A fixer device for a color thermal printer has at least a yellow fixing ultraviolet lamp and an inverter. The inverter controls ray emitting intensity of the yellow fixing lamp in accordance with a lamp control value after a thermal recording image is effected to a thermosensitive recording sheet. The yellow fixing lamp applies ultraviolet rays to the recording sheet for fixation. The fixer device includes an irradiance sensor which measures irradiance of the yellow fixing lamp. Difference data is calculated as a difference between target irradiance data and data of the measured irradiance from the irradiance sensor. An irradiance difference multiplier multiplies the irradiance difference data by a gain value, to determine a correcting value. An integrator adds the correcting value to the lamp control value to correct the lamp control value, the inverter controlling the ray emitting intensity of the yellow fixing lamp in accordance with the corrected lamp control value. The gain value is also adjusted in accordance with a number of times the yellow fixing lamp is used.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fixer device for a thermal printer. More particularly, the present invention relates to a fixer device for a thermal printer, in which ray emitting intensity of a fixing ultraviolet lamp can be regulated for stable fixation of an optically fixable coloring layer, even after long use of the fixing lamp.
2. Description Related to the Prior Art
A thermal printer has a thermal head, and is used with thermosensitive recording paper. The thermosensitive recording paper includes a support and at least one thermosensitive coloring layer, which is pressed and heated by the thermal head for recording an image. Then ultraviolet rays are applied to the recording paper to fix the image. There also exists color thermosensitive recording paper, which includes a support and cyan, magenta and yellow thermosensitive coloring layers.
The yellow coloring layer is overlaid the closest to the obverse, and has the highest thermal sensitivity. The yellow coloring layer is colored using little heat energy. The cyan coloring layer is overlaid the farthest from the obverse, and has the lowest thermal sensitivity. The cyan coloring layer is colored in cyan at a great heat energy. To print an image, a thermal head is pressed against the recording paper while the recording paper is moved. The thermal head applies heat to the recording paper, to effect the thermal recording to the respective coloring layers in the order from the yellow coloring layer toward the support. The yellow coloring layer and the magenta coloring layer are fixed when receiving application of ultraviolet rays having wavelength ranges specific to the yellow coloring layer and the magenta coloring layer respectively. During fixation, coloring components in the yellow coloring layer and the magenta coloring layer that are not colored are photochemically decomposed, to lose their coloring ability.
A yellow fixing ultraviolet lamp is driven to apply the near ultraviolet rays having an emitting peak of 420 nm to the yellow coloring layer. If the amount of ultraviolet rays applied to the yellow coloring layer is too small, a coloring component in the yellow coloring layer partially remains without optically decomposition. The yellow coloring component is colored during the recording of the magenta coloring layer. The ultraviolet rays for yellow fixation should not be applied at an amount over a suitable amount for fixing the yellow coloring layer, because there would be considerable influence of the ultraviolet rays for yellow fixation on the magenta coloring layer. Therefore the yellow fixing lamp is driven by properly adjusted energy.
The ultraviolet rays having an emitting peak of 365 nm is applied to the magenta coloring layer. If the amount of ultraviolet rays applied to the magenta coloring layer is too small, a coloring component in the magenta coloring layer partially remains without optically decomposing. The cyan coloring layer does not have photochemical fixability. It is allowable that the ultraviolet rays for magenta fixation is applied at an amount over a suitable amount for fixing the magenta coloring layer, because there is no influence of the ultraviolet rays for magenta fixation on the cyan coloring layer. Therefore a magenta fixing ultraviolet lamp is fully driven, because no adjustment of the ultraviolet rays for magenta fixation is required.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,486,856 discloses a feedback control, which is effected for the yellow fixing lamp by use of an irradiance sensor. The ray emitting intensity of the yellow fixing lamp is controlled to adjust a measured irradiance to be a target irradiance. The feedback control calculates a difference between the measured irradiance from the irradiance sensor and the target irradiance at which a suitable ray applying amount can be acquired in consideration of a conveying speed of the recording paper. The irradiance difference is multiplied by a constant gain value, to determine a correcting value. The lamp control value is corrected according to the correcting value, to set the measured irradiance equal to the target irradiance.
The fixing lamp has ray emitting intensity which decreases with time in the course of long use. In the known fixer device, the gain value is determined in a factory where the printer is manufactured and adjusted. If the ultraviolet lamp after the long time has a small ray emitting intensity, ray adjustment of the fixing lamp is slow. In printing operation, a considerable duration is required for acquiring the target irradiance. There occurs a problem in that a front portion of a recording area on a recording sheet is short of an amount of fixation.


The modular foil includes a wing and a fuselage extending in a longitudinal direction and bearing the wing. The fuselage includes a central segment, a first segment bearing a first portion of the wing, and being removable from the central segment, and an assembling device to connect the central segment with the first segment in the longitudinal direction. The central segment and the first segment are connected end to end. The assembling device includes a pair formed by a male connector and a female connector cooperating through a specific interlocking. The male connector includes at least one outer inclined wall, complementary and cooperating with an internal inclined wall born by the female connector for an optimal interlocking between the central segment and the first segment. There is a locking device along the longitudinal axis of the fuselage ensuring locking in at least one direction of the longitudinal axis.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention falls within the field of water sports the practitioner of which uses a pulling force for his displacements, such as the muscle energy of a human being or the wind energy, or a vehicle or an engine, namely the so-called "sliding" sports, in particular using a watercraft or traction sail, preferably kitesurfing.
The present invention will find a preferred, but in no way restrictive, application for kite surfing, but may be suitable for wakeboarding, windsurfing and surfing, or even kayaking.
The invention specifically relates to a foil device intended to be fastened to and to extend under the lower side of a watercraft or a board for practicing such water sports.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98
In a known way, a foil is derived from the Anglo-Saxon term "hydrofoil", hereinafter referred to as "foil". A foil is a wing that moves in and into contact with the water, the hydrodynamic profile of which transmits to its support a lift force orthogonal to the direction of displacement of the board.
Such a foil is typically provided with at least one pole extending vertically, fixed in a removable way at the level of its upper extremity to the lower side of the board and connected at the level of its lower extremity to a wing. The latter extends laterally, generally symmetrically on both sides of a fuselage, with respect to the plane of the pole, aligned with the longitudinal median plane of the board. The wing can be formed by a single element, but it is generally comprised of at least two separate portions, a front one and rear one, permitting to obtain lever arms and moments necessary for the longitudinal stability for pitching and side stability for rolling.
Most existing foils are formed either of a single block forming the pole and the fuselage, the wings being removable or a pole and a block constituting the fuselage and wings, the block is removable. Though this single-block embodiment provides this foil with a high mechanical strength, it raises a problem for its transportation and its storage. This single-block foil has bulky dimensions, making its transportation as well as its assembling and disassembling for securing to the board constraining and tiresome.
It has been devised to separate the different elements forming a foil, i.e. the pole, the fuselage and wing portions, and to fasten them in a removable way to each other. Thus, once they have been disassembled, the various elements have a smaller size, which facilitates their storage and their transportation.
However, a problem lies in the removable fastening of the elements to each other and the orientation of the implemented fastening means. Indeed, the front and rear portions of the wing are applied against the pole, at the level of the fuselage, reciprocally at the front and the rear of the latter, which then has with its fuselage an inverted T-shape in the median plane of the foil, i.e. the vertical plane. This fastening occurs by screwing, transversely with respect to the plane of each wing portion, from the top or the bottom of each portion. The fastening axis is then located in a vertical plane oriented orthogonally with respect to the direction of displacement of the foil and substantially according to the lifting forces applied by each portion of the foil being moved. As a result, these constraints are applied at the level of each screw, mechanically deforming this particular point of junction. These constraints lead to a deterioration of this fastening over time, which can cause their breakage and the tearing of the wing portions.
Furthermore, in the case of several screws, the operations of assembling and disassembling the wing portions of such a foil remain tiresome and must be carried out methodically and carefully, especially as regards the assembling, in order to ensure a good fastening and a good positioning of the elements with respect to each other, providing the desired hydrodynamic characteristics.
An example of such a foil is described through US 2005/0255764. As mentioned above, such a foil comprises a pole at the lower extremity of which extends a fuselage, the unit having an inverted T-shape. A front fuselage of the fuselage receives a front wing portion fastened by screwing from above, while a rear fuselage receives a rear wing portion fastened by screwing from below.
An existing solution consists of a dismountable foil including a pole to which is fastened a fuselage that comprises removable front and rear wings. The fuselage includes two extremities, in the form of a front and rear half-cylinder complementary of a front half-cylinder comprising a front wing portion and a rear half-cylinder comprising a rear wing portion, respectively. The fuselage also includes a rod ensuring a longitudinal locking of the fuselage with the front and rear wing portions by passing through each of these parts. The rod comprises at each of its front and rear extremities a nose of the fuselage. Thus, the rear nose of the fuselage is rigidly fastened to the rod and the front nose comprises a complementary inner threading of the front extremity of the rod including in turn an outer threading. As a result, the centering and clamping of the wings to the fuselage are performed in a single step, when locking the front nose of the fuselage cooperating with the threaded extremity of the rod. In addition, the semi-cylindrical assembling of the fuselage and front and rear wing portions raises problems of putting into production. Indeed, in order to achieve an optimal centering and blocking of the semi-cylindrical parts it is necessary to manually polish each complementary part, which represents an additional production cost and time. Furthermore, the assembling of such a foil has a mechanical weakness at the level of the holding of the different parts it is comprised of (fuselage, front and rear noses of the fuselage and the front and rear wing portion), namely in view of the side or vertical forces with respect to the vector of displacement of the foil. Indeed, the rod ensures a longitudinal locking of the parts of the foil, but is also the only force holding the foil assembled against the multidirectional stresses exerted by the water onto the foil depending on its displacement. Moreover, since the fuselage is fastened to the pole over almost its entire length (except for the front and rear noses) has the disadvantage, once it has been disassembled, of having a bulky T-shaped part raising problems of storage and transportation.


