A coin output hopper capable of handling coins of different diameters and thicknesses is provided. A backplate is supported by a spring suspension to maintain the backplate substantially parallel to a rotating holeywheel/pinwheel despite misalignments, warping or other misshaping of the pinwheel. A coin guide is provided with a geometry to engage with different diameter coins so as to position the coins in the desired position within a coin pocket. A deflector is provided with a geometry which engages different diameter coins to accelerate coins along a knife edge exit path. The coins are forced along a path toward and along the knife edge by pins positioned such that excessive forces are avoided for any of a range of coin diameters.

Although coin handling devices are used for a number of purposes (including gaming devices, vending machines, coin counting devices and the like), coin handling in the gaming industry can generally be considered as relating to either or both of coin input (or acceptance) procedures and coin output (or payout) procedures. In a number of industries, including the gaming industry, coin output typically involves outputting coins of a single denomination from a hopper of coins containing a plurality of such single-denomination coins. In some cases, where output of two or more denominations is required, it may be necessary to provide two or more output hoppers, each of which contains a single denomination of coins. In any case, it is generally desired to provide a device for outputting a single denomination of coin which is as low-cost as possible (in terms of design, construction, maintenance, repair and operation) while having sufficient accuracy and reliability to avoid errors, down time and to minimize maintenance time and/or replacement parts.
Because it is, in general, difficult and expensive to design and construct devices for handling multiple denominations or sizes of coins, and because as noted above, gaming output hoppers typically handle only a single coin denomination, it is believed that most or all previous coin output hoppers, particularly in the gaming industry, are designed to handle only a single denomination of coin. Thus, typically, a coin output hopper designed to output, for example, "silver" dollar coins, would be physically distinct from a device for outputting, for example, quarters.
Even though the physical distinction between devices for handling different denominations may consist only in different dimensions of various components (i.e. devices for different denominations may operate on substantially the same theory), the design philosophy of using physically distinct devices for different denominations has led to relatively high costs associated with converting machines from one denomination to another denomination. For example, owing to factors such as changes in gaming preferences or popularity of various games, or owing to changes in typical coin population mixes (e.g. near international borders), it may, from time to time, be desirable to convert a gaming machine from one which outputs one denomination to a machine which outputs a different denomination. In the past, this has required replacing all of, or components of, the coin output hopper in such machines. It is believed that, in the past, the relatively high cost associated with denomination-conversion of machines was simply accepted and, as a result, it is believed little or no attention has been paid to design of multi-denominational output hoppers, particularly for gaming devices.
Accordingly, it would be useful to provide a coin output hopper which could reduce or eliminate costs associated with changing a gaming device or other coin handling machine from outputting one denomination to outputting another denomination, including the costs, in previous devices of replacing coin output hoppers or components thereof, costs of maintaining a relatively large inventory of coin output hoppers or components thereof, the cost of training personnel to perform such changes and the costs of training personnel to perform maintenance on a variety of different denomination output hoppers.


Systems and methods are disclosed for tracking the lifecycle of an object across processes and for tracking the lifecycle of processes that are processing the object. A first process, P1 can generate an Action object representing work to be performed by another process, PN. The Action object can carry a payload of arbitrary information, an action handler, a handle to a response queue, and a timeout value. A token set can be requested from a kernel of an operating system. A first token in the set can be held by one process at a time. The kernel enforces that rule. The kernel can track the location of the first token. A copy of the Action object is viable for sending a response if it holds the first token. An Action Listener within P1 holds the second token of the set and uses it to validate a response received by P1 from a remote process. The remote process performs the work of the Action object and guarantees a response back to P1, through the kernel, without passing the response back through intervening processes P2 through PN-1.

In a multi-processing computing environment, a first process can request that a second process perform work on behalf of the first process. The second process can further request that a third process perform work on behalf of the first process. In an example, a first process may be an email process. A user may be viewing an email representing a Facebook® friend request notification, the email having an embedded link for the user to accept the friend request. The user can then click on the embedded link in the email, triggering a call to the second process to launch a web browser using the link. The third process may be an application at the link, such as a Facebook® application, that is launched within the browser. A response from the Facebook® application may include a message to the user that the friend request has been successfully accepted. The response message can be passed from the third process to the second process, and in turn passed from the second process to the first process for further processing, such as displaying the message to the user.
In the above example, a response back to the first process is not guaranteed. Because the third process passes a response to the first process via the second process, the first process will not receive a response if the second process is no longer running. Further, the third process may never return a response if it cannot complete the work to be performed for the first process. For example, if the third process is a Facebook® server that launches the Facebook® application, the first process will never receive a response if the Facebook® server is down. Thus, in both cases, the first process will never receive a response from the user clicking on the link in the email.


Conduits (3a, 3b, 3c) are joined with a one-piece tubular connecting piece (1) by inserting support members (5a, 5b, 5c) through a sealable opening (6) in the connecting piece to support the conduit ends while said ends are secured to the connecting piece to communicate with openings (4a, 4b, 4c) in the connecting piece. After securing the conduit ends to the connecting piece, the support members are withdrawn through the sealable opening and that opening is then sealed. The support members can also act as electrodes for welding the conduit ends to the connecting piece, especially when the conduit ends and connecting piece are formed of thermoplastics. The method has particular, but not exclusive, application to smoothly connecting tubes for conveying blood.

It is well known to join two or more conduits with a tubular connecting piece by locating the conduit ends to be connected at respective openings in the connecting piece and securing said ends to the connecting piece to communicate with the respective openings. In particular, this method is used to connect thermoplastics tubes by welding the tubes to a thermoplastics connecting piece. The conduit ends required supporting whilst being secured to the connecting piece and it is known to provide this support by inserting support means into the connecting piece through one of the openings for a conduit end. Obviously, however, it has not been possible to support all of the conduits from inside the connecting piece because the support means must be withdrawn from said opening to allow the respective conduit end to be connected to the connecting piece to communicate with said opening. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method whereby all of the conduit ends can be supported from inside the connecting piece whilst they are secured to the connecting piece.

Method of joining conduits with a connecting piece and connecting piece for use in the method


