A method for closing of the pores of selected areas of the surface of thermo-plastic porous material (7), comprising heating of selected areas of the surface of the porous material (7) by light radiation. Simultaneously, the surface of the porous material (7) is compressed by a transparent smooth body (11). According to the embodiment (I), the surface of the porous material (7) is scanned over by one of the several focused light beams, that are switched on and off. According to the embodiment (II), between the porous material (6) and the smooth transparent body (11), a transparent means containing a light-absorbing pattern (9) of surface elements with pores being left open is placed, whereas the distance between the light-absorbing surface (10) and the surface (7) of the porous material (6) is at least 0.02 mm, or, according to embodiment (III), it is a means with low light-absorption (14) containing a light-absorbing pattern (15) of the surface elements with pores to be closed, that is in good thermal contact with the surface (7) of the porous material (6), and a light of high intensity is conducted through the transparent smooth body (11).

A known method is to close the pores of selected areas of the thermo-plastic porous material by feeding it through heated rollers with engraved pattern(s) as in European Patent No. 0,553,808, or by pressing it with the heated face of a master mould, which has indentations to prevent it from heating and pressing the surface elements with the pores to be left open (GB patent No 1112776, B 44 C 1/24, Bankers and Merchants, Inc., 1968; JP patent No 6024114, B 41 K 1/50, Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co.,Ltd., 1994). This method is used beside with other applications at the manufacturing of pre-inked stamps to selectively produce on the surface of porous thermo-plastic material a solid film, non-permeable for ink. The method is labour-consuming, as the manufacturing of each stamp of any new typesetting or picture requires the preparation of a new master mould.
Cross-linking and solidifying of molecules of polymer materials with light radiation has been widely used for forming not only printing surfaces but even complex three-dimensional parts of different shapes, but this method is known only for solid, nonporous materials (KONSTRUKTION, vol. 38, no. 9, September 1986, Berlin, pp. 347-48, E. V. Fudium: ("Sculpting Parts with Light")
Another known method is the manufacturing of printing surfaces from porous material with the help of laser radiation, where the surface of porous material in background areas is burnt and evaporated, thus creating the necessary relief (JP patent No 6191002, B 41 C 1/50, Mitsubishi Pencil Co. Ltd., Tsukasa Felt Shoji KK., 1994). A disadvantage of this method is that a sophisticated high-power laser is needed. Another problem is that at the scanning speeds usually accepted, provided the radiant power is sufficient, it is possible to obtain the elimination of a certain layer of the material, but the surface opened under the eliminated layer is not moulded to the depth necessary for closing the pores.
One more method of forming printing surfaces with the use of light radiation is to form on the surface of the porous thermo-plastic material a light-absorbing pattern of non-printing elements and to heat the surface by exposure to infra-red radiation, as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,064,205. The forming of the light absorbing pattern is accomplished by using a temporary cover sheet with a light absorbing coating and by transfer of the coating to selected areas of the printing surface by laser scanning. This method is used to form relief printing plates and is too complicated to use for the production of pre-inked stamps, as it requires the use of a powerful laser scanner.
Among the known technical solutions, the closest to the present invention is a method of manufacturing printing plates by heating the porous thermo-plastic material by light radiation (U.S. Pat. No. 3,742,853, B 41 D 7/00, Perkin-Elmer Corporation, 1973). The surface of porous thermo-plastic material is covered with a reflecting metal film. This film is eliminated by laser radiation in background areas. After the surface has been prepared in such a way, it is heated by intensive infra-red radiation, which makes the areas not screened by the reflective film melt and collapse. To accomplish this method, a laser is needed, powerful enough to evaporate the metal film on the surface when scanning it, and also a source of infra-red radiation. As the method is used for manufacturing of relief printing plates, simultaneously with heating, as a mechanical means, a pressure difference between the upper and lower surfaces of the porous material is applied, using for it, for example, a perforated plate connected to a vacuum system under the lower surface of the porous material. This method does not provide any additional means, applied simultaneously with the heating by light radiation, which would promote the closing of pores.

Method for the selective closing of the pores of the surface of thermo-plastic porous material


A system and methodology for launching, flying and perching on a cylindrically curved surface in an environment without human intervention. The system and methodology include an environment awareness sensor device suite having a depth camera arranged to capture and output image data and 3D point cloud data of a field of view; an asset targeting unit arranged to set an asset as a destination location for a landing; a trajectory path determiner arranged to calculate a trajectory path to the destination location; a flight controller arranged to launch and fly the autonomous aerial vehicle to the destination location according to the trajectory path; a situational status determiner arranged to, in real-time, predict a location of an object with respect to the autonomous aerial vehicle based on 3D point cloud data for the object, determine the object is the asset based on a confidence score and autonomously land on the asset.

The inspection and maintenance of exposed assets, such as, for example, pipes, vessels, storage tanks, equipment and other structures, can be difficult or impractical to perform by humans in some environments. In such circumstances, the use of automated UAV's can provide a workable alternative. Such inspection and maintenance are often best performed using direct contact on the asset, versus hovering at a distance from the asset. A UAV, however, can be difficult to land, perch, or maneuver on the asset. Further, assets having non-flat surface structures, such as, for example, pipes, can be especially challenging to inspect or maintain with a UAV, as these assets have curved surfaces on which the UAV needs to land, perch, or maneuver.
In addition, inspecting hard-to-reach assets in oil and gas facilities is a challenging task. For example, periodic inspection of elevated assets found in refineries, gas plants, offshore platforms, and other plants or facilities is of paramount importance to prevent unexpected failures, leaks, and shutdowns. These assets include high-elevation structures that are difficult to access during inspection jobs. One way to inspect such assets is to erect scaffolding for an inspector to access the asset and perform manual inspection, for example for thickness measurements using an Ultrasonic Testing (UT) sensor. Such scaffolding is not only expensive and introduces a significant cost barrier for frequent inspection, but also poses safety concerns mainly in the form of falling and tripping hazards.
It is in this regard and other problems in the art that the present disclosure is directed. The present disclosure provides a technical solution for an effective perching UAV having a releasable crawler for inspecting or maintaining assets, including assets having non-flat surfaces.

Deep learning-based localization of UAVs with respect to nearby pipes

King Abdullah University Of Science And Technology


A latching assembly for a side door of a motor vehicle is disclosed. The motor vehicle includes an electrical system and an electric power source. The side door includes a pawl which is used in the unlatching of the side door. The latching assembly includes a housing that is fixedly secured to the side door for securing the latch assembly thereto. The latching assembly also includes a primary motor fixedly secured to the housing and electrically connected to the electrical power source through the electrical system to receive electricity from the electric power source. The primary motor converts the electricity into a rotational force. The latching assembly also includes a lever that is operatively connected to the primary motor to receive the rotational force and to translate the rotational force into a linear force to move the pawl to an unlatched position. The latching assembly includes a battery which is fixedly secured to the housing and a secondary motor which is fixedly to the housing and electrically connected to the battery. The secondary motor provides a secondary force to move the pawl to the unlatched position when the primary motor is disconnected from the electric power source.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a door latch. More specifically, the invention relates to an electrical door latch for a motor vehicle that does not have a manual backup.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is desirable to have electrically activated side door latches in motor vehicles. The problem with such electrically activated side door latches is they lack the ability to have the latch be activated to release and open the side door in a failure mode, such as when the motor vehicle is in an accident. In such situations, the power cable connecting the battery to the electrically activated side door latch may be severed preventing the latch from operating correctly.
To avoid this situation, the latch typically has a mechanical release which serves as a backup to the electrically activated side door latch. The redundant mechanical release that acts as a backup to the electrically activated side door latch adds weight and assembly costs and further limits the design of the door. Therefore, there is a need in the art to eliminate the mechanical release.

Power release side door latch with emergency release system


A device for stacking sheets sequentially driven out of an image forming apparatus on a tray. The device is capable of stacking both of stapled sheets and non-stapled sheets accurately without damaging them. In a stapling mode, the tray is positioned at a home position in which the top surface of the tray or the top-most sheet in the tray is spaced apart from a positioning roller a distance greater than a thickness of a maximum number of sheets which can be stapled together.

The present invention relates to a device for stacking sheets sequentially coming out of an image forming apparatus on a tray.
A copier, printer or similar image forming apparatus has a tray for accommodating sheets each carrying an image thereon. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 233458/1990 proposes an image forming apparatus having a tray capable of stacking both of stapled sheets and non-stapled sheets, as needed. In this construction, non-stapled sheets are driven out one after another by a discharge roller and let fall onto the tray simply by gravity. This brings about a problem that the sheets cannot be neatly stacked on the tray, preventing, for example, different jobs from being clearly distinguished when a shifting operation is effected.
Although some implementations have been proposed to eliminate the above problem, none of them is fully satisfactory.

Sheet stacking device with vertically movable tray


What is disclosed is a volume access system. The volume access system includes a processing system configured to process at least a portion of each of a plurality of virtual disk files to generate an aggregate file system view that represents the plurality of virtual disk files as a single hierarchical data volume comprising a plurality of items within the plurality of virtual disk files. The volume access system also includes a network interface operatively coupled with the processing system and configured to communicate the aggregate file system view for traversal by a plurality of clients.

