited state to a ground state, light is emitted.
A major factor affecting luminescent efficiency of an organic light-emitting device is the structure of the organic luminescent material used to construct the device. Fluorescent materials have been widely used as organic light-emitting materials, but they may have limited emission efficiency due to having a mere 25% probability of being in an excited singlet state. Meanwhile, phosphorescent materials have a 25% probability of being in an excited singlet state and a 75% of probability of being in an excited triplet state, and thus they may improve emission efficiency up to four times as compared with fluorescent materials, based on theoretical electroluminescence mechanisms, and they may achieve a 100% internal quantum efficiency. Thus, the use of phosphorescent materials in organic light-emitting devices is gradually increasing.
Anthracene derivatives are typical organic light-emitting materials. However, an organic light-emitting device using an anthracene derivative in which two or three anthracene moieties are linked in a conjugated system may have a narrow energy gap, a low blue-light color purity, and a low emission efficiency. Thus, improving upon the performance obtainable with anthracenes is desirable.
4,4′-Bis(carbazole-9-yl)biphenyl (CBP) is in wide use as a phosphorescent host material, but it is not suitable for green-light emission due to having a wide bandgap and reduced emission efficiency. It is also not easy to control hole or electron mobility with this material to adjust the charge balance.
These existing organic light-emitting materials are not satisfactory in emission characteristics, including emission efficiency, and thus there is still a demand for improvement.

Heterocyclic compounds and organic light-emitting devices including the same


Method to obtain in the cold state single finished sections (11) from substantially cold single multi-section elements (12) produced by hot rolling, extrusion or drawing, the single multi-section element (12) consisting of at least two finished sections (11) (angle irons, angle irons with unequal sides, Z-sections, T-sections, flats, etc.) positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise along the terminal part of an edge, the sections (11) being separated by a web (21), the cold single multi-section element (12) being positioned and undergoing the splitting of the web (21) from the sections (11), the edges of the finished sections (11) facing the web (21) after splitting being subjected to a re-gauging operation, the finished sections (11) being then straightened and made linear at the same time. Machine to obtain in the cold state single finished sections (11) from single multi-section elements (12) produced by hot rolling or extrusion/drawing, the single multi-section element (12) consisting of at least two finished sections (11) (angle irons, angle irons with unequal sides, Z-sections, T-sections, flats, etc.) positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise along the terminal part of an edge by a web (21), the machine comprising in sequence at least one feeding and positioning assembly (36), at least one splitting assembly (20) and at least one re-gauging assembly (29).

This invention concerns a method and relative machine to obtain in the cold state single finished sections from cold single multi-section elements.
To be more exact, the invention concerns a method and relative machine to obtain in the cold state single finished sections by starting with a cold single multi-section element having a special multiple profile.
The single multi-section element is produced by hot rolling or by an extrusion/drawing process and is then cooled.
The single multi-section element consists of a plurality of substantially finished sections positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise along the terminal part of at least one edge.
The sections consist mainly of angle irons having equal and/or unequal sides.
The method and relative machine of this invention are employed to advantage in obtaining Z-sections, T-sections, flats, etc. from one single multi-section element which contains them.
The present applicants are aware of methods using a hot rolling mill to roll in the hot state at one and the same time one single multi-section element containing a plurality of sections positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise, so as then to obtain, still in the hot state, the splitting of the single sections.
JP 54-33251 discloses single multi-section elements consisting of a plurality of angle irons having equal sides, positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise.
GB 306 A.D. 1910 discloses single multi-section elements consisting of a plurality of round bars positioned side by side and connected together lengthwise.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,977,285 discloses single multi-section elements consisting of a plurality of angle irons having equal sides, or of a plurality of bars having a square base, or of a plurality of channel sections connected together.
JP 60-6202 discloses single multi-section elements consisting of a plurality of angle irons having unequal sides and connected together lengthwise.
GB 1,355,144 discloses single multi-section elements consisting of two T-sections connected together at their central web.
All these single multi-section elements are normally produced with a lengthwise connecting web between the single sections. The single sections constituting the multi-section element have to be split and then re-formed and/or re-shaped and also straightened in the cold state so as to take up their final form.
The present applicants are not aware of machines which split and finish the single component section so as to obtain single finished sections from a cold single multi-section element as described in this invention.

Method to obtain on the cold state single finished section from cold single multi-section elements, and relative machine


A printer includes a print unit; a processor; and memory storing computer readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the printer to: operate the printing unit in an operation mode, which is one of a power supply mode and a power saving mode, wherein power consumption in the power saving mode is less than power consumption in the power supply mode; execute a correction process to acquire a correction value; adjust printing characteristics of the print unit in accordance with the acquired correction value; and in case that a particular condition is satisfied while the correction process is performed and there is a print job to be executed in accordance with the adjusted printing characteristics after completing the correction process, change the operation mode from the power supply mode to the power saving mode after completing the correction process and executing the print job.

In order to realize power saving, a printer changes from a power supply mode to a power saving mode in which power supply to some components is reduced relative to the power supply mode and power consumption is suppressed.
A background printer has a power saving mode or a configuration to display a message indicating that changes to a low power consumption mode is not possible when a user inputs change instructions for changing from a power supply mode to a low power consumption mode during an operation of a printer having the low power consumption mode (corresponding to the power saving mode) in which power consumption in a waiting state is suppressed.


Provided are (1) a vinyl alcohol graft copolymer grafting polymerizable unsaturated monomers as a graft chain onto a side-chain mercapto group-containing vinyl alcohol polymer backbone, the graft chain being attached to the polymer backbone at a mercapto group, and the backbone including: a vinyl alcohol unit and a unit represented by the following formula (I):

