Disclosed are diagnostic techniques for the detection of human prostate cancer. Genetic probes and methods useful in monitoring the progression and diagnosis of prostate cancer are described. The invention relates particularly to probes and methods for evaluating the presence of RNA species that are differentially expressed in prostate cancer compared to normal human prostate or benign prostatic hyperplasia.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to nucleic acid sequences useful as probes for the diagnosis of cancer and methods relating thereto. More particularly, the present invention concerns probes and methods useful in diagnosis, identifying and monitoring the progression of diseases of the prostate through measurements of gene products.
B. Description of the Related Art
Carcinoma of the prostate (PCA) is the second-most frequent cause of death in men in the United States (Boring, 1993). The increased incidence of prostate cancer during the last decade has established prostate cancer as the most prevalent of all cancers (Carter and Coffey, 1990). Although prostate cancer is the most common cancer found in United States men, (approximately 200,000 newly diagnosed cases/year), the molecular changes underlying its genesis and progression remain poorly understood (Boring et al., 1993). According to American Cancer Society estimates, the number of deaths from PCA is increasing in excess of 8% annually.
An unusual challenge presented by prostate cancer is that most prostate tumors do not represent life threatening conditions. Evidence from autopsies indicate that 11 million American men have prostate cancer (Dbom, 1983). These figures are consistent with prostate carcinoma having a protracted natural history in which relatively few tumors progress to clinical significance during the lifetime of the patient. If the cancer is well-differentiated, organ-confined and focal when detected, treatment does not extend the life expectancy of older patients.
Unfortunately, the relatively few prostate carcinomas that are progressive in nature are likely to have already metastasized by the time of clinical detection. Survival rates for individuals with metastatic prostate cancer are quite low. Between these two extremes are patients with prostate tumors that will metastasize but have not yet done so. For these patients, surgical removal of their prostates is curative and extends their life expectancy. Therefore, determination of which group a newly diagnosed patient falls within is critical in determining optimal treatment and patient survival.
Although clinical and pathologic stage and histological grading systems (e.g., Gleason's) have been used to indicate prognosis for groups of patients based on the degree of tumor differentiation or the type of glandular pattern (Carter and Coffey, 1989; Diamond et al., 1982), these systems do not predict the progression rate of the cancer. While the use of computer-system image analysis of histologic sections of primary lesions for "nuclear roundness" has been suggested as an aide in the management of individual patients (Diamond et al., 1982), this method is of limited use in studying the progression of the disease.
Recent studies have identified several recurring genetic changes in prostate cancer including: 1) allelic loss (particularly loss of chromosome 8p and 16q) (Bova, et al., 1993; Macoska et al., 1994; Carter et al., 1990); 2) generalized DNA hypermethylation (Isaacs et al., 1994); 3) point mutations or deletions of the retinoblastoma (Rb) and p53 genes (Bookstein et al., 1990a; Bookstein et al., 1990b; Isaacs et al., 1991); 4) alterations in the level of certain cell-cell adhesion molecules (i.e., E-cadherin/alpha-catenin) (Carter et al., 1990; Morton et al., 1993; Umbas et al., 1992) and aneuploidy and aneusomy of chromosomes detected by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), particularly chromosomes 7 and 8 (Macoska et al., 1994; Visakorpi et al., 1994; Takahashi et al., 1994; Alcaraz et al., 1994).
The analysis of DNA content/ploidy using flow cytometry and FISH has been demonstrated to have utility predicting prostate cancer aggressiveness (Pearsons et al., 1993; Macoska et al., 1994; Visakorpi et al., 1994; Takahashi et al., 1994; Alcaraz et al., 1994; Pearsons et al., 1993), but these methods are expensive, time-consuming, and the latter methodology requires the construction of centromere-specific probes for analysis.
Specific nuclear matrix proteins have been reported to be associated with prostate cancer (Partin et al., 1993). However, these protein markers apparently do not distinguish between benign prostate hyperplasia and prostate cancer (Partin et al., 1993). Unfortunately, markers that cannot distinguish between benign and malignant prostate tumors are of little value.
It is known that the processes of transformation and tumor progression are associated with changes in the levels of messenger RNA species (Slamon et al., 1984; Sager et al., 1993; Mok et al., 1994; Watson et al., 1994). Recently, a variation on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis, known as RNA fingerprinting or differential display PCR, has been used to identify messages differentially expressed in ovarian or breast carcinomas (Liang et al., 1992; Sager et al., 1993; Mok et al., 1994; Watson et al., 1994). By using arbitrary primers to generate "fingerprints" from total cell RNA, followed by separation of the amplified fragments by high resolution gel electrophoresis, it is possible to identify RNA species that are either up-regulated or down-regulated in cancer cells. Results of these studies indicate the presence of several markers of potential utility for diagnosis of breast or ovarian cancer, including a6-integrin (Sager et al., 1993), DEST001 and DEST002 (Watson et al., 1994), and LF4.0 (Mok et al., 1994).
There remain, however, deficiencies in the prior art with respect to the identification of the genes linked with the progression of prostate cancer and the development of diagnostic methods to monitor disease progression. Likewise, the identification of genes that are differentially expressed in prostate cancer would be of considerable importance in the development of a rapid, inexpensive method to diagnose prostate cancer.

Biomarkers for detection of prostate cancer


Systems and methods for high-speed compression of dynamic electrical signal waveforms to extend the measuring capabilities of conventional measuring devices such as oscilloscopes and high-speed data acquisition systems are discussed. Transfer function components and algorithmic transfer functions can be used to accurately measure signals that are within the frequency bandwidth but beyond the voltage range and voltage resolution capabilities of the measuring device.

Complex electronic designs are driving innovation across many industries today. Digital Storage Oscilloscopes (DSO) and high-speed Data Acquisition Systems (DAS) are basic tools for designing, manufacturing and repairing electronic equipment. As the eyes of the engineer, oscilloscopes and DAS's are the key to meeting today's demanding measurement challenges. An oscilloscope or DAS acquires and stores electrical waveforms and can display that analog signal's amplitude and frequency content. This information can reveal a high-speed phenomenon that is too fast for the eyes, help determine whether a malfunctioning component is distorting a signal, how much of a signal is noise, whether the noise changes with time, and more.
The oscilloscope's fundamental ability to accurately measure an analog signal is determined simultaneously by several factors. Those include the voltage amplitude range, the voltage resolution, the maximum analog frequency (or analog bandwidth), and the digitizer sampling rate (also known as bandwidth). When an oscilloscope's analog bandwidth and/or sampling rate is too low for the analog signal that is being captured, the oscilloscope will not be able to resolve high-frequency content and rapid amplitude changes. If the oscilloscope's voltage resolution is not high enough, the amplitude content of the analog signal will be distorted and the low-level details of the signal will be suppressed below the background and quantization noise floor. That information will be lost and the acquired signal rendered unusable, particularly for non-repetitive signals or unique transient signal events.
In general, oscilloscopes can accurately resolve the amplitude of a constant-frequency, sinusoidal wave signal up to a significant fraction of the analog bandwidth of the oscilloscope. Above that frequency, the amplitude accuracy decreases with increasing frequency. Entry-level oscilloscopes typically have a maximum analog bandwidth of 100 MHz which yields satisfactory sinusoidal accuracy up to 20 MHz. For digital signals, such as a square wave, oscilloscopes must capture an analog bandwidth much higher than that required by a sinusoid wave. Square waves include all odd harmonics of the fundamental square wave frequency. The oscilloscope must be able to acquire the first, third, fifth, seventh, and ninth harmonics of the square wave signal or the displayed waveform will lose key features and may not be enough to represent the original signal. Capturing high-speed digital, serial communications, video and other complex signals can require oscilloscope analog bandwidths of 500 MHz or more.
Unfortunately, oscilloscopes having a high bandwidth can be cost prohibitive. Further, oscilloscopes having both a high bandwidth and a high voltage resolution are even more costly, rare, or even unavailable within the current state-of-the-art. Furthermore, an oscilloscope requires a probe to obtain the electrical signal from a device-under-test (DUT) before it is acquired and recorded. Probes that are useful for measuring large voltage or large current signals do not typically offer the high-frequency bandwidth to accurately measure rapid amplitude changes. Probes that have high bandwidths that are useful for measuring fast signals with rapid amplitude changes, often cannot tolerate voltages higher than 1 volt without the use of an attenuator which may introduce amplitude and frequency distortions.

Dynamic range enhancement of high-speed electrical signal data via non-linear compression

The United States of America as Represented by the Administrator of National Aeronautics and Space Administration


Safety device for vertically openable closures provided with a shutter mounted about a fixed tube (1), includes a fixed disc (10) provided with at least one radial opening (16-17), a movable disc (23) driven in rotation with the shutter, at least one blockage element (25-27) articulated on the movable disc (23) and including a free end (25a) of a shape adapted to be able to penetrate and to become blocked in each radial opening (16-17) of the fixed disc (10), and associated with each blockage element (25-27) resilient elements (32) adapted to permit a pivoting of this latter so as to cause its free end (25a) to become blocked in a radial opening (16-18) when the centrifugal force exceeds a given threshold value.