A system and method of managing casino patron money balances which stores patron money balances in electronic form. The system includes an interrogator, and a self-service computer coupled to the interrogator for interrogating a wireless communicator associated with a casino patron to determine a money balance associated with the wireless communicator and for processing a selection by the casino patron to produce a change in the money balance.

In casinos, game players use paper tickets to carry money balances from one game to the next. Ticket values can be redeemed either at assisted-service counters or through self-service computer systems called Ticket-In-Ticket-Out (TITO) machines.
However, the drawbacks of using paper tickets are that players may very easily lose tickets, tickets can become destroyed or damaged, casinos incur cost from replenishing tickets, and casinos incur cost for maintaining ticket printers.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system and method of managing casino patron money balances without the disadvantages of tickets.

System and method of managing casino patron money balances


A wave inhibiting device (10) for a pool lane divider, the device having an inner region, a plurality of fins (16, 17) extending from the inner region and for blocking at least a portion of any wave incident on a major surface thereof, and an outer region having at least one peripheral wall (19) which extends at least part way between adjacent fins and has at least one wall portion with an inner face which is adapted to block at least a portion of any wave incident on an inner surface thereof.

For the sport of competitive swimming, the "speed" of a swimming pool is an important factor contributing to the ability of swimmers to swim fast and possibly achieve a personal best time.
Various theories exist as to what constitutes a "fast" pool, but at present there are no established parameters for making a pool fast".
The inventor has observed that various factors contribute to whether a pool can be made "faster". One of these observations is that the amount of wave activity in a pool can result in a swimmer experiencing a "drag".


A scanning probe microscope including a measurement light-casting section configured to cast light onto a reflective surface provided on a movable end of a cantilever; a light-detecting section configured to detect reflected light from the reflective surface with a light-receiving surface having a larger area than the incident area of the reflected light, the light-receiving surface divided into a plurality of areas; a deflection-calculating section configured to determine at preset intervals, the amount of deflection of the cantilever based on the proportion of the amounts of light incident on the plurality of areas while the distance between the base end and the sample is changed; a determining section configured to determine whether or not the amount of change in the deflection of the cantilever is equal to or larger than a previously determined threshold Kth.

In the scanning probe microscope, the tip of a micro-sized probe is positioned in proximity to the surface of a sample, and a mechanical and electromagnetic interaction between the probe and the sample is detected while the surface of the sample is scanned with the probe. The data obtained by the scan is fed to a data processing device for a scanning probe microscope to be subjected an analysis on the shape and physical properties of the sample surface.
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the main components of a scanning probe microscope. This scanning probe microscope includes a measurement unit 101 and a control-and-processing unit 102. The measurement unit 101 operates based on the control signals from the control-and-processing unit 102. The measurement data obtained by the measurement unit 101 are sequentially sent to the control-and-processing unit 102 and subjected to an analysis.
In the measurement unit 101, a sample 110 to be subjected to a measurement is placed on a sample stage 111 mounted on a scanner 112. The scanner 112 includes an XY scanner 1121 for driving the sample stage 111 in the two directions of X and Y axes which are orthogonal to each other in a horizontal plane, as well as a Z scanner 1122 for driving the sample stage 111 in the Z-axis direction (vertical direction) which is orthogonal to both the X and Y axes. The XY scanner 1121 and the Z scanner 1122 are each driven with a piezoelectric element (not shown) which operates based on a control signal from the control-and-processing unit 102.
A flexible cantilever 115 having a probe 116 at its tip (movable end) is located above the scanner 112. The base end of the cantilever 115 is fixed. A reflective surface is formed on the movable end of the cantilever 115 on the opposite side from the probe 116 in order to detect the deflection of the cantilever 115. An optical displacement detector section 117 including a laser source 1171, half mirror 1172, mirror 1173 and photodetector 1174 is provided above this reflective surface. In the optical displacement detector section 117, a beam of laser light from the laser source 1171 is reflected downward by the half mirror 1172. The reflected light travels in a substantially vertical direction and strikes the reflective surface of the cantilever 115. After being reflected by this reflective surface, the laser light falls onto the photodetector 1174 via the mirror 1173. The photodetector 1174 is a four-segment photodetector having a light-receiving surface divided into four segments, for example. A deflection of the cantilever 115 changes the angle of the reflective surface, which in turn changes the proportion of the amounts of light incident on the four light-receiving segments. The output signals of the photodetector 1174 are sent to the control-and-processing unit 102. The control-and-processing unit 102 computationally processes the detection signals which correspond to the proportion of the amounts of light incident on the light-receiving segments of the photodetector 1174, to calculate the amount of deflection (i.e. the amount of displacement of the tip portion) of the cantilever 115.
One of the measurement modes in the scanning probe microscope is a contact mode. In this measurement mode, for example, the sample stage 111 is lifted by the scanner 112 to make the surface of the sample 110 gradually move closer to the probe 116, and the amount of deflection of the cantilever 115 is measured during the upward motion. This measurement yields an approach line which expresses the relationship between the amount of deflection of the cantilever 115 and the distance of the surface of the sample 110 from the base end of the cantilever 115. A release line is also similarly obtained by measuring the amount of deflection of the cantilever 115 while making the surface of the sample 110 gradually move farther from the probe 116 (for example, see Patent Literature 1). The combination of the approach line and the release line is called a "force curve".
Another measurement mode in the scanning probe microscope is a dynamic mode. In the dynamic mode, for example, the surface of the sample 110 is scanned with the probe 116 positioned in proximity to the surface while the cantilever 115 is vibrated at a predetermined frequency. By this measurement, a change in the frequency of the vibration of the cantilever 115 due to the interaction with the sample 110 is measured (for example, see Patent Literature 2).
Patent Literature 1: JP 2005-283433 A
Patent Literature 2: JP 2011-33482 A