Vinyl alcohol polymers (hereinafter vinyl alcohol polymer is sometimes abbreviated as PVA) are one of the few water-soluble and crystalline polymers, and have excellent interfacial and strength properties. PVAs have been used for paper processing, for textile processing, and also as emulsion stabilizers. PVAs also hold an important position as PVA films, PVA fibers, and others.
Block copolymers and graft copolymers comprising chemically bonded polymer units each having different properties show various physical characteristics depending on diverse combination of polymer units. In addition to applications for impact resistant resins, polymeric emulsifiers and dispersing agents, the block copolymers and graft copolymers have attracted attention as film materials and medical materials in recent years, leading to varieties of study cases. Block copolymers comprising a PVA as one of the structural units as well as graft copolymers comprising a PVA as a backbone (trunk polymer) have been expected as new materials having new properties while retaining the properties originated from the PVAs.
Hitherto a block copolymer comprising a PVA as a structural unit has been proposed (Patent Document 1).
Further, some graft copolymers comprising PVAs as backbone have also been proposed (Patent Documents 2 and 3). For example, Patent Document 2 discloses a graft polymer comprising a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) unit as a main chain and a polymer unit of polymerized sulfonic acid group-containing monomers as a graft chain. This document describes that the graft polymer can be obtained by graft polymerization (or graft reaction) in the presence of a catalyst or an initiator.
Patent Document 3 discloses a method of grafting vinyl monomers on a polyvinyl alcohol comprising: allowing hydroxyl groups as side chains of the polyvinyl alcohol to be reacted with a thiol group-containing silane coupling agent to introduce the thiol groups into the polyvinyl alcohol, subsequently allowing the introduced thiol groups to be reacted with persulfate ions to generate radicals on the polyvinyl alcohol, and allowing the radicals as reacting points to be reacted with the vinyl monomers.
Meanwhile, ion exchange membranes have been used in electrodialysis methods or diffusion dialysis methods for a wide variety of applications such as seawater concentration, removal of salts or nitrate nitrogen from underground brine or brackish water for making drinking water, removal of salts in food production, concentration of active ingredients for medical pharmaceutical product, and others As ion-exchange membranes useful for the above applications, an ion exchange membrane is disclosed which comprises a support layer and an ion-exchange layer formed on the support layer, the ion-exchange layer comprising a block copolymer comprising a polyvinyl alcohol unit and an anionic or cationic polymer unit (Patent Document 4).

Vinyl alcohol-based graft polymer, method for producing same, and ion-exchange membrane using same

Abstract: wherein R1 is a hydrogen atom or a carboxyl group; R2 is a hydrogen atom, a methyl group, a carboxyl group, or a carboxymethyl group; and X is a divalent C1-22 group which contains a carbon atom and a hydrogen atom and may contain a nitrogen atom and/or an oxygen atom; and (2) an ion-exchange membrane having controlled swelling in water and excellent flex resistance, the membrane including a vinyl alcohol graft copolymer as described above.


A mobile communication device located within a radio signal coverage of a service network to serve as a relay User Equipment (UE) for Proximity-based Service (ProSe) UE-to-network relay is provided. The mobile communication device includes a wireless transceiver and a controller. The wireless transceiver performs wireless transmission and reception to and from the service network and a remote UE which is located out of the radio signal coverage of the service network. The controller transmits a Device-to-Device (D2D) Synchronization Signal (D2DSS) to the remote UE via the wireless transceiver in response to receiving a relay discovery message from the remote UE via the wireless transceiver, and requests radio resource allocation from the service network for the remote UE via the wireless transceiver in response to receiving a Direct Communication Request message from the remote UE via the wireless transceiver.

Field of the Application
The application generally relates to wireless communications, and more particularly, to relay in Proximity-based Service (ProSe) communication.
Description of the Related Art
With growing demand for ubiquitous computing and networking, various wireless technologies have been developed, including Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology, Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution (EDGE) technology, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) technology, Code Division Multiple Access 2000 (CDMA-2000) technology, Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) technology, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) technology, Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) technology, and Time-Division LTE (TD-LTE) technology, etc. By employing one of the wireless technologies, a mobile communication device (which may be referred to as User Equipment (UE)) may wirelessly connect to a service network for accessing the Internet or obtaining mobile services, including the Proximity-based Service (ProSe), anytime and anywhere. The ProSe represents an enormous recent social-technological trend.
Using LTE technology as an example, the ProSe is first introduced in Release 12 of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) specifications. A ProSe-enabled UE may discover other ProSe-enabled UEs in its vicinity by using only the capabilities of the two UEs or by the assistance of an LTE network. In addition to ProSe discovery, a ProSe-enabled UE may act as a relay between two other ProSe-enabled UEs in its proximity or between a ProSe-enabled UE in its proximity and the LTE network, to provide ProSe communication therebetween. However, according to the 3GPP Technical Report (TR) 23.713, a ProSe-enabled UE which acts as a relay (referred to as a relay UE herein) is first required to connect to an LTE network and request for radio resources for use in ProSe communication, and is also required to always transmit a Device-to-Device (D2D) Synchronization Signal (D2DSS) for allowing another ProSe-enabled UE which is out of service of the LTE network (referred to as a remote UE) to be able to transmit data to the LTE network via the relay UE. As a result, relay UEs may suffer from serious power consumption due to D2DSS transmission. Moreover, the resource utilization of LTE networks may be inefficient since there may be situations where the requested radio resources have been allocated, but there are no remote UE requests to use ProSe communication.

Apparatuses and methods for proximity-based service (prose) user equipment (UE)-to network relay


Provided herein are compounds that exhibit activity as acetyl-CoA carboxylase modulators (e.g., inhibitors) and are useful, for example, in methods for the control of fungal pathogens in plants.

Acetyl-CoA carboxylase ("ACCase") is an essential catalyst for the rate-limiting step of fatty acid biosynthesis in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Phytopathogenic fungi can infect crop plants either in the field or after harvesting, resulting in considerable economic losses to farmers and producers worldwide. In addition to the agricultural impact, when food and feed contaminated with fungi or the toxins they produce are ingested by humans or livestock, a number of debilitating diseases or death can occur. Approximately 10,000 species of fungi are known to damage crops and affect quality and yield. Crop rotation, breeding of resistantcultivars, the application of agrochemicals and combinations of these strategies is commonly employed to stem the spread of fungal pathogens and the diseases they cause. Additional chemistry and methods of using such as a modulator for ACCase or to control fungi are important for, among other things, protection in agriculture.
For example, the rapid onset of resistance to chemical fungicides has often lowered the efficacy of some chemical fungicides. This threat, as well as emergence and spread of additional fungal diseases, accentuates the need for new means of fungal control.


A roller conveyor is designed for transferring a load from a departure station where the load sets off to an arrival station where it is stopped by a buffer.. The latter comprises a stop plate mounted on a shock absorber associated with a position detector, to ensure that the load and its support are stopped in the correct position and that they are displaced from the arrival station of the conveyor towards the departure station of another conveyor.

