By ejection from each ejection opening of a liquid ejecting head, predetermined lengths of ruled line patterns are formed in order, and by ejection of an ink from an ink ejecting head, a solid pattern is printed overlaying the ruled line patterns of the liquid. In this case, the portion corresponding to the ejection opening through which the liquid cannot be ejected may be a different printing density in comparison with another portion where the liquid and the ink are overlaid. By this, non-ejection failure at the ejection opening can be detected. Therefore, in an ink-jet printing apparatus employing a head for ejecting the liquid for making a coloring agent in the ink insoluable for enhancing water resistance, the ejection condition of the head can be successfully detected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an ink-jet printing apparatus and a test printing method. More specifically, the invention relates to an ink-jet printing apparatus for performing printing by ejecting an ink and a hypochromic or achromatic liquid for making the coloring agent in the ink insoluble or coagulating the coloring agent, on a printing medium, and a test printing method therefor. The present invention is applicable for all devices employing printing media, such as paper, cloth, non-woven fabrics, OHP sheets and so forth. In concrete, the invention is applicable for office equipment, such as a printer, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, mass-production equipment and so forth.
2. Description of Prior Art
Ink-jet printing systems are widely utilized in printers, copy machines and so forth for low noise, low running cost, compact apparatus size, and ease of providing color printing capability.
However, when printing is performed for printing an image on a printing medium, so-called plain paper by the apparatus employing such ink-jet printing system, it is possible to degrade the printed image quality due to lack of water-resistance. Also, upon printing of a color image, in the case that a large amount of ink is ejected for obtaining high density color image, it is possible to cause permeation of the ink into the printing medium to cause feathering. On the other hand, when attempt is made to obtain high density color image with restricting permeation of the ink into the printing medium, bleeding can be caused between adjacent distinct colors. In any of the above-mentioned cases, printing quality in color printing can be significantly degraded.
As a measure for improving water-resistance of the image, it has been practiced in recent years to provide water-resistance for the coloring agent contained in the ink. However, in certain environmental conditions, the water-resistance currently provided for the coloring agent is still insufficient. In addition, in principle, such ink with the water-resistive coloring agent is insoluble to water once it is dried. Therefore, it has high possibility of causing plugging of the printing head. This, in turn, inherently requires complexity of a construction for preventing plugging of the printing head.
As another measure for improving water-resistance, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 84992/1981 discloses a method to preliminarily coat a material for fixing the coloring agent on the printing paper. That is, it is taught that a large number of specific printing papers each of which is coated with the material for fixing, are previously prepared. However, in this method, it becomes necessary to prepare a specific printing paper. Also, it is unavoidable to cause enlarging in size and cost of an apparatus for preliminarily coating the material for fixing the coloring agent. Furthermore, it is not easy to stably coat the coloring agent fixing material on the printing paper at a predetermined coat layer thickness.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 63185/1989 discloses a technology for fixing an achromatic and transparent liquid which makes the coloring agent contained in the ink insoluble, on the printing paper by means of a liquid-jet head. Also, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 202328/1993 discloses a technology for obtaining a color image without causing color bleeding by employing an ink containing a chemical dye including carboxyl group and polymetal salt solution and by applying the ink after application of the polymetal salt solution to obtain water-resistance.
When the achromatic and transparent liquid for making the dye insoluble is ejected through the liquid-jet head, it is clearly necessary to check whether such achromatic and transparent liquid is normally ejected through all of the ejection openings of the liquid-jet head or not, similarly to that required in normal printing ink. However, a construction to certainly detect ejecting condition of the liquid-jet head for ejecting such liquid has not been available, at the present. Therefore, the only measure currently available is to apply the construction for detecting ejection failure of the printing head for ejecting normal printing ink. Hereinafter, discussion will be given for ejection failure to be caused in the printing head for ejecting ink, a recovery process for the ejection failure-and the conventional construction for detecting the ejection failure.
In the printing operation of an on-demand type ink-jet printing system, all of a plurality of ejection openings provided on one printing head are not always used throughout printing operation. Frequently, non-use ejection openings which are not used for a given period or longer, are present in the ejection head. Also, when a plurality of printing heads are present, such as in a color printing apparatus, it is possible that no printing data is transferred to a certain printing head (ejection is not performed therethrough). In such case, the overall printing head may be placed in non-use condition. In such case, since a cap is held released during printing operation, the ink located in the vicinity of or within the ejection openings which are held in non-use state for a certain period, is inherently dried to cause lowering of ink ejection performance or to cause failure of ejection in the worst case, and thus causes degradation of the printed image quality.
The ejection failure may also be caused by adhesion of ink mist generated in association with ejection of the ink, or paper dust and so forth in the vicinity of the ejection openings.
Furthermore, among ink-jet printing methods, in a system, in which an ejection head is provided in an ink passage portion communicating with the ejection openings of the ink-jet head for generating thermal energy to be utilized for ejection of the ink, the thermal energy is applied to the ink within the ink passage portion to cause film boiling of the ink to perform ejection of ink utilizing growth of a bubble, small bubbles may be accumulated within the ink passage through repeated growth of the bubble. Accumulation of such bubbles in the ink passage may cause interference with supplying of the ink, and possibly cause ejection failure, in which ejection of ink cannot be performed.
As a measure for preventing such ejection failure, it has been proposed, for example, to perform capping for the printing head during non-printing or resting state to prevent the ink from increasing viscosity or solidifying. It is also typical to perform an ejection recovery process for forced discharge of the ink of the increased viscosity or foreign matter around the ejection opening, which cannot be removed by a wiping blade, by means of a suction pump connected to the cap.
Particularly, in case of the ink-jet printing apparatus employing the ink-jet head having a plurality of ejection openings, ejection failure, non-ejection or offset of ejecting direction should result in significant degradation of the printed image quality. Therefore, it becomes necessary to somehow detect ejecting condition of each ejection opening. Such detecting method may be utilized for checking whether a recovery process is necessary or normal ejection is resumed after the recovery process.
Conventionally, as a method for checking the ejecting condition, a method for detecting ejection failure by measuring temperature increase upon ejection of the ink with a temperature sensor provided in the printing head has been known. This method utilizes a fact that heat accumulation in the head is increased when non-ejection failure is caused and whereby temperature increase becomes large. However, in this method, it is possible that ejection failure cannot be detected even when ejection failure is caused at a few number of ejection openings in the head which has relatively large number of ejection openings, e.g. 50 or 100 ejection openings. Therefore, such method cannot provide precision for enabling judgment whether ejection is performed or not with respect to each individual ejection opening.
Also, there has been known a method for detecting whether the ink ejection failure is caused or not by detecting an ink droplet ejected from each ejection opening with an optical sensor. However, such method inherently causes an increase in cost.
As the simplest method for detection of ejection failure, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application Nos. 261078/1986 and 261079/1986 disclose methods for performing a predetermined pattern which is prepared for checking ejecting condition of each ejection opening, on the printing medium and for visually making judgment. This method is effective for the colored ink since the printed image is visible. The method surely enables the ejection failure of the ink-jet head ejecting a colored ink to be detected because the ink is visually checked. However, in case of the liquid-jet head ejecting a light colored liquid or an achromatic and transparent liquid, it is difficult to visually check the printed image. Therefore, in this method, ejection failure cannot be detected for the ejection openings ejecting the hypochromic or transparent liquid.
Also, when the ejection failure cannot be detected, it is possible to cause not only degradation of the printed image, but also increasing of consumption of the liquid because of unnecessarily performing the suction recovery operation even when ejection failure is not actually caused.

Ink-jet printing apparatus and method for test printing using ink and an ink improving liquid


To provide a focused ion beam optical axis alignment method and a focused ion beam apparatus which make axis alignment work of for example when replacing an ion source of a focused ion beam apparatus easy. A method for adjusting the optical axis of a focused ion beam apparatus having an ion source part 3 made up of an ion source 1 for producing an ion beam and a pullout electrode 2, a monitoring aperture 5 which passes a central part having a high energy density of the ion beam and measures the electric current thereof, a charged particle optical system 9 including a condenser lens 6, an aperture 7 and an objective lens 8, and a deflecting electrode 16 which scans the focused ion beam, wherein while moving the ion source 1 in a direction intersecting orthogonally with the optical axis of the ion beam the current measured by the monitoring aperture 5 and the overall ion beam quantity produced from the ion source are monitored and a voltage impressed on the pullout electrode is controlled so that this current becomes constant and the position of the ion source 1 is adjusted so that the overall ion beam quantity becomes a minimum.

