A frequency divider is provided which uses common circuitry to switch between different duty cycle outputs. The divider has one or more memory elements with a feedback loop and which are controllable to adjust a duty cycle of an output signal. Each memory element has a first regenerative cell and a second regenerative cell, and where one of the regenerative cells is a controllable regenerative cell which can be controlled to vary the duty cycle of an output of the frequency divider circuit. The controllable regenerative cell can be selectively activated so that in a first configuration where the controllable regenerative cell is activated an output of the frequency divider circuit has a first duty cycle and in a second configuration where the controllable regenerative cell is deactivated an output of the frequency divider circuit has a second duty cycle.

Frequency conversion is an essential function in a receiver (down-conversion) and transmitter (up-conversion) of a transceiver to convert RF signals to intermediate-frequency (IF) or baseband (BB) signals and vice versa using local-oscillator (LO) signals.
In modern communications, employing digital modulation or demodulation schemes (GFSK, QPSK, QAM), quadrature (900 phase shifted) LO signals (0°, 1800 and 90°, 270° phases) are used for frequency conversion in achieving efficient transmission and reliable reception of data. LO signals may be obtained from a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) or digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) of a frequency synthesizer in a radio transceiver.
Low silicon-die area and low power RF and analog circuits are crucial requirements to implement a compact (low die area i.e. low cost) radio transceiver operating with long battery life.
For compact and low power radio transceivers such as Bluetooth low energy (BLE) or Zigbee radios, it is known to use digital RF transmitters comprising high-efficiency switch-mode power-amplifiers such as Class D, Class E or Class F amplifiers. A switch-mode power amplifier (PA) is driven by rail-to-rail RF clock signals (modulated or un-modulated) and can theoretically have no overlap between voltage and current signals in the PA output stage resulting in no power loss or heat dissipation leading to theoretical 100% efficiency. However, in practice device (and connectivity) parasitics in the PA output stage limits practical efficiency, typically to between 60% and 70%.
In practical implementations and applications, typically, frequency dividers generate divided-frequency LO signals (f0) from double-frequency (2f0) VCO or DCO signals to avoid frequency pulling.
Theoretically, switch-mode PAs, driven by 50% duty-cycle rectangular RF signals even-symmetry), generate no even harmonics (2f0, 4f0, . . . ) of a desired signal (f0). Therefore, digital RF transmitters with switch-mode power amplification and using 50% duty-cycle LO signals (f0) have an added advantage of suppressed unwanted even harmonics (2f0, 4f0, . . . ) along with efficient power transmission of a wanted signal (f0).
A receiver can also use 50% duty-cycle LO signals to reduce intermodulation distortion and so to increase receiver (Rx) linearity. This feature can be used in receiver automatic-gain-control (AGC) mode for trading off receiver sensitivity with linearity.
On the other hand, for higher sensitivity, RF receivers can use 25% duty-cycle (non-overlapped) LO signals (f0) to obtain a higher conversion gain and a lower noise-figure (NF).
Frequency divider circuits have a fixed duty cycle, so if a system is to benefit from both suppression of unwanted even harmonics and from higher sensitivity, then two different frequency divider circuits have to be implemented so that both the 25% and 50% duty cycles can be provided. Furthermore, additional frequency divider circuits are also required if any other duty cycles are needed.


The present invention is directed to processes for preparing a silicone surfactant intercalated clay and a polymer-clay nanocomposite. The processes use silicone surfactants having a molecular weight in the range of 10,000 to 100,000 Dalton to achieve fully exfoliating clay structures. Using these macromolecular silicone surfactants, along with the engineered control of the processing pH and drying stress conditions, this invention provides simple and low-cost methods of making a fully-exfoliated polymer-clay nanocomposite.

Polymer-Clay nanocomposites have become one of the most popular choices in engineering a polymer's property by blending it with inorganic additives. One of the most desired filler material is based on the smectite class of aluminum silicate clays, of which the most common representative is montmorillonite (MMT). Since its inception in the late 1980s by the researchers at Toyota (U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,007), the concept of exfoliating clay in a polymer composite have been applied to, and demonstrated by, many examples of outstanding enhancements in mechanical, thermal, electrical, gas barrier, and flame retarding properties of various polymers respectively. The level of enhancement is critically hinged on the ability of uniformly dispersing, and eventually exfoliating, the clay particles into molecular platelets in the host polymer.
Polymer-clay nanocomposites are a family of reinforced polymers containing a low amount of layered mineral silicates (clay) particles finely dispersed at the nanometer scale resulting in substantially improved mechanical, transport, interfacial and thermal properties with a low additive cost. However, the conventional production of a polymer-clay nanocomposite, preparing the nanoclay by ion-exchange with a cationic organic surfactant and followed by its blending with a host polymer, does add significant processing costs and yet, often unsuccessful in the full clay exfoliation necessary for achieving the desired superior performances for offsetting the added processing costs.
Clay particles are aggregates of platelet molecules of an extremely aspect ratio (widths/thickness ratio about 1000) held tightly by the strong electrostatic forces between the platelets' negatively charged surfaces and the small cations (Na+, K+, Mg2+) sandwiched within their galleries. By using an ion-exchange process in aqueous medium, the small cationic organic surfactant molecules can be incorporated within the platelet and expand the gallery's openings. These organic treated clays, when mixed with an organic polymer by a compounding process, can intercalate some polymers within the galleries and further expand clay platelets into a delaminated state shown in FIG. 1.
The delaminated clay states in a polymer, still maintaining the small periodical spacing of the platelets as evidenced by a peak in the small angle X-ray diffraction spectrum, cannot achieve the superior performance of the fully exfoliated state (i.e. randomly dispersed clay platelets within a polymer) achieved by the Nylon 6-montmorillonite (MMT) nanocomposite of the Toyota researchers. See A. Okada et al., Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 1990, 171, 45-50; A. Usuki et al., J Mater Res 1993, 8, 1174-1178; D. Fornes et al., Polymer 2001, 42, 9929-9940; where with only 4.2 wt % MMT loading, the modulus doubled, the tensile strength increased more than 50%, the heat distortion temperature, increased by 100° C., and combustion heat release rate decreased by up to 63%.
A fully exfoliated clay additive, even at a very small weight fraction (i.e. below 5%), can outperform the conventional clay fillers commonly loaded at several times higher percentages (over 20%). Although the polymer-clay nanocomposites have not yet reached a broad market application due to the processing difficulties, and consequently higher cost, the technology does hold an advantage over conventional composites in the performance/weight ratio. The polypropylene (PP)/clay composites' application by General Motors in two mid-size vans (GMC Safari and Chevrolet Astro vans) did register a commercial milestone of the polymer-clay nanocomposite technology (Plastic Additive Compound 2002; 4(1)30-33).
Clay exfoliation is much easier within an aqueous environment due to the reduction in charge interactions (i.e. 1/80th of normal) by water's high dielectric constant. The cations in the clay gallery can be easily exchanged with protons (hydronium, H3O+) by acid washing to form the surface hydroxyls. The acidic treated clay surfaces are then attractive to and penetrable by a broad spectrum of candidate materials containing functional groups such as amine, hydroxyl, silanol, carboxylate, etc., which, either by acid-base interactions, or hydrogen bonding forces, can also carry an organic cargo into the clay gallery. Various clay treatment compounds and schemes of such nature had been thoroughly reviewed in Lin, et. al. (Progress in Polymer Science 2014, 39 443-485) and many related references cited therein. Despite these successes in precursors' intercalation, few of them led to a facile clay exfoliation in subsequent mixing with a host polymeric material.
All of these prior arts have shown that the real challenge of negotiating a macromolecule into the clay galleries, after a successful tallow surfactants' intercalation, is complicated by three barriers, (a) The insufficient gallery opening by a precursor with a size orders of magnitude smaller than the incoming macromolecules, (b) The alkyl straight-chain tails of the surfactant precursors, which was originally designed for their easy penetration into the narrow galleries, could form an aggregated crystalline, fence-like structure, difficult even for another small molecule, let alone a polymer, to wiggle through; (c) Such a liquid-crystalline aggregate could be further densified and interlocked with almost no flexibility after the clay's drying due to the strong hydrophobic bonding induced by capillary stresses from drying.
For making a polymer-nanoclay composite, the most common practice is to first infuse alkyl chains into the clay's gallery, by a cationic exchange, which has been proven only sufficient in reaching the delamination of clay in a host polymer after compounding, even by intensive blending/mixing forces. See S. Wang et al., Appl. Polym. Sci., 1998, 69 1557-1561; M. L. Kaneko et al., J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2008, 108 2587-2596; R. Vaia et al., Chem. Mater. 1993, 5 1694-1696. Several alternative practices had been developed with better successes in exfoliation by (a) chemically modifying clay surfaces with organic groups highly attractive to the host polymer, (b) incorporating cationic groups onto end/side of a host polymer to improve affinity with negatively charged clay interface, and (c) physically infiltrating the low molecular weight oligomers of a host polymer into the clay gallery followed by the in-situ polymerization to expand and consequently exfoliate the clay layers.
All the above treatments had achieved a better clay delamination/exfoliation in the host medium and, consequently, improved the composite performance. However, these approaches often required much more sophisticated and complex processing schemes.
There is a need for simple and cost-effective processes for preparing a silicone surfactant intercalated clay and a polymer-clay nanocomposite that is facilely exfoliated.

