The present invention discloses a halogen-free insulated cable material used for 125° C. irradiation cross-linked EPCV photovoltaics and a preparation method thereof. The material is mainly prepared from the following raw materials based on weight parts: 5-20 parts of ethylene propylene diene monomer; 0-25 parts of polyethylene; 0-10 parts of ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer; 1-5 parts of compatibilizer; 50-75 parts of aluminum hydroxide; 1-5 parts of stabilizer; 1-5 parts of silicone masterbatch. The halogen-free insulated cable material of the present invention has excellent insulating property and flame retardancy, and can achieve the halogen-free flame retardant VW-1, and releases a very low amount of smoke when burning, making a light transmittance of greater than 90% in the smoke, and also has excellent mechanical properties and electrical properties, and can suffer capacitance change rate test at 90° C. for 14 days in water according to UL44, fully meeting the property requirements of UL4703-2010 standard.

With the conventional energy supply crisis in the world becoming increasingly serious, large-scale exploitation and utilization of petrochemical energy has become one of the main causes of environmental pollution and deterioration of human living environment, and thus finding new energy sources has become a hot issue in the world. In all kinds of new energy sources, solar photovoltaic power generation has the advantages of non-pollution, sustainability, large amount, wide distribution, various forms for application and so on, and thus is highly concerned by the world.
Photovoltaic cable is an important part of the photovoltaic power generation. The security and reliability of photovoltaic cable are very important for photovoltaic power generation system, and mainly depend on the photovoltaic cable material. Currently, the most widely used material in the field of photovoltaic cable is XLPE-based material. However, in the application process, XLPE-based photovoltaic cable material has disadvantages of large hardness, inconvenient installation in a narrow space, and being unable to achieve low-smoke halogen-free VW-1 flame retardant grade, etc.
EPCV is a blend of rubber and plastic, and has excellent elasticity and high filling property from rubber and excellent mechanical properties and processability from plastic. When EPCV is applied to photovoltaic cable, the photovoltaic cable not only has excellent mechanical properties and electrical properties, and also has excellent flame retardancy, which can achieve the halogen-free flame retardant VW-1 grade. Also, it does not include phosphorus-nitrogen based flame retardant and releases a very low amount of smoke in combustion process, which is truly green and environmentally friendly. Therefore, EPCV photovoltaic insulated material has excellent economic and social benefits.
CN102766293A discloses an irradiation cross-linked low-smoke halogen-free red phosphorus-free flame retardant material, which comprises the following components: 10-80 parts by weight of ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, 5-30 parts by weight of ethylene-octylene copolymer and/or ethylene-butylene copolymer and/or ethylene propylene diene monomer, 0-100 parts by weight of polyethylene, 1-20 parts by weight of a polymer compatilizer, 0.5-10 parts by weight of organosilicon polymer, 1-10 parts by weight of a composite anti-oxidant, 0-200 parts by weight of aluminium hydroxide and/or magnesium hydroxide and/or modified aluminium hydroxide and/or modified magnesium hydroxide, 0.1-100 parts by weight of high molecular weight ammonium polyphosphate and/or 0.1-50 parts by weight of a phosphate ester flame retardant and/or 0.1-50 parts by weight of melamine cyanurate. The material reaches American UL224VW-1 standard flame retardant grade when applied in heat-shrinkable sleeve, and reaches American UL1581VW-1 standard when applied in electric wires and cables, and does not contain halogen or red phosphorus, and thus is environmentally friendly.

Halogen-free insulated cable material used for 125C irradiation cross-linked EPCV photovoltaics and a preparation method thereof


The present disclosure discloses a method for transmitting downlink feedback information, a base station, and a terminal device, so as to ensure that the base station correctly receives the downlink feedback information sent by the terminal device, thereby effectively improving a transmission success rate of the downlink feedback information. In embodiments of the present disclosure, the method includes: sending, by the base station, indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate a target time-frequency resource location, the target time-frequency resource location is a time-frequency resource location at which the terminal device sends the downlink feedback information, and the downlink feedback information is used to feed back a reception status of downlink data that should be received by the terminal device; and receiving, by the base station, the downlink feedback information sent by the terminal device.

With rapid development of machine-to-machine (Full name: Machine to Machine, M2MM for short) communications applications, market requirements and the market scale explosively grow. An M2MM communications application has a service requirement different from that of a conventional communications service, such as deep coverage and low power consumption. The following solution is put forward for the service requirement of the M2MM communications application: After receiving downlink data sent by a base station on a physical downlink shared channel (Full name: Physical Downlink Shared Channel, PDSCH for short), a terminal device needs to provide feedback for the downlink data. If the terminal device successfully receives the downlink data, the terminal device feeds back an acknowledgement (Full name: Acknowledgement, ACK for short); or if the terminal device fails to receive the downlink data, the terminal device feeds back a negative acknowledgement (Full name: Negative Acknowledgement, NACK for short). For example, a data transmission process may be shown in FIG. 1.
Currently, in the data transmission process in FIG. 1, a time-frequency resource location of downlink feedback information is mainly mapped by using a time-frequency resource location of a physical downlink control channel (Full name: Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH for short), so that the time-frequency resource location of the downlink feedback information is determined, and the downlink data sent on the PDSCH is fed back at the time-frequency resource location of the downlink feedback information.
However, for a system in which cross-PDCCH scheduling is performed, if the time-frequency resource location of the downlink feedback information is mapped by using the time-frequency resource location of a PDCCH, a resource conflict may occur because feedback is provided for multiple pieces of the downlink data at a same time-frequency resource location of the downlink feedback information. Consequently, the base station cannot correctly receive the downlink feedback information sent by a terminal device, and a transmission success rate of the downlink feedback information is not high.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for transmitting downlink feedback information, base station, and terminal device


In a method of processing a packet header received via an input interface, a plurality of data units that collectively correspond to a header of a network packet is received. A location of a target field of the header in one or more data units among the plurality of data units is specified, and the one or more data units containing the target field are identified among the plurality of data units. The target field is processed using a local offset corresponding to the specified location of the target field in the identified one or more data units, without simultaneously storing all data units of the plurality of data units in a buffer.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Many packet-based communication networks include various devices, such as bridges, routers, etc., that operate on packets according to information contained in headers of the packets. Digital hardware within these devices typically processes various fields within the packet headers in order to perform different functions. To this end, certain basic processing operations are commonly performed, such as parsing a particular field of a packet header (e.g., identifying and extracting the field so that it may be sent elsewhere for further processing), and/or modifying the field by replacing one or more bits or bytes of the field with new values. As one of many possible examples, a packet processing unit within a router device may parse a destination medium access control (MAC) address field of a packet header, and send the destination MAC address to another processing unit within the router for further processing (e.g., to compare the destination MAC address with the MAC address of the router). As another example, a packet processing unit within a router may modify a source MAC address field of a packet header by setting the field value to the MAC address of the router before forwarding the packet to another device.
Typically, small interface widths (e.g., wire, trace, or pin counts) are desirable between different packet processing units within a device, or between packet processing units of multiple devices, in order to satisfy cost and size constraints. Packet header sizes, however, have tended to increase over time due to advances in technology. As a result, packet headers are commonly sent over interfaces that are narrower than the header size, requiring that the packet header be sent over the course of multiple transactions or clock cycles. For example, a 64 byte interface may require three transactions to receive an entire 190 byte header (i.e., in successive header portions of 64 bytes, 64 bytes, and 62 bytes). Parsing or modifying header fields in such cases has traditionally been accomplished by accumulating the header portions in registers until the entire packet header has been received, at which point the desired processing operation is performed. This approach, however, generally suffers from various drawbacks. For example, the accumulation of the header portions typically requires a significant amount of storage area (e.g., a large number of flip-flop cells) in order to store the entire header, and introduces a packet transmission latency that can be substantial for larger header sizes sent over a larger numbers of transactions. Moreover, the traditional approach can require complex circuitry occupying a large area, with the design of much of the circuitry being highly dependent on the maximum header size.

Parser and modifier for processing network packets


This invention relates to the sterilization and preservation of tissue for storage. More specifically, the invention relates to a method of using a solution to form a preserved tissue. The solution includes a radical scavenger at a concentration believed to reduce the damage to the tissue that could otherwise occur during sterilization with ionizing radiation.

