A process and a roll bending machine for bending plates. The plate to be bent is made to pass between upper and lower gripping rolls parallely arranged between each other; at least one of these rolls is connected to a drive motor for rotation. One of the rolls is upwardly movable to exert a required working pressure on the plate, and it is adjustably urged against the other roll in at least one intermediate position of its length till causing a deflection of both the rolls in the same direction, making one roll to assume an arch shaped configuration substantially conforming to the configuration of the other roll, in such a way to generate an homogenous bending pressure for the entire width of the plate which is thus bent with a substantially constant bending degree.

The present invention refers to a process and to a roll bending machine for bending plates and iron sheets, according to which the plate to be bent is made to pass between an upper and a lower gripping rolls which are parallely arranged between each other; at least one of these rolls is driven by a suitable drive motor to rotate, and in which at least one of the rolls is upwardly movably supported to exert the required working pressure on a plate to be bent.
The present invention may be advantageously applied to any type of roll bending machine, more simply indicated also as "bending machine", independently from the dimensions of the machine, which may be of two or three roll type depending on the specific use requirements.
Roll bending machine of this type are widely known and described in several prior patents, U.S. Pat. No. 160,647, U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,208 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,218,850 or EP 0 477 751.
The main function of a bending machine is to deform a plate by the pressure exerted by the working rolls, in particular by the upper gripping roll and by the lower gripping roll, which press the same causing an initial bending; a subsequent rotational movement of the rolls draws the plate deforming the same in a cylindrical or partially cylindrical form, for its entire width.
All the plate bending machines presently in use, have a common fundamental drawback relating to the incorrect closing of the edges of the bent plate, caused by the deflection of the rolls; in order to overcome this inconvenience, which moreover is of difficult solution, some extremely complex and expensive solutions have been proposed, in any case it is difficult to meet working requirements.
In fact, the rolls of a bending machine are generally supported and urged at their ends; the strong pressure exerted by the rolls on the plate during the bending phase causes, by reaction, a deflection in opposite directions of the rolls themselves, which is greater in the middle of their length. In particular, the deflection of the rolls, besides by the working pressure, is caused by their slenderness coefficient given by the ratio between the diameter and the axial length of the same roll.
As the two working rolls of a bending machine, because of the reaction exerted by the plate, tend to deflect in opposite directions, spacing each other, this deflection causes a gradual widening of the contact points of the rolls with the plate, the gap of which increases toward the middle area of their length; therefore, as the rolls are more and more spaced from each other when approaching the middle area, this causes a not homogeneous pressure distribution on the iron sheet or plate while it is drawn by the two working rolls of the bending machine.
This changing of the space between the contact points of the rolls with the plate, causes in turn the formation of different bending diameters on the same plate: in practice, in the middle of the plate, because of the larger space between the contact points, greater diameters are obtained with respect to the ends, where the real bending diameters of the plate are close to the nominal bending diameter.
The plate instead of being deformed and bent with a perfectly cylindrical shape, presents a swelling shape, commonly said "barrel" or "cigar" shape, shown for example in FIG. 5; it can be clearly noted that the longitudinal slit between the opposed edges of the bent plate, is more open at the middle than at the ends.
In the attempt of overcoming such an inconvenience, to improve the use of these machines, it is usual for the manufacturers of roll bending machines to shape the rolls with a certain swelling degree or with tapering surfaces suitable to partially compensate their greater deflection at the middle during a bending operation. The upper and the lower rolls of the bending machine present therefore a cylindrical central portion, having a greater diameter, and tapering side parts having shapes and dimensions resulting from the features of the bending machine and the working to be executed; this is shown as example in FIG. 4 of the accompanying drawings.
This swelling shape of the working rolls in a roll-plate bending machine is therefore used to limit the defect of the "barrel" configuration of the iron sheet. However this defect increases when increasing the thickness of the plate; in an attempt to limit the same defect, sometimes it is necessary to reduce the working pressure of the rolls, resulting in a not always satisfactory quality.
The conicity of the gripping rolls causes in turn an opposite defect, which is revealed by a "reel" or saddle-like shape of the iron sheet, shown as example in FIG. 6; it can be noted how the longitudinal slit resulting in this case, is closer in the centre than at the ends.
This defect, which increases when decreasing the thickness of the plate, is particularly critical for thin plates; to attenuate the same, usually it is necessary to proceed in opposite direction to the previous one, by increasing the gripping pressure on the plate between the two working rolls.
Therefore, the manufacturers of bending machines are generally inclined to choose average values of the conicity of the gripping rolls, such to allow a compromise between the "barrel" defect for thick plates, and the "reel" defect for thin plates, consequently acting on the gripping pressure to carry out the necessary corrections.
All that involves therefore a greater constructional complexity for the rolls, a greater complexity in running the bending machine and a consequent limitation in the use of the bending machine itself; in practice, bending machines designed for bending thick plates are not suitable for bending thin plates and vice versa.
In an attempt of overcoming these inconveniences, according to what shown in the prior documents, it has been also proposed to adequately support the working rolls of the bending machine, in their longitudinal direction, by additional thrust rollers, or by a set of small support rollers suitably adjustable in the height. However this solution too gives rise to a great constructional complexity of the machine, high costs, and difficulties in producing tubular elements having a small diameter.


Techniques are described for performing logical operations, where the techniques generally involve the use of dynamic flags used as markers to build a result set in response to a search query. The dynamic flags within a result set may be guide elements linked to one another, and to their respective data records and attributes, via pointers. In this case, the groups of guide elements forming result sets may each also be linked to one another via pointers, and may each be associated with a counter for counting a number of guide elements within a corresponding result set. The dynamic flags also may be individual bits within a bitmap, where the bitmap is linked to a particular result set identifier via a pointer, and the individual bitmaps are linked to their corresponding data record(s) via a relative addressing scheme. In this case, a counter also may be used to determine a number of hits within a result set (bitmap), before, during, and after a particular logical operation.

Computer systems provide various systems for storing and accessing data. In particular, it is often important that such systems provide an ability to search through large numbers of individual data records so as to locate a particular record or group of records having a pre-defined characteristic. Moreover, it is often desirable that such searches may be performed, and results obtained, as quickly as possible.
For example, in a customer database having millions of records, where each record corresponds to an individual customer, it may be important to locate customer(s) that are in a certain age group, or that live in a particular area. Similarly, it may be important to locate a record of a particular customer, when only limited information about that customer is available.
Further, it is often the case that such searches involve compound queries, such as Boolean queries. For example, when searching the customer database mentioned above, it may be necessary to perform a search for customers having the last name Smith AND living in the city Heidelburg.
In such cases, even if a system is designed to perform relatively fast searches for queries having single conditions, it may be the case that the system is inefficient or incapable of performing a database search based on a logical combination of multiple conditions. Moreover, even if the system is capable of performing such logical combinations, it may be the case that the system fails to perform sufficiently quickly to satisfy a level of demand of users of the database system.

Process for performing logical combinations


A cylinder head is formed with a pre-chamber surrounded by a thin pre-chamber wall sticking out from the inside wall surface of the cylinder head to the inside of the main combustion chamber. Inside of the pre-chamber, the electrode of a spark plug is arranged. When the spark plug is used to burn the air-fuel mixture in the pre-chamber, jet flames are ejected from the communication holes to the main combustion chamber. The thin pre-chamber wall is formed from a metal material while the overall outer circumferential surface around the communication holes passing through the thin pre-chamber wall is formed by a material with a lower heat conductivity than the thin pre-chamber wall.

Known in the art is a pre-chamber type internal combustion engine in which a main combustion chamber is formed between the inside wall surface of a cylinder head made of a metal and the top surface of a piston, a pre-chamber surrounded by a thin pre-chamber wall sticking out from the inside wall surface of the cylinder head to the inside of the main combustion chamber is formed at the cylinder head, communication holes communicating the inside of the pre-chamber and the inside of the main combustion chamber are formed inside the thin pre-chamber wall, the electrode of a spark plug is arranged in the pre-chamber, and, when the spark plug is used to make the air-fuel mixture in the pre-chamber burn, jet flames are ejected from the communication holes to the main combustion chamber, the thin pre-chamber wall is made a two-layer structure of the outside wall facing the main combustion chamber and the inside wall facing the pre-chamber, and the outside wall is formed by a material higher in heat conductivity than the inside wall (see for example Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-138909).

Pre-chamber type internal combustion engine


The invention relates to an automated guided vehicle and a method for operating an automated guided vehicle. Upon arriving at a destination, then the automated guided vehicle is moved, based on a comparison of signals or data assigned to the environment detected by at least one sensor with signals or data which are assigned to a target position or to a target position and orientation of the automated guided vehicle at the destination, such that the actual position or the actual position and orientation is the same as the target position or target position and orientation at least within a pre-specified tolerance.

An automated guided vehicle (AGV) is understood to be an automatically guided floor-bound vehicle with its own drive. Automated guided vehicles are, for example, mobile robots. Automated guided vehicles are configured, in particular, to automatically approach a destination in order to stop there.
The object of the invention it to provide a method for operating an automated guided vehicle, which enables the automated guided vehicle to better assume the target position or target position and orientation. A further object of the invention is to provide a corresponding automated guided vehicle.

Automated guided vehicle and method of operating an automated guided vehicle


A new Calibrachoa plant designated ‘KLECA18504’ particularly distinguished by violet flowers, is disclosed.

