Thin horizontal lines and edges are vulnerable to flickering on an interlaced monitor. To reduce flickering filtering is adaptively applied to the pixels of lines or edges to reduce the flicker energy or contrast of the pixel to a level less than a threshold energy or contrast necessary for flickering under the local conditions. The flicker energy or contrast is a function of the luminance of the line pixel and vertically adjacent background pixels, the number of intensity transitions in the vertical vicinity of the line, and the line length. Adaptive filtering by the described method is computationally conservative and does not adversely effect the detail in the remainder of the image.

The present invention relates to interlaced monitors and, more particularly, to a method of eliminating flicker on an interlaced monitor.
The human visual system retains an image for a fraction of a second after it is viewed. As a result of this "persistence of vision," a series of still images or frames that are presented at a sufficiently high rate will be integrated by the visual system into a "moving picture." However, if the time between images exceeds the period of persistence of vision, the image will not be successfully integrated and it will be perceived to flicker. Persistence of vision decreases as the image intensity increases and, therefore, bright images must be displayed more often to avoid flicker. For example, a frame rate of 24 frames per second may be adequate for a relatively dim motion picture suitable for a theater. However, computer monitors which are much brighter than motion pictures typically utilize frame rates of 72 frames per second or greater to avoid flicker.
Generally, computer monitors employ progressive scanning where a complete frame displayed with each scan. Progressive scanning at high frame rates is acceptable for computer monitors because the data bandwidth is relatively unrestricted. However, to limit the required broadcast bandwidth while presenting a relatively flicker free image, television utilizes an interlaced scan format. In the interlaced scan format, an image or frame is displayed by consecutively displaying two fields, each comprising every other scan line of the raster (frame). The fields are displayed at twice the frame rate. At least for images lacking fine detail, the fields contain sufficient information and are displayed with sufficient frequency to permit the visual system to integrate the two fields into a whole image having an acceptable level of "whole image" flicker. Television in the U.S. and monitors conforming to the NTSC format utilize a frame rate of 30 frames per second with a field rate of 60 fields per second. In Europe, a frame rate of 25 frames per second is common for television.
While interlacing is effective in minimizing the bandwidth required for an acceptable level of "whole image" flickering, an interlaced image may include a number of undesirable artifacts that are the result of the fact that interlacing is not truly rapid repetition of the complete image. Vertically adjacent picture elements do not appear at the same time thereby creating jagged edges on moving objects. Horizontal edges may not match in successive scans creating misalignment or interline flickering (a shimmering effect). Flicker is particularly noticeable in images containing narrow horizontal lines such as computer generated "wire frame" drawings, character sets, and crosshatched areas. The sensation of flickering is the result of the high frequency variation of light intensity as the narrow line or sharp edge is repeatedly scanned, and is a function of the level of illumination and the spatial contrast between the line and its surroundings. Horizontal lines and sharp edges are particularly susceptible to flicker because the discontinuity of intensity that is the line or edge is generally parallel to the horizontal scan lines causing the intensity discontinuity to be repeated at the frame rate, not the field rate.
One method of reducing flicker is to perform a low pass filtering operation in the vertical direction. Filtering transverse to the scan lines reduces the local contrast of horizontal edges and eliminates spatio-temporal components of the image signal that could be visible as flicker. However, each image has a different level of detail and, therefore, a different propensity to flicker. Unfortunately, applying a single filter to all images results in loss of detail in images that would exhibit little tendency to flicker. Parulski et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,428,456, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADAPTIVELY REDUCING INTERLINE FLICKER OF TV-DISPLAYED IMAGE recognize that certain images require more filtering than others and analyze image content before displaying the image to determine the appropriate level of filtering to apply to each image.
Differences in the level and type of detail and, therefore, the propensity to flicker varies within areas of an image as well as between images. Applying a single filter to an entire image can destroy local vertical detail in areas of the image which would not have produced a flickering sensation. Campbell, U.S. Pat. No. 5,019,904, SCAN CONVERTER WITH ADAPTABLE VERTICAL FILTER FOR SINGLE BIT COMPUTER GRAPHICS SYSTEMS, proposes to filter the image with a filter adapted to local conditions. The method is applied to pixels having two states displayed on a progressive scan monitor. Patterns of pixels known to cause flicker are identified by a pattern recognition generator and a filter coefficient is selected for application to the pixels of the pattern on the basis of the propensity of that pattern to cause flicker. Such pattern recognition is complex and computationally expensive, involving evaluation of patterns of pixels in each fixed area (six pixel (high) by three pixel (wide)) neighborhood of an image. Pattern recognition is more complicated and computationally expensive if applied to pixels capable of multilevel intensities. Further, the patterns identified as producing flickering on a progressive scan monitor do not have the same effect when rendered on an interlaced monitor.
What is desired, therefore, is a computationally inexpensive method of detecting and reducing flickering of horizontal lines or edges displayed on an interlaced monitor without unduly degrading image detail.

Method of eliminating flicker on an interlaced monitor


A system for simulating various clinical conditions which are detectable by a noninvasive respiratory monitor is provided. The simulated clinical conditions may be displayed on a noninvasive respiratory monitor to replicate a variety of disease states to provide training for a clinician. The system may include a pulse oximetry simulation device and/or a CO2 delivery system.

Respiratory failure can become a life-threatening condition in a few minutes or be the result of a build up over several hours. Respiratory failure is very difficult to predict, and as a result continuous monitoring of respiratory activity is typically necessary in clinical, high-risk situations. Appropriate monitoring equipment used by properly trained clinicians can be life-saving. (see Folke M, Cernerud A, Ekstrom M, Hok B; Critical Review of Non-invasive Respiratory Monitoring in Medical Care; Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing 2003 July; 41(4): 377-383).
Noninvasive patient respiratory monitors are especially useful in situations when drugs having sedative and/or analgesic properties are provided to a patient because these drugs may also reduce the patient's drive to breath and ability to maintain an open airway. Noninvasive respiratory monitors may be used to measure the patient's respiratory rate and exhaled CO2 by analyzing the concentration of the CO2 in the exhaled air. They may also be used to monitor heart rate and saturation of blood oxygen. In other words, noninvasive respiratory monitors are configured to provide multiple indications regarding the physical state of a patient
It is important that a clinician be able to properly analyze all the information provided by a noninvasive respiratory monitor. The American Society of Anesthesiologists emphasizes that, because ventilation and oxygenation are separate physiologic processes, monitoring oxygenation by pulse oximetry is not a substitute for monitoring ventilatory function by capnography. (see Practice guidelines for sedation and analgesia by non-anesthesiologists. American Society of Anesthesiologists Task Force on Sedation and Analgesia by Non-Anesthesiologists. Anesthesiology 2002; 96: 1004-1017). Oxygen saturation usually is maintained, even at a low respiratory rate, so that pulse oximetry might fail to detect respiratory deterioration, particularly if a patient is receiving supplemental oxygen. (see Overdyk F J. PCA presents serious risks. [letter] APSF Newsletter 2005; 20: 33). The use of supplemental oxygen does not correct desaturation due to hypoventilation; it simply delays the progression of respiratory failure from bradypnea to apnea. Thus, even continuous monitoring of heart rate and oxygen saturation ("SpO2") by pulse oximetry is not a substitute for monitoring end-tidal CO2 ("EtCO2"), respiratory rate, and apneic events by capnography. Capnographic monitoring can anticipate a patient's desaturation by warning of a decrease in respiratory rate and rise in EtCO2. (see Weinger M B. Dangers of postoperative opioids. Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation newsletter 2006-2007; 21: 61-88). In a procedural sedation study, pulse oximetry identified only 33 percent of those patients with respiratory distress, while capnography captured 100 percent. (see Miner J R, Heegaard W, Plummer D. End-tidal carbon dioxide monitoring during procedural sedation. Acad Emerg Med 2002; 9: 275-280). Therefore, it is important that a clinician be proficient at analyzing all the data that can be obtained from a noninvasive respiratory monitor.
Additionally, there are numerous manufactures of noninvasive respiratory monitors, for example, COSMO by Novametrix Medical Systems, Inc., Wallingford, Conn.; Capnostream by Oridion Capnography, Inc., Bedford, Mass.; POET by Criticare Systems, Inc., Waukesha, Wis., etc. Thus, as will be appreciated from the foregoing, one drawback of using noninvasive respiratory monitors is that significant training may be needed before a clinician can make full use of the information provided by these monitors.
Thus there is a need for a system for generating noninvasive respiratory monitor signals to simulate patient conditions encountered by clinicians in order to train the clinician in the proper use of a particular noninvasive respiratory monitor.

System for generating noninvasive respiratory monitor signals


A method for evaluating drilling fluid includes making an NMR measurement of a sample of the drilling fluid and inverting the measurements to compute a corresponding T1T2 plot. The T1T2 plot is in turn evaluated to characterize the drilling fluid. In one embodiment, a stability index of the fluid may be computed from multiple NMR measurements made while aging the sample.

