A filter assembly comprises a housing (44) with an inlet (45) and an outlet (43). A filter module (10) is within the housing (44) and communicates with the inlet (45) and the outlet (43) such that fluid passing to the inlet (45) is filtered by the filter module (10) before passing to the outlet (43). The filter module (10) includes a filter membrane (11) of hollow cylindrical shape having an air throughput of at least 1300 normal cum/hr per 250 mm of the axial length of the membrane at an inlet pressure of 2 barg. Such a filter module (10) can be used in a process system (40) in which the module (10) supplies sterile air and is testable in situ.

The invention relates to filter assemblies.
A filter assembly typically comprises a housing having an inlet and an outlet. A filter element is located within the housing and communicates with the inlet and the outlet. Accordingly, fluid entering the inlet is filtered by the filter element before leaving through the outlet. A typical filter element may be of hollow cylindrical shape.
It is a problem that many filter elements currently manufactured have a comparatively small flow capacity. This means that, in many applications, it is necessary to use a significant number of filter elements connected in parallel in order to provide a required flow of fluid. For air filters, this leads to a limitation imposed by the pressure drop through the core. In addition, the use of a large number of small filters requires the use of larger housings with resultant increased cost and space requirements.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an air filter assembly comprising a housing having an inlet and an outlet and containing at least one filter module, the at least one filter module including a filter element communicating with the inlet and the outlet such that fluid entering the inlet is filtered by the filter element before leaving via the outlet, the filter element including a pleated filter membrane of hollow cylindrical shape having a pack height of 12 mm or less and an air throughput of at least 1300 normal m3/hr per 250 mm of the axial length of the membrane at an inlet pressure of 2 barg.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a system comprising an air supply, a filter assembly according to the first aspect of the invention and in which the filter membrane is a sterilizing grade filter member with the inlet of the filter assembly connected to said supply and the outlet of the filter assembly connected to processing means which receives sterile air from the filter assembly for use in a process, means being associated with the filter assembly for water intrusion testing the filter membrane in situ.
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of supplying sterile air to processing means comprising passing air through a filter assembly according to the first aspect of the invention and in which the filter membrane is a sterilizing grade filter membrane feeding air from the filter assembly to said processing means, and periodically halting the flow of air from said filter assembly and water intrusion testing the filter membrane in situ.


A method and system for manufacturing an object includes connecting a transportable memory to one of the materials needed to manufacture the object. The transportable memory stores identification data, computer programs and/or commands needed to manufacture the object, a bill of materials needed to manufacture the object, and/or identities of machines necessary to manufacture the object. The transportable memory and the material move to a machine in unison. The transportable memory communicates the necessary information for the proper computer program and/or command to operate the machine.

1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to manufacturing systems and related manufacturing methods.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Manufacturing machines have long been controlled by processors. Typically, these processors, and their related memory storage, contain one or more computer programs to control the operation of the machine. During "re-tooling" for a new product (or object), the processor must be reprogrammed to accommodate the new product. This reprogramming results in significant downtime and an increased risk of malfunction in future operations. Furthermore, the memory storage may be limited, thus limiting the variety of objects that the machine can manufacture.
Manufacturing machines are typically integrated into a broader manufacturing system. One example of such a system and a related method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,345,259 (the '259 patent) to Sandoval. The '259 patent discloses a method and system in which work orders to manufacture objects are received and stored in a database. Based on the work order, setpoints, including manufacturing process settings, are generated. The setpoints are then provided to a computerized manufacturing system, and therefore to the manufacturing machines, for manufacturing the objects. The system and method of the '259 patent do not provide for nor allow for the manufacture of a wide variety of objects.
There remains an opportunity to provide a system and method of manufacturing an object having greater flexibility in operating machines to allow for a wider variety of customized objects to be manufactured.


The potty for a pet animal of the present invention comprises an outer case for the potty, an internal case to be contained in the outer case and is constituted by having an opening at the bottom part and forming a reticular member at the opening part, where an amount of sand is provided on the upward side of the reticular member, and a cover to be internally fitted to the opening of the internal case and having a hole at the central part for excretion purpose. According to the potty of the present invention, the amount of sand that a cat scatters and spoils the surrounding of the potty at its excretion may be minimized, and the space required for setting the potty may be reduced to a compact size.

The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Applications No. 2000-194315 filed on Jun. 28, 2000 and No. 2001-178029 filed on Jun. 13, 2001 including specification, claims, drawings and summary is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present invention is related to a potty to be used for such pet animals as a domestic cat.
In recent time, the number of population who are rearing a pet animal, such as domestic cat, in a house has been increased.
However, a pet animal cannot use a lavatory by itself, and therefore, a human has to interveniently take care of cleaning the excretion of a pet animal, for which substantial time and labor had to be required.
Namely, a cat requires sand when it excretes based on the instinctive behavior thereof, it is thus required to bring a potty with sand into a house, which causes introduction of some conditions similar to the outdoor into a room.
FIG. 14 is an example for the conventional potty for cat use, wherein sand 02 is put in a sand tray 01.
For using such conventional potty indoors, various proposals for improvement in the use have been made in view of resolving smell and sanitary problems. However, there are yet problems as described below for such conventional potties in terms of cleaning excretion and the constitutional structure.
(1) Since substantial space is required to place the potty, it is problematic when placing it in a small house.
(2) The amount of the dairy excretion is rather big in quantity, which gives difficulty in bringing it for trash. For example, when water-absorbing sand is used for collecting urines, said sand tends to be solid after absorbing urines to make greater solid lump, causing problem of increasing trash in quantity.
(3) In particular, a cat need sand when it excretes, the consumption of sand by a cat becomes great, and the amount of sand to be brought into a house is enormous, which additionally causing difficulty in storing sand.
(4) Further, when using the sand tray 01 whereto sand 02 is placed as a potty, a cat tends to spoil rooms with the legs being fouled with his excretion since a cat directly contacts to the sand 02 in the tray 01. In particular, such spoiling of rooms is more serious when a cat is sick in diarrhea.
(5) Further, during the excretion, the sand 02 is scattering around the tray 01, thereby causing a need for cleaning.
(6) In addition, from a viewpoint of interior decoration, placing the tray 01 containing the sand 02 as it is disfigures the atmosphere.
The present invention is directed to solve such problems recited above and to provide a potty for a pet animal, which may reduce the amount of the sand that spoils the indoor and is scattered by such pet animal as a cat to the minimum and is constituted in a compact shape requiring less space for the placing.
The potty for a pet animal according to the present invention overcomes the problems as described above and is characterized in that the potty for a pet animal is constituted by an outer case of which upper part being opened, an internal case to be contained in the outer case and is constituted by forming a reticular member at the central part of the bottom, and a cover to be internally fitted to the upper peripheral part of the opening of the internal case and having a hole at the central part for excretion purpose.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, an amount of sand may be provided onto the reticular member formed in the internal case.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the reticular member formed in the internal case may be either a reticular member or a latticed member which covers the hole formed in the bottom central part of the internal case.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the reticular member formed in the internal case may be either a reticular member or a latticed member being formed in accreted state to the internal case.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the outer case and the internal case may be united in watertight state at each flange parts of the both cases and are detachably constituted.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, a guard member for covering the peripheral margin of the cover and having an opening for using as an access for a pet animal at the front and the rear sides of the case in the longitudinal direction may be provided.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the outer case and the internal case may be united in watertight state at each flange parts of the both cases and may be detachably constituted, and the internal case, the cover and the guard member may be detachably fitted with each other at the peripheral margin of the potty.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the cover and the guard member may be constituted in accreted state by means of molding.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, a hole for excretion may be formed at the central part of the cover and a mat containing fine pores for excluding the sand may be set on the upper part of the cover.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, a plurality of fine pores for excluding the sand downward may be formed in the cover.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, a water-absorbing means may be provided onto the bottom of the outer case.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the bottom part of the cover may be formed so as to gradually incline downward in a direction to the central opening part of the case.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, a drawer member may be provided in containable manner onto the bottom of the outer case and a water-absorbing means may be provided in the drawer member.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the pet animal to use the potty may be a cat.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the potty may be installed into a cage for a pet animal.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the potty may be installed into a piece of furniture for a pet animal.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the potty may be installed into an athletic house for a pet animal.
In the potty for a pet animal according to the invention specified above, the potty for a pet animal may be installed into an athletic house for a pet animal, wherein a mean for rubbing nails is provided on the roof of the athletic house.