The present invention relates to improvements made to conventional handling installations for automatically transporting loads, particularly to roller conveyors for transferring pallets, trays or other load-carrying elements from one point to another.
To clarify ideas, FIGS. 1 and 2 of the attached drawings respectively illustrate diagrammatically a roller conveyor and a pallet, both of a conventional type.
FIG. 1 shows a kind of metal carpet consisting of a succession of cylinders or rollers 1 rotating freely about their axis 2--2 and maintained in virtually tangential proximity to one another between two parallel longitudinal members 3, 4 which receive the axles of the rollers and which are themselves supported by legs 5, 6. The latter or at least some of them have orifices 7 located at different heights for receiving a roller axle, in order to allow horizontal adjustment or a more or less pronounced inclination of the rolling track R which the rollers 1 as a whole constitute for a pallet P, such as that illustrated in FIG. 2.
Where a horizontal rolling track or conveyor R is concerned, the load-carrying pallet P is propelled under the action of an initial impulse force which, if appropriate, is repeated occassionally to allow for friction. Where a rolling track R inclined in a downward direction is concerned, the difference in level between its ends could be sufficient to ensure the translation of the pallel P as a result of gravity, but if this were not sufficient, it would be possible, here too, to resort to propulsive impulses.
FIG. 3 of the attached drawings illustrates an installation of this type. At the departure station D where the rolling track R has a horizontal segment, a jack 8, which can be controlled by a computer or a coder at specific moments, applies an initial impulse to the load C carried by the pallet P; the latter, set in motion in this way, continues its path over the inclined transfer portion T of the rolling track and ends at the arrival station A, where the pallet P comes up against a stop plate 9, before being removed or transferred to the departure station D' of another rolling track R', as illustrated diagrammatically at the bottom of FIG. 3. This second departure station D' can be provided with a jack 8a similar to the jack 8 at the original departure station D.


The invention relates to compounds of formula (I), and the use thereof as a drug, particularly for the treatment of tumors associated with hyperactivation of the hedgehog protein signaling pathway, treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, treatment of diseases related to cerebral development (holoprosencephaly), for stem cell monitoring treatment of cerebrovascular accidents and cardiovascular accidents, treatment of diseases involving oligodendrocytes and diseases involving neurolemmocytes, for application thereof in vitro for modulating human or animal stem cell renewal, and for the treatment of diabetes. The invention also relates to pharmaceutical compositions having a compound of formula (I). The invention also relates to a method for radio-marking compounds having formula (I), the marked compounds, and the use of the compounds as research tools, and method for screening and/or identifying ligands in the Smoothened receptor (Smo) binding sites, methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of the Smoothened receptor, and a method for identifying cells.