This invention relates to the sterilization and cryopreservation of tissues for storage. The tissues may be harvested from human or animal subjects and are then processed and cryopreserved (frozen) for later implantation. Allograft tissues, including, but not limited to, heart valves and portions of heart valves, aortic roots, aortic walls, connective tissues including fascia and dura, vascular grafts (including arterial, venous, and biological tubes), and orthopedic soft tissues, such as boned- or non-boned tendons or ligaments, are often subjected to cryogenic preservation. In this manner, a ready supply of these valuable tissues can be made available for later implantation into mammals, especially humans. In addition, viable xenograft tissues from transgenic animals or tissues developed from human or non-human cells that may include differentiated cell types, stem cells, or genetically-modified cells of various origins may be appropriately processed, cryopreserved, and stored for later implantation.
In addition to living allograft, xenograft, or bio-engineered tissues, which may be cryopreserved, living tissues may be decellularized to render them acellular. While living tissues are often decellularized before cryopreservation, they can also be decellularized after cryopreservation and storage.
Generally, decellularization involves substantially reducing the living, non-structural constituents within the tissue. This may be achieved by first exposing the tissue to a hypotonic solution to lyse the cells and then subjecting the tissue to a nuclease treatment to degrade nucleic acids. A more detailed discussion of tissue decellularization may be found in U.S. Pub. No. US 2001/0000804 A1, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety, except that in the event of any inconsistent disclosure or definition from the present application, the disclosure or definition herein shall prevail.
Cryopreservation may be a preferred method of preserving living or decellularized tissue for extended storage. By cryopreserving a tissue in a suitable cryoprotectant, it may be possible to reduce the damage to the tissue that can occur during uncontrolled rate freezing, freeze-drying, and glutaraldehyde preservation methods. In contrast to uncontrolled rate freezing and freeze-drying, cryopreservation preferably involves the addition of one or more cryoprotectant containing solution to the tissue followed by a slower, controlled-rate freezing regimen, which can be adjusted to the particular requirements of each tissue to which it is applied. Cryoprotectants can limit cell or tissue damage due to the formation of ice (water) crystals during freezing and thawing.
In general, there are two requirements for the successful cryopreservation of living tissue. First, the harvested tissue should be frozen to a sufficiently low temperature so metabolic activity effectively ceases within the cell, without destroying the cell. Second, the cryopreservation and thawing regimens should have minimal effects on tissue cell viability and limit structural damage to the tissue. When decellularized tissue is cryopreserved, the primary focus is preventing damage to the structure of the extracellular matrix.
Varying cryoprotectant containing solutions have been used to cryogenically preserve biological tissues for later implantation. Some cryopreservation solutions use a combination of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and Fetal Bovine Serum (FBS) with other constituents for tissue preservation. In these solutions, DMSO may provide interference with the ability of water to form ice crystals during freezing and radical scavenging. However, a disadvantage of DMSO based cryopreservation solutions is the unpleasant odor given off from irradiated solutions upon thawing. DMSO containing cryopreservation solutions can also demonstrate toxicity to living tissues above 4° C. This toxicity and the detailed thawing procedures required to limit its adverse affects on heart valves are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,457, for example.
Because Fetal Bovine Serum is animal-derived, its use in cryopreservation solutions may introduce undesirable contaminants. In addition to the risk of contamination by bacteria and viruses, prion contamination is also possible. It is currently believed that Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease or variant bovine spongiform encephalopathy is transmitted through prions. Not only does FBS open the possibility of disease transmission, but due to the limited availability of cows believed free of prion transmitted disease, FBS can only be harvested from a limited number of herds in specific countries.
Unlike tissues sourced from other human individuals (allografts), which are classified by regulatory authorities as tissues intended for transplantation and whose processing includes procedures to reduce the risk of contamination by pathogenic agents, tissues sourced from different species (xenografts) are classified as medical devices and must be terminally sterilized prior to implantation. Sterilization techniques and conditions are preferably selected to provide a high level of assurance against contamination of the tissue with microbes, while limiting damage to the structure and function of the tissue. These same techniques may also reduce the activity or infectivity of other pathogenic agents, such as viruses, thus increasing the safety factor of the implantable device.
Decellularized tissues can be terminally sterilized using a variety of physical or chemical sterilants, or combinations thereof, including gamma radiation, electron-beam radiation, ethylene oxide, peracetic acid, β-propiolactone, povidone-iodine, or UV irradiation in the presence or absence of photosensitizers. Irradiation methods are preferred. One reason for this is that radiation can be administered to the tissue after final packaging, thus eliminating the necessity to accomplish and validate aseptic transfer of the tissue to its final packaging after sterilization.
Ionizing radiation, including gamma and electron-beam radiation, can be effective in killing a variety of microbial and pathogenic organisms, including bacteria, fungi, yeast, mold, mycoplasmas, parasites, and virus, when an appropriate cumulative dose of radiation is applied to the tissue. A more detailed discussion of gamma radiation and its use in the sterilization of preserved tissues may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,485,496, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, except that in the event of any inconsistent disclosure or definition from the present application, the disclosure or definition herein shall prevail. A more detailed description of electron-beam radiation and its use in the sterilization of preserved tissues may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,989,498, also incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, except that in the event of any inconsistent disclosure or definition from the present application, the disclosure or definition herein shall prevail.
While ionizing radiation is convenient, different tissues have various degrees of susceptibility to damage by the energetic free-radicals that are generated during irradiation. While many types of damage may occur during irradiation, one of the most common is free-radical initiated cleavage of the primary amino acid sequence of the structural proteins. The effect of this scission is to cause tissue denaturation. Tissue denaturation can occur when the proteins of the tissue undergo conformational changes that disrupt the structure of the tissue. These structural changes can result in a loss of tissue function after implantation.
Tissue treatment with ionizing radiation may also alter tissue characteristics by producing crosslinking between tissue proteins. Crosslinking can occur when additional covalent bonds form between previously unbonded portions of one or more molecules. Energetic free-radicals are common initiators for radical crosslinking reactions.
Free-radicals or radicals are defined as highly energetic atoms or groups that possess an unpaired electron. The ability of radicals to damage tissues is well known. In addition to initiating crosslinking reactions, radicals can act as oxidizing or reducing agents that can further damage the tissue. Radical species may be generated by the irradiation of the tissue itself, the cryopreservation solution, or the packaging. While irradiation can form many radical species, oxygen and hydroxyl radicals are believed the most common species formed in aqueous solutions, such as cryopreservation solutions.


A dynamic driving type optical printing head comprising a plurality of LED elements divided into a plurality of groups, wherein the LED elements are driven in time-division by groups, comprises a plurality of LED blocks arranged along the scanning direction on the head substrate, wherein each of the LED blocks comprises a plurality of LED elements arranged in the scanning direction; a plurality of wiring blocks arranged along the array of the LED blocks, wherein each of the wiring blocks comprises a plurality of selecting signal lines; and one or more data drivers; wherein each of the LED elements is connected to the corresponding selecting signal line in the wiring block by wiring means, and the selecting signal line is connected to the data driver by wiring means, so that the plurality of LED elements in each of the LED groups are connected to the data driver individually to each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to optical printing heads comprising a plurality of light emitting diodes (LED), and more particularly, to the improvement of the so-called dynamic driving type optical printing head.
2. Description of the Related Art
An example of a printing system including an optical printing head having a LED array is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,850,517, for example.
In general, an optical printing head having a LED array comprises a plurality of LED blocks arranged along the main scanning direction of the optical printer. Each of the LED blocks comprises a plurality of LED elements having an one-to-one correspondence with the printing dots of the main scanning direction. It is therefore possible to control the selected desired LED elements to be energized simultaneously in the main scanning direction. For the purpose of realizing this advantage, a static driving type optical printing head comprising a driver having the number of bits identical to the number of the LED elements is used in practice.
An optical printing head utilizing LED array also has other advantages. These advantages include the precise control of the printing dot shape and dot location, as well as the dispensability of mechanical scanning means in the main scanning direction. Consequently, not only a printing optical head of the static driving type, but also an optical printing head of the dynamic driving type energizing LED elements in time-division has been developed. An example of a dynamic driving type optical printing head is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 63-254068, for example.
FIG. 1A is a schematic top view showing the dynamic driving type optical printing head disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 63-254068, whereas FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along line 1B--1B of FIG. 1A. A dynamic driving type optical printing head requires many conductor lines to be formed in high density on a head substrate 1. Particularly, selecting signal lines 41, 43 are formed in a matrix manner for selectively energizing the desired elements of the many LED elements 22.
In general, LED elements 22 are grouped by LED blocks 2 and dynamically driven in time-division. A common electrode 13 is formed on head substrate 1 for each LED block 2, whereby the bottom of each LED block 2 is joined to the corresponding common electrode 13 with conductive adhesive.
Within one LED block 2, the selected desired LED elements 22 are energized simultaneously. In the case where one LED block 2 comprises 64 LED elements 22 for example, 64 selecting signal lines are necessary to connect the LED elements 22 individually to a data driver 3. In FIG. 1A, the selecting signal lines comprise 64 bridging lines 41 provided in parallel with the array of the LED elements, and selecting lead lines 43 connecting each of the 64 LED elements 22 of LED block 2 to the corresponding bridging line 41.
Selecting lead lines 43 provided in groups of 64 lines per period for every LED block 2 are formed directly on head substrate 1 and arranged in parallel with each other in a pitch equal to the pitch of the LED element 22 array. Each of selecting lead lines 43 is covered by an interlayer insulator film 42, except for the portion in the proximity of LED element 22. Bridging lines 41 are formed on interlayer insulator film 42, with one end of each selecting lead line 43 connected to the corresponding bridging line 41 via a contact hole 42H. The other end of each selecting lead line 43 is connected to the corresponding LED element electrode 23 by wire bonding. One end of each bridging line 41 is connected to data driver 3 by wire bonding. Accordingly, LED element 22 of each LED block 2 is individually connected to data driver 3 via the corresponding selecting lead line 43 and bridging line 41.
The printing head in accordance with the above described prior art may use a glass plate or a sintered ceramic plate for head substrate 1. In the case a glass head substrate 1 is used, selecting signal lines 41, 43 may be formed under thin film technology by sputtering or evaporation because the surface of the substrate is smooth. It is therefore possible to form bridging lines 41 in density to reduce the width of head substrate 1. However, a large vacuum apparatus is required for the purpose of sputtering or evaporation because the entire head substrate 1 has a large dimension. A large and precise apparatus is also required for precise patterning of the sputtered or evaporated thin film. There is also a disadvantage that the glass head substrate 1 is liable to cracking due to its long length, which will be aggravated if the width is further decreased.
In the case where head substrate 1 of sintered ceramic is used, the strength of head substrate 1 is high, but the smoothness of the substrate surface is low. Therefore, selecting signal lines 41, 43 are formed under thick film technology using silk-screen printing method. Consequently, the width of the bundle of bridging lines 41 will increase to expand the entire width of the printing head. It is preferred that the width of the printing head is small because not only the printing head, but also many other devices such as a charger, a toner supply device, a transfer device, a cleaner, etc. are arranged in the periphery of the optical printer's photoreceptor drum.
There is also a problem that the bundle of bridging lines 41 formed of very long fine lines (generally exceeding at least 200 mm) parallel to each other in high density is susceptible to shorts and disconnections. When such shorts and disconnections occur, partial repair is difficult, leading to the discard of the entire head substrate 1.
Furthermore, when the number of the LED blocks used is changed, a head substrate 1 having a bundle of bridging lines 41 formed with the corresponding change in length must be provided.
In addition, bonding operation by wiring means, such as wire bonding or TAB (tape-automated-bonding) between selecting lead line 43 and LED element electrode 23 is not easy due to the difference in their heights, as can be seen from FIG. 1B.


