An inductor and a method of making an inductor. The inductor includes a stack of dielectric layers. The inductor also includes a plurality of metal levels comprising patterned metallic features of the inductor. Each metal level is located at an interface between adjacent dielectric layers in the stack. The patterned metallic features include a first plurality of inductor windings arranged in a substantially flat spiral in one of the metal levels. The patterned metallic features also include a second plurality of inductor windings in which each winding is located in a respective one of the plurality of metal levels. The first plurality of windings is connected in series with the second plurality of windings.

The present specification relates to an inductor and to a method of making an inductor.
Many radio frequency (RF) circuits, for example power amplifiers (PA), low noise amplifiers (LNA) and voltage controlled oscillators (VCO), use inductors implemented on chip or in a laminate. For optimal performance, the inductors are often tuned with capacitors.
In such devices, the inductors may be provided in the form of a stack of layers including metallic material separated by dielectric. Spread in dielectric height within the stack can lead to unwanted variations in the inductance value (in laminated designs, the thickness variation of the dielectric can be as high as 80%). Because of this, the tuning condition is may not be optimally preserved, resulting in performance degradation.

Inductor and method of making an inductor


A semiconductor storage device is provided with a storage circuit for a faulty address and a plurality of redundant word lines corresponding to the storage circuit. The storage circuit is adapted to store a faulty address required for selecting a redundant word line. The faulty address is compared with an address input at the time of memory access by a comparator. Using a coincidence signal produced from the comparator and a predetermined address signal contained in the input address, a defect relief circuit selects one of the redundant word lines in place of the faulty word line.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor storage device, and in particular to a defect relief technique effectively applicable to a dynamic RAM (random access memory) having a large storage capacity.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the case where a faulty address storage and an address comparator are provided for each redundant word line as a defect relief technique for a semiconductor storage device, an increased number of fuse circuits are undesirably required for storing faulty addresses corresponding to the respective redundant word lines. With a technique developed in an effort to overcome this disadvantage, a set of fuses is provided for a plurality of word lines. Such a plurality of word lines including a faulty word line are collectively switched to redundant word lines. With this configuration, therefore, a plurality of word lines are switched at a time. In this way, regardless of whether a fault occurs in a single or a plurality of word lines, the faults can be relieved by the fuse circuit. The overall relief efficiency, therefore, is improved.
Conventional techniques related to the present application are disclosed in JP-A-2-158995 and JP-A-61-20293.


A data system of a towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle includes a control device, a sensor system configured to record and process sensor data, and a BUS system configured to transfer the sensor data between the control device and the sensor system. The BUS system has a first BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS and a second BUS device in the form of an ETHERNET BUS, and the BUS system further has a first interface configured to transfer the sensor data to a second interface of a second BUS system of a second data system of a second towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle. The data system additionally includes an intelligent switch, coupled to the control device and/or to the first interface, the intelligent switch being configured to couple the first towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle to the second towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle in a coordinated manner.

Such a data system for a towing vehicle and/or a trailer vehicle typically includes a control device, a sensor system for recording and processing sensor data, a BUS system for transmitting the sensor data between the control device and the sensor system, an interface of the BUS system for transmitting the sensor data to an interface of a BUS system of a respective other data system of the towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle within the framework of a data transmission system, wherein the BUS system has a first BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS.
In the framework of the data transmission system it is usually provided that the data transmission system has one such data system for a towing vehicle and/or a trailer vehicle, wherein the data system of the towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle in each case has: a control device, a sensor system for recording and processing sensor data, a BUS system for transferring the sensor data between the control device and the sensor system, an interface of the BUS system for transferring the sensor data to an interface of a BUS system of the respective other data system of the towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle within the framework of the data transmission system, and the data transmission system has: a data connection between the interface of the towing vehicle and that of the interface of the trailer vehicle, wherein the BUS system has the first BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS in each case.
A first data system of the above-mentioned type is therefore provided, which has: a first control device, a first sensor system for recording and processing sensor data, a first BUS system for transmitting the sensor data between the control device and the sensor system, a first interface of the BUS system for transmitting the sensor data to a second interface of a second BUS system of a respective other second data system of the towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle within the framework of a data transmission system, wherein the first BUS system has a first BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS.
A second data system of the above-mentioned type is also provided, which has: a second control device, a second sensor system for recording and processing sensor data, a second BUS system for transmitting the sensor data between the control device and the sensor system, a second interface of the BUS system for transmitting the sensor data to the above-mentioned first interface of the first BUS system of a respective other first data system of the towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle within the framework of a data transmission system, wherein the second BUS system has a further first BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS.
Technically speaking, a CAN BUS (Controller Area Network) bus, is an asynchronous, temporally staggered serial BUS system, which was developed in the 1980s for the networking of control devices in the automotive sector. The purpose of this CAN BUS system is to reduce wiring harnesses and thereby to save weight. Instead of using an electrical circuit for each transmitted signal, the BUS device in the form of a CAN BUS is based on a communication platform which is responsible for the transmission of messages between individual devices. The conversion of all control signals into messages requires an enhanced intelligence in the connected devices. In return, however, many devices can exchange information quasi-simultaneously over a small number of cable connections. In the meantime, in the case of larger systems it is certainly possible to exchange more complex information relating, for example, to wheel wear, speeds or other complex vehicle data.
In the data-communication coupling of towing vehicle and trailer vehicle, especially in the commercial vehicle sector, such as the data-communication coupling of a heavy goods vehicle with a trailer, the standardized ISO-CAN BUS has become established; this is described and defined in detail in a wide range of ISO standards. In particular, the ISO 11992 standard with pending extensions defines CAN-based vehicle BUS standards for commercial vehicle applications of a towing vehicle with one or more trailers (Title: Road vehicles and interchange of digital information on electrical connections between towing and towed vehicles). The protocol structure is similar to the SAE J1939 standard, but differs partly in terms of clock rate, timing sequences and voltage levels of the structure, and/or the message identifications.
Such CAN BUS-based data systems and data transmission systems between a towing vehicle and trailer vehicle have now established themselves and been a proven technology in the automotive sector for decades, even with the increasing number and complexity of the connected devices in the vehicle or the increasing complexity of the control devices, whether they be centralized or decentralized control device systems.
However, the volume of data traffic that is now generated on the vehicle has in many aspects grown to new proportions with correspondingly higher qualitative requirements; it is desirable to transmit data volumes of at least up to 100 Mbit/s or more with correspondingly high speeds. Here, the principles of a CAN BUS-based data system that have been available up to now are proving inadequate. In particular, the transmission between the first data system of a trailer and the second data system of a towing vehicle in many ways turns out to be a bottleneck for handling incoming data on the trailer and/or the towing vehicle using data processing technology.
This relates in particular to the driver assistance systems (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, ADAS) or systems relating to automated driving (AD) that have recently gained increased importance. On the one hand, such systems no longer rely solely on sensor data from a single vehicle, therefore requiring rapid processing and transmission of recorded sensor data in a sensor system, but also the actual transmission with corresponding transmission rates between a first and a second sensor or data system in an appropriate data transmission system for the towing vehicle and trailer vehicle.
Previously developed alternatives to CAN BUS-based data systems, such as a power-based communication (Powerline Communication, PLC) according to SAE J24997 or the like, or an extension of the CAN BUS systems, for example according to ISO 11992 or the like, have the above-mentioned limitations in terms of data rate and real-time transmission of data—such as camera data, Lidar or radar data—or auxiliary solutions, which are provided, for example, by additional wiring, connectors or similar coupling technologies are only reluctantly accepted by customers because they have increased the complexity of the systems and the effort required to maintain them.
Alternatives are offered by data transmission systems with higher transmission rates, such as broadcasting solutions which can be, for example, radio-based, or peer-to-peer-based solutions such as Car-to-Car or Car-to-X communications are dependent on other prerequisites that are not widely available or are affected by limited reliability and transmission reliability. Thus it often involves considerable effort to "pair" such systems (pairing) and moreover, the "pairing" connections are insecure in terms of data transmission and also easy to disrupt or manipulate. All this argues against the use of such alternatives in broadband, high-speed real-time data transmission between a towing vehicle and a trailer vehicle.