Traditional backup and archival software transforms source data into a non-filesystem format data that is suitable for long term storage. There are a number of reasons for this, including backup storage media is often sequential in nature and therefore can't easily support the random access requirements of most source data formats, large numbers of source files can be condensed into a single file that is easier to manage, and backup sets often span across multiple removable media tapes or cartridges. With the advent of disk based backups these requirements have become less important, yet these long term storage formats persist. Typically, recovery of files in the non-filesystem format requires the use of a proprietary recovery client.
In the field of computer hardware and software technology, a virtual machine is a software implementation of a machine, such as a computer, that executes program instructions like a real machine. Virtual machine technology allows for sharing, between multiple virtual machines, the physical resources underlying the virtual machines. Typically, in virtual machine environments, an individual agent is required for each virtual machine. The agent provides a data utility with access to the contents of the virtual machine. However, because there are a number of virtual machine vendors, each agent typically comprises proprietary software module and proprietary software tools. Moreover, the shear number of agents can be burdensome to system operators.
Overview
What is disclosed is a volume access system. The volume access system includes a processing system configured to process at least a portion of each of a plurality of virtual disk files to generate an aggregate file system view that represents the plurality of virtual disk files as a single hierarchical data volume comprising a plurality of items within the plurality of virtual disk files. The volume access system also includes a network interface operatively coupled with the processing system and configured to communicate the aggregate file system view for traversal by a plurality of clients.
What is also disclosed is one or more computer readable storage media having program instructions stored thereon for facilitating aggregate file system views of virtual environments. When executed by a processing system, the program instructions direct the processing system to obtain a first file system view of at least a virtual disk file, the first file system view comprising a first plurality of items within the virtual disk file. The program instructions also direct the processing system to obtain a second file system view of a condensed backup file, the second file system view comprising a second plurality of items within the condensed backup file. The program instructions also direct the processing system to generate an aggregate file system view comprising the first file system view of the virtual disk file and the second file system view of the condensed backup file.
What is also disclosed is a method of operating a volume access system. The method includes processing at least a condensed backup file to generate a file system view of the condensed backup file comprising a plurality of items within the condensed backup file, and providing the file system view of the condensed backup file over a network interface as a hierarchical data volume for a client device. The method also includes receiving over the network interface a file operation command generated on the client device for a target item of the hierarchical data volume, and in response to the file operation command, performing the file operation command on a first item of the plurality of items within the condensed backup file corresponding to the target item.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Presenting a file system for a file containing items


A method identifies anonymized parties in a transmitted communication. A sender replaces one or more communication party identifiers in control data within a communication with one or more anonymized identifiers before transmitting the communication to one or more recipients of the communication. A recipient receiving the communication searches a local lookup table by an anonymized identifier for a corresponding non-anonymized identifier which identifies a party of the communication. In response to identifying a corresponding non-anonymized identifier, the recipient then replaces the anonymized identifier with the corresponding communication party identifier and presents the recipient with the non-anonymized identifiers within the communication.

The present disclosure relates in general to adaptive communication anonymization. Still more particularly, the present disclosure relates to identifying anonymized parties in a communication between parties.
The disclosure operates in the general environment of communication including: email, simple messaging system, instant messaging, voice messaging, telephony, or any other communication system that transmits source and destination identifiers with a communication.

International Business Machines Corporation


Various techniques for routing a request message, which requests a service requiring a data operation on data which is stored in a data backend system, are discussed. The request message is received by a first application front end entity of an application layer. Based on the received request message, a data operation message is sent from the first application front end entity to a first data repository of the data backend system. The first data repository returns routing information to the first application front end entity, which enables the first application front end entity to route the request message to a second application front end entity of the application layer. The second application front end entity communicates with a given data repository which stores the data.

Scenarios are known where a layered architecture is provided which allows for a separation of data storage from application logic in a communication network, in which the data is stored in a data backend system while application logic operating on such data resides on application front end entities of an application layer. Such layered architectures are referred to as Data Layered Architecture (DLA) hereinafter.
A reference implementation of such a DLA is the User Data Convergence (UDC) scenario of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) mobile communications network standard, Technical Specification (TS) 23.335 Version 11.0.0 available as of 28. Sep. 2012 and TS 22.101 Version 12.3.0 available as of 18. Dec. 2012. The UDC allows to store subscriber-specific data employing a data backend system operation from application logic in an application layer.
Using a DLA typically allows to provide a highly available and location-redundant data storage to the application front end entities; this may in turn simplify the design of applications executed on the application front end entities. Furthermore, the DLA typically simplifies the routing in a core network of the communication network. Any requesting node may be served by any application front end entity—independently of a particular data storage location.
Yet, reference implementations of the DLA may face certain restrictions and drawbacks. For example, a situation may occur where the data backend system and/or a connecting status becomes unavailable to a smaller or larger degree (failure condition). In such a failure condition, disturbances may occur in the communication network where data stored in the data backend system is not available or available only to a limited degree. Calls may fail, data communication may be disturbed, and services, e.g. a short message service (SMS), may be degraded.
Therefore, a need exists for a resilience mode of operation for a Data Layered Architecture, comprising a data backend system and an application layer, which allows to handle failure conditions where the data backend system becomes at least partly unavailable.

Resilience operation of a data layered architecture


An engine control device, while executing a fuel-cut control, calculates a target intake air amount (Qat) from a basic intake air amount (Qabase) and an added intake air amount (Qaadd) commensurate with an accessory torque (step S14). Next, the engine control device acquires a coolant temperature (Tw) (step S15), and then sets a lower-limit intake air amount (Qamin) (step S16). When the target intake air amount (Qat) is smaller than the lower-limit intake air amount (Qamin) (NO in step S17), the engine control device updates the target intake air amount (Qat) with the lower-limit intake air amount (Qamin). (step S18), and adjusts the degree of throttle opening so that the actual intake air amount (Qa) becomes equal to the target intake air amount (Qat) (step S19).

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a control apparatus for a vehicle which is capable of stopping the supply of fuel to an internal combustion engine during deceleration.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine is designed to perform a fuel-cut process of stopping the supply of fuel to the internal combustion engine so as to improve fuel economy.
Such a vehicle is designed so that after an accelerator pedal of the vehicle is released and the vehicle begins to decelerate, the fuel-cut control of stopping the supply of fuel to the internal combustion engine is executed until the engine rotation speed of the internal combustion engine drops to a predetermined value. Then, after the engine rotation speed drops to the predetermined value, the vehicle ends the execution of the fuel-cut and starts supplying fuel again in order to prevent occurrence of engine stall.
Among vehicle control apparatuses that execute the fuel-cut control, there is known a control apparatus that switches between the execution and the non-execution of the fuel-cut according to the temperature of a catalyst that is disposed in an exhaust passageway of the internal combustion engine, so as to prevent degradation of the catalyst (see, e.g., Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-62664 (JP-A-11-62664)).
The vehicle control apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No 11-62664 (JP-A-11-62664) is designed to execute the fuel-cut control when the degree of throttle opening is a fully closed degree and the rotation speed of the internal combustion engine is greater than or equal to a predetermined value.
It is to be noted herein that if a fuel-lean exhaust gas passes through the catalyst in a high temperature state, the excess supply of oxygen accelerates the growth of particles of platinum (Pt) in the catalyst. Therefore, the total surface area of Pt that contacts exhaust gas in the catalyst reduces, so that the exhaust gas control performance declines.
Therefore, the vehicle control apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-62664 (JP-A-11-62664) determines whether or not the catalyst is in a high temperature state during execution of the fuel-cut control. When it is determined that the catalyst is in the high temperature state, the control apparatus prohibits execution of the fuel-cut control even if the condition for executing the fuel-cut control is satisfied. In this manner, the control apparatus prevents the catalyst from being exposed to lean exhaust gas and therefore prevents reduction of the surface area of Pt in the catalyst, and thus maintains the exhaust emission control performance.
On another hand, if the fuel-cut control is prohibited during the high temperature state of the catalyst as described above while the internal combustion engine is warming up, misfire may occur due to unstable combustion resulting from high viscosity of the lubricating oil of the engine or low atomization of fuel. If unburnt fuel is supplied together with exhaust gas into the catalyst, and ignites therein, the catalyst performance is rather likely to degrade. Therefore, the vehicle control apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-62664 (JP-A-11-62664) discontinues the prohibition of the fuel-cut control during the warming-up of the internal combustion engine, even if the catalyst is in the high temperature state.
Beside, generally in conjunction with the vehicle control apparatuses that execute the fuel-cut control as described above, since combustion is unstable during the warming-up state of the internal combustion engine (during a state in which the engine is being warmed up), the likelihood of occurrence of engine stall heightens if the fuel-cut control is ended while the engine rotation speed has become low. Therefore, during the warming-up state, the engine rotation speed at which to end the fuel-cut control is set higher than after the end of the warming-up, so as to prevent occurrence of engine stall.
Therefore, when the engine is being warmed up, the continuation time of the fuel-cut becomes shorter and therefore improvement of the fuel economy is hampered, in comparison with when the engine has been warmed up. Therefore, in order to realize improved fuel economy, it is advisable to delay the end of the fuel-cut control as much as possible by adopting a construction in which the engine rotation speed at which to end the fuel-cut control during the warming-up of the engine is set lower than in the related art.
However, the related-art vehicle control apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-62664 (JP-A-11-62664) is not designed so that the engine rotation speed at which to end the fuel-cut control during the warming-up of the engine is set lower than in the related art. Therefore, if the fuel-cut control during the warming-up of the engine is executed at lower engine rotation speeds than in the related art, it is likely that when the supply of fuel is started again, the combustion will be unstable and the engine rotation speed will not rise, and therefore a drawback, such as engine stall or the like, will occur.