A print control apparatus and method executes print processing in a minimum time by utilizing a maximum of resources for printing because an optimal print mode can automatically be set for each page or each job regardless of the print mode set by a user. In one embodiment, a print apparatus for transforming graphics commands from an application into print control commands is provided. The apparatus includes an acquisition unit for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data; a computation unit for computing transformation periods in units of pages; a selecting unit for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods; a determination unit for determining whether the selected one print mode for each page is identical to a set print mode; and a changing unit for changing the set print mode into the selected one print mode.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to print control apparatuses and methods that transfer print information based on print modes automatically set in accordance with rendering commands from an application, and storage media containing machine-readable programs therefor.
2. Description of the Related Art
In print processing by a printer for a data processor provided with a conventional print control apparatus, concerning print-mode selection for printing, there is currently only a method of using a print mode selected on a print-setting screen by a user, even if the printer has a plurality of print modes such as a page-description-language (PDL) mode and an image mode.
The print mode selected by the user is applied to the processing of all pages included in a print job. Thus, all the pages are processed in the same print mode.
As described above, in conventional processing by a printer, there is only a method of using a print mode selected by a user, even if the printer has other optional print modes such as a PDL mode and an image mode. Accordingly, printing is executed without consideration of the optimal print mode for printing throughput and print data for the printer, which causes a problem in that printing throughput deteriorates if the user has not selected a print mode adapted for the print data.
In addition, the application of the print mode selected by the user to all the pages included in the print job causes problems in that some pages are not processed in the optimal print mode, and if a print mode adapted for each page was not selected, printing throughput deteriorates.
Accordingly, the present invention has been made in order to solve the foregoing problems, and it is an object thereof to provide a print control apparatus and method, and a machine-readable storage medium containing programs therefor in which the rendering-processing time necessary for each page is computed for each print mode, and a print mode having the least processing time is set, whereby an optimal print mode for each page can be set automatically regardless of the print mode set by a user, and print processing that utilizes a maximum of printing resources can be executed in a minimum time to significantly increase printing throughput.
To this end, according to a first aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a print control apparatus for transforming, in accordance with different print modes, graphics commands from an application into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer before transferring the print control commands via a predetermined communication medium, the print control apparatus comprising: acquisition means for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for the print modes; computation means for computing in units of pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired by the acquisition means, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands from the application; selecting means for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed by the computation means; determination means for determining whether or not the selected one print mode for each page is identical to a set print mode; and changing means for changing the set print mode into the selected one print mode, based on the determination by the determination means when a print control command for each page is generated.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of the print control apparatus (according to the first aspect) further comprising: first setting means for setting a layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged on one page; wherein when the layout print mode is set by the first setting means, the computation means computes and totals in units of physical pages including reduced pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired for the print pages by the acquisition means, the transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands for the application.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of the print control apparatus (according to the first aspect) further comprising: second setting means for setting a two-sided-layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged on one page as the front or back surface of a recording medium; wherein when the two-sided-layout print mode is set by the second setting means, the computation means computes and totals in units of front-surface or back-surface pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired for each of the print pages by the acquisition means, the transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands for the application.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of the print control apparatus (according to the first aspect) wherein different print modes include a vector graphics print mode and a raster graphics print mode.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a print control method for transforming, in accordance with different print modes, graphics commands from an application into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer before transferring the print control commands via a predetermined communication medium, the print control method comprising: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for the print modes; a computation step for computing in units of pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands from the application; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a determination step for determining whether or not the selected one print mode for each page is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the selected set print mode into the one print mode, based on the determination by the determination step when a print control command for each page is generated.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a print control method for transforming, in accordance with different print modes graphics commands from an application into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer before transferring the print control commands via a predetermined communication medium, the print control method comprising: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for each print mode; a first determination step for determining whether or not a layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged in one page is set; a computation step for computing and totaling in units of physical pages including reduced pages, based on each transformation-time coefficient data acquired in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands when the first determination step has determined that the layout print mode is set; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a second determination step for determining whether or not the print mode for each page selected in the selecting step is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the set print mode into the one print mode selected in the selecting step, based on the determination by the second determination step when a print control command for each print mode is generated.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a print control method for transforming, in accordance with different print modes, graphics commands from an application into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer before transferring the print control commands via a predetermined communication medium, the print control method comprising: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for each print mode; a first determination step for determining whether or not a two-sided-layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged in one page as the front surface or back surface of a recording medium is set; a computation step for computing and totaling in units of front-surface or back-surface pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired for each print page in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands for the application when the first determination step has determined that the two-sided-layout print mode is set; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a determination step for determining whether or not the print mode for each page selected in the selecting step is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the set print mode into the one print mode selected in the selecting step, based on the determination by the determination step when a print control command for each page is generated.
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a storage medium containing machine-readable programs for controlling a data processing apparatus in which graphics commands from an application are transformed in accordance with different print modes into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer, and the print control commands are transferred via a predetermined communication medium, the programs each causing the data processing apparatus to perform the following steps comprising: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for each print mode; a computation step for computing in units of pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands from the application; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a determination step for determining whether or not the selected one print mode for each page is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the set print mode into the selected one print mode step, based on the determination by the determination step when a print control command for each page is generated.
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a storage medium containing machine-readable programs for controlling a data processing apparatus in which graphics commands from an application are transformed in accordance with different print modes into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer, and the print control commands are transferred via a predetermined communication medium, the programs causing the data processing apparatus to perform the following steps: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for each print mode; a first determination step for determining whether or not a layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged in one page is set; a computation step for computing and totaling in units of physical pages including reduced pages, based on each transformation-time coefficient data acquired in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands when the first determination step has determined that the layout print mode is set; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a second determination step for determining whether or not the print mode for each page selected in the selecting step is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the set print mode into the one print mode selected in the selecting step, based on the determination by the second determination step when a print control command for each print mode is generated.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, the foregoing object has been achieved through provision of a storage medium containing machine-readable programs for controlling a data processing apparatus in which graphics commands from an application are transformed in accordance with different print modes into print control commands to be analyzed by a printer, and the print control commands are transferred via a predetermined communication medium, the programs causing the data processing apparatus to perform the following steps: an acquisition step for acquiring transformation-time coefficient data for each print mode; a first determination step for determining whether or not a two-sided-layout print mode in which print pages are reduced in size to be arranged in one page as the front surface or back surface of a recording medium is set; a computation step for computing and totaling in units of front-surface or back-surface pages, based on the transformation-time coefficient data acquired for each print page in the acquisition step, transformation periods for transforming the graphics commands for the application when the first determination step has determined that the two-sided-layout print mode is set; a selecting step for selecting one print mode for each page which has the least transformation period by comparing the transformation periods for the print modes computed in the computation step; a determination step for determining whether or not the print mode for each page selected in the selecting step is identical to a set print mode; and a changing step for changing the set print mode into the one print mode selected in the selecting step, based on the determination by the determination step when a print control command for each page is generated.


A temporary platform or roadway is created using one or a plurality of optionally connected support components to form a top surface upon which panels are placed. The support components are comprised of gabion containers having one or a plurality of compartments into which a filler material is inserted. The filler material can optionally be composed of a buoyant material such as expanded polystyrene to enable flotation. A method for constructing the roadway or platform of the present invention is also disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for creating a temporary roadway or platform in wetlands, marshlands and other soggy and or wet areas. It is often necessary to have access to remote areas that are surrounded by wetlands or some other type of unstable or watery ground conditions. For example, the drilling of oil wells and/or the search for oil fields in remote locations often require the transport of heavy equipment across unstable terrain. Access roads and work platforms must be built. When construction of a permanent road or platform is not cost effective or, in the case of federally protected wetlands, not permitted, a means for providing temporary access to these remote locations that can be easily removed and does not destroy the terrain is desirable.
2. Description of Prior Art
Historically, this temporary access problem has been solved by using fill material to create a temporary road or work platform, stacking repeated layers of wooden mats on top of each other, building elevated road systems on pilings, positioning barges and/or using a pontoon supported road system. Each of these previous solutions is undesirable for one reason or another.
Fill material is often undesirable because it is impossible to remove 100% of the fill that was used for the road. Federal environmental regulations prohibit the use of fill in the wetlands for this reason. Wooden mats, while more easily removed than fill, are expensive to rent or purchase and suffer from the drawback that they are extremely heavy. The excessive weight increases set-up costs and compacts the soft wetlands soil. This soil compaction leaves a watery canal when the mats are removed and alters the habitat.
Depending on the project size, driving pilings deep into the ground to support work platforms and roadways can be prohibitively expensive and impractical. A further complication is that it is possible that one or more of the pilings could penetrate a fresh water aquifer and contaminate the water supply. Barges and tugs suffer from the drawback that they require at least 48 inches of water in order to avoid grounding. For this reason and for the reason that they are unwieldy in small areas, barges and tugs are unsuitable for working in the wetland environment.
Finally, pontoons can be crushed in shallow water and, because they are limited by length, they can not support a heavy concentrated load. Some of the cranes that are used in wetlands construction are approximately 400,000 pounds in weight.
A need, therefore, remains for a method and application that allows construction of a temporary road or platform in wetland or marshland areas that will support the weight of heavy construction equipment, yet will not damage the environment. It is preferable if this method is more cost effective than existing procedures.

Temporary platform or roadway and method of assembling same


Disclosed herein are methods of treating neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder or depression. The methods entail inhibiting expression of miR-219 or overexpressing TLX thereby promoting proliferation of neural stem cells (NSCs) in the subjects.

