An infusion group for machines for the dispensing of beverages in the form of infusion is disclosed. The infusion group has a capsule-holder configured to receive a capsule for the preparation of an infusion beverage, a dispensing head adapted to cooperate with the capsule-holder to form a chamber for the infusion of the capsule. The dispensing head has a dispensing channel, a perforation disc and an associated supporting member mounted on the dispensing head. The dispensing head also has a discharge channel upstream of the dispensing channel. The configuration of the dispensing head is such that the discharge channel is closed when the perforation disc and the supporting member are in the dispensing position and open when they are in the rest position.

There are known and highly diffused several types of machines for the extemporaneous preparation of hot beverages in the form of infusion, for example coffee, tea, herbal teas and the like, from a capsule. These machines are used in offices, public places in general and recently even at home.
The capsules used in these machines, are generally disposable and single-dose containers comprising a cup shaped body containing a food product in granular or particulate form. The cup shaped body is sealed at the top by a film made of a plastic/aluminum polylaminate. The film is fixed on a flange formed along the periphery of a mouth of the cup shaped body.
A final beverage is obtained through a so-called "extraction" process, whereby a capsule is pierced at opposite ends, i.e. at the base of the cup-shaped body and on the top film, and a pressurized hot liquid, typically water, is made to flow through the cup-shaped body. Downstream of the "infusion" through the capsule the liquid makes a beverage that is dispensed to the user.
This extraction and dispensing process is carried out in a dedicated group of the machine called infusion group. The infusion group typically comprises a capsule-holder body, an infusion head having conduits and mechanisms for supplying the liquid intended to cross the capsule received in the capsule-holder body, and a dispensing head comprising further conduits allowing passage of a beverage outside the machine comprising the infusion group, where it can be collected in a container.
The infusion group must be able to:                receive a, typically disposable, capsule,        perform an infusion step,        discharge or allow to discharge an used capsule, and        be prepared to receive of a fresh capsule.
This sequence of operations is typically performed automatically through mechanisms controlled so as to cause components of the infusion group to a make relative movements coordinated with the above mentioned steps of receiving a capsule, performing infusion and ejecting the capsule.
In known machines, the infusion head makes a translation movement along a longitudinal direction of the infusion group. The infusion group comprises perforators that contact the capsule at the end of the translation movement of the infusion head and pierce it at opposite ends in the longitudinal direction in order to allow passage of an infusion liquid. The infusion head typically comprises a sharp member configured to penetrate the cup shaped body of the capsule, while the dispensing head carries a perforation disc comprising a plurality of wedge-shaped members configured to penetrate the film that typically seals the cup shaped body of the capsule.
A problem of known machines is dripping of beverage residues from the dispensing head, which occurs immediately after each dispensing step and causes fouling of the surfaces of the machine wherein the infusion group is installed. At the end of an infusion step, in fact, the pressure within the hydraulic circuit through which the infusion liquid is supplied decreases gradually, so that it is not possible to prevent the infusion liquid from flowing out of a capsule during a transitional period, and hence to continue to supply the conduits of the dispensing head, although at a very small flow rate.

Infusion group for machines for the dispensing of beverages in the form of infusion


Disclosed are pharmaceutical compositions comprising, bucillamine, including bucillamine and allopurinol or colchicine, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts or solvates thereof, together with one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers, diluents and excipients. Methods for use of the said compositions in the treatment of gout and metabolic syndrome are also disclosed.

It is estimated that 8.3 million people suffer from active gout in the U.S.1 The incidence and prevalence of gout is rising. This is due to factors such as an increase in the aged population, many of whom take thiazide diuretics and prophylactic aspirin that promote hyperuricaemia and lifestyle factors characterized by diets that include excessive fructose and alcohol intake, physical inactivity and abdominal fat accumulation which favor hyperuricaemia.2,3
The impaired renal excretion of uric acid is the dominant cause of hyperuricaemia in the majority of patients with gout.4 The existence of genetic variants within a transport gene, SLC2A9, have been reported that explain 1.7% to 5.3% of the variance in serum urate concentrations in a Croatian population sample.5 SLC2A9 variants have also been associated with a low fractional excretion of urate and the presence of gout in several other European population samples.6 The SLC2A9 gene is found on human chromosome 4 and encodes the facilitative glucose transporter 9 (Glut9), which is a unique hexose and high-capacity urate transporter.7 It has been shown that Glut9 is expressed in the basolateral membrane of hepatocytes and in both apical and basolateral membranes of the distal nephron in the mouse.8 Glut9 sustains urate reabsorption in the kidney independently of the other known urate transporters URAT1, OAT1, and OAT3.8
It has been found recently that human ATP-binding cassette, subfamily G, member 2 (ABCG2), encoded by the ABCG2 gene, is located in the brush border membrane of kidney proximal tubule cells, where it mediates renal urate secretion.9 Introduction of a mutation encoded by a common ABCG2 SNP (rs2231142) in Xenopus oocytes resulted in a 53% reduction in urate transport rates compared with wild-type ABCG2. The data obtained in a population-based study of 14,783 individuals support rs2231142 as the causal variant in the region, exhibiting highly significant associations with urate concentration. These findings suggest that this SNP has a significant pathogenic role in at least 10% of all gout cases in white persons.9 It has been confirmed in a study in Japanese patients that common nonfunctional mutations of ABCG2 are involved in the pathology of gout.10
The risk of developing gout is related to the degree of hyperuricaemia11, 12 and increases rapidly after the serum urate concentration exceeds ˜400 μmol/L which is close to the level at which monosodium urate (MSU) crystals precipitate out of serum in vitro.13 It has been established that phagocytosed intracellular MSU crystals are detected in the cytoplasm by the NALP3 inflammasome in monocytes or macrophages.14 The result is activation of caspase-1, which initiates IL-1β maturation and secretion. In turn, interleukin IL-1β secretion produces various pro-inflammatory mediators, which elicit neutrophil influx into the joints.14 The results of in-vivo studies have confirmed that IL-1β and its pathway is crucially associated with the inflammatory response induced by MSU crystals, suggesting that IL-1β is a pivotal mediator of inflammation in acute gout as well as chronic gout and a key therapeutic target.15, 16.
The first-line urate-lowering therapy for the treatment of gout over the past four decades has been allopurinol which lowers serum urate levels by the inhibition of xanthine oxidase.17 The FDA guidelines recommend increasing the dose progressively from an initial dose of 100 mg a day to a maximum of 800 mg a day until the target serum urate (SU) level of ≦6 mg/dL ((˜357 μmol/L) is achieved.18 However, the vast majority of allopurinol prescriptions are for doses of 300 mg a day or less. This situation has been promoted by the persistence of longstanding non-evidence based dosing guidelines that were originally designed to avoid the allopurinol hypersensitivity syndrome without any consideration for efficacy.18
Febuxostat (Ulloric®, Takeda) is a urate lowering therapy recently approved by the FDA for the treatment of chronic gout. It is a non-purine-analogue inhibitor of xanthine oxidase that lowers circulating uric acid levels.17 It was found that febuxostat was more effective than allopurinol in attaining appropriate SU levels (<360 μmol/L), but 59% of patients who previously failed to normalise uric acid levels <360 μmol/L) on allopurinol also failed on febuxostat 80 mg/day.19 Febuxostat is an alternative for patients for whom allopurinol is relatively contraindicated, due to a lack of evidence-based studies, particularly in mild to moderate renal dysfunction where dose modification is not required. The main side effects of febuxostat include raised hepatic enzymes and a small increase in the rate of serious cardiovascular events which preclude its use in ischaemic or congestive heart failure.
The ageing of the population and the proliferation of unhealthy lifestyles together with the sub-optimal use of allopurinol and uncertainty concerning the place of febuxostat emphasises the need for new drugs for the treatment of gout.
The present inventor has realised that the recent advances in the molecular genetics of renal urate transporters together with the discovery of the inflammasome may offer the opportunity to develop novel therapeutic agents based on the identification of specific targets that are involved in the pathology of gout.
Bucillamine, (Rimatil®, N-(2-mercapto-2-methylpropionyl)-L-cysteine) is manufactured by Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. It is a disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug which is used as a first-line treatment for rheumatoid arthritis in Japan.20 Bucillamine is a member of a group of low molecular weight, cysteine-derived thiol donors that includes N-acetylcysteine and N-2-mercaptopropionyl glycine.21, 22 These compounds readily enter cells through the cysteine transport pathway and exert their antioxidant effect by maintaining the endogenous glutaredoxin (Gtx) and thioredoxin (TRx) systems in a reduced state by transfer of thiol groups.21, 22 Bucillamine contains two donatable thiol groups, making it a considerably more potent antioxidant than N-acetylcysteine or N-2-mercaptopropionyl glycine which each contain only one thiol group.23-25 The present inventor has appreciated that in addition to its direct antioxidant action, bucillamine also increases the transcriptional activity of Nrf2.26

The physiological importance of ABCG2 in humans is illustrated by the large differences in SU levels and the prevalence of gout caused by genetic variation in ABCG2. It is therefore, a potential target for new uricosuric agents in the treatment of gout.9, 10 It has been shown that ABCG2 (BCRP) is induced by the Nrf2 activators oltipraz in primary human hepatocytes27 and tert-butylhydroquinone in HepG2 cells.28
The multidrug resistance protein 4 (MRP4/ABCC4) has been identified as a unidirectional efflux pump for urate with multiple allosteric substrate binding sites located at the apical membrane of kidney proximal tubules.29 The treatment of wild-type and Nrf2-null mice with oltipraz and butylated hydroxyanisole demonstrated that the induction of ABCC4 was Nrf2-dependent.30 Oltipraz also induces ABCC4 (MRP4) mRNA and protein expression in HepG2 cells and primary human hepatocytes via the Nrf2 transcription pathway.31
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which has been included in the present specification is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.

