An ejection liquid which can be ejected stably by an inkjet method using thermal energy even in the case of containing at least one of proteins and peptides, and a method and device of discharging a liquid containing at least one of proteins and peptides, which use the ejection liquid. At least one compound having a guanidine group is added to an aqueous solution of at least one of proteins and peptides to improve its qualifications to an ejection event by an inkjet method using thermal energy.

Currently, many attempts have been conducted to utilize a protein solution as liquid droplets. For example, for the drug delivery method, the liquid droplets have been considered to be applied in transmucosal administration because of, for example, advantages in that only a small amount of protein may be required in the production of a biochip or biosensor and the protein may be integrated easily. In addition, attentions have been paid to a method of using a fine liquid droplet of protein for control on crystallization of protein and also for screening of a physiologically active substance (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-355025, Allain L R et al., "Fresenius J. Anal. Chem", vol. 371, p. 146-150, 2001, and Howard E I and Cachau R E, "Biotechniques", vol. 33, p. 1302-1306, 2002).
In recent years, mass production of proteins, particularly useful proteins such as enzymes and those having physiological activities has become possible by any technology such as genetic recombinant technology. Therefore, the process of making protein into liquid droplets can be an effective means in the field of searching, utilizing, and applying a novel protein medicine. More specifically, there are increasing significant demands on means for providing patients with many pharmaceutical agents by microdroplets. In particular, microdroplets have become important for the administration of proteins, peptides, and other biological materials from the lungs. In other words, the lungs have been remarked as an administration route in place of an injection of a macromolecule peptide-based drug represented by insulin because the lungs have lung alveolis with their own extensive surface areas of 50 to 140 m2 and the epithelium provided as a barrier of absorption is as thin as 0.1 μm, while the enzyme activities of the lungs are smaller than those of the gastrointestinal tract.
In general, the deposition of microdroplets of drug in the lungs has been known to depend largely on the mass median aerodynamic diameters thereof. In particular, the delivery of the microdroplets to the lung alveolis in the deep portions of the lungs essentially requires the development of: a stable pharmaceutical preparation which can be given with high reproducibility for a narrow particle size distribution of 1-5 μm of the droplets; and an administration form.
As a method of preparing uniform droplets with a narrow particle size distribution, the use of a suitable droplet generator diverted from those used in inkjet printing in the production of extremely fine droplets and the application of the droplets have been reported in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,894,841 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-248171). Here, the specific inkjet printing method concerned involves leading liquid to be ejected into a small chamber where the liquid is subjected to an ejection pressure, thereby allowing droplets of the liquid to be ejected from orifices. A discharging method may be any one of those known in the art, such as one that generates air bubbles spouting droplets through orifices formed on a chamber by means of thermal transducers such as thin-film resistors (i.e., a thermal inkjet method) and one that ejects liquid directly from orifices formed on a chamber by means of piezoelectric transducers (i.e., a piezo inkjet method). The chamber and the orifices are incorporated in a print head element and the element is then connected to both a liquid-supplying source and a controller for controlling the ejection of droplets of the liquid.
For allowing the lungs to absorb a drug, the dose of the drug should be controlled. Therefore, making droplets from the liquid by the inkjet method, which is capable of adjusting the ejection amount thereof, is a very preferable configuration. On the other hand, however, the ejection of a solution should be surely carried out in this case. However, the ejection of a protein solution is unstable when the protein solution is only controlled with respect to its surface tension and coefficient of viscosity. Therefore, the difficulty in quantitative ejection has often occurred.
Problems associated with the process of making droplets of a protein or peptide using the inkjet method are due to the fact that the tertiary structure of the protein is brittle. Thus, the aggregation or degradation of the protein may occur when the configuration thereof is destroyed. When the process of making droplets is carried out using the inkjet method, the structures of many proteins may become unstable owing to physical stress such as pressure or shearing stress or to high surface energy peculiar to microdroplets (if the thermal inkjet method is employed, heat is further applied in addition to the above stress). In particular, in the case of the inkjet method, those physical actions are extremely larger than the shearing force and thermal energy to be applied by conventional stifling or heat treatment (for example, in the case of the thermal inkjet method, approximately 300° C. and 90 atm are applied momentarily). Furthermore, several physical stresses are impressed at the same time, so that the stability of protein may tend to be substantially lowered, compared with the case of usually handling the protein. On this account, the conventional technology for stabilizing protein may be insufficient when the inkjet technology is employed. If such a problem occurs, the protein may be aggregated at the time of making droplets and nozzles may be then clogged, thereby making it difficult to eject droplets.
Furthermore, droplets having diameters of 1 to 5 μm, which are suitable for the inhalation into the lungs, are extremely smaller than those having diameters of approximately 16 μm used in any printer commercially available at present. Therefore, a larger surface energy or shearing stress may be impressed on the droplets than on the droplets used in the printer. Therefore, it is more difficult to eject microdroplets suitable for inhaling protein into the lungs.
In consideration of the diameters of the droplets as described above, a thermal inkjet method capable of having highly-densified nozzles and a low production cost is preferably used as a method of discharging a protein solution.
In the pamphlet of International Publication No. WO 02/094342, there is disclosed a compound for regulating surface tension and a method of adding a humectant for a liquid composition for the pulmonary absorption of a droplet prepared using a thermal inkjet method. Here, for increasing the stability of protein in a solution provided as droplets by the surface tension, viscosity, or moisturizing action of the solution, a surfactant or a water-soluble polymer such as polyethylene glycol is added.
However, there is no description about the stability of discharging, and also the addition of a surfactant or a water-soluble polymer exerts insufficient effects when the concentration of protein or peptide increases. As a result, the additive itself often blocks the stability of discharging. In addition, there are more surfactants which have been recognized as of no effect at all than those having effects. Besides, the stability is defined by not only the surface tension and viscosity. Therefore, the method disclosed in the document is not a common practice for the stabilization of ejection. Therefore, for actual use, any liquid to be used for an ejection purpose, which is capable of discharging protein or peptide in a stable manner, becomes essential.
In addition, each of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-154655 and Japanese Patent No. 03610231 discloses a method of preparing a protein chip or the like as a method of utilizing a protein or peptide such that it is ejected by a thermal inkjet method. However, there was no substantial description about stable ejection of the protein and peptide.
As described above, the inkjet method has been known in the art as one of the methods of discharging a liquid sample after making it into fine droplets. The inkjet method has a characteristic feature of showing high controllability for the amount of liquid to be ejected after being provided as droplets even if the amount is extremely small. Methods of discharging microdroplets based on the inkjet method include a vibration method using a piezoelectric element or the like and a thermal inkjet method using a microheater element. In the case of the vibration method using the piezoelectric element or the like, reducing the size of a piezoelectric element to be used is limited and the number of ejection orifices formed per unit area is also restricted. Besides, production costs increase as the number of ejection orifices per unit area increases. In contrast, in the case of the thermal inkjet method, the size of the microheater element can be comparatively easily reduced, and also the number of ejection orifices formed per unit area can be larger than that of the vibration method using a piezoelectric element or the like, while the production costs thereof can be also significantly reduced.
When the thermal inkjet method is applied, for controlling the state of appropriate aerosol of microdroplets of liquid to be ejected from respective orifices and the amount of the liquid, there is a need of coordinating the physical properties of the liquid to be ejected. In other words, the composition of the liquid, including the kind and composition of a solvent and the concentration of a solute, the solvent and the solute being contained in the sample of liquid to be ejected, should be schemed so as to be adjusted to obtain a desired volume of the microdroplet. Furthermore, various kinds of mechanisms for discharging droplets on the basis of the principle of the thermal inkjet method have been also developed. Concretely, for a conventional inkjet head to be mounted on a printer, the amount of each liquid droplet to be ejected is on the order of several pico-liters. While technologies of an ejection mechanism and an ejection method, which allow droplets to be formed as those having extremely small sizes in the order of several sub-pico liters or femto-liters, have been developed (see the pamphlet of International Publication No. WO 02/092813). For instance, when somatic cells of several micrometers in size are provided as a target to be coated with a drug, it is assumed that using the extremely fine droplets as individual droplets to be ejected may be requested.
There is known, as a method of stabilizing protein, a method involving adding any one of water-soluble polymers such as surfactants, glycerols, various kinds of hydrocarbons, and polyethylene glycols as well as albumin. Also, there are known, as methods of preserving a protein preparation for a long term, several methods (Japanese Patent No. 03618633, International Publication No. WO 02/017957, and National Publication No. of the translated version of PCT application 2003-510368), where amino acids are added to erythropoietin, G-CSF, and interferon. However, according to the study conducted by the inventors of the present invention, on the basis of the kind and concentration of protein or peptide or the concentration of an additive, those methods may be insufficient for the stability of ejection in the thermal inkjet method.
In many cases, there is substantially no effect on an improvement in ejection performance when protein or peptide is ejected even after formulation with polyols such as ethylene glycol and glycerin, and a humectant such as urea, which are suitable additives for ink to be used in inkjet printing. Therefore, it has been demanded to develop an ejection liquid to stably eject a protein or peptide solution on the basis of the principle of the inkjet method using thermal energy.