Provided is a method of manufacturing a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet to mass-produce a high-quality hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet at a low temperature in a safe process.

Boron nitride has a BN formula, in which a boron atom and a nitrogen atom form a two dimensional hexagonal structure. Since this structure is a similar hexagonal-based structure to that of graphite, boron nitride has similar chemical and physical properties to graphite, and thus is a material having highly physical and chemical stabilities. In an inactive atmosphere, boron nitride is stable at up to 3000° C., has thermal conductivity as high as that of stainless steel, thereby having a high thermal shock resistance, and is not cracked or damaged even if it is repeatedly subjected to rapid heating at approximately 1500° C. or rapid cooling. In addition, boron nitride has very excellent high temperature lubricating property and corrosion resistance. In addition, since boron nitride has a significantly high electric resistance value and less change in the electric resistance value, particularly at a high temperature, it may be used as an electric insulating material in a wide temperature range, and emits UV rays when an electric field is applied. Moreover, boron nitride is transparent and has excellent flexibility due to space margin of a hexagonal honeycomb structure in which boron atoms and nitrogen atoms are linked in the form of a network. Specific structure and physical properties of such boron nitride may be applied to an insulator of a semiconductor material and a UV radiator.
Recently, as demands and concerns on nanotechnology are increased, research to obtain boron nitride in a type of a nanosheet or nanotube is progressing. Currently, as a method of manufacturing a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet, mechanical peeling, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), or a boron nitride interlayer compound method is used, and generally, the CVD and mechanical peeling are used for manufacturing a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet.
The mechanical method is a method of detaching a single-layered or multi-layered boron nitride of a hexagonal boron nitride in a solvent through ultrasonic wave treatment. According to this method, it is simple to manufacture but difficult to mass-produce a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet. The CVD method is a method of forming a thin metal film by depositing a catalyst metal on a substrate and cooling the film after a gas including boron and nitrogen flows at a high temperature of 1000° C. or more, thereby obtaining a boron nitride nanosheet formed on the metal film. According to this method, a process temperature is very high, and thus it is difficult to obtain a larger and less expensive boron nitride nanosheet.

Method of forming high-quality hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet using multi component eutectic point system

Abstract: The method of manufacturing a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet includes (a) obtaining an alkali metal ion or alkali earth metal ion from a salt mixture including at least two kinds of alkali metal salt or alkali earth metal salt, (b) preparing a hexagonal boron nitride interlayer compound by inserting the alkali metal ion or alkali earth metal ion into layers of hexagonal boron nitride, and (c) obtaining a hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet by removing the alkali metal ion or alkali earth metal ion from the hexagonal boron nitride interlayer compound.

KOREA ADVANCED INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY


An integrated circuit package (10) comprises a semiconductor die (14) having a top surface and a bottom surface, and a substrate (16) for receiving the semiconductor die. The substrate should have an aperture(s) (18) below the semiconductor die for providing moisture relief during temperature excursions. An adhesive (20) applied to the substrate allows for mounting the semiconductor die to the substrate. Then, the semiconductor die is wirebonded to the substrate. Finally, an encapsulant (12) for sealing the top surface of the semiconductor die is formed over the semiconductor die and portions of the substrate.

Over Molded Carriers such as the Over Molded Pad Array Carrier (OMPAC), the Over Molded Peripheral Chip Carrier (OMPCC), and the Over Molded Pin Grid Array (OMPGA) and their equivalent glob top printed circuit board chip carriers are susceptible to moisture during manufacturing. These integrated circuit packages suffer from "Popcorning" when subjected to heat. This problem is particularly noticeable in surface mount packages using printed circuit boards, which experience higher thermal and mechanical stresses due to the exposure of the entire package to solder reflow temperatures. Typically, these integrated circuit packages are baked prior to solder assembly to remove moisture. Moisture usually penetrates the over mold top or glob top, the substrate, the die or integrated circuit residing between the over mold top or glob top and the substrate, and especially the adhesive used to attach the die to the substrate. The die attach adhesive is usually a hygroscopic material. Exposure of the package to solder reflow temperatures after the die attach adhesive absorbs moisture, causes the rapid expansion of the moisture into water vapor. This causes the die to delaminate from the substrate. Thus the "popcorn" effect.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,866,506 by Nambu Et. Al. discusses a flat plastic-sealed IC device and lead frame in a package that has an opening in the back surface of the package, allowing exposure to the atmosphere and the release of moisture when subjected to heat. This package, also known as the Quad Flat Pack (QFP), is easily manufactured, but leaves the bottom surface of the lead frame exposed to the atmosphere. The QFP does not use a substrate or printed circuit board as in OMPAC, OMPCC, and OMPGA and their glob top equivalents; thus, a different solution is required. The present invention provides a means for releasing moisture in a completely different structure.


A disposable needle having individual, spring biased, first and second retractable, open protective sleeves. The first retractable sleeve covers the needle end employed to extract patient blood and the second retractable sleeve covers the needle end that transfers blood to a collection tube. Each sleeve is provided with diametrically disposed slits receiving diametrically disposed ear extensions on the needle support. A support segmented housing maintains the sleeves and needle into a unitary structure. Detents are disposed on the end of the first sleeve that telescopingly receives the open end of the second sleeve. In use, the first sleeve is manually retracted and the detents secure the sleeve in retracted position. A tubular support on the opposite end of the segmented housing receives a blood collection tube therein that forcibly retracts the second sleeve and permit penetration of the blood collection tube. When the blood retraction tube is withdrawn, the second sleeve again provides a protective cover for the needle tip. Upon patient needle removal, the user grasps a pair of arms on the segmented housing and structure thereon removes the detents to permit spring return of the first sleeve to protective needle tip covering status.

Disposable needles and syringes are routinely used in hospitals and other medical facilities for drawing blood and other body fluids from patients, administering medications, and the like. For health and safety reasons, and, as required by law in most jurisdictions, these disposable needles must be properly disposed of after use to prevent inadvertent reuse, accidental injury and possible exposure to transmittable diseases, such as Hepatitis and AIDS. Presently, needles are directly transferred, completely intact and without capping, to collection containers for disposal by incineration, or the like. In all cases, from the time the needle is used, to the time that it is destroyed, medical personnel and clean-up crews are constantly at risk for accidental needle sticks. In the use of these needles, there is always a risk of inadvertent needle stick to the medical personnel handling the device. Once the needle has been deposited into the appropriate collection receptacle, higher risk exists for individuals responsible for ultimate disposal. As the container is filled, exposed needles often protrude through the container opening. Therefore, any individual placing needles in this container risks getting stuck with the contaminated needles.
Traditional needle systems have always been a health hazard risk to our medical personnel. Diseases such as Hepatitis and AIDS have brought to our attention the need to develop devices to better protect our medical personnel from these risks.
Although a number of solutions to this problem have been proposed, there remains a need in the art for a more reliable system to reduce the possibility of inadvertent reuse and safe destruction of disposable needle systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,491 to Champ, issued May 1, 1990, discloses one such system wherein a separate container of disinfectant is provided for use with each disposable needle. Although this prior art system appears practical and functional in operation, the cost of manufacture, and the inconvenience of using a separate container, have hindered full acceptance thereof at the present time. The present invention employs some of the advantageous features of this prior art system while minimizing the disadvantages thereof.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved disposable needle structure to facilitate safe disposal thereof.
Another object of the present invention is a disposable needle system that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, reliable in operation, and safely disposable to minimize accidental danger to anyone subsequently handling the needle after use.
A further object of the present invention is a new and novel disposable needle structure.
An additional object of the present invention is a disposable needle system that reduces the chance for accidental needle stick injury to the user of the system.