The invention provides a gene (isolated nucleic acid molecule) encoding the cyclodextrin glucanotransferase which produces a considerable amount of γ-cyclodextrin (γ-CD) from the substrates selected from among starch and starch decomposition products such as dextrin, amylopectin and amylose; recombinant plasmids comprising this gene; transformants transformed with the recombinant plasmid; methods of manufacturing the cyclodextrin glucanotransferase by employing these transformants to act upon the substrates selected from among starch and decomposition products thereof and causing the production of γ-CD as a main product; and methods of manufacturing γ-CD and CD-comprising compositions having a desired CD balance (α-, β- and γ-CD balance) employing this recombinant cyclodextrin glucanotransferase.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gene (isolated nucleic acid molecule) encoding the cyclodextrin glucanotransferase which produces a considerable amount of γ-cyclodextrin (γ-CD) from the substrates selected from among starch and starch decomposition products such as dextrin, amylopectin and amylose; recombinant plasmids comprising this gene; transformants transformed with the recombinant plasmid; methods of manufacturing the cyclodextrin glucanotransferase by employing these transformants to act upon the substrates selected from among starch and decomposition products thereof and causing the production of γ-CD as a main product; and methods of manufacturing γ-CD and CD-comprising compositions having a desired CD balance (α-, β- and γ-CD balance) employing this recombinant cyclodextrin glucanotransferase.
2. Description of Related Art
Cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase; EC 18.104.22.168) is an enzyme that acts on α-1,4-glucans such as starch and produces cyclodextrins (CDs), a cyclic α-1,4-glucan, by intermolecular transglycosylation activity. CDs composed of 6, 7 and 8 D-glucosyl moieties are called as α-, β- and γ-CD respectively. Aside from this CD-producing reaction, through intermolecular transglycosylation, CGTase also catalyzes coupling reactions (reactions in which the CD ring is opened and the straight-chain oligosaccharides produced are transferred to receptor sugar molecules) and disproportionation reactions (in which straight-chain oligosaccharides are transferred to receptor sugar molecules). Further, CGTase also weakly catalyzes hydrolysis of α-1,4-glucoside bonds. These CDs are interesting molecules from the viewpoints of food and medical applications and so on, because of their ability to from inclusion complexes with many organic and inorganic molecules, thereby changing the physical and chemical properties. (E. B. Tilden and S. J. Pirt, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 63, 2900-2902, 1939). Significant research has been conducted, including the search for CGTase-producing bacteria and the purification of the enzyme since the synthesis of CDs by the CGTase from Bacillus macerans was reported in 1939 (Sumio Kitahata, Naoto Tsuyama and Shigetaka Okada, Agr. Biol. Chem., 38 (2), 387-393, 1974; Sumio Kitahata and Shigetaka Okada, Agr. Biol. Chem., 38 (12), 2413-2417, 1974; Sumio Kitahata and Shigetaka Okada, J. Jap. Soc. Starch Sci., 29 (1), 13-18, 1982; Michio Kubota, Yoshiki Matsuura, Shuzo Sakai and Yukiteru Katsube, Denpun Kagaku, 38 (2), 141-146, 1991; Lionel J. Bovetto, Daniel P. Backer, Jaques R. Villette, Philippe J. Sicard, and Stephane J-L. Bouquelet, Biotechnology and Applied Biochemistry, 15, 48-58, 1992; Shinske Fujiwara, Hirofumi Kakihara, Kim Myung Woo, Andre Lejeune, Mitsuhide Kanemoto, Keiji Sakaguchi, and Tadayuki Imanaka, Applied and environmental microbiology, 58 (12), 4016-4025, 1992; Florian Binder, Otto Huber and August Bock, Gene, 47, 269-277, 1986; Keiji Kainuma, Toshiya Takano and Kunio Yamane, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 26, 149-153, 1987; Takahiro Kaneko, Tetsuo Hamamoto and Koki Horikoshi, J. general Microbiology, 134, 97-105, 1988; Murai Makela, Pekka Mattsson, M. Eugenia Schinina, and Timo Korpela, Biotechnology and Applied biochemistry, 10, 414-427, 1988; and Ernest K. C. Yu, Hiroyuki Aoki, and Masanaru Misawa, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 28, 377-379, 1988).
CGTases are classified into α-, β- and γ-CGTase depending on the main products of CD. Most reports have dealt with α- and β-CGTase; there are few enzymes reported to be γ-CGTase (Shigeharu Mori, Susumu Hirose, Takaichi Oya, and Sumio Kitahata, Oyo Toshitsu Kagaku, 41 (2), 245-253, 1994; Yoshito Fujita, Hitoshi Tsubouchi, Yukio Inagi, Keiji Tomita, Akira Ozaki, and Kazuhiro Nakanishi, J. Fermentation and Bioengineering, 70 (3), 150-154, 1990; Takashi Kato and Koki Horikoshi, J. Jpn. Soc. Starch Sci., 33 (2), 137-143, 1986). Further, of those enzymes reported as γ-CGTase, the γ-CD production yield is less than 5 percent; an amount of β-CD that is equal to or greater than the amount of γ-CD is produced since the rate of production of β-CD is accelerated in the late stage of reaction; or the γ-CD production rate decreases sharply at a substrate concentration of 10 percent or more. Still further, these enzymes do not lend themselves to an industrial use since they requires countermeasures such as the addition of ethanol to the reaction solution.
Some attempts to improve the amount of γ-CD produced by modifying the structural gene of α- or β-CGTase have been reported (Akira Nakamura, Keiko Haga, and Kunio Yamane, Biochemistry, 32, 6624-6631, 1993; Michio Kubota, Yoshiki Matsuura, Shuzo Sakai and Yukiteru Kutsume, Oyo Toshitsu Kagaku, 41 (2), 245-253, 1994). However, even when the amount of γ-CD produced increases, the amount of β-CD produced by the original activity does not markedly decrease, which is inadequate from an industrial perspective. As a result, although α-CD and β-CD are employed in various fields, γ-CD is hardly employed at all. The same is true of CD-comprising compositions. CD-comprising compositions containing α- or β-CD as a main product are employed in a great many fields, but CD-comprising compositions containing γ-CD as a main product are hardly employed at all. In CD-comprising compositions, the CGTase employed to prepare the compositions ends up determining the CD composition based on α-, β-, or γ-CGTase, and it is difficult to prepare a CD-comprising composition having a desired CD balance.
In light of this state of the art, the present inventors previously discovered that Bacillus clarkii 7364 produces a new γ-CGTase producing γ-CD as a main product, employed this enzyme to develop a method of manufacturing γ-CD and a CD-comprising composition of desired CD balance, and applied for patents (Japanese Patent Application Un-examined Publication Nos. 2001-327299 and 2001-327284).
However, these microbes do not afford adequate enzyme productivity. When γ-CD and CD-comprising compositions of desired CD balance are prepared on an industrial scale, there is a problem in that the microbe must be cultured on a large scale. Conventionally, to solve this problem, wild strains have been bred in a complex manner using ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and reagents such as NTG (N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine) and EMS (ethylmethane sulfonate) to create mutant strains having improved enzyme productivity. Further, microbes producing CGTase often produce trace amounts of α-amylase at the same time as CGTase. Thus, when causing CGTase to act upon substrates selected from among starch and decomposition products thereof to produce γ-CD as a main product, the yield is reduced due to hydrolysis of the γ-CD by α-amylase that is present in the crude enzyme. One conceivable method of solving this problem is to purify the crude enzyme and remove the α-amylase. However, in that case, there is a problem of high enzyme production costs. A further method is to inhibit the expression of the amylase gene by an artificial method and relatively increase CGTase activity. However, in this method, it is often difficult to obtain mutant strains in which α-amylase activity alone is selectively inhibited.
It has currently become possible to readily obtain the gene encoding a useful enzyme, create recombinant DNA comprising the gene, and introduce it into a microbe to relatively easily obtain a desired level of enzyme.
Based on this state of the art, the technique of locating the gene encoding γ-CGTase, analyzing the genetic sequence thereof, and improving the productivity and activity of the enzyme by means of transformants into which the gene has been introduced is quite important. Further, once the gene is obtained, mutants can be created to obtain a highly active enzyme. Further, it is anticipated that the techniques of protein engineering can be employed to obtain enzymes with greater heat resistance, pH resistance, and reaction rates.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a gene encoding the cyclodextrin glucanotransferase which produces γ-CD as a main product from the substrates selected from among starch and decomposition products thereof, recombinant plasmids comprising this gene and transformants transformed with the recombinant plasmid; a method employing these transformants to manufacture cyclodextrin glucanotransferase acting upon the substrates selected from among starch and decomposition products thereof to producer γ-CD as a main product; and a method employing this recombinant cyclodextrin glucanotransferase to manufacture γ-CD and a CD-comprising composition having a desired CD balance (α-, β-, and γ-CD balance).

Gene coding for cyclodextrin glucanotransferase chiefly producing γ-cyclodextrin and use thereof


An escalator step riser is improved by adding grooves to the cleat surfaces, and, at the same time, a skid-inhibiting function is realized at the rear edge of the step. For escalator step (1), cleats (5a) are formed with a pitch twice that of tread (4) on riser (3). On each cleat (5a) of the riser (3), one or more grooves (6) are formed in the longitudinal direction. In addition, skid-inhibiting surface (7), made of synthetic resin and having a prescribed width, is attached in a quick connecting/disconnecting manner on the rear edge of step (2). A serrated irregular portion (7c) is formed on the upper surface of cleats (7a), (7b) of the non-slip surface (7).

A step for an escalator is comprised of a horizontal step and a riser which hangs downward from the rear edge thereof and has a curved surface. It is typical to have a non-slip function provided to the step by forming a tread made of cleats and of a toothed surface formed on the riser made of cleats, with the pitch of the riser cleats being twice that of the step tread. It has been effective to form the toothed surface of cleats, which engage with the step tread, to the riser in order to minimize the danger of articles falling between steps, and the danger of rubber shoes, etc. being dragged between steps having a smooth surface. Therefore, this has been applied in most risers of steps for escalators in recent years.
However, there are still cases of shoes being pulled between steps due to the rubber part of the shoes sliding and contacting the toothed surface of the riser. Therefore, it is desirable to improve this in order to maintain safety on an escalator. Also, the rear edge of a step formed with a tread can cause the tip of a shoe to slip and there is a danger of loss of footing.
Japanese Kokai Patent Application Number Hei 1[1989]-285581 discloses a solution of applying a surface finishing process to the surface of a riser by using a fluorine resin. Fluorine resin is expensive and causes an increase in the cost of manufacturing a step for an escalator due to the process for coating the fluorine resin. There were additional problems, however, such as lack of durability due to the fluorine resin tending to wear out easily. The work of disassembling the entire escalator and removing steps to be repaired become necessary in order to repaint worn fluorine resin. This results in a lack of availability of the escalator during this time and an associated increase in maintenance cost.


