A method for obtaining sweet gas, synthetic gas, and sulphur from natural gas. The method includes the steps of removing impurities from the natural gas for obtaining pre-treated natural gas; sweetening the pre-treated natural gas through a separation using a plurality of membranes for obtaining sweet gas and acid gases; ionizing the acid gases to dissociate them into sulphur and synthetic gas with remnants of acid gases; and neutralizing the synthetic gas with remnants of acid gases for generating sweet gas. Likewise, a system is presented on how to implement the method.

Sweetening is the main process to which natural gas streams are subject to for the purpose of removing the acid gases it contains. The removal of said gases is essential for many reasons; one of those reasons is that they decrease the heat capacity of CH4. CO2 and H2S are highly corrosive acid gases; additionally, CO2 is considered one of the main greenhouse effect gases that contribute to global warming. On its part H2S is extremely toxic and fatal even in low concentrations. The conventionally known process used for the removal of acid gases implies chemical adsorption with amines. However, this process requires subsequent desorption to release the gases that had been removed, which are then burned or taken to the Claus process to recover the elemental sulphur and water. The technology used to selectively separate the acid gases using membranes is currently an attractive option to carry out the natural gas sweetening.
For the case of H2S separation from natural gas streams using membranes, literature is scarce. However, certain references can be found for this separation using copolymers of Poly(ether-urethane) and Poly(ether-urethane-urea) written by Chattarje et al [Chatterjee G., Houde A. A., Stern S. A., (1997), Poly(ether urethane) and Poly(ether urethane urea) Membranes with High H2S/CH4 selectivity, Journal of Membrane Science, 135, 99-106] who prepared the membranes with different polyethers and they found that it is possible to achieve separation factors close to 100 for H2S/CH4 in mixtures containing different CH4:CO2:H2S concentrations. This factor indicates that around 100 H2S molecules would flow through the membrane for every CH4 molecule, thus effectively concentrating the CH4 in the injection section of the gas, and receiving a mixture with very high H2S concentration at the membrane's bottom part. In another report about the separation of the same gases using a polyphosphazene membrane, permeability results report H2S/CH4 separation factors of about 75 [C. J. Orme, F. F. Stewa, (2005) Mixed gas hydrogen sulfide permeability and separation using supported polyphosphazene membranes, Journal of Membrane Science, 253, 1-2, 243-249].
Other studies have focused on aided transport processes in which the membranes are formed, for example, from a sulfonated ionic polymer containing an alcohol amine dissolved in the material, which acts as a carrier within the membrane to take the CO2 & H2S acid gases and transport them through the membrane [J. D. Way, R. D. Noble, (1989) Competitive facilitated transport of acid gases in perfluorosulfonic acid membranes, Journal of Membrane Science, 46, 2-3, 309-324]. Recently, Huang J. et al [Huang J., Zoe J., Winston Hoe W. S., (2008), Carbon Dioxide Capture Using CO2-Selective Facilitated Transport Membrane, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 47, 1261-1267] describe the aided transport of CO2 through the use of amines in a crosslinked matrix of vinyl alcohol, PVA, with amino groups joined to the polymer chain and free amines within the matrix. These membranes show good selectivity for the separation of H2S from the natural gas streams; however, given the nature of the aided transport, the flow through them takes a long time, which makes their use unfeasible for the separation in large volume streams of natural gas. Because of this, membranes with high flow of gas and capable of separating H2S from CH4 in ratios of at least 30 to 1 shall be included.
There is a larger number of reported works for the case of separation of CO2 from natural gas streams. Recently, Lin H. et al. [Lin H., Freeman B. D. (2005) Materials selection guidelines for membranes that remove CO2 from gas mixtures. Journal of Molecular Structure 739:57-74], published a revision about the selection of polymer materials with the capacity to form membranes for the separation of CO2 from gas mixtures. They suggest that in order to improve the permeability and selectivity properties of polymer membranes, the interaction between CO2 and the polymer needs to be increased through the incorporation of several polar groups; suggesting that the ethylene oxide (EO) units can be useful groups to achieve this objective. However, the poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) shows a strong tendency to crystallize, consequently, it shows low permeability for gases [Lin H., Freeman B. D. (2004) Gas solubility, diffusivity and permeability in poly(ethylene oxide). Journal of Membrane Science 239:105-117].
Some block copolymers that contain polyether segments (EO units) have been studied as alternative materials to improve CO2 transport properties [Car A., Stropnik C., Yave W., Peinemann K-V. (2008) PEG modified poly(amide-b-ethylene oxide) membranes for CO2 separation. Journal of Membrane Science 307:88-95.; Chen J. C., Feng X., Penlidis A. (2004) Gas permeation through poly(ether-b-amide) (PEBAX 2533) block copolymer membranes. Separation Science and Technology 39:149-164; Liu L., Chakma A., Feng X. (2004) Preparation of hollow fiber poly(ether block amide)/polysulfone composite membranes for separation of carbon dioxide from nitrogen. Chemical Engineering Journal 105:43-51.; Barbi B., Furani S. S., Gehrke R., Scharnagl N., Stribeck N. (2003) SAXS and the gas transport in polyether-block-polyamide copolymer membranes. Macromolecules 36: 749-758.; Kim J. H., Ha S. Y., Lee Y. M. (2001) Gas permeation of poly(amide-6-b-ethylen oxide) copolymer. Journal of Membrane Science 190:179-193.; Bondar V. I., Freeman B. D. Pinnau I. (2000) Gas transport properties of poly(ether-b-amide) segmented block copolymers. Journal of Polymer Science. Part B: Polymer Physics 38: 2051-2062]. In the copolymers known as PEBAX®, that contain an aliphatic polyamide as rigid segment (Ex: Nylon-6, Nylon-12, PA) and a polyether as a soft segment (Ex: poly(ethylene oxide, PEO, or poly (tetramethylene oxide, PTMO)). It has been reported that PA segments provide the mechanical properties, while gas transport occurs through the PEO segment [Bondar V. I., Freeman B. D. Pinnau I. (2000) Gas transport properties of poly(ether-b-amide) segmented block copolymers. Journal of Polymer Science. Part B: Polymer Physics 38: 2051-2062].
In light of the results obtained by incorporating EO units in aliphatic polyamides, other researchers have reported the transport properties of CO2 in segmented polyether (PEO) based membranes that are copolymerized with other polymer systems [Muñoz D. M., Maya E. M., de Abajo J., de la Campa J. G., Lozano A. E. (2008) Thermal treatment of poly(ethylene oxide)-segmented copolyimide based membranes: An effective way to improve the gas separation properties. Journal of Membrane Science 323: 53-59; Yoshino M., Ito K., Kita H., Okamoto K-I. (2000) Effects of hard-segment polymers on CO2/N2 gas-separation properties of poly(ethylene oxide)-segmented copolymers. Journal of Polymer Science: Part B: Polymer Physics 38:1707-1715].
In some processes, such as the one described in the patent EP2234697, a configuration that involves, at least, a two-step separation sequence in membrane units to produce a relatively pure methane gas stream with less content of pollutants than the entering gas is required. In these cases, the multi-step separation is justified by the fact that there is a lower loss of hydrocarbons in the permeated stream, as described in the publication of the international patent application WO2012012129. In the publication of the patent application US 20060042463, even though the permeated gas is recycled through a second membrane system, the result is still an acid stream with relatively high methane content, about 30% to 50% molar, which is used as fuel for an electric power generator.
On the other hand, in the publication of the patent application US20070272079, the membranes used in the separation steps of natural gas are selective for the passage of CO2 showing high permeability for CH4, at least in a 10/1 GPU ratio, which results in the recovery of up to 90% of methane gas. However, a well known fact is that natural gas streams are contaminated with both CO2 and H2S; consequently, it is essential to consider the removal of H2S in order to obtain a CH4 stream at the conditions required for commercial use.
On the other hand, the use of plasma for the production of hydrogen from the decomposition of H2S has already been implemented at a semi-industrial level by Balebanov et al in Orenburg, Russia [Balebanov A. V., Givitov V. K., Krasheninnikok E. G., Nester S. A., Potapkin B. V., Rusanov V. D., Samarin A. E., Fridman A., Shulakova E. V., (1989), High Energy Chemistry (Khimia Vysokikh Energij). Sov. Phys., 5, 440], using systems consisting of 4 microwave discharge ports whose power is 250 kW resulting in 1 MW of total net power. After the discharge zone, the reactor has a condenser attached to it where the elemental sulphur, H2 gas, and residual H2S are separated. Its performance depends on its adaptation to the purification process of natural gas with amines and it can even be linked to the Claus process.
Likewise, the pulsed corona discharge reported by Zhaoa G. et al. [Zhaoa G. B., Sanil J., Ji-Jun Z., Hamannb J. C., Muknahallipatnab S. S., Stanislaw L., Ackermana J. F., Argyle M. D., (2007), Production of hydrogen and sulphur from hydrogen sulfide in a non-thermal-plasma pulsed corona discharge reactor, Chemical Engineering Science, 62, 2216-2227] and Sanil J. et al. [Sanil J., Hamann J., Suresh S., Legowski S., Ackerman J. F., Argyle M. D., (2009), Energy Efficiency of hydrogen sulfide decomposition in a pulsed corona discharge reactor, Chemical Engineering Science, 64, 4826-4834], has been used for the treatment of H2S. This treatment is basically carried out in a quartz reactor to which an Argon-Nitrogen mixture is added to achieve a moderately efficient decomposition of H2S. This method has limitations with respect to the low concentration of H2S (<2% mol), high energy consumption (>100 eV/H2S) and the need to add mixtures with other gases (Helium, Nitrogen, Hydrogen, and Argon) in order to increase its energy efficiency.
Another method used to treat H2S using plasma technology, is the discharge by radio frequency (R.F.), which consists of generating a high frequency signal (MHz) at very low pressures (from 10 to 50 kPa) in order to achieve non-equilibrium conditions. Some developments reported by Potapkin et al. [Potapkin B. V., Strelkova M. I., Fridman A. A., Harkness J. B. L., Doctor R. D., (1995), Mechanism and kinetics of H2S—CO2 mixture dissociation in plasma of a microwave discharge, in: J. V. Heberlein, d. W. Ernie, J. T. Roberts, (Eds.), Proceeding of the 12th International Symposium on Plasma Chemistry, 1737-1742] about the decomposition of an H2S—CO2 mixture in a magnetically coupled R.F. plasma, show a theoretical dissociation rate of 91%, applying 2.3 kWh/m3 of specific energy. The disadvantage of this technology is that it requires the use of reduced pressure which does not allow the work with continuous flow of gases.
On the other hand, U.S. Pat. No. 5,211,923 focuses a plasma discharge on the production of H2 and sulphur from acid gas that contains H2S residues and one or more COS, CS2 & SO2. The plasma type used in its process is R.F. operating in the microwave range and working within a pressure range of 0.5 to 2 atm. The temperature range reached with this type of plasma is from 150° C. to 450° C. Worth mentioning is the fact that this patent requires a pre-ionized Argon inlet system and a pre-heating system for the gas to be treated. Additionally, the system needs a cooling system that uses water that is not recycled but is released to the atmosphere.
Regarding CO2, the avant-garde technologies used for its degradation focus on those developed for cold plasma because of its excellent dissociation results. For example: the reduction of CO2 by Dielectric Barrier Discharge reported by Zheng et al. [Zheng G., Jiang J., Wu Y., Zhang R., Hou H., (2003), The Mutal conversion of CO2 and CO in Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD), Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing, 23, 59-68], and, especially, the reduction of CO2 using Gliding Arc Plasma in its non-equilibrium state reported by Idarto A. [Indarto A., (2007), Kinetics of CO2 Reduction by Gliding arc Plasma, Asian Journal of Water Environment and Pollution, 4, 191-194].
It is precisely the gliding arc discharge the one that offers more advantages for the decomposition of toxic and hazardous gases having a strong chemical structure. One example of gliding arc discharge applied in the treatment of H2S, is the one carried out by Czernichowski A. [Czernichowski A., (1998), Plasma pour valorization totale ou partiele des gaz contenant de L'H2S, Revue de L'Institut Fra{acute over (ç)}ais du Pétrole, 53, 163-179], who achieved an efficiency value of around 36% in the degradation of H2S using a power source based on an 8 kV, 50 Hz, 3-phase transformer with power consumption of approximately 2.4 kW.
In light of the above, it is therefore necessary to provide a method and a system to obtain sweet gas, synthetic gas, and sulphur from natural gas, through the use of highly selective membranes for CO2 & H2S in order to generate sweet gas, synthetic gas, and sulphur in a way that prevents pollution of the environment through the release of CO2 & SO2 into the atmosphere, and, at the same time, offer the possibility of transforming an acid gases stream into a synthetic gas steam and sulphur, which does not only allow for natural gas sweetening, but also offers the conversion of acid gases into value added products through the use of a hybrid plasma reactor.