TLX is a nuclear receptor that plays a critical role in vertebrate brain function [1-3]. It is an essential regulator of adult neural stem cell (NSC) self-renewal [3-5] and plays an important role in enhancing learning and memory by regulating adult hippocampal neurogenesis [6,7]. It also plays a role in neurodevelopment through regulation of cell cycle progression in embryonic NSCs [4,8-10]. TLX is a well-characterized transcriptional regulator. It controls target gene expression partly by recruiting transcriptional corepressors, such as HDACs and LSD1 [11-13]. TLX represses the transcription of GFAP, p21, pten, and microRNAs miR-9 and miR-137, but activates Wnt signaling, SIRT1 and MASH1 in NSCs [3,5,11,12,14-16]. However, the function of TLX in regulating gene expression beyond transcriptional regulation has not been reported.
microRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression through translational inhibition or RNA degradation [17]. The biogenesis of miRNAs starts from primary transcripts (pri-miRNAs), which are processed by the nuclear RNaselll Drosha into precursor miRNAs (pre-miRNAs) that contain hairpin loop structures. The pre-miRNAs are exported to the cytoplasm and further processed into mature miRNAs by the cytoplasmic RNaselll Dicer. Mature miRNAs are incorporated into an RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) to repress target mRNAs. The Drosha complex consists of Drosha, DiGeorge syndrome critical gene 8 (DGCR8), RNA helicase p68 (DDX5) and p72 (DDX17) [18-20]. Recent studies reported that SMAD, p53, and BRCA1 bind to Drosha and promote the processing activity of Drosha [21-23]. However, little is known about the physiological effect of miRNA processing.
miR-219 is an miRNA that is specifically expressed in the brain [24,25]. It promotes oligodendrocyte differentiation by repressing negative regulators of oligodendrocyte differentiation [26,27]. In a recent study, miR-219 was shown to promote neural precursor cell differentiation in zebrafish by inhibiting apical polarity proteins, par-3 family cell polarity regulator (PARD) and protein kinase C iota (PRKCI) [28]. However, whether miR-219 regulates the phenotypes of neural stem/progenitor cells (collectively referred to as NSCs) in mammalian brains remains unknown.
Several studies analyzing miRNA levels in postmortem brains from schizophrenia (SCZ) patients reported an increase in the expression of a set of miRNAs in SCZ patients [29-31]. miR-219 is among the most highly up-regulated miRNAs in brain regions of SCZ patients [29,30,32]. However, the functional relevance of elevated miR-219 expression in SCZ brain cells remains unknown.

TLX and MIR-219 as potential therapeutic targets for neurodevelopmental disorders


A sheet separator includes an advancing roller driven to rotate to move a sheet forwards along a sheet path, and a reversing roller driven to rotate to move a sheet backwards along the path. The reversing roller and advancing roller are mounted adjacently and are relatively movable between a pinched position and a separated position. The reversing roller has a torque limiter for allowing the reversing roller to slip and counter-rotate with the advancing roller when friction applied by the advancing roller on the pinched reversing roller exceeds a preset value. Overriding roller mounted therein allows a sheet to pass over a roller when the rollers are separated and to remain idle when the rollers are pinched.

Sheet feeding assemblies engage and remove sheets of paper or other media from a stack and feed the sheets along a path to a printing zone, copying zone, scanning zone or the like.
During operation, a sheet picker, usually a small roller having a high friction rubber circumference, engages and removes the uppermost sheet from a stack and feeds it edgewise along a feed path through to a sheet separator.
The sheet separator ensures that only one sheet is fed along the sheet path and separates any multiple sheets. A common type of sheet separator includes an advancing roller aligned adjacently and pinched with a reversing roller, both rollers have a high friction gripping surface. The advancing roller is driven in a sheet advancing direction while the reversing roller is driven to move a sheet in a reverse direction. The advancing roller provides a stronger positive force between the two rollers such that when they are pinched with a single sheet therebetween, the advancing roller causes the reversing roller to change direction and move in unison to move the sheet forward. The reversing roller is coupled to a torque limiter, which allows the reversing roller to slip with respect to the drive and hence to counter-rotate.
Where more than one sheet is picked and passes through to the sheet separator, the advancing roller engages with the top-most sheet while the reversing roller engages with the bottom-most sheet. The lack of resistance between the sheets means that the advancing roller cannot impart any frictional force to the reversing roller and hence the reversing roller is allowed to rotate in a reversing direction moving the bottom most sheet backwards while the top-most sheet is moved forward.
The feeding assembly must be able to quickly and efficiently feed each individual sheet in the queue to the printing, copying or scanning zone without creating a backlog and without jamming. This is particularly important where the sheets to be fed are original documents to be copied or scanned and cannot risk being damaged.
Generally, these sheet separators work well but are limited in the speed at which they can advance paper. This limitation is based on the limitations of the torque limiter, which will only allow the reversing roller to counter-rotate up to a certain speed dictated by the torque limiter's working mechanism.
It is therefore desirable to produce a sheet separator that can effectively function at high feeding speeds.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A method of treating pain associated with inflammation comprises administering to a subject a composition comprising an anti-AGE antibody. A composition for treating pain associated with inflammation comprises a first anti-AGE antibody, a second anti-AGE antibody and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. The first anti-AGE antibody is different from the second anti-AGE antibody. A method of treating or preventing the onset of pain associated with inflammation comprises immunizing a subject in need thereof against AGE-modified proteins or peptides of a cell.