Primary data caches are connected to a common signal line, and secondary data caches are connected to an I/O data line. While data in the secondary data cache is being output to the I/O data line, the common signal line is used to make determinations for data in flag cells. This increases the speed of a cache read operation.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a NAND flash memory using, for example, EEPROM, and in particular, to a semiconductor memory device that can store multivalued data in each memory cell.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a NAND flash memory, a plurality of memory cells arranged in a column direction are connected together in series to constitute NAND cells, which are connected to corresponding bit lines via select gates. The bit lines are connected to latch circuits that latch write data and read data. Proposed NAND flash memories include nonvolatile semiconductor memory devices that can store multivalued data.
Elements have recently been increasingly miniaturized to reduce the distance between the cells. This has made the adverse effect of the floating gate capacitance between the adjacent cells more serious. Specifically, the threshold voltage of a cell on which a write operation has already been performed may disadvantageously be varied by the threshold voltage of a cell on which a write operation is subsequently performed. In particular, a multivalued memory in which 2 bits or more are stored in each cell stores a plurality of data using a plurality of threshold voltages. This requires the distribution of the threshold voltage for each data to be controllably significantly narrowed. This in turn results in the significant adverse effects of the threshold voltage of the adjacent cell.
To solve this problem, the following operation is performed. Before storing data in a memory cell in which 1 bit data (first page) has been stored, 1 bit (first page) data is written to the adjacent memory cell up to a threshold voltage (V-level) lower than the original one. After writing the data to the adjacent memory cell, a write operation on a second page write is performed with the threshold voltage raised to the original value (up to a word line voltage "b" (V<=B)). However, the write operation on the second page makes it impossible to determine whether the threshold voltage of the first page data is equal to or lower than the original one. Thus, to enable this determination, a proposed write scheme prepares a flag memory cell (hereinafter referred to as a flag cell) for each page and performs a read operation according to the flag cell data (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2000-195280).
Data read from a memory cell is first held in a first latch circuit and then output to the outside of the chip via a second latch circuit. While the data is being output to the outside of the chip via the second latch circuit, a read operation of reading the next read data from the memory cell to the first latch circuit can be performed (this operation is hereinafter referred to as cache read).
However, to reduce the area of the chip, only the second latch circuit can be connected to a device outside the chip. This configuration also applies to the flag cells. Flag cell data is read together with the corresponding memory cell data. Thus, in a cache read operation, the flag cell data cannot be distinguished from the memory cell data. Consequently, after the output of the data to the outside is finished, the data must be transferred from the first latch circuit to the second latch circuit to make a determination for the flag cell data. This disadvantageously reduces the speed of the cache read operation. It has thus been desirable to provide a semiconductor memory device that enables an increase in cache read speed.

Semiconductor memory device capable of high-speed cache read operation


The toilet bowl drainage pump includes an elongate housing having a curved forward end from which a length of tubing extends and in which a plurality of openings are cut at a larger diameter of the curve. A motorized impeller is seated within one chamber in the housing into which the openings lead and out of which the tubing leads. A power source for the motor is provided in a second isolated chamber is selectively operable to energize the pump. In use, the tubing is fed through and over a drain trap of the toilet bowl as the forward end of the housing is seated along a bottommost surface of the bowl. The motor is then activated to pull water into the housing openings and eject the water throughout the tubing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a small, portable, hand held drainage device for use in flushing water from a toilet bowl when the water source for same cannot be accessed for shut off.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heretofore various devices for draining water from an area to be dried have been proposed.
Sump pumps for removing water from a home or bilge pumps for removing water from a boat are well known in the art.
Examples of various water pumping devices may be found in the following US Patents:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Patentee ______________________________________ 2,492,141 Gaylord 4,021,150 Mabuchi 4,218,195 Shure ______________________________________
As will be described in greater detail hereinafter, the toilet bowl drainage device of the present invention fills a need in the janitorial maintenance field.
When cleaning out a toilet bowl or urinal in a large building, it is often impossible to access the source of water to shut same off. Cleaning of the toilet bowl or urinal requires the use of a chemical cleaning/disinfecting agent. When water is present in the bowl, dilution of the chemical is significant, requiring use of excessive amounts of the chemical.
If the bowl could be drained in a simple manner, lesser amounts of the chemical would be required.
Also, if the bowl or urinal would require service or repair, it would be advantageous to be able to drain same.
To be described hereinafter is a small hand pump having a configuration which will remove most, if not all, of the water from a toilet bowl or standing in a urinal and discharge same over a drain trap of the structure's plumbing.


Systems and methods are provided for full duplex DOCSIS cable modem echo cancellation with training. During reception of downstream signals, echo effects on downstream signals may be determined, with at least some of the echo effects corresponding to concurrently transmitted upstream signals. Echo cancellation corrections may be determined based on the determined echo effects, and the echo cancellation corrections may be applied during processing of the downstream signals. The echo cancellation corrections may include one or both of ACI (adjacent channel interference) cancellation corrections and ALI (adjacent leakage interference) cancellation correction. The echo cancellation may include or be based on preforming echo cancellation training, during active communication and based on one or both of the downstream signals and the upstream signals.

Certain issues may exist with conventional approaches for handling cable communications. In particular, conventional approaches for handling echo in cable networks, if any existed, may be costly, cumbersome, and/or inefficient.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with some aspects of the present disclosure as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.

Full duplex DOCSIS cable modem echo cancellation with training


The invention relates to a composition for treating keratin substances, in particular the hair, containing, in a cosmetically and/or dermatologically acceptable aqueous medium, at least:

