Cell lines that express complementing levels of herpes simplex virus (HSV) essential immediate early proteins ICP4 and ICP27 and a method of producing the novel cell lines are disclosed. These cell lines are utilized to provide HSV strains deficient for both ICP4 and ICP27, and their generation, and HSV strains deficient for ICP4 and ICP27 and one or more additional genes, and their generation. Vectors are provided from these methods of using these HSV strains for gene transfer and for producing site-specific homologous recombination with cellular DNA.

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) contains a double-stranded, linear DNA genome comprised of approximately 152 kbp of nucleotide sequence, which encodes more than 80 genes. The viral genes are transcribed by cellular RNA polymerase II and are temporally regulated, resulting in the transcription and subsequent synthesis of gene products in roughly three discernable phases. These phases, or kinetic classes of genes are referred to as the Immediate Early (IE, or .alpha.), Early (E, or .beta.) and Late (L, or .gamma.) genes. Immediately following the arrival of the genome of a virus in the nucleus of a newly infected cell, the IE genes are transcribed. The efficient expression of these genes does not require prior viral protein synthesis. The products of IE genes are required to activate transcription and regulate the remainder of the viral genome.
One IE protein, Infected Cell Polypeptide 4 (ICP4), also known as .alpha.4, or Vmw175, is absolutely required for both virus infectivity and the transition from IE to later transcription. Owing to its complex, multifunctional nature and its central role in the regulation of HSV gene expression, ICP4 has been the subject of numerous genetic and biochemical studies. (See DeLuca, et al., 1987, Nucleic Acids Res. 15:4491-4511; DeLuca, et al., 1988, J. Virol. 62:732-743; Paterson, et al., 1988, Virology, 166:186-196; Paterson, et al., 1988, Nucleic Acids Res. 16:11005-11025; Shepard, et al., 1989, J. Virol. 63:3714-3728; and Shepard, et al., 1991, J. Virol. 65:787-795). Aiding in these studies was the development of a system to grow herpes viruses that contain mutations which inactivate essential viral proteins. In this case, cell lines were generated by cotransformation with a plasmid DNA that encoded the neomycin resistance gene from E. coli under the control of SV40 early promoter and a plasmid encoding the wild-type ICP4gene. (See DeLuca, et al., 1985, J. Virol. 56:558-570 and DeLuca, et al., 1987, Nucleic Acids Res. 15:4491-4511). These stable cell lines were used to generate and propagate mutant viruses that are void of ICP4 activity. (See DeLuca, et al., 1985, J. Virol. 56:558-570; DeLuca, et al., 1988, J.Virol. 62:732-743; Imbalzano, et al. 1991, J. Virol. 65:565-574; Shepard, et al., 1989, J. Virol., 63:3714-3728, 1989; and Shepard, et al., 1991, J. Virol. 65:787-795). Since the first report of this approach to HSV genetics, numerous studies have followed utilizing this strategy.
From the phenotype of viruses deleted in ICP4, it became evident that such viruses would be potentially useful for gene transfer purposes. Several studies have been published exploring the potential use of such viruses for gene transfer. (See Breakefield, et al., 1991, Treatment of Genetic Diseases, Churchill Livingstone, Inc.; and Chocca, et al., 1990, The New Biologist 2:739-746). One property of viruses deleted for ICP4 that makes them desirable for gene transfer is that they only express the five other IE genes: ICP0, ICP6, ICP27, ICP22 and ICP47. (See DeLuca, et al., 1985, J. Virol. 56:558-570). This excludes the expression of viral genes encoding proteins that direct viral DNA synthesis, as well as the structural proteins of the virus. This is desirable from the standpoint of minimizing possible deleterious effects on host cell metabolism following gene transfer.
Despite the fact viruses deleted for ICP4 are blocked at the earliest stage of infection genetically possible subsequent to the delivery of the genome to the host cell nucleus, two phenomena have complicated the use of such viruses for effective gene transfer, or therapy. First, viruses deleted for essential genes, such as ICP4-deficient viruses, require that they are propagated on cultured cells engineered to contain and express the gene deleted from the virus. (See DeLuca, N. A., 1985, J. Virol. 56:558-570). This often results in a subpopulation of viruses that are no longer deleted for that gene due to homologous recombination events between the mutant viral genome and the wild-type gene resident in the host cell genome. (See DeLuca, et al., 1985. J. Virol. 56:558-570). In some cases, this is minimized by deleting from the virus HSV sequences flanking the deleted gene and excluding these sequences from the plasmid used to generate the permissive transformed cell line. Therefore, the gene resident in the transformed cell line does not have flanking nucleotide sequence homology on both sides to promote homologous recombination. This is the case for the ICP4 deletion virus-transformed cell line pair, d120-E5 cells (See DeLuca, et al., 1985, J. Virol. 56:558-570 and DeLuca, et al., 1987, Nucleic Acids Res. 15:4491-4511) and the ICP27 deletion virus-transformed cell line pair, 5 dl 1.2-2-3 cells. (See McCarthy, et al., 1989. J. Virol. 63:18-27).
Secondly, despite only expressing the four other immediate early proteins, ICP4-deficient viruses are toxic to cells in culture and presumably to the majority of cells in an animal. This is most probably due to the expression of one or more of the remaining immediate early proteins and not primarily due to components of the incoming capsid since certain defective HSV virus particles, which contain all the capsid components and none of the IE genes, are not toxic. In addition, ICP4 deficient viruses shutoff host cell protein synthesis through the activity of the UL41 virion gene product (Leib, et al., 1989, J. Virol. 63:759-768; Read, et al., 1993, J. Virol. 67:7149-7160.) The cytotoxicity of ICP4.sup.(-) HSV strains is not due to ICP22 and ICP47 and is probably mediated by multiple gene products (Johnson, et al., 1992, J. Virol. 66:2952-2965.)
An HSV mutant virus deficient for the non-essential UL41 gene product is described by Read, et al. (1993, J. Virol. 67:7149-7160.) No potential use of this UL41.sup.(-) HSV mutant as a eukaryotic gene transfer vehicle is suggested by the authors.
HSV ribounucleotide reductase consists of a large (ICP6) and small subunit. Goldstein and Weller (1988, J. Virol. 62:196-205) disclose (1) ribonucleotide reductase activity is not essential for HSV growth, and (2) ICP6may be inactivated via homologous recombination with a reporter gene (lacZ). The resulting ICP6.sup.(-) :LacZ.sup.(+) HSV strain expresses lacZ and is not dependent upon exogenous ribonucleotide reductase for viral growth. No potential use of this recombinant HSV strain as a gene therapy vehicle is disclosed, taught or suggested.
Therefore, despite attempts to alleviate various problems with use of known HSV mutant strains upon host cell infection, a need exists for defective herpes simplex virus strains that exhibit efficient growth in a controlled laboratory complementing system, a lower level of wild-type virus regeneration and lowered cytotoxic effects.

Herpes simplex virus strains for gene transfer

University of Pittsburgh of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education


A method for manufacturing a hybrid printed circuit board having two kinds of wiring boards. The circuit board has method has a first wiring board having a first terminal and, a second wiring board wherein a dent wherein the first wiring board is fitted and equipped with a second terminal is formed, and forming the same plane as the first wiring board. The board also has an insulating adhesive material disposed around the first terminal, and a conductive adhesive joining the first terminal with the second terminal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a hybrid printed circuit board.
2. Description of the Related Art
A hybrid printed circuit board refers to a composite printed circuit board wherein electronic parts are mounted on a printed circuit board.
A package wherein electronic parts are electrically connected to the circuit surface of a semiconductor chip via arrayed metal electrodes (bumps) is referred to as flip chip packaging.
A typical flip chip is a ball grid array (BGA) package.
The BGA package is a kind of package boards wherein LSIs, such as a CPU, and other electronic parts, such as capacitors, and they are connected to a printed circuit board (also known as "system board" or "mother board") by soldering.
The BGA package has a plurality of solder balls (the solder balls are also referred to as "BGA balls" on the joining surface with the printed circuit board.
For solder balls, the use of lead-free solder is required considering the effect on environment.
As shown in FIG. 10A, upon assembling a package module 10, after mounting an LSI 14 and other electronic parts 17 on a package board 12, solder balls 19 are fixed on grid arrayed pads 18.
The LSI 14 is mounted on the package board 12 via solder balls 15, and an under-fill 16 is filled between the solder balls 15 for reinforcing joining force.
The package module 10 is positioned to and loaded on a printed circuit board 20 wherein footprints 22 have been formed.
Thereafter, these are introduced into a reflow furnace (not shown) by a belt conveyor (not shown) and heated.
Thus, as shown FIG. 10B, the solder balls 19 are melted, and soldered to the footprints 22.
Such an assembling process is referred to as a "reflow" process.
Here, FIGS. 10A and 10B are sectional view for illustrating the manufacture of a conventional hybrid printed circuit board 1.
However, the above-described conventional hybrid printed circuit board 1 has disadvantage of poor electrical characteristics.
Specifically, if lead-free solder is used in solder balls 19, the reflow temperature becomes high.
At this time, when the material for the package board 12 is different from the material for the printed circuit board 20, if a difference in coefficients of thermal expansion is large, thermal stress is applied to the joining portion between the solder balls 19 and the footprints 22, and the reliability of joining is lowered.
Since the solder balls 15 are also re-melted during reflowing, if voids due to air bubbles that are produced by pour soldering, the solder balls 19 melt and flow into the voids causing short-circuiting between the solder balls 15.
Furthermore, the adhesive force of the under-fill 16 is lowered by thermal stress, and the solder balls may be peeled off.
The conventional hybrid printed circuit board 1 also has the disadvantage of low manufacturing efficiency.
Specifically, when a conventional hybrid printed circuit board is assembled, an LSI 14 and electronic parts 17 must be mounted on a package board 12 before mounting the package module 10 on the printed circuit board 20.
In other words, all the electronic parts cannot be collectively mounted on the hybrid printed circuit board 1.
Furthermore, since the package module 10 mounted on the printed circuit board 20 is protruded from the printed circuit board 20, it is easily caught by external members to make handling characteristics poor.