Pain is a complex physical phenomenon associated with experiencing an uncomfortable physical sensation. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage. Although the experience of pain is subjective, pain itself is recognized as a series of signals mediated by the nervous system. Neural cells known as nociceptors sense noxious stimuli and convert these stimuli to electrical signals that are transmitted to the spinal cord and ultimately to the brain. Pain is a protective response that serves a signaling function to alert the body to address a potentially harmful situation.
Pain typically resolves after the stimulus that causes its onset is removed and after any related physical damage has healed. Pain that persists beyond the expected timeframe for healing and recovery is referred to as chronic pain. Chronic pain may be unresolved pain from an identifiable experience, such as an injury or infection, or may by a symptom of a separate medical condition such as arthritis, cancer, nerve damage, damage to the spinal cord, back strain or headaches. Chronic pain is a significant public health concern that is estimated to affect over 100 million Americans at a cost of over $500 billion annually (National Institutes of Health).
A number of diseases, disorders, syndromes and clinical descriptions are characterized by abnormal pain detection or sensation. Examples include allodynia (pain due to a stimulus that does not normally provoke pain), hyperalgesia (increased pain from a stimulus that normally provokes pain), hyperesthesia (increased sensitivity to stimulation), hyperpathia (an abnormally painful reaction to a stimulus), neuralgia (pain in the distribution of a nerve or nerves), neuritis (inflammation of a nerve or nerves), neuropathic pain (pain caused by a lesion or disease of the nervous system, including central neuropathic pain and peripheral neuropathic pain), neuropathy (a disturbance of function or pathological change in a nerve) including disease-related neuropathy such as diabetic neuropathy, paresthesia (an abnormal sensation), sensitization (an increased responsiveness of nociceptive neurons to a normal input and/or recruitment of a response to normally subthreshold inputs, including central sensitization and peripheral sensitization) and fibromyalgia. Pain disorders may be site-specific, such as trigeminal neuralgia, or may be systemic, such as peripheral neuropathy. These conditions can be debilitating and are often difficult to accurately diagnose due to the subjective reporting of pain.
Pain management focuses on relieving suffering from pain. Non-pharmacological pain management techniques include massage, acupuncture, meditation, electrical stimulation, hypnosis and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Pharmacological pain treatments include over-the-counter analgesics, such as acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and prescription pain medicines, such as opiates. Local treatment of pain may include epidural steroid injections, facet joint injections, nerve blocks and hydrocortisone injections. Surgical interventions for treating pain typically involve the nerves or spinal cord and include discectomy (removal of all or part of vertebral disc), laminectomy (removal of vertebra lamina), spinal fusion (joining of vertebra), rhizotomy (severing or burning of a nerve close to the spinal cord), cordotomy (severing of bundles of nerves within the spinal cord) and dorsal root entry zone operation (destruction of spinal neurons). Patients suffering from chronic pain are also often prescribed antidepressants to address the mental health impacts of dealing with intractable pain. Many of these therapies include unwanted side effects, interference with other medications and a risk of dependence or addiction. Prescription pain medication, especially opiates, also involve the risk of abuse, both by the patient and by others with access to the his or her medication. The risk of addiction and abuse often results in undertreatment of pain by health care providers, which leads to an insufficient relief of pain and unnecessary suffering.
Senescent cells are cells that are partially-functional or non-functional and are in a state of proliferative arrest. Senescence is a distinct state of a cell, and is associated with biomarkers, such as activation of the biomarker p16Ink4a, and expression of β-galactosidase. Senescence begins with damage or stress (such as overstimulation by growth factors) of cells.
Advanced glycation end-products (AGEs; also referred to as AGE-modified proteins, or glycation end-products) arise from a non-enzymatic reaction of sugars with protein side-chains (Ando, K. et al., Membrane Proteins of Human Erythrocytes Are Modified by Advanced Glycation End Products during Aging in the Circulation, Biochem Biophys Res Commun., Vol. 258, 123, 125 (1999)). This process begins with a reversible reaction between the reducing sugar and the amino group to form a Schiff base, which proceeds to form a covalently-bonded Amadori rearrangement product. Once formed, the Amadori product undergoes further rearrangement to produce AGEs. Hyperglycemia, caused by diabetes mellitus (DM), and oxidative stress promote this post-translational modification of membrane proteins (Lindsey J B, et al., "Receptor For Advanced Glycation End-Products (RAGE) and soluble RAGE (sRAGE): Cardiovascular Implications," Diabetes Vascular Disease Research, Vol. 6(1), 7-14, (2009)). AGEs may also be formed from other processes. For example, the advanced glycation end product, N-(carboxymethyl)lysine, is a product of both lipid peroxidation and glycoxidation reactions. AGEs have been associated with several pathological conditions including diabetic complications, inflammation, retinopathy, nephropathy, atherosclerosis, stroke, endothelial cell dysfunction, and neurodegenerative disorders (Bierhaus A, "AGEs and their interaction with AGE-receptors in vascular disease and diabetes mellitus. I. The AGE concept," Cardiovasc Res, Vol. 37(3), 586-600 (1998)).
AGE-modified proteins are also a marker of senescent cells. This association between glycation end-product and senescence is well known in the art. See, for example, Gruber, L. (WO 2009/143411, 26 Nov. 2009), Ando, K. et al. (Membrane Proteins of Human Erythrocytes Are Modified by Advanced Glycation End Products during Aging in the Circulation, Biochem Biophys Res Commun., Vol. 258, 123, 125 (1999)), Ahmed, E. K. et al. ("Protein Modification and Replicative Senescence of WI-38 Human Embryonic Fibroblasts" Aging Cells, vol. 9, 252, 260 (2010)), Vlassara, H. et al. (Advanced Glycosylation Endproducts on Erythrocyte Cell Surface Induce Receptor-Mediated Phagocytosis by Macrophages, J. Exp. Med., Vol. 166, 539, 545 (1987)) and Vlassara et al. ("High-affinity-receptor-mediated Uptake and Degradation of Glucose-modified Proteins: A Potential Mechanism for the Removal of Senescent Macromolecules" Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USAI, Vol. 82, 5588, 5591 (1985)). Furthermore, Ahmed, E. K. et al. indicates that glycation end-products are "one of the major causes of spontaneous damage to cellular and extracellular proteins" (Ahmed, E. K. et al., see above, page 353). Accordingly, the accumulation of glycation end-products is associated with senescence and lack of function.
The damage or stress that causes cellular senescence also negatively impacts mitochondrial DNA in the cells to cause them to produce free radicals which react with sugars in the cell to form methyl glyoxal (MG). MG in turn reacts with proteins or lipids to generate advanced glycation end products. In the case of the protein component lysine, MG reacts to form carboxymethyllysine, which is an AGE.
Damage or stress to mitochondrial DNA also sets off a DNA damage response which induces the cell to produce cell cycle blocking proteins. These blocking proteins prevent the cell from dividing. Continued damage or stress causes mTOR production, which in turn activates protein synthesis and inactivates protein breakdown. Further stimulation of the cells leads to programmed cell death (apoptosis).
p16 is a protein involved in regulation of the cell cycle, by inhibiting the S phase (synthesis phase). It can be activated during ageing or in response to various stresses, such as DNA damage, oxidative stress or exposure to drugs. p16 is typically considered a tumor suppressor protein, causing a cell to become senescent in response to DNA damage and irreversibly preventing the cell from entering a hyperproliferative state. However, there has been some ambiguity in this regard, as some tumors show overexpression of p16, while other show downregulated expression. Evidence suggests that overexpression of p16 is some tumors results from a defective retinoblastoma protein ("Rb"). p16 acts on Rb to inhibit the S phase, and Rb downregulates p16, creating negative feedback. Defective Rb fails to both inhibit the S phase and downregulate p16, thus resulting in overexpression of p16 in hyperproliferating cells (Romagosa, C. et al., p16Ink4a overexpression in cancer: a tumor suppressor gene associated with senescence and high-grade tumors, Oncogene, Vol. 30, 2087-2097 (2011)).
Senescent cells are associated with secretion of many factors involved in intercellular signaling, including pro-inflammatory factors; secretion of these factors has been termed the senescence-associated secretory phenotype, or SASP (Freund, A. "Inflammatory networks during cellular senescence: causes and consequences" Trends Mol Med. 2010 May; 16(5):238-46). Autoimmune diseases, such as Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis, are associated with chronic inflammation (Ferraccioli, G. et al. "Interleukin-1β and Interleukin-6 in Arthritis Animal Models: Roles in the Early Phase of Transition from Acute to Chronic Inflammation and Relevance for Human Rheumatoid Arthritis" Mol Med. 2010 November-December; 16(11-12): 552-557). Chronic inflammation may be characterized by the presence of pro-inflammatory factors at levels higher than baseline near the site of pathology, but lower than those found in acute inflammation. Examples of these factors include TNF, IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-12, IL-23, CD2, CD3, CD20, CD22, CD52, CD80, CD86, C5 complement protein, BAFF, APRIL, IgE, α4β1 integrin and α4β7 integrin. Senescent cells also upregulate genes with roles in inflammation including IL-1β, IL-8, ICAM1, TNFAP3, ESM1 and CCL2 (Burton, D. G. A. et al., "Microarray analysis of senescent vascular smooth muscle cells: a link to atherosclerosis and vascular calcification", Experimental Gerontology, Vol. 44, No. 10, pp. 659-665 (October 2009)). Because senescent cells produce pro-inflammatory factors, removal of these cells alone produces a profound reduction in inflammation as well as the amount and concentration of pro-inflammatory factors.
Senescent cells secrete reactive oxygen species ("ROS") as part of the SASP. ROS is believed to play an important role in maintaining senescence of cells. The secretion of ROS creates a bystander effect, where senescent cells induce senescence in neighboring cells: ROS create the very cellular damage known to activate p16 expression, leading to senescence (Nelson, G., A senescent cell bystander effect: senescence-induced senescence, Aging Cell, Vo. 11, 345-349 (2012)). The p16/Rb pathway leads to the induction of ROS, which in turn activates the protein kinase C delta creating a positive feedback loop that further enhance ROS, helping maintain the irreversible cell cycle arrest; it has even been suggested that exposing cancer cells to ROS might be effective to treat cancer by inducing cell phase arrest in hyperproliferating cells (Rayess, H. et al., Cellular senescence and tumor suppressor gene p16, Int J Cancer, Vol. 130, 1715-1725 (2012)).
Recent research demonstrates the therapeutic benefits of removing senescent cells. In vivo animal studies at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., found that elimination of senescent cells in transgenic mice carrying a biomarker for elimination delayed age-related disorders associated with cellular senescence. Eliminating senescent cells, in fat and muscle tissues substantially delayed the onset of sarcopenia and cataracts and reduced senescence indicators in skeletal muscle and the eye (Baker, D. J. et al., "Clearance of p16Ink4a-positive senescent cells delays ageing-associated disorders", Nature, Vol. 479, pp. 232-236, (2011)). Mice that were treated to induce senescent cell elimination were found to have larger diameters of muscle fibers as compared to untreated mice. Treadmill exercise tests indicated that treatment also preserved muscle function. Continuous treatment of transgenic mice for removal of senescent cells had no negative side effects and selectively delayed age-related phenotypes that depend on cells. This data demonstrates that removal of senescent cells produces beneficial therapeutic effects and shows that these benefits may be achieved without adverse effects.
Additional In vivo animal studies in mice found that senescent cells using senolytic agents treats aging-related disorders and atherosclerosis. Short-term treatment with senolytic drugs in chronologically aged or progeroid mice alleviated several aging-related phenotypes (Zhu, Y. et al., "The Achilles' heel of senescent cells: from transcriptome to senolytic drugs", Aging Cell, vol. 14, pp. 644-658 (2015)). Long-term treatment with senolytic drugs improved vasomotor function in mice with established atherosclerosis and reduced intimal plaque calcification (Roos, C. M. et al., "Chronic senolytic treatment alleviates established vasomotor dysfunction in aged or atherosclerotic mice", Aging Cell (2016)). This data further demonstrates the benefits of removing senescent cells.
Vaccines have been widely used since their introduction by Edward Jenner in the 1770s to confer immunity against a wide range of diseases and afflictions. Vaccine preparations contain a selected immunogenic agent capable of stimulating immunity to an antigen. Typically, antigens are used as the immunogenic agent in vaccines, such as, for example, viruses, either killed or attenuated, and purified viral components. Antigens used in the production of cancer vaccines include, for example, tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs), dendritic cells, whole cells and viral vectors. Different techniques are employed to produce the desired amount and type of antigen being sought. For example, pathogenic viruses are grown either in eggs or cells. Recombinant DNA technology is often utilized to generate attenuated viruses for vaccines.
Vaccines may therefore be used to stimulate the production of antibodies in the body and provide immunity against antigens. When an antigen is introduced to a subject that has been vaccinated and developed immunity to that antigen, the immune system may destroy or remove cells that express the antigen.