Ejection liquid, ejection device, ejection cartridge, and method of making droplets from liquid


The improved moistureproof structure for a module circuit is characterized in that a porous film conditioned to have an apparent relative dielectric constant of no more than 2.0 is coated over a stripline a high-frequency circuit, or a high-frequency device formed on a substrate, which porous film may in turn be provided with a resin coating material. The structure insures that the module circuit is moistureproof, thereby protecting it against corrosion to improve its operational reliability without affecting its electrical characteristics.

This invention relates to a moistureproof structure for module circuits. More particularly, this invention relates to a moistureproof structure for module circuits that are to be used at high frequencies not lower than a few GHz.
A class of module circuits that are used at high frequencies not lower than a few GHz are conventionally composed of coaxial lines or triplet lines so that the circuits are protected against wire corrosion and variations in electrical characteristics due to moisture and vapor condensation. Another class of module circuits having striplines formed on a substrate to provide electronic circuits are either sealed in ceramic containers or provided with a moistureproof coat as described in Japanese Patent Public Disclosure No. 17492/1989, whereby the circuits are protected against wire corrosion and variations in electrical characteristics.
However, the moistureproof structures that use coaxial lines require cumbersome connecting operations and those which use triplet lines take much time to form the desired circuit. Hence, either type of structure suffers from the disadvantage of increased production cost.
The moistureproof structures that use striplines are free from the problem associated with wire connecting and circuit forming operation. However, if ceramic containers are used, problems arise such as the high cost of ceramic containers and unsuitability for high-volume production.
If moistureproof coats are applied, the electrical characteristics of the circuit will vary greatly since the dielectric constant of the coating material is substantially higher than that of air. It is theoretically possible to design the circuit allowing for the possible variations in electrical characteristics but, in practice, the electrical characteristics of the circuit will vary with the thickness of the moistureproof coat, and it is necessary to insure that the circuit is always coated with the correct thickness of the coat that complies with the circuit design. However, controlling thicknesses of less than a hundred microns within the limits of .+-. a few microns is very difficult to accomplish. In addition, the condensation of water vapor on the moistureproof coat over striplines is particularly undesirable since water having a relative dielectric constant as large as about 80 will have large effects on the electrical characteristics of the circuit. In order to avoid the adverse effect of vapor condensation by means of the moistureproof coat, it must have a thickness of at least 1 mm; however, if a moistureproof coating material which has a high dielectric constant is formed at a thickness of 1 mm and more, the coating material alone is sufficient to cause variations in the electrical characteristics of the circuit that are too great to be effectively absorbed by circuit design.

Moistureproof structure for module circuits


A vehicle seat feature to provide additional legroom for feet or legs of a rear-facing child in a safety carseat installed in a vehicle seat, by utilizing a bounded cavity or the like in the vehicle seat backrest, which is accessible from the front side of the backrest by feet or legs of a rear-facing child. Such a cavity may in some embodiments be deployable and made available by removing or repositioning a barrier object or the like, which when restored may in effect constitute part of an otherwise normally functional backrest.

This section contains general relevant background content, which is not necessarily prior art.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children be seated rear-facing in their car-seats until age 2 or until exceeding the height or weight limits of the car-seat (some of which can accommodate high limits). Some US states are presently reflecting this policy in new legislation, although the predominant rule still currently remains age 1 or 20 lbs. While the optimal point to switch-over is of course debatable, many people advocate for staying rear-facing for as long as possible; as this view becomes more prevalent (and even compulsory, for better or worse), there is value in easing any burdens associated with parental compliance.
Rear-faced child seating often presents a problem of limited legroom, especially for many children of above-average height or growth rate. Certain rear-facing-capable car seats (not to be confused with the car's own seating) offer design features that can mitigate this problem (e.g. shell height, seat depth, recline, etc.), allowing higher height and weight limits. Vehicle-focused approaches involve modifications to the seat in which the safety seat resides—such as making the backrest foldable over flatly on top of the seat portion to enable then placing the carseat thereupon, or having the carseat sit further forward on the seat portion and then having it be supported with a stabilizing member extending down to the car's floor (not common in the US). Simply moving or removing a backrest, or any severable portion thereof, might also be an option—though this could be suboptimal in many cases.
Some existing approaches do have utility, yet there remains an unsolved need for new solutions—as others have failed to sufficiently facilitate extended rear-facing (ERF). Research shows that many parents (up to 70%, in one recent study) still continue to turn their children's carseats to be forward-facing long before the recommended time, and this can be attributed in significant part to inadequate legroom.

Legroom cavity in vehicle backrest for rear-faced child in carseat


A laser microscope comprises a laser light source emitting illumination light; an objective applying the illumination light on a sample; a light path compounding unit compounding a first illumination light path and a second illumination path between the laser light source and the objective; a phase-modulation type spatial light modulator placed on a position on the first illumination path, the position also being optically conjugate with a pupil position of the objective, modulating a phase of the illumination light; and a two-dimensional scanning unit placed on the second illumination light path, scanning the sample in a plane orthogonal to an optical axis of the objective.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an art of a laser microscope, and especially to an art of a laser microscope using a phase-modulation type spatial light modulator.
2. Description of the Related Art
A technique to control the spatial distribution and intensity (hereinafter, referred to as a pattern) of light as needed and to apply light of a desired pattern on an object using a spatial light modulator (SLM) having a plurality of optical modulation elements (hereinafter, referred to as pixel elements) that are controlled independently from each other has been known.
While various kinds of SLMs have been proposed so far, an SLM in which pixel elements modulate the intensity of light (hereinafter, referred to as an intensity-modulation type SLM) as represented by Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) and an SLM in which pixel elements modulate the phase of light (hereinafter, referred to as a phase-modulation type SLM) has become popular.
An intensity-modulation type SLM is capable of applying light of a desired pattern by directly projecting the pattern of the intensity of light formed on the intensity-modulation type SLM on an object. However, for an intensity-modulation type SLM, a problem has been pointed out that since the pattern of the intensity of light is formed by eliminating incoming light selectively by the pixel elements, the light use intensity is low, and the density of the light applied on the object is also low.
By contrast, a phase-modulation type SLM changes the wavefront form of incoming light by phase modulation using a coherent light source such as a laser light source. This makes it possible to change the intensity distribution of light on an object and to form light of a desired pattern. In a phase-modulation type SLM, a desired pattern is formed by changing the phase distribution of light, little loss of light occurs in principle. For this reason, a higher light use efficiency can be achieved compared with an intensity-modulation type SLM. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication 2006-72280 discloses a pattern formation apparatus and an optical tweezers apparatus using a phase-modulation type SLM.
Such a phase-modulation type SLM capable of applying light of a given pattern on an object with a high light density by suppressing loss of light and achieving a high light use efficiency has been applied to the field of laser microscopes such as a fluorescent microscope. In particular, application to a fluorescent microscope using nonlinear optical phenomena that requires a very high light density is effective, and Volodymyr Nikolenko and five others, "SLM microscope: scanless two-photon imaging and photostimulation with spatial light modulators", Frontiers in Neural Circuits, 19 Dec. 2008, Volume 2, Article 5, p. 1-14 (hereinafter, referred to as non-patent document 1) discloses a two-photon excitation microscope being a type of nonlinear microscopes.
The microscope disclosed in non-patent document 1 is capable of applying light of a given pattern (hereinafter, referred to as light pattern application) on an object while suppressing loss of light by using a phase-modulation type SLM. For this reason, light with a high light density required for generating a nonlinear phenomenon can be applied on a plurality of parts of an object simultaneously without scanning the object.
Incidentally, with fluorescent observation using a fluorescent microscope, there is need to observe dynamic changes of an object (including dynamic change of a fluorescent material included in an object) that occur with the light pattern application, such as photoactivation, photoconversion, FRAP (Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching), FLIP (Fluorescence Loss In Photobleaching) and so on. In order to meet the need, a function for imaging a given area of an object aside from a light pattern application area is needed.
Meanwhile, such need to observe dynamic changes of an object is present not only with fluorescent microscopes but also with other laser microscopes.
The microscope disclosed in the non-patent document 1 has a galvanometer scanner as scanning means. For this reason, it can be used also as a normal laser scanning microscope (hereinafter, referred to as LSM), and is capable of imaging a given area of an object.
Meanwhile, in the microscope disclosed in the non-patent document 1, the phase-modulation type SLM for the light pattern application and the scanning means for imaging of the object are placed on the same light path.