Method for manufacturing hybrid printed circuit board


A level shifter circuit includes two parallel current paths respectively controlled by switch transistors, a Wilson current mirror circuit, and a slew rate control circuit to selectively couple an output node either to a high (first) voltage source or to a ground (second voltage) source in response to differential input control signals signal. When the output node reaches a stable (high or low) voltage level, the low voltage on one of the current paths turns off a Wilson current mirror transistor in the other current path, thereby preventing quiescent current during stable periods. An optional cascode transistor is added to facilitate fabrication using low threshold voltage transistors.

FIG. 8 is a simplified block diagram showing a portion of an electronic system 40 including two electronic devices 41 and 42 that operate using different operating voltages VDD and VHV, where VHV is higher (or lower) than VDD. Due to the different operating voltages, first electronic device 41 generates data signals having a voltage swing between GND and VDD (e.g., logic "1" data values are represented by 1V signal levels, and logic "0" data values are represented by 0V signal levels), whereas second electronic device 42 generates data signals having a voltage swing between GND and VHV (e.g., logic "1" data values are represented by 2.5V signal levels, and logic "0" data values are represented by 0V signal levels). Those skilled in the art recognize that data signals generated by device 41 typically cannot be utilized by device 42, and vice versa, due to the different voltages representing logic "1" data values.
In general, voltage level shifters are electronic circuits that facilitate communication between two electronic devices by converting "input" signals generated at the operating voltage of the first device to "output" signals that match the operating voltage of the second device. By way of example, as indicated in FIG. 8, a level shifter 50 is included in system 40 between devices 41 and 42, receives "input" data signals (DATA1) from device 41 having VDD/0V voltage levels, and generates "output" data signals (DATA2) having VHV and 0V signal levels, thereby facilitating the transfer of data signals from device 41 to device 42. More specifically, an "input" data signal DATA1 having the digital (binary) value 1010 is represented by a series of voltage signals respectively having the signal levels VDD, 0V, VDD and 0V, respectively. Level shifter 50 converts this "input" data signal to an "output" data signal DATA2 having the same digital (binary) value 1010, but having the voltage levels VHV, 0V, VHV and 0V, respectively, and transmits this "output" data signal to device 42. In this way, the "input" data signals generated by device 41 is converted to form "output" signals whose voltage levels match the operating voltage device 42.
In addition to converting "input" signals to match the operating voltage of the second device, level shifters often include slew rate control circuitry that allows selective control of the "output" data signal slew rate. Referring again to FIG. 8, according to one approach, level shifter 50 receives a slew rate control current T and includes circuitry (not shown) that adjusts the slew rate of "output" data signal DATA2 (i.e., the rate at which the output voltage level changes between VHV and 0V during the generation of a binary signal) in accordance with the magnitude of control current ISLEW. Such slew rate controlled level shifters further facilitate the transfer of data between two devices by facilitating, through the adjustment of control current ISLEW, the transmission of the "output" data signals at a slew rate that is supported by the downstream (second) device (e.g., device 42 in FIG. 8).
It has become increasingly desirable to provide electronic systems and devices that exhibit reduced power consumption in order to maximize battery life in portable applications. A problem with conventional slew rate controlled level shifters is that they exhibit quiescent current (leakage) after the "output" signal is held stable at a selected voltage level (i.e., 0V or VHV), thereby undesirably reducing battery life.
What is needed is a slew rate controlled level shifter that minimizes quiescent current after the "output" signal has reached a selected voltage level (i.e., 0V or VHV), thereby undesirably reducing battery life.

Slew rate controlled level shifter with reduced quiescent current


A synchronization circuit for re-synchronizing data from an input clock to an output clock is presented. The first transparent latch receives data synchronized to an input clock. A second transparent latch receives data from the first transparent latch and outputs data dependent on a delayed output clock which is the output clock delayed by an insertion delay. An output latch receives data from the second transparent latch and synchronizes data to the output clock.

Double Data Rate (DDR and DDRII) and Quad Data Rate (QDR and QDRII) are industry standard architectures for high-speed networking Static Random Access Memory (SRAM). The DDR architecture doubles the data rate of standard SRAM by performing two memory accesses per clock cycle. In the QDR architecture, the input port and the output port are separate and operate independently allowing two memory reads and two memory writes per clock cycle. With two memory reads and writes per clock cycle, the QDR architecture quadruples the data rate of standard SRAM by allowing four memory accesses per clock cycle.
The QDR architecture was originally designed for high speed SRAM interfaces. However, the QDR architecture has been adopted for other high frequency applications, for example, as a standard interface to memory based co-processors.
The QDR architecture defines a master clock pair that is used to control read and write accesses to the SRAM. For example, all data read from SRAM is aligned to the rising edges of the master clock pair.
When operating at a low operating frequency, for example, below 133 MHz, there is sufficient time for a bus master such as, an ASIC or a microprocessor coupled to the QDR device to use the rising edges of the master clock pair to capture the data synchronized to the master clock pair. However, as the operating frequency of the QDR device is increased, data valid windows and hold times decrease accordingly. Data synchronized to the master clock pair by the memory based co-processor may not be valid when captured by the bus master using the master clock pair. In order to allow the bus master to capture valid data when operating at higher frequencies, the QDR architecture also defines a data clock pair. The data clock pair is a phase-shifted version of the master clock pair.
The QDR architecture permits the bus master to use the data clock pair to capture the data instead of the master clock pair in order to meet data setup and hold times at the bus master. Thus, the memory-based co-processor must synchronize the data to the data clock pair after it has been read from data storage. There can be a significant phase difference (skew) between the master clock pair and the data clock pair.

Double data rate output latch for static RAM device has edge-triggered flip-flop to output DDR signal to synchronize with a second clock signal


A protective shield having an upper portion, which may be configured to provide ballistic protection to at least a head of a user, and a lower portion, which may be configured to provide ballistic protection to at least a torso of the user. The upper portion may have a width wider than the head of the user. The lower portion may have a width that is greater than the width of the upper portion, and therefore extends laterally beyond the upper portion (forming at least one weapon support region on the protective shield).

Protective shields are often utilized by law enforcement and military personnel to provide protection against ballistic threats such as firearms. The protective shields available today are reasonably light in weight, and typically provide adequate resistance to projectile penetration. As a result, protective shields have become standard equipment utilized by law enforcement and military personnel in high risk situations.
Among those benefits and improvements that have been disclosed, other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures. The figures constitute a part of this specification and include illustrative embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof.


Non-C2-symmetric bisphospholane ligands and methods for their preparation are described. Use of metal/non-C2-symmetric bisphospholane complexes to catalyze asymmetric transformation reactions to provide high enantiomeric excesses of formed compounds is also described.