The present invention comprises a new and distinct variety of Calibrachoa, botanically known as Calibrachoa sp., and hereinafter referred to by the variety name 'KLECA18504'. 'KLECA18504' originated from a controlled cross between the proprietary female Calibrachoa parent 'CA-2015-6479', (unpatented) and the proprietary male Calibrachoa 'CA-2015-6488', (unpatented) in Stuttgart, Germany in August 2015.
'KLECA18504' has been found to reproduce true to type in successive generations of asexual propagation in Stuttgart, Germany via vegetative stem cuttings.


In a hydraulic pump, an elastic sealing member for performing sealing between a cylinder and a slide piston reciprocating in the cylinder is provided in the front end side of the slide piston and along the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder so that the elastic sealing member receives a compression force from a front end surface of the slide piston in a compression stroke of the slide piston and swells into a pump chamber because of elastic deformation due to the compression force to thereby reduce the volume of the pump chamber. Accordingly, the elastic deformation of the elastic sealing member in the compression stroke is used to increase the discharge quantity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hydraulic pump for discharging a fluid by means of a slide piston reciprocating in a cylinder and particularly relates to an improvement for facilitating assembling and, at the same time, heightening discharge efficiency.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a hydraulic pump comprises a slide piston reciprocating in a cylinder to compress/expand the volume of a pump chamber in the cylinder, a suction valve for opening an inlet provided in the pump chamber in an expansion stroke of the slide piston, a discharge valve for opening an outlet of the pump chamber in a compression stroke of the slide piston, and an elastic sealing member provided between the cylinder and the slide piston to prevent a fluid in the pump chamber from leaking out of a gap between the slide piston and the cylinder, in which the fluid is discharged by the reciprocating motion of the slide piston.
In such a hydraulic pumps, a pump using a cylinder having a relatively large diameter and using a capped-cylindrical piston as the slide piston is called a piston pump, and a pump using a cylinder having a relatively small diameter and using a round-rod-like plunger as the slide piston is called a plunger pump.
As shown in FIG. 6, in the conventional hydraulic pump, generally, a circumferential groove 2 is formed in the inner circumference of the cylinder 1 so that a ring-like elastic sealing member 3 fitted into the groove 2 is brought into elastic contact with the outer circumference of the slide piston 4 such as a piston, a plunger, or the like, to thereby prevent the fluid in the pump chamber 5 from leaking out of a gap 6 between the cylinder 1 and the slide piston 4.
In the way of providing the elastic sealing member 3 as shown in FIG. 6, however, the elastic sealing member 3 is displaced and deformed in a direction of departing from the pump chamber 5 as represented by the arrow (A), by the pressure of the fluid in the pump chamber 5 to increase the substantial volume of the pump chamber 5 as shown in FIG. 7 when the discharge pressure is high. The increment of the volume of the pump chamber 5 due to the displacement and deformation of such an elastic sealing member 3 forms an escape space for the fluid compressed by the slide piston 4, so that there arises a problem in the loss of the discharge quantity.
The more the stroke X of a movement of the slide piston 4 decreases, the stronger the influence of this problem becomes so that there is a risk of a serious defect disturbing improvement in the discharge efficiency of the pump.
If accuracy in the fitting of the elastic sealing member 3 into the groove 2 is improved or accuracy in the fitting of the slide piston 4 into the cylinder 1 is improved to thereby reduce the displacement and deformation of the elastic sealing member 3, the increase of the volume of the pump chamber due to the displacement and deformation of the elastic sealing member 3 can be reduced. When such fitting accuracy is improved, however, there arises a new problem that the cost of machining increases to thereby bring about the increase in cost or poor assembling property.


A normally white (NW) twisted nematic (TN) liquid crystal display (LCD) outputs improved viewing characteristics which are defined by high contrast ratios and/or reduced inversion. The display includes a pair of negative tilted retarders located on opposite sides of the liquid crystal layer, each of the tilted retarders including a tilt or incline angle which varies throughout the thickness of the layer. Additionally, one or two negative uniaxial or biaxial retarders may also be provided on opposite sides of the LC layer. As a result of the particular orientations, alignments, and retardation values described in different embodiments herein, the display exhibits improved contrast and/or reduced inversion, often in the same viewing areas.

Contrast ratio (CR) is one of the most important attributes considered in determining the quality of both normally white (NW) and normally black (NB) LCDs. The contrast ratio (CR) in a normally white display is determined in low ambient conditions by dividing the "off-state" light transmission (high intensity white light) by the "on-state" or darkened transmitted intensity. For example, if the "off-state" transmission is 200 fL at a particular viewing angle and the "on-state" transmission is 5 fL at the same viewing angle, then the display's contrast ratio at that particular viewing angle is 40 (or 40:1) for the particular driving voltages utilized.
Accordingly, in normally white LCDs, a significant factor adversely limiting contrast ratio is the amount of light which leaks through the display in the darkened or "on-state." In a similar manner, in normally black displays, a significant factor limiting the contrast ratio achievable is the amount of light which leaks through the display in the darkened or "off-state." The higher and more uniform the contrast ratio of a particular display over a wide range of viewing angles, the better the LCD in most applications.
Normally black (NB) twisted nematic displays typically have better contrast ratio contour curves or characteristics than do their counterpart NW displays (i.e. the NB image can often be seen better at large or wide viewing angles). However, NB displays are optically different than NW displays and are much more difficult to manufacture due to their high dependence on the cell gap or thickness "d" of the liquid crystal layer as well as on the temperature of the liquid crystal (LC) material itself. Accordingly, a long-felt need in the art has been the ability to construct a normally white (NW) display with high contrast ratios over a large range of viewing angles, rather than having to resort to the more difficult and expensive to manufacture NB displays in order to achieve these characteristics.
What is often needed in NW LCDs is an optical compensating or retarding element(s), i.e. retardation film(s), which introduces a phase delay that restores the original polarization state of the light, thus allowing the light to be substantially blocked by the output polarizer (analyzer) in the "on-state." Optical compensating elements or retarders are known in the art and are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,184,236; 5,189,538; 5,406,396; 4,889,412; 5,344,916; 5,196,953; 5,138,474; and 5,071,997.
The disclosures of U.S. Ser. No. 08/559,275; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,570,214 and 5,576,861 (all incorporated herein by reference) in their respective "Background" sections illustrate and discuss contrast ratio, and driving voltage versus intensity (fL) graphs of prior art NW displays which are less than desirable. Many prior art NW LCD viewing characteristics are problematic in that, for example, their contrast ratios are limited horizontally and/or vertically (and are often non-symmetric), and their gray level performance lacks consistency.
Gray level performance, and the corresponding amount of inversion, are also important in determining the quality of an LCD. Conventional active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCDs) typically utilize anywhere from about 8 to 64 different driving voltages. These different driving voltages are generally referred to as "gray level" voltages. The intensity of light transmitted through the pixel(s) or display depends upon the driving voltage utilized. Accordingly, conventional gray level voltages are used to generate dissimilar shades of color so as to create different colors and images when, for example, the shades are mixed with one another.
Preferably, the higher the driving voltage in a normally white display, the lower the intensity (fL) of light transmitted therethrough. The opposite is true in NB displays. Thus, by utilizing multiple gray level driving voltages, one can manipulate either a NW or NB LCD to emit desired intensities and shades of light/color. A gray level voltage V.sub.ON is generally known as any driving voltage greater than V.sub.th (threshold voltage) up to about 3.0 to 6.5 volts, although gray level voltages may be as low as 2.0 in certain applications.
Gray level intensity in an LCD is dependent upon the display's driving voltage. It is desirable in NW displays to have an intensity versus driving voltage curve for as many viewing angles as possible wherein the intensity of light emitted from the display or pixel continually decreases as the driving voltage increases. Such desired gray level curves across a wide range of view allows the intensity of light reaching viewers at different viewing angles to be easily and consistently controlled. It is also desirable that all such curves have as close to the same slope as possible.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,583,679 (the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference) discloses an LCD including an optical compensating sheet that includes a discotic structure and negative birefringence, with the discotic structure unit having an inclined plane. Unfortunately, the contrast ratios and inversion characteristics resulting from displays of the '679 patent have been found by the instant inventors to be less than desirable. Certain embodiments of the instant invention described herein exhibit surprisingly improved results with respect to contrast ratio and/or inversion as compared to the '679 patent.
It is apparent from the above that there exists a need in the art for a normally white TN liquid crystal display (LCD) wherein the viewing zone of the display has high contrast ratios and/or little or no inversion over a wide range of viewing angles. Furthermore, there exists a need in the art for improved contrast and reduced inversion in the same viewing zone (e.g. in the upper vertical viewing zone principally utilized by pilots of aircraft in avionic applications).
The term "rear" when used herein as it is used to describe substrates, polarizers, electrodes, buffing films or zones, retarders, and orientation films means that the described element is on the backlight side of the liquid crystal material, or in other words, on the side of the LC material opposite the viewer.
The term "front" when used herein but only as it is used to describe substrates, polarizers, retarders, electrodes, buffing films or zones and orientation films means that the described element is located on the viewer side of the liquid crystal material.
Unless otherwise specified, the actual LCDs and light valves made and/or tested herein included a liquid crystal material with a birefringent value (.DELTA.n) of 0.0854 at room temperature, Model No. ZLI-4718 obtained from Merck.
Unless otherwise specified, the term "retardation value" as used herein for uniaxial retarders means "d .DELTA.n" of the retardation film or plate, where "d" is the film or plate thickness and ".DELTA.n" is the film birefringence (i.e. difference in certain indices of refraction).
The term "interior" when used herein to describe a surface or side of an element (or an element itself), means that closest to the nematic liquid crystal (LC) material. The term "exterior" means the side farthest from the nematic liquid crystal layer.
The term "light valve" as used herein means a liquid crystal display including a rear linear polarizer, a rear transparent substrate, a rear continuous pixel electrode, a rear orientation film, an LC layer, a front orientation film, a front continuous pixel electrode, a front substrate, and a front linear polarizer (i.e. without the presence of color filters and/or active matrix driving circuitry such as TFTs). Such a light valve may also include retardation film(s) disposed on either side of the LC layer as described with respect to each example and/or embodiment herein. In other words, a "light valve" (LV) may be referred to as one giant pixel without segmented pixel electrodes.
For all circular grid contrast ratio graphs herein, "EZContrast" equipment available from Eldim of Caen, France (ID #204F) was used to develop these graphs. This equipment includes a system for measuring Luminance and Contrast versus viewing angle (incident (polar) and azimuth angle), utilizing 14 bits A/D conversion to give luminance measurements from 1/10 to 8,000 cd/m.sup.2, with an accuracy of 3% and a fidelity of 1%. A temperature regulated CCD sensor with a photopic response (and specially designed lenses) are part of this commercially available Eldim system and corresponding software. The measurement device of this Eldim system includes a specially designed large viewing angle lens system having a numerical aperture of 0.86. The Eldim software is Windows.TM. 3.1 based, running on any 486 and above PC, supporting DDE interface with other programs.
All measured real data herein, in the Examples, included the non-uniform characteristics of the backlight over a range of angles. Backlights are more intense at normal than at wide angles.