For obvious safety reasons, it is now the practice to provide vertically opening closure screens with retaining devices seeking to avoid falling of the shutter in the case of malfunction of an element of the carrying system. Moreover, in certain countries, the standards in force require providing such screens with a safety device.
As to screens provided with springs for compensating the shutter, mounted about a fixed tube, these springs are major elements adapted to undergo malfunction, and the most often present system consists in designing compensation springs integrating their own safety system in case of breakage. However, this solution has principally two drawbacks. Thus, and in the first instance, it gives rise to increase of cost of the screens because of the multiplication of the number of safety devices equal to the number of springs, and moreover it requires replacing the spring provided with its safety device upon breakage of this latter. Still further, upon breakage of a compensating spring, the shutter is blocked in the position in which it is located upon this breakage. However, the compensating springs are often disposed within the roller of the shutter and are thus not directly accessible unless the shutter is entirely taken down. In these conditions, the changing of the broken compensation spring is almost always a hazardous operation requiring frequent damage to the shutter to gain access to said spring.
As to the closure screens mounted about a rotatable tube, there exist at present a plurality of safety systems designed according to the same principle and comprising generally a member in the form of a disc or rotor adapted to be secured to the rotatable tube so as to be driven in rotation with this latter, at least one abutment member mounted pivotally on the rotor about an axis parallel to the axis of the rotatable tube, and a fixed member or stator of generally annular shape, disposed about the rotor and provided with an internal peripheral surface having recesses for blocking the free end of the abutment member.
The principle of all these safety devices consists in using the centrifugal force exerted on each pivotal abutment member, to bring this latter into a blocking position of the shutter when this centrifugal force becomes too great, corresponding to an excessive abnormal speed of unrolling of the screen.
In practice, such safety devices are quite satisfactory when they are designed to be used with closure screens of relatively low weight such as for example used for constructions in habitations. By contrast, they have drawbacks when the closure screens, for example those used for industrial buildings, have relatively great size and hence weight.
Thus, by their design, these safety devices comprise abutment members which are subjected to a phenomenon of rebound during blockage in rotation of the screen, which determines whether their effectiveness can be guaranteed.
However, in practice, overcoming this rebound phenomenon is a problem difficult to solve, as will be seen for example from a consideration of the safety device of the conventional type described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,093, in which the peripheral surface of the stator comprises inclined throats toward which the end of the abutment member is guided by ramps provided on said peripheral surface.
According to this design, the rebound phenomenon is avoided thanks to the conjugated shape of the end of the abutment member and the throats which thus permit obtaining wedging of said abutment member within one of the throats.
However, the wedging effort being proportional to the weight of the shutters, the use of such a safety device with shutters of relatively high weight leads either to a blockage with a great wedging effect of the abutment member within one throat, or an inelastic deformation of the stator.
In the first hypothesis, it is practically impossible to unwedge the abutment member without direct access to the safety device, and this operation requires demounting of the drive means of the rotatable shaft so as to gain access to this safety device, then dismounting said safety device which can be delicate because the latter is blocked. Moreover, during this demounting, it is frequently true that the device will be damaged, which requires its replacement.
In the second hypothesis, the stator is deformed in a residual manner and the ultimate operation of the safety device is no longer guaranteed, such that this latter must in this case also be replaced.
Another solution, described in German patent DE 24 33 544, and also applicable to screens with a rotatable tube, consists in driving in rotation with the tube counterweights adapted to pivot about axes parallel to the axis of said tube, such that one of said counterweights will become engaged in abutment teeth of a fixed plate when the centrifugal force exerted on this latter exceeds a given value determined by resilient means, in a position of blockage in which it is maintained automatically by a pawl.
According to this device, the rebound phenomenon is thus mastered by means of a pawl which ensures maintenance of the counterweight in its blocking position. However, this solution leads to the same drawback as that recited for shutters with compensation springs, namely that the shutter is blocked in the position in which it is located upon breakage of a motor element.

Anti-falling safety device for a shutter


A vehicle running board has an elongated two-piece deck assembly attached to a vehicle frame by means of a plurality of longitudinally spaced brackets connected between the underside of the deck and the vehicle frame. The deck assembly includes a metal running board platform and an overlying step pad formed of plastic and having a number of integrally molded resilient tabs for effectuating a snap fit engagement with the platform. Vinyl end caps are mounted to opposite ends of the deck assembly by a pin and post connector to provide a rigid connection capable of withstanding excessive use yet capable of accommodating thermal expansion and contraction of the running board components.

1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed toward a running board for use with a motor vehicle, and more particularly toward an improved running board construction utilizing a combination of molded plastic and steel components.
2. Background Art
Conventional vehicles of the sport utility, pick-up truck, and van types frequently have running boards to facilitate entry and exit therefrom. Because of the often appreciable height differential between the cabs or passenger compartments of such vehicles and the ground level, running boards are mounted alongside vehicle frame below the door openings to provide a convenient step for individuals attempting to enter and leave the vehicle.
In order to support the weight of vehicle occupants standing on a running board, running boards are commonly formed of metal or wood and are rigidly secured to the vehicle frame. That is, structural rigidity is an important consideration in the selection of materials for running board construction. Although the use of such materials is reasonably effective to withstand the repeated loadings associated with frequent entry into and exit from vehicles, a number of significant problems exist.
During operation of a vehicle, running boards are continuously exposed to the rather abusive outdoor environment. Consequently, the running board step surface tends to accumulate rain water, ice, snow, mud, and various other materials. Because of the relatively low coefficients of friction of the above noted running board materials selected primarily on the basis of structure rigidity, the running boards can become slippery and footing is substantially degraded.
Running boards also enhance the aesthetic appearance of the vehicle. Commonly, a running board has highly polished chrome or colored surfaces which are coordinated with the vehicle body panels. Due to the repeated foot traffic to which a running board is subjected, however, the surfaces can become scuffed and the paint can be scratched and chipped.
An additional aesthetically pleasing feature of running boards is a smooth blending of the running board ends into the vehicle body contour. Typically, the end edges of the running board are rounded and blended integrally into the vehicle body, with the running board ends abutted against the vehicle and secured by means of rigid clamps.
Because of the rigid connection between the running board ends and the vehicle body, significant stresses can occur in the vehicle body when the running board is subjected to thermal loading. That is, fluctuations in temperature cause expansion and contraction of the running board components. As the different components change size at different rates, the running board ends are force against or, alternatively, pulled away from the vehicle body. The rigid connection restricts the relative displacement of the running board ends and instead applies forces to the vehicle body.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.


System, methods, and other embodiments described herein relate to improving calibration of an onboard sensor of a vehicle. In one embodiment, a method includes, in response to acquiring sensor data from a surrounding environment of the vehicle using the onboard sensor, analyzing the sensor data to determine calibration parameters for the onboard sensor. The method includes identifying a suitability parameter that characterizes how well the surrounding environment provides for determining the calibration parameters. The method includes generating annotations within a map that specify at least the suitability parameter for a location associated with the sensor data. In further aspects, the method includes identifying, from the map, a calibration route for the vehicle that is a deviation from a current route in response to determining that the calibration state of the onboard sensor does not satisfy the calibration threshold.

Vehicles may be equipped with sensors that facilitate perceiving other vehicles, obstacles, pedestrians, and additional aspects of a surrounding environment. For example, a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) sensor uses light/lasers to scan the surrounding environment, while logic associated with the LIDAR analyzes acquired scan data to detect a presence of objects and other features of the surrounding environment. In further examples, additional sensors such as cameras, radar, and so on may be implemented along with the LIDAR in a combined effort to analyze and identify aspects of the surrounding environment. Moreover, a vehicle can also include sensors to determine aspects relating to motion of the vehicle itself such as inertial measurement units (IMUs), in-wheel sensors, and so on. In this way, a vehicle can perceive the surrounding environment and aspects of the vehicle's motion to navigate and avoid obstacles within the surrounding environment.
However, over time or as the result of various events, the sensors can experience drift and/or other variations within different sensor parameters. The variations can cause, for example, reduced accuracy within data that is acquired by the sensors. For example, the vehicle may encounter a large pothole that jolts an onboard camera thereby causing internal parameters of the camera to lose calibration. As a result, the camera may provide images that lack clarity, are focused at an improper depth of field, or have another calibration issue. Consequently, the reduction in sensor data quality can influence an ability of the vehicle to perceive the surrounding environment and, thus, influence an ability of the vehicle to navigate autonomously and/or employ advanced driver assistance systems.
Moreover, a process of calibrating sensors of a vehicle can be complex. For example, some calibration processes may require particular preconfigured environments or environments with particular characteristics in order to achieve calibration. As an additional matter, different sensors may require different calibration processes because of differing characteristics. Thus, once out of calibration, the vehicle may be unable to continue operating systems that rely on the sensor data (e.g., autonomous driving modes). Additionally, executing a calibration process may be inconvenient because of a need to schedule the vehicle for service or seek out a particular area in which the vehicle can be calibrated.

Systems and methods for annotating maps to improve sensor calibration


A fabrication process and an integrated MOS device having multi-crystal silicon resisters are described. The process includes depositing a multi-crystal silicon layer on top of a single-crystal silicon body; forming silicon oxide regions on top of the multi-crystal silicon layer in zones where resistors are to be produced; depositing a metal silicide layer on top of and in contact with the multi-crystal silicon layer so as to form a double conductive layer; and shaping the conductive layer to form gate regions, of MOS transistors. During etching of the double conductive layer, the metal silicide layer on top of the silicon oxide regions is removed and the silicon oxide regions form masking regions for the multi-crystal silicon underneath, so as to form resistive regions having a greater resistivity than the gate regions.

