The present invention provides a device for measuring uneven wear of starter brushes for a vehicle which can accurately measure and compare the lengths of the starter brushes and easily determine whether or not eccentricity of an armature occurs, the device comprising: a hollow support; a receiving plate formed integrally with the outer circumferential surface of an upper portion of the hollow support to accommodate a plurality of brushes; a lifting body liftably inserted into the inside of the hollow support; a plurality of detection rods slidably connected to the outer circumferential surface of an upper portion of the lifting body and moving forward or backward toward the brushes; a lift driving means for driving the lifting body; a plurality of measuring sensors for measuring the lengths of the brushes by means of the detection rods; and an LCD panel for displaying the measured lengths; and a control unit for controlling the lift driving means, the measuring sensors and the LCD panel.

(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a device for measuring uneven wear of starter brushes for a vehicle and, more particularly, to a device for measuring uneven wear of starter brushes for a vehicle which can accurately measure and compare the lengths of the starter brushes and easily determine whether or not eccentricity of an armature occurs.
(b) Background Art
A starter motor is one of the component parts of a vehicle, which converts electrical energy of a battery into mechanical energy to start an engine.
The starter motor basically comprises an armature, a yoke, a permanent magnet, a brush, a bearing, and a shaft. The shaft connected to an engine by means of a worm gear plays a role in transferring power to the engine.
In general, the starter motor is operated to start the engine and requires a high torque. It thus has a tendency to more easily get out of order than the other motors of the vehicle.
If the starter motor gets out of order, it should be replaced with a new one. However, since the starter motor has a structure similar to an ordinary motor and the main trouble occurs in limited areas, it is easy to recycle the starter motor. Accordingly, recycled goods are frequently used instead of new ones.
The main trouble areas are an armature commutator and a brush portion. When the two portions are in direct contact with each other and rotated, abrasive wear occurs.
Especially, if eccentricity is present in the armature, uneven wear, in which only one or two of four brushes are serious worn, occurs. As a result, vehicle vibration is generated and power transmission efficiency is reduced.
At present, recycling manufacturers determine whether or not to recycle the worn brushes by visual inspection and dispose of them if not recyclable.
However, since the visual inspection is conducted in a way that an examiner measures the lengths of the brushes by his naked eyes, it is difficult to accurately inspect the brushes and the variation is quite large according to the workers.
As a result, brushes that should be disposed of may be reused, which causes quality problems in the recycled starter motors. Alternatively, brushes that should be reused may be disposed of.
Accordingly, some of these recycling manufacturers do not reuse the brushes but replace all brushes with new ones. The reason for this is that it is difficult to ensure the quality of the reused brushes due to the large variation according to the workers and the unit price of the brush is not high.
When the worn brushes are all replaced with new ones, no inspection is made separately and thus causes a substantial problem.
For example, if four brushes are worn uniformly as shown in FIG. 5, it is determined that there is no eccentricity in the armature and hence there is no problem. Whereas, if uneven wear occurs between the four brushes as shown in FIG. 6, it will cause a problem since the uneven wear means that eccentricity is present in the armature.
Here again, there is a cause (eccentricity of armature) and effect (uneven wear of brushes) relationship between the armature and the brushes.
Accordingly, if the unevenly worn brush is replaced with a new one, there is no serious problem in the brush in itself; however, it causes various problems such as vibration generated in the field due to the eccentricity of the armature.
Meanwhile, there is a method of measuring the eccentricity of the armature. However, expensive and very precise equipment is required to measure the delicate eccentricity and a lot of time and cost are required to set the positions of the armature, yoke, and permanent magnet one by one. Accordingly, the conventional method of measuring the eccentricity of the armature is not applicable to the existing recycling manufacturers.
Another method is to measure uneven wear of starter brushes. However, since the method is applied only to the brushes without setting the armature, yoke, and the like, it requires less time and cost. Moreover, since the method measures only the lengths of brushes, the measurement equipment is relatively inexpensive. Furthermore, although the method indirectly measures the eccentricity of the armature, it is believed that it is better than the method of measuring the eccentricity of the armature in terms of efficiency.
The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art that is already known to a person skilled in the art.

Device for measuring uneven wear of starter brushes for vehicle


There are provided an in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device and a fabrication method of the in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device which has a low pretilt angle by applying a three-electrode structure to an in-plane switching display and mixing a photocurable polymer into an alignment film by a rubbing process, and includes: an upper substrate having an upper plate conductive electrode; a lower substrate having a lower plate conductive electrode and a pattern electrode formed on the lower plate conductive electrode with an insulating layer therebetween; the liquid crystal layer disposed between the upper substrate and the lower substrate; and an alignment film formed on the upper substrate having the upper plate conductive electrode and the lower substrate having the pattern electrode and configured to align liquid crystals in an in-plane manner.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device, and more particularly, to an in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device and a fabrication method of the in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device which has a low pretilt angle by applying a three-electrode structure to an in-plane switching display and mixing a photocurable polymer into an alignment film by a rubbing process.
Description of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display device is one of flat panel display devices and configured to control an amount of light to be transmitted by applying a voltage to an electrode and rearranging liquid crystal molecules in a liquid crystal layer.
Among various liquid crystal modes, an FFS (Fringe Field Switching) mode has been widely used as a liquid crystal mode with a high transmittance and a wide viewing angle.
The FFS mode refers to a mode of rotating liquid crystal molecules using an in-plane electric field in a single substrate on which a common electrode and a pixel electrode are formed in sequence.
FIG. 1 illustrates a basic structure of an in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device using a two-electrode structure.
A structure of an in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device of the prior art includes a liquid crystal layer 30 between an upper substrate 10 and a lower substrate 70 on which a lower plate conductive electrode 60 is deposited, as illustrated in
FIG. 1.
Herein, a pattern electrode 40 is additionally deposited on the lower substrate, and an insulating layer 50 is disposed between the lower plate conductive electrode 60 and the pattern electrode 40.
FIG. 2 illustrates a liquid crystal alignment method of the in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device of FIG. 1.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, a rubbing roller 100 wound with a rubbing cloth is rotated on the substrate on which an in-plane alignment film 20 is formed. In this case, polymer chains formed within a surface of the alignment film 20 are aligned in one direction by a contact between the substrate and the rubbing cloth.
Herein, a pretilt angle defined as an angle formed between a major axis of the liquid crystal molecules and a surface of the substrate when the upper and lower substrates are bonded to each other is about 1 to 3 degrees.
As illustrated herein, in the in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device of the prior art, if the liquid crystal molecules are aligned by a rubbing process, a pretilt angle is about 1 to 3 degrees, which causes a light leakage in a black state.
A light leakage caused by a pretilt angle cannot be improved by viewing angle compensation using a compensation film and thus causes a serious deterioration in performance of a display.
Particularly, studies for achieving a wide viewing angle have been actively conducted as a demand for a high-resolution and high-performance display has rapidly increased. In this case, a pretilt angle of a liquid crystal greatly affects a viewing angle.
In order to improve a viewing angle, studies for designing a viewing angle compensating structure and lowering a pretilt angle have been actively conducted. As one of the studies, a study of photo alignment using strong UV rays has been conducted, but has not yet been applied to mass production due to many disadvantages.
As such, visibility is a very important factor in a current liquid crystal display device. Therefore, development of a technology capable of improving the visibility of the in-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device of the prior art has been demanded.
In particular, development of a technology capable of improving the visibility without deterioration in other electro-optic characteristics has been demanded.

In-plane switching mode liquid crystal display device and fabrication method thereof

PUSAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY INDUSTRY-UNIVERSITY COOPERATION FOUNDATION


The corrosion protection of a metal article is accomplished by treating the metal article, which has not been treated with a conversion coating, with a wash coat solution comprising polyphenylene oxide, such as alkyl substituted polyphenylene oxide, preferably poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-polyphenylene oxide).