A growing trend in the pharmaceutical industry is to market chiral drugs in enantiomerically pure form to provide desired positive effects in humans. Production of enantiomerically pure compounds is important for several reasons. First, one enantiomer often provides a desired biological function through interactions with natural binding sites, but another enantiomer typically does not have the same function or effect. Further, it is possible that one enantiomer has harmful side effects, while another enantiomer provides a desired positive biological activity. To meet this demand for chiral drugs, many approaches for obtaining enantiomerically pure compounds have been explored such as diastereomeric resolution, structural modification of naturally occurring chiral compounds, asymmetric catalysis using synthetic chiral catalysts and enzymes, and the separation of enantiomers using simulated moving bed (SMB) technology.
Asymmetric catalysis is often the most efficient method for the synthesis of enantiomerically enriched compounds because a small amount of a chiral catalyst can be used to produce a large quantity of a chiral target molecule. Over the last two decades, more than a half-dozen commercial industrial processes have been developed that use asymmetric catalysis as the key step in the production of enantiomerically pure compounds with a tremendous effort focused on developing new asymmetric catalysts for these reactions (Morrison J. D., ed. Asymmetric Synthesis, New York: Academic Press, 1985:5; Bosnich B., ed. Asymmetric Catalysis, Dordrecht, Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1986; Brunner H. Synthesis, 1988:645; Noyori R., Kitamura M., in Scheffold R., ed. Modern Synthetic Methods, Berlin Hedelberg: Springer-Verlag, 1989;5:115; Nugent W. A., RajanBabu T. V., Burk M. J. Science, 1993;259:479; Ojima I., ed. Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis, New York: VCH, 1993; Noyori R. Asymmetric Catalysis In Organic Synthesis, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 1994).
Chiral phosphine ligands have played a significant role in the development of novel transition metal catalyzed asymmetric reactions to produce enantiomeric excess of compounds with desired activities. The first successful attempts at asymmetric hydrogenation of enamide substrates were accomplished in the late 1970s using chiral bisphosphines as transition metal ligands (Vineyard B. D., Knowles W. S., Sabacky M. J., Bachman G. L., Weinkauff D. J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1977;99(18):5946-52; Knowles W. S., Sabacky M. J., Vineyard B. D., Weinkauff D. J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1975;97(9):2567-8).
Since these first published reports, there has been an explosion of research geared toward the synthesis of new chiral bisphosphine ligands for asymmetric hydrogenations and other chiral catalytic transformations (Ojima I., ed. Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis, New York: VCH Publishers, Inc, 1993; Ager D. J., ed. Handbook of Chiral Chemicals, Marcel Dekker, Inc, 1999). Highly selective rigid chiral phospholane ligands have been used to facilitate these asymmetric reactions. For example, phospholane ligands are used in the asymmetric hydrogenation of enamide substrates and other chiral catalytic transformations.
BPE, Duphos, and BisP ligands are some of the most efficient and broadly useful ligands developed for asymmetric hydrogenation to date (Burk M. J. Chemtracts 1998;11(11):787-802 (CODEN: CHEMFW ISSN:1431-9268. CAN 130:38423; AN 1998:698087 CAPLUS); Burk M. J., Bienewald F., Harris M., Zanotti-Gerosa A. Angew Chem., Int. Ed. 1998;37(13/14):1931-1933; Burk, M. J., Casy G., Johnson N. B. J. Org. Chem. 1998;63(18):6084-6085; Burk M. J., Kalberg C. S., Pizzano A. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1998;120(18):4345-4353; Burk M. J., Harper T., Gregory P., Kalberg C. S. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1995;117(15):4423-4424; Burk M. J., Feaster J. E., Nugent W. A., Harlow R. L. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1993;115(22):10125-10138; Nugent W. A., RajanBabu T. V., Burk M. J. Science (Washington, D.C. 1883-) 1993;259(5094):479483; Burk M. J., Feaster J. E., Harlow R. L. Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 1991;2(7):569-592; Burk M J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1991;113(22):8518-8519; Imamoto T., Watanabe J., Wada Y., Masuda H., Yamada H., Tsuruta H. et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1998;120(7):1635-1636; Zhu G, Cao P, Jiang Q, Zhang X. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1997;119(7):1799-1800). For example, a Rhodium/Duphos complex can be used to selectively form (S)-(+)-3-(aminomethyl)-5-methylhexanoic acid, known as pregabalin, which is used as an anti-seizure drug. The S-enantiomer, which is produced in enantiomeric excess, is preferred because it shows better anticonvulsant activity than the R-enantiomer (Yuen et al., Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters 1994;4:823).
The success of BPE, DuPhos, and BisP transition metal complexes in asymmetric hydrogenations is derived from many factors. For example, substrate to catalyst ratios of up to 50,000/1 have been demonstrated. Also, high rates of substrate conversion to product using low hydrogen pressures have been observed with catalysts made from these ligands.
BPE, Duphos, and BisP have shown high enantioselectivities in numerous asymmetric reactions. Improved reaction of BPE, Duphos, and BisP is attributed to, among other factors, rigidity in their C2-symmetric structure. If the spatial area of a metal/phosphine ligand structure, such as BisP, is divided into four quadrants, as shown in Scheme 1, alternating hindered and unhindered quadrants are formed.
This structural feature creates areas of hindrance in the BisP/metal complexes and produces desired stereochemical results in asymmetric hydrogenation reactions. However, there are a variety of reactions in which only modest enantioselectivity has been achieved with these ligands. While high selectivity has been observed in many reactions using these chiral diphosphine ligands, there are many reactions where these ligands are not very efficient in terms of activity and selectivity. Further, there are many disadvantages associated with these ligands, which limits their application.
For example, multiple chiral centers in these ligands increases the difficulty in synthesis of these compounds. Further, the multiple chiral centers could increase the cost associated with forming the ligands.
High enantioselectivities have been observed in asymmetric hydrogenation for a narrow range of substrates, such as enamides, enol esters, and succinates. Many of these successful results have been obtained using optically pure C2-symmetric rhodium-phosphine complexes as hydrogenation catalysts. Therefore, C2-symmetry has become a popular characteristic in the design of chiral ligands that are used to make these complexes. Unique to the substrates for which asymmetric hydrogenation has been successful is an olefin and a carbonyl group which are separated by one atom. During asymmetric hydrogenation, the olefin and the carbonyl bind to the metal center in a well-defined conformation. This is thought to be of consequence in an asymmetric hydrogenation.
C2-symmetric bisphosphines, such as BisP, have been synthesized and used in asymmetric catalysis, as shown in Scheme 2 (Imamoto, T., Watanabe J., Wada Y., Masuda H., Yamada H., Tsuruta H., Matsukawa S., Yamaguchi K. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1998;120(7):1635-1636).
A proton from one of the methyl groups of tert-butyldimethyl phosphine is selectively deprotonated with a chiral base, such as s-BuLi and (−)-sparteine, and then the resulting anion couples with itself in the presence of copper(II) chloride to provide the bisphosphine borane protected ligand, in about 40% yield and >99% enantiomeric excess after recrystallization. The rhodium complex of BisP is known to give high enantiomeric excess in hydrogenation reactions for a variety of substrates. For instance, the rhodium-BisP catalyst hydrogenates α-N-acetylmethylacrylate to produce 98% enantiomeric excess (Imamoto T. et al., supra, 1998).
A drawback to the synthesis of the BisP ligand in Scheme 2 is that only one antipode of sparteine is available in nature, and therefore, only one enantiomer of the ligand (the S,S isomer) can be synthesized via this route.
Basic research has been done by a variety of groups in the late 1970s on the mechanism and origin of enantioselectivity of asymmetric hydrogenation reactions which result in high enantiomeric excess (Alcock N. W., Brown J. M.; Derome A. E., Lucy A. R. J. Chem. Soc. Chem. Comm. 1985:575; Brown J. M., Chaloner P. A., Morris G. A. J. Chem. Soc. Chem. Comm. 1983:664; Halpern J. Science 1982;217,401; Brown J. M., Chaloner P. A. J. Chem. Soc. Chem. Comm. 1980;344). The 3-dimensional structure of a C2-symmetric complex like the rhodium complex of BisP has four quadrants that alternate hindered and unhindered, as shown in Scheme 1.
Ligand and metal/ligand complexes are needed that can further improve the production of enantiomerically active forms of compounds. Thus, there is a need to develop methods for the production of and to synthesize compounds that reduce the number of chiral centers on a molecule and through prohibitive substituents on the ligand improve enantioselectivity in asymmetric reactions.


A support device includes a bracket secured on a base for rotatably supporting a roller and for engaging with and for supporting a work piece. A stick is secured in the base and has an orifice for slidably engaging with a rod which is extended downward from the bracket for allowing the bracket to be adjusted to a suitable height. The bracket includes a pair of blocks for slidably receiving a pair of poles. The poles each includes an extension extended upward for engaging with the work piece and for preventing the work piece from moving laterally.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a support, and more particularly to a support device for guiding a work piece into a working machine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typical working machines, particularly the wood working machines, such as planers, cutting machines, sewing machines, is required to be supplied with a long wood work piece. One free end of the work piece is normally held by another worker or simply supported by a table. However, the table may not be adjusted to different height for suitably supporting and supplying the work piece into the working machine.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional work piece support devices.


This invention is directed to an intraluminal catheter, such as a dilatation catheter for angioplasty procedures, having a inner lumen which is adapted to receive a guidewire therein and to deliver inflation liquid to an inflatable member and which is provided with sealing means to prevent the loss of inflation fluid through the guidewire port in the distal end of the catheter. The sealing means is actuated by inflation fluid under pressure which is introduced into the interior of the guidewire receiving inner lumen.