Apparatus and method for treating the interior surfaces of hollow plastic objects to improve their adherency to and compatibility with another component, such as polyurethane foam. The invention consists of creating a vacuum in the object and drawing a conductive gas inside the object. A pair of electrodes are spaced apart from each other, and a source of electricity is provided thereto of sufficient intensity to produce an electrical discharge across the gap between the electrodes when an object is in the gap between the electrodes. The electrodes are arranged with regard to the size and configuration of the object to provide ionization of the conductive gas inside the object to surface treat the inner walls.

This invention relates to the apparatus and method for surface treating the interior surfaces of hollow plastic objects to increase the surface tension level of the interior surfaces thereby improving the adhesive properties of these surfaces. More particularly, the apparatus and method by which interior surfaces are treated by creating a vacuum inside a hollow object, introducing a suitable gas therein and using an electrical discharge to ionize the gas to improve the surface tension and thereby the adhesive ability of the interior surfaces.
Adhesion of any substance (such as coatings, foams, glues, etc.) to the interior walls of hollow plastic objects (such as rotational molded parts, blown molded parts, etc.) has been a problem due to low surface energy level (surface tension) inherent in most plastics. The ability to adhere a substance to the interior walls of hollow plastic objects is highly desirable in numerous instances, such as foam insulation for strength of the object and insulation or coatings to make the interior surfaces less permeable to various products. For instance, it has been particularly difficult to adhere polyurethane foams of the standard types (using cloroflorocarbons (CFC) and hydrocloro-florocarbons (HCFC)) to the interior surfaces of hollow plastic objects. The introduction of poly foams with reduced CFC's or without CFC's (such as water borne foams) has proven particularly difficult to adhere to the interior surfaces without proper surface treatment. Standard methods of surface treatment (such as flame treating or corona discharge) have required that the plastic object be of two piece construction and that the interior surfaces of the objects be treated prior to final assembly. Other methods, such as gas plasma also have proven marginally effective in treating completely the interior surfaces. In addition, the aforementioned methods have proven to be costly and it has been difficult to treat irregularly shaped surfaces.

Apparatus and method for treating the interior surfaces of hollow plastic objects for improving adhesive properties


An electrolytic, capacitive electrode, adapted to be disposed in body fluids when implanted, is used to store electrical energy for use in providing electrical energy to at least a portion of the internal electrical circuitry of an implantable device. Substantial capacitance is provided, particularly when constructed of anodized, porous tantalum with a counterelectrode of activated iridium. Such capacitive electrodes, exposed outside the implantable device, alleviate the requirement for space for a storage capacitor within miniature, implantable devices and may also serve as stimulating electrodes.

Electrical storage devices in implantables are usually batteries, which may or may not be rechargeable. Capacitances have been used within implanted devices for various purposes, such as to provide signal demodulation, detection, filtering, and to remove unwanted alternating currents, but it is not believed that electrolytic, capacitive electrodes. disposed in body fluids, have been previously used to store the electrical energy needed for operating the internal electrical circuitry of an implantable device.
Various investigators have used an electrolytic, capacitor electrode to conduct electrical energy for a stimulating pulse. An article by Guyton and Hambrecht, entitled "Theory and design of capacitor electrodes for chronic stimulation", in Medical and Biological Engineering, Sep. 1974, page 613 and following, discloses and discusses such a system. In that case, the electrode also serves as the stimulating electrode. A counterelectrode, which adds to the storage capacitance, has also been used with such electrolytic, capacitor electrode, and such counterelectrode has also served as the other, stimulating electrode.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,368, for Multi-Electrode Neurological Stimulation Apparatus, inventor, H. Wilfred Lynch, shows, in FIG. 19, a storage capacitor which provides electrical energy to control and demultiplexing electronics, which includes a shift register. An electrolytic storage capacitor, disposed in body fluids, is not suggested. It is proposed in that patent that the capacitor be kept small so as not to interfere with the stimulating pulse.

Implantable device having an electrolytic storage electrode


The present disclosure is directed to training, and providing recommendations via, a machine learning model architected to balance relevance and diversity of sets of recommendations. For example, a neural network can be provided with user profile features and can output probabilities for each of a number of recommendations. This can be converted into a ranked list of recommendations. The ranked list of recommendations is provided to a diversity model that maximizes an optimization objective having a first objective that quantifies relevance of a recommendation and a second objective that measures diversity of a set of recommendations. The output of the diversity model is a set of recommendations that have both high relevance and high diversity.

Some web sites and other types of interactive systems implement services for generating customized content suggestions for items stored or represented in a data repository. One common application for such services involves suggesting products for purchase, rental, subscription, viewing, or some other form of consumption. For example, some e-commerce web sites provide services for suggesting products to users based on their respective purchase histories, rental histories, product viewing histories, or item ratings. Such services are also used to suggest web sites, news articles, users, music and video files, and other types of items.
Computer learning models can process large volumes of user and item interaction data to provide relevant recommendations for users. For example, a model may be implemented as an artificial neural network. Artificial neural networks are artificial in the sense that they are computational entities, implemented by computing devices.

Artificial intelligence system for balancing relevance and diversity of network-accessible content