The use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements in oilfield applications is well known, for example, to evaluate drilling fluid or formation core samples as well as to make downhole measurements in the wellbore. Such techniques may be utilized to determine various characteristics of porous subterranean formations and to assist in the determination of, for example, the presence, absence, location, mobility, and producibility of hydrocarbons in the formation.
NMR measurements are made by applying a strong, polarizing, static magnetic field (the longitudinal magnetic field) to a sample (such as a drilling fluid or formation core sample). This field causes the proton spins to align in a direction parallel to the applied field. A series of radio frequency (RF) pulses are then transmitted into the sample to rotate the magnetization into the transverse plane. Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) pulse sequences are commonly employed in downhole and oilfield applications. The RF pulses generate a series of spin echoes that bear information about various properties of the interrogated sample such as volumes of liquids, their relaxation times, and diffusion properties.
Time constants T1 and T2 are commonly evaluated in NMR measurements. The spin-lattice relaxation time T1 (also referred to as the longitudinal polarization time) is the time constant for the longitudinal magnetization to return to its thermal equilibrium value in the static magnetic field. The spin-spin relaxation time T2 (also referred to as the transverse polarization time) is the time constant for the transverse magnetization to return to its thermal equilibrium value of zero. Diffusion coefficients of the liquids in the formation are also known to influence the relaxation processes. Distributions of these relaxation times may be inferred from the amplitudes of the measured spin echoes by T1, T2, and diffusion inversions. Such inversions (generally Laplacian inversions) may provide both one-dimensional distributions of any of those quantities and/or multi-dimensional joint distributions of any subset of them.
As is known to those of ordinary skill, drilling fluids are highly complex multi-phase fluids. Drilling fluids are subject to high temperature and high pressure conditions and commonly undergo phase separation or other molecular dynamics during static aging (at ambient or high temperature high pressure conditions). Drilling fluids may further undergo significant changes with the addition of new or different components at various concentrations. There is a need for additional and improved methods for evaluating drilling fluids using NMR.

NMR characterization and monitoring of drilling fluids


Complexing-acidizing treatment fluids can be used in various subterranean treatment operations. Some methods include: providing or preparing a complexing-acidizing treatment fluid having an acid concentration of about 0.6 Molar, the complexing-acidizing treatment fluid including: an aminopolycarboxylic acid chelating agent, an aqueous base fluid, and an acid, placing the complexing-acidizing treatment fluid in a subterranean formation matrix penetrated by a well bore; allowing the acid to generate metal cations by dissolution of the subterranean formation matrix; reacting the aminopolycarboxylic acid chelating agent with the metal cations so as to form at least a plurality of aggregate blocking agents; and allowing the aggregate blocking agents to divert the complexing-acidizing treatment fluid to a main channel in the subterranean formation matrix that is distinct from a wormhole in the subterranean formation matrix.

This disclosure relates to acidizing fluids for use in subterranean applications, and more specifically, to complexing-acidizing self-diverting treatment fluids and methods relating thereto for use in subterranean formations comprising carbonates.
Methods to enhance the productivity of hydrocarbon wells (e.g., oil wells) or geothermal wells include matrix acidizing, which involves creating flow paths in the formation matrix by differential dissolution of small portions of the formation, or removing (by dissolution) near-wellbore formation damage, with an acid. "Wormholes" (conductive channels) are often generated through the matrix as a result and allow for improved conductivity within the formation. Acidic-based fluids are useful for this purpose due to their ability to dissolve both formation minerals and contaminants (e.g., contaminants such as drilling fluid filter cake on the wellbore or that has penetrated into the formation introduced into the wellbore/formation during drilling or remedial operations).
Acidizing carbonate formations can be challenging due to the relatively rapid reactivity of the carbonate with the acid. For instance, acid treatments in carbonate formations are plagued by at least two complications: (1) radial penetration, and (2) fluid loss of the acidizing fluid into the formation. The first problem, radial penetration, results from the fast reaction of the acid with the formation matrix upon introduction of the fluid in the near well bore region. The radial acid penetration is often limited to just a few inches to a few feet, which is not optimal. Those portions of the formation that are more distal to the wellbore (as one moves radially outward from the wellbore) remain untouched by the acid because the acid will fully spend. In fact, due to such limited penetration, it is believed that acid matrix treatments are limited in carbonate formations to those treatments focused on removing near-wellbore flow restrictions. Yet low permeability at any point along the hydrocarbon flow paths can impede flow (hence production), which is undesirable. Fluid loss of the matrix acidizing fluid into smaller wormholes neighboring the near well bore region only serves to exacerbate this radial penetration problem. Consequently, to try to achieve maximum radial penetration, prodigious fluid volumes are often required, which can prove costly.
One effort to improve radial penetration involves controlling the fluid loss of the matrix acidizing fluid so as to attempt to extend the radial depth of the main channels. Fluid loss in acidizing fluids for carbonate formations is typically controlled by the addition of polymeric gelling agents to the acidizing fluid. These polymeric gelling agents modify the relative viscosity of the treatment fluid, therefore, reducing or eliminating fluid loss flow into the natural permeability within the formation. However, such gels may prove problematic in that they can block conductive channels thereby reducing the conductivity of the formation if they are not removed prior to production. Extra steps are usually necessitated to remove the gel, such as breaking the gel downhole by adding an additional chemical breaker component to the formation and allowing sufficient time to pass to allow that breaker to break the gel, to improve conductivity.
Another method used to combat fluid loss is the use of fluid loss control agents, also known as diverting agents, like sand, quartz, salts, polymeric particles, and degradable particulates such as polylactic acid or polylactide particulates, to bridge the pore throats in the formation. Such agents may present barriers to conductivity as well if they are not removed or degraded for production. Unfortunately, degradation of such particulates can take periods in excess of weeks and even months, especially at temperatures below about 250° F., which is undesirable because that time impacts resource extraction. Another method to combat fluid loss is to emulsify the acidizing fluid. Emulsification involves an additional external component, which adds costs and complexity to the acidizing operation.
Yet another method to combat fluid loss involves the use of viscoelastic surfactants (VES). A VES-containing acidizing fluid often relies on the increase in viscosity when the pH of the treatment fluid increases to a pH where these surfactants transition to a gelled state. This occurs upon reaction of an acid with a source of carbonate, whether in the formation matrix itself or within a proppant pack, and the subsequent release of calcium into the fluid. These types of fluids can present the same sorts of problematic blockages and downtime mentioned above.

Chelating agent-based self-diverting acidizing fluids and methods relating thereto


An end effector includes a tip part having a deformation member that is physically changed due to contact with an object, a gauge display part configured to display gauge information according to a physical change of the deformation member, and a connecting rod part connected to the tip part and configured to operate the tip part. A manipulator including an end effector configured to display physical information, which varies according to an object making contact with a tip part, on a gauge display part, an endoscope configured to obtain an image of the tip part of the end effector and an image of the gauge display part, and a control part configured to control transmission of the image obtained by the endoscope, and to control operations of the tip part and the endoscope.

1. Field
One or more embodiments relate to an end effector capable of improving the accuracy of detection of physical information, and a remote control apparatus having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A remote control apparatus is an apparatus including a master part and a slave part, and remotely controls the slave located at a remote site by use of the master part. The master part controls the operation of the slave part based on various types of physical information, such as force, tactile sensation, temperature, humidity, and illuminance that are detected from the slave part.
Examples of the remote control apparatus include a surgery robot, a hazardous material handling robot, a patrol robot, a military robot and an aerospace remote apparatus.
The surgical robot represents a robot that performs a treatment or a surgery on an affected area by moving a surgical instrument according to a command by a user, and includes a console corresponding to a master part, a manipulator and an end effector that each correspond to a slave part.
The surgery performed by the surgery robot includes a minimal invasive surgery in which a size of an affected area is minimal, and a robotic surgery. The minimal invasive surgery, different from an open surgery having an abdomen entirely open to perform a surgery, makes a few small incisions through an abdomen and the abdomen is filled with gas to create a surgical space, and a laparoscope and a surgical end effector are inserted through the incision such that a surgery is performed using the surgical end effector while observing an internal image of the abdomen.
The minimal invasive surgery generally involves less post-surgical pain while enabling an early recovery of intestinal movement and of the ability to ingest food earlier relative to open surgeries. In addition, the minimal invasive surgery requires shorter length of hospitalization, and thereby a return to a normal condition is faster. Furthermore, since an area of an incision from the minimal invasive surgery is small, an aesthetic effect is superior. Thus, the minimal invasive surgery is being applied in numerous types of surgeries, including gall bladder removal surgery, prostate cancer surgery, hernia correction surgery, etc., and is increasingly being used in the medical field.
The minimal invasive surgery, however, accompanies difficulty in controlling a surgical end effector and in moving an instrument through an incision. In addition, with respect to minimal invasive surgery, the position displayed through an image to a user, when compared to the actual position inside an abdomen, is reversed both vertically and horizontally. Therefore, a skilled surgeon and medical staff are needed.
The weaknesses of minimal invasive surgery may be overcome in part by performing a surgery using a da Vinci robot. Here, a da Vinci robot is configured to deliver a dimensional image, which is expanded by 10 to 15 times in size without a vertical/horizontal reversal, to a user, and is also configured to deliver the movement of a user precisely to a manipulator and a surgical end effector.
The surgical robot as the above is not provided with a feedback function of a force and a tactile sensation. Accordingly, a user, that is, a surgeon, has difficulty in recognizing a force applied to a surgical end effector during surgical suturing. As a result, a surgical thread is excessive pulled and broken during the suturing, or an excessive force is applied to intestine tissues and thus the intestine tissue may be damaged.
In this regard, a technology is developed to receive a feedback of force and tactile sensation information by use of a sensor, such as a strain gauge, included in a surgical end effector, and control the surgical end effector based on the feedback force and tactile information.
In this case, the detected force information is converted into an electric signal and is transmitted to a console. In a process of converting the force information, that is, physical information, into an electric signal, noise is added so that the reliability of the detected force information is lowered.
In addition, a process of transmitting and receiving force information between a console and an end effector is additionally required, and thus the network traffic is increased. In addition, a time synchronization between the detection time of force information and the display time of force information is required, and also an image of the force information and an image of the surgical end effector need to be individually checked during a surgery operation.
In addition, at the time of displaying an image of the force information at a surrounding area of an image about the surgical end effector during a surgery operation, an additional program for an augmented reality (AR) is required to be installed at a surgical robot.