This invention relates to a method of adjusting the optical axis of an ion beam in a focused ion beam apparatus and to a focused ion beam apparatus.
Conventionally, for example like the apparatus introduced in the literature Submicron Working Using Focused Ion Beam (SSD 81-76)' (Electronic Communications Society Research Group, Dec. 21, 1981), focused ion beam apparatuses have been known which, after constricting an ion beam produced from a liquid metal ion source such as Gallium with a fixed stop, to obtain beam current and diameter over a wide range, constrict the ion beam further by means of a stop having a plurality of different openings and made so that it is possible to select these arbitrarily, focus it into a spot shape with an objective lens, raster scan radiate it using a scanning electrode and carry out working of a sample surface. Also, they are provided with an image display device for displaying a pattern of the sample surface on the basis of the plane strength distribution of secondary charged particles emitted from the sample surface irradiated with the ion beam.
In this kind of focused ion beam apparatus, to make it fully exhibit its performance, it is considered necessary to make it so that the ion beam passes through the centers of ion optical system parts such as a stop, a lens and a deflecting electrode. To achieve this, the performance as an apparatus has been realized by performing highly accurate machining in making the parts and paying close attention to assembly.
However, because the ion source is consumed with use of the focused ion beam apparatus, it is necessary to replace it when required, but at the time of replacement the ion beam produced from the new ion source does not always pass through the centers of the ion optical system parts. Because of this, it is necessary to adjust the position of the ion beam so that it passes through the centers of the ion optical system parts.
Also, because a stop having a plurality of different openings and made so that these can be selected arbitrarily wears and stains with use of the focused ion beam apparatus, it must be replaced periodically. At the time of this replacement, because a position misalignment between the center of the new stop and the ion beam arises, it is necessary to carry out that adjustment.
That is, conventionally, when the ion source has been replaced, for example as shown in the apparatus described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H.3-29249, the ion source is mounted on an X-Y stage and the position of the ion source is adjusted by driving this X-Y stage. However, in this case, the position misalignment is adjusted with the ion source attachment position being checked visually with a CRT monitor, and there is no mention of a method with which it is possible to determine that the ion beam produced from the ion source is passing through the centers of the ion source optical system parts. Also, as another example, as described in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. S.59-47960, there is an apparatus wherein a second anode part is provided movably in a horizontal direction and a driving mechanism for driving this second anode part in the horizontal direction is provided. This is an apparatus relating to an electron gun, but it can also be utilized in relation to an ion source. However, in this example also, there is no mention relating to how it is possible to determine that the beam is passing through the centers of the optical system parts.
Consequently, conventionally, adjustment of position has been realized by making it converge on the target position by carrying out the operation repeatedly, and the degree of achievement of that adjustment and the time required for the operation depend on the skill of the worker. Also, because the parameters relating to the adjustment have not been quantified, it cannot be carried out automated with a computer.
As one solution method for this kind of position adjustment, there is the method described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. S.61-88437. However, because due to the fact that the structure thereof is complex and that there are multiple transmission holes the ion beam and secondarily produced particles pass through these multiple transmission holes and become noise components, it becomes difficult to realize the performance of image quality and resolving power and the like sought in a focused ion beam apparatus.
On the other hand, the effect of using a stop having a plurality of different openings is shown in the above-mentioned literature Submicron Working Using Focused Ion Beam', and also, in connection with a method of selecting an optimum opening from the different openings, one is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H.3-163741, but a method for aligning the center of the opening with the ion beam is not mentioned in either. Therefore, like the position adjustment of the ion source, because the position adjustment is realized by making it converge on the target position by carrying out the operation repeatedly, the degree of achievement of that adjustment and the time required for the operation depend on the skill of the worker. Also, because the parameters relating to the adjustment have not been quantified, it cannot be carried out automated with a computer.

Focused ion beam optical axis adjustment method and focused ion beam apparatus


A transmitting/receiving apparatus wherein a decision of performing SDM communication accompanied by a directivity control is correctly performed to improve the transmission efficiency. In the apparatus, a channel estimating part (205) performs channel estimation by use of known symbols included in a received signal. A channel variation deciding part (206) determines a correlation value between a channel estimation result of an immediately preceding process and that of a current process to determines the magnitude of a channel variation, and the determines, based on the magnitude of the channel variation, whether to perform SDM communication accompanied by a directivity control of perform SDM communication not accompanied by the directivity control. When a radio receiving part (107) receives a transmitting weight, a switching part (108) outputs the received transmitting weight to multipliers (103-1 to 103-n). When the receiving part (107) receives a signal an instruction of performing SDM communication not accompanied by the directivity control, the switching part (108) outputs, as the transmitting weight, “1” indicative of performing no directivity control, to the multipliers (103-1 to 103-n).

There are means for allowing large-capacity communication without expanding the frequency band, including MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) techniques using a number of transmitting/receiving antennas (for example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2). With space division multiplexing (SDM) is, which is a MIMO technique, a number of antennas are provided in the transmitter and receiver, and the transmits independent signals different from one another from the antennas and spatially divides and the receiver receives a number of different signals simultaneously transmitted by directivity of a number of antenna array in receivers, thereby enabling communication capacity to be increased.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of SDM communication. As shown in FIG. 1, the transmitter transmits multiplexed data streams from a number of antennas (substreams), and the receiver receives radio signals transmitted by a number of paths (crosstalk) and divides the multiplexed signals.
In addition, if propagation channel information is known at the transmitter end, directivity control (transmission beam formation) is performed using a specific vector obtained by performing single value decomposition on a matrix which makes each channel response of propagation channels an element and forming a spatial orthogonal channel, thereby enabling much larger communication capacity than SDM to be obtained.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of SDM communication that performs directivity control at the transmitter end. As shown in FIG. 2, the transmitter performs processing of transmission power control and beam forming on signals transmitted from the antennas, and forms channels that are spatially orthogonal.
In SDM communication that performs directivity control at the transmitter end, methods for knowing channel information on the transmitting end may include providing feedback of a channel estimation result at a receiving end, or performing channel estimation at a transmitting end.
However, in the actual propagation environment, channels change at all times. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing change in propagation environment. As shown in FIG. 3, channel environment A at a given time changes to channel environment A′ as time goes by.
When directivity control is performed using a result of channel estimation performed in environment A at the receiving end, if channel fluctuation is large—for example, if environment A differs from environment A′ largely—it is not possible to form spatial orthogonal channel, and error rate characteristic when directivity control is performed at the transmitting end may be deteriorated than SDM when directivity control is not performed at the transmitting end.
Similarly, when channel estimation and directivity control are performed at the transmitting end, a complicated calculation on the transmitting end such as channel estimation or singular value decomposition may cause processing delay, which result in deterioration of error rate characteristic when directivity control is performed than in normal SDM.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-258770    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-505723

Transmitting/receiving apparatus and transmitting/receiving method


A system and method for controlling deployment of a vehicle air dam that include receiving vehicle data associated with a vehicle operating condition. The system and method also include analyzing the vehicle data to determine if an elevated engine load condition is present to implement a normal air dam deployment mode or a prohibitive air dam deployment mode. The system and method further include controlling an actuator associated with the vehicle air dam to deploy or retract the vehicle air dam based on the implementation of the normal air dam deployment mode or the prohibitive air dam deployment mode.

In some instances, vehicles may be equipped with an air dam that is located underneath the vehicle that may be utilized to reduce aerodynamic drag by channeling air away from an underbody of the vehicle. However, during operation of the air dam, one or more underbody parts of the vehicle may be susceptible to high underbody temperatures from an engine of a vehicle in situations in which the engine is under a high amount of load. For example, if a vehicle is towing another vehicle such as a boat, the engine of the vehicle may be susceptible to a higher load which may result in higher overall temperatures that may be directed towards the underbody parts of the towing vehicle.
Additionally, in certain situations, the air dam may be susceptible to contact with one or more physical obstructions that may result from an uneven travel path of the vehicle such as a roadway on which the vehicle is traveling. For example, if the vehicle is driven in inclement snowy weather, the air dam may be susceptible to contact with snow and/or ice buildup that may result from an uneven roadway that has snow and/or ice buildup.

System and method for controlling deployment of a vehicle air dam


The disclosure is directed to a manhole cover, comprising: an upper transparent disc; a lower transparent disc coupled to the upper disc; and means for emitting electromagnetic radiation at a predetermined wavelength that is narrower than full spectrum, the means for emitting electromagnetic radiation operably coupled to the lower disc, wherein: the upper disc has a diameter larger than the lower disc, and the predetermined wavelength is configured to inhibit vermin from inhabiting the volume irradiated by the means for emitting electromagnetic radiation.

The disclosure generally relates to manhole covers. Specifically, the disclosure relates to manhole covers configured to inhibit vermin from inhabiting the volume beneath the manhole cover.
The presence of vermin in sewage systems, have long been documented and is considered an area of constant concern for sanitation workers, exterminators and the general public. Examples include rats, mice, snakes and insects.
Cockroaches have likewise been long recognized as pests of economic, medical, veterinary, and aesthetic concern.
Sundry formulations and mechanisms are routinely synthesized and employed to discourage or prevent cockroach infiltration and infestation within otherwise attractive areas and volumes (in other words, homes and buildings in residential areas). No real-world application of any reported technology is known to be operationally safe and effective. It has been well established that the area enclosed beneath manhole covers is attractive to cockroach infestation by virtue of its warmth and secluded areas (in other words, darkness) and volumes; causing exposure risks (both in terms of potential disease vectors and insecticides), financial loss resulting from loss of operating time, incurred liabilities, repair costs, and replacement costs.
Accordingly, what is needed, is a cockroach and other vermin repellent mechanism which would inhibit access to these sensitive areas by activating a natural mechanism of dissuasion, and provide an effective advantage for humans.