NW twisted nematic LCD with negative tilted retarders for improved viewing characteristics


An image processing apparatus capable of converting input image data into image data expressing a dot pattern cell by cell includes a detection unit configured to detect a pixel having a specific pixel value in the input image data, and a determination unit configured to determine an output value of a pixel included in each cell by arranging as many print pixels as a number of print pixels according to a total value of pixel values of a pixel group including pixels included in a cell except the pixel detected by the detection unit on any of the pixels in the pixel group cell by cell.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure generally relates to image processing and, more particularly, to halftone processing for converting input image data into image data having fewer gradations.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, printers are widely used to print images generated by computers, images captured by digital cameras, and images read by scanners. Image data handled by a computer typically has more gradations than a printer can output on a recording medium. Halftone processing is applied to digital image data to reduce the number of gradations so that an output apparatus such as a printer can output the gradations.
One of the known methods for halftone processing is expressing pseudo gradations in each unit area (cell). As a method for expressing pseudo gradations cell by cell, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-194904 discusses a technique for calculating a barycentric position in each cell of point symmetric shape based on the pixel values of pixels corresponding to the cell, and growing dots from the barycentric position.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-82090 discusses a method for simply outputting the pixel values of pixels in a unit area if the unit area includes only white pixels and/or black pixels. If not, an average of the pixel values of the pixels in the unit area is output as the output values of the respective pixels.
According to the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-194904, if a cell includes a plurality of edges or thin lines, the barycentric position of the dots may shift to one side and fail to be set in an appropriate position. In such a case, the resulting image has low resolution due to blurred edges or thin lines.
According to the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-82090, a unit area may include a pixel having a pixel value expressing a halftone other than white and black pixels. Even if such a unit area includes an edge, the edge will not be detected. As a result, averaged data is output with a drop in resolution.

Image processing apparatus, method, and product for converting image data into fewer gradations based on total value of pixels in a group except for a detected pixel having a specific value


A method for preparing sulfonated polystyrene, whereby a styrene monomer having a sulfonyl chloride is prepared by reacting p-styrene sulfonic acid salt with a chloride, a styrene-based polymer having the sulfonyl chloride is synthesized by the polymerization of a p-styrene sulfonyl chloride monomer and optionally at least one monomer of a styrene and an acrylic monomer, the styrene-based polymer having the sulfonyl chloride is treated with an inorganic base aqueous solution to change the sulfonyl chloride into a SO3M group where M is an alkali metal, and treated with an acidic aqueous solution to prepare a styrene-based polymer having a sulfonic acid group. The styrene-based polymer having the sulfonic acid group prepared according to the process of the present invention has high proton conductivity and good mechanical properties.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for preparing sulfonated polystyrene for a polymer electrolyte for a fuel cell, and more particularly, to a method for preparing sulfonated polystyrene having good proton conductivity, a sulfonated polystyrene polymer electrolyte prepared according to the method, and a fuel cell comprising the sulfonated polystyrene polymer electrolyte.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fuel cells as electrochemical cells convert energy that is generated by an oxidation reaction of fuel to electrical energy. On an anode of a fuel cell, organic fuel such as methanol, formaldehyde, or formic acid is oxidized to carbon dioxide, and on a cathode, air or oxygen is reduced to water. A high specific energy of organic fuel renders the fuel cell more attractive. For example, the specific energy of methanol is 6232 wh/kg.
Fuel cells comprise a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) including an anode layer, a cathode layer, and a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) that is interposed between the two electrode layers and plays a role as a proton transfer medium. As the conductive polymer electrolyte of a fuel cell, a fluorine-containing polymer electrolyte membrane such as a perfluoro carbon sulfonic acid membrane (Nafion™ manufactured by DuPont Company) has chemical stability, high ionic conductivity and good mechanical properties, and is generally used.
However, a fluorine-containing polymer electrolyte has a disadvantage in that it is prepared by a complicated process, and has a high manufacturing cost. Further, since a fluorine-containing polymer electrolyte has a heat-resistance limit of less than 100° C., a cooling system for reforming gas and a removing system for carbon monoxide are needed when it is used as a power source for an automobile, a commercial small-sized power plant, or a portable power plant. The proton conductivity deteriorates and infiltration of methanol occurs at a high temperature of more than 80° C. or under low humidity of less than 60%.
Therefore, a sulfonated polymer such as sulfonated polyimide, polystyrene, polyphenylene, or polyetheretherketone (PEEK) has been researched as a polymer electrolyte membrane to replace fluorine-containing polymer electrolyte membranes. The sulfonated polystyrene is prepared through post-sulfonation of polystyrene. For example, Dais Analytical Corp. developed a sulfonated styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene triblock polymer as a polymer electrolyte. However, the post-sulfonation has a disadvantage in that it is difficult to control the degree of sulfonation and it is difficult to obtain a material having various structures.
Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 97-102322 discloses a sulfonated polystyrene-graft-ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) polymer comprising a copolymer of a fluorocarbon-based vinyl monomer and a hydrocarbon-based vinyl monomer as a main chain, and a hydrocarbon chain having a sulfone group as a side chain. The ETFE polymer can be prepared at a low cost, has enough mechanical properties for a polymer electrolyte, and can be improved in terms of conductivity by introducing many sulfone groups. The main chain of the copolymer of a fluorocarbon-based vinyl monomer and a hydrocarbon-based vinyl monomer has high oxidation resistance properties, but the hydrocarbon side chain is easily oxidized and deteriorated. Therefore, the ETFE polymer has insufficient oxidation resistance and durability for a polymer electrolyte for a fuel cell.

Method for preparing sulfonated polystyrene for polymer electrolyte of fuel cell


A method is for production of tomographic section images, in particular X-ray CT images, of an at least partially periodically moving examination object with periodically changing movement and rest phases, preferably of a heart of a living being. A number of focus detector combinations are used, with the time resolution of the CT scanner being significantly increased by supplementary combination of detector data in the correct phase. On the one hand, a number of focus detector combinations which scan an examination object at the same time are used; and on the other hand a number of adjacent movement cycles of a periodically moving examination object are performed.

Computer tomography methods for creation of section images with the aid of multiple focus detector combinations are known, for, example, from the patent specifications U.S. Pat. No. 4,196,352, U.S. Pat. No. 4,384,359, U.S. Pat. No. 5,966,422, U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,190 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,421,412 B1. The Laid-Open Specification DE 199 57 082 A1 discloses the recording of movement signals of the heart by the use of an EKG in order to display a beating heart in parallel with the scanning process. As such, the rest phases of the heart can be determined and exclusively images from the rest phase can be assessed. The X-ray source may additionally be active only during the rest phase in the cited document.
Furthermore, reference is made to the publication T. Flohr, B. Ohnesorge, "Heart-Rate Adaptive Optimization of Spatial and Temporal Resolution for ECG-Gated Multislice Spiral CT of the Heart", JCAT vol. 25, No. 6, 2001. Algorithms for accurate-phase volume reconstruction of the heart for a cardio spiral in a multiple line CT are known from this document.
The problem of these generally known cardio spiral reconstruction methods is that the time resolution that is achieved in the scanning of a periodically moving heart is not always sufficient to achieve sufficiently sharp section image representations of the coronary vessels.