End effector and remote control apparatus


A method for removal of tissue from a patient utilizing an electrosurgical instrument. The electrosurgical instrument includes a handle portion having a pair of end effectors configured to remove tissue, connected to and supported by the handle portion for relative movement generally toward one another. One of the end effectors includes a conductive cutting portion that is configured to receive electrical energy from an electrical energy source. The other of the end effectors includes an opposing portion. The opposing portion is brought into a position generally opposing the conductive cutting portion during relative movement of the end effectors toward one another. When electrical energy is conducted through the conductive cutting portion, removal and cauterization of the tissue from the patient is facilitated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a surgical instrument and method for tissue removal. More specifically, the present invention relates to a surgical instrument and method for performing the removal of either palatine and pharyngeal types of tonsils, and even more particularly, the latter type of tonsils, which is commonly referred to as adenoids.
2. Description of Related Technology
As seen in FIG. 1, tonsils (T) and adenoids (A) are a masses of lymphoid tissue generally found in the oral and nasal cavities (Co, Cn) respectively. The tonsils are a set of tissue located on both sides at the back of the throat. Adenoids, on the other hand, comprise a single clump of tissue that is not directly visible from outside the mouth. The adenoids are located rearward of the nasal cavity and above the soft palate, generally where the nasal cavity merges with the throat.
Both tonsils and adenoids are subject to infection, particularly in children. When infected, the enlarged tissue may impair breathing through the nose, cause snoring, cause retention of fluid (and, therefore, infection of the ears (caused by the adenoids)), cause accumulation of nasal secretions (and, therefore, sinus infections (caused by the adenoids), and cause difficulty in swallowing and breathing (caused by the tonsils). Since neither tissue has been observed to serve an immunological or other function in adulthood, when infections are common and recurring, one preferred treatment is the surgical removal of the tissue, which is called either an adenoidectomy or a tonsillectomy.
Common methods for removing the adenoids and tonsils include utilization of a curette, forceps or an electrocautery device. A curette is a surgical instrument having a spoon or otherwise shaped end that is used to scrape and remove the desired tissue. With an electrocautery device, radio-frequency energy is applied to tissue, heating the water in the local tissues, thereby weakening the tissue, allowing mechanical scraping removal and simultaneous cauterizing of removal site to reduce or stop bleeding.
Of the two procedures, some physicians prefer electrocautery since it minimizes the bleeding associated with removal of the tissue. However, current instruments for electrocautery are not specifically designed for rapid removal of either the tonsils or the adenoids.


A process for forming a ceramic thin film on a surface of a ceramic body, including the steps of preparing an annular body from a ceramic green sheet, inserting the ceramic body into the annular body, and firing the thus assembled annular body and ceramic body, whereby the annular body is shrunk and joined to the ceramic body.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for forming a ceramic thin film on a ceramic body. More particularly, the present invention relates to the process for forming a ceramic thin film to be suitably used as a solid electrolyte film, an interconnector film or the like of a cylindrical solid oxide fuel cell.
(2) Related Art Statement
Recently, fuel cells have attracted public attention as power generators. This is because the fuel cell is a device capable of directly converting chemical energy possessed by a fuel to electric energy, and is free from the limitations of the Carnot cycle. Therefore, the fuel cell has an essentially high energy conversion efficiency, causes less pollution, can use a variety of fuels (naphtha, natural gas, methanol, coal-reformed gas, etc.), and the power-generating efficiency is not influenced by the scale of the power-generating plant. Thus, the fuel cell is an extremely promising technique.
In particular, since the solid oxide fuel cells (hereinafter referred to briefly as "SOFC"s) operate at high temperatures around 1,000.degree. C., their electrode reaction is extremely active. Thus, a catalyst of noble metal such as precious platinum is not required at all. Further, since polarization is small, and output voltage is relatively high, energy converting efficiency is far greater as compared with those in other fuel cells. Furthermore, since the SOFC is entirely constituted by solid structural materials, the SOFC has long stability and long use life.
In the above-mentioned SOFC, it is necessary that a solid electrolyte thin film and/or an inter-connector thin film is provided on a cylindrical porous electrode-supporting body. The term "porous electrode-supporting body" may include a porous air electrode itself, a porous fuel electrode itself, and a porous supporting body on which a porous air or fuel electrode is formed. The porous electrode-supporting body may be solid or hollow. Heretofore, thin film-forming processes such as a chemical vapor deposition process (CVD process) and an electrochemical vapor deposition process (EVD process) have been known to form such solid electrolyte thin films. However, these conventional processes have problems in that thin film-forming devices become bulky, and the treatable area and treating speed are too small. For this reason, these processes have defects in that cost is high, and the area of the solid electrolyte film is difficult to increase. In the case of the EVD process, the substrate is limited to the cylindrical shape only.
Since plasma spraying advantageously enables simple formation of thin and relatively dense films at high film-forming speeds the plasma spraying process has been conventionally used for the production of the SOFCs (Sunshine 1981, Vol. 2, No. 1). However, since the plasma-sprayed film has generally a problem that the gas-tightness is poor, if a solid electrolyte film of the above-mentioned SOFC is formed by plasma spraying, the gas-tightness of the film is insufficient. Consequently, a fuel leakage occurs, that is, hydrogen, carbon monoxide or the like leaks through the solid electrolyte film, during the operation of the SOFC. Thus, the electromotive force per cell unit of the SOFC becomes smaller than, for example, lV in ordinary cases, so that output drops and convention rate of the fuel to the electric power decreases.
In addition, a technique is known, which forms an interconnector thin film by using the EVD process. However, as is the same with the formation of the solid electrolyte thin film, the film-forming device becomes bulky, and the treating area and the treating speed are too small, with the result that the cost rises, and the mass productivity becomes difficult.

Formation of ceramic thin film on ceramic body


The device includes a wafer substrate including an isolation feature, a fin base embedded in the isolation feature, at least one channel disposed above the fin base, and a gate stack disposed around the channel, wherein the gate stack includes a top portion and a bottom portion of the gate stack formed by filling a cavity around the channel such that the top portion and bottom portion are aligned each other. The device further includes at least one source and one drain disposed over the fin base, wherein the channel connects the source and the drain. The device further includes the source and the drain disposed over a fin insulator disposed over the fin base.

The semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) industry has experienced exponential growth. Technological advances in IC materials and design have produced generations of ICs where each generation has smaller and more complex circuits than the previous generation. In the course of IC evolution, functional density (i.e., the number of interconnected devices per chip area) has generally increased while geometry size (i.e., the smallest component (or line) that can be created using a fabrication process) has decreased. This scaling down process generally provides benefits by increasing production efficiency and lowering associated costs. Such scaling down has also increased the complexity of processing and manufacturing ICs and, for these advances to be realized, similar developments in IC processing and manufacturing are needed.
One development in the scaling down process is the use of fin-type field effect transistors (FinFETs). It is desired to further improve the operation of FinFETs, such as by using a gate all around (GAA) transistor structure to increase the efficiency of gate control over the transistor channel. The GAA structure is typically formed on a silicon-on-nothing (SON) substrate, and is not self-aligned. This can result in a high source and drain resistance and further loss performance. Accordingly, what is needed is a device for improving the fabrication and operation of the FinFET.

Method for fabricating a gate all around device

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


Treatment of acne through topical administration is an aspect of the present invention. Specifically, muscarinic agents may be applied in any therapeutically acceptable carrier including gels, creams, lotions, and sprays. Therapeutic effects observed with the present invention include decrease in redness, swelling, and inflammation. Treatment of other inflammatory conditions is also disclosed. Treatment of suitable conditions in accordance with the present invention results in significant improvements in healing of those conditions.

