A computer implemented method for keyword search over a knowledge graph. The knowledge graph comprises a large number of vertices representing entities and a large number of edges representing relations between the entities. The knowledge graph is enhanced with static labels. A static label for each vertex includes a list of distances between the vertex and other vertices of the knowledge graph. The method includes receiving a set of keywords, constructing dynamic labels based on the set of keywords and determining a subgraph of the knowledge graph for the set of keywords based on the static labels and based on the dynamic labels. The constructing of the dynamic labels includes obtaining keyword vertices by mapping keywords of the set of keywords to vertices of the knowledge graph and obtaining for the keyword vertices distances between the keyword vertices and predecessors of the keyword vertices from the static labels.

Keyword search allows users to query data without a prior knowledge of specialized query languages. A keyword query is a set of words posed by the user that should be matched to the data. Relevant data fragments are then extracted and presented to the user in an appropriate format as answers. The exact way of matching keywords, extracting data, and composing answers depends on the format of the underlying data and the semantics of query answering.
Knowledge graphs are mainly used for graph-based knowledge representation by describing (real world) entities and their relations. A knowledge graph comprises a large number of vertices representing the entities and a large number of edges representing the relations between the entities.
A common type of semantics for keyword queries over graph data is to match each keyword to a vertex of the graph and to extract trees of minimum weight that contain these vertices, known as minimum-weight Steiner trees as described in Stefan Voß. 1992. "Steiner's Problem in Graphs: Heuristic Methods." Discr. Appl. Math. 40, 1 (1992), 45-72.
In an edge-weighted data graph and a keyword query, one firstly finds for each keyword the matching set of vertices in the graph, i.e., all the vertices where the keyword can be matched, and then finds a tree in the graph that spans the matching sets, i.e., contains at least one vertex from each matching set, and that minimizes the total edge weight. This optimization problem is the group Steiner tree (GST) problem as described in Stefan Voß. 1992. "Steiner's Problem in Graphs: Heuristic Methods." Discr. Appl. Math. 40, 1 (1992), 45-72. Keywords are also allowed to be matched to edges. Edge matches can be straightforwardly transformed into vertex matches via graph subdivision, and be processed as vertex matches.
Computing answers to keyword queries under the GST semantics is computationally demanding. Moreover, existing approximation algorithms that have provable quality guarantees also have prohibitively high run time for large graphs. Knowledge graphs have become increasingly popular in recent years, and they can be huge. One goal of the present invention is to provide efficient keyword search systems and methods over knowledge graphs.

Method and system for keyword search over a knowledge graph


The present invention concerns an isolated siRNA of from about 5 to about 20 nucleotides that mediates RNA interference. Also disclosed are methods of reducing expression of a target gene in a cell comprising obtaining at least one siRNA of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, or 20 basepairs in length; and delivering the siRNA into the cell. The siRNAs can be chemically synthesized RNA or an analog of a naturally occurring RNA.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of molecular and cellular biology and has possible application for therapeutics. More particularly, it concerns the use of small interfering RNA's ("siRNA") as mediators of RNA interference ("RNAi").
2. Description of the Related Art
RNA interference, originally discovered in Caenorhabditis elegans by Fire and Mello (Fire et al., 1998), is a phenomenon in which double stranded RNA (dsRNA) reduces the expression of the gene to which the dsRNA corresponds. The phenomenon of RNAi was subsequently proven to exist in many organisms and to be a naturally occurring cellular process. The RNAi pathway can be used by the organism to inhibit viral infections, transposon jumping and to regulate the expression of endogenous genes (Huntvagner et al., 2001; Tuschl, 2001; Waterhouse et al., 2001; Zamore 2001). In original studies, researchers were inducing RNAi in non-mammalian systems and were using long double stranded RNAs. However, most mammalian cells have a potent antiviral response causing global changes in gene expression patterns in response to long dsRNA thus arousing questions as to the existence of RNAi in humans. As more information about the mechanistic aspects of RNAi was gathered, RNAi in mammalian cells was shown to also exist.
In an in vitro system derived from Drosophila embryos, long dsRNAs are processed into shorter siRNA's by a cellular ribonuclease containing RNaseIII motifs (Bernstein et al., 2001; Grishok et al., 2001; Hamilton and Baulcombe, 1999; Knight and Bass, 2001; Zamore et al., 2000). Genetics studies done in C. elegans, N. crassa and A. thaliana have lead to the identification of additional components of the RNAi pathway. These genes include putative nucleases (Ketting et al., 1999), RNA-dependent RNA polymerases (Cogoni and Macino, 1999a; Dalmay et al., 2000; Mourrain et al., 2000; Smardon et al., 2000) and helicases (Cogoni and Macino, 1999b; Dalmay et al., 2001; Wu-Scharf et al., 2000). Several of these genes found in these functional screens are involved not only in RNAi but also in nonsense mediated mRNA decay, protection against transposon-transposition (Zamore, 2001), viral infection (Waterhouse et al., 2001), and embryonic development (Hutvagner et al., 2001; Knight and Bass, 2001). In general, it is thought that once the siRNAs are generated from longer dsRNAs in the cell by the RNaseIII like enzyme, the siRNA associate with a protein complex. The protein complex also called RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC), then guides the smaller 21 base double stranded siRNA to the mRNA where the two strands of the double stranded RNA separate, the antisense strand associates with the mRNA and a nuclease cleaves the mRNA at the site where the antisense strand of the siRNA binds (Hammond et al., 2001). The mRNA is then subsequently degraded by cellular nucleases.
Based upon some of the information mentioned above, Elbashir et al. (2001) discovered a method to bypass the anti viral response and induce gene specific silencing in mammalian cells. Several 21 nucleotide dsRNAs with 2 nucleotide 3′ overhangs were transfected into mammalian cells without inducing a potent antiviral response. Their have been a few papers demonstrating that the siRNA can induce expression of some of the antiviral response genes at higher siRNA concentrations (Ford and Latham (2003)) The small dsRNA molecules (also referred to as "siRNA") were capable of inducing the specific suppression of target genes. In one set of experiments, siRNAs complementary to the luciferase gene were co-transfected with a luciferase reporter plasmid into NIH3T3, COS-7, HeLaS3, and 293 cells. In all cases, the siRNAs were able to specifically reduce luciferase gene expression. In addition, the authors demonstrated that siRNAs could reduce the expression of several endogenous genes in human cells. The endogenous targets were lamin A/C, lamin B1, nuclear mitotic apparatus protein, and vimentin. The use of siRNAs to modulate gene expression has now been reproduced by at least two other labs (Caplen et al., 2001; Hutvagner et al., 2001) and has been shown to exist in more that 10 different organisms spanning a large spectrum of the evolutionary tree.
The making of siRNAs has been through direct chemical synthesis, through processing of longer double stranded RNAs exposure to Drosophila embryo lysates, through an in vitro system derived from S2 cells, using page polymerase promoters, RNA-dependant RNA polymeras, and DNA based vectors. Use of cell lysates or in vitro processing may further involve the subsequent isolation of the short, 21-23 nucleotide siRNAs from the lysate, etc., making the process somewhat cumbersome and expensive. Chemical synthesis proceeds by making two single stranded RNA-oligomers followed by the annealing of the two single stranded oligomers into a double stranded RNA.
WO 99/32619 and WO 01/68836 suggest that RNA for use in siRNA may be chemically or enzymatically synthesized. The enzymatic synthesis contemplated is by a cellular RNA polymerase or a bacteriophage RNA polymerase (e.g., T3, T7, SP6) via the use and production of an expression construct as is known in the art. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,715. The contemplated constructs provide templates that produce RNAs that contain nucleotide sequences identical to a portion of the target gene. The length of identical sequences provided by these references is at least 25 bases, and may be as many as 400 or more bases in length. An important aspect of this reference is that the authors contemplate digesting longer dsRNAs to 21-25 mer lengths with the endogenous nuclease complex that converts long dsRNAs to siRNAs in vivo. They do not describe or present data for synthesizing and using in vitro transcribed 21-25 mer dsRNAs. No distinction is made between the expected properties of chemical or enzymatically synthesized dsRNA in its use in RNA interference.
Similarly, WO 00/44914 suggests that single strands of RNA can be produced enzymatically or by partial/total organic synthesis. Preferably, single stranded RNA is enzymatically synthesized from the PCR products of a DNA template, preferably a cloned cDNA template and the RNA product is a complete transcript of the cDNA, which may comprise hundreds of nucleotides. WO 01/36646 places no limitation upon the manner in which the siRNA is synthesized, providing that the RNA may be synthesized in vitro or in vivo, using manual and/or automated procedures. This reference also provides that in vitro synthesis may be chemical or enzymatic, for example using cloned RNA polymerase (e.g., T3, T7, SP6) for transcription of the endogenous DNA (or cDNA) template, or a mixture of both. Again, no distinction in the desirable properties for use in RNA interference is made between chemically or enzymatically synthesized siRNA.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,715 reports the simultaneous transcription of two complementary DNA sequence strands in a single reaction mixture, wherein the two transcripts are immediately hybridized. The templates used are preferably of between 40 and 100 base pairs, and which is equipped at each end with a promoter sequence. The templates are preferably attached to a solid surface. After transcription with RNA polymerase, the resulting dsRNA fragments may be used for detecting and/or assaying nucleic acid target sequences. U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,715 was filed Jun. 17, 1994, well before the phenomenon of RNA interference was described by Fire, et al. (1998). The production of siRNA was therefore, not contemplated by these authors.
In the provisional patent 60/353,332, which is specifically incorporated by reference, the production of siRNA using the RNA dependent RNA polymerase, P2 and that this dsRNA can be used to induce gene silencing. Although this method is not commercially available or published in a scientific journal it was determined to be feasible. Several laboratories have demonstrated that DNA expression vectors containing mammalian RNA polymerase III promoters can drive the expression of siRNA that can induce gene-silencing (Brummelkamp et al., 2002; Sui et al., 2002; Lee et al., 2002; Yu et al., 2002; Miyagishi et al., 2002; Paul et al., 2002). The RNA produced from the polymerase III promoter can be designed such that it forms a predicted hairpin with a 19-base stem and a 3-8 base loop. The approximately 45 base long siRNA expressed as a single transcription unit folds back on it self to form the hairpin structure as described above. Hairpin RNA can enter the RNAi pathway and induce gene silencing. The siRNA mammalian expression vectors have also been used to express the sense and antisense strands of the siRNA under separate polymerase III promoters. In this case, the sense and antisense strands must hybridize in the cell following their transcription (Lee et al., 2002; Miyagishi et al., 2002). The siRNA produced from the mammalian expression vectors weather a hairpin or as separate sense and antisense strands were able to induce RNAi without inducing the antiviral response. More recent work described the use of the mammalian expression vectors to express siRNA that inhibit viral infection (Jacque et al., 2002; Lee et al., 2002; Novina et al., 2002). A single point mutation in the siRNA with respect to the target prevents the inhibition of viral infection that is observed with the wild type siRNA. This suggests that siRNA mammalian expression vectors and siRNA could be used to treat viral diseases.
An alternative enzymatic approach to siRNA production that elevates the need to perform screens for siRNA that are functional. Currently, a 4 or more siRNA to one target need to be designed to a single target. A siRNA synthesis method that would get around transfecting 4 or more separate siRNA per target would be beneficial in cost and time. Therefore, a method in which a mixture of siRNA can be made from a single reaction would increase the likely hood of knocking down the gene the first time it is performed. In order to generate this mixture of siRNA one approach would be using RNaseIII type nucleases. Recombinant bacterial RNaseIII (25.6 KDa) is one such nuclease that can cleave long dsRNA into short dsRNAs containing a 5′-PO4 and a 2 nucleotide 3′ overhang. Although the RNA cleaved by bacterial RNaseIII are generally smaller (12-15 bases in length) it leaves a 5′PO4 and a 2-nucleotide 3′ overhang which is the same structure found on the RNA produced by DICER. A second approach would be to produce a mixture of siRNA and transfecting in the mixture of siRNA into the same reaction. The siRNA can be generated using a number of approaches currently methods for siRNA production-include chemical synthesis, in vitro synthesis using phase polymerase promoters, RNA dependant RNA polymerase or DNA vector based approaches.
Dicer is a eukaryotic protein that cleaves double-stranded RNA into 21-25 siRNA (Bernstein et al., 2001; Elbashir et al., 2001). The use of Dicer for in vitro generation of siRNA is problematic, however, because the reaction can be inefficient (Bernstein et al., 2001) and it is difficult to purify for in vitro application.