A frame assembly for supporting a portable video or other camera. The assembly comprises a rigid frame, having a front, and a rear. A pair of shoulder rests are connected to the frame and constructed to rest on the shoulders of an operator. A pair of hand grips are connected to the front of the frame. A camera mount is disposed on the front of the frame for releaseably holding the video camera. Lastly, an adjustable counterweight member is connected to the rear of the frame, for balancing the center of gravity of the frame substantially over the shoulders of the wearer, when the camera is held by the mount. The camera mount and counterweight are preferably relatively slideably adjustable to balance the center of gravity of the frame assembly over the shoulders of the operator.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a frame assembly for supporting a camera, particularly a portable video or film camera. More particularly, the present invention relates to a frame for stably supporting a portable video camera, or other camera on the shoulders of a user to allow the steady filming, taping or still photography of objects which may be moving rapidly and unpredictably. The frame assembly of the present invention is particularly suited for the recording of aircraft, sporting events, and wildlife.
B. Description of the Related Art
It has heretofore been difficult to stabilize small, portable video and motion picture cameras. Certain uses of these cameras have been particularly difficult such as the recording or filming of moving objects encountered when viewing sporting events, when recording athletes, race cars or aircraft, or when filming or taping wildlife.
Many modern video cameras, for example, have built in electronic or optical stabilizers. These stabilizers are helpful when the camera is held relatively still, to capture, for example, a distant landscape. However, when camera movement is made that exceeds the ability of the built in stabilizer to correct, the result is a jumping effect as the stabilizer attempts to reestablish a reference. This problem is seen particularly often when trying to follow fast, unpredictable objects such as aircraft. Even though the jumping effect is less pronounced when using optical stabilizers as compared to electronic stabilizers, neither stabilizer provides sufficient stability without major additional physical stabilization.
Many products are currently marketed to provide external stabilization for video camera operators. The most common devices are tripods. Tripods offer stability, but even with high cost fluid heads, there are limits to how fast a camera can be panned without roughness in the motion. One tripod head is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,971,486. It is particularly difficult, using tripods, to continuously follow an aircraft changing elevation and bearing. Known tripods do not have the flexibility to allow the rapid changes in elevation and bearing necessary, and they do not have the freedom of motion to allow for deflection necessary to track aircraft at high elevations. The legs of the tripod are also an impediment to the freedom of motion of the camera operator.
Gyro stabilized platforms are available, but these are extremely expensive, and are usually confined to professional applications. The are heavy, expensive and require considerable power, and are thus inappropriate for hobby video or film work.
One device, presently sold by Glidecam Industries of Plymouth, Mass., uses a system of weights and balances to stabilize a handheld video camera. However, use of this device requires the suspension of a considerable amount of weight in front of the camera operator, and thus causes significant fatigue in the operator. In addition, the camera operator cannot use the camera's view finder, but must look directly at the object. This method of stabilization severely limits the option to move the camera to track moving objects. Recent variations of this product provide a post that nests in a pocket on the camera operator's belt. This belt assembly could support a considerable amount of weight, and might otherwise be useful, but still does not provide sufficient stability for all uses and requires that the operator's hands be on the camera at all times.
Another device, called a Camcorder Shoulder Rest, is sold by Video Innovators, of Frisco, Colo. This device is a hand-held mounting bar on which a camera is mounted. At the end of the device in front of the camera operator is a handle pointing downward, which the camera operator grips to stabilize the camera and support most of its weight. At the shoulder, the rest is curved and padded in order to rest comfortably on the camera operator's shoulder. In spite of claims to the contrary, when a camera is mounted on one of the rests, it is not positioned so that the camera operator can comfortably look into the viewfinder. While shifting some of the camera's weight to the operator's shoulder may be of assistance, the entire unit is unstable to tilting, i.e., the camera can be easily tilted causing extreme instability in the resulting video footage.
A portable camera assembly having a shoulder rest, a hand grip and a camera mount is also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,963,904 to Lee. A gun stock camera rest, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,806,416 to Jones. A support for photographic cameras with shoulder straps, a belt and various support and cross bars is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,552,205 to Moss. However, these devices all have the disadvantages of the Camcorder Shoulder Rest, discussed above.
Monopods have also been used in the past, and can provide some stability when grasped about 12" below the body of the camera. One such monopod is disclosed in the Jones patent, cited above. Nonetheless, the stability obtained with monopods is still not acceptable.
Various other types of shoulder harnesses for supporting cameras have been proposed in the prior art, but none provide a stable, inexpensive and versatile solution to supporting a portable video camera. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,746,369 to Beard et al., discloses a shoulder camera mount with pistol grips for supporting telephoto and long focus lenses. The patent discloses, for example, that the weight of the "camera gun" is so distributed that the center of gravity thereof at elevated positions is substantially disposed to fall along a line through the shoulders and torso of the operator. However, it is clear that at normal elevations, or at angles below the horizontal, a great deal of the weight of a telephoto lens for example, would be placed in the hands of a user, causing eventual fatigue. No means for adjusting the center of gravity of the assembly, for example, is provided.
A camera support is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,332,593 to Fauser, in which "body-engaging tubular members" and "body-engaging" rollers attach the support to the body. Similar shoulder harness supports are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,788 to Lingwall, U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,308 to Dovey, U.S. Pat. No. 2,873,645 to Horton, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,636,822 to Anderson. These devices have, among others, the disadvantage of being unable to move independently of the body of the operator.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,945,428 to Dearborn discloses a camera stabilizer with a tubular frame, a camera mounting portion and balancing masses disposed on opposite sides of the apparatus. However, the frame is specifically intended not to be rested on the shoulders of the operator. The entire weight is supported by the users arms, or, in other disclosed embodiments, a combination of the users arms and a monopod or belt harness, so that use of this device would lead to unnecessary fatigue.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a frame for stably supporting a portable video camera which is inexpensive, relatively light, and easy to use. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a frame for a video camera which is extremely stable and maneuverable, and which does not cause fatigue in the operator.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a frame for mounting a video or other type of camera which is extremely stable and maneuverable, and transfers the weight of the camera and associated mounting hardware to the operator's shoulders. This transfer removes the need for the operator to exert any force on the controlling handles that would otherwise be required to support the camera. Accordingly, the only forces necessary for the operator to apply are those required to move the camera and its hardware mounting assembly in azimuth and elevation to follow moving objects. Much of the azimuth change necessary is provided by moving the operator's trunk, or twisting the torso. Greater azimuth movements can be obtained by changing the position of the operator's feet. The result is that the camera securely rests on a stable platform, the operator's shoulders, and the operator can move the assembly with forces that are greatly reduced compared to those required if weight-support forces were superimposed on the forces necessary to move the camera. The fact that the operator is not providing any weight support with the hands and arms greatly reduces fatigue. The result is that the operator is able to obtain much higher quality images with greatly reduced spurious motion, and can operate the camera for extended periods without degradation of the quality of the images that would result from fatigue.


Devices, methods, and computer-readable media described herein and provide for sending, by a first wireless station, a suspend message to a second wireless station associated with a radio resource control (RRC) session for a dual connectivity (DC) capable user equipment (UE) device that places the DC capable UE device in an RRC inactive mode; storing, by the first wireless station, UE context information from a core network for the DC capable UE device for the RRC session; and evaluating, by the first wireless station, a set of criteria to determine whether to also store the UE context information at the second wireless station.

Fifth Generation (5G) New Radio (NR) technology provides various enhancements to wireless communications, such as flexible bandwidth allocation, improved spectral efficiency, ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), beamforming, high-frequency communication (e.g., millimeter wave (mmWave)), as well as others. 5G systems support multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC) operations. For example, NR-NR dual-connectivity (NR-DC) involves simultaneous connections to both a master 5G NR wireless station and at least one secondary 5G NR wireless station. In these non-standalone (NSA) 5G NR networks, the defined states for the NR-DC UE include a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Inactive state, in which the master node stores access stratum (AS) context of the UE, and controls whether the same AS context is also to be stored at the secondary node.

Systems and methods for state context management in dual connectivity network environments


Embodiments of this application provide a control information sending method and apparatus. A network device generates first control information for a first TB, where the first TB includes n code block (CB) groups, where N is a maximum quantity of CB groups included in the first TB; each CB group includes at least one CB; the first control information includes N control information fields, and the N control information fields are in correspondence with the maximum N CB groups included in the first TB; and a control information field i in the N control information fields is used to indicate whether a CB group corresponding to the control information field i is to be sent or received, and i∈[1, N]. In this way, a quantity of bits included in downlink control information can remain fixed, thereby reducing blind detection complexity of a terminal device.

With development of communications technologies, a peak data rate keeps increasing, and a size (for example, a quantity of included bits) of a transport block (TB) increases accordingly.
In order to improve communication accuracy and reliability, a feedback mechanism is proposed. To be specific, a receive end generates, based on a decoding structure of a received TB, feedback information specific to the TB, for example, acknowledgment (ACK) information or negative acknowledgment (NACK) information.
However, once an error occurs on such a TB-based feedback mechanism, retransmission of the entire TB is caused, and resources are undoubtedly wasted as a result.
In view of this, a TB may be divided into a plurality of code blocks (CBs), and feedback is performed based on the CBs. That is, feedback information is specific to the CBs, thereby avoiding retransmission of the entire TB due to a transmission error of some data.
However, in such a CB-based feedback mechanism, for example, if the TB is very large, feedback information specific to a plurality of CBs is to be transmitted in one feedback process, resulting in relatively large resource overheads of the feedback information.
To resolve this problem, CBs may be grouped into a plurality of CB groups, and feedback is performed based on the CB group. That is, feedback information is specific to the CB group.
However, in order to implement a CB group-based feedback mechanism, control information, for example, downlink control information (DCI), needs to include control information of each CB group. Because sizes of TBs vary, quantities of CB groups included in the TBs may be different. As a result, a quantity of bits in the DCI may dynamically change, increasing blind detection complexity of a terminal device, increasing processing burden of the terminal device, and affecting user experience.