A method and device for off-loading from an application program the calculation of a data-integrity-checking value for specified data in a computer system. The data may be included in a message together with the integrity-checking value or may be in a portion of a memory window for direct memory access. The method includes communicating a selected data-integrity-checking scheme from a specified set of schemes to another processor to off-load calculation of the data-integrity-checking value. A related method associates a message to be received with a data-integrity-checking scheme, so that a receiving processor can calculate the data-integrity-checking value and transmit both the value and the message to another processor.

A data digest is a data-integrity-checking value that is computed for a segment of digital data in a computer system. These digests (of which checksums are a special, common case) have proven useful for ensuring data integrity in transmission and storage of data. The digest is a mathematical function of the data, with the digest usually much smaller than the data segment to be protected. This data-integrity-checking value is often included with the original data when a message is transmitted or communicated, in space or time, to a data consumer. The consumer can compute the data digest for the data using the same digest scheme employed by the digest generator and then compare the value of the computed digest with the digest value received. If the two digest values match, then there is a high probability that the data was transmitted or stored without error. Note that as used in the description and any appended claims, the terms "digest" and "data-integrity-checking value" will have the same meaning.
In today's networked computing environments, the number of processors often found between data producers and consumers continues to increase. These processors may not be under the control of either the producer or the consumers of the data. Further, either the producer or the consumers of data may not know the integrity with which each processor manipulates or communicates data. For example, a communication network may be implemented according to the InfiniBand™ Architecture Specification developed by the InfiniBand Trade AssociationSM, the specification for which is incorporated herein by reference (InfiniBand™ Architecture Specification, version 1.0). The InfiniBand™ Architecture defines a system area network for connecting host processor nodes, input/output ("IO") platforms, and IO devices, as is shown in FIG. 1. System 100 is a communications and management infrastructure supporting both IO and interprocessor communications for one or more computer systems. The system 100 can range from a small server with one processor and a few IO devices to a massively parallel supercomputer installation with hundreds of processors and thousands of IO devices. Communication among nodes is accomplished according to an InfiniBand™ protocol. In addition, the IP (Internet protocol) friendly nature of the architecture allows bridging to an Internet, intranet, or connection to remote computer systems 111.
The InfiniBand™ architecture defines a switched communications fabric 101 allowing many devices to concurrently communicate with high bandwidth and low latency in a protected, remotely managed environment. The system 100 consists of processor nodes 102, 103, and 104 and IO units 105, 106, 107, and 108 connected through the fabric 101. The fabric is made up of cascaded switches 109 and routers 110. IO units can range in complexity from a single attached device, such as a SCSI or LAN adapter to large memory rich RAID subsystems 107. While some InfiniBand™ transfers among nodes may be protected using data digests, the integrity of intra-node programming may not be guaranteed. In fact, the path that data will travel between data producers and consumers may vary due to adaptive routing procedures and the like. Thus, a mechanism is needed to verify the end-to-end integrity of a data transfer from an application that produces or manipulates data to one or more applications that use the data.

Method and device for off-loading message digest calculations


A fluorescent confocal microscope designed for the improvement of optical cutting function and lateral resolution and the improvement of the accuracy of quantitative measurement for a wide visual field. An intermediary optical system, which is arranged between a pair of scanner mirrors and an objective optical system (a pupil projection lens and an objective lens), is of a retrofocustype construction and it has chromatic aberration of magnification tending to cancel chromatic aberration of magnification of the objective optical system for wavelengths of excitation light and fluorescent light. The pupil of the objective lens is relayed to the vicinity of the scanner mirrors by the pupil projection lens and the intermediary optical system. In this case, a pupil magnification .beta..sub.p is selected to satisfy an expression .vertline..beta..sub.p .vertline..ltoreq.1.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fluorescent confocal microscope so designed that the surface of a specimen is scanned by an excitation light whereby the resulting fluorescent light emanating from the specimen is condensed on each of pinholes and the fluorescent light passed through the pinholes is detected, thereby selectively obtaining only focusing information.
2. Related Background Art
With a conventional fluorescent confocal microscope, a microscope objective lens compensated for changes in the chromatic aberration of magnification for purpose of the ordinary observation with the naked eye or a television camera is employed as its objective lens.
In the past, while, in the case of the system of a microscope objective lens unit, the composite system of a microscope objective lens and an eyepiece according to the compensation method and the like, a chromatic aberration of magnification compensation has been provided for with respect to two particular wavelengths, e.g., the F line (blue) and the C line (red), there have existed the secondary spectra of chromatic aberrations of magnification with respect to the other wavelengths.
Then, in the case of such conventional fluorescent confocal microscope, as in the case in many instances, if the wavelengths of the excitation light and the fluorescent light fail to be coincident with the particular wavelengths subject to the chromatic aberrations of magnification compensation of the objective lens, chromatic aberrations of magnification appear at the excitation light wavelength and the fluorescent light wavelength.
In the case of the ordinary fluorescent microscope, such chromatic aberration of magnification do not present much problems since they merely change the magnification of a fluorescent image. In the case of the fluorescent confocal microscope, however, if there is the difference in chromatic aberration of magnification between the excitation light wavelength and the fluorescent light wavelength, the center of the fluorescent light spot deviates from the center of the pinhole so that the light quantity passed through the pinhole is decreased and the image becomes darker.
Since the chromatic aberration of magnification becomes increasingly large from the center of the visual field to the adjacent regions on the whole, even if the object (specimen) emits the same amount of fluorescent light in both the center and adjacent regions of the visual field, the image produced by the fluorescent confocal microscope becomes such that the image is darker in the adjacent regions than in the center of the visual field.
Particularly, there is a problem that if the diameter of the pinhole is decreased to obtain an optical cutting function and an excellent lateral resolution which are features of the fluorescent confocal microscope, the light quantity is decreased extremely in the adjacent regions of the visual field and only the center and its vicinity of the visual field are practically observed, thereby narrowing the visual field.
Moreover, if the center of the fluorescent light spot deviates from the center of the pinhole, the form of the detected light quantity distribution relative to the displacement of the specimen in the direction of the optical axis is changed and the reliability of the resulting image is deteriorated.
Further, where a fluorescent reagent (Indo-1) of a single excitation light wavelength and two fluorescent light wavelengths, a fluorescent reagent (Fura-2) of two excitation light wavelengths and a single fluorescent light wavelength or the like is used to make a quantitative measurement of ions or the like by a comparison in light quantity between the excitation light of the single wavelength and the fluorescent light of the two different wavelengths or a comparison in light quantity between the excitation light of the two different wavelengths and the fluorescent light of the single wavelength, there is a problem that if there is the difference in the magnitude of chromatic aberration of magnification between the two excitation wavelengths or the two fluorescent light wavelengths, the difference in the degree of decrease in light quantity between the two different excitation light wavelengths or fluorescent light wavelengths increases from the center to the adjacent regions of the visual field, thereby ruining the quantitativeness of the measurement.

Fluorescent confocal microscope with chromatic aberration compensation


In a digital image forming apparatus wherein a user can change a gradation curve of the density of reproduced image plotted against the input image signal obtained by reading a document, it is needed to compensate a change of color of a reproduced image accompanied by the selection of a changed gradation curve. Then, when input multi-tone image signals of R, G and B are converted to multi-tone image signals of Y, M and C for printing, the masking coefficient used for the conversion from R, G and B to Y, M and C is changed according to the changed gradation curve. Then, the multi-tone image signals of Y, M and C are converted to light quantity data of a beam for exposing a photoconductor to form an image on the photoconductor according to the gradation curve.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital image processor, or in detail to the gradation control of a digital image forming apparatus such as a digital printer, a digital copying machine and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the electrophotographic process in a digital printer, a digital copying machine or the like, the light quantity of the laser beam according to multi-level input image signal obtained by reading a document to reproduce an image. In the image reproduction, it is desirable that the image density (output) after the image reproduction is proportional to the read image density signal (input) obtained by reading a document. The gradation characteristic which is a relation of the output image density against the read image density signal is an important factor which affects largely the impression of a pictorial image.
Then, the light quantity of the laser beam is corrected according to the input density signal to realize the above-mentioned linear relation between the input read data and the output image density. This is called as the gamma correction.
The gradation characteristic changes subtly with the photoconductor sensitivity, the surface potential, the development bias voltage, the development characteristic and the like. Then, the image reproduction is stabilized by using automatic image density control, the gradation correction and the like to realize the linear characteristic.
In a digital image forming apparatus, the read density of a document is converted to multi-level digital data. Because nonlinear conversion of multi-level data is easy by using a look-up table or the like, various types of stabilization control and the gradation characteristic are possible for a digital image forming apparatus. (Refer for example Japanese patent laid open Publication No. 271,764/1991.)
However, the image stabilization is not perfect actually, and the quality of the reproduced image with use of the image stabilization is not satisfactory for some experienced users. Further, if a user can select the gradation characteristic in a wide range, a user can reproduce an image of his or her taste. Then, the inventors consider that the user will satisfy if he or she can change the gradation characteristic positively.
In order to make it possible for a user to change the gradation characteristic, the gradation correction and the image stabilization have to be operated simultaneously, and a process controller is required suitable for each image reproduction process.
For a color image, color masking processing to convert input image signal data usually with a linear masking coefficient is performed generally to compensate the deviations of spectral characteristics of the light source, the color toners and the like from the ideal characteristics. If a user is allowed to select a desired gradation characteristic, the color such as hue and chroma may be accompanied by the selection of the gradation characteristic, and this is a problem to be solved.