Use of bucillamine in the treatment of gout


A system for allocating block sizes in a computer file system is described. Input/output bandwidth requirements for disk access from an application is determined. Also determined is a data transfer characteristic for the drive being accessed. The minimum block size which reduces file fragmentation below a minimum threshold is then calculated as a function of the determined maximum input/output bandwidth and the data characteristic of the drive.

Disk based operating systems divide a disk into physical sectors which represent the fundamental units for data storage on the disk. A sector is a portion of the circumference of a track on the disk and represents the minimum physical storage unit on the disk. File systems define blocks as some integer multiple number of sectors. Each block represents the minimum logical storage unit for a disk. Therefore, reading and writing data to a disk involves the use of entire blocks. In general purpose disk file systems, block sizes are usually selected to be small (e.g., 512 bytes/block), in order to minimize the waste of disk space in blocks that are only partially filled. Such file systems also attempt to allocate the small blocks in sequential order on the disk, so that large reads and writes to the file can be performed efficiently. However, as files are created, modified, or deleted, the free space on the disk can quickly become scattered so that new files are not allocated disk space which is sequential on the disk. These new files will therefore be physically discontiguous or "fragmented".
Access to blocks in a file that are logically sequential, but discontiguous on the disk is often much slower than access to physically sequential blocks, because a disk seek operation must be performed between accesses to the physically separate blocks on the disk. Usually after many files have been created and deleted on such a file system, some degree of fragmentation is bound to exist. In fact, if application programs are not restricted in the way in which they allocate free disk space to files, there is no general way to prevent the free space from becoming completely fragmented. For real-time applications which depend on a high amount of disk input/output bandwidth, this arbitrary degree of fragmentation may cause a failure due to increased access time to the files.
One common method of reducing file fragmentation is to use an optimization utility program which reorganizes files on a disk so that blocks allocated to each file are sequential and contiguous. However, the use of such a utility requires the user to monitor the degree of disk fragmentation and run the utility when fragmentation poses a problem. Moreover, disk optimizer programs usually take a significant amount of time to run, and prevent access to the disk while optimization is being performed.
Another method to minimize file fragmentation is to increase the block size, so that even if files do become fragmented, fewer seek operations will be required to access a specific amount of contiguous data in the file. However, increasing the block size also increases the memory requirements for buffering, and the disk I/O latency for accessing data. Moreover, simply increasing block size does not ensure that fragmentation will not occur to any degree, and does not ensure that the amount of disk space wasted in blocks that are only partially filled is minimized.
Most general purpose file systems are suitable for use with applications for which a certain amount of fragmentation is allowable and does not adversely affect performance. Certain applications, however, require data transfer operations to disk to be completed within a minimum of time. This time requirement translates to a minimum disk input/output bandwidth and is typically measured in terms of number of bytes written to, or read from, the disk per unit time. For such applications, any amount of file fragmentation may introduce seek operations which increase disk access times beyond the minimum bandwidth requirements. Examples of I/O intensive applications include real-time applications which require extensive disk access.
It is therefore an intended advantage of the present invention to provide a system for allocating block sizes in a disk file system which are large enough to prevent file fragmentation, yet not too large so that disk space is wasted within each block.

Large block allocation for disk-based file systems


A soot-exhausting device is provided with a left and a right upright plate. A front end of the left upright plate is bended and extended to form a first upright plate and a left deflection plate. The upper part of the free end of the left deflection plate is bended rightwardly to form a left top plate. A front end of the right upright plate is bended and extended to form a second upright plate and a right deflection plate. The upper part of the free end of the right deflection plate is bended leftwardly to form a right top plate. The bottom of the air-extraction hood is provided with a left and a right air blow groove that are respectively in elongate shape and parallel to top side of the left and the right top plate and located at the rear end of each top side.

A conventional range hood scarcely differs from a ceiling-mounted range hood in a working space. The flange of this kind of range hood may be in a flat shape, a downward arc shape, or in a box-shape, and the air-extraction opening may be in a round shape, a square shape, a rectangular shape, or in an elongate shape. When this kind of range hood draws air, the air and pollutants would flow into the space below the hood from the edge of the flange, then be drawn into the air-extraction opening, and afterwards the air and pollutants would be exhausted outside through ducts. In this case, the air flow rate at the location near the air-extraction opening is high, while the air flow rate at the location away from the air-extraction opening decreases rapidly with the increase of the distance from the air-extraction slot. The upward force of extraction would be insufficient because the upward air velocity becomes low within a short distance below the air-extraction opening so that the flow field is easily affected by drafts from people walking, fans or air conditioner operating. Under such interferences, the soot and pollutants would disperse by the interference flow.
When above range hood is used in high-temperature production or cooking processes, the speed of updraft would increase due to the large buoyant effect resulted from high temperature of fire. Under these conditions, the soot and pollutants would disperse out easily from the front, the rear, and the lateral sides of the range hood due to turbulent diffusion and expansion effect caused by the high temperature of fire. Therefore, the conventional soot-exhausting device would enhance the force of extraction to improve the extraction capacity. However, in this way, not only does the noise increase and the energy waste, but the leakage also could not be prevented completely.
As for above problems, a common improvement is shown in FIG. 8, where baffles were added respectively in the left side, right side, and the rear of the soot-exhausting device (a). However, when in implementation, the boundary layers of flow are easily departed at the front edge of both side plates (b) so as to produce a large recirculation bubble (c) respectively. Soot pollutants would be entrained and carried by the flow of this big recirculation bubble (c) to the front edge of both side plates (b) nearby and be leaked out as a result of molecular diffusion and turbulent diffusion or be swept to external environment as a result of the effect of environment interference flow. Complicated three dimension vortexes and strong turbulences would be produced at the cross of the flange (d) and the side plate (b) of the soot-exhausting device (a) as a result of the three-dimensional effect. In this case, soot pollutants would also be swept to the cross of the flange (d) and the side plate (b) of the soot-exhausting device (a) to cause leakage. For this reason, it is unable to achieve the effect of preventing leakage completely simply by adding side plates (b) respectively in the left and right side of the soot-exhausting device (a).

NATIONAL TAIWAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY


A low pressure air bearing and rolling flexure bearing support for relative movement of carriage actuators in a disk drive system. Air generated by the disk rotation or by a simple blower mounted on the spindle is directed through conduits in the carriage support system. The air is channeled in small orifices formed into bearing pads to provide air pressure on both sides of planar carriages. The bearing pads extend beyond the direction of travel of the carriages. By providing air pressure over relatively large areas of the carriages, low pressure air can be used, generated by the system itself. Rolling flexure bearings provide constraint tot he carriage orthogonal to that of the air bearing and to the direction of travel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of actuators for magnetic disks.
2. Statement of the Problem
The performance of magnetic disk drives is limited by, among other factors, actuator access time and actuator contention. Actuator access time is the time it takes an actuator carrying a read/write head to move to the proper track on the magnetic data storage disk. This is constrained by the acceleration of the actuator due in part to the magnitude of the mass of the actuator and to the friction between the actuator and its surrounding structure.
Actuator contention is dependent upon capability of the system to manipulate a particular actuator to access a particular random track. Presently, individual actuators are used to allow individual heads to be positioned relative to the disk tracks. This requires additional support and guidance structure for each individual actuator. The prior art devices typically used ball bearings which increase the mass of the actuators and present a problem with vibration transmitted through the system.
Frandsen U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,990, discloses a plurality of actuators, each with flat wire loops mounted on a planar carriage frame which, in turn, is mounted on roller bearings to reduce the mass and the inefficiencies of the voice coil motor system. This system still requires considerable spacing between the carriages. This increases the overall size, mass and friction of the system, as well as contributing to inefficiencies in the magnetic flux.
Watrous U.S. Pat. No. 4,506,307, discloses an actuator using air bearings on parts of eight of the surfaces of an X-shaped structure of the actuator to reduce the mass of the system. The air bearings must be supplied by an external blower.
There still presently exists a need for an actuator mechanism utilizing a friction free support system for the carriage actuators and having damping capabilities to restrain against vibration in the system.
3. Solution to the Problem
The present invention solves these and other problems by providing a high performance disk drive having a plurality of single arm actuators.
The present invention provides a low mass, low profile actuator having a high efficiency and extremely low friction.
The present invention provides a system where multiple actuators may easily be stacked at the normal disk spacing with as many carriages as desired.