Methods and compositions for treating pain associated with inflammation


A semi-automatic lacing machine used to lace a pair of blocks together to form a block and tackle assembly that will frequently be used in the manufacture of other products. The apparatus includes a structure for receiving a pair of blocks and a line therein, and structure including a first and a second guide, and a threader to advance the line through the first and second guides and thereby through the blocks received within the apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semi-automatic block and tackle lacing machine, that eliminates most of the manual aspects of lacing block and tackle assemblies. It is semi-automatic as each of the blocks are manually inserted into the apparatus and the first end of a line is fed into the apparatus, which then automatically feeds the line through the blocks to complete the lacing operation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Block and tackle assemblies are best known as devices used to obtain a mechanical advantage when moving large heavy objects. They are frequently attached to the hoist lines of cranes for vertical movement and to other devices for lateral movement. When moving heavy objects the block and tackle assembly must be large and heavy to withstand the stresses applied by the heavy loads. Threading of these large block and tackle assemblies has always been a manual task and will likely remain a manual task, since rigging such devices is usually done in the field for a series of lifts and is not a repetitive activity. Small block and tackle assemblies are a structural element of other products, particularly window balances. Window balances are attached to window sashes to reduce the effort required to raise them and also to hold them at any point between their open and closed positions by providing a counter balancing force to the weight of the window sash. A block and tackle assembly is comprised of at least two blocks and a line laced therebetween. Each block includes at least one sheave mounted therein. Currently during the manufacture of window balances, each block and tackle assembly is laced manually by attaching one end of a line to a first block, threading the free end of the line through a second block so that it passes over the sheave of the second block, threading the line back through the first block and over the corresponding sheave of that block and then returning the free end of the line toward the second block. Lacing a block and tackle assembly over a single sheave in each block provides a mechanical advantage of 2 to 1. Most window balances use a block and tackle assembly with a mechanical advantage of 4 to 1, which requires the line to be threaded over a second sheave in each block. Manual lacing of window balance assemblies is being done by hand, a slow and tedious process.
Automation of manufacturing processes increases production and reduces costs. Therefore there is a need for an apparatus that quickly laces block and tackle assemblies and is easy and safe to use.

Semi-automatic block and tackle lacing machine


A liquid crystal display device and driving method therefor are disclosed. The device includes a plurality of signal lines that apply different gray scale voltages to each of the pixels. A driving circuit is provided to generate the gray scale voltages to be applied to the pixels. In operation, the driving circuit applies the first gray scale voltage at intervals of the horizontal scanning time within a display period. The second gray scale voltage is output by a number of times that is not smaller than twice and not greater than (M−N) times at intervals of the horizontal scanning time from the beginning of the vertical retrace interval. The second gray scale voltage is then stopped until completion of the vertical retrace interval.

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device and to a method of driving the same; and, more particularly, the invention relates to a technique applicable to a driving method which applies a gray scale voltage to video signal lines within a vertical retrace interval.
Active matrix liquid crystal display devices, which have active elements (for example, thin film transistors) for individual pixels and in which the active elements are driven in a switching manner, are widely used as display devices for notebook types of personal computers (hereinafter referred to simply as personal computer(s)).
A TFT type of liquid crystal display module represents an example of one kind of active matrix liquid crystal display device. The TFT type of liquid crystal display module includes a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) type of liquid crystal display panel (TFT-LCD), drain drivers disposed on a longer side of the liquid crystal display panel, and gate drivers and an interface part, each of which is disposed on a shorter side of the liquid crystal display panel. In general, the drain drivers are driven on the basis of driving signals received from a display control device (or timing controller) provided in the interface part.
In the above-described type of liquid crystal display module, the interval from the completion of line scanning in the n-th frame until the start of line scanning in the next (n+1)-th frame is called a vertical retrace interval, and the line scanning period in each frame is called a display period.
One type of liquid crystal display module is constructed to output a gray scale voltage for displaying white or black from its drain drivers to its drain signal lines at intervals of one line scanning period within the vertical retrace interval, so that voltages written in its pixels are prevented from being varied, which causes lateral stripes on the display screen, owing to leakage currents from the thin film transistors of the pixels within the vertical retrace interval. Namely, in such a liquid crystal display module, even within the vertical retrace interval, a driving signal is transmitted from a display control device provided in its interface part to the drain drivers to drive the drain drivers.
However, if synchronizing signals inputted from the outside (for example, a computer host) vary and the vertical retrace interval varies, contention occurs between a driving signal transmitted from the display control circuit to the drain drivers within the vertical retrace interval and a driving signal transmitted from the display control circuit to the drain drivers within the display period of the next frame after the completion of the vertical retrace interval. This leads to the problem that the drain drivers malfunction, and, in the worst case, the drain drivers are destroyed.
The present invention has been made to solve the afore-mentioned problem, and it provides a technique by which, even when the vertical retrace interval varies, in a liquid crystal display device and a driving method thereof, it is possible to prevent contention from occurring between a driving signal transmitted from a display control circuit to a driving circuit within the vertical retrace interval and a driving signal transmitted from the display control circuit to the driving circuit within the display period of the next frame after the completion of the vertical retrace interval.
The invention also provides a technique by which, in the liquid crystal display device and the driving method thereof, it is possible to prevent the voltages written in pixels from being varied, so as to prevent lateral stripes from being generated on the display screen, thereby improving the display quality of the display screen.
The above and other novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Liquid crystal display device and driving method of the same


A dental hygiene system includes a feed line for a liquid that engages and dissolves a dental cleansing compound before being discharged from a nozzle connected to the feed line and sprayed on the teeth for cleaning.

Oral irrigators are well-known instruments of dental hygiene and serve to clean teeth, gums, and interdental spaces with a jet of a liquid. In general this is accomplished by shooting water, mouthwash, etc. under pressure through a nozzle.
Known also is the practice of adding materials to the stream of liquid which have an abrasive effect on the tooth surface when they encounter it.
The best available technology currently produces oral irrigators which are often complex to manufacture and complicated to use and to clean.


A refrigerator includes a fresh food compartment, a freezer compartment defined by inner walls and an outer case respectively, an insulation barrier separating the compartments, and doors for providing access to the compartments. A passageway is formed in the barrier for providing refrigerated air to the fresh food compartment. A connecting duct diverges from the passageway and extends forwardly towards the front portion of the fresh food compartment. A door duct communicating with the connecting duct when the door is closed is coupled to the door. As a result, the fresh food compartment and door-adjacent portions of the fresh food compartment are promptly and uniformly cooled.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to a refrigerated air supply apparatus for effectively distributing refrigerated air to different parts of the refrigerator.
2. Description of Background Art
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, conventional refrigerators have a freezer compartment 10 and a fresh food compartment 20 partitioned by an insulation barrier 5. The compartments 10, 20 are defined by inner cases 12, 22 respectively surrounded by an insulation material 7 which is cased by an outer case 2. A fan unit 4 for supplying refrigerated air to the freezer compartment 10 and fresh food compartment 20 is mounted in an evaporating chamber 11 provided at the rear portion of the freezer compartment 10. An evaporator 8 for generating refrigerated air is also provided in the evaporating chamber 11. The compartments 10, 20 are respectively closed by doors, 19, 29 hinged in front of the refrigerator. The door 29 has door baskets 26 mounted at inner surfaces thereof for storing food therein.
Conventional refrigerated air circulation will be explained in view of FIGS. 1 and 2. In a refrigeration cycle, refrigerated air is generated by the evaporator 8 in which a working fluid or refrigerant flows. As the fan unit 4 operates, a portion of the refrigerated air flows to the freezer compartment 10, and another portion of the refrigerated air impinges on a grill 16 and is guided to a fresh food duct 24 through a passage 15 defined by a shroud 14 and the grill 16. The refrigerated air guided to the fresh food duct 24 is then blown into the fresh food compartment 20 through a plurality of outlets 25 formed in the front surface thereof, as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 2.
Refrigerated air supplied to the fresh food compartment 20, via the above-mentioned supply path, then moves forward and carries out heat exchange with the food stored in the fresh food compartment 20, thereby becoming relatively warm. The warmed air returns to the evaporating chamber 11 through a return duct 30 formed in the insulation barrier 5 with its inlet 31 adjacent to the door 29. The warmed air in the evaporating chamber 11 carries out heat exchange with the evaporator 8, thereby becoming refrigerated air again.
But the above-described conventional refrigerated air circulation system has a number of problems. First, it lacks the effective uniform cooling of the fresh food compartment 20 since the refrigerated air is provided only in one direction, i.e., forward direction, from the outlets 25 of fresh food duct 24. This means that the temperature of a portion adjacent to the outlets 25 is lower than that of a portion adjacent to the door 29. Therefore, any food stored adjacent to the outlets 25 may be over-refrigerated while any food stored adjacent to the door 29 tends to be under-refrigerated.
Second, the temperature at the door-adjacent portion in the fresh food compartment 20 tends to increase as time passes due to the frequent opening of the door 29. As a result, it takes greater energy and longer time to maintain the temperature of the door-adjacent portion than to maintain the temperature of the portion adjacent to the fresh food duct 24 since refrigerated air is only provided by the fresh food duct 24.
Third, it is difficult to keep the food stored in the door baskets 26 to the temperature desired due to an inflow of warm air from the outside when the door 29 is opened.
An improved refrigerated air circulation system was described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,191 issued Dec. 17, 1996. According to this air circulation system, refrigerated air is blown into the fresh food compartment by a cool air duct mounted at the comer of the fresh food compartment and by a door duct which receives the refrigerated air through a transmission duct mounted on a side wall. The transmission duct is exposed to the interior of the fresh food compartment and only delivers refrigerated air which has been spouted out in the fresh food compartment through the cool air duct to the door duct. This air circulation system, however, still has some problems although it improves the uniform refrigerating effect by the spouting the refrigerated air from the door duct.
One problem with the circulation system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,191 is that the transmission duct occupies a certain space in the fresh food compartment where food is stored so that a substantial storage space in the fresh food compartment cannot be used because of the presence of transmission duct. Another problem is that the amount of refrigerated air spouted by the door duct is not sufficient since the refrigerated air delivered through the transmission duct is provided to the cool air duct. Still another problem is that a large temperature difference between the fresh food compartment and the interior of the transmission duct causes dewing and freezing on the surface of the transmission duct.