Method and system for obtaining sweet gas, synthetic gas and sulphur from natural gas

CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION EN QUIMICA APLICADA

CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION CIENTIFICA DE YUCATAN, A. C.

INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE INVESTIGACIONES NUCLEARES


A welding device for the sealing welding of thermopolastic hoses (184), includes a clamping device (12) with at least two clamping jaws (122, 124), of which at least one is movable and between which a hose (184) which is to be welded can be clamped, wherein the clamping device (12) has a heating devices (38; 40; 64) which is coupled to a control unit (30) and is configured to heat the hose clamped between the clamping jaws (122, 124). The invention is distinguished in that the at least one movable clamping jaw (122) is actuable with a controllable, bidirectional actuator (32, 34; 42-52; 54, 56, 58) which is coupled to the control unit (30) in such a manner that the clamping pressure acting on the hose (184) can be adjusted independently of the heating device.

The invention relates to a welding device that is configured for sealing welding of thermoplastic hoses and that comprises a pinching device with at least two pinching jaws, of which at least one is movable and between which a hose, which is to be welded, can be pinched, wherein the pinching device has a heating device, which is coupled to a control unit and is configured to heat the hose pinched between the pinching jaws.
Furthermore, the invention relates to an automated metering device for the metered transfer of a medium from a supply container via a connecting hose, which is made of a thermoplastic material, into a target container, wherein the connecting hose can be positioned between at least two pinching jaws of a controllable pinch valve, which is coupled to a control unit, so that a volumetric flow rate of the medium can be controlled by controlling a pinching pressure that is exerted on the connecting hose by the pinch valve at a pinching point.
Finally the invention relates to the use of the aforementioned welding device in conjunction with the aforementioned metering device.
A welding device of the type described is known from the EP 0551813 B1. A metering device as described above is known from the EP 1525138 B1.
There is a strong trend in modern medical and biotech industries away from re-usable containers to single use containers, so-called "disposables." As a rule, all manufacturing, dispensing, storage and application processes of medical and/or biotechnology fluids have to be carried out under aseptic conditions. In the event that re-usable containers are used, this requirement is fulfilled by first sterilizing the fluids and then checking and documenting the achieved sterility. The processes associated with this sequence of steps are technically intricate and cost intensive. They can be largely dispensed with if single use containers, i.e. disposables, which are already delivered in an aseptic condition by the manufacturer, are used. Plastic bags in particular have achieved success on the market as single use containers. They can be manufactured at a low cost, are easy to sterilize, are light in weight and have very little volume in the empty state, making them easy to dispose.
For typical processes both during the manufacture and also the use of medical and/or biotechnology fluids, the metering operations play an important role. These metering operations take place under various circumstances, e.g. during administration of the fluid, during mixing of various fluids or during dispensing of a fluid into commercially available containers. In any case at least one fluid has to be transferred from at least one supply container into at least one target container. Flexible plastic hoses are widely accepted for the purpose of connecting the supply container and target container, each of which is made as a plastic bag. Under hygienic aspects the coupling of the hose to a container is viewed critically, for which reason the manufacturers usually provide the bags as a single part or by material bonding with the hoses or with whole hose systems. Once the bag is filled, these hoses are permanently closed, typically at their ends, by welding. Closing the hoses by welding has many advantages. First of all, a bag, or more specifically a hose that is closed by welding, is tamper proof. Secondly, the end of the hose is heated by the welding operation, so that an additional sterilization process is carried out at the critical opening point. In principle, the welding operation is possible with any thermoplastic material, such as PVC, PE, PET, PU, etc.
The aforementioned EP 0 551 813 B1 discloses a welding device, in which the hose that is to be welded is pinched between two pinching jaws that are constructed as welding electrodes. The pinching pressure that is constant during the entire process is so high that it completely closes the free lumen of the hose at the pinching point. The pinching jaws together form a capacitor of an electric high frequency oscillating circuit. When the oscillating circuit is actuated at a suitably high frequency, the molecular dipoles of the hose material pinched between the pinching jaws are set into oscillation and, in so doing, heat up the walls of the hose. The heat buildup causes the hose to melt, so that under the constant pinching pressure the pinching jaws squeeze the softened hose material out of the pinching point, so that the initial result is the welding followed by a severing of the welding point. This publication document focuses, in particular, on the tuning of the resonance frequency of the electric oscillating circuit, where this resonance frequency changes through the passive approach of the pinching jaws under the constant pinching pressure owing to the resulting capacitance change of the capacitor.
The aforementioned EP 1 525 138 B1 discloses a metering device, with which a plurality of small bags provided as the target containers can be filled from a large bag functioning as the supply container. The metering, i.e. the control of the volumetric flow rate from the supply container to the target containers, is performed using pinch valves, which pinch the hose connections between the supply container and the target containers between the actively controllable pinching jaws. In so doing, the pinching pressure is varied in a controlled manner, so that the free lumen of the respective hose at the pinching point changes, and the volume flow through the hose at the pinching point can be varied, as required. Following completion of the bag filling operation, the access hose of the respective target bag is closed with a lock clamp and, in addition, can be permanently welded, for example, with the aforementioned welding device. A drawback of this approach is that the welding of the access hoses for the target containers has to be performed in a separate working step, a feature that entails not only higher costs due to the amount of time that is required and the need for an additional welding device but also entails hygienic risks.