Methods and compositions concerning siRNA's as mediators of RNA interference


The present invention relates to a polyester-based fiber for artificial hair obtained by melt spinning a polyester resin composition. The polyester resin composition includes 100 parts by weight of a polyester resin, 5 to 40 parts by weight of a brominated epoxy flame retardant, and 1.5 parts by weight or more and less than 7 parts by weight of an antimony oxide. The polyester resin is at least one kind of resin selected from the group consisting of polyalkylene terephthalate and a copolymerized polyester containing polyalkylene terephthalate as a main component. The polyester-based fiber for artificial hair has aggregates of the brominated epoxy flame retardant that are dispersed in the polyester resin in the form of islands, as viewed in the cross section of the fiber parallel to the fiber axis direction. The present invention also relates to hair ornament products including the polyester-based fiber for artificial hair and a method for producing the polyester-based fiber for artificial hair. Thus, the present invention provides a polyester-based fiber for artificial hair having a gloss and a texture that are similar to those of human hair, and hair ornament products including the polyester-based fiber for artificial hair.

Conventionally, human hair has been used as a hair fiber material for hair ornament products such as hair wigs, hairpieces, hair extensions, hair accessories, and doll hair. In recent years, however, it becomes difficult to obtain the human hair. Therefore, the human hair has been supplanted by various artificial hair fibers including, e.g., an acrylic fiber such as a modacrylic fiber, a polyvinyl chloride fiber, and a polyester-based fiber. The artificial hair fibers such as the polyester-based fiber have a high gloss on the fiber surface. When the artificial hair fibers are used for hair ornament products, particularly for hair ornament products attached to the human hair such as hair wigs and hairpieces, the whole hair looks uncomfortable due to the difference in gloss between the human hair and the artificial hair fibers.
Thus, as a method for adjusting the gloss, Patent Document 1 proposes a technology for adjusting the gloss of a polyester-based fiber for artificial hair by incorporating organic particles or inorganic particles into the polyester-based fiber. This technology uses the fine particles to form projections on the fiber surface.
The artificial hair fibers are required to have a black-based dark color, which is more similar to that of the human hair. However, the artificial hair fibers of a dark color tend to be too glossy because of the contrast difference with the reflected light. Therefore, the gloss of the artificial hair fibers needs to be reduced further.

Polyester-based fiber for artificial hair and hair ornament product including the same, and method for producing the same


An information handling system (IHS) includes a reinforced edge card connector having a terminal block having a mounting surface attached to a surface of a first Printed Circuit Board (PCB). A connector housing has a connector opening aligned in parallel to the surface of the PCB to receive an edge of a second PCB. An upper row of upper conductors and a lower row of lower conductors are positioned in respective opposition to frictionally engage opposite sides of the edge of the second PCB, wherein the upper conductors are cantilevered pins. The connector housing exposes a bent portion of the cantilevered pins of the upper row of upper conductors. A flexible sheet is attached to an outward surface of the connector housing and to exposed surfaces of the upper row of upper conductors to create a binding force to multiple cantilevered pins to resist deformation.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates in general to assembly and interconnection of an information handling system (IHS), and more particularly to edge card connectors of an IHS.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continue to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems (IHSes). An IHS generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes, thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, IHSes may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSes allow for IHSes to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, IHSes may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
IHSs are typically designed with a printed circuit board (PCB) on which functional components are electrically and/or communicatively attached. These PCBs are in turn designed to accommodate attachment of/by one or more connectors of the functional component or card, such as an edge card connector. FIG. 1 illustrates a generally-known right angle edge card connector 100 including a female connector body 102 having a right angle mounting provided by a terminal block 104 that attaches to an edge 106 of a printed circuit board (PCB) 108. In a particular development, such an edge card connector 100 was used in a 2U server system with four (4) half-width insertion and removable sleds. During blind insertion on the assembly line, manufacturing experienced over 30% failure rate. Top conductors 110 and bottom conductors 112 were being deformed during insertion of a second PCB 114, resulting in a poor electrical connection.
FIGS. 1-2 illustrate a generally-known lance feature 124 of the upper conductors 110 that form an interference attachment between a connector block 126 and a terminal block 128 (FIG. 1).
With continued reference to FIG. 1, an investigation was conducted into root causes of the failures during blind insertion of right angle edge card connectors 100. Design margin of pins retention feature in the connector was not enough to avoid damage against the insertion friction force created during insertion. FIG. 3 illustrates a predicted 0.70 mm rearward deformation 116 of an upper conductor 110′ that undergoes a 1.5 N force at its distal end 118. FIG. 4 illustrates a predicted 0.27 mm rearward deformation 120 of a lower conductor 112′ that undergoes a 22.5 N force at its distal end 122.
TABLE 1 lists predicted deformation as a function of force applied to a distal end of each lower conductor 112′. TABLE 2 lists predicted deformation as a function of force applied to a distal end of each upper conductor 110′.
TABLE 1Lower Row of TerminalDisplacement (mm)Force (foot-lbs)0.050.818.104.22.168.000.204.000.254.400.275.00
TABLE 2Upper Row of TerminalDisplacement (mm)Force (foot-lbs)0.10.040.20.22.214.171.124.184.108.40.206.290.70.33

Reinforced right-angle type board edge connector


A storable implantable medical device assembly. An implantable medical device has a secondary coil operatively coupled to therapeutic componentry. A container holds the implantable medical device, the container having a first face. The implantable medical device being arranged in the container such that the secondary coil is positioned within a distance of the first face. The distance allows charging of the implantable medical device without disturbing the container. The first face of the container having indicia representative of a lateral location on the first face aligned with the secondary coil of the implantable medical device. The may then be utilized to place an external antenna in order to charge the implantable medical device without disturbing the container.