This invention generally relates to intravascular catheters, such as balloon dilatation catheters used in percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA).
In classic PTCA procedures, a guiding catheter having a preshaped distal tip is percutaneously introduced into the cardiovascular system of a patient and advanced therein until the preshaped distal tip of the guiding catheter is disposed within the aorta adjacent the ostium of the desired coronary artery. The guiding catheter is twisted or torqued from the proximal end to turn the distal tip of the guiding catheter so that it can be guided into the desired coronary ostium. With over-the-wire systems, a guidewire and a balloon dilatation catheter are introduced into and advanced through the guiding catheter to the distal tip thereof, with the guidewire slidably disposed within an inner lumen of the dilatation catheter. The guidewire is first advanced out the distal tip of the guiding catheter, which is seated in the ostium of the patient's coronary artery, until the distal end of the guidewire crosses the lesion to be dilated. The dilatation catheter is then advanced out of the distal tip of the guiding catheter, over the previously advanced guidewire, until the balloon on the distal extremity of the dilatation catheter is properly positioned across the lesion. Once properly positioned, the balloon is inflated to a predetermined size with radiopaque liquid at relatively high pressures (e.g., generally 4-12 atmospheres) to dilate the stenosed region of the diseased artery. One or more inflations may be necessary to effectively dilate the stenosis. Additional stenoses may be dilatated with the same catheter. When the dilatations are completed, the balloon is deflated so that the dilatation catheter can be removed from the dilated stenosis and blood flow will resume through the dilated artery.
Further details of guiding catheters, dilatation catheters, guidewires, and other devices for angioplasty procedures can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,323,071 (Simpson-Robert); U.S. Pat. No. 4,439,185 (Lundquist); U.S. Pat. No. 4,468,224 (Enzmann et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,972 (Samson); U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,622 (Samson et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,554,929 (Samson et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,181 (Samson); U.S. Pat. No. 4,616,625 (Simpson); U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,805 (Powell); U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,986 (Morrison et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,898,577 (Badger et al.); and U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,941 (Taylor et al.) which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety by reference thereto.
Fixed-wire dilatation catheters for coronary angioplasty, which were first described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,252,181 (Samson), now U.S. Pat. No. Re. 33,166, are similarly used except there is no longitudinal movement between the guidewire and the catheter. The fixed-wire dilatation catheters generally have an outer tubular member with an inflatable balloon on the distal section thereof which is capable of dilating a stenosis, and a guiding member extending out through the distal end of the balloon which aids in advancing the catheter to a desired location within the patient's vasculature. They usually have no inner tubular member and therefore have lower profiles, e.g., transverse dimensions, than over-the-wire dilatation catheters having the same inflated balloon size. Moreover, because the fixed-wire catheters have the guidewire or guiding member fixed or at least restricted as to longitudinal movement, these catheters generally have greater pushability than over-the-wire type catheters such as described and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,323,071 (Simpson-Robert). The lower profile and greater pushability of the fixed-wire dilatation catheters allows them to cross tighter lesions and to be advanced much deeper into a patient's coronary anatomy than the over-the-wire dilatation catheters of comparable sizes.
The assignee of the present invention, Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Inc., markets an improved dilatation catheter under the trademark ACS RX (R) which is described and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,548 (Yock), U.S. Pat. No. 5,061,273 (Yock) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,748,982 (Horzewski et al.). This dilatation catheter has a short guidewire receiving sleeve or inner lumen extending through a distal portion of the catheter. The sleeve or inner lumen extends proximally a distance of at least about 10 cm and usually not more than about 50 cm from a first guidewire port in the distal end of the catheter to a second guidewire port in the catheter spaced proximally from the inflatable member of the catheter. Preferably, a slit is provided in the wall of the catheter body which extends distally from the second guidewire port, preferably to a location proximal to the proximal end of the inflatable balloon. The structure of the catheter allows for the rapid exchange of the catheter without the need for an exchange wire or adding a guidewire extension to the proximal end of the guidewire. The design of this catheter has been widely praised by the medical profession and has been met with much success in the market place because of the advantages of its unique design.
A major and continual thrust of development work in the field of intravascular catheters, particularly coronary angioplasty catheters, has been to reduce the profile, i.e., transverse dimensions, of such catheters and to improve the flexibility thereof without detrimentally affecting the pushability, particularly in the distal portion of such catheters. A reduction in profile with little or no loss in pushability allow a dilatation catheter to be advanced much further into a patient's coronary vasculature and to cross much tighter lesions. Fixed-wire dilatation catheters have provided lower profiles and increased pushability, but their use in coronary angioplasty has recently been somewhat limited due to the fact that if the fixed-wire catheter must be removed from an arterial location, access to that location is usually lost. One of the advantages of the over-the-wire dilatation catheter systems over the fixed-wire systems is that the over-the-wire systems allow the guidewire to be left in place while the dilatation catheter is removed and replaced so as to not loose the arterial location.
What has been needed and heretofore unavailable is a low profile dilatation catheter which allows for catheter exchange without loss of arterial position, particularly such a catheter with a single inner lumen. The present invention satisfies this and other needs.

Intravascular catheter with means to seal guidewire port


The invention relates to an injector for injecting fuel that is at very high pressure, which is present at the injector in a common-rail inlet. The fuel acts on a control part, which is actuatable via a fuel volume contained in the control chamber. An inlet and an outlet of the control chamber are each provided with spring elements; the control chamber can be pressure-relieved via a valve element actuatable by means of an actuator. The control part in the injector housing is guided in two guide portions.

1. Field of the Invention
The efficiency of control parts that are used in high-pressure collection chamber (common rail) injection systems depends sharply and the fuel volume that because of the extremely high pressure prevailing in the common rail flows into an outflow-side fuel outlet when the supply line from the common rail is opened. The smaller this fuel volume and the fuel volume required to control the control part are, the greater is the efficiency that can be attained with a fuel injector. Besides high efficiency of an injector for direct-injection internal combustion engines, a compact design of such a structural component is of great importance.
2. Description of the Prior Art
German patent disclosure DE 198 35 494 A1 relates to a unit fuel injector used to deliver fuel to a combustion chamber of direct-injection internal combustion engines with a pump unit that serves to build up an injection pressure and to inject the fuel into the combustion chamber via an injection nozzle. The unit fuel injector has a control unit with a control valve, which is embodied as an outward-opening A-valve, and a valve actuation unit for controlling the pressure buildup in the pump unit. To create a unit fuel injector with a control unit that is simple in design and small in size, and in particular has a short response time, in the version of DE 198 35 494 A1 the valve actuation unit is embodied as a piezoelectric actuator.
In this version, a guide ring is supported axially displaceably in the interior of the transmission body. Also in the interior of the guide ring, a valve shaft is prestressed against the valve body by means of a U-shaped disk and a cup spring. The guide ring rests on the valve body by means of a flat seat. The flat seat can also be embodied by other forms of seat. The spring element acts on the guide ring and is braced on the transmission body. The spring element is embodied as a compression spring. The valve actuation unit and the control valve are disposed such that their respective longitudinal axes extend congruently. The control part assembly known from DE 198 35 494 A1 requires close tolerances, which are complicated to produce for technical production reasons, in order to adapt the diameters, in particular, to one another with extreme precision. The high demands in terms of tolerances made of the components dictate correspondingly expensive production with high engineering effort and stringent demands in terms of the precision measurements of the components in question.
The advantages attainable with the version according to the present invention are seen above all in the fact that the control part of the control valve is guided in two guides, which are located in separate bodies. As a result, from a production standpoint the guides can be produced with the required tolerances substantially more simply and hence more economically. The design of the injector in the proposed version can also be made simpler, since in comparison to versions known from the prior art, fewer moving parts are needed.
Embodying two diameter regions on the control part also makes a control part possible that closes cleanly; that is, the control part moves cleanly into its seat face that closes the nozzle inlet in the injector housing. The retraction motion is reinforced by a spring element, supported on the control part in a way that is secured against kinking, that is braced on a collar located in the interior of the injector housing.
By means of the two guide portions embodied by different diameter regions on the control part, more secure and very fast closing of the hollow chamber located on the leaking oil outlet side in the injector housing is achieved, and thus a loss of fuel volume can be avoided. This in turn considerably enhances the efficiency of the control part of the injector, received in independent guides, as proposed by the invention.
Since a control edge that seals off the hollow chamber between the two guide portions is embodied on the control part, one leaking oil connection suffices on the control part designed according to the invention, which is movable in two guides separate from one another. This allows more-economical production of the injector housing of the pressure-controlled, two-piece injector for common-rail use. Since it has been possible to reduce the number of moving parts considerably, an increase in the service life of the pressure-controlled injector is also attainable.

Pressure-controlled control part for common-rail injectors


A dual-use automobile-boat storage pallet, having a structural support framework of generally rectangular shape with first and second side members and a plurality of cross-members. The storage pallet includes an apparatus for holding a boat that is width adjustable and height adjustable and includes a plurality of folding bunks that are mounted on and supported by two or more of the cross-members. The storage pallet includes an apparatus for holding a car, which includes a first automobile tread plate and a second automobile tread plate supported by the first and second side members of the structural support framework. The dual-use automobile storage pallet can include an optional pair of forklift tine guides.

A marina is typically a dock or basin that provides secure moorings for pleasure boats such as powerboats and frequently offers ground facilities such as parking lots. Where demand for moorings is particularly high, boats such as powerboats are stored on land, but space is frequently at a premium particularly at popular marinas located on prime water front properties. When space is at a premium it is difficult to provide adequately sized parking lots to meet the parking needs of boat owners. Thus, there is a need for meeting the needs and expectations of both marine owners and boat users.
Of particular interest is U.S. Pat. No. 5,011,357, issued to Studler, which describes a space-saving boat and automobile parking system for marinas uniquely utilizing a pallet for sequential storage of either a boat or an automobile whereby land and space requirements for vehicular parking are significantly diminished. In operation, a boat owner telephones his/her marina a predetermined time before his/her scheduled arrival for boat use. The marina operator then takes a lift truck to the owner's assigned "pigeon coop" storage space, inserts the fork tines into a boat-supporting pallet according to the invention, lifts the pallet up from its supports and moves the pallet to a launching area, lowers the pallet into the water until the boat floats, and then removes the pallet. The pallet is then taken to an automobile loading station, the owner's automobile is driven onto the pallet, secured as desired, and the lift truck then takes the auto and pallet to the assigned nest position and deposits the pallet with the automobile thereat.
Furthermore, the patent application publication US 20020039526 A1 to Jokinen shows a garage that has increased parking capacity for vehicles. A parking level has water filling the parking structure so that boats or floating platforms may fill the parking level. The only passageway needed is that which will accommodate the boats or platforms. Vehicles entering the garage are driven onto an endless belt and this belt drives the vehicle onto a platform having another endless belt. When exiting the vehicle's belt drives it off the platform to an exit area. Multiple levels accommodate even larger capacity garages. A computer can control entry, exit, and movement of the platforms to random locations and/or to elevators in multiple level garages.
In addition, the U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,942, issued to Dane, Jr., describes a dry sail marina for storing small to moderately sized boats out of the water with means for transferring them automatically between storage points and the water. The marina is contained within a building having a center aisle extending the length thereof and a series of vertically stacked racks bounding each side of the aisle. Boats are stored in sling by boat cars housed in the racks. An overhead traveling crane with a hoist suspended track assembly rides along the center aisle between any storage point and the waterside of the marina. The track assembly is adapted to connect with any rack and includes transport means for coupling to individual cars and wheeling them onto and off of the track assembly. To deliver a boat, the track assembly is connected up with the assigned rack and the transport means draws the car with boat in sling onto the track assembly. The loaded track assembly is then transported to the water by the overhead crane whereupon it is lowered and the boat is deposited in the water and released from its car. The crane then returns the boat car to the rack by a reverse procedure.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.