It is known, in general, in the prior art to coat metal surfaces with various phenylene oxide polymers to form coatings which provide some degree of corrosion protection to the metal surfaces.
Certain references suggest the use of electropolymerized polyphenylene oxides in corrosion resistant coatings including the following: M-C. Pham et al., Bull. Societe Chimique France 1985, 1169; M. Vijayan et al., Bull. Electrochemistry 1986, 2, 349; T. F. Otero et al., Makromol. Chem., Macromol. Symp. 1987, 8, 255; and S. Pitchumani et al., J. Electrochem. Soc. India 1990, 39, 211.
One approach that has been described utilizes the electrochemical deposition of various phenylene oxide polymers as coatings onto the metal by utilizing a solution containing the polymerizable phenol monomer(s). See, for example, Chemical Abstracts, Vol. 84, 181695h (1976) and Chemical Abstracts, Vol. 95, 188687t (1981).
An alternative approach to the foregoing electrochemical deposition techniques has relied upon the deposition of the prepolymerized PPO material onto the metal either from solution or as a powder coating:
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,455,736 to H. R. Davis et al., it is taught that certain types of PPO material are deficient in regard to their temperature or solvent resistance (see Col. 1, lines 35-47) and that such disadvantages can be remedied by the use of what is termed "certain linear or substantially linear" PPO materials. Such "selected polyphenyleneoxide oxide polymer" (see Col. 3, line 24) would, for example, not have alkyl group substitution on the arylene rings of the polymer and are formed from condensation reaction of potassium p-chlorophenolate.
More recent U.S. Pat. No. 3,907,613 teaches the use of a "substituted" PPO material, namely, 2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene oxide, to coat metal surfaces, in violation of the teachings of the above described '736 patent. This patent indicates (at Col. 1, lines 13-21) that PPO films on metal lose their adhesion upon drying and are therefore "unsuitable to create protective layers on metal" unless expensive treatments of the metal with a thin layer of copper or silver are performed. As alternative approaches to such an expensive approach, this patent proposes either: (1) that the metal surface be provided with an oxidized conversion surface layer (see Col. 1, lines 28-33), such as by heating the metal (see Col. 1, lines 59-60); (2) that the PPO resin be modified by the inclusion of other resins and/or softening agents (see Col. 1, lines 34-37); (3) that corrosion inhibitor(s) be included in the PPO resin layer (see Col. 1, lines 39-45); or (4) that a further coating of PPO be used on top of the initial layer (see Col. 1, lines 46-49).

Metal corrosion protection with wash coat of polyphenylene oxide


A method of data transmission for transmitting by a clocked transmission device discretized data incorporated in block form into a frame structure, the amount of data grouped together respectively in a block being variable and the clock frequency of the transmission device being changed according to this amount of data in such a way that the frame structure and frame length are maintained.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method of data transmission for transmitting via a clocked transmission device binary-coded data incorporated in block form into a time frame structure with constant frame length.
2. Description of the Related Art
Transmission systems which operate by the PCM-2 (PCM=Pulse Coded Modulation) method use a transmission technique that is customary in the case of ISDN networks (ISDN=Integrated Services Digital Network) to transmit two voice channels from the exchange, such as a telephone exchange, to the subscriber on a pair of copper wires. The two 64-kbit/s B channels which are available with ISDN systems are connected via a corresponding adapter in the exchange to two ports of an analog line termination circuit and at the subscriber to two analog telephones. In this case, which corresponds to analog telephones, each of the two subscribers is provided with a 64-kbit/s channel. Consequently, each subscriber can use fast fax machines without any loss in power.
If, in addition, the voice data are compressed during transmission, the capacity of an ISDN transmission device is available to a still greater number of analog subscribers. However, transmission by fast fax machines unfortunately suffers.
Transmission in accordance with the HDSL standard (ETSI RTR/TM 3036) provides a frame length of 6 ms, wherein the information is reduced from two bit lengths to a quaternary symbol, in other words, a so-called quat, during transmission. This results in a bit rate which is equal to twice the band rate. The nominal length of an HDSL frame is 6 ms. The number of quats per HDSL frame depends on the respective operating mode, two operating modes (namely the E1 and T1 operating modes) being standardized. The data within an HDSL frame are divided over four blocks, so-called payload blocks, with in each case 12 groups, which begin with a start bit (a Z bit), which is followed by a number of payload bits. Since 4.times.12 z bits are transmitted in a 6-ms period, there is additionally an 8-kb/s channel available. The number of bits transmitted after every Z bit is equal to the number of 64-kb/s channels which are transmitted over a line. Consequently, the operating mode T1 comprises 12 bits after every z bit, while the operating mode E1, which does not have the 8-kb/s channel, has 18 bits after every Z bit.
The average length of an HDSL frame in a T1 operating case is 2352 quats in 6 ms. Each individual frame contains either no filling quats or two filling quats, 6-1/392 ms or 2353 quats in 6+1/392 ms. The average length of the HDSL frame for the E1 operating case is 3504 quats in 6 ms. Each individual frame in this case comprises no filling quats or two filling quats, so that an actual length of 3503 quats in 6-1/584 ms or 3505 quats in 6+1/584 ms is obtained. PCM-11 systems use, for transmission in accordance with the HDSL standard, 11 our of 12 B channels for 11 analog subscribers and the 12th B channel is used for signaling information. In this case, the 11 subscribers enjoy the full 64-kbit/s service. However, the remote feeding of the power for the terminal devices is problematical here. Although the data rate is increased by use of the HDSL standard, the power which can be transmitted for feeding to the terminal devices is limited owing to the series resistance of the line. For example, in the case of a PCM-11 system, 11 time the power required by a subscriber station plus the power which the PCM system itself requires, would have to be provided. Consequently, in some applications there are limitations to the line length which are caused only the feed voltage that is available in the exchange. Here, other data rates, for example 5 or 9 B channels--would be desirable in order, on the one hand, to minimize the power consumption and, on the other hand, to optimize the line length or connect the maximum number of subscribers to a given connection.
So far it has only been possible by means of transmission in accordance with the HDSL standard to realize PCM-n systems (for values of 4.ltoreq.n.ltoreq.11) with the full 64-kbit/s data rate per subscriber. The remaining channels between 12 or 18 and n were unused in these cases. The power consumption of the system was consequently not at an optimum and the achievable range was only that of the PCM system with 12 or 18 channels. In this case, the range decreases as the data rate increases.


A failure detector associated with a four-layer semiconductor protection component has a middle layer that corresponds to a low-doped semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type. The component includes in this substrate, in addition to plurality of regions providing its protection function, at least one additional region of the second conductivity type connected to a test terminal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to protection components including four alternate semiconductor layers, such as thyristors, gateless thyristors, and both mono and bidirectional Shockley diodes.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Various circuits using such protection components and improvements of such components are described in the patents and patent applications U.S. Pat. No. 5,274,524, U.S. Pat. No. 5,243,488, EP-A-490,788, U.S. Pat. No. 5,272,363, EP-A-542,648, EP-A-561,721, and FR92/14,793 (B1712, B1713, B1731, B1810, B1841, B1958, B2072).
Various improvements have been made to such components to improve their protection function, that is, to increase the accuracy of their breakover threshold and/or to render the breakover threshold programmable, and to improve the reliability of the components. These protection components are increasingly used because of their switching-on characteristics (the voltage across their terminals drops to a very low value during the occurrence of an overvoltage), because of their subsequent small size, and because of their fast switching ability. These protection components are used in particular in the protection of telephone lines.
In a known way, one can use a one-way Shockley diode with a rectifying circuit, or a bidirectional Shockley diode mounted between two wires of a telephone line. One can use delta-connected or star-connected Shockley diodes, wherein a first terminal is connected to a first wire of the telephone line, a second terminal is connected to a second wire of the telephone line, and a third terminal is connected to a reference voltage, usually ground.
However, since the protection components must remain within tolerable size limits, these components are intended to withstand a predetermined maximum energy surge. Beyond this maximum energy surge, the protection component is at risk of being destroyed. The protection components are designed so that this destruction corresponds to a short-circuiting of the protection component. In fact, if destruction corresponded to an open circuiting of the component, the circuit to be protected could be destroyed.

Failure indicator for a protection component


An adult/child and infant manikin for cardiopulmonary resuscitation including a torso simulation having an arcuate mounting surface, a head simulation having a neck attachment connected thereto. The neck attachment has an arcuate connection that is congruent to said arcuate mounting surface. Mounting members adapted to secure the head simulation to the torso simulation with the arcuate connection in contact with the arcuate mounting surface are also provided. The mounting members are movable in an arc across the arcuate mounting surface.