Control information sending method and apparatus, and control information receiving method and apparatus


A method and apparatus for compensating a voltage error caused by a dead time of a motor driving inverter outputs command current, generates command voltage by proportionally integrating the command current on a basis of a starting point in which a polarity of current being applied to a motor is varied, converts the command voltage to a control signal in a pulse width modulator, and transmits the command voltage to the inverter, whereby a current distortion occurring around a zero current becomes minimized and a torque ripple becomes decreased in accordance therewith.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technology for compensating a voltage error caused by a dead time, and more particularly to an improved method and apparatus for compensating a voltage error caused by a dead time of a motor driving inverter which makes it possible to compensate for a distortion of output current resulting from the dead time occurring at a point in which the output current of the inverter is varied.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Referring to FIG. 1 illustrating a motor driving apparatus which employs a conventional inverter, a three-phase alternating current power source AC is rectified via six diodes D11-D16 in a converter 1 and smoothed by smoothing condensers C1, C2 which are connected in series and in parallel with the phase rectifiers, and the rectified and smoothed direct current voltage is switched and supplied to a motor IM in accordance with control signals CS1-CS6 applied to respective gates of six switching devices Q1-Q6 in an inverter 2.
A current detector 3 detects the current supplied to motor IM, and converts the detected value to a digital value which is then transferred to a control unit 4, and in accordance with the converted current value the control unit 4 generates a three-phase voltage command signal. A pulse width modulator 5 carries out a pulse width modulation of the voltage command signal and generates control signals CS1-CS6 which are then supplied to respective gates of the switching devices Q1-Q6 in the inverter 2.
Here, reference numerals D1-D6 denote freewheel diodes and are connected in parallel with each of the switching devices Q1-Q6.
With reference to FIGS. 2 through 4, a method for compensating a voltage error caused by a dead time occurring in a motor driving inverter according to a conventional art will now be described.
The power source AC rectified, smoothed and converted into a direct voltage in the converter 1 is applied to the inverter 2. The switching devices Q1-Q6 which are grouped to three pairs Q1, Q4; Q2, Q5; Q3, Q6, wherein each of the pairs are connected in parallel with each other, are alternatingly turned on/off, in accordance with control signals CS1-CS6. At this time, when two switching devices for example devices Q1 and Q4 as shown in FIG. 2A are simultaneously turned on, there is formed a current path in accordance with devices Q1 and Q4 thereby resulting in damaging the inverter 2. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2B, in order to prevent the pair of switching devices Q1, Q2, from simultaneously turning on, whenever a switching state is changed, there is required a dead time t which denotes a simultaneous off-state of the two switching devices Q1, Q4. Here, dead time t is required to drive motor IM using inverter 2.
However, dead time t causes an error voltage between a command voltage and an output voltage to occur in the inverter 2, thereby resulting in disadvantages such as current distortion and hunting.
Conventional dead time compensating methods for a motor driving inverter rendered to solve these disadvantages include a first method in which the dead time is compensated for by applying a voltage to each end of the switching devices comprising the inverter, and a second method employing the output current of the inverter. The first method requires an additional voltage detecting device and noise may be incurred to the entire system as an undesired consequence during realization of the device, so that the second method is generally preferred.
The second method will now be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
FIG. 3 shows a flow chart for calculating a compensating voltage V.sub.D so as to compensate a voltage error in accordance with a dead time.
Current detector 3 detects (step S1) current i1 applied to motor IM as shown in FIG. 2C. Control unit 4 judges (step S2) polarity of the detected current i1. Here, if the value of the detected current is positive, a compensating voltage V.sub.D for compensating a voltage error according to a dead time is set as a predetermined positive value. If the value of the detected current remains negative, the compensating voltage V.sub.D is set (steps S3-S4) as a predetermined negative value.
Next, by adding a command voltage Vas* to the compensating voltage V.sub.D, there is obtained (step S5) a new command voltage Vas*.sub.-- new.
As shown in FIG. 4 showing a detailed composition view of the control unit 4, a coder 41 judges whether polarity of an output current i1 in the inverter 2, that is, an input current i.sub.as is positive or negative, and if judged positive a positive value is outputted, and then the positive value is multiplied at a multiplier 43 by a dead time compensating voltage Vdead which is added to a command voltage Vas* at an adder 42 to be thereby outputted outside the control unit 4. The outputted voltage denotes a command voltage Vas*.sub.-- new and is applied to the pulse width modulator 5 in FIG. 1, and the pulse width modulator 5 carries out a pulse width modulation of the command voltage Vas*.sub.-- new and outputs control signals CS1-CS6 for controlling switching devices Q1-Q6.
Whereas, when the polarity of current i.sub.as is judged as negative, the command voltage Vas*.sub.-- new is obtained by subtracting dead time compensating voltage Vdead from command voltage Vas* of the inverter.
As described above, conventionally there has been only considered a polarity variation resulting from adding/subtracting dead time compensating voltage Vdead serving as an offset voltage to/from command voltage Vas*, by judging the polarity of current.
However, a dead time compensating voltage is instantly shifted from negative to positive or vice versa so that current is distorted instead of being sinusoidal, thereby generating torque ripple in accordance therewith.
Further, when a motor is in a lower speed mode, the distortion of current wave causes the torque ripple to become larger.

Method and apparatus for compensating voltage error caused by dead time of motor driving inverter


A measuring segment is integrally formed in a wing model. A plurality of thin membranes are formed on a surface of the measuring segment at predetermined intervals in a cord direction with a distortion gauge fixed to a back face of each of the plurality of thin membranes to output an electric signal upon distortion. The electric signals are converted by a pressure conversion means into pressures, thereby measuring a pressure distribution in an airflow direction. It is possible to prevent the generation of a step or a gap which affects an airflow along the surface of the measuring segment, thereby improving accuracy. The measuring segment is integrally molded by an optical molding method to form a complicated shape with a high accuracy and a low cost. Further, a plurality of the measuring segments may be disposed at intervals in a span direction for measuring pressure distributions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pressure distribution measuring system for measuring a pressure distribution along a predetermined fluid flow direction on a surface of an object moving relative to a fluid.
2. Description of Background Art
A pressure distribution measuring system for measuring a pressure distribution along a predetermined fluid flow direction on a surface of an object moving relative to a fluid is used in many fields such as aircraft, marine vessels, automobiles, buildings and bridge beams.
For example, in the field of aviation, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-206987 discloses a wing model used for measuring a pressure distribution along a cord line on a wing surface in a wind tunnel test, in which a plurality of pressure detecting bores are formed to open in the wing surface, and a plurality of passages are formed within the wing model to connect the pressure detecting bores to pressure sensors.
Also, Published Japanese Translation No. 2003-500640 of PCT Application No. PCT/DE00/01468 discloses a pressure distribution measuring system in which a piezo-foil is bonded to an inner surface of a wing shell fixed to cover an opening formed in a wing surface of an actual airplane. Vibration of the wing shell caused by airflow along the wing surface is detected based on a signal output from the piezo-foil.
If the plurality of pressure detecting bores opening in the wing surface are formed along the cord line as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-206987, the following problems occur: turbulence of airflow caused by the upstream pressure detecting bore affects the downstream pressure detecting bore, thereby degrading the accuracy in measuring a pressure distribution, and also pressure loss and pressure leakage caused by the passages formed within the wing model for connecting the pressure detecting bores to the pressure sensors affect the measuring accuracy; time lag is generated in the measurement, because the passages are long; a measurable pressure range is narrow; the measuring accuracy degrades due to stain and dust adhering to the pressure detecting bores; and the measurement in water (in the case of marine vessels) is impossible.
Also, in Published Japanese Translation No. 2003-500640 of PCT Application No. PCT/DE00/01468, the wing shell having the piezo-foil bonded to its inner surface is fixed to cover the opening formed in the wing surface, leading to a problem that a step or a gap is generated along an outer periphery of the wing shell to cause turbulence of airflow. Further, the piezo-foil has a characteristic of outputting a signal upon deformation but not outputting the signal in a steady state in which deformation amount is constant, leading to a difficulty in measuring a pressure distribution on the wing surface in the steady state.


A composting apparatus including an electric motor driven drum. The drum is provided with spaced fins on the inner surface and a supporting shaft that can include air holes to provide air within the confines of the drum. In this instance, tubes with holes are secured inside the drum and communicate with a source of air so that air passes into the tubes, and thus into the pile of composting material. The drum is provided with a sliding door that closes an opening in the drum. The door is secured at its ends for movement within a grooved mount attached onto a surface of the drum. The door is moved along a surface of the drum to open the door. The door can be held in position with a small opening or to a full open position, thus opening the entire opening in the surface of the drum.