Planar actuators using low pressure air bearings and rolling flexure bearings


The invention relates to methods, compositions, and kits for detection of biomarkers. In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for detecting AMR biomarkers in a biological sample. In another embodiment, the invention relates to a method for detecting, monitoring, diagnosing and predicting antibody mediated rejection. In yet another embodiment, the invention relates to a method for monitoring a subject for antibody mediated rejection comprising detecting BAFF or a BAFF variant in a biological sample. In still another embodiment, the invention relates to a kit for detecting BAFF in a urine sample.

Transplants of various organs, such as the liver, kidney, lung and heart, are regularly performed as treatment for endstage organ disease. Allograft as well as xenograft transplants have been performed. Organ transplantation is often the best replacement therapy for patients suffering from organ disease, and offers patients an improved quality of life. Although many of these grafts survive in the short term, the long term maintenance of the grafts is often poor. Two primary causes of graft failure are cell-mediated rejection (CMR) and antibody-mediated rejection.
Antibody mediated rejection (AMR) occurs in 10-15% of the renal transplant population and, unlike other forms of rejection, is frequently irreversible. Antibodies, which mediate AMR, are difficult to fully remove therapeutically and often lead to allograft sensitization of the patient. The dire cost of sensitization is an often necessary second transplant, which is prone to even higher rejection rates. Re-transplantation further reduces the donor pool, thereby, placing an undue burden on an already stressed system.
The diagnosis for AMR currently consists of a combination of invasive and expensive assays that include detection of donor specific antibody in the patients' serum as well as histological evidence obtained by biopsy. For instance, current methods for testing for AMR following renal transplant are tedious and involve detection of CD4 staining in peritubular capillaries, together with a positive post-transplantation cross-match and evidence of histologic damage. To date, there is no inexpensive, single, straightforward test that demonstrates AMR conclusively.
Therefore, it would be useful to identify methods, compositions and kits that can non-invasively and accurately determine if an individual is or will undergo AMR.

Detection of B-cell activating factor as a biomarker for antibody mediated rejection in transplant recipients


A universal disposable ECG sensor positioning device and method for use with electrocardiogram diagnostic equipment in which the mask has nine sensors, six of which can be used at any one time to provide three different sizes to accommodate varying sized human torsos.