Data system, data transmission system and method for data transmission for a towing vehicle and/or trailer vehicle


A three-dimensional semiconductor device includes a cylindrical heat sink, wherein a CPU is provided on a substantially center of an inner bottom surface of the cylindrical heat sink, semiconductor chips are respectively mounted on an outer peripheral surface and an inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical heat sink, and the CPU is connected to an upper heat sink.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a three-dimensional semiconductor device and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional semiconductor device having a heat transfer structure is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. Hei. 9-246466, as shown in FIG. 10. FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the conventional semiconductor device in a thickness direction of an IC package 112. The conventional semiconductor device shown in FIG. 10 will be described as follows.
The IC package 112 is provided with an IC chip 107 in a cavity 118. The IC chip 107 is electrically and mechanically connected to the IC package 112, and sealed off by a cap 117 in a hollow state. A radiating fin 119 is attached on to a surface of the IC package 112 opposite to a surface on which the IC chip 107 is mounted. The radiating fin 119 is placed on the IC package 112 in a position identical to that of the IC chip 107 in a thickness direction, in such a manner that the radiating fin 119 overlaps the IC chip 107 via the IC package 112 in a thickness direction of the IC chip 107.
Furthermore, on the reverse surface of the IC package 112 (i.e., the surface of the IC package 112 to which the radiating fin 119 is attached), a land 114 is formed for electrically and mechanically connecting the IC package 112 to an IC package 115 having substantially the same structure as that of the IC package 112 with long pins 116. On the under surface of the IC package 112, pins 113 are formed for electrical and mechanical connection to a mounting substrate 101. Thus, the first-stage IC package 112 close to the mounting substrate 101 is constructed.
Next, the second-stage IC package 115 is provided with an IC chip 107 in a cavity 118. The IC chip 107 is electrically and mechanically connected to the IC package 115. In the IC package 115, the IC chip 107 is sealed off in the cavity 118 in a hollow state, in the same way as in the IC package 112.
A radiating fin 120 is attached onto a surface of the IC package 115 opposite to a surface on which the IC chip 107 is mounted. The radiating fin 120 is placed on the IC package 115 in a position identical to that of the IC chip 107 in a thickness direction, in such a manner that the radiating fin 120 overlaps the IC chip 107 via the IC package 115 in a thickness direction of the IC chip 107. Furthermore, on the under surface of the IC package 115, long pins 116 are formed for electrically and mechanically connecting the IC package 115 to the IC package 112. The conventional semiconductor device having a heat transfer structure. is constructed in such a manner that the IC packages 112 and 115 are mounted on the mounting substrate 101 so as to be stacked on top of the other.
Because of the above-mentioned structure, the conventional semiconductor device having a heat transfer structure allows air to flow freely through a space between the respective IC packages and does to be attached a heat sink such as a radiating fin, so that a heat transfer property can be substantially improved.
In the above-mentioned prior art, IC packages provided with semiconductor devices in cavities are stacked on top of another via pins and long pins. A large space is kept between the first-stage IC package and the second-stage IC package by using long pins so as to attach a radiating fin to the first-stage IC package, and the second-stage IC package is also provided with a radiating fin.
Consequently, the above-mentioned prior art has the following problems. An IC package has a size much larger than that of the semiconductor device, resulting in a decrease in a packaging density. Furthermore, a wiring length between the semiconductor devices is long, which makes it impossible to realize a high-speed operation. Furthermore, in a multi-stage three-dimensional semiconductor device, a wiring length is large, so that electrical characteristics are degraded. Furthermore, since the entire semiconductor device becomes very long, mechanical characteristics are also degraded. A heat transfer region is only limited to an IC package and a radiating fin, so that heat transfer to a mother board and a housing cannot be expected, which leads to a decrease in a heat transfer effect. Since a semiconductor device cannot be mounted on a curved surface, its mounting place is limited to a flat surface.
An object of the present invention is to provide a three-dimensional semiconductor device with which at least one of the above-mentioned problems maybe solved. Also, the present invention. has an object to provide a method of manufacturing the three-dimensional semiconductor device. Further, the present invention has an object to provide an apparatus for manufacturing the three-dimensional semiconductor device.
The three-dimensional semiconductor device according to a first aspect of the present invention includes: a supporting member having a three-dimensional shape allowing a plurality of semiconductor devices to be arranged in a columnar shape and containing as a main component a high heat-conductive material; and a plurality of semiconductor devices attached to the supporting member.
The method of manufacturing a three-dimensional semiconductor device according to a second aspect of the present invention includes the step of combining members having semiconductor devices attached thereto and containing as the main component a high heat-conductive material, thereby obtaining a three-dimensional semiconductor device including a supporting member that has a three-dimensional shape allowing a plurality of semiconductor devices to be arranged in a columnar shape and contains as the main component a high heat-conductive material, and a plurality of semiconductor devices attached to the supporting member.
The method of manufacturing a three-dimensional semiconductor device according to the third aspect of the present invention includes the step of attaching a plurality of semiconductor devices to a supporting member that has a three-dimensional shape allowing a plurality of semiconductor devices to be arranged in a columnar shape and that contains as the main component a high heat-conductive material.
The apparatus for manufacturing a three-dimensional semiconductor device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes: a stage having a surface for allowing a cylindrical structure containing as the main component a high heat-conductive material to come into contact with; a bonding head for bonding a semiconductor device to an inner peripheral surface or an outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical structure by flip-chip bonding; and rotation means for rotating the cylindrical structure on a central axis thereof and pressing the cylindrical structure perpendicularly to the stage surface.
Thus, the invention described herein makes possible the advantages of (1) providing a three-dimensional semiconductor device that overcomes at least one of the above-mentioned problems, (2) providing a method of manufacturing the three-dimensional semiconductor device, and (3) providing an apparatus for manufacturing the three-dimensional semiconductor device.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying figures.

Three-dimensional semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same


A method and an apparatus for controlling the fabric edge position wherein a fabric fed to the needle location of a sewing machine is fed downstream, feeding distances per unit time at two feeding points, which are along a direction almost perpendicular to the fabric feeding direction, are differentiated by detecting the fabric edge position in the vicinity of the needle location, thereby shifting rightward and leftward the fabric edge position in the vicinity of the needle location so as to form a seam at a constant distance from the fabric edge.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus employed in a double chainstitch machine used for bottom hemming of a T-shirt, etc., a lock stitch machine or the like, to control the fabric edge position in order to form a seam on a sewn product at a constant distance from a fabric edge.
2. Description of the Related Art
In bottom hemming of a T-shirt, or the like, by utilizing a double chainstitch machine or a lock stitch machine, a missing stitch or far stitch may happen when sewing the T-shirt at an inwardly folded back bottom. In order to prevent the degradation in quality of sewn products due to such a missing stitch or far stitch, the sewing width must be maintained constant to form the seam at a constant distance from the bottom.
Conventionally, in order to appropriately feed the fabric portion where no missing stitch or far stitch is to be produced to the needle location, an operator manually controls the position of a T-shirt fabric, with a folded back bottom, by shifting the fabric to the position where the fabric is able to obtain a fixed sewing width after inserting the fabric beneath the presser foot and puller.
As mentioned above, there are problems associated with the conventional manual positioning of fabric, including that those conventional methods require much labor, thereby lowering the sewing efficiency. Also, the conventional method require the skill of an operator in positioning the fabric thus preventing sewing automation.

Method of controlling fabric edge position and apparatus thereof


A display device includes a color transformer and an image controller. The color transformer receives and transforms a three-color image into a four-color image. The four-color image includes a red image, a green image, a blue image, and a white image. The image controller calculates decrement offsets of the red image, the green image, and the blue image, and a compensation value of the white image. The image controller calculates gray level values of the red image, the green image, and the blue image when a value of the white image is zero. The image controller respectively calculates a red image control signal, a green image control signal, and a blue image control signal based on the gray level values and the decrement offsets, and the image controller calculates a white image control signal based on the gray level values and the compensation value of the white image.

Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an optical device. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a display device.
Description of Related Art
With progress in technology, consumer expectations for high display quality of panels are increasing day by day. Hence, to enhance the display quality of panels, the size of a unit pixel needs to be decreased.
A unit pixel that has been decreased in size can only contain three pixels. In this case, a panel with an RGBW construction needs to reduce the red sub-pixels or blue sub-pixels, and accordingly, the unit pixel is arranged with an RGW or BGW construction. Such an arrangement will lead to a reduction in the operational life of the red sub-pixel or blue sub-pixel in the unit pixel.
In view of the foregoing, existing products have problems and disadvantages associated therewith that await further improvement. However, those skilled in the art have been unable to find a solution to such problems and disadvantages.