The Hedgehog signalling molecule (Hh) is a secreted autoproteolytic protein that activates the Hedgehog protein signalling pathway, which is a signalling pathway that plays a fundamental role in the morphogenesis of numerous tissues, in particular in the formation of the endoderm and of the embryonic axis, development of the brain and of the hair follicles, as well as in cellular proliferation, and is thought to be involved in tissue maintenance and repair in adults (Ingham et al., Genes Dev., 2001, 15, 3059-3087; Marti et al., Trends Neurosci., 2002, 25, 89-96; Weschler et al., Annu. Rev. Neurosci., 2001, 24, 385-428).
The Hedgehog protein and the associated transduction pathway, initially demonstrated in Drosophila, are conserved in vertebrates and invertebrates. A single homolog of Hh is present in Drosophila, whereas three homologs of Hh: Sonic (Shh), Indian (Ihh) and Desert (Dhh) are present in mammals. Among these three homologs, Shh has received most study owing to its extended expression profile during development. Shh participates in ventralization of the neural tube, specifying the early phenotype of several neuronal types along the ventral midline (motoneurons of the spinal cord, dopaminergic or cholinergic neurons), and inducing the generation of the oligodendrocyte precursors starting from the ventral spinal cord. Moreover, Shh induces survival of the GABAergic and dopaminergic neurons, orients the future of the serotoninergic precursors and prevents death of dopaminergic neurons caused by the toxin MPP. Finally it induces proliferation of the granule cell precursors in the early postnatal cerebellum. As for the other members of the Hedgehog family, they participate in the development of bone tissue (Ihh), of the testes and of the peripheral nerves (Dhh), respectively. Moreover, the results obtained with Shh also apply to Dhh and Ihh.
Shh is synthesized in the form of a precursor that undergoes a series of post-translational modifications during which the protein is cleaved by an enzyme activity present in its C-terminal portion. This autoproteolysis generates a C-terminal fragment (ShhC) and an N-terminal fragment (ShhN) that represents the active fragment. During this reaction, addition of a cholesterol molecule in the C-terminal portion of ShhN is also observed, which promotes anchorage of ShhN to the membrane. Finally an acetyl transferase allows addition of a palmitate molecule on a cysteine residue near the N-terminal end. These events produce a biologically active Shh protein. Secretion of the protein is dependent on the protein Dispatched (Disp), two isoforms of which, Disp 1 and 2, exist in mammals (Heretsch et al., 2010, Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 18: 6613-6624).
The soluble ShhN fragment transmits its action via a complex containing two transmembrane proteins: Patched (Ptc), a protein with 12 transmembrane domains having a structure of the transporter type, and Smoothened (Smo), a protein with 7 transmembrane domains homologous to the members of the superfamily of receptors coupled to proteins G (RCPG). In mammals, there is a second form of Patched: Ptc2.
In the absence of its ligand Shh, Ptc inhibits Smo. An intracellular cascade, involving a great many factors including the protein Suppressor of Fused (SuFu) and the protein PKA, is then induced. SuFu is a negative regulator of the Shh signalling pathway, it can bind to the three transcription factors of the Gli family and regulate their activation. Moreover, deletion of Sufu results in activation of the pathway. The transcription factors of the Gli family are then phosphorylated, ubiquitinylated and then cleaved in their negative form (GliR) by the proteasome, GliR penetrates into the nucleus and transcription is inactive. When Shh binds to Ptc, the inhibition that the latter exerts on Smo is raised with nuclear translocation of the active form of the Gli transcription factors (GliA) and transcriptional activation of target genes such as ptc and gli1.
The protein Hedgehog interacting protein (Hip) is capable of binding Shh with an affinity comparable to that of the protein Ptc (Traiffort et al., J. Neurochem., 2010, 113: 576-590). Hip is regarded as a negative modulator of the pathway because by binding Shh it decreases the amount of ligand available for activating the signalling pathway via Ptc. Cdo and Boc belong to the family of cell surface proteins possessing immunoglobulin and fibronectin motifs of type III. These proteins regulate the Shh signalling pathway positively by facilitating presentation of the ligand Shh to Ptc, by increasing the amounts of morphogen in the vicinity of the target cells and possibly by affecting the activity of the Gli proteins (Heretsch et al., 2010, Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett 18: 6613-24: Scales and de Sauvage, 2009, Trends Pharmacol. Sci. 30: 303-312).
The regulatory role of the Hedgehog protein signalling pathway during embryonic development has been studied extensively: Hh has been associated with the processes of maintenance and repair of normal tissue, with spatiotemporal regulation of proliferation and differentiation, thus allowing developing tissues to reach their correct size with the appropriate cell types and appropriate degrees of vascularization and innervation. It has notably been implicated in the development of the central nervous system (Dessaud et al., 2008, Development, 135: 2489-503). The essential role of the Hh signalling function is demonstrated by the dramatic consequences of defects in this signalling pathway in the human fetus, such as holoprosencephaly observed with mutants of Shh (Traiffort et al., J. Biol. Chem., 2004, 279: 42889-42997).
More recently the Shh pathway was identified in the adult brain, where the amino-terminal active form of the molecule is expressed in a great many regions of the mature nervous system suggesting new roles for this pathway. In fact, it notably participates in establishment and maintenance of neurogenic niches and regulates the proliferation of neural or glial precursors in the adult brain (Traiffort et al., 2010, J. Neurochem., 113: 576-590). Modulation of the Shh signalling pathway therefore represents a challenge for the development of therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. Studies have already demonstrated positive effects of activation of the Shh signalling pathway by the Shh protein itself, on reduction of behavioral disorders in rats with Parkinson's disease (Tsuboi et al., 2002, Exp. Neurol. 173: 95-104) or on remyelinization of neurons in rats with multiple sclerosis (Mastronardi et al. 2004, J. Immunol. 172: 6418-26). Moreover, it has been shown that activation of the Shh signalling pathway by a Smo agonist allows an increase in proliferation of neural precursors at the level of areas of neurogenesis in the adult mouse (Machold et al., 2003, Neuron., 39: 937-950). However, the Smo agonists remain few in number and are still poorly characterized.
Dysfunctions of the Shh signalling pathway have also been associated with many cancers. In fact, mutations that inactivate Ptc are associated with Gorlin syndrome or basal cell nevus syndrome, an autosomal dominant disease characterized by craniofacial and cerebral malformations, but especially by a high incidence of various tumors, more particularly of basal cell carcinomas at the cutaneous level and medulloblastomas, at the cerebellum level. Mutations of the human genes Ptc or Smo are also observed in primary neuroectodermal tumors of the central nervous system, principally medulloblastomas (30% of cases), but also in sporadic forms of basal cell carcinomas (40% and 20% of cases for Ptc and Smo respectively). Moreover, mutations of Shh are also associated with basal cell carcinomas. Other types of tumors have also been associated with a defect of the Hedgehog signalling pathway, and the localization of these tumors is closely correlated with the expression sites of the components of the pathway during embryonic development (Scales and de Sauvage, 2009, Trends in Pharmacol. Sci., 30: 303-312). We may mention, as nonlimiting examples: breast cancers and meningiomas associated with mutations of Ptc, glioblastomas associated with mutations of Gli, gastrointestinal cancers, notably primary cancers of the stomach and colon, cancers of the prostate and of the bladder, fibromas and dermoid cysts of the ovary, rhabdomyosarcomas, small cell lung cancers, squamous cell oral carcinomas.
Owing to the crucial role of the Hedgehog protein signalling pathway in numerous physiological and pathological processes, the components of this pathway, such as the proteins Smoothened (Smo 1 and Smo 2), Frizzled (Fz 1 to Fz 10), Patched (Ptc 1 and Ptc 2), the proteins Dispatched (Disp 1 and Disp 2) or also the protein Hip represent targets for the development of new molecules capable of modulating (activating or inhibiting) this pathway and therefore of regulating development positively or negatively [proliferation, differentiation, migration, survival (apoptosis)] and/or the activity of differentiated cells and of stem cells, in vitro and/or in vivo in the embryo or in the adult.
It has been demonstrated that such molecules are useful in the treatment of tumors associated with hyperactivation of the Hedgehog pathway (Scales and de Sauvage, 2009, Trends in Pharmacol. Sci., 30: 303-312). Such molecules might therefore be usable in the treatment of various tumors such as nerve tissue tumors (medulloblastomas, primary neuroectodermal tumors, glioblastomas, meningiomas and oligodendrogliomas), skin tumors (basal cell carcinomas, trichoepitheliomas), tumors of muscle and bone tissues (rhabdomyosarcomas, osteosarcomas, melanomas) and tumors of other tissues (kidney, bladder, prostate, lung, stomach, pancreas, breast, liver).
Such molecules are also useful in the treatment of disorders of the neurodegenerative type requiring blocking of the Hedgehog pathway (Parkinson's disease, Huntington's chorea, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, motor neuron disease), and diseases in which blocking of the Hedgehog signalling pathway might be beneficial, such as diabetes.
Such molecules are also useful in medical or surgical treatment (plastic or reconstructive surgery, grafts of tissues or of organs) of numerous acute, subacute or chronic, genetic or acquired disorders—involving a tissue dysfunction connected with deregulation of the Hedgehog pathway—for inducing the formation, regeneration, repair and/or increase in activity of tissues such as nervous tissue [central nervous system (brain) and peripheral nervous system (sensory, motor, sympathetic neurons)], bone, cartilage, testes, liver, spleen, intestine, pancreas, kidneys, smooth and skeletal muscles, heart, lungs, skin and hair, mucosae, blood cells and cells of the immune system. As nonlimiting examples of these disorders, we may notably mention neuropathies and the associated neuromuscular diseases, diabetes, alopecia, burns, ulcerations (skin and mucosae) and disorders of spermatogenesis.
Various molecules capable of modulating the activity of the Hedgehog pathway have been identified.
Firstly, the Hedgehog proteins and derived polypeptides (fragments, variants etc.), notably agonists and antagonists of the Hedgehog proteins (International Application PCT WO 01/98344 in the name of BIOGEN); owing to their size, these proteins and the derived polypeptides cannot cross the blood-brain barrier and therefore cannot be administered systemically, notably for treating brain tumors connected with hyperactivation of the Hedgehog protein signalling pathway. Moreover, such molecules are of low stability, and are difficult to produce and purify. Conversely, molecules exist that inhibit the effect of the Shh ligand, robotnikinin and the 5E1 monoclonal antibody.
The Hh signalling pathway can also be modulated further downstream. The inhibitory effect of Ptc on Smo can be modulated, for example. It is increased by statins and reduced by oxysterols by a mechanism that is not yet properly understood (Heretsch et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett., 2010, 18: 6613-6624). Natural products (Physalin F) or synthetic products (GANT58, GANT61, HPI-1) are also known to inhibit the binding of the Gli transcription factors to the DNA in the nucleus.
However, most research is focused on the discovery of modulators acting at the level of the Smoothened receptor:                heterocyclic organic molecules inhibiting or activating (SAG and derivatives) the Hh signalling pathway: International Application PCT WO 01/74344 in the name of CURIS; Chen et al., PNAS, 2002, 99, 14071-14076,        purmorphamine, a small molecule activating the Hh signalling pathway: Wu et al., Chemistry & Biology, 2004, 1229-1238,        nitrogen-containing heterocyclic molecules: International Applications PCT WO 01/19800, WO 01/26644 and WO 02/30421 in the name of CURIS; Kamenetsky et al., J. Biol., 2002, 1, 1-19,        plant steroids derived from Veratrum spp. (jervine, cyclopamine and cycloposine) and from Solanum spp. (solanidine), substituted in position 16, 17 or 18 with an amine or an amine derivative, and cholesterol: U.S. Pat. No. 6,432,970 and International Applications PCT WO 99/52534 and WO 01/27135 in the name of JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE; U.S. Pat. No. 6,291,516; International Application PCT WO 00/41545 in the name of ONTOGENY INC.; International Application PCT WO 02/30462 in the name of CURIS; Taipale et al., Nature, 2000, 406, 1005-1009; Berman et al., Science, 2002, 297, 1559-1561. However, it was demonstrated that concentrations of cyclopamine above 10 μM proved to be cytotoxic for the cells (Borzillo et al., Curr. Top Med. Chem., 2005, 5(2), 147-157). Moreover, the effects in vivo of cyclopamine on tumor growth have been called into question as they might be connected with an activity outside of the tumor itself (Yauch et al., 2008, Nature, 455: 406-410). A derivative of cyclopamine (IPI-926) is currently in clinical phase II (Mahindroo et al., J. Med. Chem., 2009, 52, 3829; Tremblay et al., J. Med. Chem., 2009, 52: 14, 4400-4418),        mifepristone (17β-hydroxy 11β-(4-dimethylamino phenyl) 17α-(prop-1-ynyl)estra-4,9-dien-3-one), also called RU-486 or RU-38486 (French patent FR 2 850 022 in the name of the CNRS) for which an inhibitory activity on the activity of the Hedgehog protein signalling pathway has been demonstrated,        the molecules SANT74 and SANT75 having a structure similar to that of SAG, synthetic activating compound of the chlorobenzothiophene type (CAS No.: 364590-63-6) are also known to be stable inhibitors for effectively controlling the conformation of the activator Smo (Yang et al., The Journal of Biological Chemistry, published Apr. 14, 2009).