Laser microscope using phase-modulation type spatial light modulator


A retractable rotating hose device for rotating and helically thrusting a high pressure hose and biased nozzle into a pipe for the purpose of cleaning the interior surface of the pipe. The retractable rotating hose device is powered by converting linear torque from a rotating high pressure hose into linear thrust, forcing the high pressure hose and biased nozzle into the pipe, where the high pressure hose and biased nozzle travel through the pipe in a helical manner. The retractable rotating hose device remains generally stationary during the pipe cleaning operation and includes a spring-operated spool which automatically rewinds the high pressure hose at the termination of pipe cleaning operations. The present invention more effeciently cleans conduit, pipe and other tubular members, by constantly positioning the biased nozzle against the interior surface of the pipe and avoiding the "streaking" effect left by prior art nozzles. The helical pitch of the rotating high pressure hose, speed and direction of travel of the high pressure hose are controlled through the alignment of the drive wheels in the rotary hose drive.

Effectively and effeciently cleaning plugged or partially plugged conduit, pipe or assorted tubular members continues to be a major problem. Keeping industrial, commercial and residential piping clean and avoiding the problem of "streaking" or leaving an uncleaned or partially cleaned path is an ongoing concern which costs hundreds of millions of dollars annually in this country alone. Plugged residential piping is a nuisance and an inconvenience to the home dweller and can become costly if improperly handled. Plugged commercial and industrial piping is more than a nuisance or an inconvenience. Plugged commercial and industrial piping is costly in terms of lost production and lost profits to the company, lost or reduced wages to the workers and the costly expense of cleaning and maintaining the piping.
Of primary concern in the present invention is to provide a more efficient, less expensive, safer and easier to use system to clean and maintain the internal surface of industrial, commercial and residential piping.
It is, therefore, a feature of the present invention to provide a cleaning operation which is automatic and thereby reduces the cleaning time compared to prior manual cleaning techniques.
A feature of the present invention is to provide an independent set of controls for forward or backward speed, and rotational speed to control the size particles removed from the internal surface of the piping.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a safer system of cleaning the interior surface of piping, in that the operator need not be in close proximity to the pipe opening or the rotating hose.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide a hydraulic, or other non-internal combustion, powered rotating device which can be safely used in hazardous or explosive environments, where an internal combustion engine could not safely operate.
Yet another feature of the present invention is to provide rotating, helical or screw-like insertion of the high pressure hose and biased cleaning nozzle into the pipe, which greatly reduces the amount of streaking on the interior surface of the piping.
Yet another feature of the present invention is to provide an internal pipe cleaning system which is light and portable permitting its use in many small, elevated or lowered work areas.
Still another feature of the present invention is to provide an internal pipe cleaning apparatus which can be used in piping of wide ranging diameters, with comparatively small water blast equipment.
Yet further, an additional feature of the present invention is to provide a safe internal pipe cleaning apparatus whereby, should the high pressure hose burst while inside the pipe or the biased cleaning nozzle become separated from the high pressure hose, the hose will not uncontrollably retreat from the piping.
Still another feature of the present invention is to convert the torque from the rotating hose into linear thrust, to thrust the high pressure hose forward or backward, and to use the same linear thrust to control the speed with which the high pressure hose and biased cleaning nozzle are inserted into the pipe.
Yet another feature of the present invention is to control the helical pitch at which the high pressure hose and biased cleaning nozzle are inserted into a pipe, to provide more efficient cleaning.
Another feature of the present invention is to employ a biased cleaning nozzle which is designed to press itself against the interior surface of the pipe to more effectively clean the interior surface and not attempt to position itself centrally within the pipe as do prior art nozzles.
Yet still another feature of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for cleaning the interior surfaces of pipe more effectively and more efficiently than other currently known devices.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for rotating a high pressure hose to be thrusted into a pipe for the purpose of cleaning the interior pipe surface, where the hose rotation apparatus remains relatively stationary during the thrusting of the high pressure hose and biased cleaning nozzle.
Still another feature of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for rotating a high pressure hose where the hose rotation apparatus does not require a linear path-way to move back and forth on, and where said hose rotation device may be vertically raised or lowered and contains a finite length of high pressure hose which is inserted into the pipe to effectively clean the interior surfaces of pipe.
Yet another feature of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for rotating a high pressure hose where the hose rotation apparatus includes a retractable or spring-operated spool which automatically retrieves the high pressure hose from the pipe after the cleaning is completed, obviating the need for the operator to manually pull the high pressure hose from the pipe.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent from the description, or maybe learned by practice of the invention. The features and advantages of the invention maybe realized by means of the combinations and steps particularly pointed out in the appended claims.


Systems and methods for determining an inventory condition of objects based on captured images are described. An exemplary inventory control system or method utilizes a highly efficient and economical approach to apply suitable imaging parameters for capturing images of a storage drawer being accessed by a user, or for manipulating the captured images of the drawer. An inventory condition of the drawer is determined based on the captured images or manipulated images.

When tools are used in a manufacturing or service environment, it is important that tools be returned to a storage unit, such as a tool box, after use. Employers typically perform a manual inventory check of the tool box to minimize or eliminate the problem of misplacement or theft of expensive tools. Companies can conduct random audits of employee's toolbox to prevent theft and monitor tool location.
Some industries have high standards for inventory control of tools, for preventing incidents of leaving tools in the workplace environment where they could cause severe damages. For the aerospace industry, it is important to ensure that no tools are accidentally left behind in an aircraft or missile being manufactured, assembled or repaired. The Aerospace Industries Association even establishes a standard called National Aerospace Standard including recommended procedures, personnel management and operations to reduce foreign object damage (FOD) to aerospace products. FOD is defined as any object not structurally part of the aircraft. The most common foreign objects found are nuts, bolts, safety wire, and hand tools. Inventory control over tools is critical to prevent tools from being left in an aircraft.
Some toolboxes include build-in inventory determination features to track inventory conditions of tools stored in those toolboxes. For example, some toolboxes dispose contact sensors, magnetic sensors or infrared sensors in or next to each tool storage locations, to detect whether a tool is placed in each tool storage location. Based on signals generated by the sensors, the toolboxes are able to determine whether any tools are missing. While this type of inventory check may be useful to some extents, it suffers from various drawbacks. For instance, if a sensor detects that something is occupying a storage location, the toolbox will determine that no tool is missing from that storage location. However, the toolbox does not know whether the right kind of tool is indeed placed back in the toolbox or it is just some objects placed in the storage location to cheat the system. Furthermore, disposing sensors for numerous storage locations in a toolbox is tedious and costly, and the large number of sensors is prone to damages or malfunctions which will produce false negative or positive alarms.
Accordingly, there is a need for an effective inventory control system that that could assist tracking and accounting for usage of tools and whether they are properly put back after usage. There is also a need for an inventory control system which knows exactly what tool is removed or returned to a tool box. Furthermore, as multiple workers may have access to the same tool box, there is another need for an inventory control system that can track a user and his or her usage of tools, to determine responsibilities for any tool loss or misplacement.
This disclosure describes various embodiments of highly automated inventory control systems that utilize unique machine imaging and methodology for identifying an inventory condition in the storage unit. Illustrative features include the ability to process complex image data with efficient utilization of system resources, autonomous image and camera calibrations, identification of characteristics of tools from image data, adaptive timing for capturing inventory images, efficient generation of reference data for checking inventory status, autonomous compensation of image quality, etc.
An exemplary inventory control system or method according to this disclosure utilizes a highly efficient and economical approach to apply suitable imaging parameters for capturing images of a storage drawer being accessed by a user or manipulating the captured images of the drawer. An inventory condition of the drawer is determined based on the captured images or manipulated images. The system includes a plurality of storage drawers for storing objects; an image sensing device configured to capture images of the drawers; a data storage device storing imaging parameters corresponding to each storage drawer; and a data processor is configured to: determine an identity of a drawer being accessed by the user; access the imaging parameters corresponding to the determined identity of the drawer, wherein the imaging parameters are used by the image sensing device in capturing an image of the drawer being accessed by the user or used by the data processor to manipulate the captured image of the drawer being accessed by the user; and determine an inventory condition of the objects stored in the storage drawer according to the captured image or manipulated image.
In one aspect, the data processor determines the identity of the storage drawer according to an identifier unique to each storage drawer or a state of a signal generated by a sensor. In another aspect, the imaging parameters include at least one of exposure parameters, shutter parameters, illumination parameters and color gains. The imaging parameters are pre-stored in the data storage device or accessible by the system via a data transmission network or a removable storage device attached to the system.
The exemplary systems and method as described herein may be implemented using one or more computer systems and/or appropriate software.
It is understood that embodiments, steps and/or features described herein can be performed, utilized, implemented and/or practiced either individually or in combination with one or more other steps, embodiments and/or features.
Additional advantages and novel features of the present disclosure will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following, or may be learned by practice of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown and described provide an illustration of the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present disclosure. The disclosure is capable of modifications in various obvious respects, all without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive. The advantages of the present disclosure may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Image-based inventory control system and method


This piston for internal combustion engines, which is capable of achieving high heat shielding properties and high durability, comprises: a base that is formed from aluminum or an aluminum alloy; a composite material part which is formed in a first region of the surface of the base, and which is formed from a composite material that is reinforced with inorganic fibers or whiskers; and an alumite coating film that is formed on the composite material part and a second region of the surface of the base, said second region being different from the first region.