1.FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a multiple electrical sensor positioning device. More particularly, it relates to a universal sensor mask and its method of use with diagnostic medical equipment. More particularly still, the present invention relates to a disposable dermal chest mask for assistance in establishing physical attachment of sensors from electrocardiograph machines to a human chest.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Prior art electrodes for contacting a specific area of the human body for use with diagnostic medical equipment are generally a combination of elements. A signal wire from the analytical apparatus is usually attached to a metallic or otherwise conductive body contact electrode which is attached to the patient's skin at the desired point of contact. The wire and electrode combination are generally referred to as a "lead." Electrical current generated by the heart in a person's chest flows to the surface and at the skin produces differences in electrical voltage which can be measured between pairs of electrodes placed at two points on the skin. One of the most common tests performed requiring electrode attachment to a patient's body is an electrocardiogram, sometimes alternatively referred to as an ECG. A twelve-lead electrocardiograph provides the most accurate signals for recognizing ischemic electrocardiographic changes.
To administer a resting twelve-lead ECG, it is necessary to apply ten electrodes to various points on the torso and limbs of a patient to measure and analyze cardiac data. Twelve recordings for the ECG are made from nine active lead positions with the tenth being used as a ground. An electrode portion of a lead may in fact consist of an alternative form of sensor, and the terms "electrode" or "sensor" for purposes of this disclosure are interchangeable. A lead wire connecting a sensor to the diagnostic equipment could possibly in fact consist of a radio or an optical signal. Six of the ten electrodes are applied to the patient's chest over prescribed anatomical landmarks. The remaining four electrodes are applied to each of the patient's limbs. The chest electrodes are known as the precordial leads and the limb electrodes are called limb leads. The precordial leads are designated V.sub.1, V.sub.2, V.sub.3, V.sub.4, V.sub.5, and V.sub.6. The limb leads are designated LA, RA, LL, and RL (ground).
It is generally acknowledged that it is critically important to place the precordial leads with precision in order to obtain accurate and repeatable recordings. However, accurate placement and attachment of a large number of leads can be difficult and time consuming and requires knowledge, skill, and diligence on the part of the person attaching the electrodes or sensors. Mechanical problems in attaching multiple leads to a patient range from tangling of lead wires and excessive time consumed in pairing lead wires with the appropriate electrodes, to difficulty in locating anatomical landmarks on a patient with precision.
Problems occur if the leads are not properly placed and are located higher or lower than optimal. The position of the precordial leads is determined by the anatomical features of the patient's chest and not by the position of the heart itself. Research reported in the electrocardiography literature indicates that precordial leads placed one inch or more from their true anatomical landmarks can result in misinterpretation of the patient's ECG. This may result in or contribute to diagnosis errors, false hospital admissions, sending sick people home, or have other negative impacts on diagnosis or treatment. The placement problem is compounded when serial comparisons are made between two or more ECGs taken over time. For example, if V.sub.4 was placed one inch too high for one test and one inch too low for another, the difference of two inches may produce what appears to be a significant difference between the two ECGs when in fact there was no physiological change in the patient's heart condition.
To place the precordial leads accurately requires training in using both visual and palpatory cues to find the anatomical landmarks on each patient. Placement accuracy is also affected by the time and diligence dedicated to placing the precordial electrodes. An experienced and conscientious electrocardiologist may require and devote ten minutes to palpation and ascertaining the exact precordial landmarks. However, in busy clinical environments or emergency situations, medical personnel are often so rushed they may not even palpate the patient. Under those conditions, precordial leads are commonly placed with inadequate palpation and with little attention to a patient's particular anatomy. As a consequence, individual leads are often misplaced by two and as much as three inches from their true anatomical landmarks. In addition, training and maintaining the necessary skill for proper placement of individual leads is time and resource consuming and often not adequate. With six precordial leads, there are six chances to misplace electrodes. Research shows that V.sub.1, and V.sub.2 electrodes are typically placed high and wide of their targets--the fourth intercostal space on each side of the sternum. Likewise, precordial electrodes V.sub.4, V.sub.5, and V.sub.6 are most often misplaced low and wide. Electrode V.sub.3 is most often misplaced too low. The most obvious conclusion to be drawn is that lead placement is often not accurate.
After the individual electrodes are positioned on a patient, it is necessary to attach the ten lead wires. Each lead wire is labeled to correspond to one of the anatomical landmarks, i.e., V.sub.1, V.sub.2 . . . V.sub.6 . . . RL. Should lead wires be crossed, interpretative ECG monitors can detect and alert the operator of a possible crossed lead wire situation, but that requires additional time to check connections and to take corrective action. This is a time consuming operation which increases the risk in an emergency situation. Crossed lead wires are a more significant problem when the ECG monitor does not provide interpretation of the recordings and cannot alert the operator of this possibility. In such a case, the ECG signals for each of the twelve leads are recorded on hard copy to be read at a later time. The physician or technician reading the ECG recordings may recognize the error but by that time the patient has usually been disconnected from the monitor. The present invention reduces or eliminates the chances of either of these situations from occurring.
Periodic electrocardiograms are important for providing a cardiographic profile of a patient for early detection and diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. In order to provide an accurate profile, it is important not only that the electrocardiogram be taken with sensors affixed accurately, but that the sensors be placed at the same location on the patient in the subsequent exam as for the previous examination. The efficacy and the repeatability of the tests is critical so that a series of ECG results can be compared to provide a continuing profile of a patient's medical history for diagnosis and treatment of heart disease.
In urgent situations, including those electrocardiograms taken with the current standard electrode lead wire system, during an acute symptomatic episode there may only be time to attach two to four individual electrodes to the patient There, it is desirable to have a device which enables more electrodes or sensors to be quickly and accurately secured during such an acute symptomatic episode. Alternatively, it may be necessary to quickly remove some or all of the chest leads when a patient is experiencing a heart attack or in other emergencies in order to administer CPR, to massage the heart, administer drugs, to apply electrical defibrillation paddles, or for other purposes. Accordingly, critical time can be lost both in the removal of the chest leads of the ECG test equipment in order to administer aid to a patient and in their subsequent replacement after aid has been administered.
Because of the inadequacies of prior art devices to solve these problems, there has been a need for a system which: prevents or curtails the possibility of ECG electrode leads or wires from being entangled or crossed; provides quick removal of some of the sensors when it is necessary to administer aid to a patient having a heart attack; provides accurate and appropriate repeatable placement of electrodes it substantially the same location on the patient; accurately and repeatedly obtains signals from electrodes by efficient and effective electrical transmission; and may be attached by persons with varying levels of experience including those with little training.
The inventions disclosed in the above-identified four related applications involve various alternatives for the purpose of trying to effect those goals. The common invention in those applications is a disposable electrode positioning device and utilizes a non-conducting flexible sheet having a predetermined dimensional sensor array. The flexible sheet serves as a template for aligning connectors or sensors, either of the electrode or electrodeless type, on the chest of a patient for transmitting electrical impulses. The sheet has a predetermined dimensional sensor array V.sub.1 -V.sub.6, such that V.sub.1 and V.sub.2 are positioned approximately on either side of the sternum at the fourth intercostal space, and array V.sub.3 is positioned midway between V.sub.2 and V.sub.4. V.sub.5 is equidistant between V.sub.4 and V.sub.6. The distance between V.sub.1 and V.sub.2 is predetermined plus or minus a small amount and they are both equidistant from the centerline of the sternum. The distance between V.sub.2 and V.sub.4 is predetermined plus or minus a small amount, and V.sub.3 is located substantially midway between V.sub.2 and V.sub.4.
An important aspect of the related inventions is that the flexible non-conductive sheet is provided in a plurality of sizes, with each size having arrays V.sub.1, V.sub.2, V.sub.3 and V.sub.4, at substantially the same locations and having arrays V.sub.5 and V.sub.6 at different locations depending on size. In this regard, the locations of V.sub.5 and V.sub.6 are based on a measured distance between the left midlavicular line and the left midaxillary line on the chest of a patient.
An alternative of the related inventions is that the dimensional array on the flexible nonconductive sheet is provided with cutouts to form a template or mask which is placed on the patient's chest and then conventional electrodes can be positioned in the cutouts. Still another aspect of the related inventions is that the template can be provided with a plurality of conventional tab, snap, or other electrodes affixed on their top sides to the flexible sheet to be placed against the patient's chest. The electrodes are positioned in accordance with the predetermined dimensional array. Small cutouts, or openings, in the template expose the electrode tabs for attaching lead wire clips. Snap electrodes protrude through the template to permit the attachment of lead wire snap connectors.
In a further aspect of the related inventions, the top sides of individual electrodes can be lightly affixed to the flexible sheet of material at the predetermined dimensional array locations. The sheet can be placed on the patient's chest and then peeled away leaving the electrodes properly located on the chest. Each of these concepts can be employed in the new and improved concept of the present invention.
Yet another aspect of those related inventions is a method of sizing a patient for fitting a sensor positioning device having a flexible sheet with a fixed dimensional V.sub.1 -V.sub.6 array positioned in a specific size configuration appropriate for standard electrocardiographic recording. The distance between V.sub.2 and V.sub.1 is a predetermined distance plus or minus a small amount, and the distance between V.sub.2 and V.sub.4 is a predetermined distance plus or minus a small amount, with V.sub.3 located substantially midway between V.sub.2 and V.sub.4, and V.sub.5 being equidistant between V.sub.4 and V.sub.6. The method of sizing the disclosed related inventions comprises the steps of measuring the distance between the midlavicular line and a midaxillary line on the chest of the patient, and selecting a positioning device size of those inventions based on the measured distance. This procedure is eliminated by the present invention.
The prior art U.S. Pat. No. 4,583,349 to Manoli and U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,290 to Kelly describe precordial electrodes fixed in a preset pattern on a flexible sheet in positions corresponding to the anatomical landmarks on the patient. The basic problem with all of these inventions is that they require multiple sizes of sensor positioning devices to fit various sized persons.
Manoli envisions, without stating any dimensions, three sizes--a pediatric, medium adult, and large adult--to fit most children and adults within the population. Kelly describes three sizes--small, medium, and large adult--to fit most adults within the population. Manoli does not describe how one determines which size device a patient would require. Presumably, under Manoli, a small person requires the smallest of the three sizes, i.e., the pediatric, and a large person requires the largest. The invention disclosure is indefinite.
Thus, Manoli does not describe how to size a patient, and it is common for persons placing individual electrodes to make errors. If similar errors are made when sizing the patient for Manoli's device, it is quite likely that the wrong size device would be selected. Once a device is applied to the patient, it would be possible to check the correctness of fit. If wrong, however, i.e., the V.sub.6 electrode was located some distance from the patient's midaxillary line, the device would have to be removed and replaced by a more appropriate size device. This trial and error approach wastes time and materials since the first device would need to be discarded without ever being used to take an ECG.
The more recent U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,545 to Stratbucker describes an adhesive sheet having a fixed array of individual electrode groups disposed at varying locations to provide a "one size fits all" system. One embodiment has twelve precordial electrodes with one electrode each at V.sub.1, V.sub.2, and V.sub.3 and groups of three electrodes each at V.sub.4, V.sub.5, and V.sub.6, while other embodiments are suggested for groups of electrodes for other electrode locations in order to achieve a "one size fits all" system.
Stratbucker describes multiple groupings of electrodes for a "single size" system but it is necessary to determine which electrode in each group is within the region of the appropriate location on a patient's chest: for each group of electrodes, there must be a determination of which electrode is closest to the anatomical landmark. Such a determination is time consuming and would at least be impeded by the fact that palpation will be difficult to perform once the sheet is placed over a patient's chest. Moreover, each group of electrodes provides a source for error since there are three electrodes to choose from in each group. Assuming one electrode in each group is most correct, the probability of randomly selecting the best electrode from each of the groups is 0.33.sup.x, where X equals the number of groups. If there are three groups of electrodes, as described in one embodiment where V.sub.4, V.sub.5, and V.sub.6 consist of groups of three electrodes each, the probability of randomly selecting the appropriate electrode from each group is 0.037, or 1 out of 27 possibilities. Stratbucker relies on a judgment determination for each group of electrodes and therefore selection is time consuming and inexact due to the device physically covering the patient's anatomical features.
Although Stratbucker tries to curtail the possibility of placing conventional individual electrodes far from the region of proper placement by confining the decision to simply selecting one electrode out of each group of three electrodes, medical personnel must still ascertain which electrode is appropriate for each group of electrodes. Not only does this allow for error, it also reduces the chances of consistent electrode placement from one test to the next, thereby confounding any serial comparisons between tests. It also increases the length of time to administer a resting ECG since a separate decision must be made for each group of electrodes.
The present invention uniquely solves these problems by providing a multiple precordial array of sensor electrodes in a single device that will fit essentially all adults and in which sizing is accomplished simply by the determination of the location of a single sensor which is closest to a selected anatomical landmark. This is achieved by the invention of a device having more precordial sensors than the six chest electrodes needed for the resting ECG but significantly less than the number of those taught by Stratbucker. In the present invention, some sensors may serve multiple roles to accommodate different patient sizes within one array by utilizing a particular set of sensors. Each set of sensors corresponds to a specific patient size that can be characterized as small, medium, or large. Once the device of the invention is applied to the patient, one simply and quickly ascertains which of three V.sub.6 sensors lies on or closest to the patient's midaxillary line and then connects the electrode/sensor lead wires to the corresponding set of sensors in which the V.sub.6 is designated as one of the three selections: small, medium, or large. This greatly simplifies the heretofore universal unresolved problem of instantaneous patient sizing during use, while providing the additional benefits of reducing the cost of production and eliminating the need to stock different size devices.
Another aspect of the present invention is a mask comprised of conductive terminals that are selectively connected to an ECG machine by a single point of attachment or an electronic clip. The clip mechanism includes a means of accurately connecting to any set of terminals by means of a positioning feature on the clip that selectively brings each set of terminals into precise alignment with conducting elements within the clip. Essentially, the selective connection system makes electrical contact with only one set of precordial sensors at a time, i.e., one particular set containing V.sub.1 through V.sub.6, and excludes the remainder.
Sensors V.sub.1 and V.sub.2 on the device are centered over the patient's sternum in the left and right fourth intercostal spaces. Once V.sub.1 and V.sub.2 are applied, all remaining sensors are automatically applied by bringing the flexible sheet down on the patient. The particular V.sub.6 sensor closest to the patient's midaxillary line automatically identifies which set of sensors are to be connected to an ECG machine. The clip is then used to selectively connect that set of precordial sensors to the ECG machine.

Universal electrocardiogram sensor positioning device and method


A ventilation device includes an impeller rotatable to move air from an air inlet end to an air outlet end of the impeller. An opening is defined in a rear end of the housing. The rear end of the housing is fixed to the air inlet end of the impeller. The housing includes a hemispherical wall defining an interior space. The hemispherical wall has a plurality of annularly spaced and a plurality of annularly spaced outer holes, with the inner holes spaced from the outer holes in a radial direction. A plurality of tubes is formed on an inner face of the semispherical wall, with each tube extending from a corresponding one of the inner and outer holes into the interior space but spaced from the rear end of the housing.

The present invention relates to a ventilation device and, more particularly, to a ventilation device mounted in an air outlet of a closed or indoor space for increasing air movement.
An exhaust fan is generally provided in an air exhaust path to increase air movement in a closed or indoor space. A conventional exhaust fan includes an impeller for expelling the air in the closed or indoor space through the air exhaust path. However, an elbow or a filter is generally mounted to an air outlet section of the exhaust fan, adversely affecting flowing smoothness of the air. Specifically, a positive pressure is created in the air outlet section to which the elbow or filter is mounted, causing turbulence in the air inlet of the exhaust fan and reducing the air movement.


A system and method are provided for integrating data representing at least one weather parameter prevailing at at least a first geographic location into a television broadcast related to the first geographic location. An icon signal representing a weather parameter icon is generated in response to the weather parameter, and represents the weather parameter sensed at the first geographic location. Apparatus is provided for receiving the television broadcast related to the first geographic location, and for merging the television broadcast signal with the icon signal, producing an output television signal representing the weather parameter icon superimposed on the television broadcast.