Methods and apparatus are provided for improving the distribution of system management signals within a computer system complex. Mechanisms are provided for transmission both within a box and between computer system boxes. Local routing tables and general routing tables allow the distribution of system management signals precisely to resources associated with particular partitions. Signals are sequenced to put resources associated with one or more boxes in the appropriate states. The distribution of signals between boxes in the computer system complex can be accomplished with the use of a dedicated wire.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to distributing system management signals in a computer system. More specifically, the present invention provides techniques for distributing system management signals precisely to designated resources, such as the resources in a partition.
2. Description of Related Art
A relatively new approach to the design of multi-processor systems replaces broadcast communication among processors with a point-to-point data transfer mechanism in which the processors communicate similarly to network nodes in a tightly-coupled computing system. In typical implementations, groups of resources or computer system boxes can be interconnected to form a cluster or a computer system complex. Multiple partitions can then run on top of the computer system complex.
However, mechanisms for distributing system management signals are limited. Consequently, it is desirable to provide techniques for improving system management signal distribution in systems having multiple clusters of multiple interconnected processors.

Methods and apparatus for distributing system management signals


A magnetic recording data storage system includes a magnetic recording medium having pits formed therein, the pits defining recording tracks on the magnetic recording medium and being arranged in a staggered manner relative to respective center lines of the recording tracks, a magnetic head including an inductive element for recording data on the recording tracks and a magnetoresistive element for reproducing data from the recording tracks, one of (1) a unit for magnetically producing a signal from the pits, and (2) an optical unit for optically producing a signal from the pits, the optical unit including a laser for illuminating the pits, servo means for positioning the head on the recording tracks based on the signal produced from the pits, the servo means including a dual-stage actuator including a rough movement portion and a fine movement portion.

The present invention relates to an information recording system using a magnetic recording method, and in particular to a magnetic recording apparatus that is capable of operating at 20 times or more than the current recording capacity of the information recorded on the media.
The fact that it is possible to record magnetically information at densities of more than 1 Gigabits per square inch was announced by IBM in 1990. This announcement (for example, Ching Tsang et al. "Gigabit density recording using dual-element MR/inductive heads on thin-film disks", IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol. 26, No. 5 (September 1990), pp. 1689-1693) indicates, based on the results of measuring the error rate, to what extent the recording density can be increased when the flying height of the head is reduced to below 0.05 microns when a dual element head comprising an inductive head in the recording portion and a magnetoresistive head in the reproduction portion is used in combination with a sputtered thin film recording medium, but does not carry out the tracking of the head, etc. Hence, it does not operate as a recording apparatus.
In addition, the discrete type media structure in which a groove is provided on both sides of the recording track in the medium has been published in, for example, S. E. Lambert et al. "Reduction of edge noise in thin film metal media using discrete tracks", IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol. 25, No. 5 (September 1989), pp. 3381-3383. The purpose of this paper is to reduce the media noise that occurs at the edge of the recording track and deals with experiments on media with recording track widths of around 10 microns. However, they have concluded that there is no effect of making the medium have a discrete structure as far as the signal to noise ratio (S/N ratio) and the error rate are measured.
On the other hand, known examples of providing several sectors on the information recording surface and determining the head position based on this have been shown in, for example, H. Nakanishi et al., "High track density head positioning using sector servos", IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol. MdG-19, No. 5 (September 1983), pp. 1698-1700. In this publicly known example, there is the problem that it is necessary to form newly the pattern for determining the head position on the medium recording surface and hence the data storage region gets reduced by a corresponding amount.
Further, an optical servo equipment for controlling the position of the magnetic head is described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-8172 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4,633,451). In this prior art, the position of the head is determined by providing a layer of different optical reflectivity on top of the medium recording layer and reflecting a laser beam by this material layer. Therefore, the distance between the magnetic head and the medium recording layer increases and becomes extremely disadvantageous for carrying out high density recording.


A collapsible tripod mount for a portable dish antenna assembly. The assembly includes a dish member and a post member extending downwardly from it. The tripod includes three legs selectively lockable in an open position to support the dish antenna assembly and a collapsed or closed position with the dish antenna assembly removed. The locking arrangement for both the open and collapsed positions of the tripod includes a plate with first and second sets of holes. Each set of holes selectively receives end portions of the tripod legs. The tripod further includes an adjustable azimuth arrangement mounted on one tripod leg and supporting the post and dish members thereon.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of tripod mounts and more particularly to the field of such mounts for dish antenna assemblies.
2. Discussion of the Background
Dish antenna assemblies are commonly mounted to platforms such as homes or recreational vehicles. In these mounts, the dish of the antenna assembly can be relatively easily and quickly aligned with the transmitting and/or receiving satellite and rigidly held in place. The home or vehicle in these arrangements provides a very stable and substantially permanent is structure to support the antenna. In contrast, dish antenna systems that are portable and intended to be mounted simply on collapsible tripods such as at campsites or in backyards offer significant design problems. In particular, the tripod mount must be very stable and strong to support the antenna (e.g., 40 pounds) in proper alignment yet easily and quickly collapsible into a compact shape for storage and transport.
With these and other problems in mind, the present invention was developed. In it, a tripod mount is provided that can be set up and collapsed fairly quickly and easily. Additionally, the tripod is provided with an adjustable azimuth arrangement mounted on one leg of the tripod. The dish antenna can then be supported on the tripod leg and its azimuth orientation conveniently adjusted as desired. The present invention is particularly adaptable for two-way communications where it is desirable to be able to set up virtually anywhere.

Collapsible tripod mount for a dish antenna assembly


A method, system and computer readable medium for managing low memory in a first computing device are provided. The system is configured to cause part of the memory allocated to a specialized application to be held in reserve so that it can be used to support the specialized application during an occurrence of low memory, thus providing time for data backup or remedial steps to be carried out before the affected application crashes.

As known in the art, operating systems such Microsoft™ Windows™ and UNIX based systems have a physical limit on the amount of addressable memory that can be used by an application. If the application exceeds this limit, it will often crash, leading to a loss of data that has not been stored to persistent memory, and perhaps also to crashes or slowdowns in any other applications that rely on the crashed application. In distributed computing networks in which separate computers connected to a common network perform work in parallel, one computer may be configured to monitor its own memory usage or the memory usage of other computers and take precautionary backup measures, either automatically or after alerting a human operator, in the event that the monitored conditions of one of the computers indicates that an application crash has occurred or is about to occur. However, such a system requires almost near constant polling of the monitored computers in order to have timely detection of a problem, and even with timely detection, the affected computer application may crash before critical data can be saved.
Accordingly, a method and system for detecting and managing low memory situations that provides time for rectifying or otherwise responding to the situation is desirable.
Similar references are used in different figures to denote similar components or features.

Detection of out-of-memory and graceful shutdown


A compact configuration for a plurality of swing adsorption beds. The beds are configured within a single vessel such that one or more beds of adsorbent material are position as successive rings about a first, or core, bed of adsorbent material.

Gas separation is important in many industries and can typically be accomplished by flowing a mixture of gases over an adsorbent of an adsorbent contactor that preferentially adsorbs more readily adsorbed components relative to less readily adsorbed components of the mixture. One of the more important types of gas separation technology is swing adsorption.
Conventional swing adsorption processes typically take place in a cylindrical vessel containing a plurality of adsorbent beds. Some swing adsorption processes are performed in a plurality of adsorbent beds, each within its own vessel. Such designs may be useful when gas processing requires only small diameter beds or when a large equipment footprint is available. However, such designs are generally not desirable for large scale operations that require large diameter adsorbent beds or where a small footprint is critical, such as on off-shore platforms or in arctic or desert environments. Therefore, there is a need in the art for swing adsorption apparatus that can be used for large scale gas separations and which occupy a small footprint.

Apparatus and systems having compact configuration multiple swing adsorption beds and methods related thereto