The invention relates generally to integrated circuits and their fabrication, and more particularly to a process for fabricating integrated resistors of multi-crystal silicon in MOS technology and an integrated MOS device comprising multi-crystal silicon resistors.
CMOS technologies are known in which a silicide layer of low resistivity is used to form the gate electrodes of transistors. With these technologies there is the problem of also integrating resistive components of multi-crystal silicon (polysilicon) which may have resistivity values higher than those of the gate electrodes by one or more orders of magnitude.
In particular, this problem arises when, together with logic functions with high switching speed (devices operating at frequencies of the order of several tens of MHz or more), it is necessary also to integrate analog functions which often require multi-crystal silicon resistors with higher resistivity values (typically greater than 20-200 Ohms/square or even of the order of several KOhms/square in particular applications).
For example, in case of ADC converters in which voltage dividers are required having good linearity properties and not too demanding from the point of view of the space occupied in the layout, manufacturing of multi-crystal silicon resistors is often regarded as the best; on the other hand this technique is not applicable to processes for digital devices, where the low resistance of signal lines is an important requirement.
The technological difficulties of such integration are well understood given the process flow and the architecture of a typical CMOS process using silicide gate electrodes. As is well known, the material of the gate lines is a composite material obtained by superimposing a high-resistivity (typically 20-200 Ohms/square) multi-crystal silicon layer and a silicide layer of a metal which generally has a low resistivity value (such as tungsten silicide with a resistivity equal to approximately 5 Ohms/square). Since this composite material is shaped by a single masking step, it is currently impossible to distinguish the two layers and the resistive components which can be obtained inevitably have the low resistivity value of the composite material.
The above-mentioned difficulties are still greater where resistors of very high value (e.g., between 10 and 100 KOhms) are to be integrated. In view of the stringent linearity and accuracy requirements, these components would have to be produced through long multi-crystal silicon strips and would require considerable space in the layout. To remedy this disadvantage it is known to manufacture resistors, in addition to those normally available in a CMOS process, of multi-crystal silicon with resistivity of the order of several KOhms/square. At the present time, such high-value resistors are integrated using a specific polysilicon masking and subsequent doping step before defining the gate lines, so as to locally shield normal doping (with POCl3 or implant) and leaving such areas with the concentration of dopant previously received through a suitable ion implantation step. In this way, multi-crystal silicon strips for the gate lines with a resistivity of the order of tens of Ohms/square together with resistors strips with resistivity of the order of several KOhms/square can be obtained at the same time by the known process.
For the reasons outlined above, this process is entirely incompatible with a MOS process using a silicide layer and constitutes a limit to optimization of the design of devices in terms of both performance and dimensions.
In accordance with the present invention, a process is provided for fabricating integrated multi-crystal silicon resistors in a MOS device. The process includes depositing a multi-crystal silicon layer on a single-crystal silicon body. The multi-crystal silicon is doped a first time, and selective portions of the multi-crystal silicon are then masked. The multi-crystal silicon is then doped a second time, with the selective portions then having a conductivity lower than adjacent portions of the multi-crystal silicon. Masking regions are then formed on the multi-crystal silicon layer prior to forming a metal silicide layer on and in contact with the multi-crystal silicon layer. The metal silicide layer and multi-crystal silicon layer then form a double conductive layer which is etched to form gate regions.
In accordance with the process of the present invention, an integrated MOS device is produced that includes a gate region having a first resistivity, a first resistive element having a second resistivity, and a second resistive element having a third resistivity. The third resistivity is greater than the second resistivity, which in turn is greater than the first resistivity.
One advantage of the invention is that both low-resistivity gate lines and multi-crystal silicon resistive components with higher resistivity values can be readily provided in MOS integrated devices.

Process for fabricating integrated multi-crystal silicon resistors in MOS technology, and integrated MOS device comprising multi-crystal silicon resistors


A power controller for use in a PFC power converter is capable being immune from audible noise during the test of load transient response. A transconductor with a transconductance compares an output voltage of the PFC power converter with a target voltage to provide a compensation current, which builds up a compensation voltage. An ON-time controller is configured to end an ON time of a power switch in response to the compensation voltage. An OFF-time controller is configured to end an OFF time of the power switch. A compensation-voltage designator presets the compensation voltage. A status detector controls the transconductor, the ON-time controller, the OFF-time controller, and the compensation-voltage designator, in response to the output voltage, a top-boundary voltage and a bottom-boundary voltage.

The present disclosure relates generally to switch-mode power supplies, and, more particularly, to control methods and power converts that provide power factor correction.
Power factor correction (PFC) shapes the input current of off-line power supplies to maximize the real power available from the mains. Ideally, the electrical appliance should present a load that emulates a pure resistor, in which case the reactive power drawn by the device is zero. Inherent in this scenario is the absence of input current harmonics—the current is a perfect replica of the input voltage (usually a sine wave) and is exactly in phase with it. In this case the current drawn from the mains is at a minimum for the real power required to perform the needed work, and this minimizes losses and costs associated not only with the distribution of the power, but also with the generation of the power and the capital equipment involved in the process. The freedom from harmonics also minimizes interference with other devices being powered from the same source.
Another reason to employ PFC in many of today's power supplies is to comply with regulatory requirements. Today, electrical equipment in Europe and Japan must comply with the IEC61000-3-2. This requirement applies to most electrical appliances with input power of 75 W (Class D equipment) or greater, and it specifies the maximum amplitude of line-frequency harmonics up to and including the 39th harmonic. Additionally, many energy efficiency requirements also carry a PFC requirement such as the Energy Star 5.0 for Computers and Energy Star 2.0 for External Power Supplies, and for TV effective November 2008.
FIG. 1 demonstrates switch-mode power supply 10 providing the function of PFC. Switch-mode power supply 10 has bridge rectifier 12, PFC power converter 14, and voltage/current regulator 16. Bridge rectifier 12 converts alternating-current (AC) voltage VAC from the mains into direct-current (DC) voltage VIN1 having a M-shaped waveform. DC voltage VIN1 at power line IN1 acts as an input power source for PFC power converter 14, which emulates a pure resistor to drain current from power line IN1 and to accordingly build up at power line IN2 DC voltage VIN2, a relatively more stable voltage than DC voltage VIN1. Using DC voltage VIN2 as an input power source, voltage/current regulator 16 provides much more stable output voltage VOUT complying with the requirements that load 18 needs.
For example, PFC power converter 14 could be a booster, voltage/current regulator 16 an LLC resonant converter or a flyback power converter.
DC voltage VIN2 cannot vary wildly and need be confined within a reasonable range. If DC voltage VIN2 goes wild because of violent change of load 18 during, for example, test of load-transient response, DC voltage VIN2 might become over high, causing the sudden shutdown of PFC power converter 14 and the unstableness of the whole switch-mode power supply 10. Audible noise might occur as well because of the shutdown and the resume of PFC power converter 14.

Power controllers and control methods for PFC converter


Embodiments of the present invention relate to a method and system for evaluating selection conditions associated with variants of components of a multi-component configurable product for consistency and completeness.

Computer software tools have become indispensable to managing the complexity entailed in designing and manufacturing many modern products. Automobiles are one example of such products.
One aspect of the complexity involved in the design and manufacture of an automobile is the great number and variability of its constituent parts. Typically an automobile model is assembled from a catalogue of parts according to a particular set of design specifications. Because of the number and variability of parts, it can be difficult for designers to ensure that the combinations of the parts are correct.
An approach that uses a computer-based system and associated software to help manage this aspect of complexity is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,233,094 ('094). As described in the '094 patent, a complex product such as an automobile may be represented in terms of a hierarchical data structure. A top or highest node of the data structure represents the end product (e.g., a compact car), while lower or subordinate nodes represent the components of the end product and associated production processes. A data structure of this kind, used in conjunction with, for example, a graphical user interface (GUI) with various different "views" tailored to specific user needs, helps to simplify design and production.
More specifically, the GUI may enable users, e.g., designers, to specify particular values for characteristics of a desired end product. The characteristics act to select particular variants of components of the end product. That is, a component may be represented in terms of its function within a product or as an abstraction of materials that may be used for the component, and there may be a number of possible variants associated with the component. The variants may be actual concrete realizations of the function or abstraction of the component: for example, one concrete realization of a component abstracted as a "seat" could be a leather, bucket seat, while another might a be a vinyl, bench-type seat. Based on the characteristics of a desired end product, only one of these realizations might be suitable for inclusion in the end product.
The foregoing is a very simple example; in actual practice, there may be hundreds or thousands of components and associated variants within a node hierarchy. Accordingly, there is a need to ensure that the selection of variants is correct: i.e., that it does not result, for example, in different variants being selected for the same component, or in incompatible components being combined. One way in which this need is addressed in the art is to provide user-defined "selection conditions" associated with component variants. A selection condition defines a set of conditions under which a particular variant of a component may be selected for inclusion into a product.
In a design and manufacturing process for a complex product such as an automobile, such selection conditions are typically very numerous, and change frequently. To prevent errors, the selection conditions need to be "consistent" and "complete," meaning, as explained in more detail further on, that at least one and at most one variant of a component should be selected. To ensure consistency and completeness, a software-implemented method used in the prior art evaluates a group of selection conditions for compliance with a set of rules and constraints. However, this prior art method uses a two-step process that first converts selection conditions into a somewhat lengthy and cumbersome form of logical expression, and then applies constraints to the converted expressions. Execution of the method can be comparatively slow, especially as the number of selection conditions increases. This may be frustrating to users when selection conditions change frequently, as they typically do.
In view of the foregoing considerations, an approach is needed to more efficiently evaluate selection conditions for consistency and completeness.