Traditionally, there has been a known technique to form a thermal barrier film on a member forming the wall surface of combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine.
For example, Patent Literature (hereinafter, referred to as "PTL") 1 discloses a technique to form an anodized aluminum coating on the top face of a base material formed from aluminum or an aluminum alloy. Formation of the anodized aluminum coating enhances the thermal barrier characteristics of the internal-combustion-engine piston, thus making it possible to improve the thermal efficiency of the internal combustion engine.
There has also been a piston in which a recessed combustion chamber is formed in the top face of a base material, traditionally. In connection with recent increases in engine output, there has been a problem in that the mechanical load on a piston is increased and a crack may be caused at the mouth rim portion of a combustion chamber, and accordingly, the durability decreases.
For example, PTL 2 discloses a technique to form a composite material portion at the mouth rim portion to increase the mechanical strength of the mouth rim portion of the combustion chamber.

Piston for internal combustion engines and method for producing piston for internal combustion engines


An aberration compensation system for digital camera and a method therefor are provided, wherein the system includes an optical lens, an axial moving mechanism, a photosensitive element, and an image unit. The photosensitive element is loaded on the axial moving mechanism, and generates a first and a second image at a first and a second focus position. After receiving the first and second images, the image unit respectively calculates a first and a second image capture region and then synthesizes the two regions into a third image. The method includes using the optical lens to project the light beams of an object to be shot, generating the first image and second images, and capturing the distinct portions of the first and second images to be synthesized into the third image. Thereby, the system and method can solve the non-uniformity of the definitions at the center and periphery of each image.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing system and a method therefor, and more particularly to an image aberration compensation system for digital camera and a method therefor.
2. Related Art
The basic imaging principle of a digital camera (DC) is similar to that of a conventional camera. The DC and the conventional camera both have an optical lens set including at least one lens, which projects the light beams of an object to be shot onto a photosensitive material inside the camera according to an optical principle of pinhole imaging. The photosensitive material of a conventional camera is, for example, film (or referred to as negative film); while a DC adopts, for example, charge coupled device (CCD) or complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) as photosensitive materials (all-together referred to as photosensitive element below). The photosensitive element of a DC can convert the image shot by the optical lens set into digital signals, and the digital signals are stored in a storage medium (for example, a flash memory card or a built-in storage medium) after being processed by an electronic circuit. Different from the conventional camera, the image of the DC is stored in a digital mode, so the shot image can be modified through digital signal processing, for example, by a digital signal processor (DSP) to eliminate the noises of the image or adjust the contrast, chroma of the image.
The lenses adopted by the optical lens set of the DC are the same as those of the conventional camera, wherein the lens can be classified into, for example, spherical lens or aspheric lens. FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the aberration of a conventional spherical lens 110. Referring to FIG. 1, the light beam refractive angles at the periphery of the spherical lens 110 may deviate from the normal focal length along with the surface angles of the spherical lens 110 (i.e., cannot be concentrated on the focus). The distance between a focus Fc of the refracted light beams at the center of the spherical lens 110 and a focus Fb of the refracted light beams at the periphery of the spherical lens 110 is referred to as an aberration distance. In general, the aberration distance of a spherical lens varies with the surface angles of the spherical lens. The larger the aberration distance of a spherical lens is, the more apparent aberration the shot image may have. The so-called aberration refers to the problem of a shot image that the center of the image is distinct but the periphery (or a portion of the image) is obscure. Such problem is generally seen in optical lens set adopting a spherical lens. To alleviate the above problem, a method of, for example, using a plurality of spherical lenses to eliminate aberration can be employed. However, the overall transmittance, sharpness of such optical lens set and the contrast, definition of the shot image may be alleviated as the number of the spherical lenses is increased. In addition, the increase of the number of the spherical lenses represents the increase of the volume of the optical lens set and the raise of the fabrication cost of the optical lens set. Therefore, at present, a portion of the optical lens set is replaced by aspheric lenses to avoid the aforementioned aberration problem of a spherical lens. Being specially designed, the surface angles of an aspheric lens can make the center of the lens have the same focal length as the periphery region (i.e., imaging at a normal focal length). However, as the processing cost and technology of an aspheric lens are much higher than those of a spherical lens, the fabrication cost of the aspheric lens is much higher than that of the spherical lens. Moreover, the adoption of an aspheric lens still cannot solve the aberration problem caused by different object distances.

Aberration compensation system for digital camera and method therefor


An electronic timepiece (10) includes a case (12) which is fitted with a dial (28) and which contains an electronic control circuit (22) driving a display device (24), of the type wherein the dial (28) includes a main body (48) in the form of a plate which is made of semiconductor material, and of the type wherein the control circuit (22) includes at least one control unit (36) and a time base circuit (34), characterized in that the control circuit (22) includes at least one integrated circuit element (34, 36) which is etched in the main body (48) of the dial (28).

Generally, an electronic timepiece such as a wristwatch comprises a case that includes an electronic circuit controlling the display means to display information on a dial. The dial is made in the form of a plate having, on the side of its display face, decorative elements, indices, and/or markings representing for example the numbers of the hours. The dial can also comprise a window associated with a liquid crystal screen connected to the electronic circuit. The dial is usually made of plastic material or metal.
The electronic control circuit is generally arranged on a printed circuit board (PCB) and it includes electronic components such as a control unit, conductive paths, and a reference oscillator which acts as a time base. The oscillator includes a resonator, for example a quartz resonator.
Some watches do not have a PCB. The electronic components are then mounted directly on the back cover of the case. The conductive paths are made, for example, in the form of metallic strips fixed in the case.
The watch structures that have just been described are not completely satisfactory since they require numerous assembly operations, particularly for mounting each of the electronic components either on the PCB, or in the back cover of the case. Moreover, the space requirement of these electronic components in the case is inconvenient when one wishes to make the watch more compact, particularly the thickness thereof.
There also exist watch dials made in a crystalline material such as silicon. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 4,599,251 discloses and shows a decorative watch article made of silicon. The dial includes a top layer, for example of silicon dioxide, which is light permeable and allows coloured interferences to be formed at its surface. Further, decorative designs or indices can be made on the top surface of the dial, from an opaque material, by printing or vapour phase deposition.
This type of dial has an aesthetic advantage but the general structure of the watch is not altered and still has the same drawbacks.
It is an object of the invention to overcome these drawbacks.

Timepiece including a dial made of semiconductor material

Abstract: The invention also proposes a dial (28) to be fitted to the timepiece (10).


An electrical transition fitting for enabling electrical wires contained in multiple cables to be extended through an electrical conduit, or into a panel box. The fitting has a lower body member having a first member dimensioned for receipt of an electrical conduit or passage through a knockout hole of a panel box, and a second member with a slot at a second end, an upper body member having at least three bores formed therein, the bores for receipt of the cables, the upper body member having a plate at a first end, the plate dimensioned for contact with a perimeter of the second member and having a tab for receipt in the slot, and a hole for receipt of a fastener to secure the upper body member to the lower body member and plastic insulators and inner locking devices for installation in the bores.

The present invention is directed to an electrical transition fitting that can be used in residential, commercial and industrial applications. As disclosed in applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 7,402,752, various electrical conduits, such as electrical metallic tubing (EMT) and cables, such as metal clad (MC) or armored clad (AC), which contain electrical wires with insulated conductors must be interconnected, for example, to a primary power supply in a suitable power distribution outlet box, junction box, panel box or other enclosure where metal clad or armored clad cable is used.
In some applications, it is desirable to allow passage of electrical wires from multiple metal clad or armored clad cables to a single electrical conduit where the conduit may then be connected to an electrical panel box or the like or for other purposes. In other applications, it is desirable to combine the electrical wires of multiple MC or AC cables for passage into a panel box directly through a single knockout hole in the panel box or the like.
There have been many duplex electrical connectors and electrical transition couplings for allowing two AC or MC cables to be combined in a single fitting to allow the electrical wires to pass either into a single electrical conduit (such as an EMT) or to pass into a panel box or the like through a single knockout hole in the panel box.
Although some electrical transition fittings have provided for more than two cables to be combined to allow wires to pass out of a single end thereof, none are believed to combine the features as disclosed in the present application which provide for easy and secure attachment of multiple MC or AC cables for combining and passing the electrical wires thereof through an electrical conduit or into a panel box or the like.