Welding device, use thereof as a control valve, and metering device


There is described an apparatus for measuring a capacitance formed by a sense plate and a counter plate, wherein the sense plate comprises a first sub-plate and a second sub-plate, the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate being electrically separated. The apparatus comprises (a) a first integrator comprising a first integrator input terminal, a first integrator reference terminal connected to a first reference voltage, and a first integrator output terminal for providing a first output voltage indicative of a capacitance connected to the first integrator input terminal, (b) a second integrator comprising a second integrator input terminal, a second integrator reference terminal coupled to a second reference voltage, and a second integrator output terminal for providing a second output voltage indicative of a capacitance connected to the second integrator input terminal, (c) switching circuitry adapted to, at a first measurement point in time, connect the first integrator input terminal to the first sub-plate and connect the second integrator input terminal to the second sub-plate, and, at a second measurement point in time, connect the first integrator input terminal to the second sub-plate and connect the second integrator input terminal to the first sub-plate, and (d) output circuitry coupled to the first integrator output terminal and the second integrator output terminal and adapted to generate an output signal based on a difference between the first output voltage and the second output voltage, the output signal being indicative of the capacitance formed by the sense plate and the counter plate. There is also described a fingerprint sensor and a method.

Integration of a capacitance measurement device into a mains-operated device may cause noise being coupled into the device and hence impact the measurement result. Capacitance measurement devices that may e.g. measure the capacitance between parts of a human body and an array of sensing electrodes, may exhibit performance issues caused by noise originating from switched mode power supplies or picked-up RF noise being coupled between the device's ground potential and the body potential. Such noise may modulate the bottom plate of the capacitor under test, resulting in measurement errors.
Thus, there may be a need for a simple and efficient way of suppressing the noise discussed above.

Apparatus and method for measuring a capacitance, and a fingerprint sensor utilizing the same


Embodiments of the invention include a golf alignment device that holds alignment rods at multiple positions to provide indicators for a golfer's target line, swing, and setup. The base piece has two arms on each end that hold an alignment rod parallel to the base piece, but with a gap between the two rods. These rods are pointed at the golfer's desired target, and this forms the target line. The base piece has multiple holes for a third alignment rod to be inserted. This third rod provides a golfer with a ball, clubface, and hand position indicator. A golfer uses the base piece to align their body up parallel with the target line.

One of the key fundamentals in the game of golf is being able to identify the target line. The target line is the imaginary line between the golf ball and the desired target. In a basic setup posture, a golfer's feet, knees, hips, and shoulders should be lined up parallel to this line. It is crucial that a golfer be able to visualize this line in order to achieve the proper setup. It is difficult to mark the target line and still hit a ball down it. Typical golf drills require an alignment rod to be placed parallel to or on the line at the golfer's feet. Placing the alignment rod parallel to the target line gives the golfer a good reference for what is parallel to the line, but it still forces the golfer to focus on a line that is not the target line. Placing the alignment rod on the line gives the golfer the visual of the actual target line, but it prohibits a golfer from hitting a ball on top of it. A golfer can mark a line on the ground and then hit ball off of it. Marking such a line is not suggested at most driving ranges due to the mess and the fact that some driving ranges use mats to hit balls off of. Further, if a golfer is able to mark a line it becomes difficult to make the line straight. Further, it becomes tedious to have to mark a new line every time the golfer changes their target line.


A security regulated image intensifier system includes an image intensifier, a power supply for providing primary power to the image intensifier, and a controller for controlling multiple operating states of the power supply. A housing is provided for securely containing the image intensifier, the power supply and the controller.

Image intensifier devices are used to amplify low intensity light or convert non-visible light into readily viewable images. Image intensifier devices are particularly useful for providing images from infrared light and have many industrial and military applications. For example, image intensifier tubes are used for enhancing the night vision of aviators, for photographing astronomical bodies and for providing night vision to sufferers of retinitis pigmentosa (night blindness).
Examples of three types of image intensifying devices are image intensifier tubes, solid-state CMOS and CCD sensors, and hybrid EBCCD/CMOS (Electronic Bombarded CCD or CMOS sensor).
A current state of the art image intensifier, as an example, is the Generation III (GEN III) image intensifier tube exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,963 to Naselli, et al., entitled REPLACEMENT DEVICE FOR A DRIVER'S VIEWER and U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,780 to Phillips, entitled TELESCOPIC SIGHT FOR DAYLIGHT VIEWING. The GEN III image intensifier tube in both cited references is of the type currently manufactured by ITT Corporation, the assignee herein.
An image intensifier tube, or a solid state device, typically includes a photo cathode, a gallium arsenide (GaAs) active layer and a microchannel plate (MCP) positioned within a vacuum housing. Infrared energy, for example, may impinge upon the photo cathode and be absorbed in the GaAs active layer, thereby resulting in generation of electron/hole pairs. The generated electrons are then emitted into the vacuum housing and amplified by the MCP.
Once electrons exit the photo cathode, the electrons are accelerated toward an input surface of the MCP by a difference in potential between the input surface of the MCP and the photo cathode, which may be approximately 300 to 900 volts. As the electrons bombard the input surface of the MCP, secondary electrons are generated within the MCP. The MCP may then generate several hundred electrons for each electron entering the input surface. The MCP is also subjected to a difference in potential between its input surface and its output surface, which is typically about 1100 volts. This potential difference enables electron multiplication in the MCP.
As the multiplied electrons exit the MCP, the electrons are accelerated through the vacuum housing toward a phosphor screen (for example) by yet another difference in potential between the phosphor screen and the output surface of the MCP of approximately 4200 volts.
Accordingly, a power supply is generally used to provide the various potential differences of voltage (such as V1, V2 . . . Vn) to the image intensifier device. This power supply may be a single integrated unit that provides all the required voltages, or multiple power supplies may be used, as required for the specific application. It will be appreciated, therefore, that as used herein the term "power supply" refers to one integrated unit or multiple units.
The image intensifiers may easily be stolen or lost, thereby allowing them to fall into unfriendly or unauthorized hands. Lost or stolen image intensifiers may also cause problems to manufacturers producing these devices, because image intensifiers are subject to export restrictions.
The present invention addresses this problem and provides several solutions.

Image tube performance regulation for security purposes


A supply device for the operation of at least one medical instrument, in particular an electrosurgical instrument and/or a cryosurgical instrument and/or a water jet surgical instrument. The supply device includes a control unit for the control of the at least one medical instrument and a memory unit for the storage of configuration data which describe a state device with a plurality of states. The control unit is designed such that it reads in configuration data and converts the state device into a control program and controls the at least one medical instrument according to the control program. This ensures efficient control of medical instruments because the control programs used can be more efficiently checked for their correctness and updated accordingly.

In recent years, control technology has become increasingly important in the field of medicine. Devices that include a large number of electronic components are used in numerous operations. These medical devices usually include at least one instrument and a supply device that supplies the instrument accordingly. For example, electronically-controlled cryosurgical, electrosurgical and water jet surgical instruments are known and are operated by very complex control algorithms. For example, in high-frequency surgery (HF surgery) alternating current of high frequency is passed through the human body to devitalize or cut tissue in a targeted manner. In HF surgery, an HF generator is connected to a corresponding electrosurgical instrument to provide a suitable alternating current. In cryosurgery, supply devices, which are in fluid connection with corresponding instruments (for example, cryoprobes), provide a fluid for cooling the instrument. The corresponding supply devices must have control units, input units and output units to control the connected instruments in a suitable manner.
Corresponding electrosurgical devices are disclosed in European Patent Applications EP 1 862 137 A1 and EP 1 829 493 A1. A number of parameters (e.g., tissue type, operating mode, etc.) have to be taken into consideration for the control of these devices. The control units contained in the supply devices control various variables (e.g., voltage, current, power and modulation frequency, etc.). Electrosurgical supply devices often provide a number of operating modes, for example, a mode for cutting and a mode for coagulation.
In the past, a separate control program was developed for each of these operating modes. Maintenance of these programs is extremely time-consuming and susceptible to errors. Furthermore, the correctness of corresponding control programs cannot be established deterministically, meaning that numerous tests are necessary to ensure the safety of both the patient to be treated and the personnel. The development of control programs is therefore very expensive.