A size reduction machine for use in process industries to continuously and precisely reduce the size of particles, while controlling fines, comprises an impeller mounted on a rotatable shaft, a drive operably connected to the shaft for effecting rotation of the shaft. The shaft and impeller are vertically mounted within a vertically extending channel having an input and an output. A screen has a tapered apertured wall formed in a frusto-conical shape. The screen is rigidly mounted within the channel so that any particles passing from the input to the output pass through the screen. The impeller is shaped and mounted so that a gap between an edge of the impeller and an interior of the screen remains substantially constant as the impeller rotates relative to the screen. The improvement comprises the drive being operably connected to the shaft at a point under where the impeller is mounted onto the shaft.

Size reduction machines are widely used in the production of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. The pharmaceutical or cosmetic is manufactured and then size reduced into a granular or fine powder form. The pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries have very strict sanitary standards for operation and production. Size reduction machines must be capable of being fully sanitized before it can be used in such environments.
Size reduction machines of the prior art utilize a frusto-conical shaped screen located in a channel between an input and an output. Such size reduction machines are more particularly described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,759,507. In these machines, various screens and impellers are used to reduce the size of the particles. The choice of screen and impeller depends on the size and type of product that is being processed. The screens can have apertures in different sizes and shapes to produce a desired milled product.
The size reduction machines of the prior art are driven by a motor operably connected to a shaft on which the impeller is mounted. The drive is transmitted normally by means of a plurality of belts. However, some size reduction machine have shaft drives. One such machine is described in German patent no. 36 17 175.
Regardless of the type of drive, heretofore the drive to the impeller has been applied to the shaft above the impeller. As a result, the input of material to be milled must be offset from the vertical axis of the machine. Hoppers and feed pipes must be used to direct the material from an input, about the drive and into the impeller region. The redirecting of material is inefficient and more importantly such prior art machines require more height than other types of mills.
The principal reason that the drive of a size reduction machine is mounted above the impeller is to remove the drive from the path of the material to be milled. By passing the material around the drive, the drive is outside of the sanitary region of the machine. These machines can therefore meet the industry standards for sanitation set by various regulatory bodies, including the Food and Drug Administration in the United States.
The physical size of the size reduction machine plays an important role when the size reduction machine is being installed in an existing material processing system as a replacement for another type of mill. If the size reduction machine is physically too large, it cannot be used as a replacement machine for other types of size reduction machines.
In German patent no. 36 17 175, the shaft drive is above the impeller and is fully enclosed permitting the drive to remain in the direct flow of the material to be milled. However since the material to be milled has very low kinetic energy before it enters the impeller region, the input to the impeller region can become jammed allowing the material to bridge over the input. A paddle is required to be mounted on the spindle to prevent such bridging of material.


A hydrocarbon bearing formation (304) which is heated using a variable frequency capacitive radio frequency dielectric heating (334) in situ process. Hydrocarbons or other substances natural to a hydrocarbonaceous formation may be produced by heating specific chemical compositions with or without the use of a carrier medium (320) in a subterranean reservoir. Hydrocarbons or other substances natural to a hydrocarbonaceous formation are heated by maintaining specific chemical compositions in an alternating current electrical field generated by a radio frequency signal. As the targeted chemical compositions increase in temperature, maximum energy is delivered using variable frequency radio frequency dielectric heating to adjust the rate of the heating process.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to hydrocarbon extraction and processing, specifically to heating hydrocarbon-bearing formations in situ for more efficient processing and extraction.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
North American reserves of oil shale and tar sand contain enough hydrocarbonaceous material to be a global provider of hydrocarbons products for the foreseeable future. Large-scale commercial exploitation of certain hydrocarbon-bearing resources, available in huge deposits on the North American continent, has been impeded by a number of problems especially cost of extraction and potentially significant negative environmental impact. Oil shale is also plentiful in the United States, but the cost of useful fuel recovery has been generally noncompetitive. The same is true for tar sands, which occur in estimated vast number of problems, amounts in Western Canada. In addition, heavy or viscous oil is often left untapped in a conventionally-produced oil well, due to the extra cost of extraction. These types of hydrocarbon deposits are becoming increasingly important, as reserves of low viscosity crude petroleum are being quickly depleted.
Materials such as oil shale, tar sands, and coal are amenable to heat processing to produce gases and hydrocarboneous liquids. Generally, the heat develops the porosity, permeability, and/or mobility necessary for recovery. Oil shale is a sedimentary rock, which upon pyrolysis, or distillation, yields a condensable liquid, referred to as a shale oil, and non-condensable gaseous hydrocarbons. The condensable liquid may be refined into products that resemble petroleum products. Oil sand is an erratic mixture of sand, water, and bitumen, with the bitumen typically being present as a film around water-enveloped sand particles. Though difficult, various types of heat processing can release the bitumen, which is an asphalt-like crude oil that is highly viscous.
In the destructive distillation of oil shale or other solid or semi-solid hydrocarbonaceous materials, the solid material is heated to an appropriate temperature and the emitted products are recovered. In practice, however, the limited efficiency of this process has prevented achievement of large-scale commercial application. For example, the desired organic constituent in oil shale, known as kerogen, constitutes a relatively small percentage of the bulk shale material, so very large volumes of shale need to be heated to elevated temperatures in order to yield relatively small amounts of useful end products. The handling of the large amounts of material is, in itself, a problem, as is the disposal of wastes. Also, substantial energy is needed to heat the shale, and the efficiency of the heating process and the need for relatively uniform and rapid heating have been limiting factors on success.
In the case of tar sands, the volume of material to be handled, as compared to the amount of recovered product, is again relatively large, since bitumen typically constitutes only about ten percent of the total, by weight. Material handling of tar sands is particularly difficult even under the best of circumstances. Such processing potentially results in huge, negative environmental impacts.
A number of proposals, broadly classed as in situ methods, have been made for processing and recovering hydrocarbonaceous deposits. Such methods may involve underground heating or retorting of material in place, with little or no mining or disposal of solid material in the formation. Useful constituents of the formation, including heated liquids of reduced viscosity, may be drawn to the surface by a pumping system or forced to the surface by injection techniques. For such methods to be successful, the amount of energy required to effect the extraction must be minimized.
Proposals to use radio frequency to heat relatively large volumes of hydrocarbonaceous formations are exemplified by the disclosures of the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,140,180 to Bridges et al., 1979; U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,579 to Rowland et al., 1979; U.S. Pat. No. 4,140,179 to Kasevich et al., 1979; U.S. Pat. No. 4,144,935 to Bridges et al., (1980); U.S. Pat. No. 4,193,451 to Dauphine 1980; U.S. Pat. No. 4,457,365 to Kasevich et al., 1984; U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,459 to Copland et al., 1984; U.S. Pat. No. 4,513,815 to Rundell et al., 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 5,109,927 to Supernaw et al., 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,236,039 to Edelstein et al., 1993; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,189,611 to Kasevich et al., 2001.
One proposed electrical in situ approach employs a set of arrays of dipole antennas located in a plastic or other dielectric casing in a formation, such as a tar sand formation. A VHF or UHF power source would energize the antennas and cause radiating fields to be emitted into the deposit. However, at these frequencies, and considering the electrical properties of the formations, the field intensity drops rapidly as distance from the antennas increases. Consequently, non-uniform heating results in inefficient overheating of portions of formations in order to obtain at least minimum average heating of the bulk of the formations.
Another past proposal utilizes in situ electrical induction heating of formations. As in other proposals, the process depends on the inherent conduction ability, which is limited even under the best of conditions, of the formations. In particular, secondary induction heating currents are induced in the formations by forming an underground toroidal induction coil and passing electrical current through the turns of the coil. Drilling vertical and horizontal boreholes forms the underground toroid, and conductors are threaded through the boreholes to form the turns of the toroid. However, as the formations are heated and water vapors are removed from it, the formations become more resistive, and greater currents are required to provide the desired heating. In general, the above-mentioned techniques are limited by the relatively low thermal and electrical conductivity of the bulk formations of interest. Thus, the inefficiencies resulting from non-uniform heating render existing techniques slow and inefficient.
Currently, the most commercially accepted method of in situ extraction of hydrocarbons from oil tar sands is the steam flood process that uses a combination of steam or other gaseous pressures along with RF to decrease the viscosity so as to force the oil through the sand to a nearby producer well. This process requires enormous amounts of high-pressure steam that is typically generated with natural gas. On the down side, as price of crude oil increases, the price of natural gas generally rises accordingly, increasing the cost of employing steam flood methods. The steam flood method has been blamed for disrupting natural gas pressures; so the gas producers want to extract their natural gases prior to bitumen recover. But, the users of steam flood bitumen recovery processes need the subterranean pressures from the natural gas reservoirs to assist the steam flood. The loss of the natural gas reservoir can make the steam flood process uneconomical.
Controlled or uniform temperature heating of a hydrocarbonaceous volume to be recovered is desirable, but current methods cannot achieve this goal. Instead, current methods generally result in non-uniform temperature distributions, which can result in the necessity of inefficient overheating of portions of the formations. Extreme temperatures in localized areas may cause damage to the producing volume such as carbonization, skinning of the paraffin waxes, and arcing between the conductors can occur. Furthermore, vaporization of water creates steam that negatively affects the passage of frequency waves to the substances that require heating.
None of the previous proposals for the extraction of hydrocarbons from these types of formations have provided a method of separating the foreign matter from the valuable hydrocarbons prior to extracting to the surface of the earth. The washing of sand from heated oils generally requires steam or other energy consuming processes. The foreign matter in tar sand may contain ten times the desired hydrocarbons. As a result, a substantial negative environmental impact, with respect to disposal of the undesirable foreign matter, would exist if enough hydrocarbons were extracted to support a North American or global demand of oil. Another problem with washing the sand from the oil is the amount of water that would be required for large-scale production. Not only would tremendous amounts of fresh water be required, but also disposal of the resulting contaminated water would be an important issue. Disposing of the undesirable organic and inorganic substances such as heavy metals, sulfur, etc that would be separated from the hydrocarbons would impose additional environmental challenges. Furthermore, extracting large amounts of heated bitumen and heavy oils to the surface of the earth can release sizable amounts of greenhouse gases and other pollutants into the atmosphere during the ensuing washing, crude storage, separating, and refining processes.
Although RF dielectric heating systems have been used for heating hydrocarbon-bearing formations in the past, there remains a need for improved apparatuses and process techniques to rapidly, efficiently, and uniformly heat specific chemical compositions that reside in bitumen, and/or individual hydrocarbon compositions. There also is a substantial need for a method of separating the undesirable matter from the hydrocarbons and leaving it generally disposed in the context of its original environment.
Disadvantages of Capacitive RF Dielectric Heating
A specific disadvantage of known capacitive RF dielectric heating methods is the potential for thermal runaway or hot spots in a heterogeneous medium since the dielectric losses are often strong functions of temperature. Another disadvantage of capacitive heating is the potential for dielectric breakdown (arcing) if the electric field strengths are too high across the sample. Thicker samples with fewer air gaps allow operation at a lower voltage.
Prior Art
FIGS. 1–4 (Prior Art) show an example of a known capacitive RF dielectric heating system. A high voltage RF frequency sinusoidal AC signal is applied to a set of parallel electrodes 20 and 22 on opposite sides of a dielectric medium 24. Medium 24 to be heated is located between electrodes 20 and 22, in an area defined as the product treatment zone. An AC displacement current flows through medium 24 as a result of polar molecules in the medium aligning and rotating in opposite fashion to the applied AC electric field. Direct conduction does not occur. Instead, an effective AC current flows through the capacitor due to polar molecules with effective charges rotating back and forth. Heating occurs because these polar molecules encounter interactions with neighboring molecules, resulting in lattice and frictional losses as they rotate.
The resultant electrical equivalent circuit of the device of FIG. 1 is therefore a capacitor in parallel with a resistor, as shown in FIG. 2A. There is an in-phase IR component and an out-of-phase IC component of the current, relative to the applied RF voltage. In-phase component IR corresponds to the resistive voltage loss. These losses get higher as the frequency of the applied signal is increased for a fixed electric field intensity or voltage gradient due to higher speed interactions with the neighboring molecules. The higher the frequency of the alternating field, the greater the energy imparted into medium 24 until the frequency is so high that the rotating molecules can no longer keep up with the external field due to lattice limitations.
This frequency, which is referred to as a "Debye resonance frequency" after the mathematician who modeled it, represents the frequency at which lattice limitations occur. Debye resonance frequency is the frequency at which the maximum energy can be imparted into a medium for a given electric field strength (and therefore the maximum heating). This high frequency limitation is inversely proportional to the complexity of the polar molecule. For example, hydrocarbons with polar side groups or chains have a slower rotation limitation, and thus lower Debye resonance, than simple polar water molecules. These Debye resonance frequencies also shift with temperature as the medium 24 is heated.
FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C are equivalent circuit diagrams of the dielectric heating system of FIG. 1 for different types of hydrocarbon-bearing formations. Resultant electrical equivalent circuits may be different from the circuit shown in FIG. 2A, depending on the medium 24. For example, in a medium 24 such as a hydrocarbonaceous formation with a high moisture and salt content, the electrical circuit only requires a resistor (FIG. 2B), because the ohmic properties dominate. For media with low salinity and moisture, however, the resultant electrical circuit is a capacitor in series with a resistor (FIG. 2C).
Various other hydrocarbons, elements, or compositions within a hydrocarbon-bearing formation may use different electrical circuit analogs. More complex models having serial and parallel aspects in combination to address second order effects are possible. Any of the components in any of the models may have temperature and frequency dependence.
An example of a conventional RF heating system is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 (Prior Art). In this system, a high voltage transformer/rectifier combination provides a high-rectified positive voltage (5 kV to 15 kV) to the anode of a standard triode power oscillator tube. A tuned circuit (parallel inductor and capacitor tank circuit) is connected between the anode and grounded cathode of such tube as shown in FIG. 4, and also is part of a positive feedback circuit inductively coupled from the cathode to the grid of the tube to enable oscillation thereby generating the RF signal. This RF signal generator circuit output then goes to the combined capacitive dielectric and resistive/ohmic heating load through an adapter network consisting of a coupling circuit and a matching system to match the impedance of the load and maximize heating power delivery to the load, as shown in FIG. 3. An applicator includes an electrode system that delivers the RF energy to the medium 24 to be heated, as shown in FIG. 1.
The known system of FIGS. 1–4 can only operate over a narrow band and only at a fixed frequency, typically as specified by existing ISM (Industrial, Scientific, Medical) bands. Such a narrow operating band does not allow for tuning of the impedance. Any adjustment to the system parameters must be made manually and while the system is not operating. Also, the selected frequency can drift. Therefore, to the extent that the known system provides any control, such control is not precise, robust, real time or automatic.