Heretofore composting apparatus have been patented which include a rotatable drum which is rotated to help carry out the composting. Apparatus has been patented in which the drum is rotatable about a horizontal axis, including having the drum axis perpendicular to the axis about which the drum is rotated. Such prior art is exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,899,803, 5,346,305, 4,687,645 and 3,942,769. These are only a few of the prior art patents; however, these are believed to be the closest prior art to that of the present invention.
It becomes clear to one skilled in the art that a cylindrical drum with end closures has been used for such composting apparatus, and a door is used to add material to the drum and to remove material from the drum. Such doors are usually hinged on the drum and swing outwardly when opened. Such doors require that the drum be stationary for removal of the composted material.
The inventive apparatus of this invention has a door which covers an opening in the cylindrical surface of the drum, and is secured at its ends in a grooved holder so that the door will slide along the surface of the drum so that the door can be opened only a small amount, or can be fully opened. For the inventive apparatus the drum can be rotated with the door partially or fully open so that the composted material can be more easily removed from the drum.
The inventive apparatus includes ventilation means which directs air into the drum to mix with the composting material. In its simplest form, the ventilation means can simply be one or more openings in the ends of the drum. Alternatively, more complex apparatus can include means to force air into the rotating drum.


A technique for automated design of a corneal surgical procedure includes topographical measurements of a patient's eye to obtain corneal surface topography. Conventional techniques are used to obtain the thickness of the cornea and the intraocular pressure. The topographical information is interpolated and extrapolated to fit the nodes of a finite element analysis model of the eye, which is then analyzed to predict the initial state of stress of the eye and obtain pre-operative curvatures of the cornea. Incision data constituting the "initial" surgical plan is incorporated into the finite element analysis model. A new analysis then is performed to simulate resulting deformations, stresses, and curvatures of the eye. They are compared to the original values thereof and to the vision objective. If necessary, the surgical plan is modified, and the resulting new incision data is entered into the model and the analysis is repeated. This procedure is repeated until the vision objectives are met.

The invention relates to systems and techniques for mathematically modeling a human eye using topographical data measured from a human eye, using the mathematical model to simulate deformation of the eye by hypothetical incisions or excisions or ablations to arrive at an optimum surgical design by identifying the number, shape, location, length, and depth of the incisions or excisions or the shape, location, and quantity of corneal ablation(s). (It should be understood that hereinafter, including in the claims, the term "incision," which usually refers to a cut made by a scalpel, and the term "excision," which usually refers to a cut made by a laser beam, are considered to be interchangeable and to have the same meaning.)
Modern corneal refractive surgery originated with the work of Dr. Svyatoslav Fyodorov of Moscow and Dr. Jose Barraquer of Bogota, Columbia. Subsequently, various surgical techniques have been developed to alter the curvature of the cornea to correct refractive errors. The various techniques include incisional keratotomy using diamond blades, excisional keratotomy using laser beams to photo-disrupt molecules and ablate tissue in a linear pattern, ablative keratectomy or photo-refractive keratectomy using laser beams to remove larger areas of corneal tissue, mechanical removal and reshaping of corneal tissue (keratomileusis), and implantation of human or synthetic materials into the corneal stroma. All of the known procedures alter central corneal curvature by changing the structure of the cornea. All such refractive procedures are characterized by difficulty in predicting both the immediate and long term results, because of errors in calculations of pre-surgical measurements, failure to precisely implement the planned surgical techniques, and biological variances which affect immediate and long term results.
The cornea traditionally has been treated as a spherocylindrical lens, assuming that the radius of each individual meridian from the corneal apex to the corneal periphery is uniform. Prior methodologies tend to use an approximation to the topographic information of the cornea to determine the refractive power of the eye. In one known procedure, circular mires (reflected light images from the cornea conventionally used to mathematically calculate corneal curvature) are reflected from the corneal surface, and the difference between a given point on the mire and an adjacent mire is measured. A semi-quantitative estimate of the surface curvature is obtained by comparing this measurement with the values obtained using spheres of various radii. Prior mathematical models use a variety of approximations such as a simplified form of the corneal surface (e.g., spherical) or assume a symmetrical cornea (leading to a quarter model or an axisymmetric model) or use simplified material properties (e.g., isotropic), or assume small deformations or displacements, or do not consider clinically obtained data in the construction of the mathematical model.
Perhaps the closest prior art is indicated in the article "On the Computer-Aided and Optimal Design of Keratorefractive Surgery," by Steven A. Velinsky and Michael R. Bryant, published in Volume 8, page 173 of "Refractive and Corneal Surgery," March/April 1992. This article describes a computer-aided surgical design methodology, proposing that it could be an effective surgical design aid for the refractive surgeon, wherein the surgeon could choose constraints on surgical parameters such as minimum optical zone size, maximum depth of cut, etc., measure the patient's corneal topography, refractive error and possible other ocular parameters, and then review the computed results. The article refers to several mathematical models described in the literature, and how such mathematical models might be helpful. However, the article fails to disclose any particular adequate mathematical model of the cornea or any specific recommendation of surgical design that has been validated with clinical data.
The prior radial keratotomy procedures frequently result in large amounts of undercorrection or overcorrection. Prior keratotomy procedures often are based on experiential use of nomograms indicating appropriate surgical designs for a particular patient based on age, sex, refractive error, and intraocular pressure.
Finite element analysis is a known mathematically-based numerical tool that has been used to solve a variety of problems that are described by partial differential or integral equations. This technique has been used primarily in the area of solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, electromagnetics, acoustics, and biomechanics, including designing remedial techniques being developed for the human eye, to model internal structure and stresses in relation to various configurations of intraocular devices and corneal implants, as described in "Intraocular Lens Design With MSC/pal," by A. D. Franzone and V. M. Ghazarian in 1985 at the MSC/NASTRAN User's Conference in Pasadena, Calif., and in "Corneal Curvature Change Due to Structural Alternation by Radial Keratotomy," by Huang Bisarnsin, Schachar, and Black in Volume 110, pages 249-253, 1988 in the ASME Journal of Biomedical Engineering. Also see "Reduction of Corneal Astigmatism at Cataract Surgery," by Hall, Campion, Sorenson, and Monthofer, Volume 17, pages 407-414, July 1991 in the Journal of Cataract Refractive Surgery.
There clearly is an unmet need for an improved system for accurately predicting outcomes of hypothetical surgical procedures on the cornea to aid in the design of minimally invasive corneal surgery. There is an unmet need for a totally automated way of determining an optimal design of a surgical plan for incisional or excisional keratotomy or ablative keratectomy surgery to meet predetermined visual objectives with minimum invasiveness and minimum optical distortion. Further, it would be desirable to provide a technique for designing a multi-focal cornea that is similar to a gradient bifocal for patients that have presbyopia. It would be desirable to have an accurate mathematical model of the cornea for use in developing new surgical procedures without experimenting on live corneas.

Method and apparatus for automated simulation and design of corneal refractive procedures


A sealing device (2, 2′, 2″) to be arranged between an opening in a drinking container (1′, 1″) and a drinking straw (20), and a method of making the sealing device (2, 2′, 2″). The sealing device (2, 2′, 2″) comprises a region of the drinking container (1′, 1″), or a part connected to the drinking container (1′, 1″), made from a material (14) subjected to a plastic deformation in a portion spanning said opening in the drinking container (1′, 1″). The deformation has the form of a bulge (2a) of thinned material (4). The bulge (2a) is folded upon itself to form a ring-shaped fold (12) on the inside of the drinking container (1′, 1″). The fold (12) encircles the plastically deformed and thinned wall material (4) of bulge (2a), said bulge material (4) forming an inner seal ring (19) around the drinking straw (20) when the bulge material (4) is perforated.

This invention concerns a simple and reliable sealing device to be arranged between an opening of a drinking container and a drinking straw, for example between an opening in a drinking bag and a drinking straw. The invention also concerns a method of making said sealing device. The present sealing device provides a good indication of the insertion hole for the straw in the drinking container; a reinforcement of the rim of the insertion hole; and also a thickness reduction, hence a weakening, of the container material spanning said insertion hole when unopened. This simplifies insertion of the drinking straw into the drinking container.
Several devices and methods of establishing a connection between a drinking container and a drinking straw are known in the art. These, however, are not particularly well-suited in providing both a physical connection and an adequate seal without having to add further materials, including plastics, cardboard, metal, glue or similar.