Method and system for checking consistency and completeness of selection conditions in a product configuration system


There is provided an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program, the information processing apparatus including: an acquisition unit configured to acquire a recognition accuracy related to a recognition based on sensing data; and a control unit configured to make a first user operation recognizable when the recognition accuracy is included in a first range, and make a second user operation recognizable when the recognition accuracy is included in a second range different from the first range, the second user operation being different from the first user operation and related to the first user operation.

In recent years, technologies enabling equipment to be operated by recognition based on sensing are being used. For example, Patent Literature 1 below discloses a technology in which a user wearing a head-mounted display (HMD) including a camera causes the camera to capture (sense) various gestures using one's own hands, and operates the HMD by gesture recognition.

Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and program


An inkjet recording apparatus includes a plurality of liquid jet heads each including a plurality of nozzles, a designating unit, and a spitting control unit. The designating unit is configured to designate, among the plurality of nozzles of each of the plurality of liquid jet heads, nozzles involved in printing from data representing an image to be printed as nozzles to be fired for a spitting operation. The spitting control unit is configured to carry out control of, if the number of the nozzles designated by the designating unit exceeds a threshold, performing the spitting operation in a time-divided manner that prevents the number of nozzles fired at a same time for the spitting operation from exceeding the threshold.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an inkjet recording apparatus, a control method for inkjet recording apparatus, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium
2. Description of the Related Art
Line printers are lower in head drive frequency than serial printers. Accordingly, because the load applied on a head drive circuit of a line printer during printing is low, from the viewpoint of only the load applied during printing, the drive circuit can be reduced in size and cost. However, if a line printer performs spitting to clear nozzles for maintenance purpose in a manner similar to that in a serial printer, a large load is applied. For this reason, unless the load of spitting is reduced, reduction in size and cost of the drive circuit cannot be achieved. It is known that a technique has been devised to overcome this challenge. In this technique, nozzles necessary for spitting are determined from image data received for printing. Electric power consumption necessary for the spitting is calculated and, if the power consumption is higher than a preset value, the ratio of the number of nozzles to be fired for the spitting to a total number of nozzles is adjusted to a value at which the power consumption does not exceed the preset value. An example of this technique is disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2002-113847.
The conventional configuration which adjusts the ratio of the number of nozzles to be fired for spitting so that the power consumption does not exceed the preset value can reduce the maximum power consumption. However, the configuration is disadvantageous in that even nozzles to be used in printing can be excluded from the nozzles to be fired for spitting.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide an inkjet recording apparatuses capable of reducing maximum power consumption while performing spitting of nozzles to be used in printing appropriately

Inkjet recording apparatus, control method for inkjet recording apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium


Apparatus for stabilizing carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of laser pulse generated by mode locked pulsed laser based on direct locking method includes laser oscillator, interferometer, detector and double feedback circuit. The laser oscillator includes the mode locked pulsed laser generating the laser pulse. The interferometer generates laser pulses having first and second frequency components from the laser pulse generated by the mode locked pulsed laser to generate first and second interference signals that substantially correspond to each other in time domain and space domain. The detector receives the first and second interference signals to output third and fourth interference signals by inverting phase of the second interference signal. The double feedback circuit controls the laser oscillator so that the CEP of the laser pulse generated by the mode locked pulsed laser has substantially constant value with respect to time using CEP signal obtained from the third and fourth interference signals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatuses and methods for stabilizing a carrier-envelope phase of a laser pulse. More particularly, the present invention relates to apparatuses and methods for stabilizing the carrier-envelope phase of a laser pulse by using a direct locking method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Since late 1990s, the carrier-envelope phase (CEP) stabilization of femtosecond laser pulses has been intensively studied as a key technique for high-precision frequency metrology and attosecond science. The CEP stabilization technique in mode-locked femtosecond lasers was first proposed by ultrafast laser scientists and experimentally realized by frequency metrology researchers.
Recently, the CEP stabilization technique was successfully extended to chirped-pulse amplification (CPA) laser systems for the generation of high energy and high-intensity CEP-stabilized pulses. The CEP-stabilized laser has become a revolutionary light source for the frequency metrology, whereas the CEP-stabilized CPA lasers have become an essential tool for the generation of reproducible attosecond XUV pulses that can probe ultrafast electron dynamics in atoms and molecules.
For reliable applications of the CEP stabilization technique, low phase noise and excellent long-term stability are crucial, so great efforts have been made for the enhancement of these parameters in the CEP stabilized femtosecond lasers.
As the technique for reducing pulse width of a laser pulse rapidly develops, a mode-locked pulsed laser has been developed. According to the mode-locked pulsed laser, a laser pulse width corresponds to only two laser oscillation wavelengths to reduce pulse width. Regarding the mode-locked pulsed laser, the technique for reproducing a pulse shape attracts many people's interest.
FIG. 1 shows a pulse train generated by a mode-locked pulsed laser. Referring to FIG. 1, the mode-locked pulsed laser oscillates as a pulse train shape according to a time. A time interval τ means a round trip time required for coming and going in a laser cavity. In other words, the time interval τ is represented as 2 L/c, wherein L is a length of the cavity and c is a speed of light. The time interval τ equals to the reciprocal of a repetition rate frep.
The phase difference between a peak of the carrier wave of a laser pulse and a peak of envelope is referred to as the CEP. That is, the CEP is the phase difference between a peak of the carrier wave of a laser pulse and a peak of an envelope.
According to the mode-locked pulsed laser's pulse shape, the envelopes of the laser pulses in the laser cavity do not vary as shown in FIG. 1. However, a group velocity and a phase velocity of the pulses vary due to dispersion in the laser cavity, so that peaks of the envelope of the laser pulses and peaks of the carrier waves of the laser pulses vary at every times, so that absolute phases of the laser pulses vary as φ1, φ2, φ3 and φ4 in accordance with time.
In FIG. 1, the respective CEP of the laser pulse is φ1, φ2, φ3 and φ4, respectively and a phase difference between the laser pulses is carrier-envelope phase offset (CEO), which is Δφcep. When the CEO is zero, all of the CEP generated by mode-locked pulsed laser has a same value. When the CEO is π/4, every eighth CEP has a same value.
FIG. 2 shows laser pulses having changing CEP in a time domain when the CEO has a constant value, and FIG. 3 shows laser pulses having changing CEP in a frequency domain when the CEO has a constant value.
Referring to FIG. 2, light frequency of laser pulses in the frequency domain of FIG. 3 are shifted from the position (represented by dotted lines) corresponding to multiples of repetition rate freq by the amount of the carrier-envelope offset frequency δ (or fceo) due to the constant CEO Δφcep.
In the conventional mode-locked pulsed laser, the CEO is not constant. In other words, the CEO is variable while the laser pulses are generated. Therefore, the laser frequency of the conventional mode-locked pulsed laser varies and is unstable.
According to a method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,724,788 (METHOD AND DEVICE FOR GENERATING RADIATION WITH STABILIZED FREQUENCY) of Dr. Hänsch, who is a Nobel Prize winner of 2005, and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0017833 (MODE-LOCKED PULSED LASER SYSTEM AND METHOD) of Dr. John L. Hall who is also a Nobel Prize winner of 2005, the laser frequency is stably controlled by controlling the CEO. Thanks to the evolutionary laser frequency stabilizing technique disclosed in the above U.S. Pat. No. 6,724,788 and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0017833, a precision of measuring time, space and mass has been thousands of times enhanced, and a measuring method has been simplified.
For example, thanks to the CEP stabilization technique, a clock having precision of down to eighteen decimal places and having only one second error throughout the age of the universe of about fourteen billion years can be obtained.
Recently, the CEP stabilization technique has been applied to fields other than physics so as to generate an atto-second (10−18 second) pulse. When an ultra-short pulse is applied to gas so as to generate plasma, a shape of laser oscillation is changed at every time, so that an amount of generated plasma is changed due to the effect of CEP. Therefore, a special light such as the atto-second pulse may be generated in the plasma by controlling the CEP. That is similar to generating ultrahigh speed flash lamp capable of taking a picture in an ultrashort time. Through this technique, a motion picture of electron in an atom may be taken. According to a method disclosed in 2003 through the Journal of 'Nature', the laser controlled by CEP is applied to gas, plasma is generated and then atto-second pulse is obtained, and a moving picture of electron in an atom was taken by using the atto-second pulse. After that, many researches have been performed throughout the world.
The CEP stabilization techniques disclosed in the above U.S. Pat. No. 6,724,788 and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0017833 are based on the phase-locked loop (PLL) that stabilizes a CEP offset frequency so as to follow ward a reference RF signal.
The CEP stabilization techniques disclosed in the above U.S. Pat. No. 6,724,788 and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0017833 stabilizes only the CEO Δφcep to have a constant value in order to stabilize a laser frequency but does not allow the CEP to have a constant value.
Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the laser frequency is shifted in the frequency domain by an amount of the CEP offset frequency δ due to the CEO Δφcep.
That is, according to the CEP stabilization techniques disclosed in the above U.S. Pat. No. 6,724,788 and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0017833, the CEP of the laser pulses are changed at every times, so that the laser pulse shapes in time domain are different from each other. As a result, only pulses having the same CEP should be selected in the various laser pulses, when a laser plasma experiment is performed.
Recently, in the thesis "Novel method for carrier-envelope phase stabilization of femtosecond laser pulses" disclosed on Apr. 18, 2005 through the journal of 'OPTICS Express', a CEP stabilization technique based on a direct locking (DL) method is proposed to replace the CEP stabilization technique based on the conventional PLL method.
The DL method has special features in comparison with the conventional PLL method. First, the reference RF signal is not required since the feedback signal is generated in the time domain from f-to-2f beat signal by using a simple DC reference. Therefore, an electronic circuit for embodying the DL method becomes relatively simple. Second, the CEP changes is locked to be zero. Third, the CEP value may be intuitionally and simply modulated in electronic ways by using a shaped external signal.
However, in spite of the advantages described above, the CEP distortion induced by a detection balancing process for removing a background DC noises may be generated when the DL is set up. Additionally, a slow drift of a feedback signal may have influence on an output of a laser pulse to generate crosstalk between the output of the laser pulse and the CEP offset frequency δ or the CEP. Therefore, a circulation ring of a feedback may be broken to disturb the CEP stabilization in the long term.