Television broadcast networks that cover sporting events are continually searching for ways to convey more information to the sports viewer. With ongoing advances in computer hardware and software technology, more information related to the sporting event can be sent to the viewer than ever before. When televising sports such as baseball, football, golf, and others, the weather conditions prevailing at the sporting venue can bear significantly on the outcome of the sporting event, so the home viewer will be interested in those weather conditions. For example, is the wind blowing in or out of left field at Wrigley Field when Sammy Sosa comes to bat in the ninth inning, or is the wind swirling instead so that it is coming in from right field, but going out from left field? On a cold windy December day in Buffalo, when one of the teams is driving to attempt the winning field goal, is the wind in their faces or at their backs, and how will that effect the kicker? At the British Open golf tournament, what are the wind conditions at the 9th hole, and what are the wind conditions at the 18th?
There is a pressing need in the art for a system and method for integrating weather data into television broadcasts, especially for sporting events such as those examples outlined above. With such systems and methods, the television viewer can immediately see the prevailing weather conditions at a glance, without relying on the commentators to pass that information along at their leisure.

System and method for integrating weather data into television broadcasts


After an inner wall tube, made of steel or alloy containing not less than 2% of Cr, whose outer surface thereof is machined and/or ground to a thickness of 0.1 mm or more including the scale layer, is inserted into an outer wall tube, made of ferritic steel containing not less than 2% of Cr, in which an oxide scale layer containing Cr and having a thickness of 10 to 30 μm is formed in the inner surface thereof, cold working at an outside diameter reduction rate of 5 to 30% is performed. Similarly cold worked after an inner wall tube having an oxide scale layer on the outer surface thereof, is inserted into an outer wall tube whose inner surface is machined and ground. A double-walled tube made has a uniform gap and an excellent thermal conductivity, and is suitable as materials for SG tubes of future FBR.

Tube materials for steel tubes to be used under high-temperature environments such as boilers for thermal power generation plants, chemical industries, nuclear power plants, and next-generation fast breeder reactors are required to have excellent strength and corrosion resistance at high temperatures. Among them, a double-walled tube which is configured such that one of the walls is made of a material having an excellent corrosion resistance and the other is made of a material having excellent high-temperature strength is used as needed.
For example, Patent Literature 1 describes a double-walled tube formed by hot rolling a multi-layer billet in which alloy powder containing Cr and Ni as principal elements is packed on the outer surface of a billet made of Fe—Ni—Cr austenitic heat-resistant steel with a Cr content of not more than 30%. Further, Patent Literature 2 describes a double-walled tube in which one of the walls is made up of an austenitic stainless steel tube containing not less than 30% of Cr, and the other is made up of an austenitic stainless steel tube containing not less than 25% of Cr.
These double-walled tubes are of a type that is free of an interface gap, in which tubes of dissimilar metals having different properties, such as a corrosion resistance material and a high-strength material, are combined and the outer wall tube and the inner wall tube are physically or metallurgically bonded to each other (that is, the inner surface of outer tube and the outer surface of inner tube are brought into contact via metal surfaces, or in a metallic bond to each other).
However, since in a metallurgically bonded double-walled tube without the gap, the metal surfaces of the outer wall tube and the inner wall tube are physically or metallurgically bonded to each other, and it is not possible to prevent a through-wall leakage (a leakage which occurs as a result of cracking propagating through the double-walled tube) which can occur, even if in a worst case scenario, in a heat transfer tube (double-walled tube) in which liquid Na as coolant is circulated, for example, in a steam generator (SG) of a fast breeder reactor (hereafter referred to as "FBR").
If in any chance a through-wall leakage occurs in a double-walled tube to be used in a steam generator tube of a next-generation fast breeder reactor (FBR), reaction and explosion will occur as the result of contact between liquid Na and water (vapor), which is very dangerous. Therefore, the prevention of through-wall leakage is the most important issue in a fast breeder reactor (FBR).
In contrast, there has been developed a double-walled tube in which metal surfaces are not physically or metallurgically bonded to each other and the interface gap is provided therebetween. A major feature of the gap of a double-walled tube is that even if cracking occurs either in the outer wall tube or the inner wall tube, the gap will deter the propagation of the cracking, thereby preventing an immediate occurrence of a through-wall leakage. Further, there has been developed a technique in which an inert gas such as helium is flowed by utilizing the interface gap of the double-walled tube, and even if, by any chance, either of the inner wall tube or the outer wall tube fails, the failure is promptly detected, thereby preventing a through-wall leakage accident.
For example, Patent Literature 1 proposes a double-walled tube including a braided mesh wire, in which a braided mesh wire is inserted between the inner wall and outer wall tubes, the braided mesh wire being formed by bundling and weaving an element wire (100 μm) made of the same material as that of the tube. By allowing inert gas such as helium to flow through the interface gap provided in the double-walled tube, it is possible to promptly detect the fracture of the inner wall tube or the outer wall tube thereby preventing a through-wall leakage.
Further, Non Patent Literature 2 describes a double-walled tube with a groove(s), in which a groove processing for detecting a leakage is performed on the inner surface of the outer wall tube.
However, the production of such a double-walled tube with the interface gap according to such prior art requires the repetition of very special, intricate and elaborate processing. Thus, in addition to considerable difficulty in production, the prior art suffers from complexities thereof so that a great deal of man-hours are required and a large number of defects may generate, and therefore it is not suitable for mass production and poor in economic efficiency. Further, since there is contact between metal surfaces, there still remains a risk that cracking may propagate and a leakage going through the double-walled tube may occur. Further, it is difficult in reality to produce a longer-length double-walled tube of 35 m or so in length which is envisioned in next-generation FBRs.
As another prior art, Patent Literature 3 describes a cooling double-walled tube for a stave cooler which is installed in the inside of furnace wall of a blast furnace, and the like. This double-walled tube is produced by placing a foreign layer of oxides etc. in the interface between the inner and outer wall tubes which are made of carbon steel, and subjecting them to a drawing process. However, such a double-walled tube cannot be used for heat exchanger tubes since the oxides etc. placed in the interface circumvent and shield the heat transfer between the outer and inner wall tubes. Besides, the tube cannot be used for the above, since the tube material is limited to carbon steel, the strength standard for a high-temperature and pressure-resistant member which is used under environments of not less than 450° C. is not satisfied and corrosion resistance is also insufficient.

Double-walled tube with interface gap and production method therefor

NIPPON STEEL & SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION


A method for treating waste water from the decontamination of a metal surface in a primary coolant circuit of a nuclear reactor comprises discharging a predetermined amount of an oxidation solution from the primary coolant circuit into a reduction zone connected to the primary coolant circuit and reacting the oxidation solution with a reducing agent to form a reaction solution that is freed of oxidizing agent, and passing the reaction solution over an ion-exchange resin in order to form a desalinated solution, and returning the desalinated solution to the primary coolant and/or disposing of the desalinated solution. A waste water treatment apparatus for carrying out the method is also provided.

Nuclear reactors comprise a reactor vessel in which fuel elements containing nuclear fuel are arranged. Connected to the reactor vessel is a piping system which forms the primary coolant circuit and is connected to at least one coolant pump and, in the case of a pressurized-water reactor (PWR) or heavy-water reactor, to a steam generator.
The piping system of the coolant circuit is typically made of stainless austenitic FeCrNi steels. The heat exchanger surfaces of the steam generators may be formed of Ni alloys. Further, cobalt steels and/or casting materials are used for coolant pumps and other components. Under the conditions of power operation of a nuclear reactor, all these materials show some solubility in water. Metal ions leached from the alloys enter the coolant stream and reach the reactor vessel where they are partly converted by the neutron radiation prevailing there into radioactive nuclides. The nuclides are in turn distributed by the coolant stream throughout the coolant system and are incorporated into oxide layers which form on the metal surfaces of the coolant system during operation of the nuclear reactor.
With increasing time of operation, the deposited activated nuclides accumulate, so that the radioactivity or the dose rate on the components of the coolant system increases. Depending on the type of alloy used for a component, the oxide layers contain, as main constituent, iron oxide having divalent and trivalent iron as well as oxides of other metals such as chromium and nickel, which are present as alloy constituents in the abovementioned materials.
Before inspection, maintenance, repair and dismantling measures can be carried out on the components of the reactor systems, a reduction in the radioactive radiation of the respective components is required to decrease exposure to radiation for the personnel. This is done by removing the oxide layer present on the surfaces of the components as completely as possible by means of a decontamination method. The decontamination may be performed as a full system decontamination (FSD). For this, either the entire coolant system or a part of the system separated by valves is filled with an aqueous cleaning solution and decontaminated. In a partial decontamination, individual components of the system can be treated in a separate vessel containing the cleaning solution.
In the case of a full system decontamination (FSD), it may be expedient to circulate the treatment solutions in the primary coolant circuit using the power plant's own pumps, such as the main coolant pumps, and to use the power plant's own equipment present in the primary coolant circuit for pressure and temperature control. For operation of the coolant pumps, the pumps need to be supplied with seal water for internal cooling of the gasket parts, which seal water is delivered into the primary coolant. The seal water needed for this is provided either via the in-plant operational systems in an internal seal water circuit or through an external deionized water supply. For procedural reasons, the external seal water supply takes place predominantly during the oxidation phase of the decontamination process. In this process, external seal water is fed to the primary coolant circuit preferably in deionized water quality. Since only a very limited amount of the externally fed seal water can be received in the closed primary coolant circuit during the system decontamination, an amount of treatment solution that corresponds to the amount of fed seal water needs to be discharged from the system as waste water. The discharged treatment solution is typically concentrated to a small volume in an evaporator during operation to keep the amount of radioactive waste water small.
The amount of external seal water introduced into the coolant system during the oxidation phase of a full system decontamination may be several m3/h. Large evaporator capacities must therefore be provisioned to evaporate the involved amounts of up to several hundred cubic meters of treatment solution. In addition to the high investment costs for the evaporator, further costs are incurred due to the high energy consumption during the evaporation process. In heavy-water reactors, in which heavy water is used as the coolant, additional costs are incurred due to the fact that only expensive heavy water can be used as seal water and substantial heavy water losses may occur during evaporation of the treatment solution when using conventional technology. Therefore, a complete system decontamination cannot be carried out economically in this type of reactor.