Manikins are often used as an instructional aid in teaching students cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques. Training manikins are also used as a practice aid to simulate conditions under which rescue personnel may be required to treat injured persons. As both teaching or demonstration aids and practice aids, manikins enable the realistic application of proper emergency cardiopulmonary resuscitation ("CPR") techniques including ventilation and external heart massage. Also manikins can be utilized for teaching and practicing other rescue techniques such as the Heimlich maneuver.
In order to provide effective CPR training through use of a manikin, many complex and interrelated functions and structures of the human body must be simulated so that the training is as realistic as possible. Also, the manikin needs to be safe and hygienic so that multiple persons can learn rescue techniques on a single manikin. The manikin should also be designed so that it can aid in the teaching of pulmonary ventilation or "mouth-to-mouth resuscitation" as well as external heart massage.
A moveable head/neck assembly is desirable for ventilation simulation, so that the manikin simulates the opening of the human airway that occurs by tilting back a person's head. Also, realistic torso anatomy is necessary to teach and simulate proper positioning and placement of the hands to properly perform external heart massage, and the Heimlich maneuver. Furthermore, a chest simulation formed of a compressible material is desirable to simulate breathing during ventilation and allow the student to gauge whether the proper amount of pressure is being exerted to a predetermined depth within the CPR manikin during external heart massage.


A golf ball has a cover with a Shore D hardness of at least about 59 and a coating on the cover that has at least one of (a) a pencil hardness of 2 B or less, (b) a Sward hardness of about 40 or less, or (c) a Hit (Young's Modulus)<20 N/mm2 and hmax>0.55 micrometer.

This section provides information helpful in understanding the invention but that is not necessarily prior art.
Modern golf balls are typically made with a durable cover. The golf ball may have a two-piece construction with the cover and a one-piece rubber or elastomer core or a multi-piece construction with multiple inner layers selected from rubbers or elastomers, including natural and synthetic rubbers, styrene butadiene, polybutadiene, poly(cis-isoprene), or poly(trans-isoprene) (which is synthetic "balata" and is typically used as a cover material), and hard, thermoplastic materials such as olefin-based ionomer resins. The outer cover may be made from a variety of thermoplastic and thermoset materials, such as olefin-based ionomers, polyamides, polyesters, polyurethanes, and polyureas. Golf balls are also often coated with an abrasion-resistant surface coating, for example a polyurethane coating with a pencil hardness of 3 H or a Sward hardness of more than 40. Such a hard coating typically is formulated to give a glossy appearance and durability to the ball.
The cover hardness may vary depending on the properties desired for the ball. Harder-cover golf balls as a whole produce low spin, and thus longer distance, on driver and long iron shots. However, hard-covered golf balls may not provide the best play for skilled players, who seek to maintain control as well as to achieve maximum distance on tee and fairway shots. A highly skilled golfer may find an advantage with golf balls having a multilayer construction with a low hardness cover and a higher hardness inner layer. This construction can produce low spin off the tee, though not as low as could be had with a harder cover, but higher spin on shorter iron and wedge shots. The ability to control the ball on short irons and wedge shots by putting more backspin on the ball allows for better control of the golf ball when it lands.

Golf ball with soft coating and hard cover


Safety syringe that includes a cylindrical chamber having a front end that includes a discharge end, a plunger slidably coupled to the cylindrical chamber, and a needle holder structured to receive a needle having at least a portion of which that protrudes from the discharge end. A cylinder unit is slidably arranged within the front end, and a plunger seal, coupled to the plunger, is arranged for movement relative to the plunger after medicament discharge. The plunger is arranged to slidably move the cylinder unit toward the discharge end and to slidably dislodge the plunger seal. The cylinder unit is structured to provide a protective shield around the portion of the needle protruding from the discharge end.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a syringe having a chamber with tubular cylindrical configuration. A plunger within the tubular cylindrical configuration is able to move along an axial axis of the tubular cylindrical configuration and a needle holder configuration is externally fixed or integrally part to the discharge end of the tubular cylindrical configuration of the syringe, i.e., opposite the plunger handle.
2. Discussion of Background Information
The needle holder configuration connects to the discharge end of the syringe via a one piece receptacle module, which allows the connection to be done either externally or as an integral part of the syringe tubular configuration. In this manner, it is possible to cover and protect the protrusive needle portion after medicament discharge via a protruding shield extending internally from the tubular cylindrical configuration of the syringe chamber front end. Thus, the discharge end, actuated by the force exerted on the rear end of the plunger handle directly after medicament discharge, is moved, in a same axial direction as for medicament discharge, to the most forward position of the plunger to counter any accidental contact with the needle portion during further handling.
Other embodiments of such conventional safety syringes may have a number of shortcoming, e.g., the needle holder configuration or device has to be inserted from the non-discharge end (i.e., rear end) of the syringe; needles of different sizes cannot be accommodated on the syringe; increased production costs and assembling difficulties due to plug type embedments into the discharge end of the syringe; a considerable degree of complexity as if for special applications only; and unofficial re-use possibility of syringe after initial usage, which can cause extremely unsafe conditions, due to a slight reactivation force onto certain components of the syringe so as to reconstruct the syringe as if for initial use.


A firefighter training apparatus includes a sled base having a plurality of sled runners and an upright post attached to the base. The upright post is slidably attached to the base for adjusting the height of the post. A pole is attached to the post with a pole-to-post attaching mechanism which pole is movable against a resistance force so that pushing the pole against the resistance force provides an exercise routine for a firefighter simulating the breaching of a ceiling. The sled base has a section of firefighter's hose attached thereto which can be grasped by the firefighter for pulling the firefighting training apparatus to simulate the pulling of a fire hose. The base also has removably attachable weights for increasing or decreasing a load pulled by the firefighter. A pair of straps is attached to the sled base for a firefighter to pull to simulate removing of victims from a hazardous environment.

A firefighter fitness and training apparatus allows a firefighter to simulate pulling of a fire hose and of breaching of a ceiling during a fire and the removing of victims from a hazardous environment.
It is important for firefighters to develop reflexes and muscles to perform the functions that they are commonly called upon to perform during fire and rescue operations. The use of exercise and training machines is very useful in developing such reflexes and muscles and for keeping the firefighters in shape for the specific functions that they are required to be performed. Typical functions that a firefighter may be called upon to do is to drag large sections of fire hose from a fire truck to a fire hydrant or to a better location for the application of water from the fire hydrant. Another common technique for firefighters is the breaching of ceilings in which pike poles or the like are required to be shoved up into ceilings for breaching the ceiling. The firefighters also have to be in condition for removing victims from a hazardous environment. This is commonly done by grasping the victim and dragging him from a hazardous to a safer environment. It is thus desirable to have a firefighter's training equipment in the nature of a fire sled which can provide training in the pulling of a fire hose and in the grasping and dragging of a victim to remove the victim from a hazardous environment as well as simulated training in the breaching of a ceiling in an area where a fire may be in the ceiling.
Prior art patents that may provide useful training for firefighters can be seen in the Rivkin U.S. Pat. No. 4,688,792 for a training and exercise machine for football and wrestling and which can also be used for training firefighters in the development of rapid dynamic reflexes. This patent provides a dummy mounted to a crossbeam. In the Livingston U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,548, a mobile firefighting training trailer is provided having a plurality of rooms and passages with simulated appliances and furniture and having a smoke generator and flame generating devices positioned for simulating fires in a house. In the Ernst et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,270, a firefighting trailer is also provided for training firefighters. In the Tommarello et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,518,402, a firefighter trainer is provided having personal tracking and constructive entry determination training and trains firefighters to extinguish simulated fire scenarios. In the Musto et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,203,707, a modular firefighter trainer is provided for use for training firefighters while the Musto et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,571 is a portable fire trainer for use in training by an instructor of company employees in the use of fire extinguishers for extinguishing Class A, B or C fires. In the Joynt et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,447,437, a portable firefighter training system for fire extinguishing training is provided for educating people in the proper use of firefighting procedures. In the Ott U.S. Pat. No. 6,824,504, a full body, adjustable weight sled exerciser is provided for training football players in tackling or blocking practice. The Rogers et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,688,136 is a firefighter trainer for use in training firefighters on passenger rescue during aircraft simulated cabin fire and during simulated oil spill module fires. The Welch et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,927,990 is a firefighter trainer for simulating flashover phenomena and teaches the trainee how to recognize warning signs of flashovers and what follows the warning signs and what to do if confronted with the warning signs. The Dunn U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,081 is a firefighting training method and apparatus for simulating the pumping of water through various long lengths of hose to train firefighters to deliver a proper amount of water through the fire hose. The Deshoux et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,552 is a teaching installation for learning and practicing the use of firefighting equipment, such as fire extinguishers.
The present invention is directed towards a firefighter training and exercising apparatus which has a fire sled equipped for training a firefighter in the pulling of a fire hose and in the breaching of a ceiling and in the removing of a victim from a hazardous environment.