Disclosed is an absorbent article, having an individual-wrapping sheet which is liquid-impermeable; an absorber arranged on an upper side of the individual-wrapping sheet, containing super absorbent polymer, and capable of absorbing an aqueous liquid; and a back-up sheet arranged between the individual-wrapping sheet and the absorber and capable of retaining the aqueous liquid, in which the individual-wrapping sheet has a liquid-storing portion in a form of bag which is provided in a rear portion of the individual-wrapping sheet and forms an internal space on the upper side of the individual-wrapping sheet, and in which a rear end portion of the absorber exists in the internal space formed by the liquid-storing portion. By using this absorbent article, a material used for individual wrapping can be utilized at the time of wearing the absorbent article without disposal of the material, and leakage is less liable to occur.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an absorbent article.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, in the field of an absorbent article, sanitary managements of sanitary napkins, incontinence pads, and the like are particularly important. Thus, in many cases, such sanitary goods are provided to consumers under a state in which an absorbent article is individually wrapped. Such individually-wrapped absorbent articles are excellent in terms of sanitation, but bags used for individual wrapping are disposed of as trash after unpacking the absorbent articles, and hence there is a problem of trash generation.
In order to prevent such trash generation, there have been made attempts to utilize a material used for individual wrapping at the time of wearing sanitary goods without disposal of the material. For example, JP 2003-180722A (Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2003-180722) describes an absorbent product including: an individual-wrapping sheet; an absorbent superimposed on the individual-wrapping sheet; a trap sheet which forms a flexible trap portion between the trap sheet and the individual-wrapping sheet, the trap portion accommodating at least one end portion of the absorbent; and a bonding tape for releasably bonding another end portion of the individual-wrapping sheet and one end portion of the individual-wrapping sheet or the trap sheet to each other so that the another end side of the individual-wrapping sheet is overlapped with the trap sheet, the bonding tape being provided to at least one of the trap sheet and the another end portion of the individual-wrapping sheet.

Absorbent article having a liquid-impermeable individual-wrapping sheet with a liquid-storing portion at a time of use


Disclosed herein is a box insert for protecting bottles. The box insert is formed from a piece of cardboard with fold lines. When the cardboard is folded along the lines and a bottle is placed within the cardboard, the bottle's sides are surrounded by cardboard. At least one bottom and top cut are provided through the cardboard across one of the fold lines. When the cardboard is pushed below the bottom cut and above the top cut, the cardboard folds inward to create a bottom and top indentation to hold the bottle away from the bottom and top of the box. If the bottle has a neck, the top indentation is positioned next to the bottle's neck above the body of the bottle. Usually the top indentation is formed from two top cuts. The inserts and bottles are then placed in a box for shipping. The cardboard inserts provide cardboard indentations that cushion and provide a small space between the bottom and top of the box. The bottle is prevented from moving up and down by the indentations and in the event the box is dropped the box and insert receive the force of the blow rather than the bottles. In the preferred embodiment the piece of cardboard also include with fold lines, such that when the cardboard is folded along the lines at least two bottles can be surrounded by the cardboard and there are sufficient bottom and top cuts to form at least one bottom and top indentation for each of the bottles. The preferred embodiment also includes cut lines to form tabs that interact to hold the insert in a folded position.

Traditionally, liquor and wine bottles are shipped in cardboard boxes with thin cardboard separating the bottles from one another. These inserts merely prevent the glass from one bottle directly contacting the glass of the other bottles. Very little impact absorbing protection is provided. Furthermore, in these traditional shipping boxes the bottles can move freely up and down, such that if the box is dropped or set down quickly the bottoms or tops of the bottles receive a great deal of force and frequently shatter.
When greater protection is desired for wines or liquors, Styrofoam shippers are often used. However, Styrofoam is expensive and bulky. Furthermore, Styrofoam is difficult to recycle and can add significant weight to the package thereby increasing shipping costs. There is a need for a low cost protection for bottles that can be easily stored and constructed when needed.

Box and insert for shipping glass bottles


A servosystem, in particular a servosystem for a motor vehicle, includes a display showing a list of clickable menu items, a rotary knob with a rotary element to operate the rotary knob, with a number of mechanical detents to alternately increase the rotary momentum necessary for rotating the rotary element, with a brake to brake the rotary element and with a rotation sensor to measure the rotation of the rotary element with a resolution that is the least four times, in particular at least six times, and with particular preference at least eight times the number of mechanical detents per rotation of the rotary element, and a control for converting the rotation of the rotary element into a scrolling motion through a list and for activating the brake when the last clickable menu item of the list is reached or the first clickable menu items of the list is reached.

EP 1 075 979 A2 disclosed a method for operating a multifunction servosystem for a motor vehicle in which menus and/or operating functions are shown on a display device and said menus and/or functions are activated via keyboard or rotary elements. In order to ensure that when using the rotary elements for activating menus and/or functions the activation of the selected menu or the selected function is assigned more clearly and that the selected default or activation settings are recognizable haptically, provision has been made to make sure that the rotary element(s) are freely programmable with regard to the direction or rotation and rotation settings and/or resting positions and/or activation impact in such a way that haptic feedback is generated in the path of the rotation that is assigned to the respective clicked menus or functions.
The use of a rotary element for scrolling through a list is also known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,636,197 B1, WO 98/43261 and EP 0 366 132 B1.
A rotary knob with a brake is known from US 2002/00571522 A1.
DE 198 32 677 A1 disclosed a servosystem in which function groups, functions and/or function values can be selected by rotating the handle of a knob, and can be deselected by one or several input switches. In the process provision has been made to ensure that at least one input switch is mounted at or next to the perimeter of the handle of the rotary switch or within the handle of the rotary switch.
DE 198 36 261 C1 disclosed a servosystem using a rotary switch with a handle, whereby a device is provided to measure the force exerted radially on the handle of the rotary knob. By turning the handle a display mark or a display frame can be moved in horizontal or vertical direction over the display. A selected function group, function and/or a selected function value can be deselected by way of a radial force exerted on the handle of the rotary knob.
The purpose of the invention is to improve a servosystem, in particular a servosystem for a motor vehicle by adding a display to show a list with clickable menu items.


An optical connector for terminating an optical fiber includes a ferrule, an optical fiber, and an adhesive composition disposed within a fiber-receiving passage of the ferrule. The adhesive composition, which is in contact with the inner surface of the ferrule and the optical fiber, includes a partially cross-linked resin that is a polymer and a coupling agent that chemically bonds the partially cross-linked resin to an inorganic surface of at least one of the optical fiber and the ferrule.

Field
The present disclosure generally relates to materials and methods for adhering parts within optical connectors, and more specifically to optical connectors and ferrule adhesion systems including adhesive compositions for adhering optical fibers to ferrules, and related methods.
Technical Background
In the assembly of optical connectors, adhesives may be used to bond optical fibers to ferrules. The adhesives may typically be thermoset resins, such as epoxies. The present inventors have recognized that a need exists for an optical fiber adhesive with enhanced bonding properties.

Optical connector and ferrule adhesion system including adhesive composition, and related methods


Disclosed is a method of verifying a recipe execution program. When a computer executes a recipe execution program, the computer sends instructions, which are issued based on a process recipe data defining specific operations to be performed by a substrate processing apparatus, to the substrate processing apparatus. When a computer executes a log output program, the computer outputs a log data indicating the instructions sent to the substrate processing apparatus. When a computer executes a comparing and checking program, the computer compares the log data which the process recipe data corresponding to the log data.

When a photolithography is performed in manufacturing a semiconductor device, a series of processes are sequentially carried out to form a predetermined resist pattern on a semiconductor wafer as a substrate to be processed. That is, there are performed, for example: a resist coating process for applying a resist liquid on the wafer to form thereon a resist film; an exposure process for exposing the resist film with a predetermined pattern; a heating process (post-exposure baking) for accelerating a chemical reaction in the resist film after exposure; and a developing process for developing the exposed resist film.
Process recipes respectively corresponding to the above series of processes are previously determined for every process lot of the wafer. The process recipe is data that define, in detail, conditions of a process to be performed to the wafer in each process. FIG. 9 shows an example of the process recipe. FIG. 9 is an example used in an apparatus for performing a resist coating process to a wafer by a spin-coating method by means of a spinner (substrate rotating unit). As shown in the process recipe 200, it defines a process period; a rotational speed and an acceleration of the spinner; a dispense specification for specifying distribution of a process liquid; and a position and an operational speed of an (robot) arm, for each of the process steps constituting the resist coating process.
Plural kinds of such process recipes are prepared for each process (resist coating process, developing process, etc.). As shown in FIG. 10, these process recipes are previously stored as a process recipe group (process recipe data group) 15 in storage means 201 such as a hard disc drive. When a resist coating and developing apparatus 202 operates, a desired process recipe is selected out of the process recipe group 15 by the operator, and a recipe execution program 16 is executed by a host computer 203 to operate the resist coating and developing apparatus 202 according to the selected process recipe. As shown in FIG. 11, upon execution of the recipe execution program 16, process recipes 18, which have been selected out of the process recipe group 15, are read out as execution recipes on a working memory 19 to be used in a program.
JP2001-345241A describes a substrate processing system that performs a photolithography according to a process recipe.
As shown in FIG. 11, the process recipe group 15 includes plural kinds of process recipes that are prepared for each kind of the processes. That is, a process recipe is selected out of the plurality of process recipes for each kind of the processes. Thus, the number of combinations of the process recipes capable of being executed in the overall photolithography process is enormous.
However, it is actually difficult to verify an operation of the recipe execution program 16 for all the vast number of combinations of the process recipes. Thus, a recipe execution program that was not fully verified is often used as a completed product temporarily.
When the substrate is subjected to a process of a combination of the process recipes for which an operation of the recipe execution program 16 is not verified, there may be a case in which a hardware does not work to conform to the recipes, because the program modules for respectively executing the successive process recipes cannot cooperate well with each other.
Even when such a failure occurs, it is often the case that the process continues while no attention is given to the failure, and a bug of the program is revealed from defective treatment of wafers after all the wafer-processing steps have been completed. Also in this case, it is significantly difficult to manually detect the bug of the program (debug operation), since there are too many processes in the program because of the complicated recipes. Accordingly, the debug operation of the recipe execution program 16 requires a long period of time, and thus the completeness of the program can not be improved in a short period of time.