A method, system and computer-readable medium are provided for enabling the organization, presentation and selection of icons related to information technology processes. In a first version, icons related to individual information technology processes are associated with an enclosing icon displayed by a computer. The user may direct the computer to display or cease displaying the icons by selecting the enclosing icon. In a second version the enclosing icon may be associated with another enclosing icon, wherein icons are organized into a presentation hierarchy. In a third version, the icons may be personalized by associating textual, graphical and/or photographic data as provided by the user.

Many corporations that market their goods and services to consumer and other mass markets attempt to create on-going relationships with their customers and the public. In particular, corporations that supply information technology systems and services often desire to create and expand an awareness of users of computer systems of the corporate identity supplying the instant system or service. Yet consumers are increasingly bombarded with advertising and brand messaging. In addition, computer users typically prefer to maintain simplicity in the visual layout of the user interface presented on a display device of a computer.
A user interface bridges the gap between a user who seeks to control a device and the software and/or hardware that actually controls that device. The user interface for a computer is typically a software program running on the computers central processing unit (hereafter "CPU") which responds to certain user-typed commands. As computers have increased in popularity, the quality of the user interlace has become an ever more important consideration in the development of a computer, since many of these users are not familiar with and/or comfortable with many of the typed commands that are required to operate the computer. One popular type of user interface that simplifies the operation of a computer is provided by a VAIO FS8900™ notebook computer marketed by Sony Corporation of America, of New York City, N.Y. Other prior art personal computers known in the art may comprise user interfaces integrated with or within an XP™ or VISTA™ personal computer operating system marketed by Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash. Other popular types of user interface are include in Macintosh computers marketed by Apple Computer, Inc., of Cupertino, Calif.
Certain prior art computer user interfaces employ what is referred to as a desktop metaphor for the basis of its user interface. Through use of a point and select device, such as a mouse or trackball, in communication with the computer, the user can select and/or move certain conic objects on the screen of the computer to control its operation. The desktop metaphor refers to the fact that: (1) the screen of the computer often looks somewhat like the blotter of a desktop, with a menu bar across the top of the blotter from which the user can select various control features; (2) there may be a trash can icon in the lower right hand corner of the blotter which can be used to remove items from the computer; and (3) programs and documents created with the software programs or services provided in synergy with a computer network are represented by iconic images of pages which can be placed in iconic images of folders and arranged on the blotter for easy access and organization, like the files of a filing cabinet in an office. The prior art teaches that these icons can be arranged—on the screen in a number of different manners, such as according to their type, size and color, and the user can search for files by searching for words listed in the title bar associated with each icon.
The prior art fails, however, to provide an apparatus, method or computer-readable medium that enables a presentation of a single enclosing icon that may be selected by a user to, upon selection by the user, display a plurality of process icons, and wherein the enclosing icon may present a signage to the user that is related to a corporate identity. There is, therefore, a long felt need to enable providers and marketers of information technology products and services to maintain a visual perceived image related to a corporate identity by means of a user interface of a computer.

Apparatus, method and computer-readable medium for organizing the display of visual icons associated with information technology processes


The present disclosure relate to a receiver system that removes unwanted signal components from a received signal based upon signal information from previous received signals. The receiver system has a signal generator that generates multiple signal patterns. One of the multiple signal patterns is provided to a transmit antenna that wirelessly transmits the signal pattern. A receive antenna port receives a reflected signal comprising a time-shifted version of the signal pattern and provides the reflected signal to a reception path. A feedback path extends from the reception path to a signal correction element, which selectively generates a correction signal that reduces unwanted signal components in the reflected signal. The signal correction element generates the correction signal from compensation parameters stored in a memory, which correspond to previously received reflected signals comprising the signal pattern, so that the correction signal can be used to reduce unwanted signal components in real time.

Radar systems are used to wirelessly detect the position of objects through the use of electromagnetic radiation. Frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar systems have become a common type of radar system. FMCW radars utilize a signal that continually changes frequency around a fixed reference frequency. Since the frequency of the signal continually changes with time, the frequency of a transmitted signal and a reflected signal will differ by a frequency that is proportional to the round trip time of the signal, giving a distance of a detected object.
FIG. 1A illustrates a block diagram of a typical FMCW radar system 100. FMCW radar system 100 comprises a transmission path and a reception path. A ramped signal generator 102 is configured to generate a ramped signal Sramp that is provided to a transmission chain 104 in the transmission path and a receive mixer 118 in the reception path. The transmission chain 104 generates a ramped RF signal that is transmitted as an electromagnetic wave 108 by a transmit antenna 106. Electromagnetic wave 108 reflects off of an object 110 as a reflected wave 112, which is returned to a reception antenna 114 that provides a reflected signal to a reception chain 116 that down-converts the reflected signal. The receive mixer 118 mixes the down-converted signal with the ramped signal Sramp to generate a signal having a frequency proportional to a position of the object 110, which is provided to a signal processing unit (SPU) 120.
FIG. 1B illustrates a timing diagram 122 showing operation of FMCW radar system 100. As shown in timing diagram 122, a transmitted signal 124 has a continually varying linear frequency ramp with a sawtooth waveform, while a reflected signal 126 has a continually varying linear frequency ramp with a sawtooth waveform that is offset in time from transmitted signal 124 by a round-trip time trt (corresponding to a frequency difference). The round-trip time trt is proportional to the object's distance from the FMCW radar system, so that SPU 120 can measure a distance based upon the time trt (e.g., dFMCW=(trt·c)/2).

Compensating slowly varying if DC offsets in receivers


A hollow golf club head with a concave portion is disclosed and claimed. The club head includes a metallic portion and a light weight portion, which may be formed of plastic, composite, or the like. The concave portion allows the club designer to make a club head having very thin portions while still maintaining the requisite structural integrity. Convex bulges may optionally be provided to house weight inserts to enhance the playing characteristics of the golf club.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a golf club, and, more particularly, the present invention relates to a large wood-type golf club head with a concave insert.
2. Description of the Related Art
Golf club heads come in many different forms and makes, such as wood- or metal-type (including drivers and fairway woods), iron-type (including wedge-type club heads), utility- or specialty-type, and putter-type. Each of these styles has a prescribed function and make-up. The present invention primarily relates to hollow golf club heads, such as wood-type and utility-type (generally referred to herein as wood-type golf clubs).
Wood-type type golf club heads generally include a front or striking face, a crown, a sole, and an arcuate skirt including a heel, a toe, and a back. The crown and skirt are sometimes referred to as a "shell." The front face interfaces with and strikes the golf ball. A plurality of grooves, sometimes referred to as "score lines," may be provided on the face to assist in imparting spin to the ball. The crown is generally configured to have a particular look to the golfer and to provide structural rigidity for the striking face. The sole of the golf club contacts and interacts with the ground during the swing.
The design and manufacture of wood-type golf clubs requires careful attention to club head construction. Among the many factors that must be considered are material selection, material treatment, structural integrity, and overall geometrical design. Exemplary geometrical design considerations include loft, lie, face angle, horizontal face bulge, vertical face roll, face size, sole curvature, center of gravity, and overall head weight. The interior design of the club head may be tailored to achieve particular characteristics, such as by including hosel or shaft attachment means, perimeter weighting on the face or body of the club head, and fillers within hollow club heads. Club heads typically are formed from stainless steel, aluminum, or titanium, and are cast, stamped as by forming sheet metal with pressure, forged, or formed by a combination of any two or more of these processes. The club heads may be formed from multiple pieces that are welded or otherwise joined together to form a hollow head, as is often the case of club heads designed with inserts, such as sole plates or crown plates. The multi-piece constructions facilitate access to the cavity formed within the club head, thereby permitting the attachment of various other components to the head such as internal weights and the club shaft. The cavity may remain empty, or may be partially or completely filled, such as with foam. An adhesive may be injected into the club head to provide the correct swing weight and to collect and retain any debris that may be in the club head. In addition, due to difficulties in manufacturing one-piece club heads to high dimensional tolerances, the use of multi-piece constructions allows the manufacture of a club head to a tight set of standards.
It is known to make wood-type golf clubs out of metallic materials. These clubs were originally manufactured primarily by casting durable metals such as stainless steel, aluminum, beryllium copper, etc. into a unitary structure comprising a metal body, face, and hosel. As technology progressed, it became more desirable to increase the performance of the face of the club, usually by using a titanium material.
With a high percentage of amateur golfers constantly searching for more distance on their shots, particularly their drives, the golf industry has responded by providing golf clubs specifically designed with distance in mind. The head sizes of wood-type golf clubs have increased, allowing the club to possess a higher moment of inertia, which translates to a greater ability to resist twisting on off-center hits.