Implantable medical devices for producing a therapeutic result in a patient are well known.
Examples of such implantable medical devices include implantable drug infusion pumps, implantable neurostimulators, implantable cardioverters, implantable cardiac pacemakers, implantable defibrillators and cochlear implants. Of course, it is recognized that other implantable medical devices are envisioned which utilize energy delivered or transferred from an external device.
A common element in most of these implantable medical devices is the need for electrical power in the implanted medical device. The implanted medical device typically requires electrical power to perform its therapeutic function whether it be driving an electrical infusion pump, providing an electrical neurostimulation pulse or providing an electrical cardiac stimulation pulse. This electrical power is derived from a power source.
Typically, a power source for an implantable medical device is a rechargeable power source such as rechargeable batteries and, in particular, lithium ion batteries. Such batteries can have a capacity which is exhausted much earlier than the useful life of the implantable medical device.
Electrical power can be transcutaneously transferred to the implanted medical device to recharge the rechargeable batteries through the use of inductive coupling. An external power source temporarily positioned on the surface of the skin of the patient can recharge the implanted medical device's batteries. In fact, many systems and methods have been used for transcutaneously inductively recharging a rechargeable power source used in an implantable medical device.
Transcutaneous energy transfer through the use of inductive coupling involves the placement of two coils positioned in close proximity to each other on opposite sides of the cutaneous boundary. The internal coil, or secondary coil, is part of or otherwise electrically associated with the implanted medical device. The external coil, or primary coil, is associated with the external power source or external charger, or recharger. The primary coil is driven with an alternating current. A current is induced in the secondary coil through inductive coupling. This current can then be used to charge, or recharge, an internal power source.

Pre-positioned storable implantable medical device assembly allowing in package charging and method


A device receives roaming information associated with a user equipment (UE), a current eNodeB conducting a current Internet protocol (IP) session with the UE, and a plurality of eNodeBs that are neighboring the current eNodeB. The device also selects, based on the roaming information and from the plurality of eNodeBs, an optimal eNodeB to which to handover the UE, and establishes a preemptive IP session with the optimal eNodeB. The device further initiates a handover of the current IP session and the UE from the current eNodeB to the optimal eNodeB, where the current eNodeB acts as an anchoring point for a bearer path associated with the UE during the handover.

Current Long Term Evolution (LTE)-based networks include a variety of devices, such as eNodeBs (eNBs), mobility management entities (MMEs), packet gateways (PGWs), and serving gateways (SGW). Current Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and LTE standards require the PGW to function or serve as an anchoring point for any user equipment (UEs). However, the PGW anchoring function is static and cannot be combined with the functionality of the SGW, the MMEs, and/or the eNBs. Furthermore, anchoring UEs (e.g., anchoring bearer paths associated with UEs) at a particular PGW increases transport cost and resource utilization at the particular PGW. This causes network transport and PGW resources to be inefficient at handling large traffic loads exchanged between at least two eNBs when a UE is roaming and the UE's bearer path is localized to the nearest eNB.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Long term evolution (LTE) mobile anchoring


A probe apparatus in combination with an endoscope includes a confocal laser probe for in-vivo imaging. The probe is insertable through a forceps channel of an endoscope, and has an optical unit. There is a lens barrel. Plural lens optics are mounted in the lens barrel. The plural lens optics include first lens optics disposed on an object side, and opposed to an object within a body. An optically inactive surface is formed with the first lens optics, and has at least one portion protruding from a barrel end surface of the lens barrel on the object side. Preferably, a height difference of protruding the optically inactive surface from the barrel end surface is 10-500 microns. The portion of the optically inactive surface protruding from the barrel end surface is coated with adhesive agent, for adhesion of the first lens optics thereto.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical unit for a probe, and optical unit producing method. More particularly, the present invention relates to an optical unit for a probe, and optical unit producing method, in which the probe of a probe apparatus is used for in-vivo imaging of a tissue in a human cavity of a patient's body, and an image of the tissue can be stably obtained owing to an improved assembly of the optical unit.
2. Description Related to the Prior Art
A confocal laser probe of a probe apparatus is known, including an optical unit disposed at a distal end of single-mode optical fibers. The optical unit applies laser light to a tissue of a gastrointestinal tract in a patient Is body. Among components of the laser light reflected by the tissue, only reflected light at the focal plane of the optical unit on an object side, an object image of the tissue is obtained. U.S. Pat. Pub. No. 2004/156124 (corresponding to JP-A 2004-240346) discloses an example of the confocal laser probe. According to optical tomography, a two-dimensional image can be obtained at a depth of approximately 100 microns under the surface of mucous membranes by scanning the tissue with the laser light.
JP-A 2000-121961 discloses the use of the confocal laser probe by insertion in a forceps channel of an electronic endoscope. The confocal laser probe must have a small outer diameter for the purpose of reducing physical load to a patient Is body. Also, it is necessary for the optical unit to have a high numerical aperture NA, because a focal plane of the optical unit should be set for a position with a depth from a surface of the tissue. A high value of the numerical aperture NA is essentially necessary specifically with a great wavelength of the laser light in order to create images of high definition.
Lens optics constituting the optical unit must have very fine sizes owing to technical progress according to small diameters and high value of the numerical aperture NA. It has been very difficult to position the lens optics with one another at very high precision. U.S. Pat. No. 7,471,472 (corresponding to JP-A 2007-208533) discloses a method of assembling the lens optics by use of a specialized tool in order to determine intervals between the lens optics precisely.
Owing to requirement of fine sizes of the lens optics in the optical unit, a distance between the focal plane and a first lens/lens group opposed to the tissue is made as small as 50 microns. It is necessary for the first lens/lens group to contact the tissue. An image in the tissue cannot be created with high quality if the contact between the first lens/lens group and the tissue is insufficient.
A portion of the first lens/lens group at the distal end of the lens barrel is coated with adhesive agent for reinforcement. However, various problems arise with the structure of the end of the first lens/lens group flush with the distal end of the lens barrel, for example, difficulty in applying a coating, insufficiency in the reinforcement, addition of a step of wiping the adhesive agent to remove dirt of the first lens/lens group, and the like.

Optical unit for probe and optical unit producing method


A spark plug includes an electrode wherein a plurality of fusion regions are formed by melting to each other a circular noble metal tip having a diameter of not less than 2 mm and a base material disposed around an outer periphery of the noble metal tip. In a particular tip cross section, a total length of the portions passing the fusion region on the circumference of a circle A concentric to an outline of the tip and having a diameter of 90% of the length of the tip is not less than 30% of the length of the circumference of the concentric circle A, and a total length of the portions on which a circumference of a concentric circle B, having the same diameter as that of the outline passes, is not less than 30% of the length of the circumference of the concentric circle B.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to spark plugs.
2. Related Art
A spark plug is known in which an electrode tip is joined in a center electrode or a ground electrode (either of which may be hereafter referred to simply as "an electrode") (see JP Patent No. 4705129, for example). The electrode tip (hereafter referred to as "a noble metal tip") is formed from a noble metal (such as platinum, iridium, ruthenium, or rhodium) having excellent spark erosion resistance and oxidation resistance, or an alloy composed chiefly of a noble metal. Generally, the noble metal tip is joined in a base material (an electrode or an intermediate member for joining with the electrode) by laser welding. Specifically, the noble metal tip is joined to the base material by irradiating the noble metal tip with laser along an outer periphery thereof.
As other relevant literature, JP-A-2002-93547, JP-A-2005-183167, JP-A-2007-87969, and JP-A-2005-50732 may be cited.


A method is presented for performing model checking of an integrated circuit design that avoids the need for construction of an environment model by the use of constraints (44). The method supports an assume/guarantee style of reasoning to ensure that the constraints (44) are a true abstraction of the actual environment in which the integrated circuit is designed to operate. The constraints (44) may be used to provide primary inputs for a design under analysis (DUA) (16). Also, the constraints (44) may refer to internal states and to outputs of the DUA (16). In addition, monitors (42) may be used to monitor the inputs to the DUA (16). The constraints (44) can then be used with the monitors (42) to specify complex sequential environment properties.

Symbolic model checking is commonly used to check, or verify, an integrated circuit design before the integrated circuit design is implemented in a semiconductor device. In symbolic model checking, a model of an environment in which the semiconductor device is intended to function is constructed. FIG. 1 illustrates, in block diagram form, a prior art model checking wrapper 10 that includes an environment module 12 that is bi-directionally coupled to a design under analysis (DUA) module 14. The environment model is separate from the DUA, and includes environmental constraints that control the input signals provided to the integrated circuit design during model checking.
In some digital circuit designs, it may be possible to simply provide every combination of input bits to the DUA model and observe the outputs. However, many circuits are designed to work correctly only under certain specific environmental constraints, or assumptions. The environmental assumptions are used to simulate, as closely as possible, the actual input signals which would be received by the integrated circuit in its intended application. However, constructing the environment model is difficult, time-consuming and potentially error-prone for large complex circuits and systems. Also, there exists no clear methodology for ensuring that the environment model is a true abstraction of the actual environment in which the integrated circuit is designed to operate.