A variation in threshold of a memory cell is detected at a higher speed. A multi-valued nonvolatile semiconductor memory has a nonvolatile memory cell 41 for storing n-values (n.gtoreq.3) of data as thresholds in one cell, a reference signal generator 44 for emitting a reference signal group Vri (i.ltoreq.(n-1)), a reference signal group VriH(=Vri+.DELTA.V) and a reference signal group VriL(=Vri-.DELTA.V), a differential amplifier 43 for receiving either one of signals Vci (Vci<VriL<Vri<VriH<Vc(i+1)) corresponding to the stored data in the memory cell 41 at one input terminal and receiving the reference signal groups Vri, VriH or VriL at the other input terminal, a latch circuit 46 for latching output of the differential amplifier 43, a comparator 47 for comparing the output of the differential amplifier 43 with the output of the latch circuit 46, and a controller 48 for emitting control signals D1 to D6 in accordance with the output of the latch circuit 46 and controlling the differential amplifier 43 and the comparator 47.

The present invention relates to a nonvolatile semiconductor memory in which each of memory cells is made of an insulated gate transistor having a floating gates and stores multi-bits information of plural bits data.
A flash memory or another nonvolatile memory has a structure in which an MOS transistor usually provided with a floating gate constituting a charge storage layer and a control gate laminated therein forms one cell. By controlling a threshold of the transistor with a charge stored in the charge storage layer, data is stored. For a relationship between a type of data stored in one cell of a multi-valued memory and a number of thresholds, when two values are stored in one cell, two thresholds are controlled, while when n-values are stored in one cell, n-thresholds are controlled. In the same manner, when m-ary k-bits (an integer of m.gtoreq.2, an integer of k.gtoreq.2 (m=2), or an integer of k.gtoreq.1 (m.gtoreq.3)) are stored in one cell, m.sup.k thresholds need to be controlled.
Here, the charge stored in the charge storage layer of the memory cell varies with a leakage from the charge storage layer and a disturbance received when data is read from or written into another surrounding memory cell. In this case, there is a possibility that the threshold is changed and the data is destroyed. Especially, in the multi-valued memory in which a large number of thresholds need to be controlled, a margin for allowing a variation in threshold is reduced.
As one of methods for preventing an error caused by a variation of threshold, the variation of threshold is detected before the variation of threshold exceeds its tolerance, so that the memory cell is returned to its correct condition. Such prior art is proposed in a publication of the patent application laid-open No. 8-77785 which relates to a semiconductor memory device. In the following the prior art is described using drawings.
FIGS. 10 and 11 are explanatory views of a method of detecting a variation of threshold according to the prior art. FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram showing a constitution of the semiconductor memory device described in the aforementioned publication. FIG. 11 is a voltage distribution diagram showing a method of determining multiple values and a variation of threshold in FIG. 10, and shows a relationship between a threshold and a word line voltage when four values (binary two bits) are stored in a memory cell. In the following, the case four values are stored is described.
In the circuit diagram of FIG. 10, a constitution is provided with a memory cell 61, a load 62, an amplifier 63 for detecting a variation in level of a contact N6, a word line voltage generator 69 for generating a stepped word line voltage, an output circuit 65 for determining outputs o1, o2 from outputs of the word line voltage generator 69 and the amplifier 63 and emitting the outputs, a latch circuit 66 for latching the outputs o1, o2 and emitting outputs o1*, o2*, and a comparator 67 for comparing the outputs o1, o2 of the output circuit 65 with the outputs o1* and o2* of the latch circuit 66 and emitting a threshold voltage variation signal s when a variation in threshold voltage is detected. The memory cell 61 and the load 62 constitute a bit line. Detailed structure is not an essential portion in the invention, therefore its description is omitted.
In FIG. 11, initial distributions A, B, C and D of thresholds in the contact NE when data is read from the memory cell correspond to stored data "11", "10", "01" and "00", respectively. Word line voltages Vwa, Vwb, Vwc are applied to a control gate of the memory cell 61. In the prior art, reading is performed while gradually increasing the word line voltage to Vwa, Vwb, then Vwc sequentially.
Here, when the threshold is in a position b, no current flows in the memory cell at the word line voltage of Vwa. However, when the voltage increases to Vwb, a current flows. Specifically, the cell turns on at Vwa and off at Vwb and Vwc. Then, it can be determined that the threshold is in the position b, i.e. within a range of B (data "10").
However, when the threshold, which has been at the position b (Vwa.ltoreq.b.ltoreq.Vwb) at the time of writing, varies exceeding a range of Vwa and Vwb, the threshold is determined as another value, thereby causing an error. To avoid the error, a threshold verifying means is applied in which a cell with a threshold varying but within a tolerance is found and repaired. In the prior art shown in FIG. 11, word line voltages VwaH, VwbH, VwcH and word line voltages VwaL, VwbL, VwcL are used as the threshold verifying means.
Here, when data "10" is stored, the threshold is in the position b. In this case, for a verifying process, reading is first performed at the usual word line voltages Vwa, Vwb and Vwc, the data is determined to be "10", and is then latched in the latch circuit 66.
Subsequently, at the word line voltages VwaH, VwbH, VwcH, reading is performed. Here, as shown in FIG. 11, when the threshold varies from the position b to b1, the memory cell turns on at all the voltages VwaH, VwbH, VwcH, then the data is determined to be "11", which is compared by the comparator 67 with the latched data "10". As a result, they do not coincide with each other, and the variation in threshold voltage can be detected. Subsequently, a threshold voltage variation signal s indicating that the variation in threshold voltage is detected is emitted from the comparator 67. After the variation in threshold is detected, a rewriting operation is performed, so that the threshold again falls within the range B. Since the rewriting operation is not handled in the invention, its description is omitted.
When, at the time of reading at the word line voltages VwaH, VwbH, VwcH, no variation in threshold is detected, the data "10" latched in the latch circuit 66 is not canceled, then reading is performed at the word line voltages VwaL, VwbL, VwcL. Here, as shown in FIG. 11, when the threshold varies from the position b to b2, the memory cell turns off at VwaL, VwbL and turns on at VwcL, then the data is determined to be "01", which is compared by the comparator 67 with the latched data "10". As a result, they do not coincide with each other, and the variation in threshold voltage can also be detected. Subsequently, the threshold voltage variation signal s indicating that the variation in threshold voltage is detected is emitted from the comparator 67. After the variation in threshold is detected, the rewriting operation is performed, so that the threshold again falls within the range B.
If at the time of detection both at the word line voltages VwaH, VwbH, VwcH and the word line voltages VwaL, VwbL, VwcL, the threshold voltage variation signal s is not emitted (for example, when the threshold is in a position b#), then it is determined there is no variation in threshold voltage.
In this manner, by using nine types of word line voltages, the variation in threshold and a direction of the variation can be detected. Also, in the prior art, no determination is made when the threshold of the memory cell becomes negative or higher than D. However, by increasing the types of word line voltages, the determination can be made.
In the aforementioned prior art, for reading out one data, three types of word line voltages need to be changed. Therefore, problem is a low reading speed. Also, the voltage needs to be changed over eight times at maximum. The word line voltage needs to be fixed until the output of the amplifier is stabilized and a comparison result is attained. There is a problem that a long time is required for the verifying process. Further, for the verifying process, nine types of word line voltages in total are necessary. Therefore, another problem is that a structure of the word line voltage generator is complicated.

Nonvolatile semiconductor memory having memory cells each storing multi-bits information


A linear lighting system includes a rod made of a material such as glass surrounded by an outer layer of cladding of lower refractive index than the glass. The rod is ground flat on one side to produce a flat rough surface with the texture oriented transverse to the longitudinal axis of the rod. Light from a light source enters the rod at one end of the rod. As the light propagates down the rod, it is scattered by the rough flat surface. Some of the scattered light strikes the rounded surface at an angle which allows it to pass through the cladding and escape the rod, thus producing uniform linear lighting emitted from the round side of the rod.