A pressure sensor is provided. The pressure sensor includes at least two electrodes and an integrated circuit configured to sense a capacitance between the at least two electrodes. Further, the pressure sensor includes a Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) structure including a conductive or dielectric membrane configured to move, depending on the pressure, relative to the at least two electrodes.

Conventional surface micro machined pressure sensor cells include a membrane that is made of polysilicon and forms one electrode of a capacitor. The other electrode is implanted in the silicon bulk. Under pressure the membrane deflects and increases the capacitance of the structure. The cells are usually connected to form capacitor arrays in order to increase the measurable change of the capacitance to a level which is electronically measurable with sufficient signal to noise ratio.
Alternatives are bulk micro machined pressure sensors that use the silicon bulk as membrane that deflects under pressure. Those structures are usually packaged between glass wafers or other silicon wafers which form the pressure port and in case of an absolute pressure sensor an evacuated cavity on the other side. The large majority of those bulk micro machined pressure sensors use piezo resistors to convert the pressure induced stress into a measurable electrical property. Also capacitive conversion using floating counter electrodes on a glass structure that is bonded on the top surface of the Integrated Circuit (IC) may be used. The disadvantage of such a solution is the need of a huge area on the front side of the IC for the anodic bonding between silicon and glass.
The manufacturing of the above sensor structures may be costly. Moreover, conventional pressure sensors based on the piezoelectric effect may suffer several drawbacks. For example, piezoelectric sensor concepts may be hard to integrate and sensitive to stress. Hence, there may be a demand for pressure sensors enabling reduced manufacturing costs and avoiding these drawbacks.

Pressure sensors and method for forming a MEMS pressure sensor


A system and method for virtual device access in a graphics computer is disclosed. The present invention enables applications running on a graphics computer to access the graphics hardware device with no per-transaction performance cost. Each time an application attempts to access the graphics hardware device, a hardware control manager either gives the application access to the graphics hardware device if no other application is currently accessing the hardware, or alternatively, if another application is currently accessing hardware, the hardware control manager instructs a signal handler associated with the application attempting access to perform a graphics context switch with the currently accessing application before the hardware control manager will give permission to the application attempting access to access the graphics hardware device. An important feature of the present invention is that the device dependent features are provided by user level code via the signal handler whereas the hardware control manager supports only device independent features. Another important feature of the present invention is the ability to automatically control data flow without incurring additional overhead.

A graphics hardware device is commonly used in a computer system to render two or three-dimensional representations of an object on a two-dimensional screen of a display device. Typically, an object to be rendered on the display screen is divided into a plurality of graphics primitives. The graphics primitives are basic components of a graphics picture and may be defined by the geometries of a point, line, vector, or polygon, such as a triangle. In order to render the primitives of an object, the primitives are fed through a graphics pipeline where various types of processing occurs, for example, transformation, lighting for shading, clipping, perspective division, and scan conversion. The operations of a graphics pipeline are typically performed by the graphics hardware which receives the primitive data from an application that is running on the computer system.
In the competitive market place of computer software, the time it takes for an application to render an object on a display device is a primary concern. The amount of time required is to a large degree driven by the amount of time each application interface ("API") call takes to execute. For instance, the graphics accelerators which perform their own geometry processing require that the graphics API send the application's image data directly to the graphics hardware. Further, in order to prevent multiple graphics processes from interfering with each other, a given graphics API entry point must ensure its graphics context is currently loaded in the hardware before it can initiate rendering. This checking substantially increases the overhead of the graphics API call. In high performance systems, dedicated graphics accelerators process the graphics data. Therefore, in order to achieve maximum performance, the graphics APIs must deliver the data to the graphics hardware with a minimum amount of overhead. Thus, the overhead associated with negotiating control over the graphics hardware can effectively remove the speed advantages of the graphics accelerator.
Of particular relevance are vertex based APIs wherein each component of a primitive (color, normal, texture coordinate or vertex) is specified with a separate library call, each of which requires a hardware access. Therefore, with vertex based APIs, the time required to lock (i.e., provide exclusive access) and unlock the graphics hardware amounts to a much larger percentage of the work being performed in rendering the primitive than is the case with primitive based APIs where only one library call is made per primitive. Thus, the overhead associated with locking and unlocking the graphics hardware for each component of a primitive significantly decreases the performance of vertex based APIs.
Once the API of an application has been given access to the graphics hardware, the API begins to transmit its data to the graphic hardware. The time required by the graphics hardware to process data can vary by several orders of magnitude depending upon the data and the processes being performed by the graphics accelerator. Therefore, it is possible that the data buffers of the graphics hardware may become full and that data may be lost because the graphics hardware is unable to accept further input data. Consequently, a certain amount of overhead in the graphics API is attributed to managing data flow to check that the data buffers of the graphics hardware have enough space for data that is going to be sent to the graphics hardware by an application.
Accordingly, a need exists in the industry for a system and method for accessing the graphics hardware of a computer system with no per-transaction cost. This is a particular need with regard to vertex based APIs where each library call results in a hardware access. Furthermore, it would be desirable to be able to control the flow of data from the graphics API to the graphics hardware with no device specific kernel support from the operating system, and with a minimum amount of overhead in the API so that data is not lost because the graphics hardware device is able to process the data fast enough.

System and method for virtual device access in a computer system


The attachment comprises a cylinder-embracing support portion at least partly encircling the upper end of the pump cylinder and having openings therein receiving hooks on the cylinder. Unitary with the support portion is a plunger hold-down portion which engages the upper end of the actuator portion of the plunger. The attachment has a tamper-evident frangible zone located between the cylinder-embracing support portion and the engagement with the actuator portion.

In the prior art, a common liquid dispenser has been in the form of a reciprocable pump in which the plunger means has had an actuator portion at its upper end, the actuator portion being formed with a dispensing spout. By virtue of such structure, the plunger means may be depressed with one hand while the other hand receives the liquid. A spring returns the plunger. The pumping and receiving can be accomplished with one hand. Examples of such a pump dispenser are disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,064,310 which issued to R. C. Cooprider Nov. 20, 1962 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,180,534 which issued to O. H. Duda et al Apr. 27, 1965.
In order to assure the consumer that the contents of such dispensers are pristine at purchase and have not been partly used, contaminated or otherwise tampered with, tamper-evident covers or guards have been provided. In one version the guard has been in the form of an attachment to the top of such a dispenser. U.S. Pat. No. 4,424,919 which issued Jan. 10, 1984, to Knox et al discloses a dispenser having an attachment which hooks under an inward lip of a rotatable extension to the usual screw cap and bridges over the top of the actuator to hold it down. Tear lines are formed in the attachment so that a portion of the attachment can be torn away. The look of the torn attachment, still on the container, or if it is missing altogether, makes the tampering evident to the subsequent shopper.
The requirement of a special rotatable extension of Knox et al has, of course, meant an additional part which has had to be assembled onto the cap. In addition, it has sometimes been tricky to hook the clip under the ledge in a reliable manner.

Tamper-evident plunger-hold-down attachment for pump dispenser


The present invention relates to an absolute target system intended to be incorporated in observation satellites. To establish an absolute target system provided with maximum accuracy, the present invention proposes coupling a star sensor (4) to an optical metrological system (5N, 5R). Since these two items of equipment are normally already on board the satellites, in particular for formation flight missions, this solution adds no extra weight or cost.

Currently, in many space missions, and notably those requiring the flight in formation of several satellites, the required absolute pointing accuracy is very high. To carry out the absolute pointing of observation instruments on board satellites, star sensors, also called stellar sensors, are currently used. These conventional star sensors have catalogues of stars whose absolute position is known with great accuracy. However, the star sensors make it possible to point towards a known bright star only approximately, with an accuracy of the order of several seconds of arc.
Thus, for absolute target systems of the state of the art, even the most recent, it is impossible to achieve the absolute pointing accuracies required for the missions currently envisaged, for which the required accuracies are of the order of a tenth of a second of arc.
Furthermore, it is particularly difficult to accurately calibrate this type of instrument: the mechanical and thermoelastic biases induced by the incorporation and launch, and the thermal environment, being virtually impossible to calibrate.
Consequently, the commonly-sought solutions consist:                either in developing new star sensors with the requisite accuracy, that is, less than a second of arc, but this involves heavy investments; furthermore, if such a solution did result in the development of a star sensor with the desired absolute accuracy, this would lead to a major extra cost and weight, which is not desirable, particularly for space applications,        or in seeking to accurately measure the induced biases, but this is very difficult and the residues are in any case generally estimated at several seconds of arc.
One aim of the invention is notably to overcome the abovementioned drawbacks. Thus, to create an absolute target system provided with a maximum accuracy, the present invention proposes coupling a star sensor to an optical metrological sensor. Since these two items of equipment are normally already on board the satellites, in particular for formation flight missions, this solution adds no extra weight or cost.