Refrigerated air supply apparatus for refrigerator


According to some embodiments, a resource is allocated in accordance with a masked request vector. For example, a masking unit may receive a request vector and provide a masked request vector, wherein each bit in the request vector represents a requestor and indicates if that requestor is requesting a resource. A first priority encoder may receive the masked request vector from the masking unit and output a signal indicating a selected requestor. According to some embodiments, a second priority encoder may receive the un-masked request vector and output a signal indicating an alternate selected requestor.

A number of requesters may want to use a limited resource. For example, a number of requestors associated with different input ports may receive information packets that need to be processed and transmitted via a single output port. A resource allocation unit may then allocate the resource to one of those requesters.
The resource allocation unit could scan a list of requestors (starting with the first requestor in the list) and simply allocate the resource to the first requester that is currently requesting the resource. This approach, however, may not be fair. If, for example, the first requester in the list constantly requests the resource, the resource will never be allocated to other requesters.
To avoid this, a "round-robin" approach to resource allocation may be used. For example, a resource allocation unit might scan a list of requestors and allocate the resource to the first requestor that is currently requesting the resource. The next time the resource is to be allocated, however, the resource allocation scans the list starting with the next requestor (e.g., if the resource was allocated to the fourth requestor during one cycle, the list would be scanned starting with fifth requestor during the next clock cycle).
A round-robin approach, however, may be difficult to implement. For example, the hardware used to implement the approach might consume a significant amount of silicon area (e.g., variable shift logic may result in a high gate count, especially when there are a large number of requestors). Moreover, it may take a significant amount of time to perform the resource allocation (e.g., it may be difficult to perform the allocation in a single clock cycle).

Resource arbitration in accordance with a masked request vector


A variable gain amplifier circuit according to an embodiment of the invention includes: an output offset correcting unit for executing correction to attenuate a fixed offset component independent of a gain change of a variable gain amplifier circuit out of a DC offset involved in an output voltage of an amplifying unit; and an input offset correcting unit for executing correction to attenuate an input offset component that varies depending on a gain of an amplifying unit. The correction of the fixed offset component with the output offset correcting unit and the correction of the input offset component with the input offset correcting unit are independently executed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a variable gain amplifier circuit. In particular, the invention relates to a variable gain amplifier circuit and a method of correcting a DC offset of the variable gain amplifier circuit for correcting a DC offset involved in an output signal of an amplifier circuit.
2. Description of Related Art
A differential amplifier circuit composed of MOS transistors has been known to have a DC offset in an output voltage due to a threshold voltage mismatch between MOS transistors as a differential pair which results from a variation in gate width between the MOS transistors, a mismatch between load resistors as components of the differential amplifier circuit, or the like.
A method of correcting a DC offset involved in the output voltage of such a differential amplifier circuit has been hitherto known. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-64666 discloses a variable gain amplifier circuit including a differential amplifier circuit having a variable gain function and correcting a DC offset of an output voltage.
The variable gain amplifier circuit as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-64666 is configured so as to switch between an offset detection mode and a signal amplifying mode, and an offset storage unit stores a DC offset amount detected in the offset detection mode. Here, the term "offset storage unit" means a capacitor for storing and outputting a DC offset amount as an analog value, and a memory for storing a digital value corresponding to a DC offset correction voltage output by a D/A converter (DAC). Further, in the signal amplifying mode, DC offset correction is executed such that a signal voltage from which an output voltage corresponding to a DC offset amount stored in an offset storage unit is subtracted is applied to a signal amplifying unit.
However, the DC offset amount varies depending on a gain of a signal amplifying unit. Hence, the conventional variable gain amplifier circuit as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-64666 faces a problem in that a DC offset amount should be stored in the offset storage unit again at the time of changing the gain. Referring to FIG. 14, this problem is discussed.
FIG. 14 shows a configuration of the conventional variable gain amplifier circuit 8. An amplifying unit 81 is a differential amplifier circuit having a variable gain function. A gain switching unit 82 switches a gain of the amplifying unit 81 in accordance with a gain switching signal. Further, an input offset correction unit 83 is a circuit for subtracting an input offset correction voltage VOC—in as described below from an input signal voltage of the amplifying unit 81 to prevent the DC offset.
The DC offset VOS includes a fixed offset component VOS—fix that is fixed independently of a gain change due to a variation of a load resistor or current source of the amplifying unit 81 and an input offset component VOS—in that depends on a variation on the input side such as a variation in threshold voltage of the differential pair and changes in proportion to a gain. That is, the voltage VOS can be represented by Expression (1) below as a function of a gain A of the amplifying unit 81.VOS(A)=VOS—in*A+VOS—fix  (1)
The variable gain amplifier circuit 8 executes DC offset correction by subtracting the input offset correction voltage VOC—in from the input signal voltage of the amplifying unit 81 such that the voltage VOS derived from Expression (1) equals 0. That is, a correction voltage VOC—in is determined to establish Expression (2) below:VOS(A)=(VOS—in−VOC—in)*A+VOS—fix=0  (2)
Based on Expression (2) above, the voltage VOC—in that makes the voltage VOS zero can be represented by Expression (3) below. The correction voltage VOC—in represented by Expression (3) is stored in the input offset correction unit 83, and the generation of the DC offset VOS can be suppressed by subtracting the calculated voltage VOC—in from the input signal voltage of the amplifying unit 81.VOC—in=VOS—fix/A+VOS—in  (3)
As is apparent from Expression (3), however, the input offset correction voltage VOC—in depends on the gain A of the amplifying unit 81. Thus, at the time of changing the gain A, a value of the input offset correction voltage VOC—in for correcting the offset should be changed. Accordingly, the conventional variable gain amplifier circuit 8 needs to store the correction voltage again in the input offset correction unit 83 at the time of changing the gain of the amplifying unit 81.
For example, if the input offset correction unit 83 stores the correction voltage VOC—in in the capacitor, it is necessary to take enough time to charge the capacitor up to a voltage corresponding to the DC offset amount once again. In addition, if the input offset correction unit 83 is the DAC, it is necessary to enough time to determine a DC offset amount based on an output signal of the amplifying unit 81, enough time to control the DAC in accordance with the determined DC offset amount, or enough time to read a correction value previously recorded as a correction amount for each gain from a memory and set the value to the DAC once again.
As discussed above, the conventional variable gain amplifier circuit should execute DC offset correction each time a gain is changed, and time necessary for changing the gain is limited by offset correction time. This causes a problem in that the gain cannot be changed at high speeds.
For example, a receiver of a radio communication apparatus conforming to IEEE802.11a or other such wireless LAN standards needs to change a gain and adjusts a DC offset within a limited preamble period to amplify a reception signal after the preamble period. As a result, there is a possibility that if it takes much time to change a gain, a preparation for reception is not completed during the preamble period.
Incidentally, in some structures, a capacitor for cutting a DC component is inserted on the output side of the variable gain amplifier circuit to thereby cut DC components of an output voltage. In this case as well, it takes much time to converge a DC offset to zero while charging a capacitor. Thus, such structures are not appropriate for a variable gain amplifier circuit that needs to switch a gain at high speeds.
As mentioned above, the conventional variable gain amplifier circuit that needs to recorrect a DC offset each time a gain of the variable gain amplifier circuit is changed has a problem in that it takes much time to recorrect a DC offset and thus a gain cannot be changed at high speeds.