Vision systems have many applications including machine vision and optical measuring. Machine vision systems are systems that enable machines such as robots to view objects. These systems are particularly useful in quality control monitoring such as dimensional inspection of small parts, parts placement inspection, dimensional gauging of large parts and height measurement.
Vision systems are currently available in a number of different configurations and styles. One particularly prominent system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,128 by Vinarub et al. which is assigned to Dolan-Jenner Industries, Inc. In that system, a target is viewed by means of a coherent fiber optic bundle that is comprised of a two-dimensional array of fibers. The image of the target viewed by the coherent fiber optic bundle is received at a one-dimensional linear light detector array. The slice of the image received at the light detector array is processed using electronic circuitry. The electronics provide for detection of target edges, computation of dimensions and control of the intensity and exposure time. The light source used by the system is a non-coherent light source that is collimated by a collimator.


An intraocular lens injection system having an injecting device and cartridge. The cartridge includes a lens holding portion and an outer sleeve portion. The invention includes a method of pre-loading the injecting system, particularly the cartridge, to reduce the amount of packaging, prevent damage to the intraocular lens during packaging and shipping, allow the pre-loaded injecting cartridge to be autoclaved as a unit, and eliminate the step of loading the cartridge with the intraocular lens by the end user to prevent potential damage during this step.

The intraocular lens injection system currently being sold and marketed by STAAR Surgical Company of California has gain widespread acceptance in the field of intraocular lens replacement. The current system utilizes an injector made of titanium so that the unit can be autoclaved and reused numerous times. The components of the titanium injector are machined from bar stock to a high degree of accuracy according to current specifications, and then the components are assembled into the final injector unit. The cost of the materials, and labor costs involve with machining and assembly are substantial providing an incentive to seek less expensive alternatives. Further, the steps of cleaning and autoclaving the injector unit between operations is a time burden and nuisance to busy surgeon practitioners having back-to-back operation schedules. In addition, the injector must be properly autoclaved to ensure complete cleaning and sterilization to prevent spread of diseases causing eye infections or other infectious diseases, prevent transmission of body fluid and prevent resulting liability problems to surgeon practitioners. These any other considerations have led to the development of the present invention.

Method of loading an intraocular lens into a lens injecting apparatus, and implanting the intraocular lens through a small incision made in an eye


Case for a timepiece, including a middle part with an upper portion for receiving a movement surmounted by a dial carrying an upper sub-assembly or a crystal, and a lower portion cooperating with a back cover. This middle part includes a device for the removal or adjustment of this upper sub-assembly or crystal, which includes a plurality of pushers each movable in relation to this middle part in a sink of this middle part parallel to an axial direction, to transmit, directly or indirectly via a push plate, only to this dial, a force applied to each pusher in this direction from this lower portion and transmitted by this dial to this upper sub-assembly or crystal.

In horology, the disassembly of a watch may be as difficult as the assembly thereof.
In particular, numerous sub-assemblies, such as movement-display assemblies, are fitted in the case from above, i.e. from the crystal side. This type of assembly generally includes, in addition to the movement, a dial and display members formed by hands or discs. The dial is in principle surmounted by a flange. The crystal is then driven into the middle part. It is usual to use a compressed air extractor to drive off the crystal, in order to access this assembly again.
CH Patent Application No 646028G in the name of MONTRES RADO SA provided a first response to this problem, by implementing a watch case which includes a middle part-bezel including an aperture that can be closed by a crystal, an upper housing and a lower aperture of smaller dimensions to those of the upper housing. This case further includes a crystal and a back cover removably secured to the middle part-bezel on either side thereof. The back cover is preferably fixed by screws to the middle part-bezel, and the crystal is held by slide bars. A casing ring, which is radially supported on the middle part-bezel via two stepped surfaces having different radii, at the level of the upper housing and the lower aperture, retains the watch movement radially and axially. In the assembled position, the casing ring is axially supported, via a lower gasket on the back cover on the one hand, and via an upper gasket and/or a flange on the crystal on the other hand. The casing ring, carrying the movement on a shoulder, can thus be introduced into the middle part-bezel on the upper housing side, and inserted into the lower aperture. The dial covers both the movement and the casing ring. The crystal is then set in place after inserting the upper sealing gasket and positioning the annular flange. On the opposite side, the back cover is screwed on, in a first variant onto the middle part-bezel compressing the lower sealing gasket against the casing ring, or in a second variant onto the casing ring compressing the lower sealing gasket and pressing a shoulder of the casing ring onto a shoulder of the middle part-bezel. Tightening the screws in both cases locks the casing ring inside the case. To disassemble the watch, the back cover and stem have to be removed, and the crystal taken off by pressing the lower portion of the casing ring, the pressure being transmitted to the crystal via the flange. This design allows cases of small thickness to be constructed, and the dimensions of the back cover to be reduced. However, the crystal must be disassembled either by a compressed air extractor, or by moving the casing ring and thus the movement.
In a similar manner, CH Patent Application No 629644G in the name of SAUCO Saunier & Cie discloses a casing ring which, from the back cover, extends over the entire height of the case, and directly supports the crystal. The removal of the crystal, together with the removal of the movement, is accomplished by pushing the lower portion of the casing ring.
Although these designs ensure correct sealing of the case, and the secure disassembly of the crystal and of the movement, they have the drawback of moving the casing ring and thus the movement, during the crystal removal operation.


A composition of cyclodextrin and colchicine in a dermatologically acceptable cream base provided improved clearance of actinic keratoses following topical application for 1 to 3 months. The composition provides improved clearance of recalcitrant actinic keratoses. Furthermore, the treatment causes much less pain and irritation than other topical treatments for actinic keratoses.

Although some exposure to sun light is critical to the synthesis of Vitamin D, sun light is not harmless. Absorption of infrared light results in heating of the skin and can potentially damage tissues through a "cooking-like" phenomenon. Absorption of visible and ultraviolet light also causes heating, but these wavelengths are much more energetic. Ultraviolet light, and to a lesser extent visible light, are sufficiently energetic to result in chemical changes. The tanning response is largely the skin's attempt to protect itself by providing a shading barrier to sunlight.
Although light can induce chemical changes (i.e., damage) to a large variety of biological structures, probably the most significant damage is caused by the ability of ultraviolet light to induce photochemical changes in the pyrimidine bases of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). A common expression of this photochemistry is the dimerization of the thymine bases. Such dimerization affects the replication and translation of the genetic material. Cells contain repair mechanisms to excise and replace the damaged regions of DNA, but these mechanisms are not one hundred percent accurate. Therefore, ultraviolet damage introduces mutations into the DNA which can result in abnormal cell growth including precancerous and cancerous lesions.
A common ultraviolet induced lesion occurs when the genetic material of the keratinocytes becomes damaged. Specifically, DNA alterations of keratinocytes in the basal layer of the epidermis result in Actinic Keratoses (AKs). The AKs are crusty, thick, scaly and/or often pigmented premalignant (precancerous) lesions. When abnormal cells spread to or occur in the dermis, the lesion is defined as a squamous cell carcinoma, and the lesion has converted into a true skin cancer. Because a significant number of AKs progress to squamous cell carcinoma, it is important to treat (i.e., remove) AKs. The treatment of AKs is very common in dermatology particularly in sunny regions. Increased sun activities over a lifetime increase the risk for these AK's. In Southern California, AKs are very prevalent in the population from the age of 30 years to the elderly.
At the present time, the conventional treatment for AKs is to spray or apply cryogenic liquid nitrogen (LN2) to the lesions. This treatment generally works well for discrete specific lesions; however, the skin can experience sufficient sun damage that AKs will keep appearing even with regular liquid nitrogen treatment. There are some creams that can treat incipient AKs and/or AKs that that are already present.
The most common creams contain 5-fluorouracil (5% is the most popular concentration), which is actually an artificial analog of the DNA base thymidine. It is known as a "suicide inhibitor" because it irreversibly blocks the enzyme thymidylate synthase. Blocking the synthase results in a shortage of thymidine which blocks DNA replication in rapidly growing cancer and precancerous cells thereby resulting in cell death. The reaction to this treatment (which is typically 4-6 weeks in duration) is crusted, very painful, very red lesions and peeling of the skin. Even when the 5-fluorouracil treatment is effective, AKs often return and the patient still needs to be followed to watch for further development of AKs. In the inventor's more than 25 years of practicing dermatology, his patients have reported some ultimately positive results from the 5-fluorouracil creams, but most patients would choose not to go through the 4-6 weeks of discomfort and unsightly appearance that results from the treatment. Patients have a very difficult time with this treatment if they need to be seen in public for employment purposes or at any social occasion. Many patients who have received 5-fluorouracil treatments regret having taken those treatments because of the side effects.
All current AK treatments have significant drawbacks. Liquid nitrogen (LN2) treatments require regular freezing to the affected areas for adequate control of AKs. LN2 is a common treatment that can be effective in some cases. However, with an increased number of lesions on the face, LN2 treatment can become very traumatic. The freezing hurts and causes scabbing, crusting, blistering and pain for 7-10 days. In addition, it can result in scarring. In some cases, depending on how much sun damage has accumulated over the years or depending on the ongoing sun damage the patient is still receiving (e.g. lifeguards), LN2 treatment is not effective. Furthermore for other body areas, including the scalp or the arms and legs, LN2 treatment is less effective.
Furthermore, some patients without obvious onset of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) or basal cell carcinoma (BCC) show conversion of the AKs to SCC or BCC. With an excessive amount of chronic sun exposure, there is an increase of progression of AKs to skin carcinomas. Clearly alternate treatments for AKs beyond LN2 and 5-fluorouracil are sorely needed.