Method for treating waste water from the decontamination of a metal surface, waste-water treatment device and use of the waste-water treatment device


The exterior surface of a pipe is coated around its full perimeter without rotation of the pipe or the complete coating apparatus. In one example, the coating apparatus includes coating heads attached to a rotor with the coating material supplied under positive air pressure via a stator. The coating heads rotate with the rotor and eject coating material onto the exterior surface of the pipe. In a second example, the coating apparatus is stationary and coating material is delivered under positive air pressure though chambers within the apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the application of a coating material to the outer surface of a pipe wherein neither the pipe nor the entire coating apparatus need be rotated to accomplish a coating around a complete circumferential area of the pipe.
2. Description of Related Art
Pipelines laid overland or under water are assembled from generally cylindrical sections of hollow pipe that are suitably joined together. A typical section that is used to fabricate an oil or gas pipeline has a length of approximately 20 metres and an outside diameter ranging from approximately 1 to 20 metres. A suitable joining process, such as welding, is used to join the pipe sections together. Each section of pipe is manufactured with an exterior coating that typically consists of an inner protective coating layer and an outer insulative layer. The protective layer, with a typical thickness of 1 mm, is formed by rotating the section of pipe whilst the material is applied to the pipe. A suitable composition is a fusion-bonded thermoplastic powder with an epoxy, polypropylene or polyethylene base that is applied to a pre-heated rotating section of pipe. The insulative layer, with a thickness generally on the order of 50 to 60 mm, is typically applied by an extrusion process. In order to join sections together, the insulative and protective coating layers must be cut or stripped back from each end of a section to expose the pipe material for the joining process. After the joining is completed, the exterior coating must be restored in the field to ensure integral coating of the pipeline. When a thermoplastic material is used, the coating material, in powdered form, is applied to the exterior of a pipe that has been preheated to achieve fusion of the material when it comes in contact with the pipe. For ferrous pipes, heating is generally accomplished by magnetic induction. Prior art processes and apparatus for accomplishing this task are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,607. An adhesive material, which can be a polypropylene-based composition, is normally applied over the protective coating by a similar process. Finally, the thicker insulative material is laid over the adhesive by an extrusion process.
Exterior protective coating of an entire pipe may be accomplished by an electrostatic process in which a pipe that has an induced charge on its surface is rotated over a coating material having an opposing charge.
A disadvantage of the prior art is that either the entire coating apparatus or the pipe must be rotated to achieve a full 360-degree coating of an area around the outer perimeter of the pipe.
Therefore, there exists the need for apparatus and method that can apply a 360-degree perimetrical band of coating material to the exterior surface of a pipe without rotating either the pipe or the coating apparatus.
An object of the present invention is to provide apparatus and method for applying a coating material around the complete perimeter of the exterior of a pipe without rotating the pipe or all components of the coating device. An outer stationary or stator element remains static whilst an inner rotor element is used to achieve a 360-degree perimetrical coating.
Another object of the present invention is to provide apparatus and method for applying a coating material around the complete perimeter of the exterior of a pipe without rotating the pipe or the coating device. The entire coating device remains stationary whilst a 360-degree perimetrical coating of the pipe is achieved.

Apparatus and method for coating the exterior surface of a pipe


A measuring tape comprises an elongated blade of a plastic material reinforced by a transverse array of longitudinally extending continuous filaments. The array of continuous filaments includes grouped carbon filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments, steel filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments and fiberglass filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments.

The present invention relates generally to long tape measures and more particularly to the composition of the measuring tapes used in long tape measures.
Measuring tapes are originally thought of as embodying a symmetrical configuration defined by two parallel faces disposed on opposite sides of a central plane. One of the faces contains measurement markings printed thereon.
There have been many efforts to enhance the measuring effectiveness of measuring tapes by altering their composition so as to reduce tape elongation, or stretching while maintaining tape flexibility. Stretching in measuring tapes leads to erroneous measurements and reduces the accuracy of the tape.
Examples of measuring tapes including composition of inorganic fibers, organic fibers or a combination thereof incorporated within a coating are disclosed in the following patents: U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,321,920, 4,459,753 and 5,095,632; and United Kingdom Patent Application No. 2 123 955 A.
The ""920 patent teaches a measuring tape having a woven fabric strip of inorganic material such as glass fibers combined with organic material such as cotton or linen fibers and coated with an impregnating coating. The ""955 application is similar in that glass yarn is used to form a longitudinal reinforcement layer and gives dimensional stability to the tape. The ""955 application further teaches incorporating glass fibers surrounded by layers of natural or artificial fibers within a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) matrix. Both of these efforts result in a measuring tape that is adequately flexible, however, both lengthen when subjected to stresses during normal operation. Lengthening of the tape leads to erroneous measurements.
The ""753 patent is similar to the ""920 patent, in that it teaches the use of woven glass fibers are impregnated with thermosetting resin. The ""753 patent differs in that it also teaches the use of carbon fibers in the woven structure instead of glass fibers. The ""632 patent teaches a structure formed of a plurality of aligned, overlapped, relatively thin and narrow strips of carbon fibers impregnated with thermoplastic resin (polyphenylene sulfide) to have a low coefficient of thermal expansion along the length axis, i.e. it has a very low distortion with respect to thermal expansion.
Applicant has found that the formation of measuring tapes from a glass fiber structure impregnated with resin or a carbon fiber structure impregnated with resin do not achieve desired tape elongation stability characteristics. Moreover, in some applications, measuring tapes are used around work areas containing sharp objects, such as construction sites. Usage in these areas makes it desirable to reduce the blade""s ability to be cut by being pulled over a sharp comer or run over by a sharp object. Applicant has also found that such sharp objects frequently cut the measuring tapes formed from a glass fiber structure impregnated with resin or a carbon fiber structure impregnated with resin.
Generally, metal measuring tapes provide a durable construction with a high resistance to being cut by sharp objects. Metal measuring tapes are made from steel, which has a high elastic modulus and exhibits great toughness. Increased modulus corresponds to a proportional decrease in tape elongation and results in more accurate measurements. In addition, steel has a greater toughness than carbon and fiberglass and this difference in mechanical properties allows steel to be significantly more cut resistant than either carbon or fiberglass. However, steel is not a flexible material and tends to keep its shape when kinked. The kinking of the steel reduces the measurement accuracy of the tape, even after the kinks are straightened.
Consequently, there exists a need in the art for a measuring tape that has the advantages of balancing stretch resistance, cut resistance and cost.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a measuring tape that meets the needs described above. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, this objective is accomplished by providing a measuring tape comprising an elongated blade of a plastic material reinforced by a transverse array of longitudinally extending continuous filaments. The array of continuous filaments includes grouped carbon filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments, steel filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments and fiberglass filaments grouped in strands of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments.
An object of the present invention is also achieved by providing a long tape comprising a casing and a reel member being rotatably mounted within the casing for relative movement thereto. An actuating member accessible on an exterior of the casing for manually moving the reel member relative to the casing and extending through the casing to be received within the reel member rotatably mounted within the casing. A measuring tape is wound around the reel member and has one end thereof extending from the casing configured and arranged to be retractable towards the casing by the actuating member. The measuring tape comprises an elongated blade of a plastic material reinforced by a transverse array of longitudinally extending continuous filaments. The array of continuous filaments includes grouped carbon filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments, steel filaments of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments and fiberglass filaments grouped in strands of a volume constituting 0 to 90% of the total volume of filaments.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.


Disclosed is an improvement to the assay for creatinine in fluid test samples by contacting the test sample with a reagent formulation containing cupric ions, a hydroperoxide and an oxidizable dye. The improvement involves the inclusion of one or more selected quinolines in the reagent formulation. When the quinoline is substituted with methyl in the 2-5 position and/or a methoxy in the 2-6 position auto-oxidation of the oxidizable dye is reduced. When the quinoline is further substituted in an otherwise unsubstituted carbon atom in the 2-8 position, the assay's resistance to interference from hemoglobin and ascorbate is increased.