A new and distinct cultivar of Anisodontea plant named ‘Cefdonpin’, characterized by its upright and columnar plant habit; strong root system; freely flowering habit; large bright pink-colored flowers; and long flowering period.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Anisodontea, botanically known as Anisodontea elegans, and hereinafter referred to by the name 'Cefdonpin'.
The new Anisodontea is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Beacon Bay, South Africa The objective of the breeding program is to create new freely-flowering Anisodontea cultivars with a strong roots and long flowering season.
The new Anisodontea originated from a cross-pollination made by the Inventor in Beacon Bay, South Africa in 2001, of two unnamed selections of Anisodontea elegans, not patented. The cultivar Cefdonpin was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination in a controlled environment in Beacon Bay, South Africa in 2002.
Asexual reproduction of the new Anisodontea by terminal cuttings in a controlled environment in Beacon Bay, South Africa since 2002, has shown that the unique features of this new Anisodontea are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.


A top-emitting organic light-emitting device can prevent a voltage drop by electrically coupling a cathode bus line to a cathode electrode. A method for fabricating the same is also disclosed. The flat panel display device comprises an insulating substrate having a pixel region and a non-pixel region, a first electrode arranged in the pixel region. a second electrode arranged in the pixel region and the non-pixel region, an organic emission layer and a charge transporting layer formed between the first electrode and the second electrode of the pixel region, and an electrode line formed in the pixel region and the non-pixel region. The electrode line and the second electrode are electrically and directly coupled to each other in the non-pixel region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an active matrix type flat panel display device and, more particularly, to a top-emitting organic light-emitting device (OLED) capable of reducing or preventing a voltage drop, with a cathode bus line and a cathode electrode being electrically coupled and method for fabricating the same.
2. Description of Background
In general, an organic light emitting device is an emissive display device which may be classified into a bottom-emitting structure type and a top-emitting structure type based on the direction of light emitted from an organic emission layer. The top-emitting organic light-emitting device emits light in a direction opposite to a substrate where pixels are arranged, and may increase an aperture ratio when compared to the bottom-emitting structure which emits light toward the substrate where the pixels are arranged.
The light is emitted toward the substrate for encapsulation in the top-emitting structure, so that a transparent electrode is used for a cathode electrode. A transparent conductive layer, such as ITO or IZO, is used for the transparent electrode. However, the transparent conductive layer may have a higher work function, so that it is difficult to use it for the cathode electrode.
To cope with this problem, a thin metal having a lower work function is deposited on an organic emission layer for the cathode electrode to form a semitransparent metal layer. A thick transparent conductive layer is then deposited on the semitransparent metal layer to form a transparent electrode having a stacked structure.
However, in the cathode electrode of the stacked structure, since the transparent conductive layer, such as ITO or IZO, is deposited after an organic thin-film layer is formed, a low temperature deposition process minimizes degradation of an electroluminescence (EL) layer due to heat or plasma. When the ITO or IZO is deposited at a lower temperature, film quality may become worse and specific resistance may become higher.
The cathode electrode is a common electrode, and the same voltage should be applied to all pixels arranged in a pixel portion. However, a voltage drop (namely, an IR drop) occurs due to the high specific resistance of the cathode electrode. This causes different voltage levels to be applied to the pixels in accordance with their arranged positions. Thus, when a cathode voltage is applied from an external terminal to the cathode electrode, pixels arranged near the external terminal and pixels spaced apart from the external terminal do not have the same voltage, which causes the voltage drop. This voltage difference per pixel position may cause non-uniformity of luminance and/or image quality.
In particular, the voltage drop problems may become more serious in a top-emitting organic light-emitting device of medium and large size. Korea Patent Application No. 2002-0057336 discloses a technique that uses a cathode bus line in the top-emitting structure. The cathode bus line is connected to an external terminal and contacts a cathode electrode, so that the cathode electrode is connected to the external terminal through the cathode bus line.
The method for connecting the cathode bus line to the cathode electrode may prevent the voltage drop of the cathode electrode with respect to the pixel position. However, when a carrier transporting layer, such as an organic layer, is formed on the entire surface of the substrate between the cathode bus line and the cathode electrode, the cathode bus line and the cathode electrode are not electrically coupled to with each other.

Flat panel display device capable of reducing or preventing a voltage drop and method of fabricating the same


A liquid crystal display apparatus comprises a liquid crystal display panel including a display region, a planar light source device having a light exit surface which faces the liquid crystal display panel and from which planar light exits toward the liquid crystal display panel, and a back surface located opposite to the light exit surface, a coordinates position detecting device which detects coordinates of a position designated on the display region; and a frame which has a projection and supports the liquid crystal display panel and the planar light source, the projection being formed integrally with the frame and extending along the back surface with a distance corresponding to a thickness of the coordinates position detecting device from the planar light source device. The coordinates position detecting device is interposed between the projection and the planar light source device and supported by the projection.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display apparatus including a coordinates position detecting device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a liquid crystal display apparatus comprises a liquid crystal display panel having a display region in which a plurality of display pixels are arrayed; a circuit board, which is electrically connected to the liquid crystal display panel and supplies a drive signal to the display panel; a planar light source device, which illuminates the liquid crystal display panel from behind it; and a frame which supports the liquid crystal display panel and the planar light source. The circuit board is connected to a side end of the liquid crystal display panel by means of, for example, a flexible board. The flexible board is bent so that the circuit board is arranged on the back side of the planar light source device.
In recent years, a type of liquid crystal display apparatus has been developed, which has a function for inputting data through a display region of a liquid crystal display panel. This type of liquid crystal display apparatus may have a coordinates position detecting device, which detects the coordinates of a position selected by a position indicating device on the display region of the liquid crystal display panel. In general, the coordinates position detecting device is inserted between the circuit board and the planar light source device on the back side of the planar light source device. However, the ordinary frame does not necessarily have a structure to hold the coordinates position detecting device and the circuit board. Therefore, it is difficult for the frame to hold the coordinates position detecting device.
Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-212973 proposes a liquid crystal display apparatus having a plate member for fixing a coordinates position detecting device and a circuit board to a frame.
In the method described in the above publication, the circuit board and the coordinates position detecting device are first placed in predetermined positions and then fixed by the plate member to the frame. Therefore, it was difficult to position the circuit board and the coordinates position detecting device relative to each other. Further, since the plate member is laid over the coordinates position detecting device and the circuit board, the thickness of the liquid crystal display apparatus may be increased by the thickness of the plate member.

Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology Co., Ltd.


A method of fabricating a semiconductor light emitting device includes forming an SiON film thinner than 50 nm on a stripe region on a surface of a first semiconductor layer at a first temperature, etching the first semiconductor layer using the SiON film as a mask and forming an optical waveguide including the first semiconductor layer which is left below the SiON film, and selectively growing a second semiconductor layer as a current blocking layer where the first semiconductor layer was removed by etching, using the SiON film as a mask at a second temperature. Therefore, adhesion of the material of the current blocking layer to the surface of the selective growth mask is suppressed, and imperfect growth of the contact layer and imperfect contact of the electrode directly formed on the upper surface of the wave-guide are suppressed, respectively. In addition, the generation of dark lines due to stress between the selective growth mask and the semiconductor layer constituting the upper part of the wave-guide is suppressed, and reduction in light output power is prevented.