Substrate processing system, substrate processing method and computer-readable storage medium storing verification program


There are provided a thin film transistor liquid crystal display device in which an aluminum layer and an ITO layer can be connected with simplicity and certainty and a fabricating process therefor.. A thin film transistor liquid crystal display device comprising: a pair of substrates; a liquid crystal sandwiched therebetween; an aluminum layer formed on a surface in which the liquid crystal is held, of one substrate; an insulating layer covering the aluminum layer; a contact hole formed in the insulating layer so as to reach the aluminum layer; an indium tin oxide layer formed on the insulating layer including the inner surface of the contact hole; and a silicide layer lying between the indium tin oxide layer and the aluminum layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thin film transistor liquid crystal display device in which a connection method between an indium tin oxide layer and an aluminum layer on a substrate is improved and a fabricating process therefor.
2. Related Art
Aluminum as interconnect material has an advantage of a low resistivity and, in recent years, has widely been used in interconnection or an electrode, such as gate interconnection and source interconnection on a substrate, in a thin film transistor liquid crystal display device. When indium tin oxide (hereinafter referred to as ITO) which is used for a transparent pixel electrode of a thin film transistor liquid crystal display device or the like directly contacts with aluminum, however, oxygen in ITO is extracted by aluminum and as a result, a resistance of a contact section is increased.
Therefore, in a conventional thin film transistor liquid crystal display device, there has been adopted the structure of no contact between an aluminum layer and an ITO layer. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, a conductive barrier layer 33 made of tungsten or the like is provided in advance so as to cover an aluminum layer 32 formed on a substrate and a contact hole 35 which reaches the barrier layer 33 is formed in an insulating layer 34 so that the barrier layer 33 and the ITO layer 36 contact with each other, whereby the aluminum layer 32 and the ITO layer 36 are mutually brought into a electrical connection with the barrier layer 33 interposed therebetween. Alternately, as shown in FIG. 4, a metal layer 42 made of a metal other than aluminum and an aluminum layer 43 are formed on a substrate and a contact hole 45 which reaches an surface of the metal layer 42 is formed through an insulating layer 44 and the aluminum layer 43 so that the metal layer 42 and an ITO layer 46 are brought into contact with each other in the contact hole 45, whereby the aluminum layer 43 and the ITO layer 46 are electrically connected to each other with the metal layer 42 made of a metal other than aluminum interposed therebetween.
In the contact structure shown in FIG. 3, since an interconnect pattern is formed by two layers comprising the aluminum layer 32 and the barrier layer 33, there is a necessity for forming the insulating layer 34 after etching of the two layers. When the interconnect pattern is produced by the etching, however, different etchants are respectively applied to the aluminum and barrier layers, which requires two etching operations respectively using different etchants to make a process complicated. Besides, in the contact structure shown in FIG. 4, it is required that after the metal layer 42 made of a metal other than aluminum, the aluminum layer 43 and the insulating layer 44 are formed, the insulating layer 44 and the aluminum layer 43 are respectively etched to expose a surface of the metal layer 42, which is a problem because of increase in the number of process steps.

Thin film transistor liquid crystal display with a silicide layer formed inside a contact hole and fabricating process therefor


A control system and method for a vehicle having a warning function are provided. The system includes a control device that is configured to determine whether an amplifier is installed within the vehicle based on an occurrence of an alert situation. The control device is configured to transmit an alarm sound to an amplifier when the amplifier is installed therein and transmit the alarm sound to a cluster speaker when the amplifier is not installed within the vehicle. The amplifier is configured to transmit amplifier installation information to the control device and output an alarm sound received from the control device and the cluster speaker is configured to output the alarm sound received from the control device.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a control system and a method for a vehicle having a warning function, and more particularly, to a technique of determining whether an amplifier is installed within a vehicle and outputting an alarm sound to an amplifier or a cluster speaker based on an occurrence of an alert situation.
Description of the Prior Art
Due to prevalence of vehicles settled as daily essentials and an accompanying increase in traffic accidents, consumer demand for more stable and intelligent vehicles and the development of vehicle-related industry are grafted to develop an intelligent safety system that secures stable running characteristics even under conditions of snow, fog, heavy rain, and the like. As auxiliary devices for safety driving, a lane departure prevention system, drowsy driving prevention system, a collision prevention system by securing a safety distance have been developed and applied to vehicles.
Meanwhile, recently, a pedestrian sensing device configured to sense and display a pedestrian has been installed to be used in vehicles as one of safety running auxiliary device. Various vehicle control systems are configured to output an alarm sound to inform a driver about a dangerous situation. However, such vehicle control systems do not have a function of detecting an amplifier installed within a vehicle and output an alarm sound to a cluster speaker, in spite of the presence of an amplifier.

Audio control system and method for a vehicle having a warning function


A method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wheel, comprising the steps of producing an elongated strip of alloy blank with a desired cross-section by squeezing an alloy material, pre-curving the two ends of said blank into arcs, placing one end of said blank between an upper main roller and a lower main roller of a rolling machine to hold said blank, when said blank is being held by said upper main roller and said lower main roller and being driven back and forth along the longitudinal direction, approaching two auxiliary rollers of said rolling machine toward the two sides of said upper main roller to push said blank, so that said blank follows the curve established by a holding point between said upper main roller and said lower main roller and pushing points of said auxiliary rollers to progressively coil into the shape of the desired aluminum alloy wheel.

With progress in technologies and economy and the ever-decreasing costs in automobile manufacturing and selling prices, popularity in motor vehicles has increased drastically in recent years. This not only brings convenience to people but also shortens the distances among them, satisfying the human needs for transportation. After years of research and design efforts by the manufacturers, the material used in wheels for motor vehicles has advanced from iron to aluminum, which provides lighter weight and a more appealing appearance. The progress in automobile wheel making not only improved the performance and running distance of vehicles, it also elevated the automobile industry to a higher technical realm. To obtain a leading position, all manufacturers are directing their focus in wheel manufacturing and design toward lower costs, better quality and faster production.
A prior method of producing aluminum alloy wheels is by die-casting. A large scale machine with a built-in wheel forming die is used. Melted liquid metal is cast and filled into the die. When said liquid metal cools and hardens in said die, the die is then opened to obtain a semi-finished aluminum wheel. However, with this procedure, air is likely to be trapped in the cast aluminum, resulting in air leakage and affecting safety.
In addition to the safety issue, a main drawback in said die-casting wheel manufacturing procedure is that it requires a high processing cost. Both the die and the large scale machine are very expensive and a large scale suspension system has to be installed in the factory to incorporate said wheel forming die. To remove or replace a forming die, a hoist might even be required. Therefore the prior method not only consumes substantial amount of time and takes up huge space, but also creates safety issues in the process. Those problems become even more obvious when producing larger sized wheels.
As a result, some manufacturers developed other methods of manufacturing aluminum alloy wheels. U.S. Pat. No. 4,589,177 by Secolo et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,370 provides examples of those methods. Refer to FIGS. 1–3. A flat strip 10 of aluminum alloy is first produced and then said strip 10 is bent to form a circle so that the two ends of said strip 10 are close to each other and form a small weld line 100. The weld line 100 is then welded to form said strip 10 into a hoop 12. Said hop 12 then undergoes a sequence of deformation steps by pressing rollers with different die shapes on said hoop 12 to gradually form the desired cross-sectional profile and obtain a semi-finished aluminum alloy wheel 14.
In said conventional manufacturing process, numerous sets of rollers with various shapes of dies must be utilized to sequentially press on said flat-profiled hoop 12 so that the desired cross-sectional profile on said aluminum alloy wheel 14 can be achieved. This kind of process presents several drawbacks. First, purchase and installation of many sets of expensive rollers calls for a substantial raise in cost. Secondly, the deformation process using sets of rollers with different die shapes notably increases the complexity of the working cycle, thus brings extra overheads in operation time, manpower and energy consumption. Moreover, said rolling deformation performed on said flat-profiled hoop 12 could easily create an uneven pressure during the deformation process, causing an unbalanced weight or a low hardness on the resulting aluminum alloy wheel 14, which will significantly reduce the life time of said conventionally made aluminum alloy wheel 14.

Method of manufacturing an aluminum alloy wheel


In a container fixing device of the invention, dimension in height can be reduced and the installation location can be extended and operation is simple. A rotary table (13) is in planar shape so that while a cone (10) is transferred from the container receiving position A to the container fixing position B, the rotary table (13) is always supported by rotary supports (16a, 16b, 16c, 16d) and the cone (10) can be maintained to the top end position, and when the cone (10) is transferred from the container receiving position A to the cone lowering position C, the supporting of the rotary table (13) by the rotary supports (16a, 16b, 16c, 16d) is released and the cone (10) can be lowered. Guide plates (18a, 18b, 18c, 18d) are provided so that when the cone (10) is at the cone lowering position C, a peripheral portion of the rotary table (13) is supported by the upper surface, and when the cone (10) is rotated from the cone lowering position C to the cone enclosing position D, the peripheral portion of the rotary table (13) can be guided to the upper surface of the bottom plate by the side surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a container fixing device arranged on a bed of a vehicle capable of performing both container transportation and freight transportation, where during container transportation, a cone is projected on the bed and a container is fixed thereby the container can be loaded on the bed, and during freight transportation, the cone is enclosed under the bed and a freight can be loaded on the bed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, as such a container fixing device of enclosing type, invention disclosed in JP-Y 55-36276 is known.
According to the prior art as above described, however, since dimension in height is large, the container fixing device can not be installed, for example, to the highest part of a tire of a trailer, upper side of a tool-box or the like, and location allowing installation is limited. Also there is a problem that operation is troublesome


A method for using offloaded transport layer protocols involves signaling a network interface controller (NIC) with a signal to use one of multiple transport layer protocols embedded in the NIC, and transmitting a data packet via the NIC using the transport layer protocol.