This application is a PCT/FR98/02688, filed Dec. 10, 1998.
The present invention relates to novel compositions for treating keratin substances, in particular the hair, containing a combination of a zwitterionic polymer and a non-amino, non-volatile, water-insoluble silicone, and to their uses and processes.
Hair conditioners which provide additional cosmetic effects after application and rinsing, such as softness, flexibility, good disentangling, a sheen effect and/or a styling effect, have been sought in recent years in the field of shampoos and conditioners.
It is known in the prior art that silicones are cosmetic products which are particularly desired in hair formulations for their hair-conditioning properties, their softening and disentangling properties and for the sheen effect they provide. When they are used in rinse-out hair compositions, these ingredients have the drawback of being difficult to deposit on the hair and to do so in a non-uniform manner when applied and after rinsing, and of not being able to give the hair the desired effects intrinsic to silicones.
Shampoo compositions based on zwitterionic polymers comprising a monomer of quaternary ammonium type and a monomer of carboxylic acid type are envisaged in patent application WO 91/03229. These polymers, used alone, do not make it possible to obtain satisfactory cosmetic properties either.
Combining silicones with an amphoteric polymer of the acrylic acid/diallyldimethylammoniun chloride type has also been envisaged in patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,650,383. These combinations are still not entirely satisfactory.
The Applicant has now discovered that by combining specific zwitterionic polymers with non-amino, non-volatile, water-insoluble silicones of viscosity which will be defined later, it is possible to obtain, surprisingly, cosmetic compositions based on non-amino silicones which do not have the drawbacks mentioned above, and which give enhanced cosmetic performance, in particular as regards the feel and the disentangling, as well as good styling properties.
In particular, this combination promotes the deposition of silicone onto keratin substances.
Moreover, the Applicant has discovered, unexpectedly, that by combining the silicones of the invention with the zwitterionic polymers defined below, the cosmetic performance of the zwitterionic polymer is markedly enhanced.
A subject of the invention is thus cosmetic or dermatological compositions, characterized in that they comprise, in a cosmetically and/or dermatologically acceptable aqueous medium, at least:
a) one zwitterionic polymer resulting from the copolymerization of at least one monomer of formula (I):
xe2x80x83in which R1 and R2, which may be identical or different, represent a hydrogen atom or a methyl radical, and R3, R4 and R5, which may be identical or different, represent a linear or branched alkyl radical containing from 1 to 4 carbon atoms,
Z represents an NH group or an oxygen atom,
n is an integer from 2 to 5,
Axe2x88x92 is an anion derived from an organic or inorganic acid,
xe2x80x83and at least one monomer of formula (II):
R6xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CR7xe2x80x94COOHxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(II)
xe2x80x83in which R6 and R7, which may be identical or different, represent a hydrogen atom or a methyl radical;
the said polymer being soluble in water to a concentration of 1% by weight at a pH below 6 and at 20xc2x0 C.;
b) one non-amino, non-volatile, water-insoluble silicone with a viscosity of greater than 3xc3x9710xe2x88x925 m2/s (300 centistokes).
A subject of the invention is also the use of a zwitterionic polymer defined above in a composition comprising a non-amino, non-volatile, water-insoluble silicone to enhance the conditioning effect of the silicone.
According to the present invention, the expression xe2x80x9ckeratin substancesxe2x80x9d means the hair, the eyelashes, the eyebrows, the skin, the nails, mucous membranes or the scalp, and more particularly the hair.
The monomers of formula (I) of the present invention are preferably chosen from the group consisting of:
dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl acrylate,
diethylaminoethyl methacrylate, diethylaminoethyl acrylate,
dimethylaminopropyl methacrylate, dimethylaminopropyl acrylate,
dimethylaminopropylmethacrylamide, dimethylaminopropylacrylamide, which are quaternized, for example, with a C1-C4 alkyl halide or a C1-C4 dialkyl sulphate.
More particularly, the monomer of formula (I) is chosen from acrylamidopropyltrimethylammonium chloride and methacrylamidopropyltrimethylammonium chloride.
The monomers of formula (II) of the present invention are preferably chosen from the group consisting of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, crotonic acid and 2-methylcrotonic acid.
More particularly, the monomer of formula (II) is acrylic acid.
The monomers constituting the zwitterionic polymers of the invention are preferably preneutralized and/or prequaternized.
The ratio of the number of cationic charges/anionic charges is generally less than 1.
The weight-average molecular weights of the zwitterionic polymers can range from 500 to 50,000,000 and are preferably between 10,000 and 5,000,000.
The polymers according to the invention can also contain other monomers, such as nonionic monomers and in particular such as C1-C4 alkyl acrylates or methacrylates.
The zwitterionic polymers according to the invention are described, for example, in patent application DE 3,929,973.
The zwitterionic polymers which are particularly preferred according to the invention are chosen from acrylic acid/acrylamidopropyl-trimethylammonium chloride copolymers and acrylic acid/methacrylamidopropyltrimethylammonium chloride copolymers.
Acrylic acid/acrylamidopropyltrimethyl-ammonium chloride/methyl acrylate terpolymers can also be used, for example those sold under the name Merquat 2001 by the company Calgon.
The silicones of the invention preferably have a viscosity of greater than 5xc3x9710xe2x88x925 m2/s (500 centistokes) and more particularly greater than 10xc3x9710xe2x88x925 m2/s (1000 centistokes). Preferably, the silicones have a viscosity of less than 50,000,000 mm2/s. The viscosities are measured at 25xc2x0 C.
In all the text hereinabove and hereinbelow, in accordance with that which is generally accepted, the terms xe2x80x9csiliconexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cpolysiloxanexe2x80x9d are intended to denote any organosilicon polymer or oligomer of linear or cyclic, branched or crosslinked structure, of variable molecular weight, obtained by polymerization and/or polycondensation of suitably functionalized silanes, and consisting essentially of a repetition of main units in which the silicon atoms are linked together by oxygen atoms (siloxane bond xe2x89xa1Sixe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94Sixe2x89xa1), optionally substituted hydrocarbon-based radicals being linked directly via a carbon atom to the said silicon atoms. The hydrocarbon-based radicals most commonly used are alkyl radicals, in particular C1-C10 alkyls and in particular methyl, fluoroalkyl radicals, aryl radicals and in particular phenyl, and alkenyl radicals and in particular vinyl; other types of radicals which can be linked, either directly or via a hydrocarbon-based radical, to the siloxane chain are, in particular, hydrogen, halogens and in particular chlorine, bromine or fluorine, thiols, alkoxy radicals, polyoxyalkylene radicals (or polyethers) and in particular polyoxyethylene and/or polyoxypropylene, hydroxyl or hydroxyalkyl radicals, amide groups, acyloxy or acyloxyalkyl radicals, anionic groups such as carboxylates, thioglycolates, sulphosuccinates, thiosulphates, phosphates and sulphates, needless to say this list not being in any way limiting (so-called xe2x80x9corganomodifiedxe2x80x9d silicones).
According to the invention, the term xe2x80x9cnon-amino siliconexe2x80x9d denotes any silicone not comprising at least one primary amine or a quaternary ammonium group.
Among the silicones of the invention with a viscosity of greater than 3xc3x9710xe2x88x923 m2/s, mention may be made of:
(i) polyalkylsiloxanes;
(ii) polyarylsiloxanes;
(iii) polyalkylarylsiloxanes;
(iv) silicone gums;
(v) silicone resins;
(vi) polyorganosiloxanes containing in their general structure one or more organofunctional groups directly attached to the siloxane chain or attached via a hydrocarbon-based radical;
(vii) block copolymers having a polysiloxane-polyoxyalkylene linear block as repeating units;
(viii) grafted silicone polymers containing a non-silicone organic skeleton, consisting of an organic main chain formed from organic monomers not containing silicone, onto which is grafted, within the said chain as well as, optionally, on at least one of its ends, at least one polysiloxane macromonomer;
(ix) grafted silicone polymers containing a polysiloxane skeleton, grafted with non-silicone organic monomers, comprising a polysiloxane main chain onto which is grafted, within the said chain as well as, optionally, on at least one of its ends, at least one organic macromonomer not containing silicone;
(x) or mixtures thereof.
Among the polyalkylsiloxanes, mention may be made mainly of:
linear polydimethylsiloxanes containing trimethylsilyl end groups, such as, for example, and in a non-limiting manner, the Silbione oils of the 70047 series sold by Rhxc3x4ne-Poulenc; the oil 47 V 500 000 from Rhxc3x4ne-Poulenc or certain Viscasil oils from General Electric;
linear polydimethylsiloxanes containing hydroxydi-methylsilyl end groups, such as the oils of the 48 V series from Rhxc3x4ne-Poulenc.
In this class of polyalkylsiloxanes, mention may also be made of the polyalkylsiloxanes sold by the company Goldschmidt under the trade names Abilwax 9800 and Abilwax 9801, which are poly(C1-C20)alkylsiloxanes.
Among the polyalkylarylsiloxanes, mention may be made of linear or branched polydimethylmethylphenyl-siloxanes and polydimethyldiphenylsiloxanes, such as the product DC 556 Cosmetic Grade Fluid from Dow Corning.
The silicone gums in accordance with the invention are polyorganosiloxanes with an average molecular mass of between 200,000 and 1,000,000, used alone or as a mixture in a solvent chosen from the group consisting of volatile silicones, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) oils, polyphenyl-methylsiloxane (PPMS) oils, isoparaffins, polyisobutylenes, methylene chloride, pentane, dodecane and tridecane, or mixtures thereof.
Mention is made, for example, of the following compounds:
polydimethylsiloxane,
poly[(dimethylsiloxane)/(methylvinylsiloxane)],
poly[(dimethylsiloxane)/(diphenylsiloxane)],
poly[(dimethylsiloxane)/(phenylmethylsiloxane)],
poly[(dimethylsiloxane)/(diphenylsiloxane)/(methyl-vinylsiloxane)].
Mention may be made, for example, of the following mixtures:
1) mixtures formed from a polydimethyl-siloxane hydroxylated at the end of the chain (Dimethiconol according to the CTFA nomenclature) and from a cyclic polydimethylsiloxane (Cyclomethicone), such as the product Q2 1401 sold by the company Dow Corning;
2) mixtures formed from a polydimethylsiloxane gum with a cyclic silicone, such as the product SF 1214 Silicone Fluid from General Electric, which is an SE 30 gum of molecular weight 500,000 dissolved in SF 1202 Silicone Fluid (decamethylcyclopentasiloxane);
3) mixtures of two polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMS) of different viscosity, in particular a PDMS gum and a PDMS oil, such as the products SF 1236 and CF 1241 from General Electric. The product SF 1236 is a mixture of an SE 30 oil defined above, with a viscosity of 20 m2/s, and of an SF 96 oil with a viscosity of 5xc3x9710xe2x88x925 m2/s (15% SE 30 gum and 85% SF 96 oil). The product CF 1241 is a mixture of an SE 30 gum (33%) and of a PDMS (67%) with a viscosity of 10xe2x88x923 m2/s.
The silicone resins in accordance with the invention are preferably crosslinked siloxane systems containing the units:
R2SiO2/2, RSiO3/2 and SiO4/2, in which R denotes a hydrocarbon-based group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or a phenyl group. Among these products, the ones which are particularly preferred are those in which R denotes a lower alkyl radical or a phenyl radical.
Among these resins, mention may be made of the product sold under the name Dow Corning 593 by Dow Corning or those sold under the name Silicone Fluid SS 4267 by General Electric and which are dimethyl/trimethylpolysiloxanes.
The organomodified polyorganosiloxanes of the invention are polyorganosiloxanes as defined above, containing in their general structure one or more organofunctional groups directly attached to the siloxane chain or attached via a hydrocarbon-based radical.
Mention is made, for example, of polyorganosiloxanes containing:
a) polyethylenoxy and/or polypropylenoxy groups, optionally containing alkyl groups, such as the product known as lauryl methicone copolyol sold under the name Q2 5200 by Dow Corning;
b) (per)fluoro groups, for instance trifluoroalkyl groups such as, for example, those sold by Shin Etsu under the name FL 100;
c) thiol groups;
d) carboxylate groups, such as the products described in European patent EP 185 507 from Chisso Corporation;
e) hydroxylated groups, such as the polyorganopolysiloxanes containing a hydroxyalkyl function, described in French patent application FR 85/16334, and in particular polyorganopolysiloxanes containing a xcex3-hydroxypropyl function;
f) alkoxylated groups containing at least 12 carbon atoms, such as the product Silicone Copolymer F755 from SWS Silicones and the products Abilwax 2428, Abilwax 2434 and Abilwax 2440 from the company Goldschmidt;
g) acyloxyalkyl groups containing at least 12 carbon atoms, such as the polyorganosiloxanes described in French patent application FR 88/17433 and in particular polyorganosiloxanes containing a stearoyloxypropyl function;
h) amphoteric groups;