A copper alloy achieves high electrical conductivity, in excess of 70% IACS; high strength, ultimate tensile strength in excess of 75 ksi; good surface cosmetics; and good stampability, above 25% break, by controlled additions of magnesium, iron and phosphorous. There is a critical iron content to achieve both good stampability and high electrical conductivity and a critical phosphorous content to achieve high strength and relatively small metal phosphide particles. There is further, a critical relationship between the amount of iron and phosphorous. An additions of magnesium, in amounts of more than 0.03%, broadens the effective ratio of iron to phosphorous, widening the composition box of the alloys of the invention.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a copper alloy having high strength, high electrical conductivity and good stampability. More particularly, the copper alloy contains controlled additions of magnesium, iron and phosphorous.
2. Description of Related Art
Elemental copper has a very high electrical conductivity and a relatively low strength. To be useful in commercial applications such as to be formed into leadframes or electrical connectors, copper is alloyed with various other elements, and combinations of elements, to increase strength. The alloying additions frequently impact other alloy properties. If the alloying additions are in solid solution with the copper, conductivity is frequently reduced. If the alloying additions result in large, hard, second phase particles, the surface finish of the copper alloy after cold rolling to sheet form may be marred by voids around these second phase particles. These voids can adversely affect the quality of an electrolytically deposited coating on the alloy. It is therefore, an objective to maximize the strength of a copper alloy without significantly degrading other desirable properties, such as uniform etching (in leadframe manufacture) and limited tool wear during stamping (in connecter manufacture).
Common alloying additions to copper include iron and phosphorous. An alloy designated by the Copper Development Association (CDA, Greenwich, Ct.) As copper alloy C19400 has the composition, by weight, of 2.1%-2.6% iron, 0.05%-0.20% zinc, 0.015%-0.15% phosphorous and the balance copper. Alloy C19400 has excellent stampability and an electrical conductivity of about 60% IACS (IACS stands for International Annealed Copper Standard and defines the conductivity of "pure" copper at 20.degree. C. As 100%). Another alloy, designated by the CDA as alloy C19210, has the composition, by weight, of 0.05%-0.15% iron, 0.025%-0.04% phosphorous and the balance copper. Alloy C19210 has an electrical conductivity of about 80% IACS, but relatively poor stampability.
Magnesium is sometimes added to copper-iron-phosphorous alloys. The magnesium combines with phosphorous to form a magnesium phosphide that precipitates from the copper matrix as a discrete second phase particulate. A dispersion of magnesium phosphide particulate throughout the copper alloy increases the strength of the copper alloy and, by effectively removing phosphorous from solid solution with the copper, increases electrical conductivity.
United States Patents that disclose a copper alloy containing iron, phosphorous and magnesium include U.S. Pat. No. 4,305,762 to Caron et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,532 to Knorr et al., both of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties herein.
The Caron et al. patent discloses a copper alloy containing 0.04%-0.20% of magnesium, phosphorous and iron. The Knorr et al. patent discloses a copper alloy containing 0.01%-0.20% magnesium, 0.1%-0.4% phosphorous, 0.3%-1.6% iron and the balance copper. Published Japanese Patent Application No. JP 58-199835 by Sumitomo Electric discloses a copper alloy that contains 0.03%-0.3% of magnesium, 0.03%-0.3% iron, 0.1%-0.3% phosphorous and the balance copper.
While copper alloys containing magnesium, phosphorous and iron are known, there remains a need for a copper alloy with an improved combination of electrical conductivity, strength and stampability.


The present invention relates to a drug delivery system having a double core-shell structure and, specifically, to a double nano-drug delivery system having an inner core-shell containing a poorly soluble camptothecin compound and a water-soluble camptothecin compound inside and an amphiphilic polymer shell, and to a manufacturing method therefor. The double core-shell structured particles manufactured by the present invention form very stable particles and show a mono-distribution of particles before and after freeze-drying. The particles of the present invention show excellent results compared with existing monolayer micelles in animal efficacy tests and pharmacokinetic tests, and do not use a surfactant causing hypersensitivity, and thus the use of the particles of the present invention can provide a pharmaceutical composition or a drug delivery system platform, which are safe for the human body.

A solubilizing step is essentially needed to develop a poorly soluble drug to be used for injection, and in order to overcome such a problem, emulsions containing surfactants, micro-emulsions, liposomes, micelles, pegylation, or making produgs, have been employed. 7-Ethyl 10-hydroxy camptothecin (SN-38), which is one of the drugs having strongest activity as camptothecin-based anticancer drugs, is supplied as irinotecan in a prodrug form (trade name: CAMTOSAR®, manufactured by Novartis), which is mainly hydrolyzed by carboxylesterase II (CESII) in vivo to be converted into SN-38 in an active form. However, the rate of conversion is as very low as 2-8% and the deviation thereof is also very large, and thus such a drug has difficulty in proper administration to cancer patients in need of precise dosage adjustment, with the result that the effects and side effects thereof are difficult to predict.
Another method for solubilization of a poorly soluble drug is to micellize a drug to have a nano-sized particle diameter. In order to allow a nanomicelle injection to secure sterility and stability, a nanomicelle aqueous solution is sterile-filtered through a 0.22-μm filter, and then powdered into solid through freeze-drying, during the manufacturing process. In this process, when a freeze-dried product is again dissolved in a solvent for injection (saline or the like), a large amount of macroparticles (200 nm or more to several tens of μm) may be generated due to the agglomeration of micelles themselves. In particular, particles larger than 5 μm may cause severe side effects when injected into the human body, and thus are strictly managed through insoluble particulate matter tests in US Pharmacopoeia, European Pharmacopoeia, and Korean Pharmacopoeia. Therefore, a solubilizing method whereby the particle sizes are little changed before and after freeze-drying in spite of micellization, particles show a mono-distribution, and especially, there are no particles of several μm or more.
Meanwhile, it is essential to dissolve an active ingredient in an appropriate solvent in order to prepare an injection, but camptothecin or SN-38, which is a hydrophobic cam ptothecin-based compound, is favorably dissolved in neither water nor most volatile polar organic solvents (methanol, ethanol, acetonitrile, ethyl acetate, etc.) used in pharmaceutical preparation procedures. Solvents capable of dissolving such the hydrophobic camptothecin-based compounds therein are limited to non-volatile solvents, such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), dimethyl formamide, toluene, and dioxane. However, a dialysis procedure is needed to remove these solvents, and these solvents are difficult to remove completely in spite of dialysis, causing toxic problems when remaining.
Therefore, the present inventors searched and endeavored to develop stable particle compositions whereby: camptothecin and SN-38, which are severely poorly soluble anticancer active ingredients, can be directly administered in an active form but not a prodrug form; there are no problems of residual solvents during the preparation process; there is little change in particle size before and after freeze-drying; and macro-agglomerated particles of several μm or more are not generated.
Throughout the entire specification, many patent documents are referenced and their citations are represented. The disclosures of cited papers and patent documents are entirely incorporated by reference into the present specification, and the level of the technical field within which the present invention falls and details of the present invention are explained more clearly.

Particle and pharmaceutical composition comprising an insoluble camptothecin compound with double core-shell structure and method for manufacturing the same


Since a notification unit (130) notifies a radiographer of the driving state of an X-ray detector (110), he/she can identify that the X-ray detector (110) is set in a detection signal accumulation state. When the irradiation button of an X-ray generation apparatus is then pressed, a subject can be irradiated with X-rays.

Conventional X-ray sensors used to acquire an X-ray image of a person to be examined in X-ray imaging include Film/Screen systems (to be referred to as F/Ss hereinafter) which are formed by inserting a film and an intensifying screen into a cassette and Imaging Plates (to be referred to as IPs hereinafter) which are put in cassettes and used in computed radiography. X-ray sensors of these types need not be synchronized with the X-ray generation timing. A radiographer can acquire X-ray images without any blur caused by the motion of internal organs or body while observing only the breathing state and motion of the person to be examined. Hence, the X-ray generation apparatus is designed to irradiate a subject with X-rays with a delay of several ten ms to several hundred ms at the latest after the X-ray irradiation button is pressed.
In recent years, X-ray sensors capable of directly converting an X-ray image into a digital output in real time have been proposed. A solid-state photodetector can be manufactured by forming an amorphous semiconductor on, for example, a silica glass substrate and arraying solid-state photodetection elements each including a transparent conductive film and a conductive film in a matrix on the amorphous semiconductor. An X-ray detector is formed by stacking such a solid-state photodetector and a scintillator which converts X-rays into visible light.
When this X-ray detector is used, an X-ray digital image is acquired by the following process.
The X-ray detector is irradiated with X-rays that have passed through a subject. The X-rays are converted into visible light by the scintillator. The visible light is detected as an electrical signal by the photoelectric conversion unit of each solid-state photodetection element.
The electrical signal is read out from each solid-state photodetection element by a predetermined read method and A/D-converted so that an X-ray image signal is obtained.
The X-ray detector is described in detail in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-116044. There are also a number of detectors proposed, which cause a solid-state photodetector to acquire X-rays directly without using any scintillator.
Such an X-ray sensor capable of directly converting an X-ray image into a digital output in real time will be referred to as an X-ray detector hereinafter.
These X-ray detectors detect an X-ray intensity as a charge amount. To accurately accumulate the X-ray detection signal, these X-ray detectors require driving with a predetermined cycle for X-ray image acquisition, including charge removal from pixels, idling for stabilizing the potential between the pixels, charge accumulation for accumulating the X-ray detection signal, and charge read from the pixels.
The time of the charge accumulation state by the X-ray detector is limited. To irradiate the X-ray detector with X-rays in its accumulation state, the X-ray generation apparatus and the X-ray detector are synchronized with each other. More specifically, the X-ray detector is driven such that it has a plurality of driving states including charge removal from pixels, idling, and charge accumulation when the X-ray irradiation button is pressed. As soon as the X-ray detector is set in the accumulation state, an X-ray irradiation signal is transmitted to the X-ray generation apparatus to irradiate a subject with X-rays.
However, when a subject is irradiated with X-rays after driving necessary for accumulation in the X-ray detector is executed in synchronism with the X-ray irradiation button, the delay after the radiographer presses the X-ray irradiation button until actual X-ray irradiation becomes longer than a normal case without synchronization. It is therefore difficult to acquire an X-ray image without any blur caused by the motion of internal organs or body.


A circuit for connecting a faradaic battery with circuitry for monitoring the condition of the battery includes a plurality of voltage divider networks providing battery voltage monitoring nodes and includes compensating resistors connected with the networks to maintain uniform discharge currents through the cells of the battery. The circuit also provides a reduced common mode voltage requirement for the monitoring circuitry by referencing the divider networks to one-half the battery voltage.