Absolute target system enhanced by combining a star sensor and a formation flight optical metrological sensor


The invention provides a device module including a device, a connecting part, and a plastic part. The device is a sensor, an electronic component, or a circuit board. The connecting part is connected to the device and includes an external connecting portion. The device and the connecting part are embedded in the plastic part. The plastic part is provided with a first opening that exposes at least the external connecting portion of the connecting part to the outside.

1. Technical Field
The invention relates to device modules.
2. Background Art
There is a known device module including an ornamental panel as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-281601 and a sensor such as a touch panel. The ornamental panel includes a transparent sheet that is touchable by an object to be detected such as a finger, a plastic part disposed on the sheet, and an ornamental layer provided between the sheet and the plastic part. The sensor is fixed to a back face of the plastic part.


The present invention provides a proximity information registration method, a query method, and a user equipment. The proximity information registration method includes: sending, by a first user equipment, a proximity service request to a proximity service server, where the proximity service request sent by the first user equipment carries an equipment identifier of the first user equipment; monitoring and obtaining, by the first user equipment, broadcast information of a second user equipment which is broadcast by the second user equipment; and registering the broadcast information of the second user equipment with the proximity service server, so that the proximity service server converts the broadcast information of the second user equipment into an equipment identifier of the second user equipment according to a correspondence between the equipment identifier of the second user equipment and the broadcast information of the second user equipment stored by the proximity service server.

As social applications are extensively used, a proximity discovery function becomes increasingly important. For example, users wish to know presence or absence of their friends in the vicinity in a timely manner. The proximity discovery function makes people's life and work more convenient. For example, after a user arrives at an office, the user can use the proximity discovery function to quickly know which colleagues will soon arrive at the office.
A method for proximity discovery provided by the prior art is implemented based on an absolute position of a user equipment (User Equipment, hereinafter briefly referred to as UE), where judgment for proximity discovery is mainly based on a cell identity. Therefore, if the radius of a cell is large, an error of a distance between UEs will be enlarged; and it is possible that two UEs close to each other but belonging to two neighboring cells are determined to fall beyond a proximity range. Therefore, the method provided by the prior art has a large error and low accuracy in proximity discovery.
In addition, the method provided by the prior art is implemented by an application server in a network. The network of an operator provides only a pipeline function for information transmission between a user equipment and the application server. Although the network of the operator undertakes enormous network resource overheads for a proximity discovery service, the operator cannot benefit from this service.

Proximity information registration method, query method, and user equipment


A baby bottle support bib intended to be worn by an individual while bottle feeding a baby. A baby bottle is removably attached to the bib so as to be held in the preferred orientation for feeding the baby.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of devices which assist in the feeding and entertainment of babies. In particular, the present invention relates to a bib that will support one or more baby bottles and/or babies' toys, and which is intended to be worn by an individual assisting a baby in feeding from a bottle. With a baby being held in an arm of a person wearing the bib, the bib will support a bottle in a position for feeding a baby. Thus, a person holding a baby for feeding has at least one hand free for performing other tasks.
With few exceptions, all human babies are breast or bottle feed. For the first six to nine months after birth, the baby lacks both the strength and the coordination necessary to hold the bottle in the position necessary for feeding. Further, even if the baby could properly hold the bottle, it should not be left on its own, since it might drink too much or too quickly or ingest too much air, in which case the bottle must be quickly removed from its mouth to avoid choking and to permit burping or coughing. As a result, such infants are usually fed by an older child or an adult.
When bottle feeding a baby, the baby is usually held in one hand and arm, and the bottle in the other hand of the person feeding the baby. Unfortunately, this activity requires the use of both of the feeding person's hands, thus severely limiting the ability of the person to engage in other activities requiring the use of a hand.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
The desirability of providing a device or mechanism to hold a baby bottle in position for feeding a baby while the baby is held in one arm, so as to provide the person feeding the baby with at least one free hand, has been previously recognized. A number of devices are known which are mounted on or in the proximity of the infant for the purpose of supporting a bottle for feeding. Other supports, to be worn by an individual feeding a baby, allow closer supervision of the feeding and can simulate the feelings of intimacy and bonding that come with breast feeding a baby. However, these later supports have not provided ready re-adjustment of the bottle position, to accomodate re-positioning of the baby in the holders arm, or when different individuals use the same support for feeding a baby.
The following patents disclose devices which are worn or mounted on an individual and which support a baby bottle for feeding a baby:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Inventor(s) ______________________________________ 2,893,672 Vardan 3,065,944 Liebendorfer 3,144,230 Brooks 3,197,099 Doba 3,850,393 Marquard 3,977,638 Woodard 4,220,302 Hampton et al. 4,498,613 Donahue et al. 4,776,546 Goldson et al. ______________________________________
The Vardan patent reveals a support structure having an arcuate strap which rests on the wearer's shoulder and from which extends a front strap of adjustable length, the end of which is adapted to hold a baby bottle. The Liebendorfer and Brooks patents disclose supports or holders consisting of a strap that encircles the wearer's neck, with one of the strap ends attached to the baby bottle near its top, and the other strap end attached to the baby bottle near its bottom.
The Doba patent sets forth a nursing bottle holder which consists of a loop that encircles the wearer's neck and a free end in the form of a spiral coil which wraps around the baby bottle to hold it. The Marquard patent reveals a baby bottle holder in the form of a U-shaped clamp that is pivotally mounted on a base member, the back surface of which is provide with one portion of a hook and loop type fastening material such as Velcro.RTM.. The base member is supported by a strap encircling the wearer's neck, the ends of which strap are provided with the other portion of a hook and loop type fastening material to engage the fastening material on the back of the base member.
The Woodard patent depicts a halter type nursing bottle support consisting of a strap that encircles the wearer's neck, the size of which is adjustable by using a series of snaps, and the free end of which is provided with an elastic loop that wraps around a baby bottle to support it. The Hampton patent shows a nursing bottle holder consistings of a bandolier type strap that obliquely encircles the wearer's torso from a shoulder to the waist on the opposite side. A flange portion, having either the hook or loop portion of a Velcro.RTM. type fastener, is provided on the strap to engage a complementary portion of Velcro.RTM. type fastener provided on the outer surface of a strap which encircles the bottle and is held in the encircling position by mating hook and loop pads.
The Donahue patent sets forth a support device for nursing bottles and amusement items consisting of a body strap which encircles the wearer's torso either over one shoulder and under the other arm or under both arms. To this body strap is attached a flexible band, the end of which features a frustoconically contoured elastic loop that is adapted to engage the neck portion of a baby bottle or similarly-shaped item. The Goldson patent reveals a bib-like structure with mammary-shaped areas defining pouches for retaining baby bottles. So as to allow feeding, the nipple of the baby bottle protrudes from an opening in the mammary-pouch portion of the bib.


A deployable thin membrane apparatus for use with a spacecraft is provided. The apparatus includes a flexible membrane structure and a deployment mechanism for transitioning the membrane structure from an undeployed state towards a deployed state in which the membrane can perform a function needed by a spacecraft. In one embodiment, the deployment mechanism includes a plurality of pantographs that each engage the membrane structure, a rotatable disk structure that engages and coordinates the transition of the pantographs from an undeployed state towards a deployed state, and a spring system for providing energy that is used to rotate the disk structure.

Spacecraft typically employ one or more structures have relatively large dimensions when operational. Among these structures are solar sails, antennas, solar arrays, heat shields, de-orbiters and the like. Typically, these structures transition between an undeployed state in which the structures do not provide or only provide in a limited fashion the desired function for the spacecraft and a deployed state in which the structures provide the desired function for the spacecraft. In many instances, these structures must occupy a constrained space when in the undeployed state. In some instances, the structure may have the same dimensions in the constrained space of the undeployed state as the structure has in deployed state. For instance, the dimensions of a flat solar wing that is disposed parallel to the flat side of a spacecraft in an undeployed state has the same dimensions when disposed so as to extend perpendicular to the side of the spacecraft in the deployed state. In other instances, the structure has different dimensions in the constrained space of the undeployed state than the structure has in the deployed state. For example, the dimensions of a solar wing comprised of a number of rigid solar panels that are connected to one another with hinges that allow the panels to be folded in an accordion fashion in the undeployed state are different than when the panels are unfolded to realize a planar structure in the deployed state. For various reasons, structures that employ flexible membranes in which the dimensions in the constrained space of the undeployed state are different than in the deployed state are also employed. Among the reasons for employing flexible membranes are situations in which the dimensions of the constrained space associated with the undeployed state render other approaches problematic. For instance, a structure in which an antenna array structure is implemented with a flexible membrane can more readily occupy a dimensionally irregular space than an antenna array structure implemented with a plurality of hinged rectangular solar panels.
With respect to spacecraft structures that employ flexible membranes to realize large dimensional structures such as solar sails, antennas, solar arrays, heat shields, de-orbiters and the like, the deployment mechanisms employed in these structures have taken various forms. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,530,460 discloses the use of telescoping rods to transition a reflector from an undeployed state to a deployed state. Another deployment mechanism utilizes inflatable tubes to transition a sheet that supports solar cells from an undeployed state to a deployed state. See U.S. Pat. No. 6,568,640.