FIGS. 7(a)-7(d) are sectional views illustrating a method of fabricating a semiconductor laser device according to the prior art. Initially, in the step of FIG. 7(a), after an n type Al.sub.0.4 Ga.sub.0.6 As lower cladding layer 2, an Al.sub.0.1 Ga.sub.0.9 As active layer 3, and a p type Al.sub.0.4 Ga.sub.0.6 As upper cladding layer 4, and a p type GaAs cap layer 5 are successively epitaxially grown on the front surface of an n type GaAs substrate 1, an SiO.sub.2 film is formed on the p type GaAs cap layer 5 and then etched away so that the SiO.sub.2 film is left only on a striped region of the cap layer 5. Next, using the remaining SiO.sub.2 film 70 as a mask, the p type GaAs cap layer 5 and a part of the p type AlGaAs upper cladding layer 4 is etched away, and a portion to be an optical waveguide under the SiO.sub.2 film 70 (hereinafter, referred to as optical waveguide region) is left as shown in FIG. 7(b). In the step of FIG. 7(c), n type GaAs current blocking layers 6 are selectively grown so as to bury the etched portion. Next, in the step of FIG. 7(d), after the removal of the SiO.sub.2 film 70, a p type GaAs contact layer 7 is grown on the entire surface of the cap layer 5 and the current blocking layers 6. Further, an n side electrode (a rear surface electrode) 101 is formed on the rear surface of the n type GaAs substrate 1 and a p side electrode (a front surface electrode) 102 is formed on the surface of the p type GaAs contact layer 7, respectively. When a forward bias voltage is applied between the n side and the p side electrodes of the semiconductor laser device fabricated as described above, and a current flowing in the semiconductor laser device is larger than a threshold current of the laser, laser oscillation occurs. At this time, the current flowing into the semiconductor laser device is concentrated in the optical waveguide region by the current blocking layers. Therefore, electrons and holes are effectively injected into the active layer of the optical waveguide region, and then laser oscillation occurs in the active layer of the optical waveguide region due to the recombination of electrons and holes. Also in S. Yamashita et al., "High-Power 780 nm AlGaAs Quantum-Well Lasers and Their Reliable Operation," IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, vol.27, pp.1544-1549, June 1991, the fabricating method of the semiconductor laser device as described above is disclosed.
In the prior art method of fabricating the semiconductor laser device, since the selective growth mask for the current blocking layer 6 comprises the SiO.sub.2 film containing a large quantity of oxygen, the GaAs of the current blocking layer 6 is partly adhered on the SiO.sub.2 film during the selective growth of the current blocking layer 6. In the etching generally used for removing the SiO.sub.2 film, GaAs is not etched. For example, though SiO.sub.2 is dissolved in a hydrofluoric acid based etchant used for etching SiO.sub.2, GaAs is not dissolved in this etchant. Therefore, when the SiO.sub.2 film is etched, the SiO.sub.2 film directly under the GaAs which is adhered on the SiO.sub.2 film is not etched and is left on the surface of the p type GaAs cap layer 5, and so this causes an imperfect growth of the contact layer 7 formed on the cap layer 5. When the imperfect growth of the contact layer 7 occurs, the electrical resistance of the contact layer 7 is increased and light output is lowered.
In addition, in the process for selectively growing the current blocking layer and the process for cooling the layer after the growth, dislocations are produced in the semiconductor layer by a shearing stress between the SiO.sub.2 film 70 and the p type GaAs cap layer 5 and penetrates the active layer 3 of the optical waveguide region. Further, by operating this laser device, dislocations propagate in the active layer 3, and the recombination of electrons and holes is non-radiative in the vicinity of the dislocations. Such a non-radiative region in the vicinity of a dislocation is called a dark line. Due to the generation of dark lines, the light output power of the laser device is reduced.


A system and a method are disclosed for sensitive document management. The system includes one or more agents, a behavior analysis engine, a local policy engine, and a local matching service. The method identifies whether a document is sensitive, identifies behaviors applied to the document, determines whether the document contains sensitive information and determines whether to allow the identified behavior to continue based on security policies.

1. Field of Art
The present invention generally relates to the field of information management technology, and more specifically, to the field of enterprise document management for protecting sensitive information.
2. Description of the Related Art
As computers and networks become more proliferated, powerful, and affordable, a growing number of enterprises are using both to perform critical tasks and manage sensitive information. However, the convenience provided by computers and networks is leading to easy duplication and distribution of sensitive information. Often, multiple copies of documents containing sensitive information (also called sensitive documents) find their way to endpoints of the network, for example in CD-ROMs, in memory sticks, and in other media. The proliferation of information makes it harder to protect sensitive information, and gives people with malicious intent more opportunities to access such sensitive information and leak it out to unintended parties.
This information leakage problem is also highlighted by regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Besides the significant accounting and control requirements imposed on publicly owned companies, the Act created a new oversight board for accounting firms auditing publicly traded companies (PCAOB). The PCAOB established auditing standards, including Standard 2, which recognized that senior management cannot simply certify controls on the system. Rather, controls also have to track and manage the way financial information is generated, accessed, collected, stored, processed, transmitted, and used through the system. As a result, there are high demands for enterprise document management for protecting sensitive information.
Highly sensitive information is traditionally stored in an isolated and secured computer, accessible only to authorized personals. When documents containing such information need to be duplicated or circulated, those seeking access typically follow a secure administration procedure (or policy) to prevent unauthorized access. By keeping such documents out of computer networks, it limits remote access of the sensitive information by the authorized personals. However, documents stored offline are unable to leverage other benefits provided by the networks, such as online file system backup. Moreover, conventional isolation-type security techniques are not reliable, since the access control relies upon people following the secure administration procedure. This administration procedure is difficult to manage with respect to education and enforcement of such security policies, and also can be quite costly to implement and monitor.
One conventional approach to prevent sensitive information leakage from endpoints of an enterprise network is to enforce a file based access control policy. This approach restricts access to certain sensitive documents to authorized users, while other users can access documents other than the sensitive documents. This approach is insufficient because it lacks deep inspection of the document content. Any intentional scrambling of the sensitive documents content can create documents not subject to restriction, causing the sensitive information to be leaked to unauthorized users.
Another general approach to prevent sensitive information leakage from endpoints is to enforce a user-based or application-based access control policy such as complex Access Control List (ACL) policies and firewalls against users and applications. In some instances, the ACL policies may be combined with local storage encryption. One shortcoming of such approaches is the difficulty in maintaining and managing different users and their corresponding privileges. This is particularly problematic when combined with local storage encryption, because such encryption also requires a complex key management system. Further, such approaches lack the deep inspection of the document content, and cannot prevent sensitive information leakage caused by intentional scrambling of sensitive documents.
One conventional approach to prevent sensitive information leakage from an enterprise network is to monitor network traffic within the network. A network sniffer or monitor device is attached on a router within the network, and analyzes network traffic. Sensitive data content is then identified and filtered out by the network sniffer. This approach is inadequate in that it cannot analyze encrypted network traffic. For example, any network traffic using the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) over Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol is encrypted for security, and cannot be monitored for sensitive information. Also, because information inspection by the network sniffer takes time, data going through the router is slowed down, affecting the network performance.


A method of immunoassaying a component to be measured in a sample containing hemoglobin, which comprises reacting a component to be measured in a sample containing hemoglobin with an antibody capable of binding to the component in the presence of a bile acid derivative different from a bile acid derivative that is inherently contained in the sample; a method of suppressing an interference of hemoglobin in immunoassaying a component to be measured in a sample containing hemoglobin, which comprises reacting a component to be measured in a sample containing hemoglobin with an antibody capable of binding to the component in the presence of a bile acid derivative different from a bile acid derivative that is inherently contained in the sample; a reagent of immunoassay of a component to be measured in a sample containing hemoglobin, which comprises a bile acid derivative, are described.

In a method of immunoassaying a component to be measured in blood that exists outside blood cells such as red and white blood cells, serum or plasma prepared by removing blood cells from whole blood is used as a sample. However, since removal of blood cells requires special equipments such as a centrifuge and is troublesome, methods of measurement using whole blood as a sample have been proposed (see Patent Document 1). When whole blood is used as a sample, it is problematic that a measurement is affected by blood cell components such as hemoglobin or blood cell membrane components contaminated in the sample through hemolysis. These components affect the optical detection system, inhibit immunoreactions, and adsorb the substance to be measured. There are reports of methods of immunoassaying using whole blood as a sample, not accompanied by hemolysis to avoid such problems (see Patent Documents 2, 3, 4, and 5).
When measuring components in blood cell such as intracellular proteins, blood cells must be lysed; therefore, the above-described methods which do not accompany hemolysis cannot be used. In such cases, methods which comprise separation of the blood cells of interest by flow cytometry followed by lysis of the isolated cells and measurement of the desired component in blood cell are used, but these methods require special equipments for flow cytometry and are troublesome.
On the other hand, as an example of convenient methods for measuring intracellular proteins, a method of immunoassaying MxA protein using as a sample for measurement, lysates of blood cells in whole blood prepared using a surfactant, has been reported (Non-patent Documents 1 and 2).    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Kokai Publication No. (JP-A) H10-48214 (unexamined, published Japanese patent application)    [Patent Document 2] JP-A (Kokai) H06-265554    [Patent Document 3] WO 96/04558    [Patent Document 4] WO 02/73203    [Patent Document 5] JP-A (Kokai) 2004-45395    [Non-patent Document 1] Journal of Interferon Research, (USA), 1992, Vol. 12, No. 2, p. 67-74    [Non-patent Document 2] Pediatric Research, (USA), 1997, Vol. 41, No. 5, p. 647-650

Method of immunoassaying a component to be measured


A molding machine and method for reducing the length of a mold cycle by enabling access to a previously molded part while the mold is closed. The machine includes a fixed platen and a platen movable toward and away from the fixed platen. A turret having a plurality of faces is positioned between the fixed and movable platens such that rotatation thereof brings different faces of the turret into alignment with the fixed platen. The fixed platen and at least two opposed turret faces have complementary mold halves that, when closed, define between them the desired shape of a part to be molded. The turret includes an actuator for moving the turret in the direction of movement of the movable platen between a molding position in which the mold halves of one turret face and the complementary mold halves of the fixed platen are closed on each other and an open position in which the turret may rotate about its axis of rotation, the actuator being capable of so moving the turret or of not moving the turret independently of the movement of the movable platen. Movement of the platen away from the turret without opening the mold enables time-saving access to a previously molded part at the opposite face of the turret.