Variable gain amplifier circuit, method of correcting DC offset of the variable gain amplifying circuit, and radio receiving apparatus


Polyethylene terephthalate resin composition comprising a polyethylene terephthalate resin and nigrosine, optionally containing fibrous reinforcing material, e.g. in an amount of about 10 to 120% by weight relative to the polyethylene terephthalate resin. The polyethylene terephthalate resin composition enables the production of molded products good in appearance, surface gloss, mechanical characteristics and light fastness. The composition has a crystallization rate upon molding which is lower than that of a corresponding natural polyethylene terephthalate resin containing no coloring agents and which is also lower than that of a corresponding polyethylene terephthalate resin composition comprising a polyethylene terephthalate resin and carbon black. The composition is capable of forming a molded product that can elongate more than 200% and also more than two times relative to a corresponding natural polyethylene terephthalate resin containing no coloring agents.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a polyethylene terephthalate resin molded product good in appearance, surface gloss, mechanical characteristics and light fastness, a polyethylene terephthalate resin composition enabling the production of said molded product, and a method for modifying a polyethylene terephthalate resin.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Being good in mechanical properties, gas-blocking property, chemical resistance, flavor-retaining property, transparency, hygienic property, etc., polyethylene terephthalate resins are widely used after processing into various parts, fibers, sheets, tubes, containers, etc.
For some applications, it is necessary to provide additional functions for polyethylene terephthalate resins by coloring. Polyethylene terephthalate resins are colored for light shading, decoration, color identification, improvement of light fastness of plastics, content protection or masking, and for other purposes; black colored molded products are industrially most common and important.
Traditionally, black coloring of polyethylene terephthalate resins has been achieved using black pigments represented by carbon black. For example, there have been various attempts to impart a black color to polyethylene terephthalate resins, including the multiple color dope dyed polyethylene terephthalate film described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 40347/1974, prepared by mixing a polyethylene terephthalate resin containing carbon black added at the time of polymerization, with other pigments; the production method for dope dyed polyester pellets described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 250034/1986, wherein dope dyed polyester pellets prepared by mixing polyethylene terephthalate with a pigment (e.g., carbon black) are produced after a masterbatch is prepared by mixing the polyester and the pigment in a molten state; the polyethylene terephthalate resin composition described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 281070/1990, prepared by adding a spherical iron oxide of the hematite structure to a polyethylene terephthalate resin; and the black polyester coloring agent described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 194825/1993, wherein carbon black is dispersed in a mixed resin of a polyethylene terephthalate resin and a polybutylene terephthalate resin.
Also, fiber-reinforced polyethylene terephthalate resins are used in electronic parts, automobile parts, electric appliance parts, etc., since they possess as excellent physical properties (mechanical strength, modulus of elasticity, impact strength, thermal deformation resistance, etc.) for molding materials as those of thermosetting resins.
Previous attempts to color fiber-reinforced polyethylene terephthalate resins include the polyester resin composition for molding described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 117951/1990, comprising a polyethylene terephthalate having a specific viscosity of not less than 0.35, a reinforcing material, and carbon black; the composition for molding described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 261462/1992, comprising a polyethylene terephthalate and glass fiber, as well as an aliphatic polyester, a metal salt of an ionic hydrocarbon copolymer, an antioxidant, a secondary amide, and carbon black as a coloring agent; and the polyethylene terephthalate resin composition reinforced with antistatic glass fiber described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 53610/1996, comprising a glass-fiber-reinforced polyethylene terephthalate resin having a volume resistivity of not more than 1.times.10.sup.10 .OMEGA..multidot.cm and carbon black.
In recent years, there has been strong commercial demand for a polyethylene terephthalate resin composition possessing improved light fastness, since polyethylene terephthalate resin products have been widely used outdoors. Also, there has been strong demand for molded products of high precision in details for use in electrical appliance parts and automobile product parts.
When a polyethylene terephthalate resin is colored black using a black pigment (e.g., carbon black, phthalocyanine black), as in the prior art, the black pigment is not readily finely dispersed in the resin, even after long kneading, resulting in decreased physical properties and light fastness, in comparison with natural resins that do not contain a coloring agent. Also, when a glass-fiber-reinforced polyethylene terephthalate resin is colored black using a black pigment, fluidity of the glass-fiber-reinforced resin and surface gloss of the molded product are considerably reduced, and in some cases warp deformation due to thermal change increases during the molding process.
In view of the above problems in the prior art, the object of the present invention is to provide a polyethylene terephthalate resin molded product that is uniformly colored black and that is good in surface gloss, light fastness, mechanical characteristics and thermal dimensional stability, and a polyethylene terephthalate resin composition enabling the production of said molded product.

Polyethylene terephthalate resin composition, molded product and resin modifying method


Embodiments of the present invention relate to a system and method of detecting or monitoring brain edema in a patient. One embodiment of the present invention includes emitting a first light into the patient's brain tissue at a first wavelength, emitting a second light into the patient's brain tissue at a second wavelength, detecting the first and second lights after dispersion by the brain tissue at a detector, and determining an amount of water proximate the brain tissue based on the detected first and second lights.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method and system for detecting swelling occurring as a result of increased water content in and around the brain. Specifically, embodiments of the present invention relate to detecting water content and measuring changes in microcirculation in and around brain tissue to facilitate diagnoses and monitoring of brain edema.
2. Description of the Related Art
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Edema may be generally defined as swelling caused by excess fluid in body tissues. Brain edema may be specifically described as swelling in the brain due to an increase in its water content, or as an accumulation of excessive fluid in the substance of the brain. Brain edema may also be referred to as cerebral edema, brain swelling, wet brain, swelling of the brain, and so forth.
The brain is especially susceptible to injury from edema because it is located within a confined space (i.e., the skull) and, thus, cannot expand. The human skull is essentially a rigid fluid filled container. Principle constituents within the skull include brain tissue, blood, and cerebral-spinal fluid (CSF). Because the skull is essentially rigid and has a constant volume, if there is an increase in the volume of the contents of the skull (e.g., as a result of brain edema), the pressure inside the skull (i.e., intracranial pressure) will rise unless some fluid is able to escape. For example, if the brain tissue experiences swelling, a certain amount of blood or CSF must escape the skull cavity to prevent a rapid increase in pressure. During such swelling, pressure inside the skull may rise above the normal range. Further, if swelling continues until little or no fluid remains, any further swelling will cause a rapid increase in intracranial pressure (ICP). A sufficient rise in ICP may cause compromised blood supply to the brain and herniation of the cerebral content through an opening in the skull. Thus, untreated brain edema may lead to neurological degeneration, loss of consciousness, and death.
Causes of brain edema include head trauma, vascular insults, abnormal metabolic conditions, infections, space-occupying lesions, and toxicity. The mechanisms of brain edema are cytotoxic and vasogenic. Cytotoxic edema is generally caused by neuronal damage that leads to increased sodium and water in the brain cells. Vasogenic edema is generally a result of vascular trauma causing leakage of protein from blood into the extracellular compartment. Water generally moves into the extracellular compartment as a result of increased osmotic pressure.
Brain edema may be suspected in a patient if the patient presents with a headache, vomiting, altered consciousness, and/or sensorium. Additionally, upon examination of the patient, further indicators may be observed. For example, the patient may be determined to have papilloedema (i.e., swelling of the optic disc) based on fundoscopy (i.e., examination of the interior of the eye), unilateral or bilateral motor posturing, changing breathing patterns, circulatory hemodynamics, and so forth. Diagnosis may be confirmed by imaging techniques such as a computed tomography (CT) scan. Once the diagnosis is confirmed, the ICP may be monitored (e.g., via placement of catheters in the cranial cavity).
Traditional techniques for monitoring and measuring ICP generally involve the use of invasive devices. For example, commonly used devices include hollow screw and bolt devices. These typically include metallic cylindrical instruments which are inserted into the patient such that an instrument tip protrudes into the subarachnoid space to facilitate pressure measurement. The subarachnoid space may be defined as the compartment within the spinal column that contains the CSF. Another commonly used invasive device for ICP monitoring is an intraventricular catheter. The intraventricular catheter is typically placed inside ventricles (i.e., fluid filled cavities) of the brain to facilitate pressure monitoring. Insertion of such invasive devices (e.g., hollow screws and catheters) to facilitate ICP monitoring can be undesirable.
Some existing techniques for monitoring ICP are non-invasive. For example, some existing methods involve emitting ultrasound into the patient's brain to facilitate detection of an elevated ICP. Such ultrasound emissions typically reach the brain through natural windows in the skull. For example, ultrasound emissions may be introduced to a patient's brain via an eye socket. However, these ultrasound emissions may be undesirable depending on how long the eye must be esonified. Further, sensor placement for such methods can be difficult, resulting in inaccuracies.

System and method for detection of brain edema using spectrophotometry