A conveyor for conveying a workpiece in a vacuum chamber includes a floating body having a conveying rod, a pair of magnetic bearing portions disposed in a moving direction of the floating body and supporting the floating body solely by magnetic forces, and a non-contact driving motor portion for directly reciprocating the floating body. The floating body is directly reciprocated by a linear pulse motor. The linear pulse motor comprises a motor main body and a cog portion, and the motor main body is interposed between a pair of magnetic bearing portions. The cog portion is disposed in a longitudinal or axial direction of the outer peripheral surface of the floating body and coacts with the motor main body to reciprocate the floating body.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a conveyor for conveying workpieces such as semiconductor wafers existing inside a vacuum chamber.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional conveyor of this kind has a cylindrical separator wall 1 as shown in FIG. 5, and one of the ends of this separator wall 1 is open to the inside of a vacuum chamber 2 with the other end being closed by a cover 3.
A floating body 5 having a conveying rod 4 is disposed at the inner peripheral portion of the separator wall 1, and a driving unit 6 is fitted movably to the outer peripheral portion of the separator wall 1. The driving unit 6 is so constituted as to be capable of reciprocating along the outer peripheral portion of the separator wall 1 by a ball screw mechanism 8 disposed on a base 7.
Two sets of magnetic bearing portions 9, 9 are disposed inside the driving unit 6. Each of the magnetic bearing portions 9, 9 includes a plurality of electromagnets 10, 10 and a sensor portion not shown in the drawing. The sensor portion detects the floating position of the floating body 5. Each of the electromagnets 10 is excited on the basis of the detected value outputted from the sensor portion, and is constituted so that its magnetic force acts on the floating body 5 through the separator wall 1. In this way, each magnetic bearing portion 9, 9 supports the floating body 5 like a two-point support beam by magnetism.
In the conveyor described above, the floating body 5 is in advance supported by each magnetic bearing portion 9, 9, and the ball screw mechanism 8 is then driven so as to reciprocate the driving portion 6 along the outer periphery of the separator wall 1. The floating body 5 reciprocates in such a manner as to follow the reciprocation of the driving portion. Accordingly, the conveying rod 4 of the floating body 5 is constituted so as to convey a wafer W.
However, while the transfer of the wafer W by the conveying rod 4 described above can be attained by merely reciprocating the floating body 5, the conventional conveyor must drive the driving portion 6 when the floating body 5 reciprocates. Therefore, the size of the apparatus becomes greater by the moving space required for the driving portion 6 and by the installation space required for the ball screw mechanism 8 for moving the driving portion. Moreover, since the conventional ball screw mechanism 8 generates dust, the separator wall 1 is necessary and hence, the size of the apparatus becomes even greater.

Conveyor for conveying workpieces in a vacuum chamber


An anti tip-off device for rocket rockets adapted for collapsible tube-inbe launchers is provided. The dual-diameter launch tube requires stabilization of the rocket within the larger diameter tube. The anti tip-off device has two segments which together form a hollow cylinder which fits over the nose section of a standard high explosive anti-armor rocket. A sliding surface is located around the circumference of the cylinder to provide support for the rocket during transit of the larger launch tube. The surface contact prevents the rocket from wobbling or tipping during the rocket's transit of the launch tube. Alternately, permanently-bonded stabilizer legs or a bonded ring may be attached to the rocket to match the diameter of the larger launch tube. The anti tip-off device may be fabricated using any material suited to the launcher and rocket combination, including lexan, teflon, nylon, wood, or aluminum.

The current Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon (SMAW) represents a breakthrough in rocket launchers. The latest version of the SMAW manifests a wide variety of improvements designed with improving the operability of the weapon by a single person. Decreases in weapon weight, the movement of the spotting rifle from a side mounted to a bottom-mounted design, and improvements in the sighting and targeting mechanisms have been disclosed in earlier applications. Alone, these improvements have effectively reduced the need for a second person to assist the weapon's primary operator during weapon aiming and firing. However, the methods used in the prior art for attachment of the rocket still represent problems for the efficient use of the new SMAW weapon.
In the prior art, the rocket is enclosed within a separate canister which is connected to the launcher at the time of firing. When the rocket canister is attached, the weapon is at full length, and, due to the bulkiness and length of the barrel, is not maneuverable. One particular problem is that the size of the weapon prevents its easy transport by personnel moving from site to site. In order to move quickly, the weapon must be disassembled and transported in an unloaded fashion. In addition to time lost to unload and reload the rocket, a further disadvantage to this system occurs when hostile forces are encountered during movement. The rocket launcher is not ready for firing. Crucial time must be spent re-connecting the rocket pack to the launcher; time during which the launcher operator is vulnerable to assault by the hostile forces.
In order to remedy these problems, the new SMAW weapon uses a tube within a tube design. This design provides that the launch tube is made up in two sections of a smaller diameter firing tube and a larger diameter rocket tube. The rocket can be attached to the firing tube, and then simply slid into the firing tube for transport. When the need to fire arises, the rocket tube is slid back out from the firing tube and locked in position in a matter of seconds. The use of the tube within a tube design, however, introduces an important obstacle. The diameter of the two tubes must be different. Specifically, the diameter of the rocket tube is correctly sized to the rocket, but the diameter of the firing tube is much larger. During launch, the rocket has not yet gained sufficient velocity to allow for the rocket to stabilize itself by the time the wider tube is entered. The forward end of the rocket is able to tip down or wobble within the rocket tube. This wobble causes several problem effects, including a dramatic reduction in accuracy, possible tumbling of the rocket, and early impact and detonation of the rocket. These effects reduce the combat effectiveness of the weapon and create a safety hazard for the launcher operator.
Prior efforts have been made to provide stabilizers for substantially smaller rockets within a single weapons system. These attempts have been directed towards the use of multiple different caliber weapons within a single tube of constant diameter. A means for stabilizing a rocket in launch tube with multiple bore diameters is needed.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


Techniques are described for generating HLSD for a textual format source code, which, when rendered, causes a display of visual content. The rendering of the source code generates a tree hierarchy of visual source elements, which logically is possible to map to any graph tree. In an embodiment, visual source elements of the source code are classified to higher-level semantic data (HLSD) labels based on their property(s) and/or the property(s) of neighbor visual source element(s) in the tree hierarchy (context). The HLSD labels indicate the type of HLSD widget mapped to the visual source elements. Techniques further include determining features and a layout arrangement for HLSD widgets and generating a template thereof for the visual content.

The approaches described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.
Web page content contains HTML trees of source element nodes, which are difficult to manually edit due to complexity, verbosity, specialized vocabulary, and many other factors. Moreover, HTML trees are not suitable for easy identification of correspondence between the portions of the source code of the HTML node of the tree and the rendered components visible to users. While a user appreciates the simplicity and the beauty of the rendered web page and may describe its content in higher-level semantics, these elements fail to relate to the underlying HTML source code (low-level semantics or no semantics). For example, a user may describe visual components of a web page in terms of a "menu block," "social links block," "image box block," "a section with three equal columns containing other blocks." However, HTML subtrees of nodes corresponding to each of the above-mentioned blocks may contain hundreds or more elements (having "div", "span", "a", "p", and other tags) of source code with lower-level semantics or no semantics at all.
This problem is particular to any kind of source code which lower-level semantics are complex compared to its visual representation. For example, vector graphics, like HTML, may contain complex content in low-level semantics, such as numerous geometric shapes and texts, which visually form a simpler representation.
Such complexity of the source (HTML or vector graphics) creates a barrier for the creation of templates from the existing lower-level source codes (e.g., HTML or vector graphics) for auto-generating customizable UI, web page, or other visual content (e.g., images) from templates generated from one or multiple different and same source codes (e.g., vector graphics to HTML page conversion and vice versa), and for simplifying the modification to existing visual content.
One approach to solve this problem is to import the source code for visual component(s) into a software platform for visual content development or image editing. For example, many such software platforms exist for importing/modifying/creating web pages. However, these software platforms typically maintain the same complexity of the source code even when the web page source code is converted to the platform's proprietary format. Therefore, while having features for editing/modifying existing visual content, these platforms fail to provide any simplification of the original source code.

Generating higher-level semantics data for development of visual content


An apparatus and method for identifying devices on a passive type bus such as an ISA bus where peripheral devices do not identify themselves to the host CPU. The apparatus and method of the present invention has particular application to systems where more than one passive (e.g., ISA type) bus may be implemented and a host CPU has no indication as to which bus a device is coupled to. The data lines of the bus are tied through a pull-up circuit to a logical high level voltage (V.sub.CC) such that, for example in a sixteen-bit data bus, the output data is FF hexadecimal. When a read request is generated on the bus, the bus controller detects whether the data on the bus changes from FF hexadecimal. If a change is detected, then the address device is present on that bus. If the addressed device outputs a data value of FF hexadecimal, that data value is passed through as valid data.