In the field of injection molding, U.S. Pat. No. 4,330,257 describes an injection molding machine that utilizes a fixed platen, a moveable platen, and an intermediate turret having four faces so that the faces are sequentially presented to the fixed platen as the turret rotates. The device includes mold halves and cores forming voids into which molten plastic is forced under pressure during a molding cycle. The turret carries cores on each of its faces, and complementary mold halves receiving the cores are attached to the fixed platen.
According to this patent, in operation, the movable platen forces the turret toward and against the cavity mold half carried by the fixed platen. Once a "shot" has been injected, the moveable platen and the turret are simultaneously drawn away from the fixed platen, and the turret is rotated through, e.g. 90 degrees, to present a new turret face to the fixed platen. The turret is moved away from the fixed platen by small hydraulic jacks 30, 33. The four positions of the turret, as it rotates through 90 degree arcs, may be termed positions 1, 2, 3 and 4, and the faces of the turret may be termed A, B, C, and D. Injection occurs at position 1. Ejection occurs at position 4. Initially, turret face A is at position 1. After injection of a first shot, the movable platen moves away from the turret and concurrently the turret moves away from the fixed platen to expose the molded articles carried by the core. The turret rotates through 90 degrees to bring another set of bare cores on turret face D into position 1, and the turret and movable platen then close and a second injection shot is performed. The turret and movable plate again move to their open positions and the turret is rotated through an additional 90 degrees. Now, turret face A is at position 3, with the cores extending into a hollow member 18 that enables the member to apply tonnage against the turret. The mold is closed again, and injection of a third shot occurs. The turret and movable plate again simultaneously move to their open positions and the turret is rotated through an additional 90 degrees. Now, turret face A is at position 4, and at this position, the molded articles are stripped from the cores as the mold closes again for a fourth shot. The mold is opened and the turret is again rotated through 90 degrees to bring the now bare cores on face A into registration with the cavities, and the process continues. After each injection, the mold remains closed and under pressure for a period. The mold is then opened and the turret is rotated. This system has the advantage of exposing the molded articles carried by the cores at positions 2 and 4, with ejection of the articles occurring at position 4.
The cost of producing a molded part depends upon a variety of factors. Of these, an important factor involves how rapidly parts can be produced, that is, how short can be the "cycle time", that is, the time period between successive injection events. Methodology and equipment enabling cycle times to be reduced would contribute importantly to cost reductions in a molding operation.


Methods of repairing a joint formed by at least two bone sections are provided wherein a biocompatible osteogenic band fabricated from an osteogenic biological material such as bone, tendon, ligament and collagen is affixed to two or more bone sections.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to methods for repairing spinal disorders. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of repairing spinal disorders, especially those requiring spinal fusion, using a biocompatible osteogenic band which induces new bone growth formation at the site of implantation.
2. Description of the Related Art
The vertebral column (spine) is a biomechanical structure composed of a series of joints known as motion segment units. Each motion segment unit includes two adjacent vertebrae and their facet capsules, the intervertebral disc, and connecting ligament tissue. The spine is divided into four major regions which include the cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral regions and functions to protect the spinal cord and nerve roots, and provide support to the body. The intervertebral disc is located between the two endplates of adjacent vertebrae and is composed of the nucleus pulposus (a gel-like ball located at the center of the disc) and annulus fibrous (collagen fibers surrounding the nucleus pulposus). The intervertebral disc stabilizes the spine, and provides the spine with resiliency and the ability to withstand compression, rotation and bending strain. The facet capsules are bony elements which aid in the support of compressive loads and resist torsional motion. Ligaments connected to the spine support loads in tension and help provide spinal stability by limiting excessive range of motion and absorbing energy applied due to trauma.
Various types of spinal disorders are known and include kyphosis (backward curvature of the spine), spondylolysis, spondylolisthesis (forward displacement of a lumbar vertebrae), scoliosis (abnormal curvature of the spine) and disorders involving ruptured, slipped, damaged and diseased discs, damaged vertebrae, and the like. Patients suffering from the aforementioned disorders typically experience severe pain, numbness, decreased mobility, muscle weakness and nerve damage.
Spinal fusion is frequently used as a treatment for such disorders and is achieved by formation of a bony bridge between adjacent motion segments eliminating the intervertebral joint. Spinal fusion can be accomplished within the disc space, anteriorly between adjacent vertebral bodies and/or posteriorly between consecutive processes, e.g., transverse processes, laminae or other posterior elements of the vertebrae.
One frequently used spinal fusion technique involves removal of the intervertebral disc and insertion of an anterior supporting structure, e.g., bone grafts, bone substitutes, plugs, bone dowels, cages, and the like, into the intervertebral disc space to prevent collapse of the disc space and promote fusion of the adjacent vertebrae. To ensure proper growth and fusion between the affected adjacent vertebrae, the posterior side of the spine is frequently stabilized by utilizing a rigid metallic implant, e.g., a plate, rod, wire or strip, which spans the adjacent vertebrae to re-create a load distribution similar to that of the intact spine. These metallic implants are commonly referred to throughout the relevant scientific and medical literature as "tension bands."
The use of such metallic implants to stabilize the spine and facilitate fusion presents several disadvantages. One disadvantage encountered utilizing such metallic implants is that once fusion occurs the metallic implant becomes superfluous and remains as a permanent foreign fixture. As the metallic implant loosens enough to allow relative motion, particulates are generated as wear debris. This wear debris then has the potential to cause a foreign body response. Metallic implants are also subject to fatigue failure due to repeated cyclic loading. An implant that is remodeled, and then repaired as it later becomes damaged, will not fail due to fatigue. Another disadvantage is that the implanted metallic implant itself possesses ferromagnetic properties and thus prevents the use of post-operative plain film X-rays, MRI or CT scan imaging due to scattering of the image. Yet another disadvantage is that when such metallic implants are placed over bone tissue, any tension load placed on the spine is transmitted to the implant rather than the bone tissue, thereby "stress shielding" the bone. Over a period of time, bone tissue that is shielded from tension loads is removed by the body thereby weakening the structure of the bone. Accordingly, removal of the implant by a second operation may be required to prevent loss of bone tissue caused by stress shielding.
In view of the aforementioned limitations posed by using rigid metallic implants to stabilize the spine and facilitate fusion, there is a need to provide a method of treating spinal disorders that will provide for the fusion of bone at the implant site, thereby providing a graft that will not fail mechanically or cause rejection in the patient, and will not require removal in a subsequent operation.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine which overcomes the limitations of rigid metallic implants.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device that is non-antigenic and will not be rejected by the host.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device that is biocompatible and will not require removal in a subsequent operation.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device that is osteogenic and that adequately supports tension loads.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device that will avoid stress shielding.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device that supports fusion between adjacent vertebrae.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of stabilizing the spine with a device which can be utilized in conjunction with an anterior supporting structure.
Other objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the above objects and the foregoing specification.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Biocompatible osteogenic band for repair of spinal disorders


A number of methods and apparatus are disclosed for providing a service in a distributed object operating environment. According to some embodiments of the present invention, methods and apparatus for providing a conspiracy among objects in a object operating environment are disclosed. In particular, conspiracies within a distributed object operating environment are contemplated. In general, the present invention teaches mechanisms by which a collection of objects can form a conspiracy wherein objects can both communicate behind the object interfaces and share all resources. In some embodiments, the collection of objects work together to provide a service to clients. According to one embodiment, the objects which are members of the conspiracy may be distributed objects located in separate processes. In some embodiments, objects which are members of the conspiracy are able to perform interactions with one another behind the interface (i.e. without having to communicate through the interface) and also share persistent state. Three specific embodiments of the present invention are described, these being (1) a shared servant conspiracy model, (2) a shared object conspiracy model, and (3) a hybrid object conspiracy model. Each of these embodiments incorporates the conspiracy concept of the present invention yet they each have particular advantages which will be apparent upon reading the detailed description of the figures.