Apparatuses and methods for stabilizing carrier-envelope phase of laser pulse by using direct locking method

Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology


An intelligent log gap detection to ensure necessary backup promotion. Specifically, a method and system are disclosed, which entail determining whether to pursue a differential database backup or promote the differential database backup to a full database backup, in order to preclude data loss across high availability databases. The deduction pivots on a matching or mismatching between log sequence numbers (LSNs).

Often, multiple databases are configured to fail over together, to ensure high availability of the consolidated information. Also, at times, disaster recovery for these databases are managed not by a sole backup platform, but various backup platforms, which do not cross-share information. As it stands, being unaware of the others' actions, gaps in the backup chain for these databases are prevalent, leading to data loss upon restoration of the databases.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Intelligent log gap detection to ensure necessary backup promotion


A method for analyzing the performance of a logic circuit driven by a clock signal, such as a microprocessor, identifies a number of operations of interest in a logic circuit and represents the presence of each of such operations by a different symbol. One or more of these symbols are output for perusal at the end of each clock period of operation. In one embodiment, this method is applied to a register transfer level (RTL) simulation of an execution unit of a microprocessor. In that embodiment, the execution sequence of multiple instructions executing simultaneously in the execution unit was analyzed. Because each output symbol represents a summary of a large number of activities that occur in a single clock period of operation or simulation of a complex logic circuit, these symbols can be tabulated in a format that allows a designer of the complex logic circuit to easily spot an unexpected pattern of operation, or an error condition.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to computer system performance analysis. In particular, this invention relates to analyzing performance of a microprocessor which executes multiple instructions simultaneously.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
A relatively recent architecture for microprocessors, known as the "superscaler" architecture, enables multiple instructions to be executed in the microprocessor in parallel. By allowing parallel execution of multiple instructions, very high processing speed can be achieved. For at least two reasons, however, most programs designated to run on such microprocessors are still written as a sequence of instructions expected to be executed in a prescribed order. First, most high level programming languages favored by the majority of programmers are semantically primarily sequential, i.e. such programming languages provide no construct to allow the programmer to designate parallel execution. Second, inherent data dependency exists in any algorithm, such that certain operations are required to be carried out in a prescribed sequence in order to yield the correct result. Thus, an important challenge in a superscaler design is to provide a scheduling mechanism whereby the multiple instructions that are executed in parallel do so in such a manner that the correct result is obtained, even though some instructions may be executed completely out of order.
Clearly, to ensure that the complex logic circuit that controls and schedules instruction execution in a superscaler microprocessor is operating correctly, it is desirable to be able to trace and to debug the complex execution sequences expected to be occurring in such a microprocessor. Further, during the development of a microprocessor, the ability to accurately analyze the performance of a given circuit architecture is important to help the designer make design decisions. Such performance analysis is impossible without a tool which allows good visibility into the complex operations of such a microprocessor. Such a tool can be used in analyzing other complex logic circuits, in addition to the use discussed above.

Method for analyzing the performance of a microprocessor


An optical fiber cleaver having a main body having a channel, a feed block attached to the main body in the channel, the feed block being operable between a front position and a rear position, a length selector for setting an optical fiber cleaving length, the length selector comprising a scale provided on the main body, a display provided on the feed block, and a position indicator operably associated with the scale, a pair of upper and lower clamps which fasten an optical fiber of an optical fiber when the feed block is located in the front position, a slider, a blade carried by the slider, the blade being configured to form an initial partial cleaving, and a push-up member carried by the slider and configured to bend the optical fiber subsequent the initial partial cleaving of the optical fiber is disclosed.