Method for performing model checking in integrated circuit design


Methods, systems, and articles of manufacture consistent with the present invention provide for administering a protected item. An anti-theft key encoded with a radio frequency identification of the user and biometric data of the user is provided. The anti-theft key is associated with the protected item such that the protected item is accessible with the anti-theft key.

The present invention generally relates to the field of anti-theft security and, more particularly, to methods and systems of preventing theft using biometric data and radio frequency identification.
Vehicles, software, and other types of items are subject to a risk of being misappropriated by unauthorized personnel. For example, someone might try to steal a vehicle by hard wiring a system to bypass the starting mechanism. Or someone might try to illegally gain access to a software program by cracking its software encryption. The problem of theft is widespread, as evidenced by the well-known theft of automobiles and small arms, and the compromise of sensitive data on computer systems. One of the problems with traditional anti-theft mechanisms is that they do not verify the owner or designated operator of the protected item.

Biometric platform radio identification anti-theft system


There is described in the specification a mercury-free manganese primary dry battery wherein the cathode mixture contains boric acid or an alkali borate at a ratio of 0.04 to 0.4 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of manganese dioxide as a boron conversion value or wherein the separator contains boric acid or an alkali borate at a ratio of 0.1 to 8.0 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of a dry solid content in the pasting agent. Such battery has excellent discharge properties under light loading conditions.

The present invention relates to a mercury-free manganese dry battery and more specifically to an improvement in discharge performance of the manganese dry battery.
Mercury has mainly been used as a corrosion inhibitor of the zinc anode can in manganese dry batteries. In this case, mercury is included in the separator and incorporated in the battery. The separator is obtained by applying a sizing agent on a separator base sheet and drying it, where the pasting agent is provided by dissolving starch and a binder in an alcohol solvent. The cathode mixture is covered with the separator and charged in the zinc anode can. Mercury of several % by weight has generally been added to the pasting agent, which is applied on the separator. When in close contact of the separator with the inner surface of the zinc can, an amalgam is formed on the surface of the zinc can and thus effectively prevents corrosion of the zinc can.
From the viewpoint of the environmental protection, a variety of mercury-free dry batteries have been developed and proposed: for example, one using a zinc alloy of high corrosion resistance (for example, JAPANESE PATENT LAID-OPEN GAZETTE No. 6-196155) and one with an anti-corrosive additive (for example, JAPANESE PATENT LAID-OPEN GAZETTE No. 4-10357).
When a mercury-free manganese dry battery is discharged under a specific loading resistance, the discharge capacity may be lowered extremely. This phenomenon specifically occurs in the course of discharge under,light loading conditions.
The extreme decrease in discharge capacity may be ascribed to an abrupt increase in internal resistance of the battery in the course of discharge in the case where the manganese dry battery is discharged at the resistance of light loading.; The abrupt increase leads to an abrupt drop of the closed path voltage in the course of discharge under light loading conditions.
One possible means to prevent the increase in internal resistance is to increase the amount of electrolyte solution in the cathode mixture or in the pasting agent of the separator, or alternatively increase the amount of carbon used as the conductive material in the cathode mixture. These methods, however, decrease the amount of manganese dioxide in the cathode mixture and thereby deteriorate the overall discharge performance of the batteries including the discharge performance under the heavy loading conditions.
The object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and to provide a mercury-free manganese dry battery that prevents an increase in internal resistance in the course of discharge and has excellent discharge properties especially under light loading conditions.
While the novel features of the invention are set forth particularly in the appended claims, the invention, both as to organization and content, will be better understood and appreciated, along with other objects and features thereof, from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A switch device comprises an insulative housing and a pair of switch terminals each having an outside connection section and an inside section in the housing. The first switch terminal 5 has a plurality of flexible arms 8A, 8B with a free end. Each flexible arm has a movable contact point so that when the flexible arms receive pressure, they are flexed to bring the respective movable contact points into contact with the fixed contact 14 of the second switch terminal 6, thus providing a reliable switching mechanism.

1. Filed of the Invention
The present invention relates to switch devices and particularly to a switch device to be turned on or off by the connecting operation of a connecting member which has an electronic circuit, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese patent application Kokoku No. 23879/96 discloses a switch device of this type. This device has a contact frame for reading IC cards and comprises a flat frame made of an insulative material so as to provide a window section, and a plurality of contact elements and a pair of switch terminals provided on the flat frame. The contact elements and the switch terminals have connection sections projecting from the frame and contact sections for making spring contact with the corresponding circuit traces of a card. The switch terminals have a fixed contact and a movable contact supported at one end by the frame, with the other end free. The other end of the movable contact is pressed by the inserted card and flexed away from the fixed contact of the other terminal, thus breaking the contact.
For easy manufacturing, the switch terminals are made by stamping a metal sheet and bending the end of a movable contact in a semi-cylindrical form so that both the switch terminals make contact with each other in a line.
The above switch device, however, suffers from low reliability in contact between the switch terminals. If the fixed contact has a completely flat contacting surface and is completely parallel to the contact surface of the semi-cylindrical movable contact, they make a perfect line contact. However, there is always a manufacturing difference although it is within the range of tolerance and it is very difficult to make a line contact but a point contact or contacts. Especially, when the above error makes an angular contact between them, it is almost impossible to make a line contact.
If dirt or dust adheres to the contact, it is not unusual to make poor contact.


Methods and apparatus implementing systems and techniques for traversing a hierarchical layout template to accelerate a constraint-driven backtracking search for a solution of the layout template. In general, in one implementation, the techniques include identifying a shared content element constraint that defines a content requirement common to all layout structures possible in a choice substructure in a hierarchical layout template, and associating the shared content element constraint with a root node of the choice substructure in the hierarchical layout template. In another aspect, the techniques include receiving content elements to be presented according to a hierarchical layout template that includes a choice substructure including a root node having a shared content element constraint that defines a content requirement common to all layout structures possible in the choice substructure, and traversing the hierarchical layout template to generate a layout structure that accommodates the content elements, said traversing including traversing the hierarchical layout template based at least in part on the shared content element constraint associated with the root node.

The present application describes systems and techniques relating to electronic document layout, for example, traversing a hierarchical layout template.
In the publishing field, various techniques are used to improve the page layout process. Page layout involves creating a visual presentation with appropriate formatting for a document given input content for the document. For example, a FrameMaster Page is a standard HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) file that contains code for managing control parameters of a Web page layout. Example control parameters include parameters that control screen width percentage, shape of a footnote region, resizability, and scroll bars.
Additionally, various layout templates may be created using existing software products. A layout template describes available layout structures for a page layout, such as a graphics frame that specifies where a picture goes on a page. QuarkXPress™ and InDesigne® are both example software products, available from Adobe Systems Incorporated of San Jose, Calif., that enable creation of layout templates. Typical layout templates can expect certain types of content and leave holes in the page layout if the expected content is not present.
Interscript is a specification that enables creation of flexible layout templates. The Interscript Specification was originally developed and available from Xerox Corporation of Stamford, Conn. At a first level, Interscript is a document interchange encoding that has a simple syntax and semantics that can be interpreted readily, even by low-capability editors. Interscript is a basic document description language with a small core and an extension-by-definition facility that allows creation of dynamic layout templates.
An Interscript template is an example of a hierarchical layout template that describes possible layout structures and potential aspects of a layout. The final page layout created from an Interscript template can be made to depend on the content that is poured into the template; thus, holes need not be left in the page layout when certain expected content is not present. Moreover, Interscript enables creation of hierarchical layout templates that can include features for improved layout scaling and can include layout penalties for improved layout selection (e.g., a columned document template may have a penalty on the height of the box containing the columns, thereby balancing the columns on a half-full page).

Traversing a hierarchical layout template


A portable mister for cooling ambient air is disclosed comprising a housing for entirely containing a cooling agent, an irrigation system connected to the housing for receiving the cooling agent from the housing and dispersing the cooling agent in ambient air, and a pump for facilitating the transfer of the cooling agent to the irrigation system. The mister is portable in that the cooling agent is entirely enclosed in a portable housing. That is, the mister user need not connect the mister to a continuous cooling agent source for operation. Additionally, the irrigation system is configured for placement to cool the ambient air of a broad area. The housing may include a system for including a fragrance in the cooling agent. The fragrance including system facilitates added a pleasant aroma to the dispersed cooling agent.