Method for production of tomographic section images of a periodically moving object with a number of focus detector combinations


A system and method for recording on optical and electromagnetic disk media utilize a control disk for formatting and providing speed control of the recorded information. Optionally, the control disk may provide operating, diagnostic, and a wide variety of other information to the recording system or user. A recording disk and the control disk are rotated synchronously with each other while the control disk is scanned by a read head which derives formatting, speed control, and other information. A write head on the recording disk is then manipulated in a pattern determined by the formatting and speed control information. Typically, the read head and write head are mechanically coupled so that the write head is positioned as the read head follows a tracking information on a read surface of the control disk to write a tracking pattern to a write surface of the recording disk in a recordable region between a start-of-disk pattern and an end-of-disk pattern.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for recording information on optical and electromagnetic recording disks. In particular, the invention relates to the use of a control disk for providing formatting and speed control information during recording on a blank recordable disk. Optionally, the control disk may also provide operating, diagnostic, and a wide variety of other information for the system or user.
2. Description of the Background Art
Optical data storage media in the form of compact disks are well known as an alternative to long playing records and magnetic tape cassettes. The disks with which consumers are familiar are optical read-only disks and the common disk player is designed specifically for this type of disk. These disks have a reflective surface containing pits which represent data in binary form. The pits are arranged in a spiral pattern with a 1.6 .mu.m pitch and define both informational data, e.g., music or text, and control data which provide instructions to the player on how to play the disk. Specific control information includes start-of-disk codes, end-of-disk codes, tracking information, rotational speed information, and the like. A detailed description of these pits and how they function is provided by Watkinson, The Art of Digital Audio, Focal Press, Chapter 13.
Compact disks are currently produced by a pressing process similar to the process used to produce conventional long playing records. The process, referred to herein as the "mastering" process, starts by first polishing a plain glass optical disk. This disk has an outside diameter from 200 to 240 mm, a thickness of 6 mm and undergoes various cleaning and washing steps. The disk is then coated with a thin chrome film or coupling agent, a step taken to produce adhesion between the glass disk and a layer of photo-resist, which is a photosensitive material. Data on a compact disk master tape are then transferred to the glass disk by a laser beam cutting method.
The glass disk is still completely flat after it is written on by the laser beam because pits are not formed until the glass is photographically developed. The disk surface is first made electrically conductive and then subjected to a nickel evaporation process. The disk, now known as the glass master, then undergoes nickel electrocasting, a process which is similar to that used in making analog phono records. A series of metal replications follow, resulting in a disk called a stamper. The stamper is equivalent to a photographic negative in the sense that it is a reverse of the final compact disk; that is, there are now bumps were there should be pits. This stamper is then used to make a pressing on a transparent polymer such as polyvinyl chloride, poly(ethyl-methacrylate) and polycarbonate. The stamped surface is then plated with a reflective film such as aluminum or other metal and finally a plastic coating is applied over the film to form a rigid structure.
The player operates by focusing a laser beam on the reflective metal through the substrate and then detecting reflected light. The optical properties of the substrate, such as its thickness and index of refraction, are thus critical to the player's detection systems and standard players are designed specifically with these parameters in mind.
The pits increase the optical path of the laser beam by an amount equivalent to a half wavelength, thereby producing destructive interference when combined with other (non-shifted) reflected beams. The presence of data thus takes the form of a drop in intensity of the reflected light. The detection system on a standard player is thus designed to require greater than 70% reflection when no destructive interference occurs and a modulation amplitude greater than 30% when data is present. These intensity limits, combined with the focusing parameters, set the criteria for the compact disks and other optical data storage media which can be read or played on such players. U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,083 describes a system for reading and tracking information on optical disks.
Media on which data can be recorded directly on and read directly from have a different configuration and operate under a somewhat different principle. One example is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,719,615 (Feyrer et. al.), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Other examples are described in copending application serial numbers 152,690; 294,723; 357,377; 357,504; 357,506; 414,041; and 414,044, the disclosures of Which are incorporated herein by reference.
The medium disclosed in Feyrer et. al, includes a lower expansion layer of a rubbery material which expands when heated. The expansion layer is coupled to an upper retention layer which is glassy at ambient temperature and becomes rubbery when heated. Both layers are supported on a rigid substrate. The expansion and retention layers each contain dyes for absorption of light at different wavelengths. Data are recorded by heating the expansion layer by absorption of light from a laser beam at a "record" wavelength to cause the expansion layer to expand away from the substrate and form a protrusion or "bump" extending into the retention layer. While this is occurring, the retention layer rises in temperature above its glass transition temperature so that it can deform to accommodate the bump. The beam is then turned off and the retention layer cools quickly to its glassy state before the bump levels out, thereby fixing the bump. Reading or playback of the data is then achieved by a low intensity "read" beam which is focused on the partially reflecting interface between the retention layer and air. When the read beam encounters the bump, some of the reflected light is scattered, while other portions of the reflected light destructively interfere with reflected light from non-bump areas. The resulting drop in intensity is registered by the detector. Removal of the bump to erase the data is achieved by a second laser beam at an "erase" wavelength which is absorbed by the retention layer and not the expansion layer. This beam heats the retention layer alone to a rubbery state where its viscoelastic forces and those of the expansion layer return it to its original flat configuration. The write, read and erase beams all enter the medium on the retention layer side, passing through retention layer before reaching the expansion layer.
In recording data on blank recordable disks, it is necessary to both rotate the disk and translate the recording laser beam across the disk in a coordinated fashion in order to impart data on the disk in a readable format. Usually, the data will be recorded in a spiral pattern on the disk and it is necessary to provide tracking pattern and rotational speed control information to the recorder in order to properly coordinate the position of the laser beam and the rotational position of the disk. In addition, information must be provided to facilitate playback of the disk, including start-of-disk codes, end-of-disk codes, rotational speed codes, and the like. When the recorded disks are intended to be played back on conventional disk players, it is necessary that all encoded tracking speed, and other control information be compatible with the particular standardized system.
One approach for providing tracking, speed, and other control information on recordable disk media has been to incorporate the information on the blank during the manufacturing process. For example, digital data comprising the start-of-disk codes, end-of-disk codes, and rotational speed information can be pressed into the "blank" disk in a manner similar to conventional disk fabrication, while a spiral track or groove can be formed into the disk to allow tracking of the recording laser during the recording process. The need to incorporate such information at the manufacturing stage, however, is problematic and significantly increases the cost complexity of fabricating the disks. Moreover, the tracking grooves must be invisible to conventional disk players, further complicating their design and manufacture.
For these reasons, it would be desirable to provide methods and systems for encoding format information on blank recordable media during the recording process. In particular, it would be desirable to impart both tracking information and digital control information, such as start-of-disk codes, end-of-disk codes, and rotational speed codes, during the recording process.

Control and information disk for disk recording system


The present invention relates to acylated GIP analogues which have dual GIP and GLP-1 activity, and their use in the treatment of metabolic disorders.

Diabetes and obesity are increasing health problems globally and are associated with various other diseases, particularly cardiovascular diseases (CVD), obstructive sleep apnea, stroke, peripheral artery disease, microvascular complications and osteoarthritis. There are 246 million people worldwide with diabetes, and by 2025 it is estimated that 380 million will have diabetes. Many have additional cardiovascular risk factors including high/aberrant LDL and triglycerides and low HDL. Cardiovascular diseases account for about 50% of the mortality in people with diabetes, and the morbidity and mortality rates relating to obesity and diabetes underscore the medical need for efficacious treatment options.
Incretins are gastrointestinal hormones that regulate blood glucose by enhancing glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (Drucker, D J and Nauck, M A, Lancet 368: 1696-705 (2006)). To date there are two known incretins: glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP). The incretin GLP-1 is derived from the pre-proglucagon gene. Pre-proglucagon is a 158-amino acid precursor polypeptide that is processed in different tissues to form a number of different proglucagon-derived peptides, including glucagon, GLP-1, glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) and oxyntomodulin (OXM). Glucagon is a 29-amino acid peptide that corresponds to amino acids 33 through 61 of pre-proglucagon, while GLP-1 is produced as a 37-amino acid peptide that corresponds to amino acids 72 through 108 of pre-proglucagon. GIP is a 42-amino acid peptide derived by proteolytic processing from a 133-amino acid precursor, pre-pro-GIP. All the peptides are involved in a wide variety of physiological functions, including glucose homeostasis, insulin secretion, gastric emptying, and intestinal growth, as well as the regulation of food intake.
The discovery of the incretins has led to the development of two new classes of drugs for the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Thus, injectable GLP-1 receptor agonists, and small molecule compounds (oral DPP-4 inhibitors) that inhibit enzymatic inactivation of both endogenous GLP-1 and GIP, are now on the market (GLP-1 receptor agonists: Byetta™, Bydureon™ Lixisenatide™ and Victoza™; and DPP-4 inhibitors: Januvia™, Galvus™, Onglyza™ and Trajenta™). Apart from the acute effects of GLP-1 and GIP on insulin secretion, the incretins have some long-term effects. Evidence from several laboratories shows that GLP-1 receptor agonists protect pancreatic β-cells by inhibiting apoptosis and enhancing proliferation. For instance, a study by Farilla et al. showed that GLP-1 has anti-apoptotic effects in human islets (Farilla, L, Endocrinology 144: 5149-58 (2003)). Such effects have not been reported for GIP until recently. Weidenmaier et al. reported that a DPP-4 resistant GIP analogue had anti-apoptotic effects (Weidenmaier, S D, PLOS One 5(3): e9590 (2010)). Interestingly, in a mouse model of diabetes and obesity, the combination of the GLP-1 receptor agonist Liraglutide and an acylated GIP analogue showed superior glucose-lowering and insulinotropic effects compared to treatment with Liraglutide and GIP analogue alone (Gault, V A, Clinical Science 121: 107-117 (2011)).
Chronic treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists causes significant weight loss in diabetic humans. Interestingly, extended use of DPP-4 inhibitors in similar patients does not consistently change body weight. Evidence suggests (Matthias Tschop oral presentation at ADA (American Diabetes Association), 2011) that body weight loss associated with GLP-1 agonist treatment is enhanced when GLP-1 and GIP are co-administered. In rodents, co-administration of GLP-1 and GIP results in greater body weight loss than GLP-1 treatment alone (Finan, Sci Transl Med. 2013; 5(209):209ra151. Irwin N et al, 2009, Regul Pept; 153: 70-76. Gault et al, 2011, Clin Sci; 121:107-117). Thus, in addition to improving blood glucose control, GIP may also enhance GLP-1-mediated body weight loss.
Recently, different peptides have been shown to bind and activate both the GIP and the GLP-1 receptor and to suppress body weight gain and reduce food intake (see, for example WO2012/088116, WO2010/148089, WO2012/167744, WO 2913/164483, WO 2014/096145, WO 2014/096150 and WO 2014/096149). However, most of these peptides have short terminal elimination half-life (T½).