This invention relates generally to electric propulsion vehicles that are powered by faradaic batteries and more particularly to a circuit for interfacing electronic monitoring devices to a faradaic battery to determine the condition or state of health of the battery, i.e., the presence of weak or failed cells, while minimizing imbalances in the current drawn from the various cells of the battery.
Electrically propelled vehicles use electric traction motors operated from a battery system mounted in the vehicle. An accurate indication of the condition of the battery is desirable since the available charge is directly related to the range of the vehicle before a recharge of the battery is necessary. Accordingly, electrically propelled vehicles generally include voltage monitoring devices which are electrically connected with the battery system for detecting and indicating the state of health of the battery.
When recharging the battery, it is desirable to equalize the charge in the individual cells of the battery at a set voltage level. Non-faradaic batteries, such as those comprising a plurality of serially connected lead/acid cells, can be brought into balance by application of a low-rate equalization charge. This results in all cells of the battery reaching a full 100% state-of-charge. However, faradaic battery systems, such as those comprising sodium/sulfur cells, cannot be brought into balance by this method, due to the inability of faradaic battery cells to bypass the equalization charge current once the cell reaches full charge. It is therefore important to maintain uniform discharge currents through the cells of a faradaic battery. This need for discharge uniformity also applies to the small currents required by the voltage measuring networks used to monitor battery condition. Even small systematic imbalances in the cell currents will accumulate and result in significant loss of battery capacity over time.
Conventional circuitry for interfacing the battery with monitoring equipment is either complex or suffers from severe common mode voltage requirements leading to expensive monitoring equipment.

Network for minimizing current imbalances in a faradaic battery


The present disclosure provides a method of measuring a path over a 3-dimensional object using a handheld electronic device comprising an acceleration sensor. The method comprises using a processor for: obtaining acceleration measurements of the handheld electronic device while the handheld electronic device is traversed over the path in a first direction, thereby obtaining acceleration plots for 3 dimensions for the first direction; identifying the start and end point of the movement; and integrating between the start and end points of the movement to find the length.

Taking measurements is a longstanding challenge. Measurements of a certain to object or space may be needed for comparison with the measurements of another object or space that may be located at a separate location. For example, an item, e.g., an article of clothing or piece of furniture, may be presented online, over the Internet, and in some examples, via a web browser on a phone, personal computer, television and/or other Internet connected device without the option of measuring the item in person to determine how well the object will fit, e.g., on a person or in a certain space in a room, that also needs to be measured.

System for and a method of measuring using a handheld electronic device


Provided is a method, computer program product, and system for automatically predicting unknown semantic data types in a rectangular dataset using a holistic knowledge of said dataset. A processor may receive one or more rectangular datasets, the one or more rectangular datasets comprising a plurality of columns having a set of known semantic data types. The processor may extract a set of features from the plurality of columns, where the set of features is used to determine a relationship among each column of the plurality of columns. The processor may construct a set of training data based on the extracted set of features. Using the training data, the processor may train a machine learning model to predict a semantic data type of a target column in a rectangular dataset having an unknown semantic data type.

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of semantic data type classification and, more specifically, to predicting, calibrating, and/or reinforcing manual or log precision annotations of unknown semantic data types in rectangular datasets using a holistic approach.
Semantic data type detection and/or classification may be used to improve various data preparation techniques and application functionalities. For example, by classifying various unknown semantic data types to incorporate accurate data descriptions, retrievals tasks such as data cleaning, schema matching, data discovery, information integration, semantic search, data visualization, and high-level business object detection may be improved as a result.

Semantic data type classification in rectangular datasets


A method to communicate driving status from a vehicle. The method includes obtaining, using a mobile device travelling in the vehicle, movement data of the vehicle, determining, using a computer processor of the mobile device, that the vehicle is in motion by analyzing the movement data based on a specified criterion, generating, in response to determining that the vehicle is in motion, driving status data of the vehicle by further analyzing the movement data based on the specified criterion, and transmitting, using the mobile device, the driving status data to a remote user away from the vehicle.

Driving while talking on the phone, even with a hands-free device, is generally not considered safe. When a driver holds a conversation with a passenger in the car, that passenger generally reacts to the surroundings the same way the driver does. He/she will warn the driver of upcoming hazards and will be quiet during emergency situations. In addition, the passenger may see blind spots that the driver may not notice. On the other hand, when holding a conversation with someone on a hands-free mobile phone, the caller often ignores the driver's surroundings and continues to talk during driving emergencies. Even worse, the caller may reprimand the driver for not talking when the driver is trying to navigate a dangerous maneuver requiring concentration.


The present invention provides a method for enhancing the gut absorption in a mammal. Specifically, gut absorption in a mammal can be enhanced by the administration of glutamine, or glutamine equivalent, in combination with one or more agents, said agents selected from the group consisting of growth hormone (GH), an agent capable of enhancing endogenous GH production, insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), or an agent capable of enhancing endogenous IGF-1 production.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for enhancing gut absorption in a mammal suffering from a pathological condition which is characterized by decreased absorptive property of the gut. The invention further relates to a method for hastening the weaning of a mammal.
2. Description of the Background Art
A. Pathological Conditions
Many pathological conditions lead to decreased absorptive properties of the gut. These pathological conditions are known collectively as malabsorption syndrome. Table 1 summarizes the various disorders which can lead to malabsorption syndrome.
TABLE 1 ______________________________________ Disorders Which Cause Malabsorption Syndrome ______________________________________ I. Inadequate absorptive surface A. Intestinal resection or bypass 1. Mesenteric vascular disease with massive intestinal resection 2. Regional enteritis with multiple bowel resections 3. Jejunoileal bypass B. Gastroileostomy (inadvertent) II. Lymphatic obstruction A. Intestinal lymphangiectasia B. Whipple's disease C. Lymphoma III. Cardiovascular disorders A. Constrictive pericarditis B. Congestive heart failure C. Mesenteric vascular insufficiency D. Vasculitis IV. Primary mucosal absorptive defects A. Inflammatory or infiltrative disorders 1. Regional enteritis 2. Amyloidosis 3. Scleroderma 4. Lymphoma 5. Radiation enteritis 6. Eosinophilic enteritis 7. Tropical sprue 8. Infectious enteritis (e.g., salmonellosis) 9. Collagenous sprue 10. Nonspecific ulcerative jejunitis 11. Mastocytosis 12. Dermatologic disorders (e.g., dermatitis herpetiformis) B. Biochemical or genetic abnormalities 1. Nontropical sprue (gluten-induced enteropathy); celiac sprue 2. Disaccharide deficiency 3. Hypogammaglobulinemia 4. Abetalipoproteinemia 5. Hartnup disease 6. Cystinuria 7. Monosaccharide malabsorption V. Endocrine and metabolic disorders A. Diabetes mellitus B. Hypoparathyroidism C. Adrenal insufficiency D. Hyperthyroidism E. Ulcerogenic tumor of the pancreas (Zollinger- Ellison syndrome, gastrinoma) F. Carcinoid syndrome ______________________________________
One most severe condition is short gut syndrome (SGS). SGS is a result of therapeutic surgical excision of a majority of the small intestine. SGS has been recognized as a pathological state for the past twenty years and is estimated to currently affect 17,000 people nationally.
A variety of acute pathological conditions may result in SGS. These include meconium ileus, volvulus, gastroschisis, necrotizing enterocolitis and Hirschprung's disease. If less than 75 cm of small bowel remains, significant malabsorption may occur (Schwartz M. Z., et al. Ped. Clin. North Amer. 32: 1265-1279 (1985)).
The above table provides a portion of the many pathological conditions which can cause malabsorption syndrome for a more detailed review see Greenberg, N. J. et al. Harrison p. 1260. Gillin (Gillin J. S. et al. Ann. Int. Med. 102: 619 (1985)) has observed that AIDS can be a causal agent of malabsorption syndrome. This generally is known as AIDs mediated diarrhea and sometimes can be associated with an infectious agent.
Patients with malabsorption syndrome have a difficult time meeting daily nutritional requirements. In patients with malabsorption syndrome there generally exists both catabolic and serious nutritional consequences. As a result, most patients with malabsorption syndrome require total parenteral nutrition (TPN).
At present, the nutritional requirements of patients who are unable to feed themselves adequately are met through the administration of enteral or parenteral diets. Enteral diets are usually administered using small-bore tubing which is placed through the nose into the gastric, or duodenal regions, or through surgical implantation as in, for example, gastrostomy, or jejunostomy. Those enteral formulas which are presently available can be divided into four basic categories: elemental, polymeric, modular, and altered amino acids. These formulae contain glutamine (GLN). The levels of nutrients present in the enteral diets, however, are generally based upon the dietary requirements of a normal individual and not that of a patient suffering from a catabolic disease.
Elemental formulas require minimal digestive action and are composed primarily of small peptides and/or amino acids, glucose oligosaccharides, and vegetable oil or medium-chain triglycerides.
In polymeric formulas, complex nutrients such as, for example, soy protein, lactalbumin, or casein are utilized as a source of protein; maltodextrins or corn syrup solids as a source of carbohydrate; and vegetable oils or milk fat as a source of fat.
Modular diets can be produced by combining protein, carbohydrate, or fat with a monomeric or polymeric formula to meet special nutritional requirements.
Formulas which are composed of altered amino acid compositions are used primarily for patients with genetic errors of nitrogen metabolism or acquired disorders of nitrogen accumulation, the object often being to limit the intake by the patient of certain amino acids which may be detrimental.
Parenteral diets are usually administered intravenously (i.v.). These i.v. fluids are sterile solutions composed of simple chemicals such as, for example, sugars, amino acids, and electrolytes, which can be easily assimilated.
The term "total parenteral nutrition" (TPN) is used to describe formulas for use in patients who derive their entire dietary requirements i.v. Total parenteral nutrition formulas, unlike enteral formulas, do not normally contain GLN. The absence of GLN from parenteral formulas is due, in part, to concern with respect to its instability at room temperature, and the resulting generation of ammonia and pyroglutamic acid. There has also been concern about the generation of glutamic acid from GLN because of the potential toxicity of glutamic acid as a neurotransmitter.
There is one major drawback with placing patients with malabsorption syndrome on TPN. TPN results in villus atrophy, a phenomenon which is generally reversible when oral feedings are resumed. Since most malabsorption syndrome patients are not placed back on oral feeding, TPN will generally accelerate villus atrophy and hence decrease the absorptive property of the gut in these patents.
Malabsorption syndrome often affects children and requires surgery. Following surgery, such children often spend months in the hospital because of instability of fluid and electrolyte status and the need for central intravenous nutrition. Rickets may also be observed in some children. Although central hyperalimentation may be managed at home, such care is associated with significant stress on the family unit. In addition, complications of this therapy including catheter-related infection and thrombosis are not uncommon. Management of these children is based upon the provision of adequate nutrition to achieve somatic growth and hopefully, growth of the absorptive surface of the intestinal remnant so that oral alimentation may be accomplished.
B. Growth Hormone and Gut Development
There is mounting evidence that growth hormone (GH) appears to be necessary for the growth and differentiation of transplanted rat intestine in early neonatal life. (Cooke P. S., et al., Biol. Neonate 49: 211-218 (1986)). Lehy et al. (Lehy T. et al., Gastroenterology 90: 646-653 (1986)) recently reported that subcutaneous GH-releasing hormone increased DNA synthesis and mitotic activity in fundal and duodenal rat mucosa. Whether this is a direct effect of GH-releasing hormone upon intestinal mucosa or mediated indirectly through stimulation of GH secretion or another factor is not evident.
Additional studies have indicated the ability of GH to stimulate intestine growth and increase absorptive properties. Collie et al. demonstrated that GH pellets implanted in salmon for two weeks resulted in a 30% increase in intestinal dry weight (Collie N. L., et al., Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 59: 399-409 (1985)). In addition, Mainoya has shown that ovine GH stimulates absorption of water and sodium in proximal rat jejunum and distal ileum (Mainoya J. R., Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 71(a): 477-479 (1982); Spencer E. M., et al. Endocrinology 108: 1064-1070 (1981); Bruns M. E., et al. Endocrinology 113: 1387-1392 (1983); Aloia J. F., et al., Bone 6: 73-77 (1985)).
The potential benefits of growth hormone therapy upon intestinal growth, and mineral and water homeostasis in infants and small children with malabsorption syndrome who are dependent on intravenous hyperalimentation has not yet been investigated. Since no toxicity has been observed in GH therapy in dosages of 0.75 U/kg/wk in the treatment of girls with gonadyl dysgenesis (Rosenfeld R. G., et al., J. Pediatr. 109:936-43 (1986)), GH appears to be a potential agent for the treatment of children with malabsorption syndrome. Specifically, if a significant therapeutic effect of GH, were observed in children with malabsorption syndrome considerable morbidity and the cost associated with prolonged hospitalization, intravenous hyperalimentation and family stress might by lessened by the addition of this agent to current therapy.
The present invention is the first to combine the use of GLN for increasing gut absorptive properties (for example see U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,555) with the suspected therapeutic benefits of GH for stimulating intestinal growth and increasing the absorptive properties of the gut. The present invention discloses the unexpected results that GLN and GH act synergistically, and when administered to a patient with malabsorption syndrome, can ultimately lead to removal of the patients from intravenous feeding onto an oral diet .