Recent years have seen an increase in worldwide global temperatures. The result of the increasing global temperatures is that many places and people around the world experience uncomfortably hot seasonal temperatures especially during the summer months. Finding respite from the uncomfortable temperatures often means staying indoors and being blanketed by the cooling affects of air-conditioned air. For those forced to venture outdoors, "air conditioning" is not typically available. Some relief from the uncomfortable outside temperatures can be obtained by finding a shaded area not in direct sunlight. However, in some cases, even shaded areas do not provide sufficient cooling, especially if, for example, the temperature in the shade is 100° F. or higher. As such, much effort and resources are being focused on developing techniques for cooling persons who are forced to endure uncomfortably hot seasonal temperatures when outdoors.
One such technique provides cooling by exploring the cooling properties of evaporating mist. Cooling occurs when mist droplets impinge upon a target and are evaporated into the surrounding air. Additional cooling takes place if the liquid itself is very cold relative to the surrounding air. Further, an object or observer may be additionally cooled if an air stream transports the liquid to an observer, and the air stream blows on the user so as to accelerate the evaporation process.
The evaporative temperature change results from the process whereby droplets of the liquid extract heat energy from the air and use the energy to change the phase of the droplet from liquid to vapor. Thus the temperature change is achieved without the introduction of external refrigeration power, unlike cooling systems which extract heat from the refrigeration system component(s). In contrast, when a droplet evaporates, the latent heat energy expended in vaporization is drawn from the warm air, which accounts for the temperature drop.
It is well known that with a given mixture of the air and water, the temperature achieved by evaporative cooling varies with the initial dryness of the ambient air. For example, given dry warm air at 95° F. (35° C.) and 20 percent relative humidity, atomizing ambient temperature water therein can drop the temperature of the mixture to as low as 66° F. (19° C.). Similarly, if the same ambient air at 95° F. has a relative humidity of 50 percent, then atomizing the water reduces the temperature of the mixture to about 80° F. (27° C.). As should be easily understood, atomizing a cooled water source into ambient air reduces the temperature of the resulting air-water mixture even further. Where tap water from the domestic supply is used as a water source, the tap water will be relatively cool after flowing for a time. As such, many inventions, which use atomized water as a cooling source, make use of ordinary tap water as a cooling agent. The prior art systems, however, contain various deficiencies, in that the systems are often too inconvenient or not fully portable, as described below.
With the above in mind, many prior art systems incorporate a fine mist or spray as the primary cooling agent. For example, one conventional method for providing a mist or spray for cooling is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,398,132, issued Jun. 4, 2002, to Junkel. The Junkel patent generally discloses a portable spray misting device, which is fully handheld when operated. The device includes an internally hollowed body capable of holding a volume of fluid to be dispensed. The liquid is dispensed when a user manually pulls a trigger disposed alongside the hollowed body, which causes the liquid to be drawn toward a spray dispensing head for projecting the liquid as a mist into fan blades of a fan unit. The fan unit, in turn, dispenses the mist into the atmosphere, and onto a user, thereby cooling the user through mist evaporative principles.
The invention of the Junkel patent is suitable for users who wish to achieve personal cooling, since it ordinarily may be used by only one user at a time using one hand. However, the Junkel invention is deficient in that users must operate the invention manually, typically leaving only one hand to perform everyday tasks. That is, since the Junkel invention requires the use of at least one user hand to operate, the user of the Junkel invention will be limited in the activities the user may perform while staying cool. Thus, an invention is needed which cools a user without user assistance or user manipulation, thereby freeing the user to perform various other activities.
A typical invention, which cools a user without user assistance, is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,371, issued Mar. 25, 1997, to Nelson. The Nelson patent generally discloses a method and apparatus for misting vehicle occupants by providing a fine spray of water into the air inside and surrounding the vehicle. In accordance with Nelson, a pumping system forces water from a water reservoir on board the vehicle through mister nozzles. When attached to a vehicle, the Nelson invention cools the vehicle occupants while permitting the occupants to perform other activities. For example, where the Nelson invention is affixed to a golf cart, the occupants are cooled when being transported from golf stroke to golf stroke.
Similar systems are disclosed for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,373,703, issued Dec. 20, 1994, to Pal, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,151,907, issued Nov. 28, 2000, to Hale. The aforementioned Nelson, Pal, and Hale systems are sufficient for cooling a vehicle occupant while the occupant is seated therein. However, the systems are not suitable for cooling the occupant when the occupant exits the vehicle, such as, for example, when the user must leave the vehicle to engage in an outside activity. For example, where a user installs the aforementioned system on a golf cart while golfing, the user must typically exit the vehicle to advance the ball down the course. As such, the Nelson, Pal and Hale systems are not suitable for cooling persons situated on the outside of a vehicle.
One method for cooling a user outside a vehicle is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,104, issued Jul. 19, 1994, to Marcus. The Marcus patent generally discloses a self-contained portable mister which may mist an outdoors environment without assistance or intervention from a user. The portable misting apparatus includes a self-priming pump disposed inside a soundproof housing. The housing may include an operable lid and pivotable carrying handle. The invention further includes a rechargeable battery for powering the pump and a solar cell array disposed in the operable lid for recharging the battery. Liquid is supplied to the invention by drawing the liquid from a reservoir, such as a lake, stream, pond, swimming pool, ice chest, bucket, or the like, which is remote to the location of the invention housing. Alternatively, the invention may be adapted to provide the liquid from a pressure source of water. The pump further provides the liquid to a misting wand, which conveys the liquid to a plurality of misting nozzles. The housing of the Marcus invention further includes a cavity suitable for storage of a misting wand, when the invention is not in use.
One problem with the Marcus invention, however, is that a solar cell battery powers the invention. It is well known that solar cell batteries need the advent of light (e.g., sunlight or direct sunlight) for recharging and for continuous operation. Thus, the Marcus invention would necessarily have limited use when used in shaded environments or environments where light is limited. As such, a need exists for a mister system which can be used irrespective of whether the system is placed in direct light, or in a shaded area.
In addition, as a source for providing the cooling liquid, the Marcus invention uses a reservoir, such as a lake, stream, pond, swimming pool, ice chest, bucket, or the like, located remote to, and in communication with, the invention housing. To operate the Marcus invention, a user must provide the cooling liquid to the invention by, for example, locating the invention near a source of water (e.g., lake, stream, etc.) or to bringing the water to the invention (e.g., ice chest, bucket, etc.). As such, for example, the Marcus invention is limited in its portability, in that the user must determine the location of the liquid supply when deciding the location of invention usage, and the user may ordinarily have to supply the liquid supply in the form of a reservoir positioned externally to the invention housing. Therefore, a need exists for a more portable misting system, such as, a misting system which permits usage without requiring the user to supply an externally positioned cooling liquid source.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,502, issued Jul. 10, 2001, to Hanish, et al., is a conventional example of a system which cools a user without user assistance, and which does not require the user to transport a cooling source to the system. In accordance with Hanish, an integrated multi-head misting device is provided which is removably attached to a household faucet or garden hose for receiving a cooling liquid. A misting fan is provided which includes a fan shroud including a grille and fan blades for permitting an air stream therethrough, where the air stream results from fan blade operation. A misting device is secured to the fan hub, and a plurality of misting heads are secured to the fan housing for directing a spray of mist across a fan grille. When the mist is projected into the air stream, the blowing action of the fan blades directs the mist away from the device and into the direction of an invention user.
Power is supplied to the Hanish fan via a typical outlet, and the mist is provided via a pressurized source. The mist is injected across the fan grille via a misting manifold which directs the liquid through the misting heads. That is, no pump, or electricity of powering the pump, is required for providing the cooling liquid to the misting heads. More particularly, no solar powered batter is required as with, for example, the Marcus patent noted above. In that regard, the Hanish invention provides advantages over the Marcus invention in that the Hanish invention is not dependent on direct light for operation, but instead may be operated in a relatively shaded area.
The cooling liquid is supplied to the Hanish invention by connecting the invention to a pressurized water supply, such as, a faucet or garden hose. Consequently, the Hanish invention still includes a similar disadvantage as Marcus, in that the invention must be operated near, or connected to, a cooling liquid source. As such, the Hanish invention, like the Marcus invention, does not provide a totally portable mister device.
The Hanish invention includes the additional disadvantage in that the area of airflow created by the Hanish fan blades limits the area of dispersion of the cooling mist. Thus, where the fan blades blow air to a maximum area in front of the fan, the cooling liquid, which is transported by the air stream, will only travel over that area. Further, unless the Hanish invention is positioned above a user, such that the mist droplets may settle on the user, the user would necessarily need to be directly in the air stream flow in order to be properly cooled. Further still, when used with conventional household fans, the Hanish invention is typically suitable for cooling only a limited number of people at any one time.
Another conventional misting device of similar operation as Hanish, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,497,633, issued Mar. 12, 1996, to Hensley. The Hensley patent generally discloses an indoor/outdoor evaporative cooling unit which is inflatable via flexible walls. The flexible walls form a partially sealed enclosure for making the invention more portable when deflated. The cooling unit includes an inner wall and an outer wall of thin flexible material. A fan forces ambient air from an inlet through a flow divider, which directs some of the flow into the enclosure and the remainder of the flow into a chamber to exhaust through a chamber outlet. Spray nozzles are attached to the enclosure and aimed to spray a coolant, such as water, into the air exhausting through the outlet.
In essence, the Hensley invention operates by drawing in a steady flow of ambient air through an intake, and exhausting the drawn air through a ring of nozzles spraying a coolant into the exhaust stream. The coolant (e.g., water) is supplied to the invention via a pressurized water source or by suitable flexible flow connections and a pump. In one embodiment, the combination of the chamber design and the positioning of the spray nozzles permits the Hensley mister to spray a mist at the chambers outlet, which is modestly sized for permitting service of multiple users on, for example, a walk-by basis. That is, one embodiment of the Hensley invention is similar to the Hanish invention in that it is only suitable for cooling only a limited number of people at any one time. In an alternate embodiment, however, the Hensley invention may be adapted for use in simultaneously cooling multiple persons by including multiple outlet pairs in the chamber and arranging the spray nozzles such that the nozzles are mounted in a middle of an outlet pair. This, in turn, permits the Hensley invention to create a billowing stream or cloud with a greater effective cooling range than a typical mist or stream.
Although the Hensley invention provides for the production of a cooling cloud for cooling multiple users, the users must typically walk through or under the point of discharge of the coolant to be cooled down. In that regard, the Hensley invention, while providing a means for cooling multiple users, does not cool the users simultaneously.
Accordingly, a need exists for a mister for cooling multiple users simultaneously, which is completely portable, does not require user assistance for operation, and which may be used in any light.