A conveyor system of a sugarcane harvesting machine includes an inclined conveyor having a first shaft at a lower end and a second shaft at an upper end thereof. The belt is driven along the inclined conveyor between the first shaft and the second shaft, and the belt includes an upper portion and a lower portion between the lower end and the upper end. A floor is partially disposed between the upper portion and the lower portion of the belt, and a wiper is coupled to a bottom end of the belt such that the wiper extends from the belt in a direction towards the floor. As the upper portion of the belt travels from the lower end to the upper end of the inclined conveyor, the wiper moves with the belt and contacts and moves material that collects on a top surface of the floor.

During operation of a sugarcane harvesting machine, sugarcane crop is generally cut near the soil in which it grows. As the crop is harvested, it is cut into smaller pieces referred to as cane billets. The billets can reach a rearward portion of the machine where it travels along a conveyor and transported to a cart or wagon. In a conventional conveyor system formed of steel, there may be a flap or other mechanism for transporting the billets upward to where it is discharged. In addition to the billets, soil and other debris may be collected by the machine. The soil and other debris may fall between gaps or openings in the conveyor system and land in undesirable locations along a floor where it continues to build. The soil buildup can be problematic because the area it collects is difficult to access and clean.
Thus, there is a need for a conveyor system on a sugarcane harvesting machine that is capable of directing or removing the soil buildup from these undesirable locations.

System and method for directing soil buildup on a conveyor on a sugarcane harvesting machine


The present invention is a fully contoured calcaneal plate having substantially no planar surfaces except at the origin. The contoured plate includes radiused sections, one extending inferior to superior is curved inferior to superior in a shape which is close to cylindrical and which approximates the shape of the cuboid bone. The second radiused section is curved in the vicinity of the anterior strut, and in particular at the inferior portion of the plate, to accommodate the peroneal tubercle. The plate has a rectangular or modified ovoid body section and a dog boned shaped tail with triangular placed holes for fixation.

The hindfoot joint comprises the junctions formed between the cuboid, calcaneus, and the talus. Mobility in these joints is critical to almost all bipedal movement, and even standing. This joint is vulnerable to substantial damage in particular in falls, or in automobile or vehicle crashes.
The present invention is designed in a first aspect for the most common fracture to the hindfoot joint: i.e. calcaneal fractures of which the most common is a Sander's type II fracture. This type of fracture generally comprises an interior to lateral fracture which often results in a three-part fragmentation of the calcaneus often leaving the sustentaculum as the healthiest fragment and displacing laterally and posterior the remaining fragments of the calcaneus. In addition, the plate of the present invention can be used for osteotomies and fixation of other fractures or reconstruction due to trauma or deformities.
Implants have been provided in the past to try to help stabilize the fragments in order to allow the calcaneus to fuse, and these past attempts have generally provided flat plates of a somewhat flexible nature to allow a surgeon to bend the plate before implantation, and/or to allow the plate be drawn into position on the bone to allow for some contouring of the plate as part of the implantation surgery. However, the prior art plates often had elements that extended beyond the bone to irritate soft tissue such as in particular the peroneal ligaments, which often causes irritation if not eruption of the ligament. Further, while the idea of loading a flexible planar plate maybe suitable to allow contouring fixed to healthy bone, it is totally unsuitable for reconstruction or reduction of fractures so as to rebuild a fractured bone. In contrast, an aspect of the present invention provides a fully contoured plate having substantially no planar surfaces (with one small but important exception at a pre-determined origin which permits the plate to be constructed and measured). The contoured plate has a surface that faces the bone which includes radiused sections, one extending inferior to superior which is curved inferior to superior in a shape which is close to cylindrical and which approximates the shape of the cuboid bone. The second radiused section is curved in the vicinity of the anterior strut, and in particular at the inferior portion of the plate, to accommodate the peroneal tubricle.
In addition, the posterior portion or body of the plate is formed to so as to try restore maximal length and height of the calcaneus in reconstruction or reduction of the bone using the plate of the present invention. The anterior portion includes a double eared tab or tail that has upper and lower holes spaced from a central hole in the tab portion to allow for triangular multiplanar fixation. The central portion of the plate includes three fenestrations spanned by two struts extending from the inferior to the superior portions of the plate which has a contour vaguely reminiscent of the outline of a whale where the body segment beginning at the anterior strut curves through a three hole portion that is reinforced to accommodate weight transfer from the tibia to the talus to the calcaneous. The top extends from the posterior strut to the top posterior hole, and includes a translation slot which is an optional point for a surgeon to begin with fixation to the bone. This feature allows the surgeon the ability to translate the plate based on radiographic evidence once the first screw is inserted to better accommodate patient anatomy. The struts are strategically designed to maximize strength and to minimize the possibility of loss of correction through loading in use. The body generally is a blunted ovoid ring (or "whale shaped") formed of plate segments including holes for fixation screws. The posterior segment of the body extends inferiorly and slightly posteriorly to a central hole and then inferiorly and slightly anteriorly to an inferior posterior hole which has been selected as the origin for plotting of the plate, and which includes a flat counterbore from which the remainder of the plate can be plotted using Cartesian coordinates. From here, the inferior segment of the body of the plate curves slightly upward to accommodate the peroneal ligament. The plate includes holes at the inferior ends of the posterior and the anterior struts so that these struts are supported by the screws as well as the linking portions of the plate and so that the load that is taken up at the opposing ends of the struts is distributed through the struts and to the adjoining portions of the plate. The inferior hole at the anterior strut forms the end of the body of the blunted ovoid ring or "whale outline", and the tail extends anteriorly with a triangular fenestration and a superior and an inferior ear, both of which include a hole. A third hole is located in this section to maximize the number of screws that can be placed in the anterior process fragment and to allow for triangular fixation in this area. Selected fixation holes in the plate are threaded for use with locking screws. In a particular aspect of the invention there are two locking holes which are internally threaded and are designed to directly support the subtalar joint fragment, specifically just inferior to the posterior facet (i.e. the articulating surface) of the calcaneous. Optionally, the anterior portion can also include locking holes. The corresponding locking screws include mating external locking threads on the head portion. The plate further includes smaller holes which allow the use of K wires both for reduction of the fragments, and for further fixation.
In addition, the present invention provides in a separate aspect, a calcaneal plate having a reinforced portion in the vicinity of the posterior facet. This area is where the majority of the weight transfer from the tibia to the talus to calcaneus occurs. In addition the plate has a hole designed to allow placement of a screw into the sustentaculum to enable the bone to be reduced using the construct as a tool during the surgery as this is an area where subsidence is likely to occur in many fractures or breaks. Preferably the screw is a compression screw, meaning that the screw is partially rather than fully threaded and the threads are on the distil portion with a shaft area that is free from threads. In addition, the calcaneal plate provides a posterior centered superior translation slot, and support struts are provided between the inferior portion and the superior portion of the plate structure. In addition, an anterior portion has a plurality of holes to provide for the possibility to provide a choice to a surgeon who has to deal with that bone, or a bone that has been severally damaged during the trauma.
Finally, the calcaneal plate of the present invention is contoured so as to provide a construct to build the displaced/fractured bone back to, rather than contouring a plate to fit a fractured bone, which is unlikely reduced to its original disposition. Additionally, the plate is shaped to maximum the height, width and general shape that would be supported under the plate in order for a surgeon to regain the original parameters/perimeter of the calcaneus. The design is generally an organic fluid design devoid of sharp edges which in most circumstances would not project beyond the bone. Further, the design has been generalized from a survey of the population in order to provide for the best possibility of the plate being to accommodate a number of variations and individuals.
The plate is provided in a right and a left version and is generally used on the lateral portion of the calcaneal bone situated slightly posterior to the cuboid slightly inferior to the posterior facet, and supported on the posterior portion of the calcaneus. The plate is also provided in multiple profiles for small and large patients.


A transmitter for transmitting an audio signal derived from an audio appliance to an FM (frequency modulation) radio includes a transmitter circuit for converting the audio signal derived from an audio appliance into an FM signal within an FM broadcasting band to thereby transmit the FM signal, a receiver circuit having at least a tuner unit; a display for displaying thereon a frequency; and a control circuit for controlling a transmission frequency of the transmitter circuit and a reception frequency of the receiver circuit. The control circuit causes the receiver circuit to detect an unused frequency within the FM broadcasting band and to set a frequency corresponding to the detected unused frequency to the transmission frequency, and also causes the display to display thereon the set transmission frequency.