A vehicular shock-absorbing member may include a pair of upper and lower supporting wood members configured such that outer surfaces thereof function as load input surfaces in which a collision load is received and that axes of annual rings thereof extend along the load input surfaces, and shock-absorbing wood member sandwiched between the supporting wood members in such a manner that an axis of annual rings thereof extends in a direction perpendicular to the load input surfaces of the supporting wood members. The shock-absorbing wood member is configured such that a load input surface thereof in which the collision load is received is displaced inward relative to the load input surfaces of the supporting wood members.

The disclosure relates to a vehicular shock-absorbing member configured to absorb a collision load applied to a vehicle by utilizing collapse of wood.
Art relating to a vehicular shock-absorbing member described above is described in JP2015-182560A. As shown in FIG. 12, a shock-absorbing member 100 described in JP2015-182560A is composed of a rectangular columnar shaped-wood member 102 and an outer cylindrical member 104 that receives the wood member 102 therein. The wood member 102 is received in the outer cylindrical member 104 with an axial direction of annual rings thereof aligned with an axial direction of the outer cylindrical member 104. When a collision load F generated in the event of a vehicle collision is axially applied to the wood member 102 and the outer cylindrical member 104, both of the wood member 102 and the outer cylindrical member 104 are axially crushed, an impact due to the vehicle collision may be absorbed.
The shock-absorbing member 100 described above is configured to receive the collision load F at axially one end of the wood member 102 or other member. That is, in the shock-absorbing member 100, a load receiving surface into which the collision load F can be input is small in area. Therefore, for example, in a situation where a collision position is localized, e.g., where a vehicle collides with a power pole, the shock-absorbing member 100 cannot often provide its inherent shock-absorbing performance.
Thus, there is a need in the art to provide an improved shock-absorbing member.


The present invention provides agents and compositions for modulating the apoptotic state of a cell. The agents comprise derivatives of antimycins which bind to an anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family member protein. Further, the agents preferentially induce apoptosis in cells that over-express anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family member proteins and typically exhibit reduced binding affinity for cytochrome B. Pharmaceutical uses of the agents and compositions include treating apoptosis-associated disease, such as neoplasia and drug resistance, are also disclosed.