In an optical fiber connection, for example, by welding or the like, cleaving the end surface of each optical fiber is required so that the end surface is at a right angle to the axial direction of the optical fiber, and the surface is flat and smooth to minimize light attenuation through the connection.
The optical fiber cleaver shown in Prior Art FIGS. 12A and 12B, for example, is a conventional optical fiber cleaver (see JP-A-7-81970).
The optical fiber cleaver 101 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 12A and 12B comprises a clamp stand 103 on one end of a base 102 that holds a jacket of a fiber-optic cable (not shown in the figure), a second clamp stand 105 on the other end of the base 102 that holds an optical fiber, and a blade 107 disposed on the base 102 between the clamp stand 103 and the second clamp stand 105 which cleaves the optical fiber.
Guide grooves 103a which receive jackets are formed in the upper surface of the clamp stand 103. Furthermore, a jacket clamp 104 is pivotally attached to the surface of the clamp stand 103 so that the jacket of a fiber-optic cable in the guide groove 103a is pressed and fastened in place by closing the jacket clamp 104. The clamp stand 103 imparts a tensile force in cooperation with the second clamp stand 105 to the fiber-optic cable. Specifically, the clamp stand 103 is slidable toward the blade 107 (axial direction of the optical fiber) during cleaving, and is biased away from the blade 107 by an elastic member (not shown in the figure).
A fiber clamp 106 is pivotally attached to the surface of the second clamp stand 105 so that the optical fiber is fastened by closing the fiber clamp 106.
In addition, the blade 107 is formed as a disk, and is fastened to a slider 108 that slides in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the optical fiber. The blade 107 is positioned underneath the optical fiber that is fastened to the clamp stand 103 and fiber clamp 106, so that the blade 107 initially partially cleaves the optical fiber by sliding in the direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the optical fiber.
Furthermore, as is shown in Prior Art FIG. 12A, a scale 109 for setting the cleaving length of an optical fiber is provided on the clamp stand 103.
When an optical fiber is to be cleaved by the optical fiber cleaver 101, the jacket clamp 104 and fiber clamp 106 are first opened, the jacketed part of the fiber-optic cable is fitted into one of the guide grooves 103a, and the optical fiber is placed on the second clamp stand 105. Next, the jacket clamp 104 is closed, and the clamp stand 103 is urged toward the blade 107 and stopped at a specified position. In this state, the fiber clamp 106 is closed. At this point, because the clamp stand 103 is biased away from the blade 107 by the built-in elastic member, a certain amount of tensile force is applied to the optical fiber. Then, when the blade 107 is slid in the direction perpendicular to the optical fiber axial direction, a cut is formed in the optical fiber, and the optical fiber is cleaved by the tensile force described above.
Moreover, the cleaver shown in Prior Art FIG. 13, is another example of a conventional optical fiber cleaver for cleaving optical fibers (see JP-A-2003-165740).
The optical fiber cleaver 201 shown in Prior Art FIG. 13 comprises a main body 202, a cover 203 pivotally attached to the main body 202, a pair of upper and lower clamps 204a, 205a and 204b, 205b that hold the optical fiber of a fiber-optic cable, a blade part 207 that slides in a direction perpendicular to the optical fiber and that initially partially cleaves the optical fiber, a holder 210 that holds the jacketed part of the optical fiber, and a pillow 208 that bends the optical fiber.
Here, the pair of upper and lower clamps 204a, 205a and 204b, 205b are constructed by fitting rubber into a metal stand part. The lower clamps 205a and 205b are installed a specified distance apart along an optical fiber axial direction on one end of the upper portion of the main body 202 while the upper clamps 204a and 204b are installed on the cover 203 in positions facing the lower clamps 205a and 205b.
Furthermore, the blade 207 is disk shaped and is fastened to a slider 206 that slides in a direction perpendicular to the optical fiber. The blade 207 is disposed between the upper and lower clamps 204a, 205a and 204b, 205b.
Moreover, the holder 210 is designed to be attached to a holder guide 209 formed on the other end of the main body 202.
In addition, the pillow 208 is installed on the cover 203, and works in conjunction with the blade 207 so that after the blade 207 initially partially cleaves the optical fiber, the pillow 208 bends the optical fiber and fully cleaves the optical fiber.
When optical fibers are to be cleaved by this optical fiber cleaver 201, the fiber-optic cables are first set in the holder 210, and the jacket at the end portions of the respective fiber-optic cables are removed to expose the optical fibers. Next, the cover 203 is opened, and the holder 210 is attached to the holder guide 209. Then, the cover 203 is closed, and slider 206 is slid causing the blade 207 to initially partially cleave the optical fibers. Then, the pillow 208 bends the optical fibers, causing propagation of the initial partial cleave and ultimately fracturing the optical fibers.
Furthermore, the optical fiber cleaver shown in Prior Art FIGS. 14A and 14B, for example, is another example of a conventional optical fiber cleaver for cleaving optical fibers (see JP-UM-A-63-135304).
The optical fiber cleaver 301 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 14A and 14B is devised as follows: namely, a spring 304 is interposed between a pair of first frames 302 and second frames 303 that can be opened and closed, where opening these frames allows placement of a fiber-optic cable 320 on the carrier 305 of the first frame 302. When the first and second frames 302 and 303 are closed, an optical fiber 322 of the fiber-optic cable 320 is cleaved by a blade 307 and a bending arm 308 while the optical fiber 322 is pressed and held by a press 306.
Here, the carrier 305 comprises a bender holder 310 attached to the free end of the first frame 302, a bender plate 311 having one end is attached to the surface of the bender holder 310, a rubber bender 312 attached to the surface of the bender plate 311, and a fiber guide 313 attached to the other ends of the bender plate 311 and rubber bender 312. Furthermore, a wide groove 314 in which the jacketed part 321 of the fiber-optic cable 320 is accommodated and a narrow groove 315 in which the optical fiber 322 of the fiber-optic cable 320 is accommodated are formed in the fiber guide 313.
Moreover, the blade 307 is attached to the second frame 303 so that this cleaver can swing in a direction perpendicular to an optical fiber axial direction. The blade 307 has the function of initially partially cleaving the optical fiber 322 while the optical fiber 322 of the fiber-optic cable 320 is pressed and held by the press 306 when the first and second frames 302 and 303 are closed.
In addition, the bending arm 308 is attached to the second frame 303. The bending arm 308 is devised as follows: namely, after the blade 307 initially partially cleaves the optical fiber 322, the bending arm 308 presses the fiber guide 313 to flex the carrier 305 downward, thus imparting a bending force to the optical fiber 322. When the optical fiber 322 is bent by the bending arm 308, the initial partial cleave propagates and results in the fracturing of the optical fiber 322.
Furthermore, the optical fiber cleaver shown in Prior Art FIGS. 15A through 15C, for example, is another example of a conventional optical fiber cleaver for cleaving optical fibers (see JP-UM-A-63-21905).
The optical fiber cleaver 401 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 15A through 15C comprises a spring plate 402 and an arm 403 pivotally attached to the spring plate 402. The spring plate 402 is provided with a guide 404 that guides the jacketed part 411 and optical fiber 412 of a fiber-optic cable 410, and a clamp 405 that fastens the end portion of the optical fiber 412 of the fiber-optic cable 410. Moreover, a slider 406 that can slide along the direction of length of the arm 403 is attached to the arm 403. A blade 407 that initially partially cleaves the optical fiber 412 of the fiber-optic cable 410 is provided at the lower end of slider 406. The slider 406 is fastened to a specified position of the arm 403 in a direction of length by a fastening screw 408. In addition, a scale 409 for confirming the position of the slider 406 is provided with markings at 5 mm intervals on a side surface of the arm 403 in the sliding range of the slider 406. Furthermore, a position confirming mark 406a is provided on a side surface of the slider 406, so that the cleaving length of the optical fiber 412 can be confirmed by reading the value of the scale 409 indicated by the position confirming mark 406a.
When the fiber-optic cable 410 is to be cleaved by the optical fiber cleaver 401, the slider 406 is first moved to the position of a target cleaving length and fastened in place, the jacketed part 411 and optical fiber 412 (which is not covered by a jacket) of the fiber-optic cable 410 are set on the spring plate 402 in accordance with the guide 404, and the tip of the optical fiber 412 is pressed by the clamp 405. Next, the blade 407 is pressed against the optical fiber 412 of the fiber-optic cable 410 to initially cleave the optical fiber 412 by pressing the arm 403 down. Next, the blade 407 is released and the spring plate 402 is bent, so that the optical fiber 412 is fully cleaved.
However, the following problems have been encountered in the optical fiber cleaver 101 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 12A and 12B, the optical fiber cleaver 201 shown in Prior Art FIG. 13, the optical fiber cleaver 301 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 14A and 14B, and the optical fiber cleaver 401 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 15A through 15C:
Specifically, in the case of the optical fiber cleaver 101 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 12A and 12B, a certain amount of tensile force is applied to the optical fiber of the fiber-optic cable when the optical fiber is cleaved. Therefore, when the blade 107 is pressed against the optical fiber, there is a concern that the optical fiber may escape from the blade 107. Accordingly, it is difficult to form a stable cleaving in the optical fiber, and there are cases in which the cleaved surface is inclined or ripped which contributes to signal attenuation. Furthermore, the scale 109 for setting the optical fiber cleaving length is provided on the clamp stand 103, but there is no clear description of how to use the scale 109. Because the cleaving length of the optical fiber refers to the length of the optical fiber of a fiber-optic cable in which the jacket is removed at one end portion, cleaving the optical fiber involves moving the clamp stand 103 in toward the blade 107 after closing the jacket clamp 104. Therefore, the tip end of the jacketed part is hidden when the cleaving length is determined so that the cleaving length of the optical fiber cannot be determined using the scale 109.
Moreover, in the case of the optical fiber cleaver 201 shown in Prior Art FIG. 13, while the blade 207 is fastened to the slider 206, the pillow 208 is installed on the cover 203, undesirably complicating the cleaving mechanism of the optical fiber. Furthermore, the fastening position of the optical fiber by means of the holder 210 is fixed, undesirably limiting cleaving of an optical fiber to a single predetermined length.
In addition, in the case of the optical fiber cleaver 301 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 14A and 14B, because the fiber-optic cable 320 is not fastened on the side of the jacketed part 321, the process of cleaving the optical fiber 322 with blade 307 is unstable, resulting in cleaved surfaces which are inclined or ripped which contributes to signal attenuation. Furthermore, because only a certain location of the blade 307 contacts the optical fiber 322, the blade 307 has a short service life. Moreover, when the carrier 305 is repeatedly flexed downward by the bending arm 308, the rubber bender 312 undergoes plastic deformation into the shape of the letter "V" as a result of the repeated bending action of the rubber bender 312, so that there is a possibility that the blade 307 will no longer contact the optical fiber 322 at a right angle. As a result, cleaving the optical fiber 322 is unstable, resulting in cleaved surfaces which are inclined or ripped which contributes to signal attenuation. In addition, because the fastening position of the fiber-optic cable 320 is fixed, the optical fiber 322 can only be cleaved at a certain length.
Furthermore, in the case of the optical fiber cleaver 401 shown in Prior Art FIGS. 15A-15C, because the fiber-optic cable 410 is not fastened on the side of the jacketed part 411 (the fiber-optic cable 410 is merely guided in the guide 404), cleaving the optical fiber 412 by the blade 407 is unstable, resulting in cleaved surfaces that are inclined or ripped which contributes to signal attenuation. Moreover, because only a certain location of the blade 407 contacts the optical fiber 412, the blade 407 has a short service life. In addition, if the spring plate 402 is repeatedly bent over long-term use, the spring plate 402 undergoes plastic deformation into the shape of the letter "V," so that there is a possibility that the blade 407 will no longer contact the optical fiber 412 at a right angle. As a result, cleaving the optical fiber 412 is unstable, resulting in cleaved surfaces that are inclined or ripped which contributes to signal attenuation. Furthermore, while the cleaving length of the optical fiber 410 can be set and confirmed by reading the value of the scale 409 indicated by the position confirming mark 406a, the process is cumbersome. Specifically, when the cleaving length is to be changed, it is necessary to temporarily loosen the fastening screw 408 to move the cleaver box 406 to the new position in the direction of length of the arm 403, and then to fasten the cleaver box 406 to the arm 403 by tightening the fastening screw 408. This operation is troublesome prevents easy changing of the cleaving length setting.


A vascular catheter apparatus for penetration through tissue and for cardiac stimulation, and a methods thereof, are disclosed. The apparatus includes a tubular member having a lumen, and a blunt-end stylet within the lumen. An actuation mechanism causes axial movement of the stylet relative to the catheter tube such that the blunt end of the stylet separate tissue for passage of the catheter through the bored tissue. The stylet itself, or an additional stylet, includes a proximal electrode adapted to be oriented in a cardiac chamber and a distal electrode adapted to be oriented adjacent to the epicardium of the heart to cause cardiac stimulation.

The present invention pertains to a vascular catheter assembly for penetration through tissue and for cardiac stimulation, and methods thereof. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a tubular member containing a stylet and insertable into a cardiac chamber for blunt boring of an opening through the endocardial, myocardial and epicardial tissue for passage of the tubular member and stylet into the pericardial space. Either the boring stylet itself, or a different stylet can be passed through this opening to provide cardiac stimulation.
The pericardium of the heart includes the pericardial sac, a tough, fibrous membrane surrounding the heart; the pericardial space, a void filled with serous fluid; and the epicardial layer, the exterior surface of the heart. In addition to the pericardium, the heart has the myocardium, a middle, muscular layer; and the endocardium, an inner layer on the walls of the heart's atrial and ventricular chambers.
In order to gain access to the epicardial surface of the heart, for ablation of arrhythmic areas, implantation of defibrillation electrodes or mapping of the epicardial surface, for example, a thoractomy is often required.
In addition to the time, expense, operating and infection risks, and patient discomfort associated with opening the patient's thorax, another problem exists in gaining access to the epicardium by breaching the pericardial sac. Opening the pericardial sac allows the serous fluid to escape and blood to enter the pericardial space inviting additional cardiac complications such as infection and irritation.
A need thus exists for a catheter-based apparatus and method for vascular entry into the body, and particularly into the heart, that circumvents major thoracic surgery and minimizes the amount of organ bleeding that occurs when the stylet passes through organ tissue layers.