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

GIP-GLP-1 dual agonist compounds and methods


A system and method for communication of information that has particular significance to a specific location only to those individuals that are at or near that geo-spatial location. In particular, providing safety factor data and alerts is a preferred use of the invention. The invention allows information to be tailored to the individual at that location by selectively filtering what is communicated and what is not. The system includes a transmitting proximity event server, a GPS client wireless component that can be a personal wireless communication device (such as Palm Pilot, cellular digital phones, etc.) or personal computer configured for use within a global position satellite network.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to wireless communication components and more particularly to global positioning satellite (GPS) technology/wireless communication integration of such components, and notifies a person or object that they are at or near the geo-spatial location of a significant event of subscribed data by the person or object.
2. Description of the Related Art
Rapid advances are being made in the field of wireless communication. An increasing number of applications are being developed for the wireless device platform, ranging from smart cellular phones to two-way text pagers. By the year 2001, new cellular phones are required to have a location-tracking device based on the global position satellite (GPS) network. This gives rise to systems that deliver real-time, location-based information and services to wireless subscribers. Typically, a wireless application retrieves data from a server to the wireless handset when the user invokes a specific function in the handset. For instance, a user might request flight departure time information from the server of an airline. In many cases, however, it is desirable to deliver ("push") information to the user on a continuous basis. Personal safety is one important aspect where push technology is required. To illustrate, U.S. Pat. No. 6,144,336, discloses a positional, time-stamped based wireless communication GPS/wireless component network having "911" emergency number capability.
However, such systems do not provide complex geo-spatial related data (information) to a user while using wireless-based components to make informed decisions where an awareness of location-based event information is necessary. Examples of such location-based event information include crime reports; traffic safety reports; and environmental hazard reports.
Thus, there is need for the ability to concurrently monitor several geo-spatial related data (information) sources, for example, earthquake reports, accident reports, and safety-related news in the user's vicinity. This data can then be used for alerting them accordingly to take appropriate action. Further, there is need to provide data of future and past events dependent upon a current geo-spatial location. The present invention solves these problems by providing a real-time, location-based information system that continuously delivers information to the user's wireless handset, helping them maintain an awareness of events in their vicinity and assisting them in taking appropriate action.

Wireless communication system and method to provide geo-spatial related event data

International Business Machines Corporation


The invention provides a method for producing carbon nanotubes, comprising spraying an oil onto a catalyst metal supported by at least one support selected from the group consisting of silica gel, alumina, magnesia, silica-alumina and zeolite which is placed in an atmosphere that has been controlled to a specific temperature, and an apparatus therefor. According to the invention, a large amount of carbon nanotubes can be synthesized from inexpensive raw materials by using a simple apparatus.

Vapor grown carbon fiber and carbon nanotubes (unless otherwise specified, both vapor grown carbon fiber and carbon nanotubes are hereinafter collectively referred to as "carbon nanotubes") have been extensively studied in terms of their applications in, for example, field emitters, transistors, sensors, hydrogen occlusion, conductive plastics, fuel cells and solar cells.
Currently, carbon nanotubes are generally produced through the CVD method employing a raw material gas such as methane; the arc discharge method employing a solid raw material such as graphite (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2004-256373); or the laser ablation method. Carbon nanotubes produced through any of these methods are expensive, because of high costs for raw materials and apparatuses.
In the future, when carbon nanotubes come to be used in large amounts, a low-cost method for the synthesis therefor will definitely be needed. In addition, natural resources present in the natural world and recycled raw materials will come to be employed from environmental considerations. Furthermore, oils that are consumed via combustion are required to be fixed as carbon nanotubes, from the viewpoint of reduction in amount of carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere.
Among various production methods for carbon nanotubes, the CVD method—a type of vapor growth technique—is the lowest-cost method for producing carbon nanotubes. However, since the production cost is still unsatisfactory and remains to be further reduced, there is a demand for a carbon nanotube production method which allows mass production of carbon nanotubes at lower cost.
FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of an example reactor for continuously producing carbon nanotubes through vapor growth. In one typical procedure for producing carbon nanotubes, a hydrocarbon such as CO, methane, acetylene, ethylene, benzene or toluene is employed as a feedstock. In the case where the feedstock hydrocarbon assumes the gaseous state at room temperature, the hydrocarbon is mixed with a carrier gas, thereby serving as a feedstock. In the case where the hydrocarbon assumes the liquid state, the liquid is vaporized, and then mixed with a carrier gas, thereby serving as a feedstock. Alternatively, liquid hydrocarbon may be sprayed into a heating zone. As a catalyst, a supported catalyst where a metal is supported on a support such as alumina or an organometallic compound such as ferrocene is used. When a supported catalyst is employed, the catalyst is placed in a reaction zone in advance and heated, and is subjected to essential preliminary treatment. Subsequently, a feedstock hydrocarbon is supplied to the catalyst for reaction (as illustrated in FIG. 1). Alternatively, reaction may also be carried out by feeding in a continuous or pulse-like manner from the outside to the reactor, a supported catalyst that has been preliminarily treated. In a still alternative procedure, a feedstock hydrocarbon and an organometallic compound such as ferrocene, which is a homogeneous catalyst precursor compound, are fed to the heating zone in a continuous or pulse-like manner, and the catalyst precursor compound is thermally decomposed to form metallic particles serving as a catalyst, whereby carbon nanotubes can be formed in the presence of the catalyst. The thus-formed product is collected by a collector disposed at the outlet of the heating zone or inside the heating zone. After the collected product has been subjected to a reaction for a predetermined period of time, the product is recovered.
Carbon nanotube production methods employing vapor phase growth are generally classified into the following two types:
(a) a method in which a substrate or a boat formed of alumina or graphite which supports a catalyst or a precursor compound thereof is placed in a heating zone, and the catalyst or the precursor is brought into contact with a hydrocarbon gas fed from a vapor phase (Chemical Physics Letters, 384 (2004), 98-102); and
(b) a method in which a metallocene or a carbonyl compound is dissolved in a liquid hydrocarbon to serve as a catalyst precursor, and the hydrocarbon solution containing the catalyst precursor compound is fed to a heating zone, whereby the catalyst is brought into contact with the hydrocarbon at high temperature (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2004-176244).
According to the above method (a), carbon nanotubes can be produced at a relatively low temperature of 1,000° C. or lower. However, percent conversion of hydrocarbon gas to carbon nanotubes is low, resulting in an increase in raw material cost, which is problematic.
Hereinafter, the term "percent conversion" refers to a value obtained by dividing the amount of collected solid by the amount of raw material used.
In the case of the above method (b), a hydrocarbon such as benzene or toluene is generally employed. When such a hydrocarbon is used, percent conversion reaches 50% or higher, which is a comparatively high value. However, reaction must be carried out at a temperature as high as 1,000° C. or higher, leading to an increase in fuel and facility costs.
Since these two methods employ flammable gases such as hydrogen serving as a carrier gas and hydrocarbon gas, limitations are imposed on the material and structure of production apparatuses, which elevates costs.
The hydrocarbons employed as carbon sources are all produced from fossil fuels, which is not preferred from the viewpoint of environmental issues. If natural carbon sources present in the natural world and recycled raw materials can be employed, environmental load can be reduced.

Method for producing vapor grown carbon nanotube


A catheter assembly (10) having a catheter (12) with lumens (20a,20b), extension tubes (14a,14b) and a hub (16). Distal ends (36) of the extension tubes and the proximal end (24) of the catheter are secured in and to the hub. Fittings (50) are first affixed in the distal ends of the extension tubes and have annular collars (56) that are embedded in the hub when the hub is molded over the distal ends of the extension tubes during manufacturing. An array of annular barbs (60) secure the cylindrical portion (52) of each fitting in the respective extension tube distal end (36).