In situ processing of hydrocarbon-bearing formations with variable frequency dielectric heating


An embodiment of the invention may include a method, computer program product and computer system for forecasting future states of a multi-active cloud. The method, computer program product and computer system may include a computing device that determines the operating state of the passive server. The operating state of the passive server is one or more of a deploying state and a smoke testing state. The computing device may determine the probability of the operating state successfully completing. The computing device may delay the second asynchronous workflow until the operating state successfully completes based on the probability of the operating state successfully completing exceeding a predetermined value.

The present invention relates to states of a multi-active cloud system, and more particularly to forecasting future states of a multi-active cloud system.
Cloud systems can be very complex distributed systems. In larger cloud systems, there may be many types of nodes, containing code from various development teams, deployed by a different operations teams with many test teams responsible for testing different parts of the system. Cloud emphasizes concepts such as self-service, the Application Programming Interface (API) economy and automation. The API economy is the commercial exchange of business functions, capabilities, or competencies as services using web application programming interfaces (APIs). Bearing this in mind, an idealized system includes a fully automated deployment and testing process.
Consider an active-active or active-passive Software as a Service (SaaS) deployment architecture, whereby new code is deployed in parallel to existing code and end users are eventually "flipped" from the old active side to a new active side. Requests received from an end user are routed through load balancing so that the end user is not aware of which of the two sides is providing the service. This fully automated solution introduces challenges. It is desirable that test automation execute without manual intervention but there may be little purpose in starting a test run just before a code "flip" occurs. In an active-passive deployment, the flip may cause an outage causing the test to fail and in an active-active deployment, it may be more desirable to wait until after a flip so that the test run executes against the most up to date code level.
It would be desirable to track the various states of cloud environments and publish this information, for programmatically knowing the current state of an environment, such as whether it is available. It would also be desirable to publish this information to provide indications of future states, for example, if a code flip will likely occur in 20 minutes, it may be best to delay a test run until the flip is complete.

Forecasting future states of a multi-active cloud system

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


An air bag (12) includes at least one tether (44) and an inflation fluid source (14) having two modes of operation. In the first mode of operation, the inflation fluid source (14) is activated to provide a first inflation fluid pressure in the air bag (12). In the second mode of operation, the inflation fluid source (14) is activated to provide a second inflation fluid pressure in the air bag (12) higher than the first pressure. The tether (44), which helps to control the shape of the air bag (12), tears in response to the second inflation fluid pressure in the air bag.

It is known to control the shape of an inflatable vehicle occupant protection device to help protect occupants of a vehicle during a vehicle crash. One way to control the shape of an inflating air bag is with releasable tethers. The releasable tethers may have tear stitches that tear under certain conditions to release the tethers.


An interface for connecting data-terminal-equipment (DTE) to a range of data-communication-equipment (DCE) using a multiplicity of interface standards is provided. The interface includes a DTE panel connector and a plurality of line drivers and receivers and associated electronics to select predetermined ones of the plurality of receivers and drivers for use by the DTE when cables having a predetermined configuration, corresponding to the supported interface standards, are attached. The cables connect the appropriate drivers and receivers of the DTE with the corresponding receivers and drivers, respectively, of the DCE. Additionally the cables also contain termination devices and a selection mechanism to select which drivers and receivers are to be used by the DTE to communicate with the receivers and drivers, respectively, being used by the DCE.