Facile clay exfoliation using polymer silicone surfactants

Industrial Science & Technology Network, Inc.


The disclosure provides a description of a tissue modulation device, for treating at least one of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and Type 2 diabetes in a patient. In some embodiments, the device includes a storage module having computer-readable instructions for delivering an electrical stimulation pattern to a splanchnic nerve of the patient. The stimulation pattern includes at least one on-time. The on-time includes at least one of a suprathreshold period and a subthreshold period. The splanchnic nerve is selected from the group consisting of the greater splanchnic nerve, the lesser splanchnic nerve, and the least splanchnic nerve. The pattern is effective to ameliorate at least one attendant condition of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and Type 2 diabetes in the patient. The attendant condition includes dyslipidemia, hypertension, hyperinsulinemia, hyperglycemia, and/or insulin resistance.

Obesity is an epidemic in the U.S. with a prevalence of about 20 percent. Annual U.S. healthcare costs associated with obesity are estimated to exceed $200 billion dollars. Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) that exceeds 30 kg/m2. Normal BMI is 18.5-25 kg/m2, and overweight persons have BMIs of 25-30. Obesity is classified into three groups: moderate (Class 1), severe (Class II), and very severe (Class III). Patients with BMIs that exceed 30 are at risk for significant comorbidities such as diabetes, heart and kidney disease, dyslipidemia, hypertension, sleep apnea, and orthopedic problems.
Obesity results from an imbalance between food intake and energy expenditure such that there is a net increase in fat reserves. Excessive food intake, reduced energy expenditure, or both may cause this imbalance. Appetite and satiety, which control food intake, are partly controlled in the brain by the hypothalamus. Energy expenditure is also partly controlled by the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus regulates the autonomic nervous system of which there are two branches, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system generally prepares the body for action by increasing heart rate, blood pressure, and metabolism. The parasympathetic system prepares the body for rest by lowering heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and stimulating digestion. Destruction of the lateral hypothalamus results in hunger suppression, reduced food intake, weight loss, and increased sympathetic activity. In contrast, destruction of the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus results in suppression of satiety, excessive food intake, weight gain, and decreased sympathetic activity. The splanchnic nerves carry sympathetic neurons that supply, or innervate, the organs of digestion and adrenal glands, and the vagus nerve carries parasympathetic neurons that innervate the digestive system and are involved in the feeding and weight gain response to hypothalamic destruction.
Experimental and observational evidence suggests that there is a reciprocal relationship between food intake and sympathetic nervous system activity. Increased sympathetic activity reduces food intake and reduced sympathetic activity increases food intake. Certain peptides (e.g. neuropeptide Y, galanin) are known to increase food intake while decreasing sympathetic activity. Others such as cholecystokinin, leptin, enterostatin, reduce food intake and increase sympathetic activity. In addition, drugs such as nicotine, ephedrine, caffeine, subitramine, dexfenfluramine, increase sympathetic activity and reduce food intake.
Ghrelin is another peptide that is secreted by the stomach that is associated with hunger. Peak plasma levels occur just prior to mealtime, and ghrelin levels are increased after weight loss. Sympathetic activity can suppress ghrelin secretion. PYY is a hormone released from the intestine that plays a role in satiety. PYY levels increase after meal ingestion. Sympathetic activity can increase PYY plasma levels.
Appetite is stimulated by various psychosocial factors, but is also stimulated by low blood glucose levels. Cells in the hypothalamus that are sensitive to glucose levels are thought to play a role in hunger stimulation. Sympathetic activity increases plasma glucose levels. Satiety is promoted by distention of the stomach and delayed gastric emptying. Sympathetic activity reduces gastric and duodenal motility, causes gastric distention, and can increase pyloric sphincter, which can result in distention and delayed gastric emptying.
The sympathetic nervous system plays a role in energy expenditure and obesity. Genetically inherited obesity in rodents is characterized by decreased sympathetic activity to adipose tissue and other peripheral organs. Catecholamines and cortisol, which are released by the sympathetic nervous system, cause a dose-dependent increase in resting energy expenditure. In humans, there is a reported negative correlation between body fat and plasma catecholamine levels. Overfeeding or underfeeding lean human subjects has a significant effect on energy expenditure and sympathetic nervous system activation. For example, weight loss in obese subjects is associated with a compensatory decrease in energy expenditure, which promotes the regain of previously lost weight. Drugs that activate the sympathetic nervous system, such as ephedrine, caffeine and nicotine, are known to increase energy expenditure. Smokers are known to have lower body fat stores and increased energy expenditure.
The sympathetic nervous system also plays an important role in regulating energy substrates for increased expenditure, such as fat and carbohydrate. Glycogen and fat metabolism are increased by sympathetic activation and are needed to support increased energy expenditure.
Animal research involving acute electrical activation of the splanchnic nerves under general anesthesia causes a variety of physiologic changes. Electrical activation of a single splanchnic nerve in dogs and cows causes a frequency dependent increase in catecholamine, dopamine, and cortisol secretion. Plasma levels can be achieved that cause increased energy expenditure. In adrenalectomized anesthetized pigs, cows, and dogs, acute single splanchnic nerve activation causes increased blood glucose and reduction in glycogen liver stores. In dogs, single splanchnic nerve electrical activation causes increased pyloric sphincter tone and decrease duodenal motility. Sympathetic and splanchnic nerve activation can cause suppression of insulin and leptin hormone secretion.
First line therapy for obesity is behavior modification involving reduced food intake and increased exercise. However, these measures often fail and behavioral treatment is supplemented with pharmacologic treatment using the pharmacologic agents noted above to reduce appetite and increase energy expenditure. Other pharmacologic agents that can cause these affects include dopamine and dopamine analogs, acetylcholine and cholinesterase inhibitors. Pharmacologic therapy is typically delivered orally and results in systemic side effects such as tachycardia, sweating, and hypertension. In addition, tolerance can develop such that the response to the drug reduces even at higher doses.
More radical forms of therapy involve surgery. In general, these procedures reduce the size of the stomach and/or reroute the intestinal system to avoid the stomach. Representative procedures are gastric bypass surgery and gastric banding. These procedures can be very effective in treating obesity, but they are highly invasive, require significant lifestyle changes, and can have severe complications.
Experimental forms of treatment for obesity involve electrical stimulation of the stomach (gastric pacing) and the vagus nerve (parasympathetic system). These therapies use a pulse generator to stimulate electrically the stomach or vagus nerve via implanted electrodes. The intent of these therapies is to reduce food intake through the promotion of satiety and or reduction of appetite, and neither of these therapies is believed to affect energy expenditure. U.S. Pat. No. 5,423,872 to Cigaina describes a putative method for treating eating disorders by electrically pacing the stomach. U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,480 to Wernicke discloses a putative method for treating obesity by electrically activating the vagus nerve. Neither of these therapies increases energy expenditure.
Metabolic syndrome, also known as Syndrome X, insulin resistance syndrome and dysmetabolic syndrome, is a conglomeration of health risks that increase the chance of developing heart disease, stroke and diabetes. Metabolic syndrome is not a disease in and of itself, but rather is a name given to a cluster of metabolic disorders including high blood pressure, high insulin levels, excess body weight and abnormal cholesterol levels. Type 2 diabetes includes many of the same conditions, signs and laboratory findings as metabolic syndrome, and some experts thus do not draw a distinction between these diseases or conditions, especially when frank hyperglycemia is observed in a patient. Each or these conditions is considered to be a risk factor for certain other diseases, however, combined together, these conditions indicate a significantly higher likelihood of developing a life threatening disease. According to some surveys, more than one in five Americans has metabolic syndrome with a greater preponderance of the syndrome present in people of higher age.
Some medical professionals have questioned the existence of metabolic syndrome as an adequately defined condition, citing the need for additional research in order to better quantify and define the symptoms and risks of the various components of the disease. However, a more clear definition of metabolic syndrome has emerged recently and doctors have developed guidelines for diagnosing it.
The indicators of metabolic syndrome include obesity, and particularly obesity around the waist. A waistline of 40 inches or more for men and 35 inches or more for women would qualify. Another indicator is high blood pressure such as a blood pressure of 130/85 mm Hg or greater. Yet another factor is one or more abnormal cholesterol levels including a high density lipoprotein level (HDL) less than 40 mg/dl for men and under 50 mg/dl for women. A triglyceride level above 150 mg/dl may also be an indicator. Finally, a resistance to insulin is an indicator of metabolic syndrome which may be indicated by a fasting blood glucose level greater than 100 mg/dl.
According to the American Heart Association, three groups of people are often afflicted with metabolic syndrome. The first group includes people with diabetes who can not maintain a proper glucose level. The second group includes people without diabetes who have high blood pressure and also secrete large amounts of insulin to maintain glucose levels (hyperinsulinemia). Finally, a third group includes people who have survived a heart attack and have hyperinsulinemia without glucose intolerance.
Generally, the underlying cause of metabolic syndrome is believed to be insulin resistance wherein insulin loses its ability to make one's body cells absorb glucose from the blood. When this happens, glucose levels remain high after eating and the pancreas begins to excrete insulin in response to the high glucose levels. The body reacts to this situation by stimulating the pancreas to generate more and more insulin in an effort to achieve a normal level of glucose absorption. This may compensate for the insulin resistance for a while, but eventually, the pancreas can not keep up the levels of insulin necessary to maintain proper glucose absorption and, as a result, glucose accumulates in the body leading to Type 2 diabetes. In this circumstance, onset of metabolic syndrome occurs prior to the onset of Type 2 diabetes.
As the insulin resistance develops and glucose levels rise, the health risks associated with the high insulin levels begin to take effect. Consistently high levels of insulin and glucose may cause a variety of negative effects such as damage to the lining of arteries which can lead to heart attack or stroke. These abnormal levels can also cause changes in the ability of the kidneys to remove salt, leading to high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke. Other consequences include an increase in triglyceride levels, which can lead to an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease as well as a slowing of insulin production, which can indicate the onset of Type 2 diabetes, which in turn can cause heart attack, stroke, as well as damage to the eyes, nerves or kidneys.
The cause of insulin resistance is not well understood. Some researches believe that a combination of genetics and lifestyle including poor diet and low levels of regular exercise may contribute to the insulin resistance. As such, current treatment methods include addressing the lifestyle and diet components of the cause, primarily to prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes, heart attack and stroke. Exercise and weight control, including the development of greater muscle mass helps modulate (or adjust) insulin/glucose levels. A diet low in carbohydrates and alcohol may also help.
Medications may also be prescribed in order to treat the individual risk factors that comprise metabolic syndrome. For example, weight loss drugs such as sibutramine and orlistat to treat the obesity, insulin sensitizers such as thiazolidinediones and metformin to treat the insulin resistance, aspirin to reduce the threat of heart attack, diuretics, ACE inhibitors, calcium channel blockers and beta blockers to treat hypertension and medications such as niacin, statins and fibrates to improve cholesterol levels may be prescribed. Unfortunately, compliance is often a major shortcoming with regard to such a treatment regimen. In general, any treatment regimen that involves dramatic lifestyle changes and daily medication runs the risk of low compliance. In addition, some of the medications discussed above may have significant side effects that pose risks to the patient taking such medications.
What has been needed are systems and methods for the treatment of metabolic syndrome or any of its attendant or contributing components that does not generate compliance problems. What has also been needed are systems and methods for treating metabolic syndrome that avoid risky side effects.