The present invention is related to a transmitter used in combination with a compact and portable CD player, and also to an automobile audio apparatus using such a transmitter.
Even when no CD player is installed, or mounted on an automobile, if an FM radio is installed, or mounted on this automobile, then music recorded on a CD can be reproduced by using the speakers connected to this FM radio while a portable CD player and, for example, a transmitter 20 as shown in FIG. 1 are employed and this FM radio is operated. In other words, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 indicates a portable CD player, i.e., the normal type portable CD player having the various sorts of operation keys 11, an LCD 16 for displaying thereon the operation conditions, a headphone jack 12, and an external power supply jack 15 to which a DC voltage derived from an AC adaptor is applied as an operation voltage.
It should be understood that in the normal portable type CD player 10, speakers are not built therein. When a user listens to music recorded on a CD by using only such a normal portable type CD player 10, the user connects a headphone to the headphone jack 12 so as to listen to the music via this headphone.
A transmitter 20 include an FM transmitter circuit (not shown) for converting a stereophonic audio signal into an FM signal produced in accordance with the specification of the presently available FM broadcasting system. Moreover, this transmitter 20 has a plug 21 insertable into a cigarette lighter socket of an automobile (not shown). A cord 23 whose tip portion is connected to the headphone plug 22 is conducted from this transmitter 20, and also a cord 24 whose tip portion is connected to the DC plug 25 is conducted from this transmitter 20.
Then, when a user listens to a CD by using the FM radio installed on the automobile, the user inserts the headphone plug 22 into the headphone jack 12, and further inserts the DC plug 25 to the power supply jack 15. In addition, the user inserts the plug 21 into the cigarette lighter socket of the automobile.
As a result, the DC voltage appearing at this cigarette lighter socket is derived from the plug 21, and then is applied as the operation voltage to the FM transmitter circuit built in the transmitter 20, so that this FM transmitter circuit is brought into the operative state.
In addition, the DC voltage derived from the plug 21 is applied via the cord 24 and the plug 25 to the jack 15, and will become the operation voltage for the CD player 10.
Then, the key 11 is manipulated to set the CD player 10 to a reproduction mode. As a result, the CD is reproduced by this CD player 10 to output the audio signal reproduced from this CD to the headphone jack 12. This audio signal is supplied via the plug 22 and the cord 23 to the FM transmitter circuit of the transmitter 20 so as to be converted into the FM signal. Thus, this FM signal is transmitted in the wireless signal from outside the transmitter 20. At this time, when a knob 26 is rotated, the transmission frequency of this FM signal may be changed, or adjusted.
As a consequence, when this transmitted FM signal is received by the FM radio installed in the automobile, the music recorded on the CD reproduced by the CD player 10 can be heard from the speakers installed in this automobile. At this time, all of the functions of the CD player 10 may be utilized by manipulating the key 11.
Furthermore, since the power supply voltage of the CD player 10 is derived from the cigarette lighter socket, no battery is required in this CD player 10. Also, the user need not pay attention to depletion of this cell energy.
As explained above, in accordance with this transmitter 20, the portable CD player 10 may be used in a similar manner to the CD player mounted on the automobile. This conventional technique is disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,712,250.
In such a case that the user listens to the music recorded on the CD by using the above-explained transmitter 20, first, the user is required to set the reception frequency of the installed FM receiver to such a frequency of the FM broadcasting band where no broadcasting program is transmitted, namely an empty frequency. Next, the user must tune the transmission frequency of the transmitter 20 to the reception frequency of the FM receiver. Then, in order to perform this tuning operation, the user must rotate the knob 26 of the transmitter 20 so as to vary the transmission frequency while the user listens to the sounds produced from the speakers connected to the FM receiver.
However, such a tuning operation requires very cumbersome manipulations. In particular, very cumbersome and heavy workloads are necessarily required so as to seek the empty frequency in such a region where a large number of FM broadcasting programs are transmitted, for instance, in USA.

Transmitter and automobile audio apparatus using the same


A new apparatus of pure digital medical amplifier used for clinical and non-clinical biomedical signal acquisition purposes is disclosed, which include: multiple single-stage amplification buffers connected to biomedical signal inputs for receiving and buffering various biomedical and reference signals, one or more high resolution analog-to-digital converter whose analog inputs connected to the output of said buffers for digitizing biomedical signals, one or more digital signal controller whose inputs/outputs are connected to said buffers and analog-to-digital converters for receiving the digitized biomedical signal data and controlling the processing and output of said digitized biomedical signal data according to preset control program or user's commands. By real-time or non-real-time method said digital signal controller does the following signal processing on the digitized biomedical signal data: filtering, compressing, decompressing, encoding, decoding, transferring, storing and retrieving, analyzing, and displaying the required said digitized biomedical signal data. This invention of amplifier requires only a few electronic components, and yields extremely low internal noise, extremely low distortion of analog output, extremely high external noise rejection and immunity, extremely high flexibility in filtering frequency setting for various biomedical signals.

This invention relates to portable high performance medical amplifier, in particular to a pure digital medical amplifier for digitally acquiring, conditioning, storing, and transferring clinically and non-clinically applied biomedical signals.
Clinically and non-clinically applied biomedical signals, such as blood pressure, pulse, heartbeat, EEG, ECG, EMG, ERG, EOG, EGG, EP, ERP, AP, membrane potentials, ion potentials, ion currents, fluorescent currents, and optical electrical currents, are characterized by their low amplitude, and low frequency and near direct current signal components, usually below 30,000 Hz with major components in a range of 0.1-100 Hz.
The biomedical amplifiers been used widely both clinically and non-clinically nowadays are typically composed of the following stages: input buffer stage, pre-amplification stage, isolation amplification stage, high-pass filtering stage, low-pass filtering stage, notch filtering stage, post-amplification/attenuation stage, and output stage. The amplification gain is generally in the range from 1000 to 500000. The output amplitude is generally +/−0.1 to +/−10.0 volts, in order to meet the requirements such as display, measurement, recording, and acquisition of biomedical signals.
Such biomedical analog amplifiers described above have the following problems:
High internal noise, high signal distortion, and small dynamic range are the most serious problems. Multiple stages of amplification and filtering tend to generate much more internal noise than fewer stages because each stage contributes extra internal noise, and more peripheral electronic components also contribute more internal noise. Furthermore, multiple stages tend to consume more electric power and also add extra thermal noise. In addition, multiple stages need more circuit board space, the analog signal wires tend to be longer, and so are easier to introduce random noise as well as 50/60 Hz interference noise. Therefore, even a well designed analog medical amplifier typically suffers from internal noise level at 5-50 uV (RMS) or higher. As each stage causes analog signal distortion, an amplifier with multiple stages has significant signal distortion. When the amplification gain gets higher, the dynamic range of the amplifier becomes smaller. Commonly, the dynamic range of a biomedical amplifier with gain of 1000 is less than 10 mV, and that with gain of 500000 is less than 50 uV.
The filtering parameters are not changeable. The electronic filtering parameters are determined by the electronic components in the circuit, and cannot be changed once the amplifier is produced. For example, a notch filtering circuit designed for 50 Hz is not useable in the 60 Hz environment. The high-pass and low-pass filters are fixed once the amplifier design is over. This limits the versatile use of the amplifier for various applications, and the circuit must be specially designed in order to meet various filtering purposes.
There is no capability of signal processing and data analysis in these biomedical analog amplifiers. Analog signals can barely be processed and analyzed, and these signals need to be digitized before advanced processing and analysis can take place. The digitized biomedical signals often need various computations of signal processing and data analysis in real-time or non-real-time, such as low-pass filtering, high-pass filtering, notch filtering, data binning/insertion, data compression/decompression, data modulation/demodulation, time domain analysis, frequency domain analysis, waveform recognition, image processing, and result sorting. These computations require high performance digital signal controller in order to complete the tasks within few milliseconds. Currently various biomedical amplifiers are not capable of performing signal processing and data analysis.
The analog output from these biomedical analog amplifiers tends to worsen the signal quality, especially when output connection wire is long in distance and when connected device is contaminated with interference noise. High noise level, high distortion, small dynamic range, DC drifting, low efficiency, and high power consumption are typical in these amplifiers. To avoid interference noise introduced by a connected analog device, a linear photo isolator is often used, which further exacerbates the signal quality. Another approach been widely used to isolate the interference source is to modulate or digitize the biomedical signal, transfer the data via a digital photo isolator, and then demodulate or convert the data back to analog format for the next device. Unfortunately, this method suffers the same problems as these biomedical analog amplifiers with the cost of complicating the design and manufacturing.
The transferring efficiency is low for multiple channel biomedical signals. These analog amplifiers always use multiple connection wires for analog biomedical signal transferring. There is always signal cross talk between the parallel channels at certain degree, especially when the connection wire line is long. Furthermore, there is no way of compression for analog signals, and so the utilization of the signal transfer bandwidth is of low efficiency.
The signal transfer distance is limited. As the output of these analog amplifiers is in analog format, the signal quality degrades quickly with the transfer distance. If wireless approach is applied for long distance signal transfer, the analog signals must be modulated and then demodulated in order to achieve the signal transfer, and the signal quality will be affected. Currently only digitized signals can be transferred remotely with high fidelity and no loss.
The signals have poor security during transfer. Clinically applied biomedical signals may involve patient's sensitive information, and should be secured in general. However, analog signals are not easily encrypted and so cannot be effectively secured. This results in that the analog signals from analog biomedical amplifiers may be captured and abused during remote transfer, especially radio frequency transfer as the radio signal is aimlessly scattered in the space.