Vascular catheters having extension tubes joined to their proximal ends are known, with catheters conventionally being made of either silicone or polyurethane while the extension tubes are polyurethane or polymers other than silicone. One manner of connecting an extension tube to a catheter lumen is to provide complementary luer fittings on both the proximal catheter end and the distal tube end, for removable connections. Another manner of connection, especially for use on multi-lumen catheters, is to provide a hub component that is affixed to the proximal end of the catheter and to the distal ends of one or more extension tubes associated with respective lumens of the catheter; the hub provides a channel or passageway establishing fluid communication between each extension tube and a respective lumen of the catheter, defining a catheter assembly. Commonly, the hub is insert molded of polyurethane onto the respective catheter and extension tube ends with the use of mandrels that define the channels of the hub during molding. Use of such assemblies is well known for hemodialysis and for infusion of medication into or drawing of blood from a patient, or both.
Molding of a hub onto a proximal end of a multi-lumen catheter simultaneously with molding it onto the distal ends of a plurality of extension tubes associated with the catheter lumens, is known. One such molding process is disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0080398, which disclosure is incorporated hereinto by reference, including the use of mandrels extending from within the extension tube passageways and into the associated lumens of the catheter at the proximal ends thereof. The mandrel portions extending between the extension tube distal ends and the catheter proximal end define passageways through the hub body formed within a hub mold to surround end portions of the extension tubes and the catheter and seal with outer surfaces thereof, which hub passageways define fluid communication between the extension tube passageways and the respective lumens.
It is desired to provide a manner of connecting a catheter lumen to a respective extension tube where the extension tube may be made at least partly of silicone.

Catheter-to-extension tube assembly and method of making same


An improved powder feeder having a hopper with an opening in its bottom. A resiliently deformable element is positioned in the opening of the hopper. The element has a flexible exterior dimension and is suitably positioned in relation to the opening to prevent the free flow of material through the opening. The element is mounted on an axle having an axis of rotation. The element is capable of carrying a metered volume of material through the opening as it is rotated. The axle is connected to a variable speed motor. As the element turns, the material flows into the element and moves through the hopper opening in precisely metered amounts relative to the volume and the speed of rotation of the element.

The present invention pertains to devices used for delivering a measured volume of powder from a hopper, and more particularly pertains to a powder feeder or meter which can be used to deliver measured amounts of powder as desired and is particularly effective with thermosetting resinous powders.
Powder feeders and meters are used to measure the amount of powder being processed through a device. The rate of flow can be affected by such variables as humidity, particle size particle shape, density, material cohesiveness, and chemical composition. These alone or in combination at times render existing powder feeders useless or troublesome.
Because of their chemical composition, some resinous powders with catalysts have a tendency to undergo cross-linking when very slight amounts of mechanical work or low level heating are acting upon them. Either of these conditions can cause a catalyst-resin reaction, which is exothermic, and result in sintering or agglomeration of these powder particles rendering them unflowable and/or retarding their usefulness in coating applications. Variations in the rate of flow can cause excessive rejects, wasted powder, and extra costs attributable to reclaiming excess powder.
Some previous precision powder feeding and/or measuring devices employ a screw type conveyor much like the shaft of an auger to meter the powder from a hopper to the application device. This method causes mechanical work to be done on the powder due to pressure being exerted by the screw in moving the powder. Any close tolerance moving surfaces, screw to wall clearances, for example, bearings, or seals can cause sintering or agglomeration as above-mentioned with some resinous powders. None of these feeders or meters can be used in a powder coating application in which the excess powder is recycled through the feeder a second time without further degrading the powder's flowability and subsequent functional characteristics.
Another problem is that the most precise powder meters and/or feeders available heretofore, namely the screw type feeders, are only capable of feeding a single output or applicator. Therefore, size limitations and cost become important considerations in setting up a powder meter, conveyor and applicator.
It is therefore highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which can precisely meter measured volumes of powder per unit of time.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder whose output can be varied over its operating range with one nearly linear controlling variable.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which can precisely meter powder without imparting mechanical work on the powder.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which can precisely meter resinous powder without producing low-level heating effects which cause agglomeration and/or pre-application sintering.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which is capable of metering reclaimed powder.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which precisely meters measured volumes of powder and is capable of feeding one or a plurality of applicators.
It is also highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which precisely meters measured volumes of powder and is less expensive to manufacture, maintain, and install.
It is finally highly desirable to provide an improved powder feeder which meets all of the above desired features.


The present invention is a harmonica horn that can be releasably mounted to a harmonica. The invention includes a bell or horn portion, a sound chamber, and a means for releasably mounting the harmonica. Each note of the harmonica, when played, results in air moving in the sound chamber, yet the harmonica horn and the harmonica remain stationary relative to each other.

Since the harmonica was invented in the 19th century, harmonica designers and players alike have tried to improve and amplify the instrument's sound. Typically these attempts have focused on the diatonic harmonica, which is designed to play a single major scale in what is known as first position, while other scales or portions of scales, in both major and minor modes, can be played in second, third, fourth position, etc.
The modern diatonic harmonica somewhat like the one depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 367,877 to Hayashi and assigned to Tombo Musical Instrument Company. The typical diatonic harmonica consists of a comb, two reed plates on either side of the comb, and cover plates on either side of the reed plates. Such a configuration is depicted in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,359,204 to Antaki.
Various aspects of the harmonica design affect its sound and performance. For example, combs can be made of wood, plastic, or solid metal like brass or aluminum. The shape and material of the cover plates can also be significant. So, too, can the sealing of the reed plates on the comb and the sealing of the cover plates.
Various attempts have been made to improve and amplify the sound of a diatonic harmonica. U.S. Pat. No. 752,295 to Messner depicts a pair of tapered cover plates that form a horn-like opening on one end of the harmonica. A variation on the Messner harmonica appears in U.S. Pat. No. 712,380 to Hohner, where the cover plates are formed into one integral piece and bulged into the form of a cup at the backside of the harmonica. In Hohner, the cover or resonance chamber extends an appreciable distance beyond the bottom of the reed plates and is pear shaped in transverse section.
More recently, Antaki, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,291,751 describes a single cover structure or enclosure that surrounds the harmonica, which is purported to enhance the harmonica tone and increase the loudness of the sound produced by the harmonica. Antaki discloses single-piece and multi-piece enclosures. Hohner previously manufactured a harmonica called the Trumpet Call. These harmonicas each included multiple horn portions attached to a single diatonic harmonica. Thus, if a harmonica player desired a horn to modify the sound of his diatonic harmonica, he would still need a different harmonica with permanently mounted horns for each key.
Prior to Antaki, Adamitis, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,703, disclosed a shaped hollow resonating horn slidably mounted to the harmonica. The horn was sized to enclose one or more outlet holes of the harmonica, and slid along a groove on the outside of the harmonica to fit over a selected group of adjacent outlet holes associated with specific reeds for specific notes. According to Adamitis, his invention produced an echo of a desired musical cord when the harmonica was played.
Unrelated to efforts to improve and amplify harmonica sounds, various devices have been used with the harmonica to secure it in place. Most notable are the types of harmonica mounts or braces used by guitar players who simultaneously play the harmonica and the guitar, including well-known musicians like Bob Dylan or Neil Young. Other harmonica holders are described in patents such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,213 to Hubbard, for a harmonica holder and shroud used to clamp a harmonica to a microphone. Another such harmonica holding device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,686 to Doll. The holder includes a base portion adapted to be attached to a neck harness, and also includes two struts that terminate in narrow lateral spaces at the ends of the holder to secure the ends of the harmonica.
Despite the various attempts in the prior art, there remains a need for a device that can provide an amplified and warmer tone for the harmonica. There also remains a need for such a device from which the harmonica can be easily mounted and removed and yet which remains stationary relative to the harmonica while the harmonica is being played and provides amplified and improved tone for all of the notes of the harmonica.


A method of conducting a video poker game is disclosed. The method comprises offering players an option to draw cards a second time in response to an initial hand meeting certain pre-established requirements. For example, if an initial hand having five cards includes four cards to a royal flush or straight flush, or three cards to a four of a kind, the player may be provided with the second draw opportunity. The player may also have to hold the pre-established cards. To participate in the second draw opportunity the player places a second wager such that payouts are provided from a second pay table wherein certain payouts are decreased over those found in a pay table associated with one draw outcomes. In some versions, the second draw opportunity is only provided to players placing a first wager meeting or exceeding a minimum threshold value (e.g., maximum coins or units).

Video poker remains a very popular game in casinos and other gaming establishments. Conventional video poker consists of a player placing a wager of one to five coins or units. The player is then shown five cards, from a simulated deck of 52 cards, on a video poker display. The player may then elect which cards to hold and discard. All discards are then replaced with new cards from the deck. The player receives a payout, if any, based on the strength of the poker hand after the draw. However, even with the popularity of video poker, players are often frustrated that they are unable to obtain certain low frequency hands (e.g., royal flush). For example, the probability of hitting or obtaining a royal flush after a single draw is approximately once in every 40,000 hands.
All things being equal, frustrated players tend to play casino games (e.g., video poker) for shorter periods of time than content players. Such shorter play sessions negatively impact the revenue of the casino.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide video poker players with multiple draw opportunities to provide players increased chances of obtaining low frequency hands while increasing play sessions and house revenue.