A pipe tool positioning system for efficiently inserting, positioning, and orienting a tool for use within a pipe. The pipe tool positioning system generally includes a sleeve with a receiver opening adapted to receive and removably retain a tool such as a grinder or the like. The sleeve includes radially-offset bladders extending outwardly from its outer surface. Each of the bladders may be individually inflated and/or deflated to aid in positioning of the tool within a pipe. A control unit may be provided with controllers for individually controlling each of the bladders. A camera may also be included adjacent to the sleeve to feed a display included with the control unit. By utilizing the present invention, various tools may efficiently be inserted and positioned for use within a pipe.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a tool positioning system and more specifically it relates to a pipe tool positioning system for efficiently inserting, positioning, and orienting a tool for use within a pipe.
Description of the Related Art
Any discussion of the related art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such related art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
It is often necessary to utilize a tool such as grinders and the like within pipes such as sewage piping which require maintenance or the trimming of linings within the pipe for an individual to manually utilize the tool. Thus, various aids have been developed to assist with positioning such tools within a pipe.
Current tool positioning systems are very limited and expensive. For example, one such system includes the use of bladders which are fully inflated to expand to the full radius of the pipe or conduit. These types of bladders can block water, fluids, or materials from flowing through the pipe. Another bladder assembly example can expand in certain directions to wedge the tool inside the pipe or conduit to keep the tool from moving but does not have the capability to move the tool in different directions. Another type of bladder assembly moves the tool forward when the bladder is expanded but does not move the tool side to side or up or down inside of the pipe or conduit. Another type of assembly utilizes "soft robotics" but this requires a flexible main body that the bladders are attached to and does not allow the use of standard power tools. There are also bladder assemblies that utilize several metal support legs that are extended and compressed by the rubber bladders to the inside walls of the pipe or conduit to hold it in place for vertical pipes or conduits. This type of bladder assembly makes it difficult to hold the tool in place and may also damage linings inside of pipes and conduits.
Because of the inherent problems with the related art, there is a need for a new and improved pipe tool positioning system for safely and efficiently inserting, positioning, and orienting a tool for use within a pipe.


A cover for a linear conveyer. The linear conveyer including a stationary module having a rail extending linearly and a stator including armature coils that is fixed to the rail, and a slider including a mover component having magnetic poles arranged linearly and a rail guide that is fitted on the rail. The slider sliding from an end surface of the rail along an elongated direction of the rail to be arranged on the rail and moving on the rail by a linear motor. The cover is attached to the slider to cover a magnetic pole face of the mover component of the slider. The cover has a thickness so as to come in contact with an end portion of the stationary module when the slider is mounted on the rail. The cover is detached from the slider by the contact with the end portion of the stationary module.

A linear conveyer including a slider that moves along a rail has been used. The slider is a platform car that conveys parts. Such a linear conveyer includes, for example, a unit-type stationary module and the slider. The stationary module includes a rail that linearly extends and a stator including armature coils and is fixed to the rail. The slider includes a rail guide that is fitted to the rail and a mover that faces the stator when the rail guide is fitted to the rail. The mover includes permanent magnets to generate magnetic poles.
In such a linear conveyer, the slider may be detached from the rail to store the slider or perform a maintenance operation for the slider, and the slider may be mounted to the rail. If the slider is detached from the rail and moved closer to the stationary module, the slider may be abruptly attracted to the stationary module due to the powerful magnetic attractive force that is generated between the stator and the mover by the quite strong force of the permanent magnets included in the mover. Therefore, a finger or a hand may be caught between the slider and the stationary module. This may cause a serious problem in safety. If the slider is left detached from the rail, steel components such as bolts or tools may be carelessly attracted and attached to the magnetic pole face of the mover. The attracted steel components must be separated from the mover and this deteriorates workability.
There has been an assembling fixture that is used in assembly of a linear motor driving mechanism/linearly moving mechanism. The assembling fixture is a non-magnetic member and is fixed to a slider with bolts to cover the magnetic pole faces of the mover. Thus, the magnetic pole faces of the mover are covered with the non-magnetic assembling fixture. With such a configuration, the magnetic pole faces of the mover are less likely to move carelessly closer to the stationary module or other steel components and the magnetic attractive force is less likely to increase abruptly, and the above problems do not occur.

Cover for slider of linear conveyer, linear conveyer, slider assembly, and method of detaching cover from slider of linear conveyer


A system for prioritizing a plurality of requests received from a plurality of clients is disclosed. The system receives the plurality of requests. For each request from the plurality of requests, the system extracts features of the request, where the extracted features provide information regarding a priority in performing the request. The extracted features correspond to a numerical representation of the request, such that if a priority level associated with the request is high the numerical representation comprises higher numerical values compared to another request that is associated with a low priority level. The system determines a prioritization in performing the plurality of requests by ranking a plurality of extracted features representing the plurality of requests based on ranking numerical values associated with the plurality of extracted features.

Requests that clients send to an organization may have different aspects of priorities. For example, a request may be a time-sensitive request with a particular deadline. In another example, a request may have been in a queue for processing for a long period of time. Prioritizing the requests statically and not accounting for different aspects of priorities of the requests may lead to missing deadlines, neglecting requests at the end of the queue, and missing opportunities to improve relationships with clients. Current task prioritization and digital data processing technologies may not be configured to provide a reliable and efficient solution to determine the prioritization of requests received from clients based on their corresponding different aspects of priorities.

System and method for prioritization of text requests in a queue based on contextual and temporal vector analysis


Systems and methods for penetrating a tissue membrane to gain access to a target site are disclosed. In some examples, systems and methods for accessing the left atrium from the right atrium of a patient's heart are carried out by puncturing the intra-atrial septal wall. One embodiment provides a system for transseptal cardiac access that includes a guiding catheter, an access catheter and a guidewire. The access catheter may include a tissue penetration member disposed within a housing wherein the tissue penetration member is substantially contained within the housing when in a retracted configuration. When the distal end of the access catheter is disposed adjacent the septal wall, the user can initiate an actuator switch, which may be in a proximal portion of the system, to cause the tissue penetration member to extend through the septal wall. Alternatively, the tissue penetration member can be actuated automatically by a contact trigger mechanism, without initiation by the user, upon contact with the septal wall by a distal contact member which is coupled to the contact trigger mechanism. Such a system may also include an interlock mechanism to prevent triggering of the tissue penetration member at undesirable times during a procedure.