Nerve stimulation for treatment of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and Type 2 diabetes


The specification describes techniques for fabricating tapered waveguides in planar photonic integrated circuits with the tapers formed in the z-direction (thickness). The tapers are formed by depositing the core layer in two operations. After depositing the first core layer, the layer is masked, and a step is formed in the first layer. When the second core layer is deposited over the step, a smooth taper results. The core layers are preferably formed by flame hydrolysis. During consolidation the two core layers coalesce into a single homogeneous layer with a smooth taper in the thickness dimension of the waveguide.

Waveguides in photonic integrated circuits have been proposed in a variety of forms but most typically in the form of a doped core bordered on the sides and bottom by suitable cladding material. The cladding material is chosen to have a refractive index lower than that of the core thus forming a channel shaped lightguide. In most configurations an upper cladding layer is included.
A structure that has received much interest recently is patterned after the typical optical fiber structure, i.e. a doped silica core with a silica cladding, and is fabricated using techniques developed in optical fiber technology, e.g. flame hydrolysis deposition (FHD). The preferred platform or substrate for these waveguides is a silicon wafer. The compatibility between the materials of the optical fiber and the planar integrated circuit allow common processing approaches. Also, more efficient and more reliable coupling between the optical fiber input/output can be obtained with this combination due to matching of thermo-mechanical, chemical, and optical properties.
The primary goal in photonic integrated circuit technology is the same as for semiconductor technology, i.e. packing multiple elements or devices into a small space. Routing of electrical leads in semiconductor devices is relatively unconstrained since electrical runners can be made with sharp bends. In photonic integrated circuits, the allowable bending radius is an important issue because it influences strongly the possible packing density of components. In general, given a certain waveguide index step or gradient, the loss introduced in the photonic circuit by the bent portion of a waveguide increases with decreasing curvature radius. Therefore, given a certain waveguide index step or gradient, the bending radius of a waveguide is limited to a value which gives losses acceptable in the economy of the circuit. For a given loss "budget" the potential packing density of components increases if the waveguide index step or gradient increases.
In single mode photonic integrated circuits, the allowable bending radius is sensitive to the index gradient between the core and the cladding materials, and also to the size of the waveguide. In high refractive index delta waveguides the optimum core size for a single mode waveguide is significantly smaller than the core size of a typical optical fiber. This difference in core size has important implications in coupling efficiency between the core of the planar integrated circuit waveguide and the core of the input/output fiber attached to the integrated circuit. The coupling loss between the fiber and the planar IC is minimized when the mode of the optical beam is preserved, i.e. the fiber and the IC have matched optical modes. This is achieved for fiber and waveguide having the same index delta by matching the core size. Consequently, to minimize insertion loss, the generally preferred objective is to have matching core sizes. However, this appears incompatible with the other important objectives of retaining the standard core size for the optical fiber, and using a smaller core size for the planar integrated circuit.
To overcome the core size difference it has been proposed to fabricate a transitional waveguide section in the region of the planar integrated circuit at the coupling between the planar waveguide and the fiber. In this transitional section the core of the planar waveguide is tapered so that the cross section of the core of the waveguide mates closely with the cross section of the core of the fiber. Beyond the tapered section, in the direction of the planar integrated circuit, the cross section area of the core of the waveguide is reduced to satisfy the optimum dimensions for planar waveguide cores.
A planar waveguide structure designed to implement this concept is described in Journal of Lightwave Technology, Vol. 10, No. 5, pp. 587-591, May 1992. In this paper a technique is proposed to taper the core of the planar waveguide using flame hydrolysis deposition (FHD). After deposition of the cladding layer on the substrate in the normal way, the core is created by scanning the substrate with the FHD flame while modulating the composition of the gases being fed to the torch, thus changing the composition of the deposited material in the scanning direction. Either the torch or the substrate can be physically moved, and the scanning direction is consistent in a single x-y-direction, i.e. it scans in only in the direction parallel to the waveguide being tapered. In theory, one could scan in the other direction, i.e. normal to the waveguide, but that would require more control than is allowed by the usual dynamic range of the process. In the manner described, longitudinal composition gradients, and corresponding index gradients, can be used to form the desired taper in the x-y plane of the planar waveguide, i.e. to taper the width of the waveguide. In a similar manner, but using a control program based on point-to-point layer composition, control of the composition in three dimensions can be achieved and the effective cross section of the waveguide can be tapered in both the x-y plane and the z-(thickness) direction. The capability of tapering in the z-direction is the desirable feature of this process since tapering in the x-y plane can easily be achieved using a conventional mask. However, in practice the technique is limited to producing tapers in one x-y direction only, due to the relatively limited dynamic range over distance of the compositional changes or the deposition mass flow rate that are obtainable with the technique. Moreover, the goal of tapering in the z-direction is achieved in this technique only with substantial process complexity and cost. A simpler and more cost effective method for tapering planar waveguides would be desirable, especially one which has no constraints on the direction(s) of the taper in the x-y plane, and which can produce relatively abrupt tapers at any position(s) in the photonic IC.


A mountable cable tie with fine adjustment with an elongated strap having a first strap end and a second strap end, the elongated strap having one or more rows of teeth or cross-bars formed crosswise on the elongated strap, and a plurality of holes positioned linear along the median between the one or more rows of teeth, at least one locking buckle positioned proximate the second strap end, the at least one locking buckle having at least one channel and at least one locking tang or pawl positioned within the locking buckle, wherein increased insertion of the first strap end into the locking head decreases the size of the loop of the elongated strap to secure the bundle.

A variety of supporting cable ties, straps and clamps, are well known in the art and are used in a variety of applications, such as securing a bundle of cables, wires, or hydraulic tubing. Known cable ties of conventional construction are elongate members having a flexible longitudinal strap having a head at one end and a tail at the other end. The strap is wrapped around bundles of wires or hydraulic tubing and the tail is inserted through a passageway in the head. The head of the cable tie typically includes a locking element which engages with the strap so that when the tail is pulled through the passageway in the head, the locking element secures against transverse teeth running the width of the strap.
Other known cable ties are ties having a longitudinal strap with a plurality of longitudinally spaced apertures, holes, or rungs utilized to secure a bundle of cables or wires or hydraulic tubing by wrapping the strap around the bundle and securing one or more spaced apertures or holes to a hook or branch positioned on one end of the strap. One problem with this style of cable tie is it lacks the ability for small increments of adjustment to tighten and secure the several different sizes of bundles of wires or hydraulic tubing due to its fixed spacing between holes.
Still other known cable ties are ties having an elongated strap and a head with a mounting hole affixed thereto or made integral to the head. The mounting hole is utilized to secure the cable tie and its bundle of wires or hydraulic tubing to a mounting surface. One problem with this style of cable tie is the mounting mechanism (hole) is positioned near the head which limits accessibility to work the elongated strap into the head to tighten the strap around the bundle of wires or hydraulic tubing.
Therefore, it is readily apparent that there is a recognizable unmet need for a mountable cable tie with fine adjustment and method of use thereof that functions to provide a cable tie with a plurality of mounting holes to choose from without limiting accessibility to work the strap into the head and to tighten the strap around the bundle, and a flexible longitudinal strap with a plurality of teeth or cross-bars formed on the strap to provide small increments of adjustment to tighten the strap.