The present invention is direction to the treatment of acne and other inflammatory conditions. More specifically, in some embodiments this invention relates to methods for treating acne which methods comprise the topical application of muscarinic agents such as neostigmine. Treatment in accordance with the present invention results in improved healing in the treated area.
Acne is one example of inflammatory conditions which may be treated in accordance with the present invention.
Acne is a multi factorial disease affecting the sebaceous follicle and characterized by papules, pustules, and scars. Acne affects nearly 90% of 16-year old boys and girls but is clearly no longer a problem confined to teenagers. Recently for this condition, referral for specialists' opinions have significantly increased among people over the age of 20. It has been realized that simple attention to hygiene is no longer sufficient, and antiseptic washes so popular some years ago are now perceived as ineffective by many sufferers and most clinicians.
During puberty, elevated androgen levels stimulate the sebaceous glands to enlarge and produce increased amounts of sebum in the sebaceous follicle. Subsequent abnormal keratinization with hyperkeratosis of the follicular epithelium leads to obstruction of the duct by horny plaque. The blocked duct becomes clogged with a dense material composed of sebum and keratinous debris forming a micro comedo, a precursor of the acne lesion. The excess sebum in the micro comedo also provides an anaerobic growth medium for Propionibacterium acnes. Lipase from the bacteria hydrolyzes sebum triglycerides into free fatty acids that are both comedogenic and proinflammatory. Propionibacterium acnes also secretes chemotactic factors that attract neutrophils. Lysosomal enzyme released from the neutrophils rupture the follicle wall releasing proinflammatory mediators including keratin and lipids into the surrounding dermis. Inflammatory papules appear as a result. Further inflammation with macrophages and foreign body reactions lead to cysts and nodules. The key features of the pathogenesis of acne can be characterized as 1) increased sebum production, 2) follicular corynekeratinization, 3) bacterial proliferation, and 4) inflammation.
Effective management of acne can be accomplished by addressing the four key features of the pathogenesis. Topical therapy is usually the first choice for patients with mild-to-moderate inflammatory acne. The use of topical therapy minimizes potential side effects associated with the use of systemic agents. Topical therapies include benzoyl peroxide, which is the most commonly used non-prescription acne medication. It is an important antibacterial oxidizing agent that can decrease the number of Propionibacterium acnes and frequently the amount of free fatty acids. Benzoyl peroxide is the first line of monotherapy for mild acne and it is available in over-the-counter preparations. Benzoyl peroxide is applied once or twice daily and patients often experience mild redness and scaling of the skin during the first week of usage.
Tretinoin is the most effective topical comedolytic agent, decreasing the cohesiveness of follicular epithelial cells, and thereby inhibiting the formation of microcomedones and increasing cell turnover resulting in expulsion of existing comedones. This agent also decreases the thickness of the stratum corneum and potentiates the penetration of topical antibiotic agents. Tretinoin therapy comprises once daily application. Mild redness and peeling are a part of the therapeutic effect of the medication but can result in reduced patient compliance. Patients should be made aware that improvement may take as long as 6 to 12 weeks, and that flare-ups of acne can occur during the first few weeks of therapy. In addition, it is extremely important that patients avoid excessive exposure to the sun during treatment.
Mild inflammatory acne lesions can also be treated with topical antibiotics including erythromycin ointment, clindamycin solution, and meclocycline cream. The primary action of the antibiotics is to reduce the population of Propionibacterium acnes in the sebaceous follicle and thereby suppress the free fatty acid production. The effectiveness of topical antibiotics in the treatment of acne is limited by their low lipid solubility and subsequent difficulty in penetrating sebum-filled follicles. Topical antibiotics are applied twice daily.
Patients with moderate to severe inflammatory acne often require oral antibiotics in addition to topical therapy. The most commonly prescribed agents include tetracycline, erythromycin, minocycline, and doxycycline. Treatment is usually maintained for several months. Side effects include the overgrowth of nonsusceptible organisms including Candida, which can produce vaginal and oral yeast infections.
Patients with severe inflammatory acne unresponsive to other therapy may require treatment with oral isotretinoin. Isotretinoin is a compound related to vitamin A, and is the only agent that decreases sebum production and reverses the abnormal epithelial formation process. This agent can also decrease the population of Propionibacterium acnes in the sebaceous follicle. Duration of therapy is usually 20 weeks, and the satisfactory response rate is quite high. Treatment is often accompanied by many side effects, however, including dry skin, pruritus, epistaxis, and photosensitivity, as well as hypertriglyceridemia, abnormal liver function tests, electrolyte imbalances, and elevated platelet counts. Most serious though, is the teratogenic effect of isotretinoin. Use of isotretinoin during pregnancy is absolutely contraindicated. So serious is the potential for death or teratogenic effects to a fetus, isotretinoin is practically contraindicated in women of child-bearing age. Use of isotretinoin must be accompanied by a guarantee by the patient that conception will be avoided at any and all costs.
Because acne is a multi factorial disease which is manifest to varying degrees, it is important for the physician to assess the patient to attempt to find therapies which will be helpful to the patient without causing major side effects. All of the current conventional treatments are associated with some degree of adverse side effects that limit their usefulness. Consequently, there is a need for a drug that eliminates acne without side effects.
As discussed above, the formation of acne is frequently associated with inflammation. During the inflammatory process, white blood cells are attracted to the area of the lesion, and play a crucial role in fighting the infection. Other local infections are characterized by similar inflammatory processes. In addition, burns also trigger the body's inflammatory response.
Peripheral Analgesia Using Opioid Agents
In the past, administration of opioids has been directed at targeting opioid receptors in the central nervous system (CNS). In addition to their presence in the CNS, opioid receptors have been found on sensory nerves in inflamed subcutaneous tissue. This finding was reported in Stein et al., "Peripheral effect of fentanyl upon nociception in inflamed tissue of the rat," Neurosci Lett, 84:225-228 (1988), and in Stein et al., "Antinociceptive effects of mu- and kappa-agonists in inflammation are enhanced by a peripheral opioid receptor-specific mechanism of action," Eur. J. Pharmacol., 155:255-264 (1988). Small doses of opioids, when applied locally or topically in inflamed areas outside of the central nervous system, can produce local analgesic effects by interacting with the opioid receptors on peripheral sensory nerves and producing local analgesia. This finding was discussed in Stein et al., "Opioids as novel intra-articular agents in arthritis," In: Progress in Pain Research and Management, Fields, H. L., and Liebeskind, J. C., eds., 1:289-296, IASP Press, Seattle (1994). A practical application of this phenomena is presented in U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480 to ElKhoury et al., wherein the topical application of an opioid analgesic agent to alleviate pain is disclosed. Reference is also made to the present inventor's copending U.S. patent applications Ser. Nos. 08/741,743, 08/732,594, 09/028,117, 09/083,431, and 08/874,254, which are hereby incorporated by reference as though set forth in full herein.
Peripheral opioid effects are not initially apparent in normal tissue, but do become apparent within minutes to hours at the site of inflammation. It is believed that the reason for the pain relief is that opioids can gain easier access to neuronal opioid receptors during inflammation as a result of the disruption of the perineurium (which is normally an impermeable sheath encasing the peripheral nerve fiber). Further, the number of peripheral sensory nerve terminals is increased in inflamed tissue and a phenomenon known as sprouting occurs in which the number of fibers increases significantly within inflamed tissued. The sprouting results in a subsequent increase in the number of morphine receptors that are peripherally accessible to locally-applied opioids.
In addition to their presence in the peripheral nervous system, opioid receptors have been identified in the immune system as well. Specific opioid receptors, identified as .mu..sub.3 receptors, have been identified on white blood cells, including macrophages and peripheral blood granulocyites, both of which are involved in the immune response in humans. In addition, it has been shown that some lymphocytes, as well as some monocytes and macrophages, produce endogenous opioid peptides. These findings have led some researchers to suggest a neural-immune link. However, the manner in which these two systems interact is still quite unclear. A review of opioid receptors in immunocytes and neurons is presented in Advances in Neuroimmunology Vol. 4, pgs. 69-82 (1994), the entire content of which is hereby incorporated by reference as though set forth in full herein. The role of immune processes in peripheral opioid analgesia is presented in Chapter 27 of The Brain Immune Axis and Substance Abuse (Sharp, B. et al., eds.) (Plenum Press, New York, 1995), the entire content of which is hereby incorporated by reference as though set forth in full herein.
Unfortunately, morphine and other opioid drugs have a number of severe side effects which hamper their wide spread use and acceptance by both physicians and patients. These side effects include: addiction, nausea, inhibition of breathing, somnolence and dysphoria, all of which are mediated by morphine's action within the brain. It is still the current belief that narcotics ingested or injected will cross to the blood stream and from there go to the brain where there are morphine receptors. At that time, the narcotics are believed to attach to these morphine receptors and create a dullness of the pain but with all of the side effects described above. Of course, the worst potential effect is the addiction that can occur if the morphine is used beyond a few days or weeks on a continuous basis.
Because of the fear of addiction, the use of morphine as an analgesic has been restricted. In addition, major research efforts have been directed toward the development of morphine-like drugs that act within the brain but are devoid of the side effects. The market for these other drugs has never fully materialized because these drugs were not perceived as having the same analgesic properties of morphine and because typically these drugs were not produced to be both available in oral and injectable formats.
In the past ten years, the intraspinal method of treating pain has been extensively developed but, as more extensive use was made of this technique, a number of serious problems developed. The first problem is that the intraspinal method of treatment requires a spinal tap which of course necessitates the use of a needle to the spinal cord. The second problem results from the first in that if it is necessary to use the intraspinal method over a period of time, such as two or three weeks, medication must be injected into the spine for this period of time and the continuous needle sticks into the spine has potential hazards. Further, if it is necessary to use the intraspinal method over time, even though the dosage is substantially less compared to oral or intravenous dosages, there is still a high potential for addiction and with such addiction the resultant problems of withdrawal and its associated side effects.
Although intraspinal application of narcotics is still used to alleviate pain after surgery, this technique has the limitations with the potential for addiction as described above. In addition, it has been determined that with frail patients there is the risk that the patient can stop breathing and there have been a number of cases of respiratory arrest after the administration of narcotics using the intraspinal technique. Further, the intraspinal technique of administering narcotics creates difficulty with male patients and especially with elderly male patients in that there can be problems with urination and with consequent problems of urine retention. Finally, this intraspinal technique produces a significant itching problem as a side effect.