In computer systems, a network stack is a logical separation of physical and software components into layers of networking functionality. Each layer in the network stack builds on functionality of the layer immediately beneath it, if one exists. Thus, each layer effectively provides a level of abstraction, whereby different implementations of each layer may be interchanged so long as the interfaces between the layers remain compatible.
Many different network stack models exist, and the same network configuration may be described using different network stack models. The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Reference Model is one example of a network stack model, and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) model is another example. The TCP/IP model is most commonly used to describe Internet-related networking functionality, although it may be used to describe different types of networks as well. The TCP/IP model separates network configurations into five logical layers: physical layer, data link layer; network layer; transport layer; and application layer. These layers are well known in the art, and the following is merely a broad overview of each layer.
The physical layer includes the physical devices that form the underlying basis of the network, such as routers, switches, repeaters, network cables, network interface controllers (NICs), etc. The physical layer also includes low-level protocols for transmitting bits between the aforementioned physical devices.
The data link layer includes functionality for preparing packets for transmission (e.g., by adding transmission headers) and using the physical layer to transmit the packets. For example, dial-up modems often use Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) at the data link layer, local area networks (LANs) often use Ethernet, and wireless LANs often use the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard. Many other data link layer protocols exist. The data link layer may be embedded in a NIC (e.g., in firmware or an integrated circuit within the NIC) or implemented in software (e.g., in a NIC device driver executing on a host operatively connected to the NIC).
The network layer includes addressing and routing functionality for moving packets from one device to another. For example, the IP suite (e.g., IPv4, IPv6, etc.), which includes functionality for routing packets from one specific IP address to another, belongs to the network layer. The network layer is most commonly implemented in software.
The transport layer manages flow control and connection states between devices. Some transport layer protocols are connection-oriented (e.g., TCP), while others are connectionless (e.g., User Datagram Protocol (UDP)). Each transport layer protocol is responsible for enforcing quality of service (QoS) parameters required by the protocol, such as data fragmentation, error correction, retry policy, traffic congestion control, etc.. The transport layer is typically implemented in software.
The application layer includes protocols that may be used directly by applications, such as Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP), File Transport Protocol (FTP), Post Office Protocol version 3 (POP3), Teletype Network (TELNET), etc. These protocols are typically implemented in software.

Method and system for offloaded transport layer protocol switching


After defining the P2 pole of a magnetic read head, alumina is deposited over it and planarized by CMP, with the portion of the alumina overlaying the ABS region of the P2 pole subsequently being masked by a photoresist layer and with the portions of the alumina overlaying the flare area, back gap region, and center tap regions of the P2 pole not being masked. A reactive ion mill is performed to expose the flare area, back gap region, and center tap regions of the P2 pole by removing the alumina over these portions, so that subsequent steps such as forming a layer of coiled conductors, forming a return pole, and forming stud connections along with removing the respective seed layers can be executed with the ABS region protected by the alumina and with the flare area, back gap region, and center tap region exposed.

In magnetic disk drives, data is written and read by magnetic transducers called "heads." The magnetic disks are rotated at high speeds, producing a thin layer of air called an air bearing surface (ABS). The read and write heads are supported over the rotating disk by the ABS, where they either induce or detect flux on the magnetic disk, thereby either writing or reading data. Layered thin film structures are typically used in the manufacture of read and write heads. In write heads, thin film structures provide high areal density, which is the amount of data stored per unit of disk surface area, and in read heads they provide high resolution.
A thin film write head may have two pole pieces, namely, a top pole piece (colloquially referred to as "P2") and a bottom pole piece ("P1"). A write head generally has two regions, denoted a pole tip region and a back region. The pole pieces are formed from thin magnetic material films and in longitudinal recording heads converge in the pole tip region at a magnetic recording gap, and in the back region at a back gap. In a perpendicular recording write heads, on the other hand, no write gap exists. Instead, the second pole piece P2 is formed with a pole tip that has a width which defines the track width of the write head and a wider yoke portion which delivers the flux to the pole tip. At a recessed end of the pole tip the yoke flares laterally outwardly at a "flare area" to its full width and thence, as in the case of longitudinal recording heads, to a back gap that is magnetically connected to a back gap of a first pole piece.
In any case, a write head thus has at least one pole tip "P2". The width of the P2 pole at the ABS predominantly defines the write track width of the write head. The height "P2T" of the P2 pole plays a role in determining the amount of flux delivered to the disk, making it an important feature. The write track width, which is related to the width of the bottom of the P2 pole, is especially important because it limits the areal density of a magnetic disk. A narrower track width translates to greater tracks per inch (TPI) written on the disk, which in turn translates to greater areal density.
In the present assignee's co-pending U.S. patent application published as 2005/0023243 and incorporated herein by reference, a process for making a write head is disclosed which includes forming the P2 pole, followed by chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP)-assisted reactive ion (Argon) milling. The reactive ion milling is used for high selectivity to remove only areas desired to be removed for subsequent process steps. As recognized herein, however, portions of the P2 pole undesirably can be removed during the subsequent process steps, requiring that a thicker P2 layer be deposited in the first place to compensate for this removal. As also understood herein, requiring a thicker initial P2 layer means that the as-plated aspect ratio of the P2 layer is relatively high, which is undesirable particularly for P2 poles defined by DUV lithography, because the aspect ratio is limited by the so-called "straight zone" in the trench. Having made these critical observations, the present invention understands that it is desirable to prevent unwanted thinning of certain portions of the P2 pole during post-pole formation steps, to facilitate depositing thinner P2 layers initially.

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.


An electroluminescence device which has a short light emission decay time and high light emission efficiency and an electronic printing apparatus which can print at a high speed using the electroluminescence device. The electroluminescence device comprises an electroluminescence element for emitting light when an AC voltage is applied thereacross, heating means for heating the electroluminescence element, and controlling means for controlling the heating means so as to start operation of the heating means after completion of application of the AC voltage across the electroluminescence element. The electronic printing apparatus comprises such an electroluminescence device, a photosensitive member, and optical means for focusing light from the electroluminescence element upon the photosensitive member.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electroluminescence element which is used as a light source to which a photosensitive element is exposed in an electronic printing apparatus and an electronic printing apparatus employing the electroluminescence element, and more particularly to an electroluminescence device with a reduced delay from the end of the desired light emission period until the complete end of light emission, thus achieving a shorter overall light emission time, and also to an electronic printing apparatus which achieves high speed printing employing the electroluminescence device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is already known, as disclosed for example in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Application No. 62-106479 (1987) to employ an electroluminescence element as a light source for an electronic printing apparatus, that is, as a light source to which a photosensitive member is exposed.
FIG. 3 shows the variation in intensity of light emitted from an electroluminescence element in an electronic printing apparatus with respect to time when the electroluminescence element is energized. The time variation of the intensity of light emitted from an electroluminescence element in a conventional electronic printing apparatus will be described subsequently with reference to FIG. 3.
First, normally an AC drive signal is applied to an electroluminescence element, and the waveform (b) in FIG. 3 illustrates such a drive signal applied to the electroluminescence element. The drive signal is applied to the electroluminescence element for a period of time (up to time T1 in FIG. 3) which depends upon an exposure characteristics and so forth of the photosensitive member. Generally, an electroluminescence element has characteristics such that, when a drive signal as described above is applied to the electroluminescence element, the intensity of the electroluminescence element rises gradually and the electroluminescence element reaches its maximum intensity immediately before the application of the driving signal is stopped, as seen from the curve (a) of FIG. 3. Then, after the time T1, the brightness of the electroluminescence element decays gradually as shown by the solid line portion of the curve (a) of FIG. 3 from the time T1 to time T2 and a broken line portion from the time T2.
The demand for an electronic printing apparatus of a higher printing speed has been and is progressively increasing in recent years. In order to raise the printing speed, it is necessary on one hand to increase the intensity of the electroluminescence element and on the other hand to decrease the decay time of the electroluminescence element after emission of light, that is, to cause the intensity of the electroluminescence element to decrease as quickly as possible after the drive signal to the electroluminescence element is cut off, so as to eliminate unnecessary exposure of the photosensitive element to light.
An increase of the intensity of the electroluminescence element can be achieved comparatively easily by adjustment of the concentration of light emitting ions, selection of the dielectric material and so forth. There is no practical obstacle to adjustment of the light emitting ion concentration by these means.
On the other hand, it is known that the light emission decay time can be adjusted by changing the concentration of doping ions in the material forming the electroluminescence element which form the light-emitting centers. For example, when manganese (Mn) is used as a dopant at a concentration of 0.1% by weight in zinc sulfide (ZnS) which is commonly used as a material for an electroluminescence element, the light emission decay time of the electroluminescence element at room temperature is about 1 ms. Further, it is known that, when the concentration of manganese (Mn) is 1% by weight, the light emission decay time is about 0.3 ms. While the light emission decay time is directly related to proportion to the amount of manganese (Mn) dopant in this manner, it is known that, when ZnS is doped with Mn as described above, the light emission efficiency of the electroluminescence element reaches a maximum when the concentration of Mn is about 0.5% by weight, and as the doped amount of Mn increases, a phenomenon called concentration quenching occurs, and instead the light emission efficiency suddenly drops.
Accordingly, reduction of the light emission decay time and enhancement of the light emission efficiency of an electroluminescence element are conventionally contradictory demands, and actually, there is the problem that either one of the light emission decay time and the light emission efficiency must be sacrificed. When such an electroluminescence element is employed for an electronic printing apparatus, it imposes a limit to the printing speed, and particularly when the electroluminescence element is driven, for example, by an AC signal of 20 kHz, the printing time for a line of pixels is not less than 1 ms at the shortest. Accordingly, there is the problem that a medium or high speed electronic printing apparatus cannot be realized with an electroluminescence element.