Access to the left side of the heart plays an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Invasive cardiologists commonly perform a left heart catheterization for angiographic evaluation or transcatheter intervention of coronary artery disease. In a left heart catheterization, the operator achieves vascular access through a femoral artery and passes a catheter in a retrograde direction until the catheter tip reaches the coronary artery ostia or crosses the aortic valve and into the left ventricle. From a catheter positioned in the left ventricle, an operator can measure left ventricular systolic and end-diastolic pressures and evaluate aortic valve disease. Ventriculography, where contrast is injected into the left ventricle, may be performed to evaluate left ventricular function. Alternative insertion sites, such as the brachial or radial artery, are used sometimes when femoral artery access is contraindicated due to iliofemoral atherosclerosis, but manipulation of the catheter can be more difficult from these other insertion sites.
Although left heart catheterization can be a fast and relatively safe procedure for access to the coronary arteries and the left ventricle, its usefulness for accessing structures beyond the left ventricle, namely the left atrium and the pulmonary veins, is limited by the tortuous path required to access these structures from the left ventricle via the mitral valve. For example, electrophysiologic procedures requiring access to the left atrium or pulmonary veins, performance of balloon mitral valve commissurotomy, and left ventricular access across an aortic prosthetic disc valve can be difficult, and sometimes unfeasible, through traditional left heart catheterization techniques.
Transseptal cardiac catheterization is another commonly employed percutaneous procedure for gaining access to the left side of the heart from the right side of the heart. Access occurs by transiting across the fibro-muscular tissue of the intra-atrial septum from the right atrium and into the left atrium. From the left atrium, other adjoining structures may also be accessed, including the left atrial appendage, the mitral valve, left ventricle and the pulmonary veins.
Transseptal cardiac catheterization has been performed in tens of thousands of patients around the world, and is used for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. Diagnostically, operators utilize transseptal catheterization to carry out electrophysiologic procedures requiring access to the pulmonary veins and also to do left heart catheterizations where an aortic disc prosthetic valve prohibits retrograde left heart catheterizations across the valve. Therapeutically, operators employ transseptal cardiac catheterization to perform a host of therapeutic procedures, including balloon dilatation for mitral or aortic valvuloplasty and radiofrequency ablation of arrhythmias originating from the left side of the heart. Transseptal cardiac catheterization is also used to implant newer medical devices, including occlusion devices in the left atrial appendage for stroke prevention and heart monitoring devices for the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Transseptal cardiac catheterization is generally successful and safe when performed by skilled individuals such as invasive cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, and electrophysiologists with appropriate training and experience. Lack of success may be attributable to anatomic variations, especially with respect to the size, location and orientation of the pertinent cardiovascular structures and imaging-related anatomic landmarks. Another reason for failure may be the relatively fixed dimensions and curvatures of currently available transseptal catheterization equipment. One major risk of existing transseptal catheterization techniques lies in the inadvertent puncture of atrial structures, such as the atrial free wall or the coronary sinus, or entry into the aortic root or pulmonary artery. In some cases, these punctures or perforations can lead to cardiac tamponade. As such, surgical repair of such a cardiac perforation is sometimes required.
One problem with the standard transseptal needle/catheter system is that once an inadvertent puncture has occurred, it may be difficult to realize what structure has been compromised because contrast injection through the needle is limited by the small bore lumen thereof. Thus, visualization of the structure entered may be inadequate and non-diagnostic. Also, the tip of the catheter dilator of existing devices may c ross the puncture site which has the effect of further enlarging the puncture hole.
Other than minor refinements in technique and equipment, the basic transseptal catheterization procedure has remained relatively constant for years. Even so, the technique has several recognized limitations that diminish the efficacy and safety of this well-established procedure. Thus, there remains a need for an alternative system that effectively and safely provides access to the left atrium, or other desired site in the body.

Methods and devices for transseptal access


A method for facilitating epidemiologic surveillance for a target disease such as Covid-19 includes a step of using an optical identifier such as a barcode or a numerical code to rapidly report de-identified test results to a central database. A rapid test device may be based on a direct flow point-of-care device comprising a porous membrane with at least one recombinant antigen applied thereto and procedural control. The recombinant antigen may comprise an epitope for detecting the target disease marker. The first optical identifier may be applied to the device and facilitate remote communication of the test results without the use of any specialized equipment.

Without limiting the scope of the invention, its background is described in connection with epidemiological surveillance of a target disease that may affect large masses of population and spread over significant geographical areas. More particularly, the invention describes methods for facilitating the collection of an extensive number of individual test results using rapid test kits and commonly available communication means.
An epidemic of an infectious disease capable of spreading across a large region, across continents or throughout the entire world, can be hugely costly to societies. Such incidences in the past included pandemics of influenza, smallpox, tuberculosis, human immune deficiency virus (HIV), and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). More recently, an ongoing worldwide pandemic of Covid-19 (also referred to in this description as Coronavirus or SARS-CoV-2) already caused an infection in tens of millions of people and close to one million deaths. Direct healthcare costs and economic losses of this pandemic are incalculable.
While the world awaits an effective vaccine and methods of treatment, conventional mitigation methods are used to limit the spread of the disease including wearing a face mask and maintaining a social distance. Widespread testing of large populations in many regions of the world is instrumental in monitoring the disease prevalence and allowing for better allocation of healthcare and other resources.
Accurate and timely knowledge of the extent of disease spread as well as the extent of immunity afforded by natural or vaccine-induced disease-specific antibodies is highly sought after by government organizations in charge of public health. Such knowledge is also important to convince the public to not engage in "avoidance behavior", which leads to a substantial reduction of economic activity leading to further exacerbation of direct economic losses caused by the disease. World Bank estimates that "avoidance behavior" causes as much as five times the economic damage compared with direct healthcare costs and absence at work by those affected by the disease.
Rapid Point-Of-Care (POC) tests allow rapid diagnostics to be performed by a patient or a healthcare professional at the bedside or elsewhere near the patient, including at home, a pharmacy, or a clinic where the test is made available. Using these tests increases the likelihood that the patient, physician, and care team will receive the results quicker, which allows for better immediate clinical management decisions to be made.
Many POC tests are realized as easy-to-use membrane-based test strips, often enclosed in a plastic test cartridge. This concept is often realized in test systems for detecting various pathogens. The most commonly used membrane-based POC tests are so-called "lateral flow" tests, which can produce a visual indicator of a presence or absence of a target disease in a manner of 15-20 minutes. A great number of such tests to detect a variety of diseases are produced by a long list of manufacturers and are routinely used by many laboratories, as well as directly by individuals. An improved POC test that replaces lateral flow with direct flow and provides accurate test results in under 5 minutes is the INSTI® rapid test for HIV-1/HIV-2 manufactured by bioLytical Laboratories Inc. (Richmond, Canada), the assignee of the present invention.
Test results from a POC cartridge are often presented to the user as a visual indicator. Although easy to understand when it comes to an individual test, a visual indicator methodology is not trivial to accurately record each test result and communicate to a large number of patients when it comes to mass testing of people for epidemiologic surveillance.
As explained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) is the automated transmission of laboratory-related data from commercial, public health, hospital, and other labs to state and local public health departments through an electronic health records (EHR) system or a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). ELR helps identify reportable conditions determined by confirmatory testing and supports case reporting at the state or local level. ELR is used by laboratory providers to help them meet state laws on reportable diseases mandating that providers report cases of specified diseases to the health department. ELR supports overall public health surveillance by helping improve the timeliness and accuracy of case reporting and confirmation to state and local health departments. It also supports national public health surveillance by improving the timeliness and accuracy of notifiable disease data voluntarily shared by states with CDC.
This methodology works well in the US, EU, and other developed countries having similar systems in place. However, these centralized health surveillance systems may not be readily available or even easily accessible in many developing countries. Moreover, even in developed countries, such systems may not account for tests performed individually at home or elsewhere outside a traditional laboratory. This may lead to a substantial underestimate of the spread of the target disease.
An additional complication for large scale health surveillance is the requirement to ensure privacy of individual patient diagnostic results. Many prior art laboratory systems and sample labeling processes have been designed to track individual patient samples, for the sake of accurate correlation of the test result with the correct individual. However, these tracking systems also permit health data of individual subjects to be easily shared which creates privacy concerns that compromise their utility in health surveillance systems. Subjects would be more motivated to participate in large scale health surveillance if they could be guaranteed an anonymous reporting system that is simple, quick and effective, yet still obtain a diagnostic result privately.
The need exists therefore for new methods and test kits adapted to facilitate health surveillance reporting to include the maximum number of reported tests performed for diagnosing a target disease throughout various economic conditions and test application circumstances. A massive enhancement of health surveillance testing for use in areas of the world with less access to data technology is especially needed to address the Covid-19 pandemic.