Over a decade ago the IBM.TM. PC AT set the standard for the burgeoning personal computer (PC) industry. Today, IBM.TM. compatible architectures make up approximately 90% of the PC marketplace. Along side the tremendous growth of the PC market itself there has also grown up a very large market for add-on peripheral devices of all types. Because of the dominance of the IBM PC AT architecture, its peripheral bus, the so-called "AT" or "ISA" (Industry Standards Association) bus has become the dominant standard for connecting add-on peripheral devices to a PC system. The operation of ISA bus type computer systems is described in more detail in ISA System Architecture (New Revised Edition) by Tom Shanley and Don Anderson (.COPYRGT.1991 and 1993, Mindshare Press, 2202 Buttercup Drive, Richardson Tex. 75802, ISBN 1-881609-05-7) and incorporated herein by reference.
After more than ten years in use, however, the limitations of the ISA bus have caused a growing movement to define newer, more advanced peripheral buses. Two of the largest drawbacks to the ISA bus are its low level of performance, by today's standards, and that it may be very difficult to configure peripheral devices on an ISA bus as they give no explicit indication of their presence in the system or of their support requirements.
At present, the recently defined advanced peripheral bus, the so-called "PCI" bus is gaining momentum and looks likely to become the standard peripheral bus for a next generation of PCs. The operation of PCI bus type computer systems is described in more detail in PCI System Architecture (New Expanded Edition Rev 2.0 Compliant) by Tom Shanley (.COPYRGT.1993, Mindshare Press, 2202 Buttercup Drive, Richardson Tex. 75802, ISBN 1-881609-08-1) and incorporated herein by reference. However, new bus designs, such as the PCI bus, may have substantial obstacles and problems to overcome. Although newer bus type designs have technological advantages over the ISA bus design, there exists a large installed base of ISA bus type computers and compatible software. For the purposes of this application, these ISA bus type computers will be referred to as "legacy" computers or systems.
In order to provide a computer system which has the advantages of a new (e.g., PCI) bus design, it may be desirable to provide a computer with both PCI and ISA compatible buses. FIG. 1 illustrates an example of such a system. As shown in FIG. 1, a computer (e.g., PC, laptop, notebook or the like) may be provided with a CPU 100, a CPU interface to PCI Host controller 110 (hereinafter "PCI host controller") and a PCI bus 120. A number of peripheral devices 130,140 compatible with PCI bus architecture may be coupled to PCI bus 120. Such devices may include I/O controllers, memory, video controllers, hard drive controllers, or the like. A number of such devices may be provided coupled to PCI bus 120, however, for the purposes of illustration only two such devices 130,140 are shown here.
In addition to devices 130,140, a Primary PCI to ISA controller 150 (hereinafter "ISA controller") may be coupled to PCI bus 120. ISA controller 150 is itself a PCI bus compatible device and may be read from or written to through PCI bus 120 in a manner similar to devices 130,140. ISA controller 150 is coupled to ISA bus 160. ISA bus compatible devices 170,180 may be coupled to ISA bus 160. ISA bus compatible devices 170,180 may comprise any one of a number of peripheral devices compatible with the ISA bus architecture.
The dual bus system of FIG. 1 provides both PCI and ISA bus compatibility for both hardware and software. As the amount of Legacy hardware and software in existence is large, it is preferable to provide such a dual-bus system which is backwardly compatible.
However, the system of FIG. 1 may present some difficult hardware and software design problems For example, the fundamental bus architecture of the ISA bus and PCI bus are different. The PCI bus is a synchronous bus, using an internal PCI bus clock to regulate the transfer of data and bus cycles The ISA bus is an asynchronous bus architecture. Moreover, an ISA bus type computer system must be provided with direct memory access (DMA) channels and ISA type interrupt levels (IRQ) not present in the PCI type bus system. ISA controller 150 may be provided to convert ISA interrupt requests and generic ISA bus cycles into PCI compatible bus cycles, however there is no mechanism for handling DMA cycles.
While the use of such a controller may be suitable for a system having a single ISA bus, additional problems may be created if multiple ISA bus controllers are used. For example, for a portable computer, it may be desirable to provide a so-called docking station with a PCI bus interface. The docking station may be provided with a PCI to ISA bus interface controller to drive ISA bus compatible peripheral devices. If the portable computer also has an ISA to PCI bus interface controller, two ISA type buses may be present in one computer system at the same time. Since, as noted above, peripherals on an ISA system do not provide explicit indication of their presence on the ISA bus, it may be difficult to address ISA devices for read and write operations.


A cradle for a telephone is disclosed. The telephone cradle includes a latch bar and a spring mechanism and a latching mechanism. The latch bar pivots so as to capture a telephone when the telephone is inserted into the cradle, thereby securely holding the telephone in the cradle. A user then may release the telephone by pressing on the top surface of the latch bar. As the user presses on the latch bar a latching mechanism is released and the latch bar moves into the released position, thereby moving the telephone so that it is easily grasped by a user.

As cellular telephones developed over the years, their size has steadily decreased. This has been partly due to the integration of many of the telephones electronic functions into semiconductor devices such as digital signal processors specifically designed to process the electrical operations of a cellular telephone. In addition, smaller, more powerful batteries have been developed. This has allowed cellular telephone makers to adopt one piece designs. In these one piece designs, all of the functions of the handset and the housing are integrated into a one-piece handheld unit.
Cellular telephones are used extensively within vehicles such as cars and trucks. Cradles for newer one-piece telephones typically attach to the vehicle and provide a secure receptacle to hold the telephone when it is not in use. Because all of the functions are integrated into the telephone itself, there are no electronic components disposed within the cradle and there is no connection between the cradle and the telephone as with older two piece designs.
Prior art cradles typically include latching mechanisms in order to hold the telephone securely in the cradle. This assures that there is a good electrical contact between the telephone and the cradle so as to allow for charging the telephone. The latching mechanism holds the telephone tightly in place, thereby assuring that the telephone will not fall out of the cradle.
Prior art latching mechanisms typically include one or more buttons which must be pressed in order to release the telephone. In one prior art cradle design, two buttons are located on either side of the cradle. In order to remove the telephone from the cradle, the user must press both buttons and lift the telephone out of the cradle. These buttons are relatively small and are located on opposite sides of the cradle. This requires two hands, one hand to press the two buttons and the other hand to remove the telephone from the cradle. In addition, the user must look down to see the location of the two buttons in order to press them. This makes removal of the telephone difficult if not impossible while the user is operating the vehicle.
Prior art cradle designs typically place the telephone directly against a receiving surface of the cradle. Because the user cannot get his hands around the telephone, when the user attempts to remove the telephone from the cradle, the telephone is difficult to grasp. The user typically must concentrate and use two hands to pry the telephone out of the cradle.
What is needed is a cradle for a cellular telephone which is easy to use. In addition, a cradle is needed which does not require the user to operate small buttons in order to remove the telephone from the cradle. A cradle which holds the telephone securely in place is also required. In addition, a need exists for a cradle which does not require the use of both hands during the removal of the telephone from the cradle. The present invention meets the above needs.


Provided herein are mutant endonuclease V enzymes that are capable of nicking an inosine-containing DNA sequence. Nucleic acid assays and agents that employ such mutant endonuclease V enzymes to introduce a nick into a target DNA including one or more inosine, and uses a DNA polymerase to generate amplicons of a target DNA are also described.

DNA amplification is a process of copying a single or double-stranded target DNA to generate multiple copies of the target DNA. Since DNA strands are antiparallel and complementary, each strand may serve as a template (template strand) for the production of an opposite strand (complementary strand) by a DNA polymerase. The template strand is preserved as a whole or as a truncated portion and the complementary strand is assembled from nucleoside triphosphates. A variety of techniques are currently available for efficient amplification of nucleic acids such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR), ligase chain reaction (LCR), self-sustained sequence replication (3SR), nucleic acid sequence based amplification (NASBA), strand displacement amplification (SDA), multiple displacement amplification (MDA), or rolling circle amplification (RCA). Many of these techniques generate a large number of amplified products in a short span of time. For example, in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a target DNA, a pair of primers and a DNA polymerase are combined and subjected to repeated temperature changes that permit melting, annealing, and elongation steps to result in an exponential amplification of the starting target DNA. However, in PCR, the melting or denaturation step typically occurs at a high temperature limiting the choice of polymerases to thermophilic polymerases.
DNA amplification often suffers from high background signals, which are generated by non-specific amplification reactions yielding undesired/false amplification products. For example, non-specific amplification may result from various primer gymnastics such as nucleic acid template-independent primer-primer interactions. Primers may form primer-dimer structures by intra- or inter-strand primer annealing (intra molecular or inter molecular hybridizations), and may get amplified, and may sometimes predominate, inhibit, or mask the amplification of a target DNA sequence. Such non-specific, background amplification reactions become even more problematic where the target nucleic acid to be amplified is available only in limited quantities (e.g., whole-genome amplification from a single DNA molecule). Efficient DNA amplification techniques are needed, if they are to be used for critical applications such as diagnostic applications, wherein a false-positive amplification may likely result in a wrong diagnosis.
Endonuclease V (also referred as endo V or deoxyinosine 3″ endonuclease) is a DNA repair enzyme that recognizes DNA containing deoxyinosine (a deamination product of deoxyadenosine, also referred as inosine) residues. Endonuclease V primarily cleaves the second or third phosphodiester bond 3′ to an inosine residue in the same strand leaving a nick with a 3′-hydroxyl and a 5′-phosphate. Endonuclease V was first described in Escherichia coli (E. coli). Apart from inosine residues, E. coli endonuclease V also recognizes, to a lesser degree, otherwise modified bases such as abasic sites (AP sites) or urea, base mismatches, insertion/deletion mismatches, hairpin or unpaired loops, flaps and pseudo-Y structures. One or more embodiments of the present invention are directed towards engineered endonuclease V enzymes (mutant endonuclease V) and their use in nucleic acid assays such as strand displacement DNA amplification reactions, wherein the selective nicking capability of mutant endonuclease V is employed to develop an improved method of DNA amplification.