Supply device for operation of at least one medical instrument, method for generation of a control program


An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, an image forming unit for forming an image on the image bearing member and a detector for detecting the surface potential of the image bearing member, wherein a first image forming mode and a second image forming mode in which the image forming conditions of the image forming unit are different from each other can be selected, and further, the apparatus includes a controller for controlling the image forming conditions in the first and second image forming modes on the basis of the result detected by the detector for the first image forming mode.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which a plurality of image forming modes can be selected, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus in which image forming conditions can be varied depending on the selected image forming mode.
2. Related Background Art
There has been hitherto widely performed a technique in which a dark portion potential and a light portion potential are set to desired potentials by employing potential detecting means called a potential sensor for measuring the dark portion potential and the light portion potential on an electrophotographic photosensitive drum serving as an image bearing member.
Here, in order to represent differences in forming an image such as a character mode or a photographic mode, differences in forming an image such as a copy mode or a printer mode and differences due to a toner reducing mode or kinds of sheets to be supplied as images, there has been known a technique (called an image mode) that at least one of the dark portion potential and the light portion potential includes a plurality of kinds of potentials.
For example, while, in the character mode, a high dark portion potential is required so that a copied image has a secure contrast can be obtained, in a photographic mode, since an importance is more attached to a tone reproduction than to a contrast, a slightly low dark portion potential may be employed. Therefore, there may be employed a control (image mode control) by which two kinds of amount of electrification are selectively applied to electrifying means so that two dark portion potentials can be obtained for the above described demands.
Further, there have been also known a plurality of techniques related to a developing potential applied to developing means as one means for forming an image. There may be a technique including respectively a plurality of kinds of three items of an amount of electrification, an amount of exposure and a developing potential so as to get a desired image.
The adjustment of an image mode by utilizing the above described techniques is performed when an image forming apparatus main body is activated, or after an image is formed on a prescribed number of sheets or a prescribed time elapses to adjust the amount of electrification, the amount of exposure and the developing potential so as to constantly obtain a desired image.
However, in the case where there exist a plurality of kinds of the amount of electrification, the amount of exposure and the developing potential as described above, inconveniently, it necessarily takes much time to adjust the image mode. The adjusting time is equivalent to a waiting time for a user. If the user needs to wait for the output of an image, this will disadvantageously cause a productivity to be deteriorated.
In the case where a relatively much time can be ensured depending on the image forming apparatus, since, for instance, an electrophotographic image forming apparatus is adapted to apply heat to fixing means for the purpose of fixing developing toner to a sheet while the image forming apparatus is activated, the image mode control may be frequently carried out during heating of the fixing means and rise of the temperature of the fixing means. In this case, the waiting time is not specially increased in order to adjust the potential.
However, in the case where the image mode is adjusted after the image is formed on a prescribed number of sheets or a prescribed time elapses, much time has been required to perform the adjustment of the image mode, so that the productivity has been undesirably lowered.
The present invention was proposed in order to solve the above described problems of the prior art, and accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus excellent in its reliability in which an image mode can be adjusted without deteriorating a productivity.


Embodiments of the present invention provide a computer system a computer program product, and a method that comprises analyzing a received voice command by identifying a plurality of contextual factors associated with at least one user in a plurality of users using a natural language processing algorithm; dynamically identifying the at least one user in the plurality of users based on an analysis of the identified contextual factors associated with the received voice command; transmitting the received voice command to another computing device within a plurality of computing devices associated with another user in the plurality of users; and generating a line of communication between the plurality of computing devices based on a correlation between a summation of a plurality of security factors and a predetermined threshold of risk associated with authenticating an identity of each user within the plurality of users.

The present invention relates generally to the field of voice command system technologies, and more specifically artificial intelligence voice assistance system technologies.
A microphone is a device that converts sounds into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and public events, motion picture production, live and recorded audio engineering, sound recording, two-way radios, megaphones, radio and television broadcasting. They are also used in computers for recording voice, speech recognition, and for non-acoustic purposes such as ultrasonic sensors or knock sensors. Several types of microphone are used today, which employ different methods to convert the air pressure variations of a sound wave to an electrical signal. The most common are a dynamic microphone, which uses a coil of wire suspended in a magnetic field; the condenser microphone, which uses a vibrating diaphragm as a capacitor plate; and the contact microphone, which uses a crystal of piezoelectric material. Microphones typically need to be connected to a preamplifier before the signal can be recorded or reproduced.
A loudspeaker is an electroacoustic transducer; a device which converts an electric audio signal into a corresponding sound. The most widely used type of speaker is the dynamic speaker. The sound source (e.g., a sound recording or a microphone) must be amplified or strengthened with an audio power amplifier before the signal is sent to the speaker. The dynamic speaker operates on the same basic principle as a dynamic microphone, but in reverse, to produce sound from an electric signal. When an alternating current electrical audio signal is applied to its voice coil, a coil of wire suspended in a circular gap between the poles of a permanent magnet, the coil is forced to move rapidly back and forth due to Faraday's law of induction, which causes a diaphragm (usually conically shaped) attached to the coil to move back and forth, pushing on the air to create sound waves. Besides this most common method, there are several alternative technologies that can be used to convert an electrical signal into sound. Speakers are typically housed in a speaker enclosure, and this enclosure's materials and design play an important role in the quality of the sound. The enclosure generally must be as stiff and non-resonant as practically possible. Smaller loudspeakers are found in devices such as radios, televisions, portable audio players, computers, and electronic musical instruments. Larger loudspeaker systems are used for music, sound reinforcement in theatres and concert halls, and in public address systems.

International Business Machines Corporation


A ready to mix and drink cocktail bottle is an apparatus that enables a user to selectively mix fresh ingredients with a liquid base to make a desired beverage on the go. The apparatus includes a container body and a mixing mechanism. The container body serves to retain an amount of liquid base to make the desired beverage. The container body also serves to retain the mixed beverage after mixing and to facilitate the consumption of the mixed beverage. The mixing mechanism serves to retain the several beverage ingredients separate from each other until mixing. The mixing mechanism retains the several beverage ingredients in such a way that the freshness of each of the beverage ingredients is preserved. The mixing mechanism also facilitates the mixing of the beverage ingredients with the amount of liquid base retained in the container body when the user is ready to consume the mixed beverage.

Nowadays, beverages are provided in different configurations for the ease of consumption. Many beverages are sold premixed for quick and easy consumption by the consumer. However, some beverages still require manual mixing before consumption, such as cocktails. Cocktails in general involve the preparation and mixing of different ingredients including, but not limited to, alcoholic beverages, garnishes, and other soft drinks. There are several recipes for cocktails that involve different ingredients and tools, which can make it difficult for the casual drinker to master if they want to make a cocktail without the aid of a professional or a recipe. Further, preparing and gathering the tools necessary to make a proper cocktail can be time consuming, which can also deter the casual drinker from making a cocktail on their own. Furthermore, cocktails are often a staple of social gatherings and entertainment venues. However, many times attendees often find it difficult to promptly receive their drinks due to the high volume of attendees at the event. In addition, due to the increasing risk of drink spiking, many are often distrustful of the drinks being served at these venues.
Therefore, an objective of the present invention is to provide a novel beverage container with integrated means to enable a user to strain and mix multiple beverage ingredients with different viscosities to create a single drinkable beverage. The present invention includes an integrated mechanism that enables the mixing of several ingredients internally without opening or manually pouring the ingredients out to make a cocktail on the go. Another objective of the present invention is to provide a novel beverage container that enables the storage of fresh ingredients separate from each other within the same container. The present invention enables the consumer to keep fresh ingredients separate until the user wants to mix the ingredients. Another objective of the present invention is to provide a novel beverage container that can be restocked for future use. Additional features and benefits of the present invention are further discussed in the sections below.