Methods and rapid test kits facilitating epidemiological surveillance


A motor drive control apparatus for performing motor control that is stable and has a good efficiency includes: a speed processing unit that generates a first value by converting a second value corresponding to a current speed into a duty ratio; a torque processing unit that generates a third value by converting a fourth value corresponding to a target torque into the duty ratio; and a drive unit that controls switching by a switch included in a complementary switching amplifier by an average duty ratio corresponding to a sum of the first value and the third value to drive a motor connected to the complementary switching amplifier.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a description of basic operation for a motor driving. The motor driving state is controlled by control of a duty ratio from switching between FET or other switches S1 through S4, which includes this kind of an H bridge circuit. For example, when a large voltage Vout by a counter-electromotive force Vmotor generated by motor rotations is supplied from a battery batt, the motor is in a power running state. When controlling the duty ratio of the switches with PWM (Pulse Width Modulation), and for example the period when the switches S1 through S4 are on is lengthened, then when Vout=Vbatt*Duty (on ratio)>Vmotor, this achieves the power running state (state where torque output is present) for example. When in a power running state, current flows to the motor side, as indicated by the solid arrow in FIG. 1. Also, by adjusting the period when the switches S1 through S4 are on, it is possible to create a state where Vout=Vmotor (torque zero state). Further, by shortening the period when the switches S1 and S4 are on, a state in which Vout<Vmotor is created, and thus there a transition to a battery regeneration state where current flows to the battery batt as illustrated by the dotted arrow in FIG. 1 if the battery batt is a storage battery. Additionally, by adjusting the switching duty ratio of switches S1 through S4, other braking states may be enabled such as a loss brake state that discards the counter-electromotive force Vmotor from the motor.
Further, just as electric power is supplied to the motor in a normal rotation from the switches S1 and S2; of course this may be driven by electric power supplied to the motor from the switches S3 and S4 in an inversed direction.
Technologies to drive motors with a battery such as (1) a diode driving method and (2) a current constant feedback method are well known.
(1) Diode Driving Method
This technology uses a parasitic FET diode or a specialized diode in an H bridge circuit such as illustrated in FIG. 1, and supplies a PWM duty ratio to only the power running direction or the braking direction to apply torque by a broad feed forward. There is no concern for open loop problems, and is well known for its ability to readily and reliably control the power running or the braking direction.
However, efficiency is sacrificed due the drop voltage of the diode. Also, the rectifying action of the diode causes current to flow only in the instant the applied voltage is more than the counter-electromotive force for when power running, and to flow only in the instant the applied voltage is less than the counter-electromotive force for the braking periods. Because the counter-electromotive force is in proportion to the sinusoidal voltage output when compared to the motor rotation speed, the applied voltage is not proportional to the current and therefore also the torque, this causes a problem in which the linearity of torque control greatly worsens, and this linearity is also largely affected by the speed. For this reason, in order to obtain the target torque, an extremely complicated correction control regarding the speed and target torque is necessary.
(2) Current Constant Feedback Method
This method detects motor current in real time, and control the motor current depending on the desired torque supplying a constant feedback regardless of speed at that time.
Although accuracy is high due to a control that monitors the current, which is the control result, the disadvantage is that negative return control can easily cause instability, and so to create a stable feedback control, a control which is a sufficiently low cut-off frequency is requested regarding a loop response (motor current detection→microcomputer calculation→output instruction), which slows the response making it necessary to further increase the speed and accuracy of the loop response. Also, if there is a break up in the information indicating where the return should occur, this could cause a problem where the control amount is determined to be insufficient, and so excessive response attempts are made.
Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 10-59262 proposes a method to perform feedback through a proportional circuit and an integrator to determine the deviation between an assist torque instruction (input) and the motor torque (output). Generally, this is called PI control or phase lag correction.
In the case of this control system, the integrator causes phase lag in the high-frequency region, and so there is a possibility that a lag element in the motor, which is the control object, causes oscillation. For this reason, differential circuit is often added to advance the phase at this high-frequency region. However, when complicating the control system in this way, it is necessary to model the inverter and motor that are the control subjects, which may cause a change in properties due to modeling errors or variance and degradation of devices developed from models without errors and therefore possibly cause oscillation.


Improvements in the end block design for zinc/bromine batteries include modification of the end block configuration which previously has included rigid resin covers and end block plates with a honeycomb structure sandwiched therebetween. Such prior structures were used adjacent to terminal electrode frames. In the present invention, the terminal electrodes are preferably contained within the end plate, thereby eliminating two components used in prior zinc/bromine battery design and the end block itself is formed from two components by building a rib structure into the plate and cover and welding the two components together to join the ribs and form an integral and structurally sound unit. The end block configuration could be used for bipolar lead-acid batteries or other types of flowing or non-flowing batteries or capacitors.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to end blocks for batteries and more particularly to an end block construction which eliminates components, reducing cost while maintaining structural integrity. In its most preferred form, the present invention relates to end blocks for zinc/bromine or other flowing electrolyte batteries, which include recesses for the terminal electrodes, as well as a simplified support structure designed for structural rigidity.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,841, owned by the assignee of the present invention, a conventional flowing electrolyte bipolar battery is shown. It includes a stack of cells, an electrolyte pump, an electrolyte reservoir, a cooling element, and external studs in electrical communication with the terminal electrodes. Each cell is comprised of an electrode upon which the anodic reaction takes place and an electrode upon which the cathodic reaction takes place.
In typical bipolar batteries, each electrode comprises two poles, such that the anodic reaction occurs on one side of the electrode and the cathodic reaction occurs on the opposite side of the same electrode. In contrast to monopolar batteries which require two separate electrodes per cell, a bipolar battery consists of only one structure. As with a monopolar battery, the cells in a bipolar battery are electrically connected in series. Unlike a monopolar battery, however, where the cells are hydraulically isolated, the cells of a flowing electrolyte bipolar battery are hydraulically connected in parallel. The '841 patent describes current flow and the structure of bipolar batteries of the zinc/bromine type and is incorporated herein by this reference.
One of the requirements for flowing electrolyte bipolar batteries are end blocks, between which are sandwiched the cells stacks. The end blocks are supporting structures and provide the framework for duct and shunt tunnels to communicate with interiorly disposed elements of the flow system of the battery. Additionally, the blocks support the terminal studs which electrically communicate with the end or terminal electrodes of the cell stack. Not only must the blocks be inert to the various chemicals of the fluid anolyte/catholyte system, the end blocks must resist bending or bowing caused by different pressures which exist between the atmosphere and the internal operating environments of such batteries. In a typical zinc/bromine battery, operating pressures may easily reach 15 psi. Bowing of the end plates may result in non-uniform electrolyte distribution, resulting in a significant reduction in voltage and/or discharge capacity.
In zinc/bromine batteries, bowing of the end block may also result in poor zinc plating, causing undesirable dendritic growth which, if uncontrolled, could provide a short circuit for current in a particular cell and eliminate its voltage contribution.
Various attempts have been made to provide end blocks which minimize bowing and the resulting problems described above. Steel plates coated with inert material have been employed, leading to a sacrifice of an important battery design criteria, i.e. weight. Others have used plastic corrugations on the end plate to provide additional strength, leading to the sacrifice of another battery design criteria, i.e. overall volume. The solution proposed in the aforementioned '841 patent is a lightweight, deflection-resistant end block which included a base member made of a lightweight, chemically inert and chemically resistive material having one or more cavities for housing low density, substantially rigid inserts, such as honeycombed aluminum. The inserts are encapsulated by a cover welded or otherwise secured to walls located on the base member. The base member also extends beyond the walls to provide a means for receiving the various ducts carrying the flowing electrolyte to and from the interior of the battery, thereby isolating the inserts from possible exposure to the electrolytes. While the foregoing design represented a significant improvement over prior designs, four components are required (including the two insets), each of which has to be manufactured to relatively close tolerances and which require care in assembly.
In addition to the end block structures, such as those disclosed in the '841 patent, batteries of this type typically include a frame on the inside of each end block, such frames having compartments for receiving the terminal electrodes. The frames are additional elements required to construct the battery, and the elimination of such components would result in a desirable savings in the number of components required. The combined elimination of components from the end block and from the structure used to house the terminal electrodes would represent a significant advance in this art.


A discontinuous polyacrylamide and agarose gel electrophoresis system is provided which allows the fine separation of proteins based on molecular weight with the concomitant retention of native enzymatic activity. This system, referred to as the CAT gel, uses the cationic detergent CTAB, and includes a stacking gel based on a zwitterion such as arginine and a buffer such as tricine. The CAT gel system allows specific enzyme histochemical detection and localization of proteins after gel electrophoresis. This system stacked and separated a broad range of proteins into discrete bands which migrate as a linear function of log M.sub.r. The effect of CTAB solubilization on the activity of several proteins is also shown. Proteins separated by CAT electrophoresis maintain high levels of native enzymatic activity, and may be detected histochemically in situ.