i) bisulphite groups.
The block copolymers having a polysiloxane-polyoxyalkylene linear block as repeating unit, which are used in the context of the present invention, preferably have the following general formula:
([Y(R2SiO)aRxe2x80x22SiYO][(CnH2nO)b])cxe2x80x83xe2x80x83(V)
in which:
R and Rxe2x80x2, which may be identical or different, represent a monovalent hydrocarbon-based radical containing no aliphatic unsaturation,
n is an integer ranging from 2 to 4,
a is an integer greater than or equal to 5, preferably between 5 and 200 and even more particularly between 5 and 100,
b is an integer greater than or equal to 4, preferably between 4 and 200 and even more particularly between 5 and 100,
c is an integer greater than or equal to 4, preferably between 4 and 1000 and even more particularly between 5 and 300,
Y represents a divalent organic group which is linked to the adjacent silicon atom via a carbon-silicon bond and to a polyoxyalkylene block via an oxygen atom,
the average molecular weight of each siloxane block is between about 400 and about 10,000, that of each polyoxyalkylene block being between about 300 and about 10,000,
the siloxane blocks represent from about 10% to about 95% of the weight of the block copolymer,
the average molecular weight of the block copolymer being at least 3000 and preferably between 5000 and 1,000,000 and even more particularly between 10,000 and 200,000.
R and Rxe2x80x2 are preferably chosen from the group comprising alkyl radicals such as, for example, the methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl, hexyl, octyl, decyl and dodecyl radicals, aryl radicals such as, for example, phenyl and naphthyl, aralkyl radicals such as, for example, benzyl and phenylethyl, and tolyl, xylyl and cyclohexyl radicals.
Y is preferably xe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x94NHCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x2xe2x80x94NHCO or xe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x94OCONHxe2x80x94Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x2xe2x80x94NHCOxe2x80x94, where Rxe2x80x3 is a divalent alkylene group such as, for example, ethylene, propylene or butylene, and Rxe2x80x3xe2x80x2 is a divalent alkylene group or a divalent arylene group such as xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94or xe2x80x94 C6H4xe2x80x94C(CH3)2xe2x80x94C6H4xe2x80x94.
Even more preferably, Y represents a divalent alkylene radical, more particularly the xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94 radical or the C4H8 radical.
The preparation of the block copolymers used in the context of the present invention is described in European application EP 0,492,657 A1, the teaching of which is included by way of reference in the present description.
The polymers containing a non-silicone organic skeleton grafted with monomers containing a polysiloxane, in accordance with the invention, are more preferably chosen from those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,693,935, 4,728,571 and 4,972,037 and patent applications EP-A-0,412,704, EP-A-0,412,707, EP-A-0,640,105 and WO 95/00578, the teachings of which are included in their entirety in the present description by way of non-limiting references. They are copolymers obtained by radical polymerization from monomers containing ethylenic unsaturation and from silicone macromers having a vinyl end group, or alternatively copolymers obtained by reaction of a polyolefin comprising functionalized groups and of a polysiloxane macromer having an end function which is reactive with the said functionalized groups.
Examples of polymers containing a polysiloxane skeleton grafted with non-silicone organic monomers, which are suitable for carrying out the present invention, as well as the particular method for preparing them, are described in particular in patent applications EP-A-0,582,152, WO 93/23009 and WO 95/03776, the teachings of which are included in their entirety in the present description by way of non-limiting references.
The zwitterionic polymers of the invention are present in the compositions of the invention in proportions preferably ranging from 0.01 to 20% by weight and more particularly from 0.1 to 10% by weight relative to the total weight of the composition.
The silicones of the invention are generally present in the compositions in proportions ranging from 0.001 to 20% by weight and preferably from 0.01 to 10% by weight relative to the total weight of the composition.
The pH of the aqueous compositions in accordance with the invention is preferably adjusted to between 3 and 11 and more particularly to between 5 and 9, by using buffers or basifying or acidifying agents.
Particularly when they are in the form of a shampoo, the compositions according to the invention comprise a washing base, which is generally aqueous.
The surfactant(s) forming the washing base can be chosen, equally, alone or as mixtures, from anionic, amphoteric, nonionic, zwitterionic and cationic surfactants.
The minimum amount of washing base is that which is just sufficient to give the final composition a satisfactory foaming and/or detergent power.
Thus, according to the invention, the washing base can represent from 4% to 30% by weight, preferably from 10% to 25% by weight and even more preferably from 12% to 20% by weight, relative to the total weight of the final composition.
The surfactants which are suitable for carrying out the present invention are, in particular, the following:
(i) Anionic Surfactant(s):
In the context of the present invention, their nature is not really a critical feature.
Thus, by way of example of anionic surfactants which can be used, alone or as mixtures, in the context of the present invention, mention may be made in particular (non-limiting list) of salts (in particular alkali metal salts, especially sodium salts, ammonium salts, amine salts, amino alcohol salts or magnesium salts) of the following compounds: alkyl sulphates, alkyl ether sulphates, alkylamido ether sulphates, alkylaryl polyether sulphates, monoglyceride sulphates; alkyl sulphonates, alkyl phosphates, alkylamide sulphonates, alkylaryl sulphonates, (x-olefin sulphonates, paraffin sulphonates; alkyl sulphosuccinates, alkyl ether sulphosuccinates, alkylamide sulphosuccinates; alkyl sulphosuccinamates; alkyl sulphoacetates; alkyl ether phosphates; acyl sarcosinates; acyl isethionates and N-acyl taurates, the alkyl or acyl radical of all of these different compounds preferably containing from 8 to 24 carbon atoms and the aryl radical preferably denoting a phenyl or benzyl group. Among the anionic surfactants which can also be used, mention may also be made of fatty acid salts such as oleic, ricinoleic, palmitic and stearic acid salts, copra oil acid or hydrogenated copra oil acid; acyl lactylates in which the acyl radical contains 8 to 20 carbon atoms. It is also possible to use weakly anionic surfactants, such as alkyl D-galactosiduronic acids and their salts, as well as polyoxyalkylenated carboxylic ether (C6-C24)alkyl acids, polyoxyalkylenated carboxylic ether (C6-C24)alkylaryl acids, polyoxyalkylenated carboxylic ether (C6-C24)alkylamido acids and their salts, in particular those containing from 2 to 50 ethylene oxide groups, and mixtures thereof.
Among the anionic surfactants, the ones preferably used according to the invention are alkyl sulphate salts and alkyl ether sulphate salts and mixtures thereof.
(ii) Nonionic Surfactant(s):
The nonionic surfactants are also compounds that.are well known per se (see in particular in this respect xe2x80x9cHandbook of Surfactantsxe2x80x9d by M. R. Porter, published by Blackie and Son (Glasgow and London), 1991, pp. 116-178) and, in the context of the present invention, their nature is not a critical feature. Thus, they can be chosen in particular from (non-limiting list) polyethoxylated, polypropoxylated or polyglycerolated fatty acids, alkylphenols, xcex1-diols or alcohols having a fatty chain containing, for example, 8 to 18 carbon atoms, it being possible for the number of ethylene oxide or propylene oxide groups to range in particular from 2 to 50 and for the number of glycerol groups to range in particular from 2 to 30. Mention may also be made of copolymers of ethylene oxide and of propylene oxide, condensates of ethylene oxide and of propylene oxide with fatty alcohols; polyethoxylated fatty amides preferably having from 2 to 30 mol of ethylene oxide, polyglycerolated fatty amides containing on average 1 to 5, and in particular 1.5 to 4, glycerol groups; polyethoxylated fatty amines preferably having 2 to 30 mol of ethylene oxide; oxyethylenated fatty acid esters of sorbitan having from 2 to 30 mol of ethylene oxide; fatty acid esters of sucrose, fatty acid esters of polyethylene glycol, alkylpolyglycosides, N-alkylglucamine derivatives, amine oxides such as (C10-C14)alkylamine oxides or N-acylaminopropylmorpholine oxides. It will be noted that the alkylpolyglycosides constitute nonionic surfactants that are particularly suitable in the context of the present invention.
(iii) Amphoteric or Zwitterionic Surfactant(s):
The amphoteric or zwitterionic surfactants, whose nature is not a critical feature in the context of the present invention, can be, in particular (non-limiting list), aliphatic secondary or tertiary amine derivatives in which the aliphatic radical is a linear or branched chain containing 8 to 18 carbon atoms and containing at least one water-solubilizing anionic group (for example carboxylate, sulphonate, sulphate, phosphate or phosphonate); mention may also be made of (C8-C20)alkylbetaines, sulphobetaines, (C8-C20)alkylamido(C1-C6) alkylbetaines or (C8-C20)alkylamido(C1-C6) alkylsulphobetaines.
Among the amine derivatives, mention may be made of the products sold under the name Miranol, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,528,378 and 2,781,354 and classified in the CTFA dictionary, 3rd edition, 1982, under the names Amphocarboxyglycinates and Amphocarboxypropionates, with the respective structures:
R2xe2x80x94CONHCH2CH2xe2x80x94N(R3) (R4) (CH2COOxe2x80x94)xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(2)
in which: R2 denotes an alkyl radical of an acid R2xe2x80x94COOH present in hydrolysed copra oil, a heptyl, nonyl or undecyl radical, R3 denotes a xcex2-hydroxyethyl group and R4 denotes a carboxymethyl group; and
R2xe2x80x94CONHCH2CH2xe2x80x94N(B) (C)xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(3)
in which:
B represents xe2x80x94CH2CH2OXxe2x80x2, C represents xe2x80x94(CH2)z, xe2x80x94Yxe2x80x2, with
z=1 or 2,
Xxe2x80x2 denotes the xe2x80x94CH2CH2xe2x80x94COOH group or a hydrogen atom,
Yxe2x80x2 denotes xe2x80x94COOH or the xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CHOHxe2x80x94SO3H radical,
R2, denotes an alkyl radical of an acid R9xe2x80x94COOH present in copra oil or in hydrolysed linseed oil, an alkyl radical, in particular a C7, C9, C11 or C13 alkyl radical, a C17 alkyl radical and its iso form, an unsaturated C17 radical.
By way of example, mention may be made of the cocoamphocarboxyglycinate sold under the trade name Miranol C2M concentrate by the company Miranol.
(iv) Cationic Surfactants:
Among the cationic surfactants, whose nature, in the context of the present invention, is not a critical feature, mention may be made in particular (non-limiting list) of: salts of optionally polyoxyalkylenated primary, secondary or tertiary fatty amines; quaternary ammonium salts such as tetraalkylammonium, alkylamidoalkyltrialkylammonium, trialkylbenzylammonium, trialkylhydroxyalkylammonium or alkylpyridinium chlorides or bromides; imidazoline derivatives; or amine oxides of cationic nature.
The cosmetically or dermatologically acceptable medium of the compositions of the invention is preferably water or an aqueous-alcoholic solution of a lower alcohol such as ethanol, isopropanol or butanol.
The composition of the invention can also contain at least one additive chosen from sequestering agents, softeners, foam modifiers, dyes, pearlescent agents, moisturizers, antidandruff agents, anti-seborrhoeic agents, suspending agents, ceramides, pseudoceramides, fatty acids containing linear or branched C16-C40 chains, hydroxy acids, electrolytes, thickeners, fatty acid esters, fatty acid esters of glycerol, surfactants, fragrances, preserving agents, silicone or non-silicone sunscreens, proteins, vitamins, ionic or nonionic polymers, water-soluble silicones, plant, animal, mineral or synthetic oils and any other additive conventionally used in the cosmetics field.
These additives are present in the composition according to the invention in proportions which can range from 0 to 40% by weight relative to the total weight of the composition. The precise amount of each additive depends on its nature and is readily determined by a person skilled in the art.
Needless to say, a person skilled in the art will take care to select the optional compound(s) to be added to the composition according to the invention such that the advantageous properties intrinsically associated with the composition in accordance with the invention are not, or are not substantially, adversely affected by the addition envisaged.
These compositions can be in the form of relatively thickened liquids, creams or gels and they are mainly suitable for washing, conditioning and/or styling the hair. They can also be in the form of rinse-out lotions.
Another subject of the invention consists of a cosmetic treatment process for the hair, characterized in that a composition as defined above is applied directly to the said wet substances and, after optionally leaving it thereon for a period of time, it is rinsed out with water; the said process can be repeated several times.
As mentioned above, the compositions according to the invention give the hair, after rinsing, a noteworthy conditioning effect which is manifested in particular by an ease of disentangling the hair, as well as properties of softness and smoothness of the hair, lightness and volume.