A level measuring probe in which all potential leakage paths are closed by concentrically shrinking the outmost diametrical surface of the probe by some mechanical means such as a crimper or rotary swager to provide sufficient force to substantially uniformly deform the ground, guard, and active elements and insulators around the circumference of the probe such that multiple seals are created. A circumferential notch is preferably provided in the active probe element at the point of the crimping or swaging to provide "blowout protection" whereby the active probe electrode is held in place when used in a high pressure vessel. A pressure seal between the electrodes and insulation material is also maintained by using an elastomeric insulator which returns to its original shape after heating or a thin electrode which "gives" a little when the insulator expands radially during heating. The arrangement of the invention thus eliminates the need for costly machined parts and bushings to provide pressure seals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a material level probe having a pressure seal formed by crimping or swaging the probe with sufficient force to deform the ground, shield, and active elements and insulators such that multiple seals are created in a substantially uniform manner around the circumference of the probe. The probe of the invention is preferably used to measure the level of a material in a storage vessel by mounting the probe on the storage vessel and measuring capacitive and/or admittance differences among the probe elements due to the material in the container.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention addresses the problem of obtaining and maintaining an inexpensive pressure seal on a level measuring probe or sensing element. In the prior art, level measuring probes typically have been sealed against pressure by compressing a bushing into a gland using a compression plug to form a seal against the conductor or conductors that form the probe. A level measuring probe having a seal of this type is shown in FIG. 1.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, conventional level measuring probes comprise a conductive measuring element 10 formed of materials such as carbon steel, stainless steel and the like which is enclosed within an insulator 12 formed of an elastomeric or polymeric insulating material. In the three terminal type probe structure shown in FIG. 1, the measuring element 10 and insulator 12 are telescopically disposed within a guard electrode 14 which is, in turn, surrounded by a second insulator 16 formed similar to insulator 12. As shown, elements 10-16 are preferably telescopically disposed such that measuring element 10 and guard electrode 14 are exposed yet insulated from each other. As shown, guard electrode 14 extends through to the proximal end of the probe where it is connected to a lead 18. A ground to the vessel in which the probe is mounted is provided at ground electrode 20 of a gland 22 as shown.
As known by those skilled in the art, level measuring probes of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 are often mounted in containers under high pressure and are accordingly pressure sealed to prevent leakage of the potentially hazardous substances in the containers. For this purpose, gland 22 is provided for accepting a Teflon bushing 24 which is forced tightly into the gland 22 by a compression plug 26. Elements 22-26 together provide a tight pressure seal against leaks among guard electrode 14, insulation layer 16, and ground electrode 20. A tight pressure seal is similarly formed among measuring element 10, insulator 12, and guard electrode 14 by inserting a screw 28 into the proximal end of measuring element 10, surrounding screw 28 by a bushing 30, and then compressing bushing 30 into the spaces between measuring element 10 and guard electrode 14 using a compression plug 32.
A pressure seal of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 works quite effectively but requires costly machined parts such as gland 22, compression plugs 26 and 32, and screw 28 in order to provide the necessary pressure seal. Also, the compression plugs must be readjusted after the probe has been subjected to extreme temperature variations if a tight seal is to be maintained. It is desired to eliminate the costly machined parts and bushings used in such seals in order to provide a less expensive level measuring probe which need not be periodically readjusted.
One known mechanism for providing a pressure seal between the probe and the guard electrode without using machined glands and plugs is described by Fleckenstein in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,499,641, 4,549,245 and 4,811,160. Fleckenstein therein describes a molded level measuring probe in which the desired pressure seal is obtained by injection molding the insulation material so that it forms an integral piece which surrounds the rod-shaped measuring element between the measuring element and the guard shield. The effects of shrinkage of the insulation material after the injection molding is minimized by injection molding a lip at a distal end of the probe which radially overlaps the distal end of the guard shield so that the guard shield edge is squeezed during cooling of the insulation material to form a tight, pressure resistance seal between the guard shield and the measuring element. A notch is also formed in the measuring element so that the insulating material filling the notch may form a shoulder which holds the measuring element in its axial position.
However, it has been found that the lip at the distal end of the probe alone does not provide a sufficient seal when the probe is subjected to extreme heating and subsequent cooling. In other words, because the insulation material expands during heating and generally does not return to its exact shape upon cooling, leakage paths are formed between the guard shield and the insulation layer, even at the lip. Nevertheless, the Fleckenstein probe maintains a pressure seal because any material entering the probe through such a leakage path has no path out the proximal end of the probe. In other words, because the guard shield does not extend the length of the probe, there is no leakage path along the guard shield out the proximal end of the probe. Unfortunately, however, since the guard shield does not extend the length of the probe, material which enters the probe or even air gaps formed within the probe as a result of heating and cooling cycles will get between the guard shield and measuring element so as to adversely affect the measured capacitance and admittance between the guard shield and the measuring element.
An improved pressure seal configuration is thus desired which provides an improved pressure seal between the guard electrode and the measuring element and also provides an improved pressure seal between the ground electrode and the guard electrode or, in the case of a two terminal probe, between the ground electrode and the measuring element. A pressure seal is also desired which holds the elements of assembled or molded probes together while sealing all of the potential leakage paths formed by heating and cooling cycles of the probe without affecting the probe's measurements. The present invention has been designed for this purpose.
Fleckenstein observed that an improved seal between the guard electrode and the probe could be formed by crimping or squeezing the tip of the guard shield around the insulation layer between the guard shield and the measuring element so that leakage paths between the guard shield and the measuring element may be substantially closed. However, as also noted by Fleckenstein, crimping of the guard shield tip has heretofore been undesirable since it requires an extra assembly operation during manufacture of the level measuring device and has not heretofore been entirely effective. As a result, the beneficial uses of crimping, swaging, and the like for providing pressure seals in level measuring devices has not been adequately explored. The present invention has been designed to overcome this shortcoming in the prior art and to provide an inexpensive yet effective pressure seal consistent with the above objectives.


An arrangement for determining a predicted health of a system that would result from an application of a proposed intervention to an existing system. The predicted health is determined by determining a set of modifications involved in the proposed intervention wherein each modification involves one or more components of the existing system. For each modification, a set of component information that pertains to the modification is obtained from a knowledge base. Each set of component information may specify inter-dependencies among the components involved in the modification. For each modification, it is determined whether the inter-dependencies specified in the component information are satisfied. The determination of whether the inter-dependencies are satisfied enables a determination of the predicted health of individual components of the system as well as the predicted health of the overall system.

The present invention pertains to the field of systems. More particularly, this invention relates to predicting system health in response to a proposed system intervention.
The operation of a wide variety of systems commonly involves system changes such as the installation of new components, the modification or reconfiguration of existing components, or the removal of existing components. For example, the administration and/or maintenance of a computer system commonly involves the installation new hardware and/or software components, the modification or reconfiguration of existing hardware and/or software components, and the removal of existing hardware and/or software components.
The components of a system commonly have dependencies with respect to one another. The software components of a computer system, for example, commonly have particular hardware requirements such as processor type or speed and/or memory requirements, etc. In addition, software components commonly have software requirements such as operating system and/or drivers, etc. Similarly, the hardware components of a computer system commonly have software and/or hardware requirements.
As the number and complexities of inter-dependencies among system components increases, so does the likelihood that system changes will significantly degrade the ability of the system to function properly. Unfortunately, prior methods for performing system changes are usually ill suited to prevent system disruptions caused by the inter-dependencies among system computers. For example, during installation of a new software component in a computer system a check us usually made, either manually or using installation software, to determine whether the required amount of disk space and/or processor, operating system, etc., requirements are satisfied. Any problems caused by more complex inter-dependencies must usually be discovered and dealt with after the system change is performed. Unfortunately, this typically leads to decreases in system performance and increased system down time.

Predicting the health of a system that would result from the application of a proposed intervention to an existing system

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A gamification balance exercise system including: a balance board in which a central axis is continuously changed while user's feet are seated; a gyro sensor which is installed in the balance board to detect a slope of the balance board; a communication module which transmits slope data measured by the gyro sensor; a game application which receives and analyzes the slope data to classify the analyzed slope data into direction and acceleration data and moves a character in a predetermined game content based on the direction and acceleration data; and a display which is embedded with the game application and displays the game content and the movement of the character.