The electrophoretic separation of protein mixtures has been a standard biochemical procedure for a generation of researchers. The most commonly used protocol, described by Laemmli, U. K. Nature, 227:680-685 (1970) takes advantage of observations made by Shapiro et al., Biochem, Biophys. Res. Commun., 28:815-820 (1967) and Weber and Osborn, J. Biol. Chem., 244:4406-4412 (1969) which showed that an anionic detergent, sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), could be used for the separation of most proteins based on M.sub.r. Solubilization with SDS combined with a discontinuous polyacrylamide gel system, as originally described by Ornstein, Ann. NY Acad. Sci., 121:321-349 (1964) and Davis, Ann NY Acad. Sci., 121:404-427 (1964) allows the fine separation of dissociated proteins into discrete bands.
In the Laemmli system, SDS binding forms protein complexes that are nearly indistinguishable in an electric field. This is accomplished in two ways: SDS binds to most proteins in a constant ratio, 1.4 g of SDS per 1 g of protein, and imparts a constant charge to mass ratio to each protein so that their free mobilities are approximately equivalent; and SDS binding, in the presence of a reducing agent, causes a drastic structural change in the protein resulting in the formation of an SDS/protein complex shaped like a prolate ellipsoid with dimensions related to the M.sub.r, of the native protein. Since shape and charge density characteristics for all proteins in SDS are similar, separation based on M.sub.r is accomplished by electrophoresis through a support matrix with specific pore sizes The matrix acts as a sieve with smaller complexes moving through more easily than larger ones and, therefore, migrating further in the gel.
The characteristics of SDS/protein complexes (i.e., denatured conformation, constant charge to mass binding, and uniform shape) makes SDS the detergent of choice for many electrophoretic procedures, especially those involving the identification of subunits or in analyses of sample purity. Many researchers have come to rely on SDS-PAGE for the convenient assignment of M.sub.r based on relative mobilities; however, it is difficult to assess the biological activity of proteins treated with SDS, although several proteins have been shown to renature to an active form after detergent removal, Manrow and Dottin, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 77:730-734 (1980) and Scheele, Clin. Chem., 28:1056-1061 (1982). Another electrophoretic method, using the non-ionic detergent Tx-100, is commonly used in the production of zymograms, Hearing et al., Anal. Biochem, 72:113-117 (1976), unfortunately, this technique does not separate proteins based on size and the assignment of M.sub.r requires multiple runs at different gel concentrations, Tuan and Knowles, J. Biol. Chem., 259:2754-2763 (1984).
Akin et al. disclosed an entirely different electrophoretic system based on the cationic detergent CTAB that combines the most useful aspects of both the SDS and Tx-100 gels, Akin et al., Anal. Biochem., 145:170-176 (1985). Previous reports of electrophoresis systems, based on CTAB and related detergents, clearly demonstrate the separation of proteins as a logarithmic function of their M.sub.r, Eley et al., Anal. Biochem., 92:411-419 (1979), Panyim et al., Anal. Biochem., 81:320-327 (1977), Schick, Anal. Biochem., 63:345-349 (1975), and Marjanen and Ryrie, Biochem Biophys. Acta., 37:442-450 (1974). It has been shown that solubilization in CTAB does not cause loss of enzyme activity by denaturation, Spencer and Poole, J. Mol. Biol., 11:314-326 (1965). The work of Akin et al. further suggests that some proteins may be separated in a CTAB gel system and still retain native activity. For these gels, sample preparation is done without boiling and without the addition of reducing agent. Virtually all proteins prepared in this manner still migrate as a function of log M.sub.r ; however, in this continuous gel system resolution is less than optimal due to the absence of a stacking gel.

Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide gel electrophoresis


A portable support device for inserting into the ground and in one embodiment is useful for forming a temporary barricade, corridor or an enclosure arrangement for livestock. The support device has (a) a support frame having a first member, a second member and a cross-brace member rigidly connected to the first and second members and (b) a third member moveably mounted to the cross-brace member and having a free end with a means for securing the third member to the ground. In a preferred embodiment, the support device further includes (c) an angled member having a face portion and spaced-apart first and second ends attached to the first and second members, respectively. The face includes a wire reel or spool holding support means for hanging a reel or spool of wire fencing material of a predetermined length onto the support device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to support device and particularly to fencing systems. More particularly the present invention relates to a sturdy, portable support device that allows for quick installation and removal and is adapted to be used in conjunction with one or more known wire type fencing means to establish a temporary boundary.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Rotational grazing is a pasture management technique that divides a particular pasture into smaller paddocks or areas for livestock grazing or separation in a controlled manner. It is known to use fencing systems for this purpose. The fencing systems must contain the animals' grazing activities to the defined area for a short amount of time. This prevents the livestock from inflicting damage to the grass and in some cases is designed for portion control of the animal(s), particularly in the cases where an animal may be prone to founder, navicular, digestive abnormalities or the pastures contain fresh spring grasses, high in protein. Once a particular paddock has been appropriately grazed the animals are moved to another paddock which allows for the just grazed paddock to quickly and efficiently recover and be ready for the next grazing cycle.
Rotational grazing is beneficial to both the animal and the pasture. The animal does not have to forage down to the grass' roots, or on lower nutritional value growth in the pasture. Another disadvantage of overgrazing is the animal(s) may take in bacteria or other parasites that may be harmful. Since the pasture is never over-grazed, the grass stays healthier and more efficiently replaces the roughage and nutrition that the animal needs. The result is a significant reduction in the acres of pasture required per animal and an improvement in the nutritional quality the pasture produces.
Generally, the more intense the pasture management the shorter a grazing cycle; this necessitates the pasture to have more paddocks. This creates a need for fencing systems to accommodate the animal(s) temporary containment into smaller areas but still allow for free movement from one paddock to a new area for grazing.
Typically, permanent fencing for this type of pasture management is utilized. However, permanent fencing systems are not without their problems. The installation of fence posts has always been a difficult. Holes are generally dug to a predetermined depth using one of several hand digging implements to dig out a hole into which a fence post is inserted. Because conventional posts provide no intrinsic lateral support, the hole must be relatively deep in proportion to the above-ground height of the installed post. Earth removed from the hole during digging is subsequently repacked around the installed post. Posts installed by this method are subject to lateral instability until weathering causes the earth to settle around the post. The earth generally sinks somewhat upon settling, forming a depression around the post which may collect water and subject the post to rot and damage caused by insects attracted to damp conditions. While an anchoring element may be installed adjacent the post to provide lateral support, a substantially larger hole must be dug to accommodate the anchoring element.
Another method in use is to use a prefabricated metal post commonly known as a "T" post. These posts are constructed of steel having a generally T-shaped configuration and has a series of horizontally extending studs vertically spaced along the longitudinal axis. A ram or driver weighted with a relatively dense material, such as lead or cement, is typically used to pound the post directly into the ground without first making a hole. Because of the weight of the driver and the requirement that the force of the driver be applied to the uppermost end of the post, this method is limited in its application to posts of certain lengths, generally 4 to 5 feet once inserted, and is not suitable for installation of posts having ornamental tops. This method is also not suitable for driving posts having large diameters or irregular shapes which might split under pounding, such as the hedgeposts commonly employed in farming and ranching. While there is no easy method for installation of posts in hard clay or rocky soils, driving the post is an especially burdensome task under such conditions. When driven into the ground, these posts provide sufficient support for fencing, but still must have a permanent post, described above, inserted at every 4th or 5th post to give adequate support for long runs of fence wire.
As can be seen from the description, one problem with both types of the above posts is they are difficult to install and remove.
Another problem with both types of posts is that they must be placed typically in relative close proximity to form a fence of sufficient strength to support a wire fencing means, such a an electric wire or barbed wire. This results in pasture management with a congested field having a large maze of fencing. The maze of posts makes it very difficult for the farmer or rancher to use tractors and implements for the conditioning and maintenance work necessary to maintain the pasture. Permanent fencing systems would also severely restrict the farmer's or rancher's ability to respond to varying conditions within the pasture which may dictate the need to define grazing areas that do not fit the existing arrangement of the permanent fencing system.
Accordingly there is a need for a portable fencing system that can be quickly and easily set up to define a small grazing area and then removed and set up at another grazing area. There is also a need for a portable fencing system that can be used to make corridors for the efficient movement of animals, or to otherwise manage the number and location of animals on the grazing areas. Such portable fencing system would give the pasture manager flexibility in providing for efficient grazing and recovery of the pasture. Thus, in order for rotational grazing to be optimized and labor minimized, the portable fencing system needs to be quick and easy to set up, securely anchored to the ground so that it will stay in place, and require few or no tools to install and remove it.


Exemplary embodiments provide treatment fluids for treating a subterranean formation to improve gas production therefrom. Exemplary embodiments of the treatment fluids comprise a base fluid and a cationic polyorganosiloxane, wherein the cationic polyorganosiloxane comprises at least two cationic quaternary ammonium groups.