Pure digital medical amplifier for digitally acquiring, conditioning, storing, and transferring clinical and non-clinical biomedical signals

Dimetek Digital Medical Technologies, Ltd.


A method of sealing a container and a lid by melt adhesion by laser. Either the container or the lid has a thermoplastic resin that permits the laser beam to transmit through and the other one has a resin composition of the thermoplastic resin containing a heat-generating substance. Further, the laser beam applies a rectangular beam having a uniform intensity distribution. The upper-limit of temperature is not lower than a melting point of the thermoplastic resin but lower than a thermal decomposition start temperature thereof in the melt adhesion interface between the container and the lid, and the temperature reaches the upper-limit in a heating time t (msec) represented by the following formula (1),t (msec)=L/S  (1)where L is the length (mm) of the rectangular beam in the scanning direction, and S is the rate of laser scanning (mm/msec) of not higher than 1.65 mm/msec.

As the method of sealing the containers with the lids, there can be, usually, exemplified a method of adhesion by applying an adhesive to the contacting surfaces of the containers and the lids, and an art of forming the contacting surfaces of the containers and the lids with a heat-sealable resin, and attaining the sealing by melt-adhering the heat-sealable resin. The melt adhesion by heat-sealing is a simple method and has, usually, been widely used.
However, the melt adhesion by heat-sealing requires extended periods of time for the step of melt adhesion and for the subsequent step of cooling, and is not satisfactory from the standpoint of productivity. Further, The heat-sealing system, usually, uses a generally employed heat-seal bar, and makes it necessary to conduct the heat from the outer surface of the melt-adhering portion onto the sealing surface requiring, therefore, an extended period of time for conducting the heat when thick containers are handled. To prevent a decrease in the productivity, therefore, limitation is imposed on the thickness arousing, therefore, a problem in that only a low degree of freedom is allowed for designing the container and lid shapes. Further, a predetermined period of time is required until the heat-sealed portion is cooled and is completely sealed. Therefore, when the content having a spontaneous pressure is contained or when the content is hot-filled, the gas in the head space that is expanded due to the heat of sealing might escapes through the sealing portion in a molten state, and the sealing might peel off.
On the other hand, as the method of melt-adhering the members of packing bodies such as containers and lids, there have heretofore been known a melt adhesion by a laser. A patent document 1, for example, proposes an art of melt-adhering a bottom lid and an upper lid to the container body as a unitary structure by melt adhesion by laser. Upon melt-adhering the parts of the packing bodies by melt adhesion by laser, the sealing surfaces can be melt-adhered without much limited by the thickness of the members and, therefore, the time required for the melt adhesion is shortened as compared to the case of the heat-sealing.
The present inventors have also proposed a method of melt adhesion by constituting a self-pressing mechanism capable of pressing the members of the packing bodies such as containers and lids onto each other, enabling the melt adhesion by laser to be attained without the need of fixing the melt-adhering portions by using the external pressing mechanism and making it possible to seal the members of even relatively thick packing bodies maintaining a high speed and stability (patent document 2).

Method of sealing containers and lids by melt adhesion by laser


A fuel system for a dual fuel power source includes a first fuel circuit fluidly connected to the power source, a second fuel circuit separate from the first fuel circuit and fluidly connected to the power source, and a pressure regulator fluidly connected to the first fuel circuit. The pressure regulator is configured to vent a first fuel from the first fuel circuit to an aftertreatment system fluidly connected to the power source in response to a pressure difference between the first and second fuel circuits being less than or equal to a pressure difference threshold.

Dual fuel engines are well known in the art and combust a mixture of two different types of fuel. For example, a particular dual fuel engine can combust a mixture of a liquid fuel (e.g., diesel fuel) and a gaseous fuel (e.g., natural gas). By combusting two different types of fuel, advantages of both fuels (e.g., efficiency, power, emissions, cost, etc.) can be realized.
In order to properly control performance of a dual fuel engine, the pressures and/or flow rates of the two different fuels into the engine should be tightly regulated. Historically, the pressures and/or flow rates of the fuels have been regulated independently, for example by way of a variable displacement liquid fuel pump and by way of a gas vent. The variable displacement liquid fuel pump, however, may be too expensive and/or complex for some applications. In addition, venting of the gaseous fuel may be undesirable due to the harm such gaseous fuel may cause to the environment and because such venting may be wasteful. Finally, it may be desirable to link the pressures and/or flow rates of the two fuels in some operations, such that desired ratios of the fuels may be provided.
One way to control the pressures and flows of a dual fuel system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,833 issued to Douville et al. on Oct. 9, 2001 (the '833 patent). In particular, the '833 patent describes a system for delivering diesel fuel and gaseous fuel through an injector into an engine. The system employs a pressure balancing device having a first chamber in fluid communication with a supply of the diesel fuel and with the injector, a second chamber isolated from the first chamber and in fluid communication with a supply of the gaseous fuel and the injector, and a piston separating the first and second chambers. The piston is movable to maintain a pressure of the diesel fuel a fixed amount higher than a pressure of the gaseous fuel. In addition, a position of the piston is sensed and used to control a diesel fuel pump, thereby maintaining the pressures of both the diesel fuel and the gaseous fuel within a desired range.
While the system of the '833 patent may adequately control diesel and gaseous fuel pressures for some applications, it may still be less than optimal. In particular, the system may not allow for independent control of diesel and gaseous fuel pressures. Additionally, in order to maintain the pressure of the gaseous fuel below that of the diesel fuel, the system of the '833 patent may vent natural gas to atmosphere in certain operating conditions. These deficiencies may reduce the overall efficiency of the system, and may be harmful to the environment.
The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.