In recent studies, it was discovered that opioid receptors may also be located in other peripheral tissues. This was reported in Stein, C. et al., Peripheral effect of fentanyl upon nociception in inflamed tissue of the rat. Neurosci. Lett. 84:225-228 (1988), and in Stein, C. et al., Antinociceptive effects of mu- and kappa-agonists in inflammation are enhanced by a peripheral opioid receptor-specific mechanism of action. Eur. J. Pharmacol. 155:255-264 (1988). Subsequently, animal experiments were performed in Dr. Stein's laboratory characterizing peripheral opioid receptors and their activation by morphine and other opioid drugs. Stein, C., et al., N. Engl. J. Med. 325:1123-1126 (1991) also reported the analgesic effect of intraarticular morphine after arthroscopic knee surgery. These results were reviewed in Stein, C., Peripheral mechanisms of opioid analgesia. Anesth. Analg. 76:182-191 (1993), and in Stein, C., Lehrgerger, K., Yassouridis, A., Khoury, G.: Opioids as novel intraarticular agents in arthritis. In: Progress in Pain Research and Management, Fields, H. L., Liebeskind, J. C., eds., 1:289-296, IASP Press, Seattle (1994). A most important determination from these various studies is that the doses of the drugs required to produce analgesia in the peripheral tissues are extremely small and therefore devoid of the above mentioned side effects produced by dosages sufficient to operate on the brain.
In addition, it was determined that the endogenous ligands of peripheral opioid receptors (endorphins, the body's own pain killers) are located within the inflamed tissue. It was also determined that the endorphins can produce intrinsic analgesia within peripheral tissues both in animals and in humans (Stein (1993), ibid.). It was further noted that the peripheral opioid effects were more pronounced in inflamed than in non-inflamed tissues.
Severe pain caused or accompanied by inflammation in skin is a particularly intractable problem, because the underlying reasons for it tend to be both long-term and yet not inherently life-threatening, e.g., shingles and various kinds of burns, both of militate against the chronic systemic use of opioid agents. This led to initial investigations into whether it might be possible to be able to induce effective opioid analgesia in such cases without negative systemic opioid administration effects.
Initially, it was thought that it would be necessary to inject the morphine into an inflamed area since the inflammation activates the opioid receptors and it was also believed that the morphine had to be in an enclosed space to stay in contact with the area that was inflamed. The initial experiments were conducted in conjunction with arthroscopic surgery of the knee and a number of patients were medicated after arthroscopic surgery with injected morphine. These patients were medicated either with morphine alone, with a local anesthetic such as Marcaine or a combination of Marcaine and 1 mg of morphine. It was shown that patients receiving morphine into the joint had significantly more pain relief than patients receiving the same dose intravenously (demonstrating a local effect) and that this effect was mediated by intraarticular opioid receptors. Furthermore, patients who received just Marcaine after the surgery had relief but the relief typically did not extend beyond 12 hours or at most the next day after surgery. The patients who received Marcaine plus one mg of morphine in the knee had much better relief extending for at least twice as long as those that received Marcaine alone. See Stein et al. (1991).
At this point, it was still thought that it was necessary to keep the morphine in a closed space, such as in a knee, and the results of such controlled clinical studies reporting analgesia produced by morphine injected into the knee joint were reported in Stein et al., N. Engl. J. Med., 325: 1123-1126 (1991); Comment in N. Engl. J. Med., 325:1168-1169 (1991) and Khoury et al., Anesthes. 77:263-266 (1992). These studies have been replicated by several other groups throughout the world, but this application of morphine was relatively restricted to the practice of orthopedic surgeons using the morphine injected into a joint after arthroscopic surgery and further progress was restricted because it was thought that the morphine had to be contained in the closed space so as to keep the medication in close contact with the inflamed area.
Thus, there was a body of studies determining that opioid receptors were found in various peripheral tissues and suggesting that peripheral opioid effects would be more pronounced in inflamed than in non-inflamed tissues; however, there was no specific determination of how to provide an analgesic effect, using narcotics such as morphine, other than by injection of morphine into a closed space such as a joint. None of these reports discussed the possibility that pain relief could be topically induced in skin, whether inflamed or not, nor was it even known whether peripheral opioid receptors are present in human skin.
Nevertheless, while the need for adequate treatment and relief of pain in inflamed skin was evident, there was a lack of evidence that human skin contained peripheral opioid receptors, and there was doubt whether topical administration in the absence of the enclosed conditions akin to administration into the intra-articular space would work. Thus, the inventors of U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480 conceived and developed a method of carrying out the concept of effecting topical local analgesia in inflamed skin with opioid agents.
The fact that the opioid effects are more pronounced in inflamed than in non-inflamed tissues is a considerable advantage considering that most painful conditions are associated with inflammation, for example, cancer, arthritis, trauma, post-operative pain, skin lesions, etc. The work disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480 demonstrated that extremely small systemically inactive doses of both conventional opioid drugs such as morphine, as well as other opioid agents, can produce potent analgesic effects after local application to inflamed skin in peripheral tissue. U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480 discloses a method and preparation for a topical application of an opioid drug, such as morphine, for a direct activation of the peripheral opioid receptors on the surface of inflamed skin, without any substantial transdermal or transmucosal systemic delivery of the opioid.
Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that the inflammatory process in peripheral tissue is associated with an increase in sensitivity to the antinociceptive effects of opioid agents, perhaps by activation of opioid receptors located on primary afferent neurons. This may occur by one or more means, e.g., de novo synthesis of opioid receptors which increases the number of receptors; axonal transport of pre-existing receptors to peripheral nerve terminals increasing their concentration and thus sensitivity; some other means of activation of pre-existing neuronal opioid receptors by the inflammatory process. See, e.g., Stein, C., Peripheral and non-neuronal opioid effects. Curr. Opin. Anaesth. 7:347-351 (1994). In addition, again without wishing to be bound by theory, inflamed skin is generally more permeable to topically-administered agents, because the inflammatory process destroys Schwann cells in the epidermis, leading to further exposure of the nerve terminals; inflammation also causes edema, which results in loss of integrity of the epidermis, making the nerve terminals more accessible to topical agents.
Although U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480 demonstrated the effectiveness of topically-applied opioid analgesics without systemic delivery in inflamed skin, the treatment of peripheral pain in the case of non-inflamed skin faced the additional hurdles of lesser skin permeability, which thus required the addition of skin penetration enhancers and thus risked unwanted systemic delivery, and also did not have the same basis for expecting a successful outcome, i.e., that the inflammatory process in peripheral tissue is associated with an increase in sensitivity to the antinociceptive effects of opioid agents, e.g., due to an increase in the number and/or sensitivity of opioid receptors at peripheral nerve terminals induced by the inflammatory process. Therefore, it could not be predicted whether or how topical analgesia could be induced in non-inflamed skin or mucosa, at least without effecting systemic transdermal or transmucosal delivery as well. Moreover, it was desired to improve, if possible, the effectiveness of topical opioid analgesia induced in inflamed skin or mucosal tissue, without effecting systemic delivery of the opioid agents.
As expected, application of the pharmaceutical preparations in accordance with those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,480, which comprised, e.g., morphine sulfate in a simple pharmaceutically acceptable topical excipient, e.g., water, saline or hydrophilic gel such as KY Jelly, when applied to intact, non-inflamed skin in a patient suffering from non-inflammatory skin pain such as peripheral neuropathy, did not work. However, when skin-specific penetration enhancers are added to the topical formulation, it was found that even pain arising in non-inflamed skin could be successfully treated with topical, local analgesic agents which affect peripheral opioid receptors in the absence of delivery of clinically effective central nervous system levels. Moreover, these skin penetration enhancers were surprisingly shown to improve the effectiveness of local opioid analgesic agents which bind to opioid receptors in the treatment of pain in inflamed skin or mucosal tissue without the concomitant delivery of substantial amounts of the analgesic agent into the systemic circulation. This invention is fully disclosed in U.S. Ser. No. 09/028,117. The analgesic effect was thus potentiated by topically administering to a patient in need of such treatment a topically effective amount of an analgesic agent, which amount is systemically ineffective for induction of analgesia, admixed with a skin- or mucosa-specific penetration enhancer, such as, e.g., lecithin, and a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient for topical administration, preferably whereby effective analgesia in the non-inflamed skin or mucosal tissue is induced in the substantial absence of transdermal or transmucosal delivery of the opioid analgesic agent to the systemic circulation.
Peripheral Muscarinic Analgesia
L. C. Yang et al., Anesthesiology 88:334-339 (1998) discloses inducing post-operative analgesia by intra-articular administration of neostigmine in patients undergoing knee arthroscopy, using a counterpart of the method disclosed in Stein et al. (1991). Neostigmine is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor; it was postulated to induce analgesia by a variety of pathways, presumably via induction of peripheral cholinerigic antinociception by elevating endogenous acetylcholine available to peripheral muscarinic receptors. Systemic administration of neostigmine through the spinal or epidural route of administration has been shown to have dose-related side effects similar to opioids, such as nausea, vomiting and pruritus.
It therefore was deemed desirable to provide an additional analgesic in the pharmaceutical arsenal of antinociceptives, by providing an effective topical method of treating pain via the muscarinic receptor pathway of analgesia, without the negative effects of systemic neostigmine administration. The work disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 09/083,431 demonstrated that small systemically inactive doses of neostigmine, can produce potent analgesic effects after local application to inflamed skin in peripheral tissue. Application Ser. No. 09/083,431 discloses a method and preparation for a topical application of a muscarinic drug, such as neostigmine, for a direct activation of the peripheral muscarinic receptors on the surface of inflamed skin, without any substantial transdermal or transmucosal systemic delivery.
Treatment of Acne with Opioid Analgesic Agents
U.S. Ser. No. 08/874,254 disclosed that topical application of small systemically inactive doses of opioid analgesic agents surprisingly were effective for the treatment of acne. However, especially in the case of minors suffering from acne, this treatment requires use of a controlled substance. Thus, it would also be desirable to provide an additional non-narcotic, non-teratogenic agent in the pharmaceutical arsenal of acne treatments, by providing another effective topical method of treating acne, e.g., via the muscarinic receptor pathway, without the negative effects of systemic neostigmine administration.