Video poker game having second draw option


A stainless steel exposure chamber utilizes either a gas cylinder standard or a permeation tube standard to generate the required test atmosphere. The concentrations of the contaminants in the chamber can be varied from lower parts per billion (ppb) to high parts per million (ppm) levels. The system is capable of testing several types of industrial hygiene samplers at the same time, under the same chamber conditions and at different orientations of the samplers. The chamber is also useful for the development and verification of industrial hygiene air-monitoring methods.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to dynamic, controlled atmosphere exposure testing chambers useful for the testing of industrial hygiene monitors and for the development and verification of industrial hygiene air monitoring methods.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Controlled atmosphere exposure chambers have been widely used for the development and validation of industrial hygiene laboratory air sampling methods. Since dynamic systems are usually employed in generating the desired atmosphere, a number of variables are involved in controlling the system performance. These variables include the concentration of the contaminants (analytes), humidity, temperature, linear velocity, and atmospheric matrices (such as benzene in the presence of various concentrations of gasoline vapor). Previously reported testing chambers were usually designed for one type of testing requirement with the article under test at a single orientation. As a result, different chamber designs are used for different testing devices. This made it difficult to perform a method comparison for different types of industrial hygiene monitors.
The article by Dixon, S. W.; Vasta, J. F.; Freeland, L. T.; Calvo, D. J.; and Hemingway, R. E., entitled "A Multiconcentration Controlled Test Atmosphere System for Calibration Studies" (Am. Ind. Hyg. J. 45(2), 99-104, 1984) reported a design of a controlled atmosphere test system. The design used a vacuum manifold with a Teflon tube chamber for testing active air monitors. It also used a separate, custom made linear exposure chamber constructed with Teflon-filled glass for testing passive dosimeters.
Irikura, A. K., in a report entitled "The Dynamic Generation and Collection of Test Atmospheres" (Technical Progress Report WRC 218-82, Shell Development Company, Houston, Tex.) reported a glass manifold test chamber with thirty pieces of 1/4" o.d. Teflon tubing for testing the active charcoal monitors.
Joki, H. M., in a report entitled "Passive Dosimeters. I. An Evaluation of the 3M Brand Organic Vapor Monitor for Benzene Exposures" (Technical Progress Report WRC 113-80, Shell Development Company, Houston, Tex.) reported the use of a stainless steel manifold with six single dosimeter exposure chambers for testing passive dosimeters.
Anderson, C. C., et al, in an article entitled "Generation of Test Atmospheres of Toxic Substances for Air Sampling Methods Evaluation" (175th ACS National Meeting, Mar. 15, 1978) reported a cone-shaped exposure chamber with tube fittings for testing active sampling devices.
Freeland, L. T., in an article entitled "An Industrial Hygiene Calibration Manifold", Am. Ind. Hyg. Assoc. J. 38(12) 712-720, 1977 reported a jacketed glass sampling manifold for testing tube type industrial hygiene monitors.
Perkin-Elmer Model ATD 50 Thermal Desorption Application Note No. 14, entitled "The Generation of Reference Atmospheres for the Calculation of Diffusive Uptake Rates." (TDA-14, Perkin-Elmer) reported the design of an exposure chamber for testing tube-type diffusive passive dosimeters.

Multipurpose dynamic controlled atmosphere chamber


In a method for carrying out a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) measurement a beam of electromagnetic radiation is directed through a part transparent to it onto a surface of a material layer having been brought on its opposite side in contact with a test material. A change in the intensity of the reflected radiation, caused by the resonance phenomenon, is utilized for analyzing the test material. The material layer is of catalytic material, for example palladium, having a negative real part of the dielectric constant at the used wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation and being capable of catalyzing chemical reactions in which the test material takes part. The measurement is carried out at such a wavelength and angle of incidence of the radiation onto the surface that a change resulting from the material concentration accumulated on the opposite side of the material owing to the catalytic properties is detectable in the intensity of the reflected radiation.

The surface plasmon is a particular kind of electromagnetic wave which propagates along the surface of a metal (H. Raether, "Surface plasmons on smooth and rough surfaces and on gratings", Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1988). Optical excitation of the surface plasmon can be achieved if a p-polarized, collimated light beam undergoes total reflection on the surface of glass substrate coated with a thin metal film (so-called Kretschmann configuration). The momentum of photons should match the surface plasmons on the opposite surface of the metal film in order to make this possible. This occurs for a given wavelength at a given critical angle of incidence of light. The phenomenon is observed as a sharp minimum in the intensity of the reflected light when the angle of incidence is varied. The angle or wavelength at which this dip occurs depends decisively on the properties of the surface layer on top of the metal film, and therefore the phenomenon can be used to monitor changes on this surface layer caused e.g. by a specific chemical or biological reaction or by the change of concentration of some substance in the immediate vicinity of this surface.
In principle, any material having a negative dielectric function can be used for the excitation of plasmons Most metals fulfill this requirement in the range of visible wavelengths. An ideal material (SPR-material) should have a negative coefficient of the real part of the dielectric constant and as large an absolute value of this coefficient as possible and at the same time as small an absolute value of the coefficient of the imaginary part as possible. In the previous methods utilizing the SPR-phenomenon the choice of metals and their thicknesses has been made usually to satisfy the criterion for the sharpest peak with as total an extinction of the intensity of reflected light as possible. For this reason the metals most used are silver and gold, silver giving the sharpest peaks. Because of the steep curve the sensitivity of the method is good when a constant angle of incidence is used. When the aim is to improve the dynamics of the method, several angles of incidence can be used additionally for carrying out a simultaneous intensity measurement. The method of the above kind is disclosed for example in GB-Patent Application 2,197,065. It is also possible to observe the location of the peak, that is, the measurement gives more data which are independent of each other.
The SPR-material is in addition coated with a specific surface layer having certain affinity towards the test material to attain desired sensitivity. The changes occurring in this layer form the basis for the measurement.
The purpose of the invention is to present an improvement for the above-mentioned methods and to present a method and sensor making it possible to widen the field of use of the SPR-method. When a catalytically active material is used as the material, the catalytic properties and the SPR-properties of the material can be combined in a way that creates new possibilities of analysis.
The method and sensor can also make use of materials having a relatively large optical absorption. This kind of material, even if it creates a broad peak, can be used in SPR-sensors on the prerequisite that the analyses are carried out at an angle of incidence and wavelength that are properly chosen.

Method for carrying out surface plasmon resonance measurement and sensor for use in the method


In an analogue delay circuit which is constructed from a p-type MOS transistor and an n-type MOS transistor and which includes an inverter gate for inputting input signals and a capacitance having one electrode connected to ground and the other electrode connected to the drain of the inverter gate, the gate potential of the n-type MOS transistor is limited by means of a clamping circuit so as not to exceed the minimum operating voltage, and the potential of a line connected to an electrode of the capacitance is limited by another clamping circuit so as to not exceed the minimum operating voltage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an analogue delay circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Delay circuits employing the charge and discharge time of capacitance and not requiring synchronizing signals (an analogue delay circuit) are widely used to obtain delay signals of arbitrary signals in a digital circuit.
The basic configuration of a prior-art analogue delay circuit takes the form shown in FIG. 1. Here, an input signal 301 is inputted to an inverter gate 304 made up of a p-type MOS transistor 302 and an n-type MOS transistor 303, the output of inverter gate 304 being connected to line 306. Line 306 is connected to the input of inverter gate 307 and to capacitance 305, the other electrode of which is grounded, and output signal 308, which is the desired delay signal, is obtained from the output of inverter gate 307.
To present the principles of the analogue delay circuit of FIG. 1 in more detail, when, for example, input signal 301 is of a low level (hereinafter abbreviated "L"), p-type MOS transistor 302 making up inverter 304 enters an ON state and n-type MOS transistor 303 enters an OFF state, thereby making line 306 a high level (hereinafter abbreviated "H") and output signal 308 "L." Charge is hereupon accumulated in line 306 and each electrode connected to this line, the electric potential generally being the power source potential V.sub.DD.
When input signal 301 changes to "H," p-type MOS transistor 302 enters an OFF state and n-type MOS transistor 303 enters an ON state. The charge of line 306 and each electrode connected to this line is released through n-type MOS transistor 303, the potential of line 306 drops to about the ground potential GND, and output signal 308 changes to "H." Because the time required to release the charge of line 306 corresponds to the product RC of the ON resistance R of n-type MOS transistor 303 and the capacitance C of capacitance 305, a delay time can be generated. As a result, when input signal 301 changes from "L" to "H," output signal 308 changes from "L" to "H" after the delay time.
Here, the ON resistance value R of n-type MOS transistor 303 changes according to the voltage inputted to the gate, the ON resistance value R becoming large when the voltage inputted to the gate is low. In other words, the delay time obtained by this analogue delay circuit varies with the change in the power-source voltage V.sub.DD.
As one means of solving this problem, an analogue delay circuit such as shown in FIG. 2 has been proposed. Analogue delay circuit 401 and 402 are analogue delay circuits such as explained in FIG. 1 but the operating power-source voltage for obtaining the desired delay time differs.
Variations in delay time due to changes in the power-source voltage can be suppressed by adding switches 404 and 405 for selecting the output of one analogue delay circuit according to the power-source voltage and a switch control circuit 403 for controlling these switches.
In order to prevent variations in delay time caused by changes in the power-source voltage, delay circuits according to the above-described prior art necessitate a plurality of analogue delay circuits as well as circuits for switching these circuits according to power-source voltage, and such circuits therefore entail the drawback of enlarged circuit scale. In particular, circuits having a wide range of operating power-source voltages have been impractical due to the necessity for numerous delay circuits.

Analogue delay circuit with a constant delay time


Provided is a decoding device including a decoding unit configured to decode encoded data in which a differential signal that includes a differential between a tactile signal and a reference signal has been encoded, and a signal addition unit configured to add the reference signal and the differential signal. In addition, provided is a decoding method by a processor, the decoding method including decoding encoded data in which a differential signal that includes a differential between a tactile signal and a reference signal has been encoded, and adding the reference signal and the differential signal that has been decoded.