A method for utilizing a wide range oxygen sensor voltage output that is proportional to exhaust gas fuel air mixture to correct for variations in a flexible fueled vehicle's fuel alcohol content is provided for a vehicle not equipped with an alcohol sensor.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to fuel compositions for a motor vehicle, and more particularly to a method for determining the percent alcohol content of fuel used in a motor vehicle capable of burning more than one type of fuel in its internal combustion engine or other power plant.
2. Discussion
Stoichiometric is defined as the chemically correct proportion of fuel and oxygen for the conversion of all of the fuel available for combustion into oxidized products. The value of the stoichiometric fuel to air ratio level depends on the fuel's composition. Basic gasoline fuels comprise hydrocarbons in varying degrees with the accepted value of stoichiometric fuel to air ratio for gasoline being 0.0688:1. When the fuel contains oxygen, such as those with alcohols, the oxygen accompanying the hydrocarbon-based fuel must be compensated for in the fuel management system or a lean-of-stoichiometric combustion will be encountered.
An increase in fuel delivery rates, indicated by an increase of fuel injector pulse width, is required to maintain the desired fuel to air ratios with alcohol or alcohol-gasoline fuel mixtures. Currently M85 fuel, which is 85% methanol and 15% gasoline, and E85 fuel, which is 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, are in use or are being considered for use in passenger vehicles. The approximate fuel delivery rate increase required for M85 and E85 are +93% and +49% respectively when compared to a gasoline-based system. Dedicated M85 or E85 vehicles have been proposed as well as "Flexible Fuel Vehicles" (FFVs) that will operate on any mixture of gasoline and 0%-85% alcohol. This varied fuel composition needs to be sensed and reflected when selecting the fuel delivery rate.
Sensing the percent alcohol in the fuel has been accomplished with a methanol concentration FFV sensor described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,119,671, which is hereby expressly incorporated by reference in its entirety. However, introduction of ethanol fuel into such a system based upon M85 may not provide an accurate assessment of the alcohol content of the fuel. An FFV sensor utilizes the dielectric properties of the fuel to determine fuel composition. This property is unique for gasoline, methanol and ethanol. As this effect is a function of various alcohols, and the alcohol's temperature, the output of an FFV sensor may be affected. Therefore, introduction of ethanol/gasoline fuel mixtures into a system calibrated for methanol/gasoline mixtures may corrupt the accurate assessment of alcohol content.
Furthermore, a methanol blend with gasoline will carry water in a thoroughly mixed solution rather than as a separated liquid as is the case with water and gasoline. The dielectric property of water is very close to that of methanol and may affect the output of an FFV sensor. It is thus possible that the control system could sense M85 while the actual fuel composition could be a mixture of 75% methanol, 15% gasoline and 10% water. Therefore, pure dielectric sensing cannot be regarded as 100% accurate.
Even with the alcohol content known, the use of exhaust gas feedback information may be a more precise method to maintain stoichiometric fuel to air ratios. A system to determine alcohol percent utilizing a standard oxygen sensor, which only gives a rich or lean fuel to air a ratio signal, has been developed and is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,400,762, "Method for Determining Fuel Composition" which in its entirety is hereby expressly incorporated by reference. This method checks boundary conditions of the short term oxygen sensor feedback signal and adjusts the percent alcohol content stored in the engine controller unit memory without the use of an FFV sensor or ethanol sensor. Other related inventions are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,637, "Energy Adjust for a Flexible Fuel Compensation System," and U.S. Pat. No. 4,821,701, "Purge Corruption Detection", each in its entirety is hereby expressly incorporated by reference.

Control of a multi (flexible) fueled vehicle utilizing wide range oxygen sensor feedback


A method and system for fault isolation within a network element in an optical network is described. A single fault in the system can give rise to multiple alarms detected at multiple points. Finding the root cause alarm corresponding to the fault that has triggered these alarms is important for fault isolation and is the focus of attention for this invention. The network element is modeled by a directed acyclic graph that captures the interactions among various components in the network element. Using a graph-based technique the invention analyzes the various topological faults raised and their locations for identifying root cause alarms and masking all correlated alarms.

A network element in an optical network is subject to intermittent faults that may raise alarms in the system. A single fault in the system can however give rise to multiple alarms detected at multiple points. Finding the root cause alarm corresponding to the fault that has triggered these alarms is important for fault isolation and repair.
In the absence of an automatic fault isolation system, the network operator has to manually go through the list of alarms and identify the root cause alarm triggered by a fault that needs to be alleviated. With a large number of alarms in the list, this can be a long and arduous task. It cannot only overwhelm even an experienced network operator but can also increase the time for the detection of the failure. This in turn can significantly increase the time required for returning service to the network element.
Thus there is a need in the field for the development of an efficient method and system for fault isolation within a network element.

Method and system for fault isolation within a network element in an optical network


The present invention is directed to the use of a compound of Formula (A),

This invention relates to treatment of medical conditions associated with infection with human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8), and to the use of compounds in the preparation of a medicament for use in the treatment of such conditions.
When used herein, xe2x80x98treatmentxe2x80x99 includes prophylaxis as appropriate.
EP-A-141927 (Beecham Group p.l.c.) discloses penciclovir, the compound of formula (A):
and salts, phosphate esters and acyl derivatives thereof, as antiviral agents. The sodium salt hydrate of penciclovir is disclosed in EP-A-216459 (Beecham Group p.l.c.). Penciclovir and its antiviral activity is also disclosed in Abstract P.V11-5 p.193 of xe2x80x98Abstacts of 14th Int. Congress of Microbiologyxe2x80x99, Manchester, England Sep. 7-13, 1986 Boyd et. al.).
Orally active bioprecursors of the compound of formula (A) are of formula (B):
and salts and derivatives thereof as defined under formula (A): wherein X is C1-6 alkoxy, NH2 or hydrogen. The compounds of formula (B) wherein X is C1-6 alkoxy or NH2 are disclosed in EP-A-141927 and the compounds of formula (B) wherein X is hydrogen, disclosed in EP-A-182024 (Beecham Group p.l.c.) are preferred prodrugs. A particularly preferred example of a compound of formula (B) is that wherein X is hydrogen and wherein the two OH groups are in the form of the acetyl derivative, described in Example 2 of EP-A-182024, hereinafter referred to as famciclovir.
The compounds of formulae (A) and (B) and salts and derivatives thereof have been described as potentially effective in the treatment of infections caused by herpesviruses, such as herpes simplex type 1, herpes simplex type 2, varicella-zoster, Epstein-Barr viruses, and cytomegalovirus. Famciclovir, sold in the United Kingdom and the United States of America under the trademark, FAMVIR, is used for treating herpes zoster (shingles).
Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) is a recently discovered member of the family Herpesviridae. The virus is first reported by Chang et al in xe2x80x98Sciencexe2x80x99 Vol 266, Dec. 16th, 1994, p1865 and termed HHV-8 by Schulz et al in xe2x80x98Naturexe2x80x99 Vol 373, Jan. 5th, 1995, p17. This virus is described therein as being associated with Kaposi""s Sarcoma (KS), the most common neoplasm ocurring in persons with aquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Agents previously suspected of causing KS include cytomegalovirus (CMV), hepatitis B virus, human herpesvirus 6, HIV and Mycoplasma penetrans. It is possible that HHV-8 is associated with other proliferative diseases, involving various cell types, including endothelial, epithelial, neuronal, pancreatic, myloid cell types, and inflammatory, autoimmune-like, and tissue degenerative diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus eritematosis and multiple sclerosis. It is also possible that HHV-8 is associated with AIDS related illness. When used herein, the alternative term for HHV-8, which is xe2x80x98Kaposis Sarcoma-associated Herpes Virusxe2x80x99, is included.
It has now been discovered that the above compounds have potential activity against HHV-8.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a method of treatment of HHV-8 infection in humans, which method comprises the administration to the human in need of such treatment, an effective amount of a compound of formula (A):
or a bioprecursor, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt, phosphate ester and/or acyl derivative of either of the foregoing.
The term xe2x80x98acyl derivativexe2x80x99 is used herein to include any derivative of the compounds of formula (A) in which one or more acyl groups are present. Such derivatives are included as bioprecursors of the compounds of formula (A) in addition to those derivatives which are per se biologically active.
The compound of formula (A) may be in one of the forms disclosed in EP-A-216459 (Beecham Group p.l.c.).

Use of penciclovir for the treatment of human herpes-virus-8

Abstract: or a bioprecursor, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt, phosphate ester and/or acyl derivative of either of the foregoing in the manufacture of a medicament for use in the treatment, including prophylaxis of HHV-8 infection.

Novartis International Pharmaceutical Ltd.


A visualization input system is provided. The system includes a visualization component that receives input gestures from a user (or users) and translates the gestures into one or more data manipulation commands. A distribution component receives the data manipulation commands and propagates data modifications across one or more databases in view of the commands. This includes a rights component that enables the data modifications to be implemented across the one or more databases.