The present invention is an improvement to the method of detecting creatinine in samples of body fluid. There is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,561 a method for the detection of creatinine in urine which involves contacting a urine sample suspected of containing creatinine with cupric ions, a hydroperoxide and an oxidizable dye which provides a colored response in the presence of oxygen free radicals and a hydroperoxide. In this assay, the first step involves the formation of a Cu.sup.++.creatinine chelated complex. The oxidizable dye is oxidized by the transfer of an electron therefrom to the Cu.sup.++.creatinine complex to provide the non-reactive Cu.sup.+.creatinine form which is regenerated to Cu.sup.++.creatinine by the loss of an electron to the hydroperoxide. This assay works well in the absence of hemoglobin and ascorbate, but in the presence of hemoglobin and/or ascorbate, which are normally present in clinical urine samples, the precision of the assay is affected due to the tendency of hemoglobin and/or ascorbate to oxidize the dye which results in false positive results. In addition, the redox dye can auto-oxidize over time in the presence of copper ion thereby reducing the shelf life of this type of assay. Accordingly, it would be desirable and it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved reagent system for the detection of creatinine in a fluid test sample in which the tendency of hemoglobin and/or ascorbate in the test sample to cause falsely positive results and the auto-oxidation of the redox dye is reduced.


An aqueous microcapsule suspension liquid exhibiting an excellent (long-term) storage stability and allowing easy re-dispersion and dilution with water even after such a storage, is produced by adding a microorganism-fermented polysaccharide of succinoglycan type as a thickening agent into a microcapsule slurry, or by adding such a microorganism-fermented polysaccharide as a thickening agent to a microcapsule slurry after uniform dilution with water.

Microcapsulation technique is widely adopted for the purpose of, e.g., protection or controlling the rate of liberation to outside of a comminuted core or content material. Examples of the content material include: agricultured chemicals, medicines, toilet materials such as perfume, color-forming materials and adhesive.
Such microcapsules may assume commercial product forms of microcapsules alone or a liquid mixture with a diluting carrier. It is also widely practiced to formulate microcapsules into an aqueous suspension (or emulsion) liquid for spreading the microcapsules to be used after dilution with an appropriate amount of water, as desired, prior to the spreading, e.g., for microcapsules of agricultural chemicals, inclusive of insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, virucides and attractants.
Most important properties for such an aqueous microcapsule suspension liquid include that it is stable without causing sedimentation or separation of the microcapsules during storage and preservation, that even if some sedimentation of microcapsules is caused, the microcapsule suspension liquid or aqueous diluted suspension liquid thereof is capable of easy re-dispersion by a light degree of shaking, and that the microcapsule suspension liquid is easily diluted with water to provide a stable aqueous diluted suspension liquid.
Hitherto, such an aqueous microcapsule suspension liquid has been generally formed by adding materials, such as a thickening agent, a dispersing agent, an anti-freezing agent, an antiseptic agent and a specific gravity-adjusting agent. It has been known that the selection of a thickening agent has a great influence on the suspension stability of the resultant microcapsule suspension liquid. Examples of known thickening agents used for such purpose include: water-soluble synthetic polymers, such as polyethylene oxide, carboxymethylcellulose, and polyvinyl alcohol; water-soluble natural polymers, such as gum arabic, guar gum, locust bean gum, and sodium alginate; (hetero)polysaccharides formed by fomentation with microorganisms, such as xanthan gum, rhamsan gum and welan gum; and natural minerals, such as montmorillonite, and aluminum magnesium silicate. It is also known that polysaccharides formed by fermentation with microorganism as represented by xanthan gum formed by fermentation with a strain of microorganism of the genus Xanthomonas campestris particularly exhibit an excellent thickening effect and a relatively stable microcapsule suspension liquid (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application (JP-A) 2-28813).
However, according to our study, it has been found that a microcapsule suspension liquid formed by using xanthan gum as a thickening agent is relatively stable but still causes some sedimentation or viscosity increase with time and results in a state, such as aggregation or caking, which makes difficult the use thereof by re-dispersion, after long-term of storage.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Microcapsule suspension liquid and process for production thereof


The present disclosure generally relates to 3D-architected soft machines with topologically encoded actuation, and methods of making and using the 3D-architected soft machines.

This section introduces aspects that may help facilitate a better understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, these statements are to be read in this light and are not to be understood as admissions about what is or is not prior art.
Soft machines with continuously deformable bodies are advantageous for safe physical human-robot interactions and the manipulation of delicate objects, as well as for withstanding large impact forces and achieving multiple locomotion gaits (such as crawling, undulation, hopping, rolling, or growing) to adapt to their environment. Despite their advantages in safety, adaptability, and maneuverability, soft robots suffer from the lack of rigorous engineering methods since traditional rigid-body mechanics cannot adequately describe continuum soft robotic motion. Heuristic and intuition-driven approaches typically used in the design and fabrication of soft robots are further strained in the case of multifunctional soft robotic systems, which have only been able to demonstrate re-configurability via the removal and re-addition of parts relative to each other.
The architecture of a material determines its mechanical properties and performance. Mechanical metamaterials illustrate this close relationship between architecture and functionality by exhibiting unusual physical properties such as negative Poisson's ratio, multistability, phase shifting, or programmability. The structure of most mechanical metamaterials previously reported consist of periodic arrays of unit cells, which lead to materials with uniform mechanical responses upon actuation. Latest advances in soft robotics, wearable devices, and prosthetics, however, require spatially distributed functionality, which can only be produced by complex aperiodic architectures that are difficult to design. Naïve implementations of complex aperiodic structures often lead to geometrical frustration zones (areas of the material where local constraints cannot be satisfied), which impede the coherent operation of the material and prevent metamaterial-like functionality. The lack of rational design algorithms capable of rapidly creating aperiodic, yet frustration free, architected materials exhibiting localized actuation has hindered the development of actuators that benefit from metamaterial behaviors.
Harnessing mechanical instabilities—considered signs of structural failure in hard actuators—has recently emerged as a robust strategy to design and fabricate functional soft actuators with highly controllable nonlinear behavior. The reversible buckling of elastomeric beams is an example of a mechanical instability that can be harnessed to enable applications in stretchable electronics, switchable metamaterials, and soft fluidic actuators. Fluidic, buckling-based soft actuators typically consist of an elastomeric slab patterned with two dimensional periodic arrays of holes perpendicular to the slab sealed by elastomeric membranes. Upon applying negative pressure (vacuum), the buckling of the internal cavities of the soft actuator produces a regular and reversible deformation capable of generating linear and rotational motion. Fluidic actuators can achieve motions with faster response times than actuators made of electroactive polymers and larger amplitudes than dielectric elastomers and ionic conducting polymer films. However, the variety of motions achievable by fluidic actuators is limited by the need of bulky pneumatic or hydraulic sources, and the difficulty to design and manufacture soft actuators with tailored three-dimensional (3D) architectures.
Recently, small soft robots with embedded magnetic microparticles demonstrated fast and untethered actuation using rotating and alternating magnetic fields. Unfortunately, the scalability of this actuation mechanism is limited by the difficulty to enlarge the area where the magnetic fields can be tuned. Motor-tendon actuation approaches in soft robotics have also demonstrated fast actuation using relatively small and inexpensive motors. Due to their small size, tendons can be attached at multiple locations within a soft robot—even in places where it would be difficult to house other actuators otherwise—providing distributed and continuum actuation. Additionally, tendons offer a lightweight, low inertia platform for long-range force transmission with negligible backlash. The friction between the tendons and the soft body of the robot, however, introduces nonlinearities that reduce the controllability of the system.
Therefore, there remains a need to develop 3D-architected soft machines with topologically encoded actuation.