The present invention relates to a gamification balance exercise system and more particularly, to a gamification balance exercise system in which a user can move left, right, front, and back on a mobile game through changes in x and y-axis values obtained through the movement by inserting a gyro sensor into a balance board made so that a central axis is unstable to be continuously changed, thereby doing exercise through more exciting balance training.
Globally, there is an increasing socio-economic problem with obese children due to eating more and moving less. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of obese children in the world, which was 11 million in 1975, has risen more than 10 times to 124 million in 2016. In addition, 68% of adolescent obesity leads to adult obesity, and in the United States, 5% to 7% of total medical costs have been spent on treating obesity-related diseases every year, and it was found that additional cost of the enterprise was $800 at the time of employing one obese worker.
Meanwhile, a research team from the university of Leicester, UK, has analyzed large-scale genetic data of about 200,000 or more people, and as a result, it was investigated that as a height was increased by 6.3 cm, the risk of heart disease was decreased by 13.5%, and thus it can be seen that the risk of heart disease in a person with a height of 152 cm is about 32% higher than that in a person with a height of 168 cm.
However, accessibility to physical activity or exercise is low because of education centering on academic achievement and an increase in PC and mobile games, and as a result, a new exercise equipment that can be always nearly enjoyed is required.
In particular, a balancing exercise for children and adolescents has a variety of advantages such as inducing proper growth during the growing period, even development of muscles, preventing obesity, and promoting sound thinking. The balancing exercise is done while the central axis is moved or unstable, so that a neuromuscular function is improved, the body is activated due to improvement of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and quickness and muscular endurance are improved.
When describing prior arts for a gamification exercise system, in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-1254588, there is disclosed an exercising apparatus linked with a functional game which includes a terminal unit which is installed with game software and includes an operating unit by which a user can play games; and an exercising unit which is linked with the game software to conduct the game according to the input of user's movement, so that the user may play games using at least one of the terminal unit and the exercising unit, a character allocated to the user is provided in the game software, and the user may change a state of the character by the exercising unit. According to the prior art, it is advantageous that the user may continuously maintain an interest in the exercise unit to promote the exercise desire, but since the exercising unit is usable at a sports center such as a health club other than a general exercising equipment, it is disadvantageous that it is difficult to use the exercising unit when the user wants to do exercise at any time in a private and comfortable space such as a house.


A semiconductor structure includes a substrate with cooling layers, cooling channels, coolant inlets and outlets in fluid communication with the cooling channels, and a device layer on the cooling layers with one or more connection points and a device layer area. The device layer thermal coefficient of expansion is substantially equal to that of the cooling layers. A plurality of laminate substrates are disposed on, and electrically attached to, the device layer. The laminate substrate thermal coefficient of expansion differs from that of the device layer, each laminate substrate is smaller than the device layer portion to which it is attached, and each laminate substrate includes gaps between sides of adjacent laminate substrates. The laminate substrates are not electrically or mechanically connected to each other across the gaps therebetween and the laminate substrates are small enough to prevent warping of the device, interconnection and cooling layers due to thermal expansion.

Technical Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to massively parallel supercomputers made from multi-core processor chips.
Discussion of the Related Art
Contemporary supercomputers typically use thousands of processors that are either distributed across a network or are placed in close proximity to each other as in a centralized computer cluster. More recently, supercomputers have started using multi-core processors, with the idea of developing a supercomputer on a chip. The bisectional bandwidth between separate processor chips in a supercomputer is typically limited by the speed and number of electrical links which can be provided between the processors. The available bandwidth between processors on the same chip is significantly higher than what can typically be provided between processors on different chips. The size of individual chips is limited by lithographic field size, yield, and chip packaging technology, and the number of electrical connections between chips is also limited by chip packaging technology. Electrical interconnects within a chip are cheaper and use less power than electrical interconnects between chips on the same substrate, which are cheaper and use less power than electrical interconnects between substrates, etc. A number of useful computational tasks can be limited by the available bisectional bandwidth, such as sparse matrix multiplication used in natural language processing, or large fast Fourier transforms (FFTs).

Supercomputer using wafer scale integration

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


Carbon nanotubes are functionalized in a broadly applicable manner. According to an example embodiment of the present invention, single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are noncovalently functionalized. The functionalized SWNTs are highly versatile, being useful for a variety of implementations, including for the immobilization of molecules, for circuit arrangements, molecular electronics and for molecular sensors. In addition, stable suspensions of functionalized SWNTs in solutions can be achieved, as well as the self-assembly of nanotubes with unperturbed sp2 structures and thus their electronic characteristics.

Carbon nanotubes exhibit interesting and useful electrical properties, and may be utilized for a variety of devices. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), having single-molecule-thick walls, have been found to be particularly useful in a variety of implementations, including integrated molecular electronic devices and chemical sensors. These devices may be implemented, for example, in chemical and biological species detection and identification, microelectronics circuitry, medical devices, environmental monitoring, medical/clinical diagnosis and biotechnology for gene mapping and drug discovery. For general information regarding carbon nanotubes, and for specific information regarding SWNTs and its applications, reference may be made generally to the above-mentioned patent documents, and also to: "Carbon Nanotubes: Synthesis, Structure, Properties and Applications," M. S. Dresselhaus, G. Dresselhaus and Ph. Avouris (Eds.), Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, New York, 2001; and "T. Single-shell Carbon Nanotubes of 1-nm Diameter," Iijima, S. & Ichihashi, Nature 363, 603-605 (1993).
In these and other carbon nanotube implementations, nanotube devices exhibiting both high functionality and high flexibility are desirable. For instance, in electrical applications, the ability to manipulate electrical characteristics of a device to target the device's electrical behavior to a particular implementation increases the device's functionality and flexibility. Similarly, in chemical sensors, the ability to tailor a sensor for sensing a particular molecular species is also advantageous. In previous carbon nanotube implementations, however, achieving such high functionality and flexibility has been challenging.

Noncovalent sidewall functionalization of carbon nanotubes

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


Various implementations include a device for holding and supporting a medical instrument in a position. For example, the medical instrument may include a percutaneous procedure apparatus, such as a needle (e.g., biopsy needle, anesthesia needle) or needle holder. In some implementations, the device holds and supports the percutaneous procedure apparatus and liberates the procedure operator's hands from direct beam exposure, which lowers the risk of complications and radiation exposure to patients and procedure operators. The device also increases the effectiveness of the procedure by holding and supporting the apparatus in the intended position.

Diagnosis in medicine has been revolutionized by cross sectional imaging, such as computer tomography (CT) scanning. Use of CT scan over conventional X-ray allows physicians to look into the body with great sensitivity, which increases diagnosis of all pathophysiology from infection to cancer.
CT guided procedures utilize percutaneous needle insertion along with intermittent or continuous imaging. These procedures may require the operator to hold a needle in place while performing other tasks, including moving the patient to facilitate CT imaging and confirm placement. See Giovanna Negrão de Figueiredo & Christoph G. Trumm, CT-Guided biopsy and drainage, MEDICAL RADIOLOGY 1, pages 1-32 (2017). Risks associated with the procedures include radiation exposure to procedure staff and patient and procedural complications including bleeding, infection, pain, tumor seeding, pneumothorax, injury to organs, and others.
Often the highest radiation dose given current radiation protection practices is to the hands. Exposure avoidance methods including side-hand manipulation and needle stabilization devices have been implemented with mixed results. Additionally, side hand manipulation still allows high operator hand exposure. Current needle stabilization devices include towel clips and biopsy needle holders have been developed but have not gained wide usage due to several factors. Current stabilization devices are awkward as some obscure needle entry point and others have difficult release mechanisms which hinder and increase the risk of repositioning the needle during patient breathing. In addition, others limit needle excursion or create metallic artifact, which obscures biopsy target and surrounding critical structures. Several devices distance the hands spatially from the CT scanner—but must still be physically held at a distance, decreasing needle stability, rendering them less useful than radiation-reducing gloves. See Stoeckelhuber, B. M., et al., Radiation dose to the radiologist's hand during continuous CT fluoroscopy-guided interventions, CARDIOVASCULAR AND INTERVENTIONAL RADIOLOGY 28 (5), pages 589-94 (2005); J. L. Chenoweth & B. Patel, Needle holder for use with a biopsy gun, RADIOLOGY 181 (1), pages 285-86 (1991); R. Kato et al., Radiation dosimetry at CT fluoroscopy: physician's hand dose and development of needle holders, RADIOLOGY 201 (2), pages 576-78 (1996).
Thus, there is need in the art for a device for supporting a medical instrument and methods of use thereof that reduces complications associated with CT procedures, improves effectiveness of procedures, and reduces radiation risk to the operator.

Devices for supporting a medical instrument and methods of use


Electronic devices may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry and antenna structures. The antenna structures may include antenna resonating elements such as dual-band antenna resonating elements that resonate in first and second communications bands. The antenna structures may also contain parasitic antenna elements such as elements that are operative in only the first or second communications band and elements that are operative in both the first and second communications bands. The antenna resonating elements and parasitic elements may be mounted on a common dielectric carrier. The dielectric carrier may be mounted within a slot or other opening in a conductive element. The conductive element may be formed from conductive housing structures in an electronic device such as a portable computer. The portable computer may have a clutch barrel with a dielectric cover. The dielectric cover may overlap and cover the slot and the dielectric carrier.