Mountable cable tie with fine adjustment and method of use thereof


A cleaning device includes a cleaning portion, a polishing roller, a layer thickness restricting member, and a swaying portion. The cleaning portion removes toner that has adhered to a surface of a rotation body. The polishing roller polishes a surface of the rotation body by rotating in a state where a surface of the polishing roller is in contact with the surface of the rotation body and the toner removed by the cleaning portion has adhered to the surface of the polishing roller. The layer thickness restricting member restricts a layer thickness of the toner that has adhered to the surface of the polishing roller. The swaying portion includes a biasing portion, an undulating portion and a support portion, and causes the polishing roller to sway in an axis direction of the rotation body.

The present disclosure relates to a cleaning device including a polishing roller that polishes, by using toner, the surface of a rotation body such as an image carrier, and to an image forming apparatus.
In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a copier, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of an image carrier, such as a photoconductor drum, that has been charged by a charging device. The electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the image carrier is developed with toner, and the developed toner image is transferred onto an transfer object such as a paper sheet, so that an image is formed.
Here, a part of the toner may not be transferred to the transfer object and may remain on the surface of the image carrier. In addition, when a charging device charges the image carrier, an electric discharge is generated, and thereby discharge products may be generated and adhere to the surface of the image carrier. These adhering substances on the surface of the image carrier may hinder subsequent image formation and degrade image quality. As a result, in this type of image forming apparatus, a cleaning device is provided to remove the adhering substances from the surface of the image carrier. For example, there is known a configuration including: a cleaning member configured to remove toner from the surface of the image carrier; a polishing roller configured to polish the surface of the image carrier in the state where the removed toner has adhered to the surface of the polishing roller; and a layer thickness restricting member configured to restrict a layer thickness of the toner that has adhered to a surface of the polishing roller.

Cleaning device, image forming apparatus


A tool includes an elongate body having a handle unit on one end and a grill contacting unit on another end. The grill contacting unit includes diverging tines with each having a beveled edge that may be scraped against a bar of a grill to clean that grill. A hollow tube is positioned in the grill contacting unit to contain a match that is used to ignite charcoals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the general art of hand tools, and to the particular field of tools used in connection with barbecue grills.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Many people enjoy barbecuing, and barbecuing can occur all year round and in many situations. While many people enjoy barbecuing, few people enjoy cleaning up a barbecue grill after use. Cleaning a barbecue grill often involves using a stiff-bristled brush and cleanser on the grill. This is a time consuming and unpleasant task.
Therefore, there is a need for a tool that can be used to efficiently and easily clean a barbecue grill.
However, making it easier to clean a grill of a barbecue unit is only part of a solution to making barbecuing more efficient and more pleasant. If the tool used to clean the grill is, itself, difficult to clean, then the advantages of the tool may be vitiated. If the tool is disposed of, cost concerns may also vitiate advantages of the tool.
Therefore, there is a need for a tool that can be used to clean a barbecue grill, but which, itself, can be easily cleaned.
Still further, after use, a barbecue grill is generally very hot and can be dangerous. In order to dispose of spent coals, the grill is often simply dumped off onto the ground. This is not a sanitary practice nor is it entirely safe.
Therefore, there is a need for a tool that can be used to handle a grill of a barbecue unit in a safe manner.
Still further, initially igniting the coals of a barbecue grill can be dangerous. The coals are generally soaked with an ignition fluid and an open flame applied to the coals. The ignition fluid often quickly flares up and then burns until the coals are ignited. If a user""s hand is near the coals there may be a danger that the user""s hand may be singed, or worse, when the coals are initially ignited.
Therefore, there is a need for a tool that can space a user""s hand from the coals when the coals are being ignited.
Often, as the cooking is being carried out, the coals are rearranged. The rearrangement of coals keeps the fire hot and locates the heat in the most desired places to continue cooking food on the grill. However, at the present time, many people simply use a fork or a long stick to rearrange the coals. This may require the user to remove the grill which will be hot. However, even if the grill need not be removed, it is difficult to move hot coals around with a stick or the like.
Therefore, there is a need for a tool that will permit movement of ignited coals during a barbecuing process.
It is a main object of the present invention to provide a tool that can be used to efficiently and easily clean a barbecue grill.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a tool that can be used to handle a grill of a barbecue unit in a safe manner.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a tool that can space a user""s hand from the coals when the coals are being ignited.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a tool that will permit movement of ignited coals during a barbecuing process.
It is a main object of the present invention to provide a tool that can be easily cleaned.
These, and other, objects are achieved by a tool that has an elongate body with a handle on one end and a grill contacting unit on the other end. The grill contacting unit includes two diverging tines with each including a beveled edge that can be scraped against a bar of a barbecue grill to clean that bar. The tool further includes a hollow tube near the base of the tines to contain a match. The match is releasably positioned in the hollow tube to have the head of the match located outside of the tube. Striking the head of the match ignites the match, and the match can then be placed next to igniter fluid-soaked charcoals to ignite those coals while the user holds the tool at the other end by a handle unit of the tool whereby the user""s hand is spaced apart from the coals by the tool.
The grill contacting unit of the tool is in one plane and that plane is oriented to be oblique to a plane containing the elongated body of the tool whereby a grill can be easily manipulated by the tool.
The grill contacting unit of the tool is held on the elongate body by a friction fit that is enhanced by a stop ring. In this manner, the grill contacting unit can be removed and cleaned or the beveled edges sharpened as required. The serviced grill contacting unit can then be replaced for further use.


A medical catheter instrument has a shaft portion, a distal portion bendable in a controlled manner in at least one direction relative to the shaft portion, and a control element extending in an axially movable manner through the shaft portion to the distal portion. The axial movement of the control element controls a corresponding bending movement of the distal portion. The catheter instrument includes a bending assembly having at least one elongated, elastically bendable stiffening element and at least one elongated, bendable and axially length-adjustable bending element, the elements being provided in an axial sub-region of the distal portion and extending therein with an axial main component, wherein the stiffening element forms an element restoring bending movement and has a higher flexural stiffness than the bending element, and the bending element is coupled to the control element or forms part of the same.