Electroluminescence device and electronic printing apparatus using the same


The glass for a fluorescent light with a high hydrolytic resistance, which has composition, in % by weight based on oxide content of: SiO2, 63-75; B2O3, 15-18; Al2O3, 3.2-4.5; Na2O, 1-2; K2O, 2-6; ΣNa2O+K2O, 3-8; MgO, 0-8; CaO, 0-10; SrO, 0-10; BaO, 0-10; ZnO, 0-5; ΣMgO+CaO+SrO+BaO+ZnO, 0-10; ZrO2, 0-3; CeO2, 0-10; Fe2O3, 0-1; WO3, 0-3; Bi2O3, 0-5; MoO3, 0-3; TiO2, 0-10; ΣHf+Ta+W+Re+Os+Ir+Pt+La+Pr+Nd+Sm+Eu+Gd+Tb+Dy+Ho+Er+Tm+Yb+Lu in oxidic form, 0 to 5% by weight, as well as one or more conventional refining agents. The glass is characterized in that it contains no lithium and has a weight ratio of Na2O to K2O of less than one.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of making a hydrolysis-resistant glass, the glass obtained with this method, and to articles made using this glass.
2. The Related Art
Glass with strong UV absorbing properties is known and is used especial-lly for manufacturing of gas discharge tubes and fluorescent lights and for making liquid crystal displays (LCD). Above all, a fluorescent light is used as a light source for a rear side illuminated display, i.e. the so-called backlight display.
Fluorescent lamp glass for the above-described usage, which absorbs UV radiation in the desired range, is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,747,399. However it has been shown that this sort of glass is characterized by strong discoloration and in some cases strong solarization. Frequently a yellow brown discoloration arises when the raw material for the glass is melted.
A borosilicate glass containing zirconium oxide and lithium oxide of high strength, which is especially suited for use as a sealing glass with Fe—Co—Ni alloys, is known from DE-A 198 42 942. This sort of glass can contain color-imparting ingredients, such as Fe2O3, Cr2O3, CoO, and TiO2.
A solarization-stable borosilicate glass is known from DE-A 101 08 992, which is used for a so-called backlight for the background of displays in PCs, laptops, pocket calculators, etc, may be sealed in a vacuum-tight manner with tungsten. This sort of glass has a high content of SiO2 and B2O3, and a reduced amount of alkali oxides but with the sodium content clearly overweight.
DE 102 53 756 A1 describes a borosilicate glass with a high UV blocking action and its use as a fluorescent lamp. A glass of this sort has a high light permeability and a reduced UV transmission, but also a low processing temperature.
DE 10 2004 027 120 A1 describes a borosilicate glass with a high chemical resistance, which is manufactured with a raw material having a high iron content under oxidative conditions. This glass is also used for a fluorescent lamp, Xenon lamp, LCDs and displays, especially background lights.
Finally also DE 10 2004 027 119 A1 describes a UV radiation absorbing glass with small absorption in the visible range, which is substantially free of refining agents such as chloride, sulfate and/or antimony and which is refined under oxidative conditions with As2O3. This sort of glass contains TiO2 if necessary together with Fe2O3 for adjustment of the UV cutoff. Although all these glasses described above have outstanding properties for the uses described, it has been shown that they have no sufficient hydrolytic resistance under extreme conditions and especially they react with a fluorescent coating. This sort of reaction leads to a change in the color shade or color location of the light generated by a fluorescent light with a lamp bulb made from these glasses.

Hydrolysis-resistant glass, a method of making said glass and uses of same


An apparatus (10) for protecting a vehicle occupant including a vehicle seat belt webbing (20) which is extensible about a vehicle occupant, a housing (134) connectable to a component of a vehicle, and a flexible member (280) having a first end portion (284), a second end portion (286), and an intermediate portion (288) extending between the first and second end portions (284, 286). A part (310) of the intermediate portion (288) is located in the housing (134) and cooperates with the housing to define an expansible chamber (308) in the housing. The housing (134) includes a surface (156) for guiding movement of the part (310) of the intermediate portion (288) in an arcuate path (224) to expand the expansible chamber. A clutch (270), actuatable in response to expansion of the expansible chamber (308), is provided to connect the first end portion (284) of the flexible member (280) with the seat belt webbing (20). A gas generator (316) is provided for, when actuated, exerting a first force on the part (310) of the intermediate portion (288) to move the part of the intermediate portion along the arcuate path (224) in the housing (134) to expand the expansible chamber (308) and actuate the clutch and to move the first end portion (284) of the flexible member (280) in a direction to move the seat belt webbing (20) a first distance and tighten the seat belt webbing against the occupant.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a pretensioner for tightening a seat belt against a vehicle occupant.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Pretensioners for seat belts are known. One known pretensioner is attached to a seat belt buckle which is connectable with a tongue carried by the seat belt. Upon actuation, the pretensioner moves the buckle to move the seat belt and tighten the seat belt against a vehicle occupant.


A push-button switch may include a housing, a plunger, an operation unit, a transmission mechanism, a contact mechanism, and a biasing portion. The plunger may have a first plunger that is disposed in series with the first plunger. The first plunger and the second plunger may be movable independently of each other. The contact mechanism may be configured to be opened/closed by movement of the second plunger.

Patent document 1 discloses an operation switch including a contact portion having a contact B, an operation unit for opening and closing the contact B of the contact portion, and a lock mechanism having a lock lever capable of fixing the operation unit and the contact portion to each other. The lock lever is provided with a cam that rotates in conjunction with the rotation operation of the lock lever, and is configured so that the contact B of the contact portion can be opened and closed.


A method for synthesis of 4-OH substituted anabaseine derivative which is used as an α7 receptor agonist is revealed. A nucleophilic substitution reaction of δ-valerolactam with ethyl nicotinate is carried out to get an intermediate product. Then heat the intermediate product under reflux with concentrated hydrochloric acid to get a cyclized product-anabaseine. Next anabaseine and 4-hydroxyethoxy-2-methoxybenzaldehyde are reacted under concentrated hydrochloric acid catalysis to get a 4-OH anabaseine derivative 3-[(4-Hydroxyethoxy-2-methoxy)-benzylidene]anabaseine. The 4-OH anabaseine derivative is synthesized and prepared easily by the present invention. Not only the steps for synthesis are simplified, the yield is as high as 60%. The product can be mass-produced.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for synthesis of anabaseine derivatives, especially to a method for synthesis of 4-OH substituted anabaseine derivative.
Descriptions of Related Art
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter released by nerve cells of central and peripheral nervous systems for intercommunication between the nervous system and the immune system. The nervous system sends signals through acetylcholine for inhibition of inflammatory processes. Acetylcholine works by binding to receptors located on surface of cells such as neurons or immune cells. There are two main classes of acetylcholine receptor, muscarinic (M) and nicotinic (N).
Nicotine can mimic the action of acetylcholine at acetylcholine receptors and bind to acetylcholine receptors as an agonist of the Alpha-7(α7) nicotinic acetylcholine receptor. Thus some research shows that nicotine is promising for the treatment of cranial nerve diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Tourette syndrome. In some patients, their learning abilities are even recovered. Moreover, nicotine also activates α-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on macrophages and suppresses release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Thus nicotine acts as an anti-inflammatory agent in patients with ulcerative colitis, Kaposi's sarcoma epilepsy and asthma.
However, nicotine is highly toxic and addictive, and is associated with cardiovascular disease, cancer, etc. Thus nicotine is unable to be used as a drug due to its harmful effects. A series of drugs with similar structure of nicotine have been developed to provide pharmaceutical effects similar to nicotine without toxic effect. Anabaseine is a representative of these drugs.
Anabaseine is an Alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonist and initially designed for treatment of Alzheimer's disease. It improves cognitive functions of the Alzheimer's patients, without poisoning and addiction of nicotine. In the research now, anabaseine is modified in order to enhance its pharmacological properties. 4-OH-anabesine has the most healing effect among the anabaseine derivatives.
Among the techniques available now, 4-OH-anabesine is synthesized by reflux of anabaseine and 4-hydroxyethoxy-2-methoxybenzaldehyde with catalysis of concentrated hydrochloric acid. The final product obtained is a 4-OH substituted anabaseine derivative named 3-[(4-Hydroxyethoxy-2-methoxy)-benzylidene]anabaseine. The anabaseine used is prepared by nucleophilic substitution reaction of δ-valerolactam with ethyl nicotinate. The intermediate product, lithium 3-nicotinoyl-2-piperidone enolate, is obtained. Then the intermediate product is heated under reflux with concentrated hydrochloric acid to get cyclized product-anabaseine. The cyclized product is filtered and washed with solvents.
Yet anabaseine is easy to dissolve in solvents such as water under normal temperature. Thus anabaseine is easy to be lost during the washing step and the yield is dropped to 20-30%. Moreover, TLC test and Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H NMR) show that there are still some by-products after substitution of 4-OH group. Thus the elution time is quite long while using column chromatography for separation. The yield of column chromatography is only about 40%-50%, a bit insufficient. Thus there is room for improvement.