Vascular catheter assembly for tissue penetration and for cardiac stimulation and methods thereof


A cushion pad for a mask worn by a patient, comprising a first side to contact skin of the patient, and a second side, opposite the first side, to contact or face the mask. The pad has a main body portion having a central portion shaped to cover a portion of the patient's nose extending from above the nose tip to the nasal bridge region without obstructing the patient's line of sight, and lateral side portions to extend downward and terminate along the sides of the nose or on the patient's cheeks. The main body is made of a breathable material, e.g., foam. The pad may include adhesive and/or an attached portion, e.g., a ring, to couple the pad to the patient and/or portion of the mask.

Typically, respiratory therapy is delivered in the form of a respiratory mask or mask system positioned between a patient and apparatus providing a supply of pressurized air or breathing gas. Mask systems in the field of the invention differ from mask systems used in other applications such as aviation and safety in particular because of their emphasis on comfort. This high level of comfort is desired because patients must sleep wearing the masks for hours, possibly every night for the rest of their lives. In addition, therapy compliance can be improved if the patient's bed partner is not adversely affected by the patient's therapy and wearing of the mask generally.
Mask systems typically, although not always, comprise (i) a rigid or semi-rigid portion often referred to as a shell or frame, (ii) a soft, patient contacting portion often referred to as a cushion, and (iii) some form of headgear to hold the frame and cushion in position. If the mask system does include multiple components, at least some assembly and adjustment may be required, which can be difficult for patients who may suffer from lack of dexterity, etc. Further, mask systems often include a mechanism for connecting an air delivery conduit. The air delivery conduit may preferably be connected to a blower or flow generator.
A range of mask systems are known including nasal masks, nose & mouth masks, full face masks and nasal prongs, pillows, nozzles & cannulae. Masks typically cover more of the face than nasal prongs, pillows, nozzles and cannulae.
Some respiratory masks cause discomfort or are difficult to seal on some patients. Comfort and seal may be particularly troublesome in the nasal bridge region. Other portions of the mask system including but not limited to the forehead support and headgear clips may cause discomfort or cause skin breakdown (e.g. ulceration, skin marking, irritation, redness, etc).


The invention is related to the systems of so-called “security entrance” and, in particular, to the systems for preventing the entry of forbidden articles and/or substances from an unprotected area to a protected one. The simplicity, efficiency and secrecy of examination in a security system for preventing the entry of forbidden articles and/or substances from a surrounding area to a protected one, said system comprised of a partitioning separating a protected area from an unprotected one, at least, one walk-gate made in said partitioning, an information control-and-processing device and a detector of forbidden articles and/or substances is achieved due to said detector of forbidden articles and/or substances made an X-ray kind to provide secret examination of every person passing through said walk-gate.

The invention is related to the systems of so-called "security entrance" and, in particular, to the systems for preventing the entry of forbidden articles and/or substances from an unprotected area to a protected one.
Known are a number of "security entrance" systems based on various concepts such as monitoring the entrance by means of radar devices [DE 19817396, Int. Cl.: G08B13/183, G01S13/04, Published Oct. 21, 1999] or the use of the pass cards equipped with IR-radiators [FR2831308, Int. Cl.: G08B13/19, Published Apr. 25, 2003]. Such systems make it possible to restrict the access to the protected area of the strangers but they are not suitable for providing a security entrance when most of those entering are casual visitors to the place like in the airports, railway terminals, bus stations as well as in the banks, large trading centers etc. These places nowadays present the greatest danger from the viewpoint of their susceptibility to various unlawful acts contemplating the use of both metal and plastic weapons including plastic explosives.
Known are the systems of security entrance employing a number of various methods that make it possible to reveal the attempts of entry of the weapons, explosives or drugs to the protected area. In [International Application WO9921148, Int.Cl.:G01V11/00, G01BV5/00, G08B23/00, G01N23/04, Published Apr. 29, 1999] there is described a sequential passage through a metal detector, a gas analyzer performing the analysis of the air samples from a person under examination and monitoring by means of ultrasonic radar sets. The possibility is provided to perform an X-ray check of hand luggage (bags, briefcases etc) but not the human check. Besides its lack of secrecy this kind of monitoring is also a very expensive one.
Not less complicated is a system of security entrance [U.S. Pat. No. 6,472,984, Int.Cl.:G08B21/00, Published Oct. 29, 2002] wherein a partitioning separating a protected area from an unprotected one is equipped with two or three walk-gates each provided with an appropriate door. A metal detector is used as a detector of forbidden articles. There is also available a weight control device of an examination zone and an information control-and-processing device.
Besides being very complicated and expensive such system do not provide the required secrecy of examination.

Nauchno-Proizvodstvennoe Chastnoe Unitarnoe Predprijatie ADANI


An electromagnetic clutch 1 has a construction in which an armature 5 and a plate 7 sandwich an elastic member 9 between them. A spring portion 7d is formed in the plate 7 and an elastic member 9a is so disposed as to cover a front side of the spring portion 7d, too. Elastic members 9b, 9c and 9d are disposed in a thin film form on an inner surface of elongated holes 5a of the armature 5 and the innermost and outermost diameter portions 5b and 5c of the armature 5. The distal end of each elastic member 9b, 9c and 9d is extended to the same plane as an end face 5d of the armature 5 on the rear side or to a position somewhat protruding from the end face on the rear side.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electromagnetic clutch for transmitting and cutting-off turning power. The invention is suitable for connecting and cutting-off a compressor operation, for a car air conditioner, for example.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electromagnetic clutch for a compressor of a car air conditioner according to the prior art includes a rotor driven and rotated by a driving source such as an engine and an armature so disposed as to face the rotor with a predetermined small clearance between them. A hub structure of a leaf spring type is known as one of the hub structures for interconnecting the armature to a rotary shaft on the compressor side. In this hub structure, one of the ends of a leaf spring is interconnected to an inner hub that is in turn interconnected to the rotary shaft on the compressor side and the other end of the leaf spring is interconnected to the armature.
Because the hub structure of the leaf spring type can use an economical iron type material as a leaf spring material and can also use simple interconnecting means such as rivet coupling for the interconnecting portion of the leaf spring, this hub structure has the advantages that the manufacturing cost can be reduced and the size of the electromagnetic clutch in an axial direction can be reduced. However, it is known that, because the power transmission system from the armature to the hub does not have a damping mechanism of vibration (impact) and torque fluctuation, the hub structure cannot provide a damping effect regarding a clutch operation sound and torsional resonance.
In the construction of the existing electromagnetic clutches, frictional surfaces, of the armature and the rotor and that are made of iron, directly impinge against each other. Therefore, there remain the problems that the transmission torque increases with the increase of the number of times of connection/disconnection from the relation of compatibility of the materials besides the occurrence of the operation sound, and the initial transmission torque is lower than the transmission torque after connection/disconnection.
Another problem is that surface treatment is necessary because the raw material of both plate (leaf spring) and armature is iron.
To cope with the problems, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-161389 as a prior art reference reduces the operation sound by directly interconnecting the leaf spring member (plate) and the armature through an elastic member made of rubber.
According to this prior art technology, too, the problem yet remains unsolved that the surface treatment is necessary because the leaf spring member (plate) is exposed. Another problem is that reaction becomes high and an operation factor is deteriorated because the spring portion of the leaf spring member is bonded to the elastic member.
Furthermore, the problem of the impingement sound that occurs when electric power is fed to the electromagnetic coil and the armature is attracted to the rotor is not solved, either, because the armature is so disposed as to face the rotor with a clearance between them. Further, the problem also remains that when the armature is operated, the leaf spring member vibrates and noise occurs.


A color graphics pipeline has a separate encoder with a dither table for processing each color value in pixel data received from a host processor or rasterizer. The encoders modify color values and dither noise values and also combine both positive and negative dither noise values with the color values, for independent optimization of each color and for better edge detection in a color recovery filter within a decoder of the pipeline. Each encoder comprises the following elements. A comparator mechanism compares a color value with a predetermined cutoff value. A dither table provides dither noise values. An offset mechanism modifies the dither noise values to derive a modified dither noise value when the color value is greater than or equal to the predetermined cutoff value. An aliasing mechanism aliases the color value with other color values below the predetermined cutoff value to derive an aliased color value when the color value is less than the predetermined cutoff value. An adder mechanism adds the unmodified dither noise or modified dither noise to the aliased color value or nonaliased color value, respectively, to derive the dithered color value. A clamping mechanism ensures that the dithered color value resides within a predetermined color range. Finally, a quantizing mechanism quantizes the dithered color value to derive a quantized/dithered color value for storage in memory, such as in a frame buffer.