Portable mister for adjusting ambient temperature


A first Group III nitride compound semiconductor layer 31 is etched, to thereby form an island-like structure such as a dot-like, stripe-shaped, or grid-like structure, so as to provide a trench/mesa such that layer different from the first Group III nitride compound semiconductor layer 31 is exposed at the bottom portion of the trench. Thus, a second Group III nitride compound layer 32 can be epitaxially grown, laterally, with a top surface of the mesa and a sidewall/sidewalls of the trench serving as a nucleus, to thereby bury the trench and also grow the layer in the vertical direction. In this case, propagation of threading dislocations contained in the first Group III nitride compound semiconductor layer 31 can be prevented in the upper portion of the second Group III nitride compound semiconductor 32 that is formed through lateral epitaxial growth. Etching may be performed until a cavity portion is provided in the substrate. The layer serving as a nucleus of ELO may be doped with indium (In) having an atomic radius greater than that of gallium (Ga) serving as a predominant element. The first semiconductor layer may be a multi-component layer containing a plurality of numbers of repetitions of a unit of a buffer layer and a single-crystal layer.

Group III nitride compound semiconductor are direct-transition semiconductors exhibiting a wide range of emission spectra from UV to red light when used in a device such as a light-emitting device, and have been used in light-emitting devices such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and laser diodes (LDs). In addition, due to their broad band gaps, devices employing the aforementioned semiconductors are expected to exhibit reliable operational characteristics at high temperature as compared with those employing semiconductors of other types, and thus application thereof to transistors such as FETs has been energetically studied. Moreover, since Group III nitride compound semiconductors contain no arsenic (As) as a predominant element, application of Group III nitride compound semiconductors to various semiconducting devices has been longed for from the environmental aspect. Generally, these Group III nitride compound semiconductors are formed on a sapphire substrate. In this connection, a buffer layer formed of a plurality of layers is also known as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 9-199759.

Production method of III nitride compound semiconductor and III nitride compound semiconductor element


An image presentation device comprises an object information storage part which receives a scenario consisting of object information describing the attributes of an appearing object and an attribute changing procedure describing a procedure for changing the attributes of the appearing object and storing the object information contained in the scenario. An attribute changing procedure storage part receives the scenario and stores the attribute changing procedure contained in the scenario. An attribute changing part changes the attributes of the object information according to the attribute changing procedure. An object information calculating part calculates a position of the appearing object in a virtual space according to the object information whose attributes have been changed by the attribute changing part, an image generating part generates an image according to the calculated results by the object information calculating part.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image presentation device for presenting an image by means of a computer, and particularly to an image presentation device which produces and presents an animation according to an interactive operation by a user.
2. Description of the Related Art
Systems which present an animation by an interactive operation using computer graphics (hereinafter referred to as CG) are known for various uses. For example, there is a system which generates three-dimensional CG images and moves a visual point and objects upon the input operation by a user, thereby presenting a walk-through animation where a visual point can be moved within a building. Another system shows on a display previously produced two-dimensional animation components and interactively presents a two-dimensional animation upon operations by a user with a mouse.
In such interactive animations, to switch the motion of an object on the scene according to the operations by the user, or to switch the presented state of an object on the scene by switching between display and non-display, multiple scene data, which contain the motions of appearing objects and the execution and non-execution of display, are previously provided as data described for each presented state, and these scene data are switched when the interactive animation is executed. And, scenario data, which describe the procedures for execution while successively switching the scene data and the alternatives for scene switching, are generated to execute the presentation of an animation.
These conventional types of image presentation device for presenting an interactive animation need to have scene data for each presented state when a scene has a plurality of presented states. Therefore, to designate the motion information of appearing objects common to individual scene data and to change the display and non-display, the designating and display changing operations are required to be repeated for all the plurality of scene data. And, they have a disadvantage that setting of a condition branch for the plurality of data is complicated. Consequently, there are disadvantages that significant labor is required for managing and editing the scenario data as the number of presented states increases, and productivity is lowered.
Furthermore, the conventional image presentation devices use scene data, in which presentation states are previously described, to present an animation and cannot change the scene data while executing. Thus, it is disadvantageous that a user cannot generate and execute a scene as he or she desires while executing the scenario and scenes cannot be developed freely.
The conventional image presentation devices describe a scenario for executing the motions in a large virtual space or a long scenario for successively executing short partial stories according to the progress of a story as a single large-scale and complicated scenario data. Therefore, switching information on the motion in a large space and switching of the motions according to the progress of a story are required to be described in single and complicated large-scale data for each appearing object, resulting in the increase of labors required for making a scenario.
It is also disadvantageous that a scenario cannot be made by two or more scenario creators because the scenario data is one.

Image presentation device with user-inputted attribute changing procedures


When fetching an instruction from a plurality of memory banks, a first pipeline cycle corresponding to selection of a memory bank and a second pipeline cycle corresponding to instruction readout are generated to carry out a pipeline process. Only the selected memory bank can be precharged to allow reduction of power consumption. Since the first and second pipeline cycles are effected in parallel, the throughput of the instruction memory can be improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data processing apparatus that carries out processing while accessing instructions and data stored in an internal memory. Particularly, the present invention relates to a data processing apparatus capable of processing at high speed using a memory of low speed and low power consumption.
2. Description of the Background Art
In recent years, data processing apparatuses such as a CPU (Central-Processing Unit) and the like have become more widespread, and the demand to improve the processing speed of the data processing apparatus seems insatiable. In the conventional data processing apparatus such as a CPU, the instruction fetch mechanism, instruction decoding mechanism, instruction execution mechanism, and the like are set in a pipelined manner. The processing performance of the data processing apparatus is improved by increasing the frequency of the operating clock as well as reducing the access cycle of the memory to obtain memory access within one pipeline cycle time (one clock of the operating dock).
However, it is difficult to realize a memory of large capacity with a short access time. This issue was solved by building a memory of high speed and low capacity represented by a cache memory and a main memory of low speed and large capacity in a hierarchical manner to carry out operation as if there was a memory of high speed and of large capacity. The conventional data processing apparatus employing such a hierarchical memory is disclosed in many documents.
In realizing a memory of large capacity and high speed by the configuration of the hierarchical memory, a wait cycle must be inserted in the memory access cycles when the data processing apparatus is to access an instruction or data that could not be incorporated in the high speed memory of small capacity (cache miss). There was a problem that the performance of the data processing apparatus is degraded. In order to increase the operation speed of the memory, the drivability of the transistor employed in the memory must be increased. There was a problem that the power consumption of the memory is increased if a high speed memory of large capacity is incorporated in the data processing apparatus.

Data processing apparatus of high speed process using memory of low speed and low power consumption


A golf swing trainer 10 comprises a golf club 12 and a mat 14. A head 13 of the golf club 12 has an electrically conducting leading edge 16 and an electrically non-conducting/insulating sole 18. When the golf club 12 is swung correctly, at the bottom of the player""s swing the leading edge 16 makes an electrical contact between contacts 20a and 20b, which are embedded in the mat 14. The electrical contact between the leading edge 16 and the contacts 20a and 20b completes an electrical circuit and causes an alarm (not shown) to indicate by a sound or light for instance that correct contact has been made and a good swing has been performed.