Topical application of muscarinic agents such as neostigmine for treatment of acne and other inflammatory conditions


Diaculture of text can be determined or analyzed by tokenizing words of the text according to a rule set to generate tokenized text, the rule set defining: a first set of grammatical types of words, which are words that are replaced with tokens that respectively indicate a grammatical type of a respective word, and a second set of grammatical types of words, which are words that are passed as tokens without changing. Grams can be constructed from the tokenized text, each gram including one or more of consecutive tokens from the tokenized text. The grams can be compared to a training data set that corresponds to a known diaculture to obtain a comparison result that indicates how well the text matches the training data set for the known diaculture.

Conventionally, if an analyst wishes to identify specific diaculture data streams, the analyst either uses hand selected keywords, or identifies hand selected communications channels. A standard search engine can be utilized to search for such keywords.
The analyst relies on his own ability to identify critical combinations of keywords or phrases. Skilled analysts can be very good at this, but it requires innate abilities and experience, and takes time.

Identifying cultural background from text


There is provided a method of manufacturing a nano-wire using a crystal structure. In the method of manufacturing a nano-wire, a crystal grain having a plurality of crystal faces is used as a seed, and a crystal growing material having a lattice constant difference within a predetermined range is deposited on the crystal grain, thereby allowing the nano-wire to grow from at least one of the crystal faces. Therefore, it is possible to give the positional selectivity with a simple process using a principle of crystal growth and to generate a nano-structure such as a nano-wire, etc. having good crystallinity. Further, it is possible to generate a different-kind junction structure having various shapes by adjusting a feature of a crystal used as a seed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a nano-wire, and more particularly, to a method of manufacturing a nano-wire used in an electronic element.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, many researches for a semiconductor nano-structure have been progressed, and researches for applying the semiconductor nano-structure to various fields of electric elements, photoelectric elements, gas sensors, etc. by using a unique feature according to shapes and sizes have been progressed.
In a conventional representative synthesizing method, a material is synthesized using a metal catalyst and using a laser ablation, a thermal deposition, etc. (Alfredo M. Morales et al., "A Laser Ablation Method for the Synthesis of Crystalline Semiconductor Nanowires" SCIENCE VOL. 279 208 (1998); and Zheng Wei Pan et al., "Nanobelts of Semiconducting Oxides" SCIENCE VOL. 291 1948 (2001)).
In the method suggested by Morales et al., metal used as a seed in a substrate or powder shape could operate as interior impurities, using a resolution of a surface of a metal catalyst and a simple two-dimension structure could be obtained. Further, the material which can be synthesized by a catalyst metal is limited.


A socket for use in mounting of an electrical part with lead members has a main base member with contact elements secured therein and a reciprocating cover member movable up and down with respect to said base member and including a cam member adapted to engage said contact elements so that as said cover member moves from a first original position to a second position and back again the contact elements likewise move from the first position to a second position and then back again to the first position. This movement allows the insertion of the electrical part into the socket and the contacting of the contact elements with the lead members. The base member further includes at least 2 surfaces positioned along with a mounting surface so that the electrical part when mounted is guided into proper mounting position and maintains this position after contacting by contact members so that accurate contacting can be made between the contact elements of the socket and the terminal parts of the electrical part without the need of a latch mechanism.

This invention relates to a socket having a contact for making contact to electrical part and more particularly to a socket for use in an IC chip test.
In recent years, the IC package has become thinner and smaller thereby increasing the demand for surface mounting of them. At the same time, however, the quality of the product becomes potentially less stable as the IC becomes thinner with the consequence that it has become even more important to testing and elimination of those products which do not pass test or which contain an element that does not pass test.
To accomplish such testing the IC package is placed in a heating furnace (heat-resistant test called burn-in test) in a socket. Such a socket for IC package mounting as used in such a test is shown in FIG. 15.
The IC package 16 as shown in FIG. 15 is of the vertical surface mount package type (VPAK), whereby a lead 18 is provided only on one side of the IC chip so as to be mounted vertically on the substrate as shown in FIG. 11, 12 and 13.
Protrusions 17a are provided at both ends of the main body 17 on the side with contact leads 18. Additionally, the leads 18 have a tip portion 18a bent by nearly 90 degrees with regard to the main portion of lead 18. FIG. 14 clearly shows this feature. The IC package 16 is mounted vertically in application on a printed substrate which is indicated by an imaginary line in FIG. 12. In this mounted state, the protrusion 17a are inserted into the blind holes 80a of the printed substrate 80, with the IC package 16 being positioned with regard to printed substrate 80 so that the bend part 18a at the tip of lead 18 is soldered to the wiring 80b of the printed substrate 80. In connection with the burn-in test, however, the IC package 16 is horizontally mounted as shown in FIG. 15.
FIG. 15 shows an expanded cross section of a typical socket with an IC package mounted therein. The socket consists of a main socket body (base) 81 which is equipped with a contact and a cover 90. The cover is biased in a direction which is opposite to the base 81 by means of a coil spring 98 and it is stopped at a prescribed location as compared with base 81 by means of a stopper as is known in the art and not shown in the drawing.
The IC package 16 is inserted into an IC package insertion space 81a of base 81 and positioned on a placing surface 81c of a placing stand 81b. Contact 95 has a base part 95a contained in the bottom wall of base 81, a terminal portion 95f which sticks out beneath the base and a pin part 95b which extends up into the space inside the base. Attached to pin part 95b is a curved portion 95c which terminates in a tip which compressively contacts the bent portion at the tip of lead 18 due to the elasticity of the pin part 95b.
In the above described socket, the lead 18 exists only on one side of the main IC package with a result that the main IC package body 17 tends to jump out upwardly by moving as indicated by arrow mark b by the compressive force due to the contact 95 as indicated by an arrow mark a.
It is possible to employ a latch mechanism and fix the position of the IC package by using it. However, the use of such a latch will complicate the structure of the socket and thereby increase its manufacturing cost.