Both the Electronic Industries Association (EIA) and the International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee (CCITT, also called ITU) have established engineering standards to facilitate the interconnection of equipment used for the serial transmission of digital data. These standards specify mechanical characteristics, electrical characteristics, and protocols for digital data exchange. There are many different standards used to interconnect DTEs and DCEs. Some of these standards are used world-wide while others are regional.
The standards discussed herein can be divided into two general classes of communications interfaces: single-ended, unbalanced, common return digital interfaces, and balanced, differential digital interfaces. The EIA RS-232 standard specifies a single-ended, unbalanced interface generally limited to transmission rates of up to 20,000 bits per second over a 50 foot cable. The EIA RS-449 standard and CCITT standard X.21 provide a balanced differential interface that is capable of transmission rates of up to 10,000,000 bits per second over a 25 foot cable. The CCITT V.35 standard is an older type of interface that uses a mixture of balanced, differential signals and single-ended unbalanced signals, and is limited to transmission rates of up to 64,000 bits per second over a 50 foot cable.
With the multiplicity of interface standards in use it is difficult to design DTEs that will interconnect with the wide range of available DCEs. Most existing DTE interconnection devices Support a single type of interface. Typically, different interface standards are accommodated by requiring the user to interchange internal circuit boards or components.
Several attempts have been made to develop a DTE interface that will support multiple standards. However these DTE interfaces require the user to switch internal circuit connections or add adapter circuit modules to accommodate to a different interface standard. An example of this type of interface is described in the Sealevel Systems Model 4013 Communications Board Functional Specification and User Manual (Sealevel Systems, Liberty, N.C.).
One DTE board supporting multiple standards is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,403,111 (the '111 patent) to Kelly. This patent discloses a DTE interface that permits the DTE to provide the EIA RS-232 interface, the EIA RS-449 interface, and a proprietary interface, which is a derivative of the EIA RS-449 standard, using only a single 25 pin connector. However, the DTE interface disclosed in the '111 patent omitted some critical signals and hence did not fully implement the applicable standards. In addition this device failed to present the required termination impedance to the connected DCE. Further the DTE interface disclosed in the '111 patent was not capable of accommodating more than 2 different communications standards due to pin limitations in the interface connector.
The present invention relates to a DTE interface is desired that will interconnect with a range of different DCE's using different interface standards, without requiring that the user take special actions to permit the interface to properly function.

Serial communications interface that supports multiple interface standards


A low-loss, wideband SAW transducer operating on a piezoelectric substrate with a longitudinal axis of propagation. The SAW transducer has a plurality of tapered interdigital electrodes that are mounted on the substrate transverse to the propagation axis. The electrode widths and spacings are constant along lines parallel to the axis and are tapered in the direction transverse to the axis. An acoustic-wave reflector having a plurality of elongated, tapered discontinuities or reflective fingers is located on the substrate adjacent one end of the transducer. The spacings and widths of the reflective fingers are similar to those of the electrodes, i.e., the finger widths and spacings are tapered in the direction transverse to the axis and are constant along lines parallel to the axis. Because of the taper, the fingers reflect wideband acoustic waves parallel to the axis.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of acoustoelectronics. More particularly, the invention relates to a surface acoustic wave (SAW) structure capable of low-loss operation over a relatively wide bandwidth.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the field of electronics, SAW devices are used in a number of well known signal-processing applications such as signal delay, filtering, signal generation, etc. Generally, SAW devices take advantage of the five-orders-of-magnitude reduction in signal propagation velocity achieved by converting a radio frequency (rf) electromagnetic signal into a surface acoustic wave for propagation in a rigid solid.
In a typical SAW application, an rf signal is first converted by an input transducer into an acoustic surface wave that is confined to the surface of a piezoelectric substrate. The acoustic wave is then coupled to an output transducer for conversion to an electrical signal. These transducers usually consist of thin-film metallic electrode structures deposited on the substrate surface. One common transducer structure comprises an array of interdigital electrodes. The width and spacing of the electrodes are factors that help determine the frequency response of the SAW device and its operation as a signal processor.
Conventional SAW interdigital transducers are bidirectional in that the acoustic energy is transmitted in both the forward and backward directions. However, when a conventional SAW transducer with periodic, parallel electrodes incorporates a properly spaced reflective grating (see FIG. 1), the result is a narrowband, unidirectional structure.
One prior art technique for increasing the bandwidth of conventional interdigital SAW structures consists of tapering the electrode width and spacing (see FIG. 2--it is noted that the tapering angles in FIGS. 2, 3 are greatly exaggerated for clarity). The transducer electrodes are slightly rotated at progressively greater angles with respect to the direction of propagation of the acoustic wave. The electrode tapering and its rotation produces a variable electrode spacing parallel to the propagation path. Consequently, the frequency response, which is a function of electrode spacing, will vary along different but parallel paths across the SAW transducer thereby creating a wideband frequency response. This technique is analyzed in detail in the following report: A. P. van den Heuvel, "Properties of Tapered Surface Wave Transducers," ECOM Research and Development Technical Report, Technical Report ECOM-0197-F, pp. 12-14, 18, 19, 22-25, February 1973.