Method for synthesis of 4-OH substituted anabaseine derivative

Institute of Nuclear Energy Research, Atomic Energy Council, Executive Yuan, R.O.C.


The application of image transfer paper and a wrap to a curved surface of a container is described. A device for affixing the image transfer paper and wrap includes a base, a support member to support the container, and two wrap applicator arms coupled to the base in a pivoting manner. The support member includes a shoulder and, when the container is placed upon the support member, an edge of the container around an opening of the container rests upon the shoulder and a perimeter of the shoulder extends beyond a perimeter of the edge of the container. The shoulder receives the image transfer paper and aligns the image transfer paper with the edge of the container. Each wrap applicator arm is configured to receive a respective end of the wrap. Rotating the wrap applicator arms about the support member stretches the wrap around the container and image transfer paper.

Sublimation image transfer is often used to decorate containers, such as coffee mugs. The process of transferring an image using sublimation includes printing a design on a sheet of image transfer paper using sublimation ink, attaching the transfer paper to a container, and applying pressure and high temperature to cause the sublimation ink to transfer from the transfer paper to the container.
A current process of attaching the transfer paper includes manually attaching the transfer paper to the container. The operator manually positions the transfer paper and applies a piece of tape to hold it in place. With the transfer paper in place, the operator affixes a compression device to the transfer paper and container to apply consistent pressure over the surface of the transfer paper and container. The operator secures the compression device with a clamp, clip, or other type of fastener.
This manual process is slow, requires many operators to generate high yield, and is prone to errors due to misaligned images that occurs during positioning of the image transfer paper or poor image quality due to the way in which the compression sleeve is affixed to the container. Misaligned images can be costly as it results in defective containers. Image alignment is especially crucial when the image transfer process includes leaving a border or other space between the image and an edge of the container (i.e., when it is not a full bleed).
While devices have been designed to assist in the automation of the application of a compression sleeve to a container, these devices lack the means for consistent application, reducing steps in the process and alignment of the transfer paper.

Method and apparatus for transferring images onto a curved surface


A method and a kit for detecting a target protein in a sample with a signal amplification strategy are provided. The signal amplification strategy is established for the aptamer-based molecular recognition of a target protein with concomitant release of single-stranded DNA (G-DNA), which binds complementarily to a single-stranded RNA comprising a fluorophore and a quencher (“F-RNA-Q”). The fluorescence-quenched RNA is then degraded by RNase H to result in a fluorescence signal, and the undamaged G-DNA is recycled to yield fluorescence amplification.

Aptamers are nucleic acid species that are routinely selected in vitro through SELEX (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment). Since their introduction by the Gold and Szostak groups (Tuerk and Gold, Science, vol. 249, pp. 505-510, (1990)), aptamers have been exploited as molecular-recognition elements to detect virtually any target of interest, ranging from small molecules to proteins to even cells and tissues. Aptamers, which rival antibodies in sensitivity and specificity, are readily reproduced by chemical synthesis with low cost. Furthermore, they possess desirable storage properties and elicit little or no immunogenicity in a biological context. Owing to their advantages in comparison to antibodies, their utility in therapeutics and diagnostics has significantly expanded. Recently, the lack of inherent signaling properties of aptamers has prompted development of various strategies for transducing target-binding events into readily measurable signals for biotechnological and biomedical applications (Navani and Li, Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol., vol. 10, pp. 272-281 (2006)).
Methods that employ fluorescent reporters have proven to be particularly useful in generation of aptamer-based biosensors; these include monochromophore approaches (Jhaveri et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 122, pp. 2469-2473 (2000)), aptamerbeacon engineering (Hamaguchi et al., Anal. Biochem., vol. 294, pp. 126-131 (2001)), structure-switching signaling (Nutiu and Li, J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 125, pp. 4771-4778 (2003)), in situ labeling (Merino and Weeks, J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 125, pp. 12370-12371 (2003)), allosteric chimeras (Wu and Curran, Nucleic Acids Res., vol. 27, pp. 1512-1516 (1999)), dye-staining approaches (Li et al., Chem. Commun., pp. 73-75 (2007)), and polymer-conjugate based fluorescent chemosensors (Ho and Leclerc, J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 126, pp. 1384-1387 (2004)). While these systems generally produce signals in a stoichiometric manner, attempts have been made to amplify signals by incorporation of a proximity-ligation assay (Fredriksson et al., Nature Biotechnol., vol. 20, pp. 473-477 (2002)) or an exo-nuclease-protection assay (Wang et al., Anal. Chem., vol. 76, pp. 5605-5610 (2004)) into aptamer-based sensing. Although ultrasensitive detection of proteins has been achieved, the former assay is limited to homodimer protein targets, and the latter assay suffers from tedious multistep procedures. Very recently, a DNA-polymerase assay integrated with a molecular beacon has been employed for the amplified detection of the recognition between aptamer and target small molecule (Shlyahovsky et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 129, pp. 3814-3815 (2007)). Such techniques are in continuous demand for developing simple and easily applicable aptamer-based methods that can facilitate accurate and specific bioanalysis.

Method and kit for detecting a target protein using a DNA aptamer

Korea Institute of Science and Technology


An organic light-emitting diode manufactured from an organic light-emitting diode substrate in which a concave-convex structure is provided in at least a part of the surface, in which the concave-convex structure is capable of obtaining an atomic force microscope (AFM) image in which a plurality of dots is dispersed when observed by an AFM. A histogram is created by measuring a diameter (nm) of each of the plurality of dots present in a randomly selected region having an area of 25 μm2 on the atomic force microscope image, resulting in a plurality of peaks including one main peak and one or more sub-peaks, and the chromaticity of light emitted from the organic light-emitting diode is in a range of (x, y)=(0.28 to 0.50, 0.29 to 0.45) in a CIE standard colorimetric system.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic light-emitting diode, organic light-emitting diode substrate, and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of Related Art
An organic light-emitting diode is a light-emitting element using organic electroluminescence (hereinafter, "electroluminescence" is abbreviated as "EL"). In general, the organic light-emitting diode has a configuration in which conductive layers (positive electrode conductive layer and negative electrode conductive layer) are provided on both surfaces of an EL layer, which includes a light-emitting layer containing an organic light-emitting material, respectively. As the EL layer, in addition to the light-emitting layer, an electron transport layer, a hole transport layer, and the like are provided as necessary. The organic light-emitting diode is largely classified into a bottom emission type in which a positive electrode conductive layer formed from a transparent conductive layer such as ITO, an EL layer, and a negative electrode conductive layer are sequentially formed on a transparent substrate such as a glass substrate, and light is extracted from a substrate side, a positive electrode top emission type in which a negative electrode conductive layer, an EL layer, and a positive electrode conductive layer are sequentially formed on a substrate, and light is extracted from a side opposite to a substrate side, a negative electrode top emission type in which a reflective layer formed from a metal, a positive electrode conductive layer formed from a transparent conductive material such as ITO, an EL layer, a transflective negative electrode conductive layer, and an auxiliary electrode layer formed from a transparent conductive layer are sequentially formed on a substrate, and light is extracted from a side opposite to a substrate side, and the like.
The organic light-emitting diode has advantages such as less viewing angle dependency, low power consumption, and very small thickness. On the other hand, there is a problem in that light extraction efficiency is low. The light extraction efficiency is a ratio of an amount of light, which radiates from a light extraction surface (for example, a substrate surface in the case of the bottom emission type) to the air, to an amount of light generated from the organic light-emitting material. For example, the light which is generated from the light-emitting layer radiates in all directions. Therefore, it enters a waveguide mode in which the majority of the light repeats total reflection at an interface between a plurality of layers, each having a different refractive index, and thus the light is converted into heat or radiates from a side surface while being guided between the layers. As a result, the light extraction efficiency decreases. In addition, the distance from the metal negative electrode conductive layer is small, and thus a part of near field light from the organic light-emitting material is converted into surface plasmon on the surface of the negative electrode and disappears. As a result, the light extraction efficiency decreases. The light extraction efficiency has an effect on brightness and the like of a display and an illuminating device which are provided with the organic light-emitting diode, and thus various methods have been examined for improvement thereof.
As a method of improving the light extraction efficiency, a method of using surface plasmon resonance is suggested. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2002-270891, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2004-31350, Published Japanese Translation No. 2005-535121 of the PCT International Publication, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2009-158478 disclose methods of providing a one-dimensional or two-dimensional periodic microstructure on the surface of a metal layer (negative electrode conductive layer). The periodic microstructure formed on the surface of the metal layer functions as a diffraction lattice, and converts surface plasmon into propagation light on the surface of a negative electrode. According to this, energy that disappears as the surface plasmon is extracted as propagation light to the outside of an element, and thus the light extraction efficiency is improved.
Among these Patent Documents, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. 2009-158478 discloses a method in which a substrate having a periodic lattice structure due to a concavity and convexity is prepared according to a dry etching method using a two-dimensional crystal body constituted by a particle single layer film as an etching mask, and a positive electrode conductive layer, a light-emitting layer, and a negative electrode conductive layer are sequentially laminated on the substrate. In the method, the periodic lattice structure on a substrate surface is sequentially transferred during lamination, and thus a periodic lattice structure having a shape copied from the periodic lattice structure of the substrate surface is formed on the surface of the negative electrode conductive layer on a light-emitting layer side.