A bus connection circuit is connected by a bus to a bridge circuit having a plurality of pre-fetch buffers to access memory. A plurality of request queues and a plurality of request signal outputs and grant signal inputs are provided in a single bus connection device. By means of the single bus connection device, a plurality of pre-fetch buffers of a bridge circuit can be utilized effectively, wasted read requests corresponding to retry responses from the bridge circuit can be decreased, and consequently wasted use of a PCI bus can be reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a bus connection circuit and bus connection system utilizing data pre-fetch functions in a computer system requiring high-speed and large-volume data transfer, and in particular relates to a bus connection circuit and bus connection system utilizing data pre-fetch functions to raise the efficiency of transfer of large volumes of data, in a computer system having an internal PCI bus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years computer systems have widely adopted PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) buses as a standard bus specification capable of high-speed transfer of large amounts of data. PCI is a bus standard advocated by U.S. Intel Corporation; specifications for this standard have been developed and published by the PCI Special Interest Group (PCI SIG), an industry association in the U.S. A PCI bus is used in particular to connect an I/O device and memory via a chipset, and is useful for speeding the transfer of data between the I/O devices and the memory.
FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a computer system using a PCI bus, and shows a computer system comprising a CPU 101, memory controller 100, memory 102, bridge circuit 103, and PCI devices 104A and 104B. The PCI devices 104A and 104B are connected to the bridge circuit 103 by the PCI bus 114, and the CPU 101, the memory 102 and the bridge circuit 103 are connected to the memory controller 100 by the processor bus 111, the memory bus 112, and the memory controller bus 113, respectively.
The PCI devices 104A and 104B can access the memory 102 via the bridge circuit 103 and the memory controller 100. The bridge circuit 103 performs connection operations to absorb differences in bus data rates, protocols and similar between the memory control bus 113 and the PCI bus 114.
Because data transfer via this bridge circuit 103 may impede the high-speed operation of the PCI bus, in order to raise throughput, a plurality of pre-fetch buffers are provided in the bridge circuit 103 (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 11-238030).
FIG. 8 is a drawing of the configuration of a computer system comprising a conventional bridge circuit 103 in which is provided a pre-fetch buffer. This computer system comprises a plurality of PCI devices 104A through 104D, a bridge circuit 103, and memory units 100 and 102. The PCI devices 104A to 104D and the memory units 100, 102 are connected by the PCI bus 114 and by the memory buses 113, 112 respectively to the bridge circuit 103.
The bridge circuit 103 has a PCI interface circuit 210, a plurality of pre-fetch buffers 221A to 221D corresponding to each of the PCI devices 104A to 104D, and a memory interface circuit 230. The PCI devices 104A to 104D each have a PCI interface circuit 240, which has a set of a REQ signal and a GNT signal.
FIG. 9 explains the sequence of operations in the computer system of FIG. 8 when a plurality of PCI devices execute memory-read requests; these operations are explained in detail below.
(1) When the PCI device 104A executes a memory read request from internal circuitry, the PCI device 104A uses a request signal REQ 331 A to send a request to the PCI bus 114.
(2) The PCI interface portion 240 of the PCI device 104A, on receiving a grant signal GNT 332 A from the bridge circuit 103, initiates a memory read request transaction according to the PCI bus protocol.
(3) The PCI interface portion 210 of the bridge circuit 103, on receiving the memory read request, assigns a pre-fetch buffer 221A corresponding to REQ 331 A/GNT 332 A, and issues a retry response to the PCI bus 114.
(4) On receiving the retry response, the PCI device 104A temporarily releases the PCI bus 114, so that another PCI device can use the PCI bus 114.
(5) The pre-fetch buffer 221A assigned as described above issues a memory read request to perform memory reading to the memory interface portion 230.
(6) The memory interface portion 230 initiates a memory read request transaction with the memory units 100 and 102.
(7) Read data is transferred from the memory units 100 and 102; and is stored in the pre-fetch buffer 221A assigned as described above.
The PCI devices 104B to 104D execute memory read requests similarly to the operations (1) through (7) above. Normally, after the memory interface portion 230 of the bridge circuit 103 executes a memory read, an extremely long time elapses before the read data is received, and so the operations (1) through (7) performed by each of the PCI devices 104A to 104D overlap with a time difference.
(8) Through operations similar to (1) through (3), the PCI device 104A executes a memory read request to the bridge circuit 103.
(9) The PCI interface portion 210 of the bridge circuit 103, on receiving the memory read request, confirms the pre-fetch buffer 221A corresponding to the REQ 331 A/GNT 332 A used by the request, and when read data is stored therein, initiates data transfer to the PCI bus 114.
Through operations similar to (8) and (9), the PCI devices 104B to 104D also execute memory read requests to the bridge circuit 103 and initiate read data transfer.
As described above, by using pre-fetch buffers, the PCI bus can be used effectively and the overall system throughput is improved.
Thus in the technology of the prior art, by preparing a plurality of pre-fetch buffers in the bridge circuit, high-speed memory access is possible through time-division of the PCI bus among a plurality of PCI devices. However, depending on the circuit configuration, there may be cases in which the number of PCI devices connected to the PCI bus may be smaller than the number of pre-fetch buffers.
For example, as shown in FIG. 10, there is the case of a computer system comprising a single PCI device 104A, a bridge circuit 103, and memory units 100 and 102. Here, the PCI device 104A and the memory units 100 and 102 are connected to the bridge circuit 103 via a PCI bus 114 and memory buses 113 and 112, respectively. The bridge circuit 103 has a plurality of pre-fetch buffers 221A to 221D. Further, the PCI device 104A has one set of REQ/GNT signals.
FIG. 11 explains the sequence of operations in the computer system of FIG. 10 when the PCI device 104A executes a memory read request; operations are indicated in detail below.
(1) When the PCI device 104A executes a memory read request, the PCI device 104A uses REQ 531 to send a request to the PCI bus 114.
(2) The PCI interface portion 240 of the PCI device 104A, on receiving a GNT 532 signal from the bridge circuit 103, initiates a memory read request transaction according to the PCI bus protocol.
(3) The PCI interface portion 210 of the bridge circuit 103, on receiving the-memory read request, assigns a pre-fetch buffer 221A corresponding to REQ 531/GNT 532, and issues a retry response to the PCI bus 114.
(4) On receiving the retry response, the PCI device 104A temporarily releases the PCI bus 114.
(5) The pre-fetch buffer 221A assigned as described above issues a memory read request to perform memory reading to the memory interface portion 230.
(6) The memory interface portion 230 initiates a memory read request transaction with the memory units 100 and 102.
(7) The PCI device 104A again executes a memory read request to the bridge circuit 103, similarly to the actions (1) to (3).
(8) The PCI interface portion 210 of the bridge circuit 103, on receiving a memory read request, confirms the pre-fetch buffer 221A corresponding to the REQ 531/GNT532 used by the request, and because read data is not yet stored therein, sends a retry response to the PCI bus 114.
(9) When the PCI device 104A, on receiving the retry response, temporarily releases the PCI bus 114. The operations (7) through (9) are repeated several times.
(10) Read data is transferred from the memory units 100 and 102, and is stored in the pre-fetch buffer 221A assigned as described above.
(11) The PCI device 104A executes a memory read request to the bridge circuit 103, similarly to the operations (1) to (3).
(12) On receiving the memory read request, the PCI interface portion 210 of the bridge circuit 103 confirms the pre-fetch buffer 221A corresponding to the REQ 531/GNT532 used by the request, and when read data is stored therein, initiates data transfer to the PCI bus 114.
In this way, when only one PCI device is connected, only one pre-fetch buffer is used corresponding to REQ/GNT, and so the PCI device can only execute one memory read request at a time.
Consequently the time from when the PCI device sends a memory read request and the bridge circuit returns a retry response until read data is stored in the pre-fetch buffer is a time of merely repeating read requests prompted by retry responses, and is completely wasted, so that overall system throughput is lowered.
Moreover, normally the time from execution of a memory read by the memory interface portion of the PCI bus until data is received is extremely long, so that even if a memory read request is again executed immediately after a retry response, the bridge circuit merely sends a retry response to the PCI bus once again, and the PCI bus is used wastefully, so that overall system throughput is lowered.
Further, when a PCI device is prompted for a memory read request through a retry response from the bridge circuit simultaneously with an initial memory read request, and the memory read request for the retry response obtains PCI bus use privileges and a memory read request transaction is initiated, because there is a large possibility that read data is not stored in the pre-fetch buffer of the bridge circuit as explained above, the PCI bus is used wastefully, and there is a high probability that overall system throughput will be lowered.

Bus connection circuit and bus connection system having plural request queues, a bus interface portion outputting request signals, an arbiter performing arbitration of plural requests and a bus interface portion outputting a request signal indicating allocation of pre-fetch buffers corresponding to arbitrated requests


A warning indicator device installed in the tractor to give a driver an internal warning of a refrigerated trailer malfunction. This includes an internal warning indicator fault speaker and a red laminated light to be mounted on the lower part of the dashboard of the tractor, a 5-plug sensor input, a 5-prong output, a pigtail, a metal bar to secure the pigtail and fittings all made from a variety of materials.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to alerting a driver of a malfunction of a reefer with an internal warning system indicator. This invention is an attachment for an existing product wherein the existing product is the existing warning indicator typically found on existing refrigeration trailers known in the art and the attachment is an internal warning system inside the cab of a truck.
2. Description of the Related Art
One problem with the past malfunction indicator is that the driver can only detect a malfunction in the reefer if he or she has a view of the front of the refrigerated trailer.
Drivers have an extra safety device. Many times a reefer will have a code or a light, which has gone unnoticed. This could be due to many factors; a driver not detecting the problem (inexperienced), a driver not paying attention or a driver simply taking his or her government DOT required time off in the sleeper.
Many times drivers detect malfunctions by the sound of a reefer while the drivers are in the sleeper. A reefer will run continuously or simultaneously. A reefer can give a false indication that it is working properly. Many times a driver will hear a reefer running but not know or notice that the unit is not cooling.
Many problems do arise without the driver not knowing causing severe risk to products, which harms the public. The liability expense is estimated in the thousands. This has been a great concern to companies as well as insurance institutes.
Problems gone unnoticed or detected too late is a growing burden. If a driver does not have a view or knowledge of a problem, the driver would believe or assume the reefer is operating in the manner that it should.
On an existing refrigeration trailer as is known in the art, there is an existing warning indicator. The existing warning indicator gives only a visual that the reefer is or isn't working properly. This system shows a code and a light at the front of the trailer. This able the driver to see that there is a malfunction so the driver is able to get out of the truck and reset the reefer to correct the problem, and or take the reefer to a shop for repairs.
Accordingly, it is the objective of this invention to provide drivers, companies and institutes with an extra safety system. This system will warn a driver within the cab of a malfunction with a refrigerated trailer.