More recently, other compounds that inhibit the Hedgehog signalling pathway have also been described (Peukert and Miller-Moslin, 2010, ChemMedChem 5: 500-512; Low and De Sauvage, 2010, J. Clin. Oncol.; Ng and Curran, 2011, Nature Review Cancer):                Inhibitors based on bisamide (International Application PCT WO 2007/059157 in the name of GENENTECH INC. and CURIS INC.) and on pyridyl (International Application PCT WO 2006/028958 in the name of GENENTECH INC. and CURIS INC; US Patent 2009/0281089 in the name of GENENTECH INC.). One of the pyridyl-based compounds, GDC-0449 (clinical phase II) has shown its efficacy in a patient with medulloblastoma metastases. However, the patient gradually developed resistance to the molecule. A mutation of an aspartic acid (D473H) of Smo appeared. This interferes with the compound's ability to bind to Smo and inhibit this pathway. A mutation of the same amino acid was identified in a mouse model with medulloblastomas, treated with this compound (Yauch et al., 2009, Science 326: 572-574).        Inhibitors developed by the company Novartis. For example, LDE225 (clinical phase II) has been tested for treating medulloblastomas in the mouse model and has induced regression of these tumors. However, resistance was observed over the course of the treatment. A study has revealed several mechanisms of resistance including chromosomal amplification of Gli2 and, more rarely, point mutations of the Smo receptor that lead to reactivation of tumor growth. Positive regulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) signalling has also been identified (Buonamici et al., 2010, Sci. Transl. Med., 51-70).        Inhibitors developed by Bristol-Myers Squibb Inc. such as BMS-833923 (XL-139).        Inhibitors described by the company Pfizer Products, Inc. (WO 2008/075196 and US 2009/0005416). PF-04449913 is currently in clinical phase II.        Inhibitors described by the company MERCK (Dessole et al., 2009, Bioorg. & Med. Chem. Lett. 19: 4191-4195).        The compounds LEQ506 of Novartis and TAK-441 of the company Millennium have also just entered clinical phase I.        Inhibitors based on acyl-ureas, -thioureas and -guanidines have also been protected as modulators of the Hedgehog pathway (WO 2009/130422 and WO 2011/010013 in the name of the CNRS). The latter have the advantage of being easy to prepare in comparison with the other existing molecules. Moreover, the acyl-guanidine derivatives are water-soluble.

Compounds modulating the hedgehog protein signaling pathway, marked forms thereof, and applications

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique


A semiconductor device includes a decoder configured to receive an extended mode register set (EMRS) code including specific information, and decode the received EMRS code to acquire the specific information; a peripheral controller configured to generate a control signal based on the specific information; and a peripheral region including a plurality of buffers, the plurality of buffers being configured to be controlled by the control signal, wherein the specific information includes information indicating an expected bandwidth of input data that is to be input to one of the plurality of buffers.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the speed bin, e.g., the data rate of volatile memories such as a double data rate (DDR)-synchronized dynamic random access memory (SDRAM) is ever increasing, the speed range to be covered becomes wider. In addition, for server-class dynamic random access memories (DRAMs), it is necessary to effectively respond to conditions on channels such as the DIMM per channel (DPC). For these reasons, it becomes more and more difficult to design memories to be optimized or, alternatively, improved for all of various speed bins and channel conditions used in DRAMs.
Accordingly, there is a growing need for a solution to address such optimization issues.


An electret diaphragm is housed in a case, a back electrode is disposed opposite the back of the electret diaphragm, a damper cloth is disposed in contact with the back of the back electrode, and a terminal plate is placed behind the damper cloth and connected with the back electrode. The back electrode, the damper cloth and the terminal plate are held by a tubular back electrode holder. The back of the back electrode holder is closed by a printed circuit board to define a rear compartment in the back electrode holder, and an impedance converter is disposed in the rear compartment. A sound hole is made for intercommunication of the rear compartment with the outside to achieve unidirectional directivity.