The field of computer graphics concerns the creation, storage, manipulation, and display of images by a processor. FIG. 1 illustrates a typical graphics pipeline for this purpose. As shown in FIG. 1, the typical graphics pipeline 11 comprises a host processor 12 for generating image data. Each byte of image data often has 24 data bits defining the color intensity parameters for each picture element (pixel), 8 data bits of which define the intensity of a first color, 8 data bits of which define the intensity of a second color, and 8 data bits of which define the intensity of a third color. The first, second, and third colors could define any color domain, for instance, YUV or RGB (red, green, blue), but for purposes of discussion herein, the latter is assumed. Moreover, each of the foregoing 8-bit bytes defining each color is referred to as a color value for each pixel.
An encoder 14 encodes and processes the image data for storage in a frame buffer 16. The encoder 14 may perform quantization (such as truncation), dithering, rasterization, and/or other subprocessing functionality. In general, quantization involves reducing the bit length of each color value generated by the host processor 12 prior to storage in the frame buffer 16. In other words, when quantization is employed, a smaller number of colors is used to simulate a larger number of colors. As an example, it is sometimes desirable to reduce a 24 bit word defining the color intensities of a pixel to 12 or 8 bits. The process of reducing the bit length of a color value is highly desirable in order to minimize the size of the requisite frame buffer 16, thereby minimizing memory requirements and reducing the cost of the graphics pipeline 11. However, needless to say, quantization results in lost color data for each pixel, and therefore, techniques such as dithering have been developed in an attempt to compensate for this lost color data.
Dithering is well known in the art, see, for example, J. D. Foley and A. P. Van Dam, Fundamental of Interactive Computer Graphics, I.S.B.N.: 0-201-14 468-9 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,638 to Larky. et al. In general, dithering is a technique where noise is combined with the full precision color value prior to quantization in order to derive a dithered color value. Then, the dithered color value is quantized to some predetermined number of levels. For example, if the full precision of a color value is represented by an 8-bit byte (i.e., the color can take on a value from 0 to 255), then at each pixel a small amount of noise (typically less than or equal to 5 data bits) is combined with the color value. The dithered color value is then quantized to some smaller number of data bits, typically 2, 3, or 4 data bits. One commonly used quantization method is truncation, but other processes are also used. As a result of dithering and quantization, the color value stored for each pixel in the frame buffer 16 will provide a reasonable approximation of the full precision color that it represents.
After the color value has been stored in the frame buffer 16, the color value may be decoded by a decoder 18 having one or more color maps. As an example, FIG. 1 shows color maps 19r, 19g, 19b corresponding with each color, red, green, and blue. The color values are used as indices into the color maps 19r, 19g, 19b, which are generally color look-up tables, for determining the actual color to illuminate each pixel. Sometimes, correction functions (e.g., gamma function) are programmed into the color maps 19r, 19g, 19b to the desired visual effect on the display device 24. The image data read from the color maps 19r, 19g, 19b is converted to analog signals via respective digital-to-analog converters (DAC) 22r, 22g, 22b, which in turn provides these analog signals to the video display 24. Optionally, the DAC's could be replaced with drivers for a liquid crystal display (LCD).
Because dithering involves reducing the number of colors available for display, dithering gives rise to visible artifacts on the screen of the display device 24. Accordingly, there has been much research in the industry in developing dithering techniques which minimize visible artifacts on the screen of the display device 24. In fact, the artifacts manifest themselves as a matted pattern on the screen of the display device 24. Traditionally, there have been two basic approaches for enhancing the dithering process. One approach involves breaking up the ordered dithered pattern by randomizing the noise across larger pixel regions as opposed to within smaller pixel regions. Another approach involves changing the quantization levels that can be displayed to more closely match the response of the human eye.
Another approach to improving dithered data involves a color recovery system employed in the decoder 18. This system significantly reduces the matting and discrete bands of color in an image. One such color recovery system is described in the application entitled, "Method and Apparatus for Improved Color Recovery in a Computer Graphics System," filed on Mar. 27, 1992, having Ser. No. 07/859,213, the disclosure which is incorporated herein by reference as if set forth in full hereinbelow. The color recovery filter in the foregoing document is situated within the decoder 18 of the graphics pipeline 11. In the process of decoding, the filter essentially invokes an averaging methodology. A weight is assigned to each color value in a region of the filter. The weights around a pixel of interest are averaged together to derive a result which is assigned to the particular pixel of interest. Accordingly, when the filter scans through dithered data from a frame buffer which has come from a flat color field, the data passes through the filter where dithering artifacts are removed and each displayed color value is as close as possible to that in the original flat field. However, when the filter encompasses an edge of a flat color field, the weights accorded to the various color values are redistributed, and the average is obtained in accordance with the redistributed weights. In short, the redistribution of weights involves the following. When the filter encompasses an edge, the weights are based upon which side of the edge the color values are located. The color recovery filter comprises an edge detect circuit corresponding with each of the colors red, green, and blue, for detecting the edges.
Although the foregoing approaches have some merit in improving the dithering and quantization processes while still reducing the amount of data required to be stored in memory, these prior art approaches still are not optimum. Visible artifacts remain in the image displayed by the display device 24 as a result of the dithering and quantization. This is especially true when quantizing a 24 bit word for a pixel to 8 bits. Hence, new approaches to dithering and/or quantization are needed in the industry for generating higher fidelity images, while still reducing the amount of data required to be stored in memory.

System and method for dithering and quantizing image data to optimize visual quality of a color recovered image


Code may be associated with one or more objects in a hierarchical data structure for execution. An access request for an object in the hierarchical data structure may be received. A schema applicable to the hierarchical data structure may be accessed and evaluated to identify code associated with the object. The code may be executed and servicing of the access request may be performed based, at least in part, on a result of executing the code. Code may be received and stored for inclusion in the schema, in some embodiments. Code may be executed by requesting execution of code that is stored and executed at a remote execution platform, in some embodiments.

Hierarchical storage systems offer users a way to persist hierarchical data structures. Hierarchical data structures stored in such hierarchical storage systems may provide users with the ability to store and managed related data in way that reflects the relationships between the data. Such hierarchical structures may be used to implement many different services, including resource management systems, directory systems, payroll systems, and other systems that leverage data relationships to reason over the data stored therein. Techniques that optimize interactions with hierarchical storage systems, reducing user burden and providing greater management flexibility may be highly desirable.
While embodiments are described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments are not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit embodiments to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). The words "include," "including," and "includes" indicate open-ended relationships and therefore mean including, but not limited to. Similarly, the words "have," "having," and "has" also indicate open-ended relationships, and thus mean having, but not limited to. The terms "first," "second," "third," and so forth as used herein are used as labels for nouns that they precede, and do not imply any type of ordering (e.g., spatial, temporal, logical, etc.) unless such an ordering is otherwise explicitly indicated.
Various components may be described as "configured to" perform a task or tasks. In such contexts, "configured to" is a broad recitation generally meaning "having structure that" performs the task or tasks during operation. As such, the component can be configured to perform the task even when the component is not currently performing that task (e.g., a computer system may be configured to perform operations even when the operations are not currently being performed). In some contexts, "configured to" may be a broad recitation of structure generally meaning "having circuitry that" performs the task or tasks during operation. As such, the component can be configured to perform the task even when the component is not currently on. In general, the circuitry that forms the structure corresponding to "configured to" may include hardware circuits.
Various components may be described as performing a task or tasks, for convenience in the description. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase "configured to." Reciting a component that is configured to perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112(f), interpretation for that component.
"Based On." As used herein, this term is used to describe one or more factors that affect a determination. This term does not foreclose additional factors that may affect a determination. That is, a determination may be solely based on those factors or based, at least in part, on those factors. Consider the phrase "determine A based on B." While B may be a factor that affects the determination of A, such a phrase does not foreclose the determination of A from also being based on C. In other instances, A may be determined based solely on B.
The scope of the present disclosure includes any feature or combination of features disclosed herein (either explicitly or implicitly), or any generalization thereof, whether or not it mitigates any or all of the problems addressed herein. Accordingly, new claims may be formulated during prosecution of this application (or an application claiming priority thereto) to any such combination of features. In particular, with reference to the appended claims, features from dependent claims may be combined with those of the independent claims and features from respective independent claims may be combined in any appropriate manner and not merely in the specific combinations enumerated in the appended claims.

Executing code associated with objects in a hierarchial data structure


A strap launcher (10) has a coil retainer (20) disposed at one end of a longitudinally-extending pole handle (16). Coil retainer (20) is configured to retain a coil (34a) of cargo strap (34) with the distal end of cargo strap (34) free and the other, proximal end (34b) of cargo strap (34) removably secured to the coil retainer (20). Strap launcher (10) is then used to launch the cargo strap (34) over a tall or stacked cargo (40) to dispose the distal end of cargo strap (34) on the far side of the cargo (40). The pole launcher (10) is then lowered to facilitate removal of the proximal end of the cargo strap (34) from the coil retainer (20). Both ends of cargo strap (34) are then secured to the truck bed in the known manner. Accessories such a corner handler (12), used to put corner protectors (42) in place, and a broom head (14), may be attached to the proximal end (16d) of pole handle (16).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is concerned with a device for launching straps, for example, for launching cargo straps over a load of cargo, especially over stacked or high cargo contained on the bed of a truck or the like, and to a method of using the device.
2. Related Art
Generally, truckers, warehouse personnel and others concerned with the loading or transport of cargo manually drape cargo straps over a load to retain the cargo in place during transit. In the case of stacked or tall loads, the strap is formed into a coil and manually thrown over the cargo, or one must climb atop the cargo in order to drape the strap over the cargo. In either case, the opposite ends of the draped straps are then secured in place.

Strap launching device and method of use