The present invention relates to the fields of distributed computing systems, client-server computing and object-oriented programming. More specifically, the present invention teaches methods and apparatus for providing a conspiracy between objects within a distributed object operating environment.
Object oriented programming methodologies have received increasing attention over the past several years in response to the growing tendency for software developed using traditional programming methods to be delivered late and over budget. This stems from the fact that traditional programming techniques that emphasize procedural models and "linear" code tend to be difficult to design and maintain in many circumstances. Generally, large programs created using traditional methods are "brittle". That is, even small changes can effect numerous elements of the programming code. Thus, minor changes made to the software in response to user demands can require major redesign and rewriting of the entire program.
Object oriented programming strategies tend to avoid these problems because object methodologies focus on manipulating data rather than procedures; thus providing the programmer with a more intuitive approach to modeling real world problems. In addition objects encapsulate related data and procedures so as to hide that information from the remainder of the program by allowing access to the data and procedures only through the object's interface. Hence changes to the data and or procedures of the object are relatively isolated from the remainder of the program. This provides code that is more easily maintained as compared to code written using traditional methods, as changes to an object's code do not affect the code in the other objects. In addition, the inherent modular nature of objects allows individual objects and interfaces to be reused in different programs. Thus, programmers can develop libraries of "tried and true" objects and interfaces that can be used over and over again in different applications. This increases software reliability while decreasing development time, as reliable programming code may be used repeatedly.
A more recent advance in the field of object oriented methodologies has been the implementation of distributed object operating environments over computers interconnected via a computer network. As used herein, the term "distributed object" or "object" refers to an encapsulated package of code and data that can be manipulated by operations through an interface. Thus, distributed objects will be seen by those skilled in the art of object oriented programming (OOP) as including the basic properties that define traditional programming objects. However, distributed objects differ from traditional programming objects by the inclusion of two important features. First, distributed objects are multilingual. That is, the interfaces of distributed objects are defined using an interface definition language that can be mapped to a variety of different programming languages. One such interface definition language is Object Management Group's IDL. Second, distributed objects are location-independent, i.e., distributed objects can be located anywhere in a network. This contrasts sharply with traditional programming objects which typically exist in a single address space.
Elaborating further on the distributed object operating environment, distributed objects can be object clients or object servers, depending upon whether they are sending requests to other objects or replying to requests from clients. In a distributed object operating environment, requests and replies are made through an Object Request Broker (ORB) that is aware of the locations and status of the objects. One architecture which is suitable for implementing such an ORB is provided by the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) specification. The CORBA specification was developed by the Object Management Group (OMG) to define the distributed computing environment world in terms of objects in a distributed client-server environment, where server objects are capable of providing services to clients requesting the service.
When a client calls a target object, certain procedures must be performed to ensure that the target object can perform the requested service. These procedures include identifying and locating the target object, starting the server process (if necessary) under which the target object resides, activating the target object (if necessary), and, finally, establishing a connection with the target object and passing the call. The ORB together with an Object Adapter (OA) is responsible for working with the client and the target object to perform these services.
One prior art model for providing a service will be discussed now with reference to FIG. 1. In explanation, a service 50 is a computer entity which provides a service to a client such as client 52. Typically in the prior art, the service 50 is resident within a single computer process, often called the "server process" or just the "server." The service 50 includes objects (standard objects or distributed objects) such as object.sub.-- 1 54, object.sub.-- 2 56, and object.sub.-- 3 56. These objects work together to provide the service 50. Each of object.sub.-- 1 54, object.sub.-- 2 56, and object.sub.-- 3 58 will, respectively, have an interface such as interface.sub.-- 1 60, an interface.sub.-- 2 62, and an interface.sub.-- 3 64. As discussed previously, access to the data and procedures of the object are allowed only through the object interface and are therefore limited by the nature of the interface. This insures modularity of the objects.
While the prior art model of FIG. 1 allows multiple objects to work together in providing the service 50 to the client 52, there are limitations inherent to this model due to the modular nature of objects and the constraints presented by the interfaces. For example, in many scenarios the object interfaces will be written to hide and protect the internal object data and procedures from the client 52. However, for the server 50 to operate best (if at all), it may be necessary for the objects to conspire with each other. For example, the objects may require communication with each other which lies outside the capabilities of their respective interfaces. Perhaps object.sub.-- 1 54 needs to know a value of state contained in object.sub.-- 3 58, but it is desirable to protect and/or hide this value from the client 52. Thus the interface.sub.-- 3 wouldn't provide for object.sub.-- 1 54 to access this value and the service 50 would be unable to fulfill its function. What is needed are methods and apparatus for providing a conspiracy between objects. The conspiracy will enable interaction between objects which occurs "behind" the interface. For example, the conspiracy will allow the conspirator objects to share persistent state.

Methods and apparatus for conspiracy between objects


A radio base station transmits user common data provided from a user common data control apparatus connected to a communication network to a plurality of mobile stations by radio. The radio base station includes a frame loss detection unit configured to detect loss of user common data that occurs on a transmission route between the radio base station and the user common data control apparatus, and a timing adjustment unit configured to change transmission timing of the user common data for the mobile station according to the loss of the user common data.

In the UTRAN architecture of MBMS in 3GPP Release 6, as combining methods of MBMS transport channels (MTCH), two main types are defined as selection combining and in-phase combining (soft combining) (refer to 3GPP TS25.346, for example).
These combining methods are used according to environment, in which the selection combining is normally performed in an environment of Inter-Node B, that is, among base stations, and the soft combining is normally performed in an environment of Intra-Node B, that is, among sectors. The reason is that the system architecture of Release 6 is an asynchronous system.
However, in a future mobile communication system Evolved-UTRAN (E-UTRAN) for which discussions are started in 3GPP(3rd generation partnership project), synchronization among base stations are assumed as the system architecture. For example, based on synchronization by GPS (Global Positioning System), it is assumed to aim high performance by performing soft combining on MBMS data from adjacent cells among base stations.
In this case, since it is necessary to transmit a same signal among adjacent base stations, that is, in Inter-Node B, data loss on a transmission route to the base stations becomes a large problem. To solve the problem, it is necessary to detect frame loss in an interface between a base station (Node B) and a radio network control apparatus (RNC: Radio Network Controller) or between a base station and a MBMS server.
In MBMS transmission of Release 6, since soft combining is defined only in Intra-Node B, that is, only among cells (sectors), such problem does not occur. Under a same base station (Node B), since MTCH that is transmitted in the cells (sectors) is the same, frame loss becomes the same among all cells (sectors). That is, the frame loss is closed in Node B.
In addition, since selection combining is performed in Inter-Node B, that is, among base stations, frame loss between the base station and the radio network control apparatus is not a problem. This is because, even though there is a frame loss in one Node B, there is no problem if another one can receive the frame.

Radio base station and user common data transmission method


Integrated non-volatile memory device includes an integrated memory cell of the EEPROM type with a floating-gate transistor and a selection transistor connected in series between a source line and a bit line, and a programming circuit for the memory cell. The selection transistor is connected between the floating-gate transistor and the source line. The programming circuit is configured for programming the at least one memory cell with a programming voltage split between a positive voltage and a negative voltage.

In EEPROM memories, the logical value of a bit stored in a memory element is represented by the value of the threshold voltage of a floating-gate transistor, which can be modified at will by programming or erasing operations. The programming or the erasing of a floating-gate transistor consists of the injection or the extraction of electrical charges into or from the gate of the transistor by tunnel effect ("Fowler-Nordheim" effect) by means of a high writing voltage Vpp which can be of the order of 10 to 20 volts, typically 13 volts.
This high voltage of 13 volts, needed for the writing of EEPROM memories, is non-reducible and is very constraining as regards the fabrication technology and the reliability of the product.
Indeed, lithographic reduction, in other words the increase in the etch resolution, leads to a decrease in the operating voltages, and this high writing voltage becomes more problematic in terms notably of leakages of the source/drain junctions of the transistors and also in terms of breakdown of the gate oxides.
As a consequence, these risks of breakdown and of premature aging of the transistors have a direct impact on the reliability of the product.
One solution, referred to as "split voltage" according to a terminology normally used by those skilled in the art, has been envisaged. More precisely, the high voltage Vpp required for the programming of the memory planes is split between a positive voltage Vpp+ and a negative voltage Vpp− such that the difference (Vpp+−Vpp−) is equal to Vpp. Thus, in such an approach, a voltage Vpp+ of the order of 4 volts and a voltage Vpp− of the order of −9 volts will be chosen.
Such a solution allows the constraint on the voltage capability of the transistors to be relaxed. However, it has the drawback of rendering the fabrication process for the memory planes more complicated since it generally requires a technology known as "triple well" owing to the negative voltage of the order of a few volts. Furthermore, the design of the control is more complicated since it is necessary to provide negative voltage switching operations, which also has a negative impact on the surface area of the memory plane. Indeed, a negative voltage switching element proves to be costly in space in the memory plane (use of PMOS transistors) as regards the control transistors for the control gates of the floating-gate transistors.

Compact memory device of the EEPROM type with a vertical select transistor


Generally discussed herein are systems and methods for data grid cell styling. A method can include defining a data structure for a data grid, inserting a data column from a column in the data grid into the data structure, defining a style column in the data structure corresponding to the inserted data column, and associating the data structure to a control for the data grid such that the data structure is bound to the control when the control is rendered, without modifying the control.

A data grid can utilize controls that facilitate automated generation of columns and rows in a document. The controls can be used to format objects added to a column depending on the public properties of the object. Examples include textbox columns for string values, checkbox columns for Boolean values, combobox columns for enumerable values, and hyperlink columns for uniform resource indicator (URI) values.
In addition to automatic generation of columns, the controls can include a header control, display control, and edit control. Further functions include grouping, sorting, reorganizing, resizing, row details, alternating backgrounds, frozen columns, header visibility, and other functions. To perform these functions, the control can be retrieved and rendered when displaying and editing data in the data grid.

Data grid cell styling systems and methods