This invention relates to a miniaturized unidirectional electret microphone which employs an electret as a diaphragm and has a unidirectional characteristic.
In a conventional unidirectional electret microphone, a diaphragm, a back electrode and a back electrode holder are formed as a diaphragm unit, and an impedance converter for converting the microphone output into a low-impedance output is housed in a rear compartment to form an impedance converter unit; and the diaphragm unit and the converter unit are disposed in a case in its axial direction and fixed to each other. Since the diaphragm unit and the impedance converter unit thus separately prepared are combined, the conventional electret microphone has the defect that the length in its axial direction, that is the thickness, is large. The combination of such separate units calls for many parts, resulting in increased manufacturing cost. Further, the directional characteristic of the microphone is adjusted before the diaphragm unit is assembled with the impedance converter unit; but, for re-adjustment of the directional characteristic after assembling, it is necessary to disassemble the diaphragm unit from the case, and this is very troublesome.
An object of this invention is to provide a unidirectional electret microphone which can be reduced in thickness.
Another object of this invention is to provide a unidirectional electret microphone which is small in the number of parts used, easy to assemble and hence can be produced at low cost.
Another object of this invention is to provide a unidirectional electret microphone which permits easy re-adjustment of its directional characteristic.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a unidirectional electret microphone whose parts are mostly in common to a non-directional electret microphone.

Miniaturized unidirectional electret microphone


Introducing a through hole into a substrate (4) before coating, and performing the removal thereafter, shortens the machining times for producing a through hole (18) with a diffuser (13) and also subjects the intermediate layers to less stress.

First- and second-row turbine blades are used in very high temperatures and therefore are provided, for the purpose of protection from oxidation and corrosion as well as heat, with metallic and/or thermal layers.
Turbine blades in particular have, in addition, cooling air holes, out of which cooling air flows.
The boundary surfaces of layers, between adjacent layers and with the substrate, can cause crack initiation.
On their surface on the outermost layer, these cooling air holes have a diffuser in order that a protective layer of air flows over the surface of the turbine blade. Since the diffuser represents a widening of the cylindrical lower portion, a large amount of material must be removed.

Method for the new production of through holes in a layer system


A method of sputtering material onto semiconductor wafers includes: a) providing a sputtering chamber with a sputtering target, a wafer supporting chuck having a supported first wafer, and a collimator positioned between the target and first wafer for filtering material sputtered from the target onto the first wafer; b) providing ionized sputtering atoms within the chamber; c) bombarding the target with the ionized sputtering atoms to dislodge target atoms; d) passing the dislodged target atoms through collimator openings and onto the first wafer, the dislodged target atoms coating the collimator and openings passing therethrough; e) removing the sputter deposited first wafer from the sputtering chamber without breaking vacuum; f) after removing the sputtered first wafer, cleaning the collimator within the chamber without breaking vacuum between removal of the first wafer and the cleaning of the collimator within the chamber; and g) after cleaning of the collimator within the chamber, providing a second wafer on the wafer supporting chuck within the chamber without breaking vacuum between the cleaning of the collimator and the providing of the second wafer in the chamber; and thereafter sputter depositing target atoms onto the second wafer. The cleaning comprises providing the collimator with a negative potential effective to attract bombarding ionized sputtering atoms to dislodgingly clean target atoms from the collimator. The cleaning is to a degree sufficient to render collimator service lifetime at least equal to that of the sputtering target. Other cleaning techniques are disclosed.

Sputtering is a method of depositing thin metal and insulating films onto semiconductor wafers. Sputtering is a term used to describe a physical mechanism in which atoms are dislodged from the surface of a material by collision with high energy particles. It can be compared to throwing steel balls at a concrete wall. Upon impact, the ball tears away fragments of the concrete, resulting in fragments which retain the chemical and physical properties of the concrete. If the process is continued, surfaces in the vicinity of the impact are covered with a layer of concrete dust. In sputtering, the "steel balls" are ionized atoms, typically argon, and the "wall" is a plate of material to be sputtered, commonly referred to as the "target".
Sputtering takes place in an evacuated chamber. Ionized argon atoms are introduced into the chamber which contains the wafers and a target of the film material to be sputtered. In diode sputtering, the target is maintained at a negative potential relative to the positively charged argon atom. This causes the positive ion to be accelerated towards the negatively charged target. The argon atoms slam into the target, thus tearing off some of the target material. Since the chamber is maintained at a vacuum, the liberated material settles on everything in the chamber, including wafers positioned therein. Two kinds of diode sputtering methods include direct current and radio frequency sputtering. Other sputtering methods include the triode and magnetron methods. Regardless of the method, ionized atoms are caused to accelerate toward the target, thus shearing material therefrom at the atomic level and depositing very thin films on semiconductor wafers and everything else in the sputtering chamber.
One drawback of sputtering is the difficulty in achieving conformal coverage deep within high aspect ratio steps or contacts on semiconductor wafers. The problem is described with reference to FIG. 1. Such illustrates a semiconductor wafer fragment 10 comprised of a bulk substrate material 12 having a deep contact opening 14 formed therein. In sputtering, the trajectory of the atomic material sputtered from the target depends in significant part upon the incident angle of the bombarding atom. Accordingly, atoms directed towards the wafer surface come from varying angles, only a comparatively small portion of which arrive at the wafer surface in a substantially perpendicular angle. The downwardly directed arrows shown in FIG. 1 are representative of the varying angles with which the depositing atoms strike the wafer. Such provides an undesired drawback of not conformally coating deep within contacts, as the quantity of perpendicularly angled atoms is small in comparison to the other angled atoms. This results in what is commonly known as a bread-loafing, non-conformal deposit of a metal layer 16, as shown.
To overcome such drawback, a device known as a collimator is used, such as is diagrammatically represented in FIG. 2 with reference numeral 18. Collimator 18 typically comprises a disk-shaped object having a plurality of round holes or openings 20 provided therethrough. A collimator functions effectively as a filter, essentially allowing only the perpendicularly angled atoms to pass therethrough and coat wafer 12. This results in a more conformal deposition within deep contacts than is possible when a collimator is not used. Layer 17 depicts such a deposited layer.
Collimators, like everything else within a sputtering chamber, of course also get coated with the sputtering material. Such results in the effect illustrated by FIG. 3. Collimator 18 gets coated with the sputtered deposited material 16 producing balled-up gatherings 16a of material 16. This at some point effectively diminishes the diametric size of openings 20 to where the deposition rate on a wafer 12 becomes unsatisfactory. Existing techniques involving collimators require them to be removed and cleaned such that sputtering can continue in a desired manner and rate.
Unfortunately, it is a tedious and costly job of cleaning collimators. The sputtering chamber must be effectively shut down and vacuum broken such that the collimators can be removed for cleaning. Presently, the service lifetime of a collimator is typically one-third that of the typical replacement life for a target in sputter deposition methods in semiconductor wafer processing.
It would be desirable to provide methods or techniques for increasing collimator lifetime to a point where such at least equals that of the target lifetime, enabling coincident servicing of the target and collimator.