This invention relates to a golf swing training device and to a method of training a player""s golf swing.
A previous device for training the swing of a person playing golf determines the speed, direction and orientation of the club face in the area in which the club face contacts a golf ball.
Problems arise with the above mentioned device because it is not able to indicate the height of the club head as it passes through the ball striking area. The height of the club head is clearly important because it gives the position of the club head relative to the ball being struck. Incorrect location could result in a ball being struck incorrectly.
It is an object of the present invention to address the above mentioned disadvantages.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a golf swing trainer which has a club head height indication means for the club head as it passes through the ball striking area.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method of training a person""s golf swing to more accurately control the height of the club head as it passes through the ball striking area.
According to one aspect of the present invention a golf swing trainer comprises a golf club portion and a mat portion, the golf club portion comprising a shaft section and a head section, which head section has a section which is electrically conducting, the mat portion providing a surface on which to practise a golf swing and including at least one electrical contact, wherein indicator means of the trainer are operable to be activated when contact is made between the electrically conducting section of the head section and the or each electrical contact.
Preferably the electrically conducting section is a section of a sole portion of the head section. Preferably, the sole portion additionally includes an electrically non-conducting section. The electrically non-conducting section is preferably larger than the electrically conducting section.
The electrically conducting section of the sole portion may be elongate. The electrically conducting section may be located along a front edge of the sole portion. The electrically conducting section may be located along a leading edge of the head section of the golf club portion, which leading edge is the foremost part of the head section. The electrically conducting section may extend substantially along the length of the head section.
The electrically conducting section may be flush with the non-conducting section, to provide a smooth outer surface of the sole portion. The electrically conducting section may be flush with a front face of the head section, to provide a smooth striking face for striking a ball.
The electrically non-conducting section may be located to the rear of the electrically conducting section. The electrically non-conducting section may have a flat shape or may have a curved, preferably outwardly curved, shape.
The shaft section of the golf club portion may be inclined in a forward direction when the sole portion is generally parallel to an upper surface of the mat portion. The inclination of the shaft may encourage an intended downward swing in a user of the golf swing trainer.
The rear section of the sole portion may be lower than a front section of the sole portion, when the shaft of the club portion is in a generally vertical orientation. The angle made between a line extending forward from the sole portion and parallel thereto and an axis of the shaft is preferably less than 90xc2x0.
The or each electrical contact may project preferably by a small amount, above an upper surface of the mat, to allow contact to be made between the conducting section and the or each electrical contact.
The or each contact may be received in a recess in the mat. The or each electrical contact may be elongate. The long axis of the or each electrical contact may be aligned generally in the direction of swing of the golf club portion. The length of the or each contact may be chosen to suit a particular level of difficulty associated with use of the trainer; a longer contact may be chosen for an easier level, with a shorter contact for greater difficulty.
Preferably, at least one pair of electrical contacts is provided, in which the electrically conducting portion of the golf club is arranged to complete an electrical circuit by bridging said at least one pair of electrical contacts.
Where two electrical contacts are provided, the contacts may form two ends of an open circuit that includes the indicator means and a power supply. The open circuit may be closable by means of the electrically conducting portion of the golf club contacting both contacts, thereby causing the indicator means to be activated. Where two electrical contacts are provided, they may be arranged in a xe2x80x98Vxe2x80x99-shaped configuration, preferably converging generally in the direction of swing of the golf club portion.
The electrical contacts may comprise at least two lengths of a plurality of electrical contacts, the contacts in each length preferably being connected together in series. Said lengths of electrical contacts may be arranged for interleaving location adjacent to one another. An electrical connection made between two contacts of the two lengths of electrical contacts may result in completion of the electrical circuit. Contact between any one of the electrical contacts on one length with any one of the electrical contacts on another length may be sufficient to complete the circuit. The electrical contacts from both lengths may be arranged linearly. A plurality of pairs of lengths of electrical contacts may be provided, with electrical contact between any two electrical contacts of a pair of lengths being sufficient to complete the electrical circuit.
Each electrical contact may be connected separately to a control means of the golf swing trainer.
The electrical contacts may extend through the mat portion in tubular contact receiving sections, in which case the electrical contacts may be elongate wires. In such a case, the electrical contacts may protrude slightly above the tubular contact receiving sections. A plurality of tubular contact receiving sections may be provided to allow electrical contact to be made between one group of electrical contacts and another group of electrical contacts to complete the electrical circuit. The electrical contacts in each group may be arranged in a brush configuration. Each group of electrical contacts may be separated by an insulating portion of the mat. The groups of contacts may be arranged in linear patterns.
The mat may include an upwardly projecting contact guard. The guard may be located behind the or each contact. The guard may project upwards to prevent a sweeping, horizontal, swing of the golf club portion from making contact with the electrical contacts. The guard may encourage a more vertical angle of approach to the electrical contacts than would otherwise have been possible with the golf club portion in the absence of the contact guard.
The guard may be wedge shaped, preferably tapering towards the contacts. The contact may be removable. Different sizes of guard may be provided. The guard may be made of compressible material.
The trainer may include a tether portion arranged to limit the length of back swing of a person using the trainer. The tether may be secured at one end of the golf club portion, preferably close to the head section thereof, and at another end to the mat portion, preferably behind the electrical contact(s). The length of the tether may be variable to suit different users and different sizes of golf club.
The tether may be electrically conducting and may be in electrical contact with the electrically conducting section of the golf club sole portion. In this case, an open electrical circuit may be formed with the electrical conducting portion and one electrical contact as ends of that open circuit.
The circuit may be closed by the electrically conducting portion touching the contact. The circuit may also include the indicator means and a power source.
The indicator means may operate visually, aurally or both.
According to another aspect of the present invention a method of practising training a golf swing comprises swinging a golf club portion of a golf swing trainer and attempting to complete an electrical circuit in a mat portion of the trainer with an electrically conducting section of a head section of the golf club portion, the mat portion including at least one electrical contact which is electrically connected to indicator means, said indicator means indicating when the electrically conducting portion has completed the electrical circuit.
The invention extends to a golf club for a golf swing trainer having a sole portion, a section of which is electrically conducting and a section of which is electrically non-conducting.
The invention also extends to a golf club having a shaft section which is inclined in a forward direction when a sole portion thereof is generally horizontally aligned.
The forward inclination may be at an angle of between about 1xc2x0 and 45xc2x0. The forward inclination may be between about 5xc2x0 and 25xc2x0.
The invention extends to a golf swing training device, in which a golf club portion has a tether attached between the golf club portion and a mat portion of the trainer, the tether being arranged to limit the length of the back swing of a person using the trainer.
All of the above aspects may be combined with any of the features of the invention disclosed herein, in any combination.


An apparatus for the automated and facilitated handling and operation of a biopsy needle system, having a first inner needle component and a second outer needle component. The first inner and second outer needles are provided with first and second handles, respectively, which are fitted into first and second yokes of the apparatus. The apparatus is configured to maintain the first inner and second outer needles in a first position, during insertion of the biopsy needle point into the tissue being sampled. The apparatus is further configured to move the first inner and second outer needles into second and third positions, respectively, in rapid, automated succession so as to segment and enclose a tissue sample, which may be tested after removal of the biopsy needle system from the tissue. A tissue sample inspection feature permits facilitated repositioning and maintenance of the first inner needle relative to the second outer needle after retrieval of the tissue sample to, in turn, enable inspection of the retrieved tissue sample without removal of either needle from the apparatus.