Compositions for treating keratinous materials containing a combination of a zwitterion polymer and a water insoluble non-volatile silicon

Abstract: n is an integer from 2 to 5,


The present invention is directed at a pullhead/reamer for use in digging a hole in the ground; comprising a first end (22) shaped to receive a mandrel struts, connecting the first end to the second end, the struts defining a set of open flutes (48) therewithin; and a set of slurry jets (50); wherein when the pullhead/reamer is in use, the set of slurry jets release a pressurized liquid to mix with the ground producing a slurry which enters the pullhead/reamer via the open flutes.

In the past, in order to lay down underground pipelines, trenches were dug and the pipes were placed in the bottom of the trenches. After the pipes had been leveled, the trenches were generally re-filled with the ground that had been previously dug up.
However, more recently, directional drilling has been used to drill holes underground to assist in the laying down of pipelines and other utilities so that less work is required to re-fill trenches.
In directional drilling, a large hole is initially dug out to align with the depth that the pipe is to be installed so that the directional drilling apparatus may be assembled. Prior to operation, a motor is connected to a mandrel which is used to create a guide line along which the pipe is to be laid down. The motor causes the mandrel to rotate creating a small hole. The directional drilling apparatus may further comprise means for aligning the mandrel and for constantly watching the digging of the guide line. The drilling of the guide line results in a small hole being created from the location of the motor to the large hole. After the mandrel reaches the large hole, a reamer is connected to the mandrel along with the pipe that is to be laid down. The motor is once again enabled to rotate the mandrel and to draw the mandrel, reamer and pipe. This requires a number of increasingly larger passes at which time the reamer and pipe are pulled towards the motor. The rotation of the motor causes the size of the guide line hole to increase allowing the pipe to be laid down.
During the hole producing process, liquid, in the form of bentonite or other drilling fluid is released via jets in the drilling apparatus. The bentonite mixes with the ground to create a slurry which is passed backwards against the surface of the pipe to the large hole. In order to provide space for the slurry to travel, the circumference of the reamer is generally one and half times larger than the circumference of the pipe. This extra space allows the slurry to travel towards the hole but also allows for frac-outs to occur. A frac-out is the uncontrolled spilling of drilling fluids, usually bentonite, into the environment. This happens when the hole being drilled fractures or collapses and the fluids that are used to lubricate the drill seep out of the hole. Frac-outs can be devastating to the environment.

Method and apparatus for directional drilling


The present invention provides a valve timing regulating device which controls the opening/closing timing of an exhaust valve of an internal engine combustion engine so that upon starting the engine a rotor member is rotated relative to a housing member for reaching in shorter time duration a region in which a lock mechanism functions. The valve timing regulation device includes a fluid pressure circuit controlling the supply and drainage of operating fluid to and from each of the advance angle fluid chamber and the retard angle fluid chamber. The fluid pressure circuit has a fluid pump driven by the internal combustion engine, a control valve controlling, by adjusting the operating fluid supplied from the fluid pump, the supply and draining of operating fluid to and from each of the advance angle fluid chamber and the retard angle fluid chamber, and a check valve disposed between the control valve and the fluid pump such that the check valve is placed close to the control valve for preventing entrance of the operating fluid into the fluid pump.