The invention relates to a medical catheter instrument comprising a shaft portion, a distal portion that can be bent in a controlled manner in at least one direction relative to the shaft portion, and at least one control element that extends in an axially moveable manner through the shaft portion to the distal portion; and that the axial movement of the control element controls a corresponding bending movement of the distal portion.
Medical catheter instruments of this kind are known in various designs. Thus, the patent specification U.S. Pat. No. 7,033,345 B2 discloses a catheter instrument with a control element that is formed by a tension wire, which extends from a grip region of the catheter through the shaft portion and the distal portion inside an associated tension wire lumen as far as the front end of the distal portion, where said tension wire is fastened. A more or less central hollow channel serves as the working channel. In an additional lumen the distal portion has a rubber element with a rectangular cross section. This rubber element acts as the stiffening element, which is supposed to bring about the resetting of the distal portion into its linear starting position from its bent position, when the restoring movement is released by relaxing the tension wire.
The patent specification EP 0 489 937 B1 discloses a medical catheter instrument with two tension cable pieces, which serve as the control element for controlling an active bending movement of the distal portion in a plane of the bending movement. These two pieces of the tension cables are arranged opposite each other with respect to a longitudinally central working/hollow channel of the catheter. In this case the tension wires run directly in a respective lumen of solid material inside the distal portion, whereas inside the shaft portion the tension wires run in a sleeve that increases the flexural rigidity and that in turn is inserted into a corresponding lumen of solid material. In the plane that extends perpendicular to the plane of the bending movement, strips having a rectangular cross section are incorporated into the distal portion. Said strips are supposed to stabilize the distal portion and to counteract the said distal portion's deflections transversely to the plane of the bending movement. The tension cable pieces are implemented as sections of a common continuous tension cable comprising a connecting piece that is fastened at a front end cap of the distal portion.
The patent specification DE 103 37 580 B4 discloses a catheter that is provided with a control element that is designed to transmit both pull and push forces, so that the result is a deflectability of the distal portion of the catheter in two opposite directions with the use of only this one control element.
Additional medical catheter instruments of the type mentioned in the introductory part are disclosed in the Offenlegungsschrift [published patent application] WO 97/01369 A1 and WO 95/31243 A1.
The engineering object of the present invention is to provide a medical catheter instrument of the type mentioned in the introductory part that enables a deflectability of the distal portion with a high degree of functional reliability, a high degree of flexibility when in use and/or at a comparatively low production cost.
The invention achieves this object by providing a medical catheter instrument comprising a shaft portion, a distal portion that can be bent in a controlled manner in at least one direction relative to the shaft portion, and at least one control element that extends in an axially moveable manner through the shaft portion to the distal portion. The axial movement of the control element controls a corresponding bending movement of the distal portion. At least one bending assembly comprises at least one elongated, elastically flexible stiffening element and at least one elongated, flexible and axially length-variable bending element. The stiffening element and the bending element are both provided in at least one axial subregion of the distal portion and extend therein with an axial main component, wherein the stiffening element forms a bending movement restoring element, which has a higher flexural rigidity than the at least one bending element. The bending element is coupled to the at least one control element or forms a part of the control element.
This catheter instrument contains one or more bending assemblies that comprise at least one elongated, elastically flexible stiffening element and at least one elongated, flexible and axially length-variable bending element. The stiffening element and the bending element are both provided in at least one axial subregion of the distal portion and extend therein with an axial main component—that is, totally or in any case predominantly in the axial direction. At the same time the stiffening element forms an element that restores the bending movement and has a higher flexural rigidity than the bending element. The bending element is coupled to the control element, which exhibits an axial movement that controls the corresponding bending movement of the distal portion, or forms a part of the control element.
The stiffening element and the bending element can be introduced in each case as an independent element or rather component into the respective axial subregion of the distal portion or can be formed integrally as a part of a solid material of the distal portion and can be designed in an optimally adaptable way for its functions relating to restoring the stiffness and/or actively generating the bending movement, so that there is no need to design any other material of the catheter instrument in this region—typically a solid material, provided with one or more lumens, or a coaxial tube unit—to fulfill these functions. As a result, this feature makes it possible, if desired, to use, for example, a very pliable solid material for the basic structure of the distal catheter portion that does not have to act in either a stiffening or flexion determining manner. Rather the restoring rigidity is guaranteed by the stiffening element that is incorporated, for example, as a separate element into the pliable solid material or is formed by a solid material zone that exhibits a higher flexural rigidity. The bending element defines together with the control element the active bending movement. The bending element can enable in interaction with the stiffening element an enhanced functionality in terms of the active bending movement as compared, for example, to the conventional bending arrangements with a tension wire control element that acts only on a distal end cap region of a homogenous solid material of the distal portion.
In a further development of the invention the stiffening element extends from the distal portion into the shaft portion. In this way the stiffening element can contribute to providing the shaft portion with a flexural rigidity that is typically necessary for the shaft portion and that is significantly higher than the flexural rigidity of the actively flexible distal portion.
In a further development of the invention the control element is formed by a tension wire that is guided through a hollow channel of the bending element and is coupled to a distal end region of the bending element by means of, for example, a thickened head piece. A tension wire that is suitable for the present invention includes any type of wire that is used in the customary way for this purpose. For the sake of simplicity the term tension wire in the present invention shall also include tension cables of any kind.
In an additional embodiment the bending element has two hollow channels, through which the tension wire is guided in one piece so as to form a return bend at the distal end region of the bending element. This simple design feature makes it possible to produce the bending movement by a synchronous pulling at the two proximal sections of the tension wire, so that the return bend transmits the pulling force to the bending element.
In a further development of the invention the bending element is implemented by an elastically compressible helical spring element or hollow rod element or an elastically compressible solid material zone of the distal portion. In the specific case the bending element can be formed, for example, by a helical spring having windings, which are axially spaced apart from each other in the unstressed state, or by a relatively flexurally pliable solid material zone of the distal portion.
In a further development of the invention the stiffening element is formed by an elastically tensible helical spring element or rod element or an elastically tensible solid material zone of the distal portion. In the specific case the stiffening element can be formed, for example, by a helical spring having windings, which are axially spaced apart from each other in the unstressed state, or a relatively flexurally pliable solid material zone of the distal portion.
In a further development of the invention the stiffening element and the bending element can be arranged opposite each other relative to a longitudinally central axis of the distal portion. This feature allows at least one bending movement in the plane of the stiffening element and the bending element in the one and/or the other bending direction, depending on whether the bending element is subject to a push or pull force by means of the control element.
In a further development of the invention the bending assembly comprises at least two bending elements, which are arranged opposite each other in the plane of the bending movement, and at least two stiffening elements, which are arranged side by side in a plane transversely to the plane of the bending movement. This feature allows the distal portion to be bent in both directions in the plane of the bending movement, even if only control elements, which work by means of pull forces and not by means of push forces, are used exclusively.
In a further development of the invention the distal portion of the catheter is made of a solid material or consists of two coaxial tubular elements. In this case the bending assembly is provided in the solid material or in the annular space between the coaxial tubular elements. If the bending element and the stiffening element are designed as independent elements, which satisfy the stiffening function and/or the bending actuator function, then the solid material and/or the coaxial tubular elements do not have to be designed to fulfill these functions. They need only be selected in such a way that they do not inhibit these functions of the bending element and the stiffening element. As an alternative, the bending element and/or the stiffening element can be formed by a corresponding zone of solid material, which in this case is constructed of a plurality of materials in the form of multiple zones.
In a further development of the invention the distal portion of the catheter has a central axial working channel and/or one or more off-centered axial working channels. The working channel(s) can be used, for example, for the customary catheter functions, such as for conveying a fluid or gas or for operating a functional element that is needed on the distal end, like a mirror, a knife, scissors, a sensor, etc. For this purpose the respective working channel can also extend preferably in a continuous manner through the shaft portion.
In the design of this aspect the distal portion is made of a solid material surrounding the central axial working channel with a non-uniform thickness. In this case a correspondingly flexurally rigid solid material zone, which lies in a region in which the solid material has negligible thickness, acts as the stiffening element. In addition, the tubular solid material can be easily manufactured, for example, by an extrusion process using at least two materials of different flexural rigidity. In an additional design the solid material also has a zone that acts as a bending element and that lies in a region of greater thickness. Even for this design the solid material can be fabricated, for example, as a suitably extruded tubular component.
In a further development of the invention the catheter instrument comprises a plurality of bending assemblies, each of which has at least one stiffening element and at least one bending element of the aforementioned type. In this case the bending assemblies are provided in different axial subregions of the distal portion; and at least two bending assemblies have bending movement planes that do not extend parallel to each other. This feature allows the distal portion to be bent in a plurality of non-parallel planes of the bending movement.
In a further development of the invention the distal portion of the catheter comprises at least one light guide element and, coupled thereto, a luminous ring. In this case the light guide element is accommodated in an axially extending manner in a working channel of the distal portion. At the same time the luminous ring can serve as a light guide on the distal front end of the catheter.
In a further development of the invention the distal portion of the catheter comprises a distal end piece, which can be moved in an axially elastic manner. This distal end piece is connected to at least one guide pin, which can be guided in an axial hollow channel of the distal portion in such a way that it can be moved in an axially elastic manner. In this structurally simple way the distal portion of the catheter is flexible in an axial elastic manner on its distal end, so that the risk of injuring, for example, a body tissue in the course of inserting the catheter instrument can be eliminated.


A disk cartridge includes a case which receives a disk thereon, a cover which is installed on the case and includes an opening, and a shutter which is movably installed in the case, in a lower direction of the disk, to open and close an aperture formed on the case. The disk cartridge has guide holes formed on the case along a trace of the shutter, and support members formed on the shutter. The support members are guided along the guide holes while having ends thereof interfering with peripherals of the guide holes. Therefore, since the peripherals of the guide holes interfere with the ends of the support members, the shutter is prevented from being deformed even where an external force is applied to the shutter through the aperture, in a closed state of the shutter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disk cartridge, and more particularly, to a disk cartridge which stores a disk and protects a recording surface of the disk from contamination sources including dust and fingerprints.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a disk cartridge stores a disk, which is an information recording/reproducing medium, and is mounted in a disk drive apparatus. FIG. 1 shows a conventional disk cartridge 100 comprising a case 101 which stores a disk D, a shutter 110 which is installed and rotated in the case 101 to selectively open or close an aperture 102 on the case 101, so as to allow a pickup (not shown) of a disk drive apparatus (not shown) to access the disk D, and a cover 103 which is fixed on an upper portion of the case 101.
An opening 103b is formed on the cover 103 to replace the disk D, and separation prevention levers 103a are installed and slide on the cover 103 to prevent the disk D from being separated through the opening 103b. To mount the disk D, the separation prevention levers 103a move backward so as not to interfere with the disk D. After the disk D has been mounted, the separation prevention levers 103a move forward, as shown in FIG. 1, so that respective front ends of the separation prevention levers 103a prevent the disk D from being separated through the opening 103b.
FIGS. 2A and 2B show plan views of the disk cartridge 100 of FIG. 1 where the disk cartridge 100 having the disk D is introduced into the disk drive apparatus. In response, an opening lever 130 of the disk drive apparatus pushes a locking piece 111a to release a protrusion 11c of the shutter 110 from a groove 101a of the case 101. Sequentially, the opening lever 120 pushes an interference piece 111b to rotate the shutter 110 as shown in FIG. 2B. In this case, the shutter 110 is formed of first and second shutter units 111 and 112, which are installed and rotated on rotation shafts 110a, and engage each other by an interlock saw tooth portion 113. Therefore, where the first shutter unit 111 integrally connected to the interference piece 111b rotates in, for example, a clockwise direction, the second shutter unit 112 rotates in a counterclockwise direction so as to have the first and second shutter units 111 and 112 open the aperture 102. Thus, the pickup of the disk drive apparatus can access a recording surface of the disk D through the aperture 102 to record/reproduce information. Although not shown in the drawings, a torsion spring is installed on the rotation shaft 110a, between the first shutter unit 111 and a surface of the case 101 to elastically bias the first shutter unit 111 in a counterclockwise direction, i.e., in a direction to close the aperture 102. Consequently, where a force applied to the opening lever 120 is removed, the shutter 110 returns to a closed state.
In such a structure, a force applied to the shutter 110 through the aperture 102 easily deforms the shutter 110 where the shutter 110 is closed. In other words, since only one end of the shutter 110 is coupled to the rotation shafts 110a, while a user pushes the other side of the shutter 110 through the aperture 102, the shutter 110 may be deformed. Accordingly, the shutter 110 is not smoothly opened or closed and a gap may occur between the first and second shutter units 111 and 112. Therefore, the shutter 110 cannot properly perform as a shutter to open and close the aperture 102 of the case 101.
Additionally, since the shutter 110 is installed in the case 101 so as to mount the disk D on the shutter 110, the recording surface of the disk D, i.e., a lower surface of the disk D in the drawings, may contact the shutter 110 during an opening and closing of the shutter 110. Thus, scratches may occur on the recording surface of the disk D.
Therefore, a structure of a disk cartridge which prevents deformation of a shutter and protects a recording surface of a disk during opening and closing operations of the shutter is required.