This relates to wireless electronic devices, and, more particularly, to antenna structures for wireless electronic devices.
Electronic devices such as computers and handheld electronic devices are often provided with wireless communications capabilities. For example, electronic devices may use cellular telephone circuitry to communicate using cellular telephone bands. Electronic devices may use short-range wireless communications links to handle communications with nearby equipment. For example, electronic devices may communicate using the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz and the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz.
To satisfy consumer demand for small form factor wireless devices, manufacturers are continually striving to implement wireless communications circuitry such as antenna components using compact structures. For example, antennas have been installed within the clutch barrel portion of portable computer housings. A portable computer clutch barrel contains hinges that allow the lid of the portable computer to open and close. In computers in which antennas have been mounted in the clutch barrel, the outer surface of the clutch barrel has been formed from plastic. The plastic is transparent at radio frequencies, so the antennas in the clutch barrel and transmit and receive radio-frequency antenna signals.
If care is not taken, however, antennas that are mounted in this way may exhibit performance variations as the lid of the computer is open and closed, may be subject to undesired losses, or may not exhibit satisfactory performance in configurations with small clutch barrels or multiple antennas.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved ways in which to provide electronic devices such as portable computers with antennas.

Antenna structures having resonating elements and parasitic elements within slots in conductive elements


In certain aspects, the present disclosure relates to polypeptides comprising a truncated, ligand-binding portion of the extracellular domain of TβRII polypeptide useful to selectively antagonize a TβRII ligand. The disclosure further provides compositions and methods for use in treating or preventing TGFβ associated disorders.

Members of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGFβ) superfamily are pleiotropic cytokines involved in essential cellular functions such as proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, motility, extracellular matrix production, tissue remodeling, angiogenesis, immune response, cell adhesion, and also play a key role in pathophysiology of disease states as different as chronic inflammatory conditions and cancer. Members of the TGFβ superfamily have been classified into major family groupings, which include TGFβs, bone morphogenetic proteins (BMP), osteogenic proteins (OP), growth and differentiation factors (GDF), inhibins/activins, mullerian inhibitory substances (MIS) and glial derived neurotrophic factors (GDNF).
TGFβ superfamily members transduce their signals across the plasma membrane by inducing the formation of heteromeric complexes of specific type I and type II serine/threonine kinase receptors, which in turn activate a particular subset of SMAD proteins (some inhibitory and some excitatory). The SMAD molecule compounds relay the signals into the nucleus where they direct transcriptional responses in concert with other proteins.
Dysfunctional TGFβ superfamily signaling has been linked to several clinical disorders including cancer, fibrosis, bone diseases, diabetic nephropathy, as well as chronic vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis.
Thus, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide compositions and methods for modulating TGFβ superfamily signaling.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods of treating a fibrotic disorder by administering transforming growth factor beta receptor II fusion polypeptides


A device for the setting of bone fractures near joints, particularly in the area of proximal and distal femur fractures, as well as the proximal tibia, has a plate blade (2) designed for implantation in the bone fragment (1) near the joint, and a side plate (4) designed for attachment to the shaft of the tubular bone (3) remote from the joint, which are separably connected.

As noted, angle plates are currently used in the treatment of joint fractures. See U.S. Pat. No. 3,025,853 to MASON. Typically, an angle plate consists of a plate blade to be guided into the neck of the femur, which blade is permanently connected at a predetermined angle to a side plate to be attached to the femur shaft. The plate blade is driven into the bone at a predetermined angle, and the bone fragment near the joint is thereby gripped. After the plate blade has been completely driven into the neck of the femur, the side plate comes to rest laterally on the proximal femur shaft, where it is attached with a varying number of bone screws.
The advantages that can be achieved with this known angle plate are chiefly of a biomechanical type. Thanks to the broad support area, the blade permits optimum support in the cancellous area of the bone fragment near the joint.
The principal disadvantages of a conventional angle plate relate to its handling. Because of its single-unit construction, a great deal of attention must be paid to the orientation of the blade, as otherwise the longitudinal axis of the side plate will not accord with the longitudinal axis of the tubular bone. Another marginal condition is created by the anatomy of the bone to be set. The direction in which the plate blade is driven in, for example at the proximal femur head, from lateral to medial, must not cause the blade to break out sideways (toward the anterior or posterior) through the femur neck. If the three angular relations are defined by the surgeon, the exact point of entry of the plate blade must be determined. This point of entry is theoretically determined from the three aforesaid angle relations. In practice, there are often deliberate or accidental divergences. Accidental divergences are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to correct because they become visible only after the implantation of the plate blade has been completed. Since the dimension of the plate blade takes up almost the entire section of the femur neck when the plate blade is applied to the proximal femur (the most frequent application), a correction is possible to only a limited extent, and it leads to an unstable setting through the seat of the plate blade, which is now too large.
The implanting of such known angle plates thus requires an outstanding three-dimensional visualization ability on the part of the surgeon in the domain of anatomy, as well as careful, and thus time-consuming, preoperative planning.
Because of the difficulties that arise with known angle plates, many surgeons have changed to hip screws or condylar screws. With respect to handling during implantation, these screws offer major advantages, compared to the angle plate. One of the greatest advantages is the possibility of a "pre-exploration" of the screw position with the help of a guide wire. This guide wire is introduced, under x-ray monitoring, into the bone fragment to be set.
Since even these hip screws are driven into the sleeve of the side plate at a fixed angle, here again very precise work is required, via the use of a tracking device and a guide wire; as soon as the guide wire is in the best position in the bone, the hole for the hip screw is drilled over the positioned guide wire. After the hip screw has been driven in, the side plate can be pushed onto the screw shaft. A few known screw types have longitudinal grooves on the screw shaft, which must match with the corresponding lands on the sliding shaft (sleeve) of the side plate; this is not a problem, however, since if the matching is imperfect, the dynamic hip screw can be screwed in again or removed.
The disadvantage of the dynamic hip screw is the often unsatisfactory rotation stability and setting, and the large implant section. When one considers the loads that act on the implant, one recognizes that a hip screw is inferior to the angle plate. The same also applies to the setting of fractures in the area of the femur condylars.
An object of the present invention is to combine the biomechanical advantages of the angle plate with the simple operating technique of the hip screw.


On detecting a carrier frequency error in a received signal, a correlation unit (12) detects a correlated signal in signals which a transmission unique word signal in the received signal and a local unique word signal are differentially detected. A frequency fine detection unit (17) detects a fine frequency error by using the correlated signal and a frame timing signal. A frequency coarse detection unit (21) detects a coarse frequency error by using the buffered signal from a data buffer (20) and the frame timing signal. A first adder (25) adds the fine frequency error to the coarse frequency error to a first added signal. A second adder (31) adds the first added signal to a maximum power frequency detected by a maximum power frequency detection unit (27) to produce the carrier frequency error.