A flossing system including a cradle and a housing. The flossing system includes an array of floss cartridges having a length of floss. The array of floss cartridges include a pair of coupling members each coupled to opposite ends of the length of floss. Each floss cartridge includes a coupling structure. The flossing system includes a pair of floss handles disposed on the cradle and selectably coupleable to the coupling members. The pair of floss handles include a cylindrical body. The pair of floss handles include a release mechanism configured to selectably disengage the floss handle from the coupling member. The release mechanism includes an actuation member disposed through a back end of the cylindrical body of each of the pair of floss handles. The pair of floss handles each include a top aperture configured to receive the coupling structure of the pair of coupling members.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dental hygiene devices, specifically to a dental flossing system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Dental floss is either a bundle of thin nylon filaments or a plastic (Teflon or polyethylene) ribbon used to remove food and dental plaque from teeth. The floss is gently inserted between the teeth and scraped along the teeth sides, especially close to the gums. Dental floss may be flavored or unflavored, and waxed or unwaxed. An alternative tool to achieve the same effect is the interdental brush or specialized plastic wands, or floss picks, have been produced to hold the floss. These may be attached to or separate from a floss dispenser. While not pinching the finger, using a wand may be awkward and also make it difficult to floss at all the angles possible with a finger. At the same time, the enhanced reach can make flossing the back teeth easier. Some improvements have been made in the field. Examples of references related to the present invention are described below in their own words, and the supporting teachings of each reference are incorporated by reference herein:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,895,977, issued to Guo, discloses a dental flossing tool for dispensing floss for cleaning the user's teeth. A handle body surrounds a cavity and has a lead riser from which dental floss is dispensed for use. The floss is wound upon a spool that rotates inside the cavity. Floss is paid out from the spool and emerges from a hole in the tip of the lead riser. A button or handle is slidably mounted upon the apparatus for controlling the longitudinal movement of a retainer within the cavity of the apparatus. By sliding the button handle forward and backward, the user can disengage and engage the retainer with a baffle attached to the spool inside the body of the apparatus. When the retainer is in contact with the baffle, the spool is prevented from rotating, thereby stopping any further floss from being dispensed. When the retainer is disengaged out of contact with the baffle, the spool is free to rotate to pay out floss. A removable protector is provided for covering the lead riser and a floss cutter blade attached to the exterior of the apparatus. The protector can be removed to the back end of the apparatus to extend its graspable portion for easier handling.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,019,109, issued to Moore, discloses a dental flossing tool and method for flossing of the teeth using that tool is provided. The tool includes two elongated, rod-shaped handle elements and a length of dental floss that is removably secured at its opposite ends to respective ones of the handle elements at their terminal ends. Each handle element is provided with a bulb at the terminal end to which the floss is attached with the bulbs being larger in transverse cross-section relative to the longitudinal axis of its handle element than is the adjacent portion of the handle element. This results in a depressed annular region in which floss is wound and functions to retain the floss on a handle element. Each handle element includes a hand-grip section disposed in remote relationship to the terminal end provided with a bulb enabling a user to grip the element in a respective hand for support thereof and independent manipulation in effecting a flossing operation. The user holds the handle elements in separated relationship to maintain the floss extending between the terminal ends taut as an operative flossing section while inserting it between a pair of adjacent teeth and moving it to effect removal of debris. At intermittent intervals the user revolves the handle elements to concurrently unreel a length of floss from one and reel a length onto the other thereby placing an unused section of floss in an operative position and placing the previously used section on a handle element for storage until being discarded upon termination of a flossing operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,446, issued to Wiltshire, discloses a dental floss device and applicator assembly comprising a pair of separate, substantially elongate members with each member having spaced apart top and bottom end portions with a gripping section located between the top and bottom end portions, a plurality of dental floss segments, and a slot formed in the top end portion of each member that has a prong protruding from the slot for releasably holding one of the dental floss segments (STRAND) within the slot. An alignment channel or groove can also be formed in the top end portion and located adjacent to the slot to hold and guide the STRAND within the alignment channel or groove without requiring a user to manipulate the STRAND with the user's fingers as the prong engages and holds the STRAND under the prong. The members are of sufficient length to allow a user to insert the members into a person's mouth with the STRAND attached to the top end portion of the members to clean all surfaces of the person's teeth without requiring the user to insert the user's fingers into the person's mouth. Further, the user does not have to manipulate the STRAND with the user's fingers when cleaning the person's teeth. The dental floss device and applicator assembly can also include a kit for storing the members and a container of dental floss segments.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,655,233, issued to Laughlin, discloses a tool for the dental flossing of teeth and a precut length of dental floss having gripping attachments secured to the ends of the length of floss. The precut length(s) of floss are configured so as to facilitate the gripping of the attachments by the flossing tool. The tool is fully operable by the use of one hand.
The inventions heretofore known suffer from a number of disadvantages which include being difficult to use, being difficult to control, being too slow, being non-durable, being dangerous to use, being unable to reach certain areas of the mouth, being non-portable, being uncomfortable to use, being expensive, being bulky, being inefficient, being limited in application, being limited in use, being limited in movement, not being ergonomic, being difficult for children to use, taking too long to use, blocking fingertip circulation, being difficult to travel with, being fragile, and being cumbersome to use.
What is needed is a flossing system that solves one or more of the problems described herein and/or one or more problems that may come to the attention of one skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with this specification.


An image processing method for carrying out predetermined correction processing with respect to one or more items regarding the quality of color images and the image processing method comprises a judgment step for judging the necessity/nonnecessity of correction with respect to each of the above-mentioned items and a correction processing step for carrying out the predetermined correction processing with respect to the item judged as required to be corrected at the above-mentioned judgment step.

In conventional computer processing, color images have been processed and edited by using predetermined program software. A program for correcting the image quality of color images has been known as a program for supporting this editing operation, and has been built in a special-purpose image processing apparatus or provided on the market in the form of ROM, for example.
Unlike the image correction of manuscript images captured by a color copier or the like, the image correction of color images in the processing and editing operations using a computer is required to reflect the intention of the editor. Therefore, in the processing procedure in accordance with a conventional image correction program, the necessity/nonnecessity of correction processing is judged by the editor. When image correction is instructed by the editor, the image correction program is executed, and predetermined correction processing is carried out.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a conventional processing procedure for correcting plural color images all together.
In accordance with this flowchart, the editor displays plural images photographed by a digital camera for example on a display device, such as a CRT, and determines images required to be corrected. The editor inputs a command for instructing image correction to run an image correction program. In accordance with this image correction program, when plural files to be subjected to image correction and the output destinations of the files after correction are input by the editor interactively or in a form required for information input (#101 and #102), first, a processing file count value n is set at "1" (#103). Next, the image data of the file designated first is read (#104). After predetermined image correction processing (contour correction, contrast correction and the like, for example) is carried out (#105), the file including the image data is output to the designated output destination (a memory for storing the data, a printer and the like) (#106).
Next, the count value n is incremented by one (#107), and whether the count value n is larger than the designated number N of files is judged (#108). If the count value n is not larger than the number N (NO at #108), the procedure returns to #104, and the same predetermined image processing is carried out for the next image file (#104 to #108). If the count value n is larger than the designated total number N of files (YES at #108), it is judged that the image correction processing has been completed for the files, and the processing ends.
In the conventional image correction program, the editor judges the necessity/nonnecessity of image correction, and on the basis of the result of the judgment, the predetermined image correction processing is carried out for a color image required to be corrected. Therefore, in the case when plural photographed color images are corrected for example, the editor must judge the necessity/nonnecessity of image correction for each color image. This becomes burdensome to the editor. In addition, since the designated plural color images are corrected all together, in the case when images not required to be corrected are included, image quality will be deteriorated by the correction, and image correction must be carried out again. This may lower processing efficiency.

Image processing method, recording medium with recorded image processing program and image processing apparatus


A three wheeled off road sports board provides a rider with the experience of snowboarding while traveling on dirt, gravel or other coarse surfaces, the sports board supplying a platform, a wheel secured within a cutout portion in the front of the board, and two rear wheels upon a common axle, with the rear end of the board providing an upward angled rear end with an adjustable lower braking apparatus to slow the rider and also to assist the rider in stopping, slowing or turning.

1. Field of Invention
An off road sports board provides a rider with the experience of snowboarding while standing on the sports board and shifting his weight from side to side to steer the sports board on dirt, gravel or other particulate materials when or where snow is not present, the sports board having an overall elongated oval configured deck with an upward angled rear section and inward tapered central wheel cutouts, the sports board further defining an upper surface including a front and rear friction enhanced area upon which the rider's feet are positioned and secured by removable strappings, a front cutout section defining a front wheel opening and a lower surface to which are attached a pair axially aligned of front axle supports containing a front axle having a central portion upon which an inner bearing of a front wheel is placed, orienting the front wheel within the front cutout section, a pair of axially aligned middle axle supports containing a middle axle having two ends, each end attached to an inner bearing of a middle wheel, and an adjustable depth brake apparatus on the lower surface on the upward angled rear section, the rear friction enhances area located behind the middle axle allowing the rider to shift his weight, tilting upward angled rear section downward forcing the adjustable depth braking apparatus into the travel surface upon which the sports board is used, stopping or slowing the travel of the sports board.
2. Description of Prior Art
A preliminary review of prior art patents was conducted by the applicant which reveal prior art patents in a similar field or having similar use. However, the prior art inventions do not disclose the same or similar elements as the present sports board, nor do they present the material components in a manner contemplated or anticipated in the prior art.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,096 to Cook, a portion of the wheels on the underside of a skateboard are presented in an in-line configuration, with Cook having two sets of three wheels with a steerable means on the truck. A snowboard is disclosed in U.S. Design Pat. No. D524,400 to Langford, disclosing a plurality of lower fins which allow for steering of the board by the angle of the upper deck.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,291 to Ramage, discloses a skateboard having oversized wheels for use on off-road terrains. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,096,225 to Osawa, a skateboard having plurality of reduced diameter rollers on the underside for use of the skateboard on grass is disclosed, the upper deck being flexible to conform to the varying terrain to allow all the wheels to remain in contact with the grass turf. In another U.S. Patent No. D529,565 to Warner, a skateboard with an arch shaped platform includes three sets of tandem wheels, one set on each end with a set in the middle.
A snowboard balance simulator is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,691 to Moscarello which has a single central roller base having a football shaped contour, but has no direct attachment to the upper board member. It is not intended for travel. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,776 to Todd, a skateboard with a snowboard response has contoured wheels, with two large diameter front and rear wheels affixed to the bottom of the board and two smaller diameter wheel located in front and behind the respective larger diameter wheels, demonstrating a tilting application indicated in FIG. 5, but requiring release of all pressure from the elevated end to accomplish the tilting movement.
Wheelless snowboard are shown in U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2004/0032113 to Rancon and Design Pat. No. D498,810, showing a similar board configuration which could be significantly modified for use as a component in the current sports board. A three wheeled board is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,540 to Smith, but it does not have two axial middle wheels and requires the rider to balance on two of the wheels without lateral stabilization. It also has no brake apparatus. U.S. Pat. No. 7,441,787 to Jordan (same inventor) includes three longitudinally aligned wheels with a front wheel, a rear wheel and a larger central wheel which is adjustable front to back. In U.S. Patent Pub. No 2003/0107199 to DeSchinkel, another longitudinally aligned set of three wheels is shown with foot clamps on the upper surface of the deck.
None of the disclosed indicates a sports board with a braking apparatus, a front wheel which is located in the front portion with the front wheel through the upper and lower deck and a middle axle with two axially aligned wheels on the sides of the board, providing a stabile sport board that can be stood upon without requiring a lateral balancing, the three wheels on the present sports board forming a triangular configuration and orientation, steerable by movement of weight by the rider from side to side with rear braking accomplished by a shift of weight to the back foot tilting the rear of the board, forcing the adjustable depth braking apparatus into the travel surface to slow or stop movement of the sports board upon the surface or to accentuate a turn.