The invention provides compositions and methods to treat a hyperproliferative disorder with a GSH synthesis inhibitor and an anti-cancer composition.

Melanoma is a cancer of the skin and is the fastest growing cancer incidence in the world today. Disease detected early can be removed by surgery, but when melanoma spreads to other parts of the body (called metastatic melanoma) it is almost uniformly fatal. The reason for this is that metastatic melanoma rapidly becomes resistance to all forms of treatment. The first new therapy that appeared effective for melanoma was approved in 2011. The pharmaceutical called vemurafenib targets patients with a gene mutation (BRAFV600E) that is present in about half of melanoma patients. Although these patients respond well to the treatment, melanoma develops resistance to the therapy rapidly. Thus, the new therapy, which initially was heralded as the end of melanoma, extends life expectancy by only months with severe side effects. Vemurafenib is one of several BRAF inhibitors that are being used for melanoma therapy that target the BRAF protein. Melanoma develops resistance to all of these therapies. Several other drugs that have different mechanisms of action are also approved for melanoma treatment, but the disease eventually develops resistance to all therapies for melanoma. There is no treatment for metastatic melanoma that overcomes resistance of melanoma cancer cells, which leads to a high mortality rate.
Small molecule MAPK inhibitors (MAPKi, e.g. BRAFI: vemurafenib, dabrafenib and MEKi: cobimetinib, tramatinib) have been shown to significantly reduce tumor burden, and often delay disease progression. However, resistance to MAPKi is observed (almost invariably) within 6-8 months, which limits the overall clinical outcomes for patients undergoing MAPKi therapies. The precise cellular mechanism that drives MAPKi resistance in metastatic melanoma is not known. However, evidence suggests several plausible mechanisms, including re-activation of the MAPK pathway; metabolic re-programming; and stress-induced adaptive responses (e.g., autophagy and unfolded protein response). Unfortunately, therapeutic strategies targeting these mechanisms to circumvent the development of MAPKi resistance have yet to yield significant improvement in clinical outcomes for metastatic melanoma patients.
There is therefore a need for compositions and methods for the treatment of melanoma that prevents melanoma tumors from acquiring resistance to MAPKi.

Compositions and methods for treating cancer


A VCO includes a non-inverting output and an inverting output coupled to symmetrical circuitry configured to produce an oscillating output at the outputs. The symmetrical circuitry can include, for example, matched devices such as voltage-controlled resistors (VCRs) and capacitors. The symmetrical circuitry coupled to the non-inverting output and inverting output results in a stable output that operates close to the optimal 50% duty cycle independent of frequency and across a wide range of frequencies. In an alternative embodiment, the VCO further includes an output differential amplifier having its non-inverting input coupled to the non-inverting output and its inverting input coupled to the inverting output. The VCO according to this embodiment exhibits higher gain and a stable output that operates close to the optimal 50% duty cycle independent of frequency and across a wide range of frequencies.

Embodiments of the present invention relate to voltage controlled oscillators. In particular, the present invention relates to a highly accurate voltage controlled oscillator that exhibits optimal performance across a wide range of frequencies.
Voltage Controlled Oscillators (VCOs) are per se known. VCOs generate an oscillating signal at their output that varies in frequency according to the level of voltage input. VCOs are widely applied in high speed clocking applications such as clocking circuits and within phase locked loops (PLLs).
Conventional VCOs offer performance at less than an optimal duty-cycle of 50% across a wide range of frequencies. As frequency increases, the duty-cycle of traditional VCOs approaches 100% causing traditional VCOs to fail prematurely. Thus, traditional VCOs suffer from limited use at the higher frequency ends and utilize power inefficiently.
To maintain an optimal duty cycle, traditional VCOs are required to operate at twice the desired output frequency. An output at 50% duty cycle can then be obtained by halving the frequency of the poor duty cycle output from traditional VCOs. This technique is disadvantageous in that running the VCO at twice the required output frequency significantly increases the power consumed and halves an unstable maximum operating frequency. At higher frequencies, traditional VCOs become unstable due to the inherent non-symmetry in their design.
There is a need for a VCO that oscillates at or near the optimal duty-cycle of 50% across a wide range of frequencies. There is also a need for a VCO that is more accurate and stable at higher frequencies, and that offers reduced power consumption.

Highly accurate voltage controlled oscillator with RC circuit


A retractable reel system includes a reel, a gear assembly, a paddle wheel and a spring. The reel includes a concentric wheel shaft where the reel and wheel shaft rotate to wind and unwind a length of material from the reel. The gear assembly engages with an end of the wheel shaft to provide a gear reduction ratio between the wheel shaft and an output shaft of the gear assembly. The paddle wheel is connected to and concentric with the output shaft, and the paddle wheel includes a paddle that extends beyond an outer edge of the paddle wheel that rotates with the paddle wheel. The spring is arranged outside the outer edge of the paddle wheel. The spring is compressed by the paddle to store an energy when the reel is rotated to unwind the length of material from the reel. The stored energy is used to rotate the reel to wind the length of material around the reel.

Current self-retractable reel designs use a spiral spring. Spiral springs are a type of spring made from rectangular metal strips that have been wound into a flat spiral. Spiral springs are engineered to store and release rotational energy in the form of torque. The metal strip slides over itself and expands while it rotates. This creates the torque that rotates the reel back into place. However, the material and the machines used to make these kinds of springs are not easy to acquire. Another limitation of spiral springs is that the metal material used to manufacture the spiral springs is very thin and is known to harden over time. As a consequence, spiral springs lose their elasticity and ability to store and release rotational energy.
Another type of self-retractable reel design is commonly used in seat belts. This design uses a spring that is wrapped in a spiral much like the arms of a galaxy. They are similar to the spiral spring design discussed above, but these springs are much thicker and don't slide over themselves. As the seat belt is extended, the spring expands outward and this provides the rotational energy to spin the reel back and retract the seat belt.
Another applications for retractable reel designs exist for electrical cords and pneumatic air hoses. Since the electrical cords and pneumatic air hoses are heavy and bulky, current reel designs utilize electrical motors for retraction of the extension cords or pneumatic air hoses.
For these and other reasons, there is a need for the present invention.


A network device classification process, including: monitoring network traffic of networked devices in a communications network to generate device behaviour data representing network traffic behaviours of the networked devices at different time granularities; processing the device behaviour data to classify a plurality of the networked devices as IoT devices, and others of the networked devices as non-IoT devices; accessing IoT device type data representing predetermined network traffic characteristics of respective known IoT device types; processing the device behaviour data of the IoT devices and the IoT device type data to classify each of the IoT devices as being a corresponding one of the plurality of known IoT device types; and for each of the IoT devices classified as a corresponding known IoT device type, classifying the IoT device as being in a corresponding operating state based on network traffic behaviours of the IoT device at different time granularities.

Networked devices continue to become increasingly ubiquitous in a wide variety of settings, including businesses and other organisations, and domestic settings. In particular, the addition of network connectivity to sensors and appliance-type devices generally dedicated to a specific task has created a new class of devices and interconnectivity, generally referred to as forming an 'Internet-of-things', or simply 'IoT'. Thus examples of IoT devices include lightbulbs, doorbells, power switches, weight scales, security cameras, air conditioning equipment, home automation and voice-activated Internet interfaces in the general form of audio speakers (e.g., Google Home and Amazon Echo) and other 'smart' devices, including a wide variety of networked sensors most commonly used to sense environmental parameters such as temperature, humidity, motion, smoke and air quality.
There are now so many such devices available that their management has become challenging, particularly from a security standpoint, for large networks such as those found in large enterprises and university campuses, for example. Such networks may include literally thousands of such devices which largely remain unidentified and may pose significant security risks to the network. Most IoT devices are relatively simple, and cannot defend themselves from cyber attacks. For example, a recent cyber attack on a casino relied upon compromised fish tank sensors, and a recent attack on a university campus network relied upon networked vending machines.
It is desired to provide a network device classification apparatus and process that alleviate one or more difficulties of the prior art, or that at least provide a useful alternative.

Network device classification apparatus and process


Biodegradable and biocompatible polymeric microspheres encapsulating Salmonella enteritidis are administered to chickens to provide the chickens with sustained protection against S. enteritidis infections.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to compositions and methods for providing chicken with sustained protection from infection with Salmonella enteritidis. More specifically, this invention relates to biodegradable and biocompatible polymeric microspheres encapsulating S. enteritidis which can be administered to chickens to protect them from S. enteritidis infections.
2. Background Art
Salmonella enteritidis, an agent which causes salmonellosis in poultry, can be transmitted vertically from laying hens to eggs. Consumption of eggs or meat contaminated with the organism can lead to food poisoning in humans. This is a worldwide problem in public health; in the U.S. alone, more than a million cases of salmonellosis are reported annually. Outbreaks in the elderly and in young children can be especially dangerous, resulting in severe gastroenteritis and possibly fatal septicemia.
In view of the large number of cases of Salmonella enteritidis cases reported each year, there is an obvious need for a reliable method for controlling the spread of Salmonella intestinal pathogens in poultry and for preventing the transmission of the pathogens into their eggs. Avirulent and killed injectable S. enteritidis vaccines have been developed and are useful. These vaccination processes, however, are known to cause a large amount of stress to the chicken as multiple vaccinations are required.
There thus is a significant need for a method by which poultry can be immunized against S. enteritidis in a simple, single dose, efficient, and cost-effective manner.