The present invention relates to compositions for increasing gas production from a subterranean formation. More particularly, the present invention relates to treatment fluids for treating a subterranean formation to improve the production of gas therefrom, the treatment fluids comprising a cationic polyorganosiloxane comprising at least two quaternary ammonium groups.
Hydrocarbon gases (e.g., natural gas) are found in subterranean formations beneath the Earth's surface. To obtain these gases, well bores are drilled into the gas-bearing formations through which the gas is produced to the surface. Gas production rates from these formations, however, are often less than expected or desired due to a variety of factors. One common factor for lower gas production rates is the presence of water in the flow channels available for gas flow. This water reduces the effective permeability of the formation to the natural gas and is commonly referred to as "water blocks."
The source of water contributing to the water blocks generally depends on the location of the water blocks themselves. For example, near well bore water blocks may be due to the invasion of water present in the well bore from well operations or from produced water. This water from the well bore may be imbibed by near well bore permeable zones into the flow channels and, thus, reduce gas production. If the water blocks are present in flow channels away from the well bore, the source of water may be due to the connate water held in permeable formation zones due to high capillary pressure. As this connate water moves toward the well bore with continued gas production, it may become trapped in some permeable zones, such as low permeability zones, thus blocking the flow of the gas. The source of water may also be from reservoir stimulation operations (e.g., matrix acidizing, fracturing, water control treatments with relative permeability modifiers, and the like), in which the injected fluids penetrate into the formation. However, in all these examples, if the natural drainage rates (e.g., due to gravity) or induced drainage rates (e.g., due to gas pressure) for the water are low, the water blocks will typically remain in the gas flow channels. As a result, the water blocks will reduce, or in some instances completely shut off, the production of gas from the formation. In some instances, water blocks may even delay gas production for a significant period of time after stimulation treatments.

Compositions for increasing gas production from a subterranean formation


A system for speculative branch predictions. An embodiment of the system includes branch prediction logic, fetch logic, and branch identification logic. The branch prediction logic is configured to predict a branch path for a branch in an instruction stream. The fetch logic is coupled to the branch prediction logic. The fetch logic is configured to speculatively fetch an instruction corresponding to the predicted branch path. The branch identification logic is coupled to the branch prediction logic and the fetch logic. The branch identification logic is configured to mark the speculatively fetched instruction with a branch identifier using a universal branch identification format. The universal branch identification format includes a bit value at a bit position corresponding to the predicted branch path.

Many processors use some type of branch prediction to anticipate which instructions will be needed in a given instruction stream. Branch predictions are used to potentially increase the performance of the processor by speculatively fetching instructions that correspond to a predicted branch path. There are many conventional methods of predicting branch paths, speculatively fetching instructions, and resolving whether the predicted branch path is actually used or whether the predicted branch path is a misprediction.
If instructions for a predicted branch path are speculatively fetched, and the predicted branch path later turns out to be a mispredicted branch path, then there should be some way to invalidate the speculatively fetched instructions so that the pipeline resources can be allocated to other instructions. Although some conventional speculative instruction technologies use invalidation methods, these conventional invalidation methods are complex and difficult to implement or do not allow instant (atomic) invalidation of all mis-speculated instructions.

Universal branch identifier for invalidation of speculative instructions


Entertainment system based on multiple choice competition games, which includes at least one terminal with a connection to a dedicated remote server, the system also including a module for playing an extract of a recording with a configurable duration on at least one terminal that can reproduce the recording, interact with a user, connect with a dedicated remote server, ask a terminal user a question and suggest multiple choice answers, the question being related to information characteristic of the extract of the recording, and the recording being selected independent of the terminal user.

Games based on the musical knowledge of players are known in prior art, and particularly radio or television games. For example, the game is of the questions/answers type during which a player must for example give the name of an artist, the title or the next word of a song from which a short extract is played. In this type of game, questionnaires are prepared before the game and the game takes place either with a single player, or in the case of a television game with several competitors in the same place and competing on the same question.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Jukebox entertainment system having multiple choice games relating to music


A power controlled repeater is disclosed for use in a wireless communication system to control the forward link gain. The power controlled repeater includes a forward link for communications from a base station to a mobile station. In addition, the power controlled repeater includes a reverse link for communications from the mobile station to the base station. An embedded subscriber unit is used at the power controlled repeater and is inserted into the forward link. A microprocessor is in electronic communications with the subscriber unit and implements a method for controlling the forward link gain. The method for controlling the forward link gain includes using the embedded subscriber unit in the power controlled repeater to control the forward link gain.

In a wireless radiotelephone communication system, many users communicate over a wireless channel. The use of code division multiple access (CDMA) modulation techniques is one of several techniques for facilitating communications in which a large number of system users are present. Other multiple access communication system techniques, such as time division multiple access (TDMA) and frequency division multiple access (FDMA) are known in the art. However, the spread spectrum modulation technique of CDMA has significant advantages over these modulation techniques for multiple access communication systems.
The CDMA technique has many advantages. An exemplary CDMA system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,307, entitled "Spread Spectrum Multiple Access Communication System Using Satellite Or Terrestrial Repeaters", issued Feb. 13, 1990, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, and incorporated herein by reference. An exemplary CDMA system is further described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,459, entitled "System And Method For Generating Signal Waveforms In A CDMA Cellular Telephone System", issued Apr. 7, 1992, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, and incorporated herein by reference.
In a typical system, several base stations are deployed to allow numerous mobile users to communicate with the base stations as they travel. The communications networks would typically include a base station controller or similar device that exchanges communications with multiple base stations. Examples of the communications networks include public switched networks, wireless networks, satellite networks, long distance telephone networks, local telephone networks, and the Internet.
A repeater may be used to extend the range of the base station. The repeater receives wireless signals from a base station and one or more mobile users. The repeater amplifies the received signals and transmits wireless signals based on the amplified signals to the base station and/or to the mobile users. As a result, the repeater extends the range of the base station. The base station also typically receives wireless signals from other mobile stations directly (i.e., without using the repeater).
Repeaters provide a cost-effective way for carriers and service providers to fill holes in the coverage area or to augment the area of coverage. However, the use of repeaters is hindered by daily and seasonal changes in the environment, which cause fluctuations in both the gain of the repeater and the path loss between the repeater and the base station. These fluctuations could adversely affect the coverage and service in repeater coverage area. There is a need, therefore, to control the gain of the repeater to stabilize the repeater coverage area.

Method and apparatus for forward link gain control in a power controlled repeater


A spot weld fracture analysis method for a spot weld portion of three or more mutually superimposed plates that are spot-welded at a common welding point comprises an analysis step of executing an analysis by using a finite element model in which each plate is modeled by shell elements, and the shell elements corresponding to a spot weld point position of each plate are individually interconnected via beam elements, and a prediction step of finding an element force of a beam element that acts on a shell element relevant to a middle plate from a difference between the element forces of two beam elements connected to the shell element on a basis of the analysis result, and predicting a possibility of fracture of a spot weld between the middle plate and an adjacent plate by using the difference element force found from the difference.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a fracture analysis method for a spot weld portion of three or more mutually superimposed plates that are spot-welded at a common welding point and a computer-readable program for executing the method as well as a spot weld fracture analysis apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
There is a known fatigue life prediction method for a spot-welded structure characterized in that two plates are joined to form a spot-welded structure, and that a finite element analysis-purpose shell model for the spot-welded structure is created, and that using the created purpose shell model, a finite element linear elastic analysis is performed to calculate the share load of a nugget portion at the center of a spot weld portion, and the deflection on the circumference of a circle of a diameter D described with the nugget portion being the center, and the inclination in radial directions, and that, on the basis of the share load, the deflection on the circumference and the inclination in radial directions that have been calculated, the nominal structural stress in the nugget portion is found through the use of a disc bending theory in the theory of elasticity, and that, from the nominal structural stress, a fatigue life of the spot-welded structure is predicted (e.g., see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-149130).
A spot weld portion of three or more mutually superposed plates that are spot-welded at a common welding point can be modeled, for example, by modeling each plate by shell elements, and connecting the shell elements corresponding to the spot welding point positions of the individual plates via beam elements. Such a finite element model is substantially equal to a mode in which two plates are respectively spot-welded to each other at a time. That is, for example, in the case of three-plate welding, a mode is obtained in which the middle plate is spot-welded separately to the two side plates.
Consequently, in the case where such a finite element model is used, a fracture determination method whose conformity with regard to the spot welding of two plates has been established can be utilized for every group that is made up of two plates.
However, in the case where the fracture analysis method is directly utilized, the fracture analysis on a group does not take into account the element force of the beam element in another group. Therefore, a problem is that the possibility of fracture of the spot weld portion on a middle plate belonging to two groups (i.e., a middle plate that forms groups with two plates (inside and outside plates)) cannot be appropriately analyzed or predicted.

Spot weld fracture analysis method, program therefor, and analysis apparatus thereof