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 119 with respect to Japanese Application No. 2000-022498 filed on Jan. 31, 2000, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention generally relates to internal combustion engines. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a valve timing regulation device that controls the opening and closing timing of the valve in an internal combustion engine valve system.
One example of a known valve timing regulation device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei. 11(1999)-294121. This valve timing regulation device includes a housing member placed in a driving force transmission path which transmits a driving force from the driving shaft (i.e., crank shaft) of an internal combustion engine to a driven shaft (i.e., cam shaft) for opening and closing an exhaust valve of the internal combustion engine. The housing member is adapted to rotate together with one of the driving shaft and the driven shaft. A rotor member is assembled to a shoe portion of the housing member so as to be rotated relative thereto, and the rotor member has a vane portion which divides an advance angle fluid chamber and a retard angle fluid chamber in the housing member. The rotor member is adapted to rotate together with the other of the driving shaft and the driven shaft. A fluid pressure circuit controls the supply and drainage of an operating fluid to and from each of the advance angle fluid chamber and the retard angle fluid chamber.
This valve timing regulation device further includes a lock mechanism controlled by the fluid pressure circuit and a torsion spring. The lock mechanism prevents relative rotation between the housing member and the rotor member at the most advance angle region. The torsion spring is interposed between the housing member and the rotor member for urging the rotor member in an advancing direction relative to the housing member.
However, in this known valve timing regulation device, although the rotor member is adapted to rotate relative to the housing member for advancing the angular position of the driven shaft relative to the driving shaft, in cases where, for example, the resistance of the passage ranging from the engine driven fluid pump to the advance angle fluid chamber is very high or where the operation fluid possesses a high viscosity (e.g., the operation fluid possesses a low temperature), during a transition period at initiation of the internal combustion engine the pressure of the operating fluid supplied from the fluid pump to the advance angle fluid chamber increases to a predetermined value, it is possible that the rotor member may not correctly rotate relative to the housing member, to the most advance angle region at which the lock mechanism functions. The resulting phenomena prolongs the overlap period under which the intake and exhaust valves of the internal combustion engine open concurrently, thereby not obtaining a normal burn in the internal combustion engine upon start thereof.
Thus, a need exists for a valve timing regulation device which is not as susceptible to the foregoing disadvantages and difficulties.
According to one aspect of the invention, a valve timing regulation device includes a housing member, a rotor member, a lock mechanism and a fluid control circuit. The housing member is positioned in a driving force transmission path in which a driving force is transmitted from a driving shaft of an internal combustion engine to a driven shaft for opening and closing a valve of the internal combustion engine, with the housing member being rotatable together with one of the driving shaft and the driven shaft. The rotor member is assembled to a shoe portion of the housing member and is rotatable relative to the housing member. The rotor member has a vane portion dividing the interior of the housing member into an advance angle fluid chamber and a retard angle fluid chamber. The rotor member is rotatable together with the other of the driving shaft and the driven shaft. The lock mechanism regulates the relative rotation between the housing member and the rotor member at a region other than a most retard angle region. The fluid pressure circuit controls the supply and drainage of an operating fluid to and from each of the advance angle fluid chamber and the retard angle fluid chamber. The fluid pressure circuit includes a fluid pump driven by the internal combustion engine, a control valve which controls, by adjustment of the operating fluid supplied from the fluid pump, the supply and drainage of the operating fluid to and from each of the advance angle fluid chamber and the retard angle fluid chamber, with the control valve controlling the lock and unlock of the lock mechanism, and a check valve disposed between the control valve and the fluid pump such that the check valve is positioned close to the control valve for preventing entrance of the operating fluid into the fluid pump.
According to another aspect of the invention, a valve timing regulating device includes a housing member, a rotor member, a chamber disposed between the housing member and the rotor member, a dividing member dividing the chamber into an advance angle fluid chamber and a retard angle fluid chamber, a fluid pressure supplying device that supplies operation fluid to the advance angle fluid chamber and/or the retard angle fluid chamber respectively, a regulating member that regulates the operation fluid supplied to the advance angle fluid chamber and/or the retard angle fluid chamber, and a preventing device that prevents the operating fluid from being drained from one of the advance chamber or the retard chamber.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, a valve timing regulation device includes a housing member, a rotor member, a lock mechanism, a fluid pump, a control valve and a check valve. The housing member is positioned in a driving force transmission path in which a driving force is transmitted from a driving shaft of an internal combustion engine to a driven shaft for opening and closing a valve of the internal combustion engine, with the housing member being rotatable together with one of the driving shaft and the driven shaft. The rotor member is positioned within the housing and is rotatable together with the other of the driving shaft and the driven shaft to rotate relative to the housing. The rotor member includes a plurality of vane portions dividing the interior of the housing member into a plurality of advance angle fluid chambers and a plurality of retard angle fluid chambers. The lock mechanism prevents relative rotation between the housing member and the rotor member. The fluid pump is driven by the internal combustion engine to pump operating fluid into the advance angle fluid chambers and the retard angle fluid chambers, and the control valve is positioned between the pump and the advance and retard angle fluid chambers to control supply and drainage of the operating fluid to and from each of the advance and retard angle fluid chambers. The check valve is disposed between the control valve and the fluid pump at a location closer to the control valve than the fluid pump to prevent entrance of the operating fluid into the fluid pump.
With the present invention, in the transition period in which the pressure of the operating fluid outputted from the fluid pump (fluid pressure supplying means) toward the advance angle fluid chamber increases to the predetermined value when the internal combustion engine is initiated or started, the torque fluctuation transmitted from the valve to the driven shaft (and the rotor member) causes repetitive relative rotations between the housing member and the rotor member. Thus, the vane (the dividing member) changes the volume of the advance and retard angle fluid chambers repetitively. The resulting repetitive pressure (negative pressure) changes in the advance and retard angle fluid chambers and the function of the check valve (the preventing means) prevents the operation fluid from being drained from the advance or retard angle fluid chamber to the fluid pump (the fluid supplying means), and establishes pumping action (sucking action) which results in repetitive suctions of the operating fluid into the advance or retard angle fluid chamber by way of the check valve (the preventing means) and the control valve (the regulating member), thereby storing the operating fluid in the advance or retard angle fluid chamber in a stepwise manner.

Valve timing regulation device for internal combustion engines


Apparatus and method is provided for shaping bone, in which a cooling, lubricating and/or curative fluid is delivered by means of the shaping member, in order to cool or lubricate the shaping member where it contacts the bone and/or to provide a curative fluid to the shaped surface of the bone. Preferably, the cooling fluid is at least partially water, with or without a curative substance carried therein, with the liquid being delivered at the shaping end of the member, in a direction toward the shaped bone. The fluid may be provided through the interior of the shaping member to at least one relatively narrow opening located at the shaping end of the member, or may be provided by at least one exterior channel that runs along at least one wide side of the shaping member. Optionally, cooling liquid may also be delivered through the interior of the shaping member for discharge through at least one narrow side thereof. A porous medium that allows for controlled flow of lubricating fluid may also be provided on at least one wide side surface of the shaping member.

This invention relates to the shaping of bone. One technique of bone shaping is by resort to a saw, often an oscillating saw, but it will be understood that, in the broadest context, this invention relates not only to the sawing of bone, but also to various types of other abrading such as burr removal, reaming, grinding, cutting, milling, drilling, scraping, and even to electro-surgery and laser cutting devices.
Typically, such shaping equipment is used in orthopedics, and most often involves the use of saws to machine off portions of bone to fit prosthetics such as are used, for example only, in artificial knees and hips. Such shaping apparatus, often saws, are also used to cut pieces of bone out of hip sites, in order to form or shape a splice or fixation piece for operations on the spine, for example. Such pieces of bone must be extensively sawed and milled to shape.
In the course of such operations, the death or necrosis of bone tissue can be experienced any time the temperature resulting from shaping exceeds 130.degree. F. for any significant period of time. When such necrosis occurs, the tissue does not grow into the cut site, fracture site, or surface of the cementless prosthesis or other prosthesis and may fail to knit. In the absence of knitting, the prosthesis may not be anchored by bone growth, possibly resulting in the necessity to have a replacement operation some period of years thereafter, often called a "revision procedure." In some instances, half of all knee or hip operations may be revision procedures, often because in the initial operation, where temperature is a contributing factor, excessive temperatures were reached at the site of the shaped surface or bone kerf (or cut). Furthermore, in the absence of lubrication, small metal particles may be abraded from the saws and remain in the wound where they adversely affect long term viability of the tissue.
It has in the past beenerecognized that it would be desirable to cool the shaping devices during their operation, in order to keep heat build-up at a minimum. To such an end, it is known to apply fluid such as water to the tool by external means, such as by a syringe, in order to attempt to cool the tool at the shaping site.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,557,364 represents a prior art surgical saw blade.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,008,720 and 5,087,261 represent bone saws of the type in which an oscillating blade driver drives a bone saw in an oscillating motion, and in which means are provided for delivering a cooling liquid to the bone site. Such prior art devices either do not deliver cooling liquid directly to the cutting site, or provide limitations in the type of shaping member due to the manner of liquid delivery. In one known blade, nearly one third of the cutting tooth edge is removed to provide a conduit for the fluid.
It has also been found in connection with the shaping of bone, and particularly where a liquid is provided during such bone shaping for purposes of cooling the saw or other shaping member, that sprays or aerosols are generated. Such generation of sprays (or aerosols) at the site of the shaped bone (or kerf) create dangerous conditions, because of the dissemination of infections that might be present in the bone tissue, to the medical personnel attending the operation. For example, such infection might include hepatitis, AIDS, or the like. Prior art bone shaping apparatus and methods do not appear to have effectively addressed this serious concern.
To the extent that the prior art appears to have addressed the prevention of the dissemination of aerosols having the effluent of bone shaping, such as blood and tissue therein, such have generally proven to be inadequate. For example, mechanical barriers, such as transparent screens, may be provided, but visibility may be partially blocked as aerosols land on the screens, and such lack of visibility becomes detrimental to the operation. Consequently, in many cases, mechanical barriers are not utilized, and the medical personnel may often be observed with red, moist aerosol-caused accumulations of blood and tissue on their gowns, masks and caps, at the end of an operation.
U.S. Patent application Ser. No. 08/005,887, of which the present application is a continuation-in-part, and which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a bone shaping device in which cooling liquid is provided through one or more conduits with openings located at the narrow sides of the shaping member. Application Ser. No. 08/005,887 also discloses an apparatus and method for containment of aerosols generated at the site of the bone shaping operation in which a gaseous fluid such as air impinges with the aerosols in order to drive the aerosols away from the shaping apparatus and toward the bone.