An active diode includes a plurality of transistors and a built-in offset voltage. The built-in offset voltage size can be determined by sizing of at least one of the plurality of transistors to prevent supply current flow from one supply source into another supply source, thereby preventing current flow from a higher voltage source to a lower voltage source.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method of selecting a highest voltage supply in a system where multiple voltage supply sources are present, and more particularly to a system and method wherein an active diode with built-in offset is used to select the highest voltage supply in the system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A computer chip, used mostly in Bluetooth involved applications, requires low power. In a system, using the computer chip requiring low power, where multiple supplies are present, there is a need to select the highest supply from the different types of voltage sources. For example, in a cell phone which includes a primary battery, a secondary battery, a backup battery and a charger supply, there is a need to select the highest supply from the different voltage sources.
In a switching regulator with power management where the computer chip requiring low power is used, one problem is high voltage is needed although such a system also needs low voltage generated. Thus, with two supply sources, a circuit in the switching regulator needs to figure out which one of the supply sources is the highest supply source. Furthermore, even though the circuit needs to connect to the highest supply source, there is no initial power to the circuit, for example to a battery selector. So, for example, if there is a battery A and a battery B in the switching regulator, the battery selector cannot automatically select battery A because battery A may not be plugged in. The battery selector also cannot automatically select battery B. Additionally, battery A and battery B cannot both be connected to the battery selector because this may cause a short. Furthermore, if the circuit connects to one source permanently, the circuit cannot dynamically connect to another higher voltage source. Thus, the circuit has to dynamically figure out which supply source to connect to and when the voltage of the connected source is decreasing, the circuit has to determine when to dynamically switch to the other source with a higher voltage.


The present invention relates to electrical engineering and can find application for making devices accumulating electric energy.. The invention has for its object to improve the electrical characteristics of double-layer capacitors. To this aim, use is made of a nickel-oxide electrode in pair with an electrode made of a fibrous carbonic material, as well as of an aqueous-alkaline or aqueous-carbonate electrolyte. To obtain a power capacity of the capacitor, the carbonic material one of the electrodes is made from is nickel-copper-plated.

Double-layer capacitors with liquid electrolyte and electrodes made of diverse materials having large specific surface are known in the present state of the art (cf. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,3.13,084 of 1982 and FRG Patent 3,210,420 of 1983). Best results are attained when using various activated carbons as the material of electrodes. Specific capacity of such capacitors exceed 2 F/cu.cm, while use of aprotic electrolytes enables their working voltage to be increased up to 2 or 3 V (cf. U.S. Pat. No. 4,697,224 of 1987; Nat. Tech. Report, 1980, 26 # 2, pp.220-230).
However, use of carbonic materials and organic solvents ensures against obtaining high power characteristics of double-layer capacitors that are sometimes necessary, due to high internal resistance caused by low conductance of carbon and electrolyte. Increased charge-discharge current values of double-layer capacitors is attained by further improvements in construction of capacitor electrodes due to, e.g., the use of electrically conducting binder additives and of fibrous carbonic materials (cf. Carbon, 1990, 28 # 4, pp.477-482; Radio-Fernsehen-Elektron, 1990, 39 # 2, pp.77-800).
The most closely pertinent to the present invention in terms of its technical essence and the attainable effect is a double-layer capacitor made of activated carbon fibers and having polarizable electrodes, as described by W. Halliop et al. (cf. Low Cost Supercapacitors. Third International Seminar on double-layer capacitors and similar energy storage devices. Florida, 1993). The capacitors described therein are cylinder-shaped, 7 or 13 mm in diameter and 27 mm high; they feature a working voltage of 1.8 V, a capacity from 0.1 to 10 F, and discharge current up to 1 A. Tablet-form double-layer capacitors 9.5 mm in diameter and 2.1 mm high are charged to a voltage of 2.4 V and have a capacity of 0.33 F, and an internal resistance of 40 Ohm.

Aktsionernoe Obschestvo Zakrytogo Tipa "Elton"


The invention, an apparatus and foam blocks for toys and an adjunct for games, consists of a spring-loaded platform acting as the launcher used in conjunction with foam blocks. The spring-loaded platform consists of two plastic parts butted together using the force from a cord to form a stable platform when unloaded. Light weight foam blocks are placed in specified locations on the platform by the players one at a time until the weight of the blocks (or the slight impulse of a foam block being placed by a nervous player) causes the platform to collapse very rapidly. The light weight foam blocks are thrown around for several feet in random directions from the platform. The event amounts to a harmless explosion introducing a high level of suspense, surprise and a wow-factor when used solely as a toy or when used as an adjunct to a card or board game.

This invention relates to toys and games and more particularly to that class of toys involving a spring-loaded launching apparatus actuated by the mass or impulse of objects that are manually placed on the apparatus until it very rapidly and harmlessly propels the objects randomly away.
In recent years toy guns which propel harmless projectiles have become popular as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,385 to Thai (1998) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,152 to Halter, et al (1999). Many parents currently do not want their children to play with toy guns and possibly develop an insensitivity to the seriousness of real gun use.
An earlier invention, U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,520 to Copper (1971), had goals similar to this patent in that it could be used solely as a toy or could be used as a novel game. Also the referenced patent was based on the users placing weights on a spring-loaded apparatus (a toy mule figure) causing tension, suspense and surprise in the players when nervously loading the apparatus. However the climax of having the mule rear-up and drop-off his 'equipment' (weights placed by the players) within a few inches is very, very minuscule compared to the "explosion" of harmless foam blocks flying many feet in this invention. Also the relatively complicated system of metal springs, linkage members, latches, cams, detent pawls used the referenced patent has a higher probability of rusting or otherwise failing compared to the three moving non-metallic parts in the new invention. Another consideration is that in the referenced invention the small plastic equipment parts dropped around the mule could harm small children if swallowed while the large foam blocks in the new invention are safe.
My related U.S. Pat. No. 5,216,832 grated Jun. 8, 1993 uses a similar basic concept, that is an apparatus with a spring-loaded collapsing platform for the purpose of harmlessly chasing animals from areas where they are not wanted. Originally they were used to chase wild birds off moored boats and from lanais, porches and decks. Presently they are also used to harmlessly chase domestic cats from kitchen counter tops, furniture, Christmas trees, etc. The apparatus in this patent is similar to that described above, but for using it in toys and games slight modifications are shown including a single elastic cord in a recessed groove and retained by keyholes in the rigid body members and a different type of hinge between the two rigid body members.
The invention relates to toys for younger children or as an adjunct to card and board games for all ages. The new apparatus introduces an element of surprise, suspense and a wow factor when used solely as a toy or when used as an adjunct to a card or board game, it enhances the playing of the game.
In conclusion, as far as I am aware, no existing toy or adjunct for card or board games have an apparatus for safely introducing reliability, suspense, surprise and a wow-factor compared to the new apparatus described here.

Toys or games using a launching device and foam blocks