Unidirectional surface acoustic wave transducer

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


A number of different embodiments of illuminated electrical cords and outlets are provided. Some embodiments include a light source within at least one connector end of an electrical cord, with the cord having a translucent outer cover for emitting the light radially from the connector end light source. The cord may be a household electrical or extension cord, a computer power supply cord, auxiliary power cord, etc., as desired. A kit may be provided to adapt a conventional, non-illuminated cord to provide illumination therefrom. Other embodiments include electrical outlets, adapters, and power strips having a light source(s) therein, for illuminating an electrical cord installed in the electrical power source. The outlets, adapters, and power strips may include differently colored lighting, and/or multiple colored lenses for manual or automated selection of color output. Battery power may be provided, with automated switching in the event of a primary power failure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electrical power cords and electrical outlets therefor, and more specifically to means for illuminating the cords substantially along their entire lengths. Illuminated outlets and connectors are also provided.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electrical and extension cords, power supply and data transmission cables, and other types of cords and cables carrying electrical energy and signals, conventionally comprise one or more internal conductors surrounded by an electrically insulating, opaque cover or sheath. In certain rare instances, a translucent or transparent outer cover or sheath has been provided for the electrical conductor(s) in such wiring. However, the purpose of such translucent or transparent covering, is merely to provide a different appearance for the wire than that provided by conventional opaque insulation material.
Electrical cords and cables of various types are often used in areas of relatively low illumination, and/or are extended across the floors of rooms, hallways, and other areas of pedestrian foot traffic. Yet, with the exception of a relatively few devices developed in the past (addressed in the discussion of the related art below), no illumination has been provided for such electrical cords, to alert persons as to their location for avoidance of the cord(s), and to indicate the presence of an electrical supply or current running through the cord.
The present invention responds to this problem by providing a series of embodiments of electrical cords, cables, and the like, comprising one or more electrical conductors surrounded by a translucent or transparent insulating material which emits light radially therefrom when light is transmitted through the material. The present invention also includes various embodiments of electrical connectors formed integrally with the cords, which connectors include light emitting means for providing light to the light transmissive elements of the cords. The present invention further includes various embodiments of electrical outlets which include lighting means therein for supplying light to the illuminated cords of the present invention, and means for adjusting the color of the light emitted from those outlets.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventors are aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,757,102 issued on Sep. 4, 1973 to Earl W. Roberts, titled "Lamp Capsule," describes a neon bulb encapsulated within a translucent capsule, which assembly is in turn installed within a translucent electrical receptacle or connector. The neon bulb is electrically connected to the electrical conductors within the electrical receptacle or connectors, so the bulb, and thus the receptacle or connector, is illuminated whenever electrical power is provided or when the electrical connector is connected to an active source of electrical power. While the Roberts device serves to provide an indication of active electrical power and also indicates the location of the electrical outlet or connector when the device is illuminated, it stops short of providing the benefits of the present invention, with its essentially continually illuminated electrical cords and means for illuminating the cords.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,859 issued on Mar. 9, 1976 to Miklos B. Korodi, titled "Electrical Conductor With Light Indicating Means," describes various embodiments of an illuminated electrical conductor. In one embodiment, the light emitting element is a light bulb contained within the connector at one end of the cord, and transmits its light along a fiberoptic line which runs the length of the cord. In another embodiment, a series of discontinuities is provided in the fiberoptic strands, resulting in an illuminated cord having a series of discontinuous "dots" of light emanating therefrom. Yet another embodiment includes a neon filled channel running the length of the cord, with the channel having an electrode at each end to excite the neon gas to cause the cord to illuminate. In contrast, the present invention utilizes at least one light emitting diode (LED) disposed within at least one of the connector ends of the cord, with appropriate voltage reduction circuitry as required to provide the proper voltage for the LED. Alternatively, the LED(s) may be located within an electrical receptacle or outlet, with means provided for light communication between the receptacle or outlet and the cord body. A color wheel may be provided with the present system, to provide different colors of light emission from the cord as desired, either by manually adjusting the wheel, or automating rotation of the wheel. The present invention may also provide for automatic illumination of the outlet(s) and cord(s) connected thereto in the event of an electrical power failure, by means of a battery powered backup system.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,152 issued on Nov. 30, 1976 to Albert Chao et al., titled "Electrical Lighting Structure Built-In A Molded Plastic Cord Or Cable," describes a lighting system incorporating a series of small, baseless incandescent bulbs installed along the length of a flexible or rigid translucent tube. Chao et al. note that the tube may carry additional wiring. However, the lights of the Chao et al. device result in a series of spaced apart, discontinuous lights within the tube, rather than a continuously lighted cord or cable, as in the case of the present invention. Chao et al. do not provide any lighting means within a connector or receptacle at the end(s) of their device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,690 issued on Oct. 3, 1978 to William C. Paynton, titled "Electrical Hazard Indicator," describes an electrical cord having a small neon bulb installed in the male connector end of the cord. The neon bulb is wired in such a way that it will illuminate at least momentarily when the male prongs are inserted into an electrically active receptacle. However, the Paynton device does not provide any lighting for the cord itself for providing any alert or warning to persons in the area of the location of the cord, nor does Paynton provide any lighting means within an electrical outlet or receptacle, as provided by the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,597,033 issued on Jun. 24, 1986 to Daniel H. Meggs et al., titled "Flexible Elongated Lighting System," describes a lighting system comprising a flexible or semi-flexible translucent tube with a series of LED lighting elements installed therein. Meggs et al. intend their lighting system to be used primarily as an emergency system to indicate doorways, etc. where standard electrical lighting has failed. The Meggs et al. system differs from the present invention in that the Meggs et al. lighting system spaces the LEDs along the length of the light emitting element, rather than only at one or both ends thereof, as in the case of the present device. Also, Meggs et al. do not provide for any electrically conductive elements in addition to the conductors for the LEDs, i.e., they do not form their device as an electrical cord, whereas the present invention comprises an illuminated, electrically conductive cord or cable.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,597 issued on Jun. 9, 1987 to Edward Grill, titled "Power Indicator Light," describes a male electrical plug having a neon indicator light therein to indicate when the associated electrical cord is receiving power from the electrical receptacle into which the plug is inserted. The resulting device closely resembles the illuminated electrical plug of the Paynton '690 U.S. patent, discussed further above. The same points raised in the discussion of the Paynton '690 U.S. patent, are seen to apply to the Grill illuminated electrical plug as well.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,999 issued on Jan. 15, 1991 to Sam S. Leake, titled "String Of Lights Specification," describes an electrical line comprising two conductors which receive a relatively low voltage from a transformer. The transformer is adapted for plugging into a conventional electrical receptacle. A series of LEDs is installed along the length of the electrical line, with contact elements which penetrate the insulation of the electrical line to connect electrically with the conducting wires therein. Leake does not provide any other electrical conductors for powering equipment directly from the conventional electrical receptacle into which the transformer is plugged, whereas the present invention includes such conducting elements. Moreover, the Leake apparatus does not include a translucent insulating sheath for the conducting elements and cannot transmit light therealong, as provided by the present invention. The Leake light string is essentially an opaque cord having a series of external point sources of light therealong, rather than continuous light emission.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,007,857 issued on Apr. 16, 1991 to Duane E. Wright, titled "Electrical Receptacle With Power Indicator Light," describes a receptacle end for an extension cord, or a male-female adapter receptacle, with an indicator light therein. Plugging an electrical device into the receptacle end of the electrically active extension cord, or the adapter, closes a circuit across a neon light within the receptacle or adapter, to indicate that electrical power is being supplied to the electrical device. The present invention also provides an indication of electrical power delivery through the electrical cord or cable, but does so using a completely different principle, wherein an LED light disposed within the receptacle end of the cord, illuminates the translucent insulating sheath of the cord in a continuous manner along its entire length.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,051,733 issued on Sep. 24, 1991 to Donald Neuhouser, titled "High Voltage Indicator Device," describes the installation of a series of wire wraps about the circumference of a high voltage line, with the circumferential wires connected to one or more remotely located fluorescent tubes. When the high voltage line is energized, a voltage sufficient to light the fluorescent tube(s) is induced in the circumferential wire wrap, causing the tubes to light and indicate high voltage in the line. The line itself of the Neuhouser system is not lighted, whereas the present invention provides continuous lighting along the length of the cord or line, no more than low voltage passing through the line for powering an optional LED at the opposite end of the cord.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,065,142 issued on Nov. 12, 1991 to Peter J. Green, titled "Voltage Pickup Circuit And Flashing Display For High Voltage Indicator Device, And Input Electrode Therefor," describes a warning device very similar to that of the Neuhouser device discussed immediately above. Green uses a capacitive plate wrapped about the high voltage line, with the charge picked up by the plate being used to illuminate a remotely located neon light or activate a piezoelectric buzzer. As in the case of the Neuhouser system, the Green warning system does not illuminate the electrical line itself, but rather serves to illuminate a remotely situated warning light. In contrast, the present invention illuminates the translucent body of the cord itself, but does not apply any voltage to the translucent insulating body of the cord.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,594 issued on May 4, 1993 to Thomas R. Olson, titled "Electrical Power Extension Cord," describes embodiments of a cord having translucent end connectors with neon lights therein. The lights are connected across either the electrically active ("hot") and neutral elements of the connector, or between the electrically active element and a ground. When electrical power is connected to the cord, the neon lights are illuminated, to light the translucent connector bodies. The Olson device thus relates more closely to the devices of the Paynton '690, Grill '597, and Wright '857 U.S. patents, all discussed further above, than it does to the present invention with its continually lighted translucent cord length.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,283,429 issued on Feb. 1, 1994 to Steve Campolo, titled "Fiber Optical Monitoring System For Electrical Conductors And The Like," describes a fiberoptic system in which the optical fiber core and cladding each have refractive indices differing from one another and varying with temperature and strain. An external sensor senses the amount of light refracted from the cable and cladding, and actuates a circuit interrupter in the event the temperature and/or strain exceed(s) a predetermined value(s). Campolo does not provide any continuous, radially emitted illumination for the entire length of his fiberoptic cable, as is provided by the present invention, nor does he disclose the use of LED lighting for illuminating his cable, whereas the present system uses such LED lighting strictly for visual purposes, rather than for transmitting a signal.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,252 issued on Nov. 28, 1995 to Philip E. Fladung, titled "Light-Permeable Extension Cord Connector," describes an extension cord and connector elements each having an indicator light (neon, etc.) therein, connected across the electrical contacts of the connector. The indicator light is illuminated when the cord is connected to an electrical power source. No illumination of the cord length itself is disclosed by Fladung. The Fladung device thus more closely relates to the devices of the Paynton '690, Grill '597, and Wright '857 U.S. patents, all discussed further above, than it does to the present invention with its continually lighted translucent cord length.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,602,948 issued on Feb. 11, 1997 to Joseph E. Currie, titled "Fiber Optic Illumination Device," describes a fiberoptic cable providing both radial and axial illumination therefrom. The radial illumination enables the device to serve as a visual warning device, while the axial illumination provides light from a remote source to an area where light is required. However, the Currie device does not include any electrical conductors running along the length of the fiberoptic cable, unlike the present invention wherein the primary portion of the device comprises one or more electrical conductors encased within a translucent insulating sheath for illuminating the length of the cord or line. As the Currie device does not include an electrical conductor(s) therein, no provision is made for connecting either end to an electrical power source.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,838,860 issued on Nov. 17, 1998 to Brett M. Kingstone et al., titled "Fiber Optic Light Source Apparatus And Method," describes various embodiments of a fiberoptic cable and light source therewith. The light source may include a rotary wheel having a series of differently colored lenses therein, for producing light having selectively different colors through the fiberoptic cable. The Kingstone et al. cable may also emit light laterally, according to the disclosure. However, Kingstone et al. do not provide any form of electrical conductor extending through their fiberoptic cable, and thus cannot use their cable as an extension cord to power a remotely located electrical device, as can the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,964,616 issued on Oct. 12, 1999 to Kenneth D. Eisenbraun, titled "Lighted Accessory Power Supply Cord," describes an automotive auxiliary electrical cord device for plugging into the conventional cigarette lighter socket in a motor vehicle. While Eisenbraun provides electrical conductors extending from the plug, the conductors and cord are not illuminated along their length, as is the cord of the present invention. Rather, Eisenbraun provides a light internally within the body of the plug, and a lens to direct the light outwardly from the plug body. The light is only disposed at the plug, and does not illuminate the cord length, as it does with the present illuminated extension cord invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,159,037 issued on Dec. 12, 2000 to Brent D. Madsden et al., titled "Illuminated Connector," describes various embodiments of connectors or plugs adapted for use in connecting computer cables and the like to one another and to a computer(s). The plug or connector body is translucent, with an external light source (not shown in the disclosure) being used to direct light into the connector body to illuminate the body. Madsden et al. do not provide any means of illuminating a connector cord extending from their connector plug body, whereas the present invention includes means for illuminating the elongate cord or electrical line, as well as illuminating the outlets, adapters, and/or power strips to which the present illuminated electrical cords may be connected.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,319,051 issued on Nov. 20, 2001 to Chih-Kai Chang, titled "Electric Connector With A Light Penetrable Socket Shell," describes a connector socket for use in the computer field, with the socket including a translucent internal body into which the plug is inserted. Electric power to the connector results in LEDs within the external housing illuminating the internal shell, with light being emitted from the shell and outwardly from the plug receptacle of the shell. The Chang device is thus more closely related to the Madsden et al. '037 connector discussed immediately above, than to the present invention, as Chang does not disclose any means for illuminating the electrical cord extending from the connector.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,825 issued on Jan. 8, 2002 to Roland Seefried, titled "Electrical Connector With Light-Guiding Body," describes various connector and translucent lens configurations in which LEDs are used, with the lenses spreading their light emissions more broadly for better viewing. The Seefried connector is more closely related to the connectors disclosed in the Madsden et al. '037 and Chang '051 U.S. patents than to the present invention, as Seefried does not disclose any means of illuminating an electrical cord extending from his connector.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus illuminated electrical cords and outlets solving the aforementioned problems, are desired.

Illuminated electrical cords and outlets