A system of remotely actuated novelty devices is disclosed having triggering and actuating components packaged in separate, interchangeable modules. The system includes several interchangeable trigger modules, each of which detects the occurrence of an activating event and in response generates a trigger signal of finite duration, and several interchangeable action modules, each of which performs a prank in response to a trigger signal. Each action module includes a battery that powers the action module and any trigger module connected to it.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to devices for playing pranks, and relates more particularly to remotely actuated devices having triggering and actuating components that are packaged in separate, interchangeable modules.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
In the past, devices for playing pranks were generally activated by a single mechanical means. For example, a trip wire would activate a noise maker, or a bucket of water balanced on top of a door would fall when the door is opened. These mechanical means for activating the prank were limited in that once the trip wire or other means is discovered, the prank could be defeated by the intended victim.


There are disclosed topical silver(II) antibiotic formulations. Other embodiments are also disclosed.

The present invention relates to antibiotic formulations and methods, and more particularly, to topical silver(II) antibiotic formulations, methods of production thereof, and methods of use thereof.
While substantial advances have been made in the treatment of topical wounds, both chronic and acute, the inventors believe there is a need for further improvements in formulating stable, efficacious topical antibiotic formulations and medical devices; the subject matter of the present disclosure and claims is aimed at fulfilling this need.

AIDANCE SKINCARE & TOPICAL SOLUTIONS LLC


This invention is a new method for the formation of high-quality ohmic contacts on wide-band-gap semiconducting oxides. As exemplified by the formation of an ohmic contact on n-type BaTiO.sub.3 containing a p-n junction, the invention entails depositing a film of a metallic electroding material on the BaTiO.sub.3 surface and irradiating the film with a Q-switched laser pulse effecting complete melting of the film and localized melting of the surface layer of oxide immediately underlying the film. The resulting solidified metallic contact is ohmic, has unusually low contact resistance, and is thermally stable, even at elevated temperatures. The contact does not require cleaning before attachment of any suitable electrical lead.. This method is safe, rapid, reproducible, and relatively inexpensive.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to methods for the formation of ohmic contacts on bodies of semiconducting materials and more particularly to the formation of low-resistance ohmic contacts on semiconducting oxides. The term "ohmic contact" is used herein to refer to a metallic (metal or metal-alloy) electrode whose electrical resistance is constant in an applied electric field. The term "low-resistance ohmic contact" is used herein to refer to ohmic contacts whose resistance is only a small percentage of that of the typical junction device. The term "semiconducting oxide" is used to refer to wide-band-gap semiconducting materials having oxygen as a constituent--as, for example, barium titanate (BaTiO.sub.3), lithium niobate, and zinc oxide. The semiconducting oxide may be of the n- or p-type and may or may not contain an electrical junction.
2. Problem
The utilization of n-type semiconducting-oxide devices has been limited by the lack of a relatively simple, rapid, and reproducible method for providing the oxide with high-quality metallic contacts for the attachment of electrical leads. Various conventional techniques (e.g., vapor-deposition) produce satisfactory contacts on other semiconductor materials but when applied to n-type semiconducting oxides they often result in contact resistances which are unsuitably high. Such techniques are believed to be deficient because they do not disrupt a space charge layer present on the surface of the oxide material. That is, it is believed that absorbed oxygen acceptor states at the oxide surface result in a depletion layer at the oxide-to-contact interface, creating a current barrier.
Low-resistance ohmic contacts may be formed on n-type semiconducting oxides by methods which entail mechanical or chemical disruption of the above-mentioned space-charge layer, but these methods are subject to significant disadvantages. For instance, ohmic contacts can be formed on the oxides by chemically depositing a layer of nickel and then heat-treating the layer. Unfortunately, that technique requires relatively complex equipment and presents waste disposal problems. Another conventional contact-forming technique comprises the deposition of metals such as gold and silver by flame-spraying; however, this requires relatively expensive equipment and is attended by health and safety problems associated with metal inhalation and noise. Another known contact-forming technique comprises rubbing the oxide surface with indium wetted with mercury or gallium. The resulting contacts are not highly uniform, however, and they age quickly at room temperature. The prior art also includes forming ohmic contacts by ultrasonically soldering indium-based alloys to the oxide. Unfortunately, the resulting contacts do not have as high a uniformity as desired, and they are useful only in the temperature range below about 300.degree. C.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,147,563, issued on Apr. 3, 1979, to J. Narayan and R. T. Young, discloses the use of laser pulses to diffuse a superficial layer of dopant material into a silicon substrate to form a p-n junction therein or to form silicide contacts. U.S. Pat. No. 4,181,538 issued on Jan. 1, 1980 to J. Narayan, C. W. White, and R. T. Young, discloses the use of laser-pulse annealing to improve the electrical properties of doped or undoped silicon substrates.

Laser method for forming low-resistance ohmic contacts on semiconducting oxides

The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy


A retaining plate is disposed along and spaced apart by a predetermined distance from the surface of a noise source in an automotive vehicle component so as not to be displaced away from the surface of the noise source. A sheet-like elastic member is compressedly interposed between the noise source and the retaining plate. As a result, the effect of reducing the noise due to vibration is attained without substantially increasing the weight of the automotive vehicle components and without adversely affecting the sealability and other performances required to the components.

The present invention relates to a device for reducing noise produced by automotive vehicle components.
For example, a head cover 2 on an engine 1 is caused to vibrate as shown by two-dotted lines in FIG. 1 by vibration transmitted from a cylinder head 3, thus producing noise. So far such noise is reduced by a reinforcing rib 4 inside the head cover 2 which increases the rigidity of the latter; this is called "rib reinforcement". Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, elastic members 5 are interposed between the head 3 and the cover 2 to float the latter from the former, thereby preventing the transmission of vibration from the head 3 to the cover 2; this is called "floating".
Other noise sources of automotive vehicles are oil pans, timing gear cases, bodies and so on.
In the rib reinforcement as shown in FIG. 2, provision of the reinforcing rib 4 will cause increase of the overall weight of an automotive vehicle. In the floating as shown in FIG. 3, the elastic members 5 which has relatively greater thickness tends to adversely affect on the sealability.
In view of the above, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a device for reducing noise produced by automotive vehicle components, which device is referred to as a noise reduction device hereinafter for brevity and can satisfactorily reduce noise due to vibration without increasing the weight of an automotive vehicle and without adversely affecting required performances of automotive vehicle components such as sealability. The present invention, therefore, relates to a noise reduction device characterized in that a retaining plate is disposed over and spaced apart from a noise source so as not to be moved away from the noise source and that a sheet-like elastic member is compressedly interposed between the noise source and the retaining plate.
The present invention further relates to the noise reduction device of the type in which the retaining plate and sheet-like elastic member partly extend over a portion of vibration loop of the noise source.
According to the present invention, any vibration of the noise source or component of an automotive vehicle causes the sheet-like elastic member in compressed state between the noise source and the retaining plate to vibrate in unison with the noise source so that the sheet-like elastic member is distorted. The distortion will absorb the vibration energy to reduce the noise.
The noise reduction device partly extends over the portion of vibration loop of the noise source or automotive vehicle component so that satisfactory noise reduction can be attained.

Device for reducing noise produced by automotive vehicle components