A pattern recognition device includes a feature vector calculator; a model selecting unit; a correction vector calculator; a feature vector correcting unit; and a pattern recognition unit. The correction vector calculator calculates, for each of the selection models, a modified directional vector having N dimensional components (N≧1). A value of the n-th dimensional component (N≧n≧1) of the modified directional vector is obtained by subtracting a value of the n-th dimensional component of the variance vector multiplied by a predetermined coefficient from an absolute value of the n-th component of a different vector between the average vector and feature vectors to obtain a first value, and then multiplying the first value by a plus or minus sign identical to a sign of the n-th dimensional component of the difference vector, and further calculate a correction vector with respect to a vector obtained by superimposing the modified directional vectors.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pattern recognition device, a pattern recognition method and a computer program product.
2. Description of the Related Art
When performing speech recognition, a feature of speech to be recognized is compared with models that have learned speech features to determine which model is close to the speech to be recognized. In speaker-independent speech recognition, speaker and noise environment are different between when a model learns and when the model is used for speech recognition, so that bias occurs between the model and an input speech feature. As a representative method for reducing an influence exerted by the bias, there is a CMN method (see B. Atal, "Effectiveness of linear prediction characteristics of the speech wave for automatic speaker identification and verification," J. Acoust. Soc. AM., vol. 55, pp. 1304-1312, 1974).
In the CMN method, feature amounts in a certain defined time section are averaged and an average value thus obtained is subtracted from each feature amount, so as to remove the influence by the bias. The CMN method is effective as the method of reducing the influence by the bias, and a calculation amount thereof is small.
As another method of removing the effect of the bias, there is an MLLR method (see C. J. Leggetter and P. C. Woodland, "Maximum likelihood linear regression for speaker adaptation of continuous-density hidden Markov models", Computer Speech and Language, vol. 9, pp. 171-185, 1995) and an SBR method (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,242). In the MLLR method, a condition in which the bias does not change in time is assumed. The SBR method uses a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) represented by a Gaussian distribution as the model. In the SBR method, the bias is corrected by approximating variance of the Gaussian distribution by a unit matrix in a bias section calculator of the MLLR method.
In the SBR method, an average of differences between an average vector of each model and each feature vector is used as a correction vector, and a feature vector is corrected by subtracting the average vector from the feature vector. Thus, the correction taking into account the influence of the noise and the like can be performed.
However, in the SBR method, because the variance of the model distribution is approximated, there may be a case in which bias correction performance is deteriorated. On the other hand, in the MLLR method, because the correction vector is a weighted average obtained by weighting the difference between the average vector of the models and the feature vector with standard deviation, and a condition in which the bias does not change in time is assumed, the correction performance is deteriorated when the bias sequentially changes.

Pattern recognition device, pattern recognition method and computer program product


N pieces of gains Gi are sequentially and temporarily set in a control circuit (23), and a stylus (131) is brought in contact with a workpiece (W) for conducting a temporary measurement. At this time, a sensor detection signal output from a sensor detection circuit (21) is filtered by a filter (31) to take out only a frequency component corresponding to a frequency of hunting generated in a closed loop (L) including the control circuit (23). Gains Gj that do not generate hunting in the closed loop (L) are extracted, and the largest gain Gj is set in the control circuit (23) in view of enhancement in responsivity etc. of the measurement. Alternatively, by pressing the stylus (131) into the workpiece (W), a displacement signal indicating a pressing amount and a sensor signal output from a sensor (13) are measured in accordance with a measurement load applied to the stylus (131) to calculate a gain Gs′ of the sensor (13) based on the two signals. By compensating the gain of the control circuit in accordance with the gain Gs′, frequency characteristics of the measurement control system can be kept to the largest even when the stylus (131) or the workpiece (W) is replaced with another one having different properties.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a control parameter setting method for a control circuit in a measurement control system and a measuring instrument.
2. Description of Related Art
A gain, phase compensation frequency, etc. are known as a control parameter of a control circuit. As a gain setting method for the control circuit in the measurement control system, there has been conventionally known a method including a data obtaining step for obtaining data required for gain setting, a determination step for determining an optimal gain for measurement based on the data, and a setting step for setting a gain determined to be the optimal gain in the control circuit (see, for instance, Document 1: JP-A-5-223519). Herein, the optimal gain of the control circuit is a gain capable of preventing the measurement control system from being in a self-oscillation state to achieve stable measurement as well as providing quick measurement.
For determination of the optimal gain, various methods can be used. For instance, methods (a) and (b) described below are disclosed in Document 1.
(a) A data group (material of a stylus, material of a workpiece, etc) required for the gain setting is manually input by an operator, which is then compared with a data table having been prepared in advance. A plurality of reference input data groups, reference gain values (proportional action parameter PP, etc.) obtained empirically as optimal gains respectively for the reference input data groups and the like are included in the data table. The operator compares an actual input data group input by oneself and the plurality of reference input data groups and selects a reference input data group most approximate to the actual input data group to set a reference gain corresponding to the selected reference input data group in the control circuit as the optimal gain.
(b) A stylus is fixed on a point of a workpiece and a temporary measurement is conducted while changing gains (proportional action parameter PP, etc.) of the control circuit to calculate a current error ΔE for each of the gains. ΔE represents a degree of dispersion of tunneling current applied between the stylus and the workpiece relative to a target current. In a measurement control state, since the tunneling current is changed in a manner oscillating around the target current, a large ΔE indicates that amplitude around the target current is large and the measurement control system is in a self-oscillation state (i.e., hunting is being generated), while a small ΔE indicates that amplitude around the target current is small and the tunneling current is substantially equalized with the target current, so that the measuring control system is stable. A determination of the optimal gain of the control circuit is performed for stabilizing the measurement control system, and a gain realizing small ΔE is determined to be the optimal gain. Specifically, a ΔE value for each of the gains is compared with a predetermined reference value, and a gain with the ΔE value equal to or smaller than the reference value is determined to be the optimal gain.
However, the methods (a) and (b) described above each have problems as follows.
In the method (a), since a preparatory measurement for preparing the data table has to be conducted precisely, a burden on the operator is increased. In addition, since the reference gain corresponding to the reference input data that is most approximate to the actual input data group is set as the optimal gain, the optimal gain is also a mere approximate value. Thus, in ultraprecision measuring or the like, where high precision is required in setting the gain, the method cannot be employed.
In the method (b), the optimal gain of the control circuit is determined with the ΔE value as an index to prevent the hunting from being generated in the measurement control system. However, the ΔE value is mere a value indicating the degree of dispersion of the tunneling current, which cannot be directly related with existence of the hunting. Thus, the small ΔE value does not always indicate that the hunting is not generated, so that the hunting might not be prevented sufficiently even by setting the optimal gain with the method (b).
Further, frequency characteristics of the entire measurement control system are changed depending on properties such as hardness and elasticity of the measuring unit and the workpiece.
Thus, even if the frequency characteristics of the measurement control system are maximized by setting the optimal gain in the control circuit by the gain setting method disclosed in Document 1 described above, when at least one of the measuring unit and the workpiece is replaced with another one having different properties, the frequency characteristics of the measurement control system are degraded and decreased, thereby possibly impeding stability of the measurement.

Method to determine a control parameter in a measurement control system


Systems and methods are disclosed to authenticate and authorize a user for web services using user devices. In various embodiments, a method may comprise: identifying, by a user device security manager executing at a user device corresponding to a user of a web service, a first request issued from an application to access remote resources associated with the web service, the application executing at the user device and separate from the user device security manager; acquiring, by the user device security manager, security information of the application in response to the identifying of the first request, the security information including at least one of an application identification, an access scope or a nonce of the application; and transmitting a second request from the user device security manager to the web service to authenticate the application by the web service based, at least in part, on the application identification.

Web services, such as online advertisers, online marketplaces, online payment providers, social network services or other aggregator websites, may deploy technologies to authenticate users, such as receiving user-typed or browser-provided user information (e.g., identifications and passwords) via login web forms provided by the web services. Once the users are properly authenticated, for example, based on determining that the user-typed or browser-provided user information matches stored user information, then the web services may authorize the users for different services based on their identifications. For example, the web services may provide one user with certain services (e.g., functions) while refraining from providing another user with the same services.