Organic light-emitting diode, organic light-emitting diode substrate, and method of manufacturing same


The present invention relates to curable elastomer compositions and deformable thermoplastic compositions which are reshapable subsequent to cure or solidification. In particular, the present invention relates to compositions and articles of manufacture which are prepared from curable elastomeric or deformable thermoplastic matrices having distributed therein polymeric powders which have a melting point below the degradation of the matrix and which are present in shape-holding amounts to permit reshaping subsequent to elastomer cure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to curable elastomer compositions and reformable thermoplastic compositions which are reshapable subsequent to cure or solidification. In particular, the present invention relates to compositions and articles of manufacture which are prepared from curable elastomeric or deformable thermoplastic matrices having distributed therein polymeric powders which have a melting point below the degradation of the matrix and which are present in shape-holding amounts to permit reshaping subsequent to elastomer cure.
2. Brief Description of Related Technology
Thermoplastics are generally described as polymeric materials consisting of linear long chain molecules which exhibit crystalline and amorphous phases and which exhibit two transitions as a function of temperature (1) a second order transition where softening occurs, called the glass transition temperature (Tg), and (2) a first order transition, called Tm, where melting occurs. Because of the melting behavior, these materials can be reprocessed at elevated temperatures, to any shape desirable. Below the Tg, these materials are strong, stiff materials; above Tg but below Tm, they are strong materials, but less stiff and more extensible. See Principles of Polymerization, George Odion, Third Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (1988).
Elastomer or rubbery materials are linear long chain molecules which have very low Tg's and Tm's (if any, usually below room temperature), have low strength and very high extensibility. Crosslinking the elastomer improves strength and stiffness and decreases extensibility.
Thermoplastic elastomers are polymeric materials which possess properties of both thermoplastic and rubbery materials. Since these are mostly linear chains, they can be reprocessed at elevated temperatures, much like thermoplastics.
When long chain molecules are linked to each other at points other than their ends, the polymers are said to be crosslinked. When the number of crosslinks is sufficiently high, a three dimensional or space network polymer is produced in which substantially all the polymer chains in a sample have been linked to form one great molecule. Light crosslinking sometimes is used to impart good recovery (elastic) properties to polymers to be used as rubbers. A high degree of crosslinking is used to impart high strength, high rigidity and dimensioned stability at elevated temperatures. These highly crosslinked polymers are also called thermoset polymers.
Interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) are generally described as materials containing at least two polymers, each in a network or crosslinked form, with the two polymers having polymerized independently in the presence of each other to form two networks which are interwoven (interpenetrated) with each other. In other words, two or more polymerization reactions occur, resulting in separate but interwoven polymers. In some cases, slight crosslinking between the two polymers can also occur. If one or more of the two polymers are elastomeric initially, then the new polymer can be characterized as an elastomeric IPN.
A semi or pseudo-IPN is considered to be a material having only one crosslinked or network structure which is within a non-crosslinked polymer matrix phase, or vice versa. It is conceivable that certain solvents can extract this non-crosslinked phase of the semi-IPN, whereas this is generally not possible for an IPN. Therefore, a single crosslinked network of the semi-IPN allows these materials to retain thermoplastic character. They can be reformed with heat from one shape to another, providing the crosslinked network of the semi-IPN has a degree of elastomeric character, such as silicone segments within the crosslinked structure. Rigid crosslinked semi-IPNs derived from epoxy, bismaleimides or cyanates do not have this reforming ability.
Various patents disclose the case of thermoplastic components in combination with thermoset components. Much of the prior published subject matter modifies the properties of the thermoset by dynamically crosslinking the thermoset within the thermoplastic, i.e., chemically incorporating the thermoplastic into the crosslinked reaction product, rather than maintaining the thermoplastic in a distinct meltable phase within a cured pseudo or fully interpenetrating network structure, as in the present invention.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,013,715, to Gornowicz et al., describes a novel thermoplastic silicone elastomer comprising mixing a thermoplastic resin such as a polyolefin or poly(butylene terephthalate) with a diorganic polysiloxane having at least two alkenyl groups and organo hydrido silicone compounds and subsequently dynamically vulcanizing the system via a hydrosilation cure using a platinum catalyst. Only polyolefin or poly(butylene terephthalate) resins were disclosed as being suitable because many other resins contain certain groups which can "poison" the platinum catalyst. In addition, other resins were unsuitable because they contain residual unsaturation, which depletes the Si—H availability for the crosslinking reaction.
The '715 patent discloses a thermoplastic elastomer product which is a blend of thermoplastic and polyorganosiloxane resin. The reaction process involves a dibutyltindilaurate catalyzed condensation reaction of a polydiorganosilanol with a hydrodiodiorgano silane. This reference is devoid of any teaching with respect to a curable resin composition containing discrete thermoplastic particles in a pseudo or fully interpenetrating network.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,834,537 and 6,225,373, both to Gotro et al., disclose a curable thermosetting resin composition with enhanced fracture toughness as a result of incorporating reactive thermoplastic oligomers therein is described. The curable composition of the '537 patent describes a thermoset resin containing fluorine and at least one fluorine-containing thermoplastic, soluble in the thermoset, which is cured between 100 to 325° C., to yield a toughened phase-separated thermoplastic in a thermoset. The '373 patent discloses a similar composition, wherein the thermoset contains bromine and optionally other halogens.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,948 to Perez et al. describe a curable composition made by mixing an epoxy resin and curative with prepolymerized hydrocarbon resin and a fully prepolymerized functionalized polyolefin resin and curing said composition in a twin screw heated extruder following by extrusion. The final composition is a thermoplastic polyolefin in an epoxy resin, the polyolefin being chemically linked to the epoxy via the functionalized groups. The composition described above is a thermoplastic-modified epoxy resin.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,954,195 to Turpin describes a process to produce thermoset composites by dissolving thermoplastic particles of polyimide, polyphenylenesulfide, or polyethersulfone, ranging in size from about 10 to 80 microns, in a thermoset resin at the cure temperature of the thermoset, which can be a bismaleimide (BMI) or an epoxy. This composition is applied as fiber reinforcements to form prepregs, and cured at elevated temperatures to form a soluble thermoplastic in a rigid thermoset composite.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,952,416 to Tani et al. describe a thermosetting resin composition containing thermoplastic polyolefin powder of particle sizes up to 200 μm and potassium titanate filler fibers, said thermoset being derived from unsaturated polyesters, vinyl esters, phenolic resin, polyester/styrene or epoxy phenolics. Such a product is said to provide high slidability and abrasion resistance.
Other patents disclose the use of pseudo or semi-IPN's. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,739 discloses pseudo or semi-interpenetrating polymer (IPN) networks of silicones in thermoplastic matrices. The pseudo or semi-IPN's are formed by vulcanization of vinyl containing silicones or hybrid vinyl containing polymers formed by reaction of a hydrid-containing silicone with a vinyl thermoplastic polymer or unsaturated group-containing polymer such as poly(1,2-butadiene), with a hydride-containing silicone polymer using a platinum catalyst, in the presence of a thermoplastic resin such as nylon or polyethylene or polyester urethane at the melt temperature of the thermoplastic resin. The level of semi-IPN in the thermoplastic matrix is demonstrated at low levels of 5 to 20%. An intimate blend of the mixture is cured and melt-processed in the injection molding equipment at 350° C. The process requires intimate mixing of the melted thermoplastic with reacting silicone components at the melt temperature of the thermoplastic to form the semi-IPN thermoplastic elastomer. This patent discloses the production of a semi-IPN, containing about 5 to 20% silicone networks, in a thermoplastic matrix. No disclosure is provided with respect to curable compositions which can be reshaped or reformed subsequent to cure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,866,258 to Lucas describes an IPN composition made in two steps: (1) crosslinking an aqueous dispersion of isocyanate based thermoplastic polymer and unsaturated monomers containing latent reactive functional groups using peroxide initiators to form a stable coating composition, and (2) further reacting the composition at elevated temperatures (95-175° C.) to form a self-crosslinked IPN composition. Vinyl monomers containing latent reactive groups include acrylic acid, allylalcohol, vinyl acryloxy ether, 2-isocyanatoethylmethacrylate, meta-isopropenyl-α, α-dimethyl benzylisocyanate, and hydroxyethylacrylate. This IPN composition does not result in a discrete, meltable thermoplastic component in a cured elastomeric matrix.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,923 to Dillon describes an elastomeric membrane or sheeting material formed from polydimethylsilicone (PDMS) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). A semi-interpenetrating network is formed by causing a matrix of PDMS and a matrix of PTFE to be formed in situ. The membrane, which is used for treatment of dermatological scars, is further coated with a separate PDMS layers to form the final product.
At the present, there is a need for curable compositions which can be reshaped or reformed subsequent to cure, without destroying or degrading the crosslinked structure.