Agency for Science, Technology and Research


Synthesis gas (syngas) gasified in a gasification furnace to which coal is introduced burns in a combustor. An exhaust-heat recovery boiler generates steam by using exhaust gas let out from a gas turbine equipped with the combustor. The steam generated in the exhaust-heat recovery boiler is introduced to a steam turbine. A generator is driven by the steam turbine and the gas turbine to generate electrical power. Part of the exhaust gas let out from the gas turbine is introduced to a carbon-dioxide recovery unit, where carbon dioxide is recovered therefrom. Coal is carried to the gasification furnace by the carbon dioxide.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant, in particular, of the dry-coal-fed air-blown type.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a dry-coal-fed air-blown integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant is configured such that coal is supplied from a raw coal bunker to a coal pulverizer, where the coal is pulverized. The coal which has been pulverized (hereinafter referred to as "pulverized coal") is collected by a pulverized-coal collector and is supplied to a gasification furnace via a pulverized-coal bin and a pulverized-coal hopper.
When pulverized coal is to be supplied from the pulverized-coal hopper to the gasification furnace, the pulverized coal is carried to the gasification furnace using nitrogen gas, which is inert gas separated from air by an air separation unit. Oxygen separated from air by the air separation unit is introduced to the gasification furnace, where the pulverized coal carried by the nitrogen gas is burned. The pulverized coal is partly burned and decomposed by heat in the gasification furnace and is thereafter gasified into raw syngas.
Char contained in the raw syngas which is produced is separated from the syngas through a filter. The char separated by the filter is recovered into the gasification furnace and is burned together with the pulverized coal. At that time, the char is carried to the gasification furnace by the nitrogen gas generated by the air separation unit. The filter that separates the char is prevented from clogging by backwashing using the nitrogen gas generated by the air separation unit.
The syngas that has passed through the filter is introduced to a gas turbine as fuel gas after sulfur compounds, nitrogen compounds and so on contained therein are removed by a gas purification system. The fuel gas introduced to the gas turbine is burned in a combustor of the gas turbine together with air to become exhaust gas.
The exhaust gas is exhausted from the combustor to rotationally drive the turbine of the gas turbine. Since the turbine is rotationally driven, a compressor provided coaxially therewith is rotationally driven to compress air. Electrical power is generated by a generator connected to an end of the rotating shaft. The air that the compressor has compressed is supplied to the combustor of the gas turbine and the gasification furnace.
The exhaust gas that has rotationally driven the turbine is introduced to an exhaust-heat recovery boiler. The exhaust gas introduced to the exhaust-heat recovery boiler vaporizes water introduced to the exhaust-heat recovery boiler depending on the amount of heat in the exhaust gas. The steam generated in the exhaust-heat recovery boiler rotationally drives a steam turbine mounted on the rotating shaft of the gas turbine. The rotating shaft connected to the steam turbine is further driven by rotational driving of the steam turbine. Thus, the generator is driven by the gas turbine and the steam turbine to achieve combined-cycle power generation, thus improving the power generation efficiency.
On the other hand, the exhaust gas that has given up its heat to the feed water in the exhaust-heat recovery boiler is exhausted outside the integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant through a chimney.
Moreover, part of the exhaust gas let out from the gas turbine is introduced to the coal pulverizer. The exhaust gas introduced to the coal pulverizer, because it is dry and has a large quantity of heat, is used to dry the coal supplied from the raw coal bunker.
The use of carbon dioxide exhausted from the foregoing integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant, as described above, is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. Hei 4-1428, in which exhaust gas let out from a gas turbine is recovered and is circulated in a combustor of the gas turbine and a compressor.

Integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant


A method for repairing composite components includes installing a plug within a feature defined by a composite component, with the plug being formed from one or more neutral materials. Furthermore, the method includes infiltrating the composite component with an infiltrant to densify a repair region of the composite component, with the plug blocking a flow of the infiltrant into the feature. Moreover, after infiltrating the composite component, the method includes removing the plug from the feature.

In recent years, the use of non-traditional high temperature materials, such as ceramic matrix composite (CMC) materials, in gas turbine engines has grown dramatically. Specifically, there is strong interest in replacing metal alloy components within the combustion and turbine sections of a gas turbine engine with CMC components. CMC materials can withstand higher operating temperatures than metal alloys. Higher operating temperatures, in turn, increase the efficiency of the gas turbine engine. Moreover, CMC components require less cooling than metallic components. Additionally, CMC materials are lighter than metallic components and may reduce the structural demands on the engine.
However, gas turbine components formed from CMC materials can be quite expensive. In this respect, when a CMC gas turbine component becomes worn or damaged, it is desirable to repair, rather than replace, the component. As such, methods of repairing CMC components have been developed. For example, the worn or damaged portion(s) of a CMC component may be removed and replaced with new CMC material. While such methods work well, improvements are needed.
Accordingly, an improved method for repairing composite components would be welcomed in the technology.

Method for repairing composite components using a plug


A method for use with a smart card is provided. The smart card may include a communication interface, a housing, a microprocessor embedded in the housing, a battery for powering the communication interface and the microprocessor, and a nano GPS chip, located within the housing and in electronic communication with the communication interface and the microprocessor. The thickness of the smart card is preferably no greater than 0.8 millimeters (“mm”) and has surface area not greater than 86 mm×54 mm. The method may include determining the location of the smart card in response to a request for a smart card transaction authorization and determining the location of a mobile device associated with a specified user of the smart card. Based on the location of the smart card and the location of the mobile device, the smart card may calculate a location delta between the smart card and the mobile device. If the location delta is greater than or equal to a threshold distance, the smart card may deny the request for smart card transaction authorization.

In today's fraud-prone and fast-moving world, there exists a need to track the physical location of debit/credit cards. For the purposes of the disclosure, the debit/credit cards may be understood to refer to any smart card that generally shares the dimensions of a typical debit/credit card and may, in certain circumstances and configurations, be used to perform transactions. Such tracking may be used to ensure that consumers' smart cards are safe.
Even if a debit/credit card is stolen, it is important to have a mechanism that physically tracks debit/credit cards so that a consumer can track and prevent the fraud.
Had there been a technology in place which would have enabled live tracking of debit/credit cards, it would have helped financial institutions, and users as well, prevent a large volume of undesired activity.
It would be desirable to produce a debit/credit card that includes a tracking system without disrupting the form factor typically associated with such a card.
It would further be desirable to produce a nano GPS chip for use with a debit/credit card without requiring that the form factor of the debit/credit card change.


A method of system for hardening a firmware environment. A trusted core framework of firmware components are segregated from initially non-trustworthy extended firmware components such that the trusted core components are executed in a privileged processor mode, while the extended firmware components are executed in a non-privileged processor mode. An authentication of each extended firmware component is made to determine whether it is secure or non-secure. Through a memory code fault mechanism, memory accesses made by the extended firmware components are trapped, and a determination is made to whether the memory accesses should be allowed based on whether the extended firmware component is secure or non-secure and whether the requested memory page was allocated by the trusted core or a secure extended firmware component. This segregation scheme prevents non-trusted firmware from accessing privileged memory, thereby preventing rogue, errant, or malicious firmware from damaging the trusted core framework.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns computer platform firmware in general, and concerns a method for hardening an extensible firmware framework that permits the use of third party firmware modules in particular.
2. Background Information
Computer platform firmware is used during initialization of computer systems to verify system integrity and configuration. It also generally provides the basic low-level interface between hardware and software components of those computer systems, enabling specific hardware functions to be implemented via execution of higher-level software instructions contained in computer programs that run on the computer systems. in many computers, a primary portion of this firmware is known as the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) code of a computer system. The BIOS code comprises a set of permanently recorded (or semi-permanently recorded in the case of systems that use flash BIOS) software routines that provides the system with its fundamental operational characteristics, including instructions telling the computer how to test itself when it is turned on, and how to determine the configurations for various built-in components and add-on peripherals.
In a typical PC architecture, the BIOS is generally defined as the firmware that runs between the processor reset and the first instruction of the Operating System (OS) loader. This corresponds to the startup operations performed during a cold boot or in response to a system reset. At the start of a cold boot, very little of the system beyond the processor and firmware is actually initialized. It is up to the code in the firmware to initialize the system to the point that an operating system loaded off of media, such as a hard disk, can take over.
Typically, firmware code is stored in a "monolithic" form comprising a single set of code that is provided by a platform manufacturer or a BIOS vendor such as Phoenix or AMI. Various portions of the single set of code are used to initialize different system components. Since there is only a single set of code, the trustworthiness and reliability of the firmware may be verified through testing by its producer. In other situations, a monolithic BIOS may be extended using one or more "Option ROMs" that are contained on one or more periphery device cards. For example, SCSI device driver cards and video cards often include an option ROM that contains BIOS code corresponding to services provided by these cards. Typically, firmware in option ROMs is loaded after the firmware in the monolithic BIOS has been loaded or during loading of the monolithic BIOS in accordance with a predefined scheme.
Recently, a new firmware architecture has been defined that enables platform firmware to include firmware "modules" and "drivers" that may be provided by one or more third party vendors in addition to the firmware provided by a platform manufacturer or BIOS vendor that is originally supplied with a computer system. This firmware architecture, as defined by the EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) 2.0 framework specification, enables a system's firmware to be "extended" beyond conventional firmware capabilities through the use of the third-party firmware modules and drivers.
Although the EFI 2.0 framework provides many advantages, it opens up the opportunity for a system to be disabled or damaged through use of an errant or rogue firmware module or driver. For example, a flawed firmware module may not operate properly, causing one or more system components to be disabled. Even worse, it may cause problems to the operation of other firmware components and modules.