Mutant endonuclease V enzymes and applications thereof


Packaging of respiring biological materials, particularly bananas and other fruits, in sealed containers. The containers preferably include a gas-permeable membrane comprising (1) a microporous film, and (2) a polymeric coating on the microporous film. Using appropriate containers and appropriate controlled atmospheres around the container, the respiring materials can be stored and/or ripened under controlled conditions. Bananas can be ripened while they are being transported, or in conventional ripening rooms without opening the containers in which they have been transported. The ripe bananas are less dehydrated and remain in a satisfactory ripened state for longer periods of time. The gas-permeable membrane can preferably take the form of either a “curtain” or “cartridge” and the R ratio of the membrane may be optimized by adjusting the differential pressure across the membrane.

This invention relates to the control of atmospheres around respiring biological materials.
Respiring biological materials, e.g., fruits and vegetables, consume oxygen (O2) and produce carbon dioxide (CO2) at rates which depend upon the stage of their development, the atmosphere surrounding them and the temperature. In modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), the respiring materials are surrounded by a packaging atmosphere in a sealed container and the packaging atmosphere is controlled by providing an atmosphere control member (ACM) which (a) has one surface in contact with the packaging atmosphere and an opposite surface in contact with an external atmosphere and (b) has a permeability to O2 and CO2 such that gas exchange of O2 and CO2 through the ACM produces the desired packaging atmosphere. In controlled atmosphere packaging (CAP), by contrast, the desired packaging atmosphere is produced, initially and/or on a continuous or discontinuous program, simply by displacing some or all of the atmosphere within a sealed container by one or more gases, e.g., nitrogen, O2 and CO2, in desired proportions.
For further details of MAP and CAP, reference may be made, for example, to U.S. Pat. No. 3,360,380 (Bedrosian), U.S. Pat. No. 3,450,542 (Badran), U.S. Pat. No. 3,450,544 (Badran et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 3,798,333 (Cummin et al), U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,010 (Erb), U.S. Pat. No. 4,003,728 (Rath), U.S. Pat. No. 4,734,324 (Hill), U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,524 (Wade), U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,863 (Jones), U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,875 (Anderson), U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,078 (Antoon), U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,032 (Antoon), U.S. Pat. No. 4,923,703 (Antoon), U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,745 (Harris), U.S. Pat. No. 5,041,290 (Wallace et al.) U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,331 (Antoon), U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,753 (Woodruff), U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,768 (Antoon), U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,354 (Stewart), U.S. Pat. No. 5,333,394 (Herdeman), U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,335 (Raudalus et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,851 (Christie et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5,460,841 (Herdeman), U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,658 (Raudalus et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5,658,607 (Herdeman), U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,630 (Christie et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 5,832,699 (Zobel), U.S. Pat. No. 5,872,721 (Huston et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,013,293 (De Moor), U.S. Pat. No. 6,190,710 (Nir et al), U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,724 (Clarke et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,296,923 (Zobel), U.S. Pat. No. 6,376,032 (Clarke et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,548,132 (Clarke et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 7,329,452 (Clarke), U.S. Pat. No. 7,601,202 (Noack et al), U.S. Pat. No. 7,601,374 (Clarke), U.S. Pat. No. 7,801,374 (Clarke), U.S. Pat. No. 7,866,258 (Jorgensen), and U.S. Pat. No. 8,177,883 (Maersk); copending commonly assigned U.S. application Ser. No. 09/580,379 (Clarke) and Ser. No. 09/858,190 (Clarke); US Patent Application Publication Nos. 2003/0057217 (Wyslotsky), 2005/0266129 (Mir), 2007/0259082 (Clarke et al.), 2008/0008793 and 2008/0008794 (Forsyth et al.), 2008/0202262 (Schmidt et al.), and 2011/0293802 (Alfaro et al.); International Publication Nos. WO 94/12040 (Fresh Western), WO 96/38495 (Landec), WO 00/04787 (Landec), WO 01/92118 (Landec), WO 03/043447 (Landec), WO 2004/060538 (Blue Membranes), WO 2004/10868 (Maersk), WO 2005/074466 (Landec) and WO 2008/17307 (Maersk); and European Applications Nos. 0,351,115 and 0,351,116 (Courtaulds). The disclosure of each of those patents, applications and publications is incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

Atmosphere control around respiring biological materials


A main-scanning start point sensor detects a laser beam at a position outside of an effective main scanning region with respect to a photosensitive material, which is to be scanned with the laser beam produced by a semiconductor laser and is moving in a subscanning direction. A leading end sensor detects a leading end of the photosensitive material by detecting that the laser beam has been blocked by the leading end. Generators generate a first level driving signal, which sets an emission intensity of the semiconductor laser at a first level, and a second level driving signal, which sets the emission intensity at a second level lower than the first level. During a main scanning period, in which the laser beam can impinge upon the effective main scanning region, the second level driving signal and a modulating signal, which modulates the laser beam with an image signal, are fed into a semiconductor laser driving circuit respectively before and after the leading end is detected. During a main scanning period, in which the laser beam impinges upon the main-scanning start point sensor, the first level driving signal is fed into the semiconductor laser driving circuit.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image reproducing apparatus. This invention particularly relates to an image reproducing apparatus, wherein a laser beam produced by a semiconductor laser is directly modulated in accordance with an image signal, the modulated laser beam is caused to scan a photosensitive material in a main scanning direction and a sub-scanning direction, and an image represented by the image signal is thereby reproduced on the photosensitive material.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various image reproducing apparatuses have heretofore been used wherein a light beam is modulated in accordance with an image signal, the modulated light beam is caused to scan a photosensitive material in a main scanning direction and a sub-scanning direction, and an image represented by the image signal is thereby reproduced on the photosensitive material. In such image reproducing apparatuses, semiconductor lasers are often used as light sources for producing the light beams. Semiconductor lasers are advantageous in that, for example, the laser beams produced by the semiconductor lasers can be modulated directly, and the semiconductor lasers can be driven with a small driving electric power.
Basically, such an image reproducing apparatus comprises:
a semiconductor laser for producing a laser beam,
a driving circuit for driving the semiconductor laser,
a main scanning means for causing the laser beam to scan a photosensitive material in a main scanning direction,
a sub-scanning means for moving the photosensitive material with respect to the laser beam in a sub-scanning direction, which is approximately normal to the main scanning direction, and
a modulation means for feeding a modulating signal into the semiconductor laser driving circuit, the modulating signal modulating the laser beam in accordance with an image signal.
For the purposes of causing the laser beam, which has been modulated in the manner described above, to scan the photosensitive material in the main scanning direction and in the sub-scanning direction, a technique is often employed wherein the laser beam is caused by a light deflector, such as a rotating polygon mirror or a galvanometer mirror, to scan the photosensitive material in the main scanning direction, and at the same time the photosensitive material is moved with respect to the laser beam in the sub-scanning direction, which is approximately normal to the main scanning direction. In such cases, for the purposes of defining the timing with which the modulation of the laser beam is begun, it is necessary to detect that the leading end of the photosensitive material, which is moving, has reached the position to which the laser beam is irradiated. Also, for the purposes of achieving horizontal synchronization, it is necessary to detect that the laser beam has passed through a predetermined point (i.e., a main-scanning start point) outside of an effective scanning region with respect to the photosensitive material.
In cases where the semiconductor laser is employed as the light source for producing a reproducing light beam, for the purposes of detecting the leading end of the photosensitive material and the main-scanning start point, a semiconductor laser for synchronization has heretofore been provided independently of the semiconductor laser for image reproduction. A synchronizing laser beam, which has been produced by the semiconductor laser for synchronization and has a predetermined intensity, is caused to impinge upon a single light deflector together with the reproducing laser beam. The synchronizing laser beam and the reproducing laser beam are deflected such that the position, which is being scanned with the synchronizing laser beam, and the position, which is being scanned with the reproducing laser beam, correspond to each other. The leading end of the photosensitive material and the main-scanning start point are detected by detecting the synchronizing laser beam. In this manner, the leading end of the photosensitive material and the main scanning start point can be detected accurately by utilizing the synchronizing laser beam, which has not been modulated.
However, in cases where the semiconductor laser for synchronization is provided in addition to the semiconductor laser for image reproduction, the cost of the image reproducing apparatus cannot be kept low. Also, operations for assembling and adjusting the image reproducing apparatus become complicated.