Data visualization refers to the visual representation of data, defined as information which has been abstracted in some schematic form, including attributes or variables for the units of information. With the rapid increase of computing power, larger and more complex numerical models for visualization have been developed, resulting in the generation of huge numerical data sets. Also, large data sets were generated by data acquisition devices such as medical scanners and microscopes, where data has been collected in large databases containing text, numerical information, and multimedia information. Thus, advanced computer graphics techniques were needed to process and visualize such data sets.
Visualization is often considered a part of a process of scientific computing that includes the use of computer modeling and simulation in scientific and engineering practice. More recently, visualization has increasingly been concerned with data from other sources, including large and heterogeneous data collections found in business and finance, administration, digital media, and so forth. A new research area called Information Visualization was launched in the early 1990s, to support analysis of abstract and heterogeneous data sets in many application areas.
Generally, data visualization is an evolving concept where definitional boundaries are continually expanding and, as such, is best defined in terms of loose generalizations. It refers to the more technologically advanced techniques, which allow visual interpretation of data through the representation, modeling and display of solids, surfaces, properties and animations. This involves the use of graphics, image processing, computer vision, and user interfaces. Data visualization also encompasses a much broader range of techniques than specific techniques such as solid modeling, for example. The success of data visualization is due to the soundness of the basic idea behind the technology including the use of computer-generated images to gain insight and knowledge from data and its inherent patterns and relationships. A second premise is the utilization of the broad bandwidth of the human sensory system in steering and interpreting complex processes, and simulations involving data sets from diverse scientific disciplines having large collections of abstract data from many sources. These concepts are important and have a profound and widespread impact on the methodology of computational science and engineering, as well as on management and administration.
The interplay between various application areas and specific problem solving visualization techniques has been the focus of much research and innovation. One area involves the interaction between humans and a generated visualization. For example, if a data visualization of a chart or graph were projected on to a surface, how could a human being interact with the projection and more importantly, what would be the consequences of such interaction. For instance, if a projected chart were manipulated in such a manner as to cause a change in a data relationship that was currently displayed. Present systems would require manual intervention to analyze the suggested change, locate the data source to update the respective change, and to finally manually update the data source with the proposed change. As can be appreciated, these processes for effecting changes in a data structure or relationship are highly inefficient.


A method of incorporating silver and/or copper into a biomedical implant includes: providing an implant having an outer surface; depositing silver and/or copper onto the outer surface of the implant; diffusing the silver and/or copper into a subsurface zone adjacent the outer surface; and oxidizing or anodizing the implant after the diffusion step to form an oxidized or anodized layer that contains at least some amount of elemental silver, elemental copper or silver or copper ions or compounds.

Orthopedic fixation devices may be used, for example, to stabilize an injury, to support a bone fracture, to fuse a joint, and/or to correct a deformity. An orthopedic fixation device may be attached permanently or temporarily, and may be attached to the bone at various locations, including implanted within a canal or other cavity of the bone, implanted beneath soft tissue and attached to an exterior surface of the bone, or disposed externally and attached by fasteners such as screws, pins, and/or wires. Some orthopedic fixation devices allow the position and/or orientation of two or more bone pieces, or two or more bones, to be adjusted relative to one another. Orthopedic fixation devices are generally machined or molded from isotropic materials, such as metals including, for example, titanium, titanium alloys, stainless steel, cobalt-chromium alloys, and tantalum.
Treatment of fractures that require open reduction and fixation usually heal normally without issues. In some cases, however, this normal healing response is impaired due to the presence of an infection. Once an infection is present, it is believed that a biofilm can form on an implant within 24 hours. Once formed, the biofilm provides an environment that protects microbes from antibiotics, thereby making eradication of the infection much more difficult. Further, the formation of a biofilm can result in later infections. If repeat infections are an issue before a fracture heals, then an exchange of the hardware may be required. If infections occur after the fracture has healed, then the hardware must be removed. Once the hardware with a suspected biofilm is removed, the infection issues usually resolve. An implant that resists biofilm formation has the potential to substantially reduce the incidence of hardware-related infections and also to substantially reduce the number of additional operations required in infected patients. Thus, there remains a need for further development of biofilm resistant implants and methods of producing the same. The present invention addresses this need and provides other benefits and advantages in a novel and unobvious manner.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A heat-storage composition containing: (1) sodium sulfate, ammonium chloride and water, (ii) a water swellable crosslinked polymer or a water-soluble acrylic polymer, and (iii) a surfactant having a polyoxyalkylene chain, and a process for producing the composition. The heat-storage composition has a melting point and a freezing point in a temperature range suitable for cooling in air conditioning, and also has the stability necessary for withstanding repetitions of melting/freezing in long-term use.

The requirements that a heat-storage material should satisfy include to have a large amount of stored heat, to function at a given temperature level, to be stable over a prolonged period, to be inexpensive, to be non-toxic, to be non-corrosive, etc. As substances that meet these requirements, salt hydrates undergoing a phase change are the most frequently investigated, of which sodium sulfate decahydrate is representative.
Since sodium sulfate decahydrate has a melting point of 32.degree. C. and a latent heat of 60 cal/g, a large number of attempts to utilize it as a heat-storage material have so far been made since 1952 when sodium tetraborate decahydrate (Na.sub.2 B.sub.4 O.sub.7.10H.sub.2 O) was found to be effective as a supercooling inhibitor to be used in combination therewith.
A problem encountered in investigations for practical use is that sodium sulfate decahydrate shows incongruent melting. That is, upon melting, anhydrous sodium sulfate forms and precipitates at a bottom of the liquid. When this is cooled, the surface layer of the precipitated anhydrous salt regains water to return to the salt decahydrate but the inner part remains as the anhydrous salt. Since the remaining anhydrous salt does not contributes to the phase change, amount of the stored heat decreses. In order to overcome this, various methods have been investigated for dispersing and holding the anhydrous salt in the liquid without permitting it to precipitate to the bottom of the liquid. In these methods, precipitation is prevented by increasing the viscosity by means of an additive which is either an inorganic compound or an organic polymer.
For example, methods comprising using various inorganic compounds were attempted as described in Unexamined Published International Application Sho-55-501180 and JP-A-53-34687. However, they failed to always achieve the sufficient effect of preventing precipitation. (The term "JP-A" used herein means an unexamined published Japanese patent application.)
Further, although methods comprising using a water-soluble polymer, e.g., poly(sodium acrylate), or a crosslinkable polymer as an organic polymer have been proposed in JP-B-57-30873, JP-B-57-48027, JP-A-58-132075, JP-A-59-102977, etc., these methods have not been always sufficient in long-term stability. (The term "JP-B" used herein means an examined Japanese patent publication.)
In JP-A-60-203687 is proposed a method for inhibiting the decrease of amount of stored heat in a Glauber's salt-based heat-storage material composition by adding a silicone anti-foaming agent and water containing a chelating agent to Glauber's salt. In this method, it is essential that a silicone anti-foaming agent and a chelating agent should coexist, and if both are absent, a decrease of amount of stored heat is observed after 500 heating cycles.
There also is a proposal of a heat-storage material obtained by adding a nucleating agent and a surfactant to a heat-storage material of the latent heat type and temporarily melting the resulting heat-storage material to uniformly disperse the nucleating agent (JP-A-62-297381). There is a description therein to the effect that since the nucleating agent is prevented from precipitating and is evenly dispersed due to the addition of a surfactant, solidification takes place homogeneously and the melted heat-storage material has intact flowability, so that workability is not impaired. However, because the nucleating agent dispersed in this manner is kept in the dispersed state by the electrostatic repulsion attributable to the surfactant, gravitational sedimentation during use over a prolonged period of several months or several years is unavoidable and it is difficult to maintain the uniformly dispersed state of the nucleating agent.
The present inventors, under these circumstances, previously proposed a heat-storage material composition and a process for producing the same, which composition does not undergo a decrease of amount of stored heat over a prolonged period due to the use of a crosslinked polymer obtained by polymerizing at least one monomer selected from an unsaturated carboxylic acid, an organic unsaturated sulfonic acid, and salts of these with a polyfunctional monomer (JP-A-62-25188).
On the other hand, in heat-storage materials for cooling in air conditioning, heat storage in ice has attracted attention for long and has come into practical use. This utilizes the great latent heat of fusion of ice (80 cal/g). However, there is a problem that cooling to -10.degree. C. or below is necessary for ice production and this necessitates a special freezer, resulting in a heavy initial investment in equipment.
With respect to heat-storage materials comprising sodium sulfate as the main ingredient, investigations have been made on melting point regulators in order to lower the melting point to around 10.degree. C. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,164 is proposed a system composed of a composition comprising sodium sulfate decahydrate and, per one mole of that salt, 3/4 to 6/4 mole of ammonium chloride and 1/5 to 1/4 mole of potassium chloride and, further including, a thixotropic agent and a nucleating agent. There is a description to the effect that this system has a melting point of 50.degree. F. (10.degree. C.) or below and a heat of fusion of 38-42 BTU/lb (21-23 cal/g). This system, however, has a problem that the melting point is so apart from the solidifying point that it should be cooled to 3.degree. C. or below for solidification.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to overcome the problems of the prior art techniques described above. That is, the present invention provides a heat-storage material composition which undergoes a phase change between solid and liquid phases in the range of working temperatures for freezers generally employed for cooling in air conditioning (6.degree.-14.degree. C.), and which is free from a decrease of amount of stored heat over a prolonged period.

Sodium sulfate base heat-storage composition and process for producing the same