The present invention relates to tissue sampling devices associated with biopsy needles, and in particular, to an automatic tissue sampling apparatus for utilizing two-piece biopsy needle systems for facilitating the retrieval of a tissue sample for testing.
A typical biopsy needle system utilized in obtaining tissue samples is composed of two parts, a first inner needle and a second outer needle. The first inner needle consists of a substantially solid shaft, having a first handle disposed at one end. A cutting point, to facilitate insertion of the needle into the tissue to be sampled, is located at the other end of the shaft, opposite to the position of the handle. Positioned proximate to the cutting point, is a tissue holding region, which is in the form of a cut-out region or flat in the otherwise substantially cylindrical shaft.
The second outer needle is typically hollow. At one end a second handle is disposed. The hollow passageway extends through the second handle, to enable the solid shaft of the first inner needle to be inserted into the passageway and into and through the entire hollow shaft of the second outer needle.
The shaft of the first inner solid needle is typically greater in length than the entire second outer hollow needle structure. When the first and second handles are placed in a particularly spaced co-axial configuration, the hollow shaft of the second outer needle covers the tissue holding region of the first inner needle. The tissue holding region may be exposed by projecting the first inner needle further into the second outer needle, bringing the first and second handles closer together.
To obtain a tissue sample, the biopsy needle is typically inserted into a patient, into the specific tissue to be sampled, at the desired cell mass to be investigated, with the first inner and second outer needles relatively positioned in the first described configuration, so that the tissue holding region is covered. The tissue holding region is then exposed, by the operator holding the second handle of the second outer needle stable while projecting the first inner needle forward a short distance along its sharp pointed region--until a portion of the tissue being tested surrounds the flat cut-out of the tissue holding region.
The second outer needle, which also has a sharp, though hollow, point disposed at the end of the hollow shaft opposite the second handle, is then moved forward, relative to the now-stabilized first inner needle--to cut off the tissue sample from the rest of the tissue, and cover the tissue sample about the flat cut-out of the tissue holding region. The angled cutting point of the second outer needle serves to sever the tissue sample. The first inner and second outer needles are typically maintained in a particular angular concentric orientation with respect to one another, prior to insertion, so as to maintain the forwardmost portion of the second outer needle point centered when positioned over the flat, cut-out region of the first inner needle.
After the tissue is severed and confined between the first inner and second outer needles, the inner and outer needles will be brought back to the same relative positions they occupied immediately prior to initial insertion of the biopsy needle system into the patient. To prevent loss or contamination of the tissue sample, the first inner and second outer needles are typically removed from the patient in this tissue-isolating configuration.
As the configuration of the first inner and second outer needles, utilized for initial insertion, and final removal from the patient, requires that the first and second handles be spaced apart in a particular configuration, the manual manipulation of such a biopsy needle system requires considerable dexterity, concentration and skill on the part of the operator. The concentration necessary to maintain the proper spacing may detract from the concentration necessary to make insertion and removal of the biopsy needle as painless as possible for the patient. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a form of automatic tissue sampling apparatus, which accomplishes some, if not all of the handling steps just described--so that the operator may be concerned with the crucial initial step of insertion and final step of removal, of the biopsy needle; to reduce the amount of discomfort to the patient, to improve the quality of the results of the tissue sampling procedure, and to enhance the successful repeatability of the procedure, from one patient to the next.
Examples of prior art automatic tissue sampling apparatus include those disclosed in PCT application No. PCT/SE83/00112, Swedish Patent No. 8600755, U.S. Pat. No. 4,699,154, issued to Lindgren, EPO Application No. 0 318 447 and Swiss Patent No. 483 829.
In the PCT application, an automatic tissue sampling apparatus is disclosed, in which the first inner needle of the biopsy needle is propelled forward by a pressure plate which is driven by a compressed spring, and the second outer needle is propelled by a movable slide which receives the second handle of the second outer needle. The movable slide for holding the second outer needle is also propelled by a compressed spring. In order to prepare the apparatus for use, each of the springs and respective slides must be cocked separately, either manually or through the use of a specially shaped tool. The slide for the outer handle is held in place by a catch which is configured to be released upon contact with a projection arranged upon the slide for the first handle of the first inner needle. The pressure plate for the first handle of the first inner needle is in turn retained in its cocked position by a trigger which is actuatable by the operator. While it is possible to cock each of the springs, with the biopsy needle already in place, it is contemplated that such cocking will take place well prior to loading of the needle.
In operation then, once the springs have been cocked and the biopsy needle has been loaded, the operator inserts the needle into the tissue to be sampled, as previously described. He or she may then depress the trigger which releases the spring for propelling the first inner needle. As the first inner needle is moved forward, the pressure plate releases the retaining mechanism which has been previously holding the movable slide for the second handle of the second outer needle. The second outer needle is thus moved forward shortly after the first inner needle, completing the sampling movement. The trigger in the apparatus is biased by a spring into position to retain the compressed spring for the first inner needle slide, and is configured to provide increasing resistance to depression, up until a predetermined position, at which point, the resistance is sharply increased and further depression results in the immediate release of the compressed spring. No means are provided for preventing inadvertent actuation of the automatic tissue sampling apparatus. Due to the inherent hazardous nature of the extremely sharp points of the biopsy needle and the power of the springloaded mechanism, it is desirable, therefore, to provide a tissue sampling apparatus which has an automatically engaging safety mechanism, which must be consciously overcome before the tissue sampling apparatus may be actuated. In addition, it may be often awkward and/or difficult to manually overcome the force of the uncompressed springs which drive the movable slides. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an automatic tissue sampling apparatus which may be readily prepared for use, immediately before insertion, without the need for extreme physical exertion or the use of awkward and/or specially configured tools.
The tissue sampling device embodied in U.S. Pat. No. 4,699,154 to Lindgren discloses a housing in which two slides are mounted for longitudinal movement, the slides being configured to receive the first and second handles of the first inner and second outer needles, respectively. Each of the slides is propelled by a pair of compressed springs. The rearward slide, for propelling the handle of the first inner needle, is propelled by springs which bear against a rear wall of the housing. The slide for the handle of the second outer needle is propelled by compressed springs which bear against a fixed, transversely-extending wall arranged in the housing between the forward and rear slides. Both of the slides are arranged to have a guide member extending through them. A drawbolt is operably associated with each of the slides for limited axial movement relative thereto, such that when the drawbolt is pulled backward, both of the slides are simultaneously drawn against the bias of the respective springs, to a cocking position. When the cocking position is reached, retaining members associated with each of the slides engage the respective slides to retain them in their cocked positions.
In a manner similar to that discussed with regard to the PCT application, an external triggering mechanism is provided, which is actuatable by the operator to release the retaining mechanism for the slide for the first inner needle. Once the slide for the first inner needle has been propelled forward, a predetermined distance, a projection on the first slide releases the retaining mechanism for the slide for the handle of the second outer needle; enabling it to be propelled forward by its respective springs.
One possible drawback to the tissue sampling apparatus of the Lindgren '154 patent is that it is configured so that both sets of springs are compressed, and the slides brought into their retained positions by a single pulling motion upon the drawbolt. Accordingly, the combined strengths of all of the springs must be overcome in order to cock the mechanism. Due to the substantial power stored in the springs which is necessary for the rapid operation of the tissue sampling apparatus, it may be difficult for certain operators to rapidly and easily operate the cocking mechanism. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an automatic tissue sampling apparatus with a built-in cocking mechanism which is readily and easily operated, and which does not require substantial strength or effort in order to arm the apparatus.
The tissue sampling device of the Lindgren '154 patent is also provided with a safety mechanism, for precluding inadvertent actuation. However, the safety mechanism is configured such that it must be positively engaged by the operator, in order to place the tissue sampling apparatus into condition that it cannot be accidentally fired. Accordingly, the effectiveness of the safety device is dependent upon the operator remembering to set the safety. It would be more desirable to provide an automatic tissue sampling apparatus which is configured with a safety device which engages automatically upon the cocking of the apparatus, and is thereby not dependent upon the operator's remembering to engage the safety. Rather, it would be desirable to configure the safety device so the operator must affirmatively disengage the safety before the tissue sampling apparatus can be actuated.
Swiss Patent No. 483 829 discloses a "gun"-shaped automatic tissue sampling apparatus, in which the springs are cocked by direct pulling force, and so suffers from the same potential drawback of requiring substantial difficulty and effort to arm the device.
EPO Application No. 0 318 447 discloses a purportedly disposable automatic tissue sampling apparatus, in which the springs for the slides for the first inner and second outer needles are simultaneously cocked by rotating an outer sleeve backward, against the force of both springs. Tabs on the slides ride on cam surfaces to force the slides backward against the springs requiring substantial effort to operate.
In addition to the foregoing, it is well known that often during tissue sampling procedures, the quality and/or quantity of the tissue being sampled may vary from procedure to procedure. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a means for permitting inspection of the tissue sample, without removing the biopsy needle components from the tissue sampling apparatus. In that way, should the size or quality of the sample be inadequate, the biopsy needle may be reinserted into the very same patient for another attempt at obtaining a suitable sample. Such a sample inspection procedure would also permit access to the sample for subsequent deposit of same onto a microscope slide or other sample holding apparatus for further processing of the tissue sample.
Such prior art tissue sampling apparatus such as those disclosed in the PCT application and in the Lindgren '154 patent are known to be large, relatively heavy and complicated devices, which are also relatively costly.
It is thus an object of the present invention is to provide an improved automatic tissue sampling apparatus which is easy to load and bring into readiness for use, without undo exertion and/or complicated manipulation of its components; while providing a facilitated, positive locking, tissue sample inspection capability.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an automatic tissue sampling apparatus which is provided with an automatically engaging safety device, which does not rely upon the operator for its effectiveness and which must be affirmatively disengaged before the tissue sampling apparatus may be actuated.
The present invention seeks, as another goal, the provision of an automatic tissue sampling apparatus which is less complicated and therefore easier and less expensive to construct, and which has a lighter construction for greater ease of operation and manipulation.
Yet another goal of the invention is to provide an automatic tissue sampling apparatus which is provided with various internal shock and sound absorbing means so as to render the apparatus quieter and less jarring in operation, so as to decrease the actual and/or perceived discomfort of the patient during the tissue sampling procedure; while ensuring better practitioner accuracy during the procedure.
These and other objects and goals of the invention will become apparent and light of the present specification, drawings and claims.


Methods, systems and apparatus, including computer program products, for generating cookies. Multiple advertisements for multiple advertisers are stored on an ad server. Hostnames specific to each of the multiple advertisers are generated dynamically. The generated hostnames identify the ad server. A reference is generated identifying a particular advertisement of the multiple advertisements and the ad server. The ad server is identified in the reference with the generated hostname associated with the advertiser of the advertisement. The reference is provided to a client. A request is received from the client for the advertisement. The request includes the generated hostname. In response to the request, a client cookie, which includes a unique identifier, is sent to the client.

This specification relates to cookies that can be used to identify a client or user in Internet interactions.
Generally, the term "cookie" is used to refer to HTTP (Hypertext Transport Protocol) or web cookies. However, the term will be used in this specification in a broader sense to include any collection of information, whether stored in a file or otherwise, provided by a web site to be stored on a client device. Generally, a cookie includes information about an individual's or the client's use of a web site. Thus, the term includes not only conventional web cookies but also other technologies, e.g., "Local Shared Objects," which are also known as "Flash cookies."
When an advertisement is downloaded from an ad server by a user's browser, a cookie, associated with the ad server, is provided by the ad server to the browser. The cookie can be used to track how many unique browsers have downloaded the advertisement and how many times the advertisement has been downloaded by any one user's browser. An advertiser can incorporate content from the ad server into a conversion page. When the user visits the advertiser's conversion page, the information in the cookie is provided to the ad server when the content is downloaded by the user's browser.
Ad servers often serve multiple advertisements for a variety of advertisers. Conventionally, a single cookie associated with the ad server is used to track and identify a user with respect to all advertisements served by the ad server. Instead of using cookies, some ad servers record and track a user based on the user's IP (internet protocol) address and browser agent identity.