In these years, a technique is developed for giving a tactile stimulus to a user on the basis of a tactile signal that has been received from an external device. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for giving a tactile stimulus to a user while changing the frequency and amplitude of vibrations on the basis of a received signal.

Decoding device, decoding method, and program


An image processing apparatus is an image processing apparatus that performs image processing on first image information of a target first image. The image processing apparatus has a controller and a first storage device which stores second image information of a second image. The controller reads the second image information stored in the first storage device, changes a resolution of the read second image information to a first resolution which is the same as a resolution of the first image information, and combines the first image information and the second image information based on the first image information and the second image information of which resolution is changed to the first resolution.

In a related art, an image processing apparatus can combine second image information stored in advance with target first image information and performs image processing on the first image information after being combined. In such combining processing, a resolution of the second image information needs to match a resolution of the first image information. However, the resolution of the first image information is different for each piece of image information used as the first image information. Therefore, in the image processing apparatus, when the resolution of the image information used as the first image information is increased, the resolution of the second image information also needs to be increased. Under such circumstances, the image processing apparatus needs to have a page memory capable of temporarily storing the second image information of the highest resolution among resolutions that can be selected as the resolution of the first image information. As a result, in the image processing apparatus, a capacity of the page memory is less likely to be reduced in some cases. In addition, in the image processing apparatus, the capacity of the page memory may not be reduced, and thus manufacturing cost is less likely to be reduced in some cases.

Image processing apparatus configured to combine image information such that the combined first image information and second image information have the first resolution


Methods and systems for determining for determining asphaltene onset pressure of a formation fluid are described herein. The method includes the following processes: (a) transmitting light through a sample of the formation fluid; (b) decreasing pressure of the sample; (c) detecting intensity of the transmitted light during depressurization; (d) identifying a change in intensity of the transmitted light during depressurization; (e) increasing pressure of the sample to a fixed pressure; and (f) detecting intensity of the transmitted light at the fixed pressure and at an equilibrated light intensity. Processes (a) to (f) are repeated for a number of different fixed pressures. The asphaltene onset pressure of the formation fluid sample can be determined using (i) the intensity of the transmitted light during each depressurization and (ii) the intensity of the transmitted light at each of the different fixed pressures.

Some formation fluids, such as oils, contain a substantial amount of asphaltenes. Asphaltenes are large molecules that are dissolved within formation fluids at high pressures. As the pressure of the formation fluid is reduced, the solubility of the asphaltenes within the fluid is also reduced and the asphaltenes will begin to flocculate. The pressure at which the asphaltenes begin to flocculate is known as asphaltene onset pressure (AOP). FIG. 1 shows the process of flocculation. As shown in FIG. 1, individual molecules of asphaltenes form nanoaggregates and then form clusters of nanoaggregates.
In the oil and gas industry, the asphaltene onset pressure of a formation fluid within a hydrocarbon reservoir formation is valuable information that is used for completing and producing a well. For example, during production of a well, the formation fluid that is extracted from the hydrocarbon reservoir is maintained above the known asphaltene onset pressure to avoid creation of asphaltene clusters within the formation. A build-up of asphaltenes within the formation can curtail production of the well.
Using one technique, asphaltene onset pressure is measured in a laboratory environment by measuring light transmission through a large formation fluid sample (e.g., 10 mL-100 mL). The light transmission is measured while slowly reducing the pressure of the sample (e.g., 100 psi/hour). The sample is agitated using a mixer to maintain equilibrium within the formation fluid and to avoid asphaltene flocculation from settling within the cell. As the pressure within the formation fluid sample is decreased, at a certain pressure, the light transmission will decrease significantly. The pressure and temperature at which the light transmission will decrease significantly is the asphaltene onset pressure and the asphaltene onset temperature. FIG. 2 shows how flocculation of asphaltenes reduces light transmission. As the enclosed volume is increased, the pressure of the oil sample decreases and asphaltenes begin to flocculate at the asphaltene onset pressure. At this point, the formation fluid sample turns opaque and reduces the transmission of light. An intense light source, such as a laser is used for such light transmission measurements. Another laboratory technique also uses a slow depressurization technique, but identifies asphaltene flocculation using microscopic observation. In yet another laboratory technique, the light transmission technique and the microscopic observation technique are combined so that light transmission and direct observation of flocculation are performed simultaneously.
While these slow depressurization techniques can be used in a laboratory environment, the techniques are not well suited for measurement of asphaltene onset pressure in a wellbore environment because the techniques use (i) a large formation fluid sample, (ii) additional mixing equipment, (iii) a large timescale for depressurization, and (iv) a bright light source, such as a laser.
Another factor that complicates measurement of asphaltene onset pressure is that asphaltene onset pressure can be confused with bubble point pressure. The bubble point pressure is the pressure at which at least a portion of a liquid changes phase to a vapor state (e.g., nucleates bubbles) at equilibrium. FIG. 3 shows a formation fluid sample in a liquid state within an enclosed volume. As the size of the enclosed volume is increased, the pressure of the formation fluid sample decreases and bubbles begin to form at the bubble point pressure. This formation of bubbles will also reduce the light transmission of a formation fluid sample. The decrease in light transmission occurs because bubbles form at the bubble point and the bubbles scatter light, which reduces light transmission. Accordingly, asphaltene onset pressure can be confused with bubble point pressure because both the asphaltene onset pressure and the bubble point pressure reduce transmission of light.

Method and system for determining asphaltene onset pressure using a using depressurization and pressurization


A detection device for testing gloves or other protective clothing or equipment for breakthrough by a contaminant includes a pad carrying a reagent which is responsive to the contaminant for producing a color change. A barrier layer covers the reverse side of the pad to prevent escape of chemicals therefrom and an adhesive strip is secured to the barrier layer for attachment of the pad either to the skin of the user or to the inside of the glove or other clothing so that the obverse side of the pad is adjacent to the inside of the glove. In one embodiment the pad is impregnated with the reagent which directly reacts with the contaminant to produce a color change. In another embodiment, plural reagents are carried respectively in separate regions of the pad and, after exposure to the contaminant, a carrier solvent is applied to the pad which brings the reagents into intimate contact for cooperation to produce the color change. In a third embodiment a substrate carries microcapsules of ink contained in shells soluble in a contaminant solvent, the pad also having a storage region for absorbing and storing the contaminant for later analysis. The obverse side of the pad may be covered with a semi-permeable barrier selectively permeable to the contaminant but impermeable to the reagents.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for assessing the level of protection afforded by chemical resistant gloves and other protective clothing or equipment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Health and safety organizations in the United States and foreign countries have historically regulated the allowable "safe" levels of chemical exposure in the workplace. Hundreds of compounds are variously listed in these countries with a "skin" designation which indicates the potential for considerable damage to the skin and/or systemic toxicity via dermal absorption. Accordingly, personal protective clothing and equipment is an important segment of safety in the workplace. One of the most common types of protective clothing is gloves designed to be resistant to contaminant chemicals of interest.
To date, the choice of chemical protective gloves and clothing has been based on laboratory testing of chemical breakthrough of the material of construction in accordance with test procedures specified by the American Society of Test Methods ("ASTM"). The ASTM distinguishes between "penetration", which it defines as the flow of a chemical through closures, porous materials, seams and pin holes or other imperfections in protective clothing material on a nonmolecular level, and "permeation", which it defines as the movement of a chemical through protective clothing material on a molecular level. The term "breakthrough" will be used herein as a generic designation encompassing both penetration and permeation. The ASTM test procedures specify that the protective material be tested for continuous exposure to the chemical or solvent system of interest. Such a test protocol is not a realistic representation of most field work situations, where chemical or solvent exposure most typically occurs on an intermittent and/or short-term basis. The result is that gloves or other protective clothing which pass the ASTM protocol for the chemical of interest are frequently overdesigned, i.e., they are much more resistant to the contaminant chemical of interest than is necessary for the particular field use application, and/or they are replaced much more frequently, in accordance with the protocol, than is necessary. This is costly and wasteful, since protective gloves and other clothing may be quite expensive to manufacture.
Another difficulty is that certain government regulations require the testing of gloves and other protective clothing to be based on the expected conditions of exposure, including the likely combinations of chemical substances to which the clothing may be exposed in the workplace, in order to establish that the clothing would be impervious for the expected duration and conditions of exposure. This required effectiveness of chemical protective clothing and gloves against combinations of chemical substances has been very difficult to ascertain in actual field use conditions. Thus, for example, protective gloves are made in a wide variety of different materials and different thicknesses for protection against different chemicals, and a glove which offers excellent protection for one chemical or group of chemicals may be completely unsuitable for protecting against a different chemical or group of chemicals. Prior efforts to measure chemical breakthrough of protective gloves and clothing have used cotton or cellulose pads attached under the gloves or clothing of absorb chemicals which break through the protective material. These pads are then analyzed in a laboratory to determine whether any breakthrough has occurred and, if so, to identify which chemicals have broken through the protective clothing. Then, the glove formulation is changed to one which is more protective against the penetrating chemical or chemicals and the test is repeated. But the requirement for laboratory testing to determine whether any breakthrough has occurred results in a significant additional expense, since laboratory analysis must be done every time.

Device and method for detecting chemical breakthrough of protective clothing