Mitochondria play a central role in mediating apoptosis in a number of apoptotic models (Kroemer et al., Immunol. Today 18:44–51 (1997); Zamzami et al., J. Exp. Med. 183:1533–44 (1996); Zamzami et al., J. Exp. Med. 182:367–77 (1995)). Cells induced to undergo apoptosis show an early disruption of mitochondrial transmembrane potential (ΔΨm) preceding other changes of apoptosis, such as nuclear fragmentation and exposure of phosphatidylserine on the outer plasma membrane. Isolated mitochondria or released mitochondrial products induce nuclear apoptosis in a cell-free reconstituted system (Liu et al., Cell 86:147–57 (1996); Newmeyer et al., Cell 79:353–64 (1994)).
Previous experiments indicated that the pre-apoptotic ΔΨm loss involves the opening of mitochondrial permeability transition (PT) pores, which are high-conductance channels at the inner mitochondrial membrane corresponding to mitochondrial megachannels identified by electrophysiological studies (Kroemer et al., supra; Zamzami et al. (1996), supra; Bernardi et al., Biochim. et Biophys. Acta 1275:5–9 (1996); Zoratti et al., Biochim. et Biophys. Acta 1241:139–76 (1995); Petit et al., FEBS Letters 396:7–13 (1996)). In fact, induction of PT is sufficient to provoke the full spectrum of apoptosis-associated changes. Conversely, agents that prevent opening of PT pores, such as bongkrekic acid, attenuate apoptosis (Kroemer et al., Immunol. Today 18:44–51 (1997); Zamzami et al., J. Exp. Med. 183:1533–44 (1996); Zamzami et al., FEBS Letters 384:53–57 (1996)).
Members of the evolutionarily conserved Bcl-2 family are important regulators of apoptotic cell death and survival. The proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, Bcl-w, A1 and Mcl-1 are death antagonists while Bax, Bak, Bad, Bcl-xs, Bid, and Bik are death agonists (Kroemer et al., Nature Med. 6:614–20 (1997)). Bcl-2 family member proteins are predominantly localized in the outer mitochondrial membrane, but are also found in the nuclear membrane and endoplasmic reticulum (Kroemer et al., supra).
Among Bcl-2 family member proteins, there are several conserved amino acid motifs, BH1–BH4. The pro-apoptotic members of the family, Bax and Bad, contain a BH3 domain that is sufficient to induce cell death (Chittenden et al., EMBO J. 14:5589–96 (1995); Hunter et al., J. Biol. Chem. 271:8521–24 (1996)). Interestingly, the BH3 domain is conserved in the anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL. Recently, it was reported that cleavage of Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 in the loop domain removes the N-terminal BH4 domain and converts Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 into a potent pro-death molecule (Cheng et al., Science 278:1966–68 (1997); Clem et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 95:554–59 (1998)).
NMR structure analysis of a complex between Bcl-xL and a 16 residue peptide encompassing the Bak BH3 domain demonstrated that the BH3 peptide, in an amphipathic alpha-helical configuration, binds with high affinity to the hydrophobic pocket created by the BH1, BH2 and BH3 domains of Bcl-xL (Sattler et al., Science 275:983–86 (1997)). Leucine at position 1 of the BH3 domain core and aspartic acid at position 6 are believed to be critical residues for both heterodimerization and apoptosis induction. In further support of this conclusion, a number of "BH3 only" death promoters have been identified which have no similarity to Bcl-2 beyond their BH3 domain homology (Kelekar et al., Trends Cell Biol. 8:324–30 (1998)). These include Bik, Bim, Hrk, Bad, Blk, and Bid, which cannot homodimerize, but rely on binding to anti-apoptotic proteins such as Bcl-2 to induce cell death.
The exact mechanisms by which Bcl-2 prevents apoptosis remain elusive. In light of the importance of mitochondria in apoptosis and the mitochondrial location of Bcl-2, it appears that one major site where Bcl-2 interrupts apoptotic signals is at the level of mitochondria. It has been shown that Bcl-2 inhibits apoptosis by preventing mitochondrial permeability transition and by stabilizing ΔΨm (Zamzami et al., J. Exp. Med. 183:1533–44 (1996)). In the absence of Bcl-2, apoptogenic factors, such as cytochrome c and apoptosis inducing factor (AIF), are released from mitochondria in response to apoptotic triggers (Susin et al., J. Exp. Med. 184:1331–41 (1996); Kluck et al., Science 275:1132–36 (1997)). This release in turn leads to sequential caspase activation and results in nuclear and membrane changes associated with apoptosis.
Bcl-2 family members display a distinct tissue-specific expression. In adult human liver, Bcl-2 expression is confined to bile duct cells (Charlotte et al., Am. J. Pathol. 144:460–65 (1994)) and is absent in both normal and malignant hepatocytes. In contrast, expression of Bcl-xL RNA and protein can be detected in adult quiescent hepatocytes and increases by 4 to 5 fold during the G1 phase of regenerating hepatocytes (Tzung et al., Am. J. Pathol. 150:1985–95 (1997)). Increased Bcl-xL expression is also observed in hepatoma cell lines, such as HepG2.
Some diseases are believed to be related to the down-regulation of apoptosis in the affected cells. For example, neoplasias may result, at least in part, from an apoptosis-resistant state in which cell proliferation signals inappropriately exceed cell death signals. Furthermore, some DNA viruses, such as Epstein-Barr virus, African swine fever virus and adenovirus, parasitize the host cellular machinery to drive their own replication and at the same time modulate apoptosis to repress cell death and allow the target cell to reproduce the virus. Moreover, certain diseases, such as lymphoproliferative conditions, cancer (including drug resistant cancer), arthritis, inflammation, autoimmune diseases, and the like, may result from a down regulation of cell death signals. In such diseases, it would be desirable to promote apoptotic mechanisms.
Most cancer chemotherapeutic agents that are currently available target cellular DNA and induce apoptosis in tumor cells (Fisher et al., Cell 78:539–42 (1994)). A decreased sensitivity to apoptosis induction has emerged as an important mode of drug resistance. In particular, over-expression of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL confers resistance to multiple chemotherapeutic agents, including alkylating agents, antimetabolites, topoisomerase inhibitors, microtubule inhibitors and anti-tumor antibiotics, and may constitute a mechanism of clinical chemoresistance in certain tumors (Minn et al., Blood 86:1903–10 (1995); Decaudin et al., Cancer Res. 57:62–67 (1997)).
Neither Bcl-2 nor Bcl-xL, however, protects cells from every apoptotic inducer. For example, over-expression of Bcl-2 offers little protection against Thy-1-induced thymocyte death and Fas-induced apoptosis (Hueber et al., J. Exp. Med. 179:785–96 (1994); Memon et al., J. Immunol. 15:4644–52 (1995)). At the mitochondrial level, Bcl-2 over-expressed in the outer mitochondrial membrane inhibits PT pore induction by t-butyl-hydroperoxide, protonophore and atractyloside, but not by calcium ions, diamide or caspase 1 (Zamzami et al., J. Exp. Med. 183:1533–44 (1996); Susin et al., J. Exp. Med. 186:25–37 (1997)). Thus, one class of mitochondrially-active agents may directly affect the mitochondrial apoptosis machinery while bypassing the site of Bcl-2 function and the protection offered by Bcl-2 family members. An agent of this type may potentially be useful in overcoming the multi-drug resistance imparted by Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL and are of great need in the art.
The antimycins constitute another class of mitochondrially-active agents. The antimycins generally comprise a N-formylamino salicylate moiety linked to a dilactone ring through an amide bond. The antimycins differ in the hydrophobic R groups attached to the dilactone ring opposite the amide bond. (See, e.g., Rieske, Pharm. Ther. 11:415–20 (1980).) For example, antimycin A1 has a hexyl group at the 2 position of the dilactone ring while antimycin A3 has a butyl group at that position.) Extensive literature has been published on the structure-activity relationship of the antimycins and their inhibition of cytochrome bc1 (Miyoshi et al., Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1229:149–54 (1995); Tokutake et al., Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1142:262–68 (1993); Tokutake et al., Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1185:271–78 (1994)). The published structure of cytochrome bc1 complex with bound antimycin A1 reveals that antimycin A1 occupies a position in the Qi ubiquinone binding site on cytochrome b (Xia et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 94:11399–404 (1997)). The antimycins generally inhibit mitochondrial respiration, which suggests that the differences in the hydrophobic R groups on the dilactone ring are not critical for cytochrome b binding. Mutagenesis and structure-activity studies of antimycin A demonstrate that the cytochrome bc1-inhibitory activity is highly dependent on the N-formylamino salicylic acid moiety (Tokutake et al. (1994), supra). Methylation of the phenolic hydroxyl or modification of the N-formylamino group both significantly reduce the ability of antimycin A to bind to and inhibit cytochrome bc1. Methylation of the phenolic hydroxyl diminishes inhibitory activity by 2.5 logs. Substitution of the formylamino group with acetylamino and propylamino groups at the 3-position reduce cytochrome bc1 activity by 1.2 and 2.4 logs, respectively. Thus, the N-formylamino salicylate moiety is generally understood to be important for binding of the antimycins to cytochrome b.
Two antimycins, antimycin A1 and A3, have recently been discovered to inhibit the activity of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family member proteins, Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL. Thus, these molecules potentially useful compounds for the medical profession and patients suffering from proliferative disease and other diseases where apoptosis is inappropriately regulated. The antimycins are toxic, however, because they also inhibit mitochondrial respiration. There is a critical need, therefore, for derivatives of the antimycins that are effective in inducing apoptosis in cells where apoptosis is inappropriately regulated while exhibiting reduced inhibition of mitochondrial respiration.

Compositions and methods for modulating apoptosis in cells over-expressing Bcl-2 family member proteins


According to one embodiment, a CPP structure magnetoresistive head includes a magnetoresistive sensor film between a lower shield layer and an upper shield layer and a longitudinal biasing layer disposed at each side of the magnetoresistive sensor film via a read track width defining insulator film. In the stripe height direction, the length of the longitudinal biasing layer is longer than the length of a second ferromagnetic layer in which its magnetization rotates in response to the external magnetic field. The second ferromagnetic layer is one of the layers comprising the magnetoresistive sensor film. At a stripe height, the surface of each longitudinal biasing layer has a step to change the thickness thereof across the step so that the air bearing surface section thereof has a larger thickness than any other section. Other structures using a magnetoresistive head and methods of production thereof are described as well.

Magnetoresistive sensors, which utilize the magnetoresistive effect in which electrical resistance changes in response to changes of the external magnetic field, is known as a good magnetic field sensor and is used practically as a read head in magnetic heads, a key component of magnetic storage devices.
With the progress in size reduction of magnetic recording and reproducing devices, improvements in the performance of magnetic heads to read and write information would enable the heads to operate even better. Currently, a magnetic head generally has two heads: a read head to read information, and a write head to write information. Commonly, the read head is a CPP structure magnetoresistive effect head enabling high read resolution.
To realize still higher recording densities, some problems associated with the read head may be solved. The problems include higher accuracy fabrication of the read head element section and improvement in the stability of the read performances.
Raising the recording density involves narrowing the read track width. Here, the read track width is the across-the-track width of the magnetoresistive sensor film which detects a signal from a recording medium. Preferably, in view of productivity, the read track width is formed during the lift-off process, since it is a simple process. For this purpose, the height of the lift-off mask material has a certain level. To form a narrow read track width, the pattern width of the lift-off mask material is narrowed. Therefore, the ratio of the height to the pattern width in the lift-off mask material (aspect ratio) becomes high, which may result in a lowered pattern accuracy of the lift-mask material due to bending, collapse of the mask pattern, etc. In addition, the stripe height has an effect on the performance of the read head, and may also be formed with a higher accuracy. The stripe height is the length of the magnetoresistive sensor film in the depth direction.
Narrowing the read track width affects the stability of the read performances, too. Generally, to stably reproduce a good waveform with sufficiently low noise, the stripe height is shortened, which corresponds to a narrow read track width. This is because the magnetic anisotropy is one of the factors affecting the stable operation. The magnetic anisotropy is determined by the shape of the free layer in which magnetization rotates depending on the magnetic field from the recording medium. The free layer is one of the ferromagnetic layers which comprise the magnetoresistive sensor film.
In addition, the free layer is provided with a longitudinal bias layer on each side thereof, via an insulator layer in a track width direction, to apply a longitudinal bias field thereto so that the magnetization rotates without causing noise. Shortening the stripe height makes the longitudinal biasing layer more subject to thermal fluctuations since the length of the longitudinal biasing layer in the stripe height direction inevitably becomes shorter.
Japanese Patent Office (JPO) Pub. No. JP-A-2005-346869 and JP-A-2008-84373 disclose CPP structure magnetoresistive heads each comprising a magnetoresistive sensor film and longitudinal biasing layer whose stripe height is longer than that of the magnetoresistive sensor film.
Each of these current structures has problems associated with their use and/or production. Therefore, a magnetoresistive sensor which eliminates or lessens these problems would be beneficial to the field of magnetic recording.

Magnetoresistive head with a CPP structure having suppressed side reading