Sputtering with collinator cleaning within the sputtering chamber


A transmission device for a photosensitive drum includes a sleeve, a transmission unit disposed in the sleeve and capable of moving and rotating at the same time, an elastic member, and a shell receiving the sleeve and the elastic member so that a relatively larger radius section and a relatively smaller radius section of the elastic member exert elastic force on the sleeve and the transmission unit, respectively. The transmission unit has two engagement blocks and a receiving space between them. Each engagement block has an inclined outer surface, an inner surface, an inclined top surface and an engagement concave connecting the inner and outer surfaces. The engagement concaves are opened toward opposite directions for engagement with two pillars of a drive member of an electronic image forming apparatus respectively. As a result, the transmission device can be connected with and separated from the drive member smoothly.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to photosensitive drums mounted in electronic imaging devices, such as printers, copy machines, and so on, and more particularly, to a transmission device for a photosensitive drum.
2. Description of the Related Art
A photosensitive drum, which is one of the most important components of an electronic imaging device, is installed in a toner cartridge to conduct electricity when photosensitized and attract carbon powders at the same time to develop the to-be-printed document. A photosensitive drum primarily comprises a photosensitive cylinder and a transmission device attached to an end of the photosensitive cylinder. The transmission device is adapted to be connected with a drive member in a housing of an electronic image forming apparatus to transmit rotatory kinetic energy from the drive member to the photosensitive cylinder.
The conventional transmission device for a photosensitive drum, which comprises a transmission member capable of engagement with the drive member, is usually provided with the design that the transmission member can be pushed by the drive member to swing, such as which disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,295,734, or the design that the transmission member can be pushed by the drive member to move axially, such as which disclosed in China Utility Model Patent No. CN201532527U. By means of the aforesaid designs, the transmission member will be engaged with the drive member when the user puts the toner cartridge into the electronic image forming apparatus and separated from the drive member when the user takes the toner cartridge out of the electronic imaging device.
However, the aforesaid transmission device for a photosensitive drum, which is provided with a transmission member capable of swinging or moving axially, is complicated in structure so as to be difficult in manufacture and assembly.

Transmission device for photosensitive drum


A transaction log for flash recovery includes a chained sequence of blocks specifying the operations that have been performed, such as a write to a sector or an erase to a block. Checkpoints are performed writing the entire flash state to flash. Once a checkpoint is performed, all of the log entries prior to the checkpoint are deleted and the log processing on recovery begins with the latest checkpoint. If the system is able to safely shutdown, then a checkpoint may be performed before the driver unloads, and on initialization, the entire persisted flash state may be loaded into the flash memory with a minimal amount of flash scanning. If a power failure occurs during system operation, then on the next boot-up, only the sectors or blocks specified in the log entries after the latest checkpoint have to be scanned, rather than all the sectors on the part.

Flash memory is non-volatile computer memory that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. The technology is primarily used in memory cards and Universal Serial Bus "USB" flash drives for general storage and transfer of data between computers and other digital products. Flash memory is a specific type of Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory "EEPROM" that is erased and programmed in large blocks. Flash memory costs significantly less than byte-programmable EEPROMs and has, therefore, become the dominant technology wherever a significant amount of non-volatile, solid-state storage is needed. Examples of applications include Personal Digital Assistants "PDAs" laptop computers, digital audio/video players, digital cameras, game consoles, and mobile phones.
Flash memory is non-volatile, meaning that it does not need power to maintain the information stored in the chip. In addition, flash memory offers relatively fast read access times (although not as fast as volatile DRAM memory used for main memory in PCs) and better kinetic shock resistance than hard disks. These characteristics lead to the popularity of flash memory in portable devices. Another feature of flash memory is that when packaged in a memory card, it is very durable, being able to withstand intense pressure, extremes of temperature, and even immersion in water.
Currently available flash drivers typically require scanning every sector on the flash memory during boot-up to determine the state of the flash memory and to recover any interrupted operations due to a power failure. The flash state includes data structures such as the logical to physical sector mapping table, the free list, and the dirty list. However, as flash parts get larger, this process may take very long and, therefore, impact boot-up time.

Flash recovery employing transaction log


A combined communicating typewriter/dictation system which utilizes a common modem as an interface between an electronic typewriter, a mass media recorder and a communications line. The modem replaces digital logic and audio tones are recorded on the mass media recorder instead of digital tones. When the system is in a local mode, the digital keystroke signals from the typewriter are modulated by the modem and recorded by the mass media recorder. In a communications mode, the recorded keystroke signals are demodulated and then remodulated before transmission over the communications line to eliminate noise and other extraneous signals that tend to increase the error rate of the transmitted signals. When data is received by the system for storage on the mass media recorder, the transmitted data is demodulated and then remodulated by the modem to eliminate noise from the transmitted signal. In both communication paths, the analog signal input to the modem is processed twice before it is either forwarded to the mass media recorder or to the communications line. In addition to the foregoing recording functions, the mass media recorder can also be utilized to record and/or playback audio information. The dual utilization of the modem and the mass media recorder results in a low cost system without sacrificing much in the way of recording error rate.

(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a typed test processing and data communications system, and more particularly to a combined communicating typewriter/dictation system which utilizes a common modem to both demodulate and remodulate analog tones transmitted between the mass media recorder of the instant system and a remote system.
(2) Prior Art
Generally, recording devices in word processing environments utilize digital recording techniques. For example, the recorder described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,063 utilizes a digital recording technique because of the high densities obtainable with this type of recording. However, one current drawback to the use of this recording technique is cost. The cost of digital logic when compared to the recording rate is balanced only when the density of the recording rate is high and the error rate is low.
Moreover, the system described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,063 transmits and receives data that is digital in form. The logic needed to perform this function increases the cost of the system. A problem encountered in digital signal transmission is bit dropout, which increases the possibility of an erroneous transmission.

Communicating typewriter and dictation system utilizing analog recording and transmission techniques

International Business Machines Corporation

900
MS
File;200
MS
File
FSS 4;32
FSS 2 DP
FSS 903


A crucible for containing molten mixtures of magnesium and magnesium chloride comprises an outer relatively thick base layer of austenitic stainless steel covered inside with a relatively thin layer of mild carbon steel. The stainless layer provides strength and good creep resistance at 850.degree. C., and the mild steel layer protects the stainless layer from chemical attack by liquid magnesium. The carbon steel lining is applied by weld overlaying.