Hardened extended firmware interface framework


A memory card connector mountable onto a PCB for connecting a memory card includes a housing and a shell covering the housing to define a receiving room for receiving the memory card. The shell has two opposite sides electronically connecting to the PCB and a shell-conductive portion formed and bent inward from one side of the shell. A plurality of terminals is contained in the housing and has contacting portions extending into the receiving room for engagement with the memory card. A detecting terminal disposed in one side of the housing has a resilient contact arm disposed behind the contacting portions and a terminal-conductive portion extending toward the shell-conductive portion. The resilient contact arm is deflectable by the fully inserted memory card, which drives the terminal-conductive portion to electronically contact the shell-conductive portion, thereby detecting full insertion of the memory card.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a memory card connector, and particularly to a memory card connector capable of detecting full insertion of a memory card.
2. The Related Art
With rapid development of electrical technology, a large number of memory spaces is required for portable electrical devices, such as mobile phones, person digital accesses, etc. Each the portable device usually has a memory card connector for receiving and connecting a memory card to increase memory spaces nowadays.
A variety of memory card connectors have been used to connect with the memory card. One kind of the memory card connector was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,785. The memory card connector mounts on a printed circuit board (PCB) for connecting with the memory card, which has an insulating housing. The insulating housing includes a space for receiving the memory card and a plurality of grooves for respectively receiving a plurality of terminals. One end of each the terminal forms a soldering portion for soldering to the PCB, and the other end of each the terminal forms a connecting portion for mating contact with the memory card. A metallic cover contains an upper section of the insulating housing.
However, such memory card connector has no structure to identify whether the memory card has been fully inserted therein. Once the memory card is not fully, but partially inserted into the memory card connector, the connection between the memory card and the memory card connector is susceptible to sudden interrupt which results in unstable signal transmitting between the memory card and the memory card connector.
Another kind of the memory card connectors was described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,805,566. The memory card connector has two detecting terminals that are brought into or out of contact with each other with full insertion or ejection of the memory card. Only when the memory card is fully inserted into the memory card connector, the two detecting terminals are brought into contact. Otherwise, the two detecting terminals do not connect each other. So the memory card connector is able to detect full insertion of the memory card. But such detecting structure as described above makes the memory card connector swollen. This memory card connector is not suitable for portable electrical devices.


This invention relates to vinyl monomer compositions having accelerated surface cure characteristics. These compositions are prepared from a vinyl monomer or monomer mixtures such as blend of isobornyl methacrylate and hydroxypropyl methacrylate, a bulk phase polymerization catalyst system, a polyvalent metal oxidative surface phase catalyst, and a diolefin rubber dispersed in the vinyl monomer as a surface cure accelerator. These compositions are useful as sealers, healers and for polymer concrete.

Vinyl monomer compositions which are polymerized in situ to form protective coatings are well known. For example, methyl methacrylate compositions have been widely studied as impregnates or sealers for concrete, and as binders for aggregate field polymer concrete compositions that are used in coating or patching portland cement based concrete. Concrete treated in this manner can be more resistant to abrasion and chemical spills than untreated concrete.
Vinyl monomers may be polymerized in bulk by free radical polymerization initiated by high energy radiation, particle beams or chemical sources of free radicals such as peroxides and hydro-peroxides. It is also well-known that free radical polymerization of vinyl monomers may be inhibited by oxygen. Oxygen inhibition on polymerization becomes particularly troublesome in surface coating compositions such as those used in protecting concrete surfaces. In situations involving compositions based on methyl methacrylate, the lack of surface curing is not particularly disadvantageous. Methyl methacrylate has significant vapor pressure, and uncured monomer on the surface of an otherwise polymerized composition volatizes relatively quickly, exposing the hard polymeric surface beneath.
However, when the uncured composition contains less volatile vinyl monomers, the surface of the composition which has been cured in bulk polymerization may be very slow to cure since the presence of oxygen inhibits surface curing. This results in a surface having such undesirable properties as tack and residual odor. Compositions containing less volatile monomers may be otherwise desirable because of enhanced chemical resistance, greater safety, reduced odor and lower cost.
A variety of techniques have been used in an attempt to resolve the problem presented by inhibition of polymerization by oxygen. For example, a polyvalent metal salt such as cobalt naphthenate may be included in the coating composition in order to catalyze the oxidative cure of the residual uncured monomer. Driers such as cobalt naphthenate are commonly used to promote thorough drying. Also, articles coated with vinyl monomer compositions can be cured under a blanket of nitrogen or other inert gas. In an alternative procedure to resolve the issue of the presence of oxygen, a second coating of a material such as paraffin which reduces oxygen penetration at the surface of applied vinyl monomer can also be used to ameliorate the situation.
None of these solutions to the problem arising from oxygen inhibition of surface cure has been totally satisfactory. There remains a significant need for vinyl monomer compositions which rapidly develop surface cure, especially in the case of compositions which contain relatively low volatile vinyl monomers.

Vinyl monomer compositions with accelerated surface cure


An assembly for a wheeled platform includes a platform element adapted to be attachable to a platform and a housing adapted to receive the platform element, wherein a change in a contact point of the platform element relative to the housing results in a turning response of the wheeled platform.

The truck is an important element in the design of skateboards, wheeled platforms, roller skates, inline skates and vehicles. The truck not only supports the wheels of the skateboard, platform, inline skates, roller skates or vehicle, it may also provide the user with a significant degree of directional control.
In a typical skateboard truck, directional control is accomplished by providing the truck with four primary components: a truck hanger, a base plate, a kingpin, and bushings. Typically skateboard trucks (FIGS. 1 and 2) have two (2) axle extensions, which protrude laterally from the sides of the truck hanger upon which the skateboard wheels and bearings are mounted. Skateboard trucks are a wide variety of construction and designs beyond the typical truck described herein. Each of these trucks designs tends to exhibit most, if not all, of the characteristics described below. Skateboard trucks are typically mounted to the skateboard deck in a front (or leading) and rear (or trailing) position along the longitudinal or lengthwise axis of the skateboard deck such that, at rest, the truck axle extensions at the leading position are roughly parallel to the truck axle extensions at the trailing position and all truck axle extensions are roughly perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the skateboard deck when the skateboard is at rest. If this approximately parallel alignment of the trucks and their respective axles are maintained while the skateboard rolls along the ground, the skateboard's path will be relatively straight.
A skateboard truck typically exhibits some dynamic response when the user of the skateboard or wheeled platform leans to one side or the other. Such dynamic response tends to cause the truck hanger and axles to exhibit a component of rotation, in part, around a vertical axis, or an axis oriented perpendicular to the ground surface upon which the skateboard is positioned. The leading hanger and trailing hanger typically (but not necessarily) rotate in opposite directions. Thus, the user can turn, or otherwise control the forward direction of the wheeled platform, by shifting his or her body from one side of the platform to the other. Bushings are located between the truck base plate and truck hanger in the most common truck design. A kingpin connects the hanger, base plate and bushings together. The threaded kingpin can be tightened and loosened to modify rigidity of the bushings, and the dynamic response characteristics of the truck. Loose or slack bushings generally allow greater movement of the hanger about the kingpin and vertical axis of the truck, and thus are less responsive to slight weight shifts than are tight or rigid bushings.
Most, if not all skateboard truck designs exhibit some undesirable ride characteristics. One such undesired ride characteristic is instability or "speed wobble", which occurs when the axle and hanger develop a resonant frequency of vibration and uncontrolled wobbling within their typical range of motion. This can cause instability in the user's control of the skateboard, wheeled platform or vehicle. Speed wobbles occur on most skateboard truck designs. Different designs experience these wobbles at different speeds and under different conditions.
Most of the common skateboard truck designs do not transfer energy generated by the rider into the rotation of the skateboard wheels, resulting directly in the locomotion of a skateboard, wheeled platform or vehicle. Accordingly, what is needed is an improved truck assembly that can dynamically steer a wheeled platform, substantially reduce the impact of speed wobbles under typical riding conditions, and generate rotational energy to be used to propel the skateboard, wheeled platform, roller skates, inline skates, or vehicle.
Additionally, for maximum transfer of energy from the rider to the rotation of the at least one rotor, axle or wheel, the rider's gravitational, centrifugal and muscular energy should be structurally supported predominantly or entirely by components actively involved in the transfer of energy from the platform to the wheels. Accordingly, what is additionally needed is an entirely new truck design that strives to minimize support structures that are not used directly in the transfer of energy from the rider into the wheels.

Truck assembly for a skateboard, wheeled platform, or vehicle