This invention relates generally to metallurgical apparatus, and particularly to a crucible for containing mixtures of magnesium and magnesium chloride. The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing such a crucible, to protect it from attack by molten magnesium.
It is common to provide crucibles or chemical reactors with stainless steel linings or layers, to prevent corrosion of the major component of the crucible, which is often carbon steel.
In the production of zirconium and titanium by the Kroll process, a normal byproduct is a mixture of magnesium (Mg) and magnesium chloride (MgCl.sub.2). To improve process economics, it is desirable to separate these two substances so that the magnesium may be recycled in the process. One method of separating magnesium from magnesium chloride is to melt the mixture under an inert atmosphere. The densities of the liquids are different, and when the mixture is fully molten, magnesium floats to the top. The melting temperature of magnesium is about 650.degree. C., while that of magnesium chloride is about 715.degree. C. Thus, the presence of magnesium chloride generated by the Kroll process increases the required crucible temperature. Furthermore, in order to establish reasonably rapid heat transfer to the melt, it is necessary to heat the crucible containing the mixture to about 850.degree. C. Such temperatures not only aggravate any solvent attack by molten magnesium on the crucible (that is, the tendency for the magnesium to dissolve the crucible), but also render unsuitable, from a strength or creep resistance standpoint, certain materials that do not react with molten magnesium, such as carbon steel.
Creep is the slow, plastic deformation that occurs in a metal subject to high temperature and stress over a long period of time. It may be measured in various ways, for example, by percent elongation per unit time at a given applied stress. A bar made of 316 stainless steel subjected to a tensile stress of 3000 psi at a temperature of 1500.degree. F. will grow by about 0.1% in length every 1000 hours; a low carbon 1005 steel under the same conditions will grow much faster.
It is possible to use a crucible constructed entirely from carbon steel, for example SA-516 grade 70, about two inches thick, but under the temperatures indicated, such a crucible distorts and is rendered useless by creep effects in short order. In addition, the exterior surface of the crucible oxidizes severely, and spalls off in large flakes. The spalling reduces the thickness of the crucible in time, and also provides an opportunity for short circuiting the electric furnace in which the crucible is placed. Thus, the temperatures mentioned are too high for mild carbon steels.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,353,535 describes a crucible fabricated from type 444 stainless steel, which is a ferritic stainless steel. This is an improvement over carbon steel crucibles, particularly where only molten magnesium is to be contained. Ferritic stainless steels resist surface oxidation, and possess higher temperature strength and creep resistance than do mild steels, but ferritic stainless steels are still inadequate for the purpose mentioned above, and will suffer similar distortion and failure in time.
Another solution has been to use a crucible machined from graphite. However, some carbon from such crucibles may dissolve into the melt, to the detriment of the process. Furthermore, graphite is expensive, and comparatively fragile.
Austenitic stainless steels, which are characterized by their nickel content, do possess adequate strength and creep resistance at 850.degree. C.; however, steels of this type are attacked by molten magnesium. Apparently, molten magnesium attacks the nickel component, leading to intergranular cracks and ultimate weakening. Therefore, austenitic stainless steel can be used as a crucible for containing 850.degree. C. magnesium mixtures only if the interior of the crucible is coated with a non-reactive metal, such as carbon steel, lacking the nickel component.
It is known to join layers of mild steel and austenitic stainless steel by explosive cladding. However, explosive methods are very expensive, and, because there are few practitioners of this art, it is difficult to have crucibles produced without long production delays.
Lining a stainless steel crucible with carbon steel by more conventional methods, such as weld overlaying, is problematic, because theory predicts that it will not work. When heated, austenitic stainless steel expands at a rate about 30% greater than does mild steel; that is, the coefficients of thermal expansion are substantially different. The differential expansion is so great that, at 850.degree. C., tensile failure (fracturing) of the carbon steel is predicted. Indeed, experts in this field are reluctant to take on the task of overlaying a stainless steel crucible with mild steel.
It should be noted that metals generally fail in tension, not compression. Therefore, prior workers who overlaid carbon steel substrates with relatively thin layers of stainless steel did not encounter cracking problems, since as the laminates were heated, the stainless coating layer was placed in compression when heated (the much thicker substrate receiving being placed in relatively little tension).
We have discovered that, even though fracturing does occur in a mild steel liner deposited on an austentic stainless steel substrate, the fractures do not extend the full depth of the liner. Thus, we have discovered that weld overlaying can be used to protect an austenitic stainless steel liner from molten magnesium at 850.degree. C.

Method for protecting austenitic stainless steels from solvent attack by molten magnesium by forming crucible and crucible


An apparatus for measuring a deposition rate includes a light source unit in a deposition region between a deposition source and a substrate in a vacuum chamber, the light source unit emits a monochromatic light toward a deposition material released from the deposition source, a photosensor unit that measures at least one of light absorption, scattering, and emission in the deposition region when light emitted from the light source unit passes through the deposition region, and a multi-pass forming unit defining a multi-pass path between the light source unit and the photosensor unit.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus and a method for measuring a deposition rate. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to an apparatus and a method for measuring a deposition rate which may be used in an actual deposition region by an optical method using at least one of absorption, scattering, and emission strength of light due to a deposition material, may be semi-permanently used, and may have high measurement accuracy.
2. Description of the Related Art
An organic light emitting diode (OLED) is a next generation display element which generates an emission phenomenon from an organic thin film by implementing the organic thin film and a metal electrode of multi layers on a glass substrate, on which a transparent electrode is applied, and applying voltage thereto, and is expected to be established as a display after a LCD. In particular, the organic thin film may be formed in a thin film form by depositing organic material gas, which is evaporated by heating a crucible including an organic material within a high vacuum chamber, on a glass substrate.
The OLED is manufactured by stacking a multi-layered thin film, e.g., the organic thin film and a metal thin film, on a substrate. An OLED facility for forming such thin films by deposition mainly uses a cluster scheme in which a plurality of unit chambers are connected, and is configured to transfer and convey the substrate and perform an element process in a state in which the substrate is horizontally disposed between the respective deposition chambers.
For example, a vacuum deposition method may form a thin film by installing at least one deposition source at a lower portion of a vacuum chamber, and a substrate to be processed, which is a deposition substrate, at an upper portion of the vacuum chamber. Such an apparatus for forming an organic thin film may use a vacuum exhaust system connected to the vacuum chamber so as to keep an inside of the vacuum chamber at a predetermined vacuum state, and then evaporate a deposition material from at least one deposition source at the predetermined vacuum state. For example, the deposition source may include a crucible having an organic material, which is a thin film material, accommodated therein, and a heater which is wound around the crucible to electrically heat the crucible. Therefore, when the crucible is heated with the increase in temperature of the heater, the organic material is evaporated.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of embodiments, and therefore, it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Apparatus and method for measuring deposition rate