This invention relates to a carrier frequency error detector for use in a coherent demodulator and, more particularly, to a carrier frequency error detector for use in a coherent demodulator for coherently demodulating a received signal to produce a demodulated signal.
In general, a coherent demodulator of the type described is operable in combination with an incoherent detector for incoherently detecting a received signal in a modulated signal which carries a transmission digital data signal. The modulated signal may be, for example, an N-phase PSK (phase-shift keying) modulated signal where N represents a predetermined integer which is not less than two. The predetermined integer N is usually equal to 2.sup.m where m represents a positive integer. The N-phase PSK modulated signal is also called an N-level PSK modulated signal. The N-phase PSK modulated signal is obtained by carrying out N-phase PSK modulation on a transmission carrier signal having a transmission carrier frequency by the transmission digital data signal. In other words, the N-phase PSK modulated signal is obtained by making a phase of the transmission carrier signal to vary as a function of, as a modulating signal, the transmission digital signal digitized by a transmission clock signal having a transmission clock frequency. The transmission digital data signal comprises a plurality of frames each of which includes a transmission unique word signal indicative of a transmission unique word. The modulated signal may be an APSK (amplitude phase-shift keying) modulated signal which is also referred to a QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) modulated signal.
The incoherent detector is also referred to a plesiochronous detector. The incoherent detector is supplied through a transmission path with the modulated signal. The incoherent detector includes a local oscillator for oscillating a local carrier signal having a local carrier frequency equal to the transmission carrier frequency. The incoherent detector carries out an incoherent detection operation on the modulated signal by using the local carrier signal. The incoherent detector produces an incoherently detected signal indicative of a result of the incoherent detection operation. The incoherently detected signal is supplied to the coherent demodulator as the received signal. It is noted that the local carrier signal is not synchronized in frequency and in phase with the modulated signal. Accordingly, the received signal has a carrier frequency error and an initial phase error with respect to the transmission carrier frequency and a phase of the modulated signal, respectively.
The coherent demodulator comprises a coherent detector, a carrier recovery circuit, and a clock recovery circuit. The coherent detector is supplied with the received signal. In the manner which will later become clear, the coherent detector is also supplied with a reproduced clock signal and a recovered carrier signal from the clock recovery circuit and the carrier recovery circuit, respectively. The coherent detector carries out a coherent detection operation on the received signal on the basis of the reproduced clock signal and the recovered carrier signal to produce a modulated signal having a baseband level. The modulated signal is supplied to the clock recovery circuit and the carrier recovery circuit.
As mentioned above, the received signal is accompanied with the carrier frequency error and the initial phase error. In order to detect the carrier frequency error and the initial phase error in the received signal, the coherent demodulator further comprises a controlling device. The controlling device comprises a frame timing generator, a carrier frequency error detector, and an initial phase error detector. Responsive to the received signal, the frame timing generator generates a frame timing signal indicative of frame timing. Responsive to the received signal, the carrier frequency error detector detects the carrier frequency error in the received signal to produce a carrier frequency error signal indicative of the carrier frequency error. Responsive to the received signal, the initial phase error detector detects the initial phase error in the received signal to produce an initial phase error signal indicative of the initial phase error. The frame timing signal is supplied to the clock recovery circuit while the carrier frequency error signal and the initial phase error signal are supplied to the carrier recovery circuit.
Responsive to the demodulated signal, the clock recovery circuit generates the reproduced clock signal on the basis of the frame timing signal. Responsive to the demodulated signal, the carrier recovery circuit generates the recovered carrier signal on the basis of the carrier frequency error signal and the initial phase error signal.
In the prior art, the carrier frequency error detector comprises a frequency multiplier, a Fourier transformer, and a maximum detector. It will be assumed that the modulated signal is the N-phase PSK modulated signal. The frequency multiplier is supplied with the received signal. The frequency multiplier carries out a frequency multiplier operation on the received signal by a factor N. The frequency multiplier produces a frequency multiplied signal. The frequency multiplied signal is supplied to the Fourier transformer. The Fourier transformer carries out a Fourier transformation operation on the frequency multiplied signal to produce a Fourier transformed signal indicative of bright line spectra. The Fourier transformed signal is supplied to the maximum detector. Responsive to the Fourier transformed signal, the maximum detector detects a peak in the bright line spectra to produce a maximum detected signal as the carrier frequency error signal. At any rate, the conventional carrier frequency error detector detects a maximum power in a frequency range where the carrier frequency error enables to exist. As a result, the conventional carrier frequency error detector is disadvantageous in that there is the possibility of detecting an incorrect carrier frequency error in a case where noise or the like is superimposed on the received signal.

Carrier frequency error detector capable of accurately detecting a carrier frequency error


A method of fabricating a dual-damascene structure comprising the following steps. A structure having a patterned low-k material layer formed thereover is provided. The patterned low-k material layer having an upper surface and at least one via hole formed therethrough. A plug material layer is formed over the patterned low-k material layer and filling the at least one via hole. The plug material layer being comprised of a material dissolvable in TMAH or deionized water. The plug material layer is developed to form a plug within the respective at least one via hole having a height below the upper surface of the patterned low-k material layer. The plug is baked to crosslink the plug material comprising the plug. A trench masking layer is formed and patterned to form a patterned trench masking layer having at least one trench substantially centered over the respective at least one via hole and exposing a portion of patterned low-k material layer adjacent the at least one via hole. Wherein the crosslinked plug material comprising the plug does not adversely interact with the trench masking layer. The patterned low-k material layer is etched at the exposed portion using the patterned trench masking layer as a mask to form a trench opening substantially centered over the via hole. The etching of the patterned low-k material layer also removing some of the plug to form a partially etched plug. The trench opening and the via hole comprising a dual-damascene opening. The partially etched plug is removed from the via hole. A planarized dual-damascene structure is formed within the dual-damascene opening.

The present invention relates generally to semiconductor fabrication and more specifically to methods of forming dual-damascene structures.
The current plug filling processes for dual-damascene processes have fencing issues or involve additional process steps and increased processing costs to alleviate the fencing issues.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,268,283 B1 to Huang describes a dual-damascene process using a resist cap in the dual-damascene opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,057,239 to Wang et al. describes a dual-damascene process using a sacrificial plug.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,033,977 to Gutsche et al. describes another dual-damascene process also using a sacrificial plug.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,096,655 to Lee et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,423 to Huang et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,790 to Wetzel describe related dual-damascene processes.
Accordingly, it is an object of one or more embodiments of the present invention to provide an improved method of forming a dual-damascene structure.
Other objects will appear hereinafter.
It has now been discovered that the above and other objects of the present invention may be accomplished in the following manner. Specifically, a structure having a patterned low-k material layer formed thereover is provided. The patterned low-k material layer having an upper surface and at least one via hole formed therethrough. A plug material layer is formed over the patterned low-k material layer and filling the at least one via hole. The plug material layer being comprised of a material dissolvable in TMAH or deionized water. The plug material layer is developed to form a plug within the respective at least one via hole having a height below the upper surface of the patterned low-k material layer. The plug is baked to crosslink the plug material comprising the plug. A trench masking layer is formed and patterned to form a patterned trench masking layer having at least one trench substantially centered over the respective at least one via hole and exposing a portion of patterned low-k material layer adjacent the at least one via hole. Wherein the crosslinked plug material comprising the plug does not adversely interact with the trench masking layer. The patterned low-k material layer is etched at the exposed portion using the patterned trench masking layer as a mask to form a trench opening substantially centered over the via hole. The etching of the patterned low-k material layer also removing some of the plug to form a partially etched plug. The trench opening and the via hole comprising a dual-damascene opening. The partially etched plug is removed from the via hole. A planarized dual-damascene structure is formed within the dual-damascene opening.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company


A method of determining which users are experts and which tags are appropriate without some of the disadvantages of the prior art is described. The level of a user's expertise is determined based on previous tags, the categorization of one or more tags, and the rating of the tags previously left by the user. The appropriateness of a tag is based on previous tagging of information by the user, by the number of times a user has tagged information with the same categorization, and the rating of a user.

The amount of information available on an individual computer or network is often overwhelming. The information available on the Internet is simply astronomical. The information comprises data such as text, audio, and video. Increasingly, information such as telephone calls and video conferences are being recorded and archived alongside all the other information.
In a library, books are shelved by subject. Astronomy books are on the shelf together, young adult novels have their own section, etc. What do libraries do with young adult novels that take place in space? Librarians had to pick a section in the library and place the one book there or purchase multiple books.
Digital information is different. Because there are no physical shelves, the same information can be categorized in multiple ways. There are no limits on the number of labels placed on information. This means that a single piece of information, such as a video, may have any number of "tags."
For the purpose of this specification, the term "tag" is defined as a non-hierarchical keyword or term assigned to a piece of information, for example and without limitation, a digital file, an internet bookmark, digital image, video, etc.
Information may be tagged in various ways. These ways include, for example and without limitation, users may assign tags, the creator(s) of the information may tag the information upon creation, tags may be assigned by a system automatically as a result of the users participating in a conference, based on word spotting, based on the time the information is produced or accessed, past user activity, etc.
Tags are useful for quickly and easily labeling information so that it can be recalled without having to worry about folder hierarchy. Because there is no limit on the number of tags, information can be labeled anything. For example, in FIG. 2, image 201-1 has the tags: Sailing, Partly Cloudy, Ocean, Summer, Rowing, and Outdoors. (In listing 202-1). The user or users "tagging" image 201-1, may associate one or more of these tags with that image. One user tags the image with "sailing" because there is a sailboat, another user tags the image with the "summer" because they perceive the image to be a summer scene, and so on.
However, one user tagged image 201-1 with the tag "rowing." It would not be accurate to describe image 201-1 as a rowing scene. If someone were to access information based on the tag "rowing," image 201-1 would show up. The problem is: How to determine the appropriateness of tags.
In the prior art, one way this was done was by limiting who can tag information. In some instances, only the user who created the information could add tags to it. In other instances, only the user who uploaded the information onto a server could add tags. Often users may provide only one perspective to the information, which may be limiting the scope of the information. In other instances users provide incorrect or dishonest tags to the information.
Sometimes the job of creating tags was given to moderators who would have to look through the information and then add tags. This creates the issue of how to determine which users have the expertise to properly tag information.
These methods also have the problem of limiting collaboration. Collaboration is desirable because certain individuals may add relevant tags that creators, uploaders, and moderators may miss. For example, an American user might tag image 201-2 as "football," but to many, image 201-2 is more accurately described as "American football." A collaborative approach may be necessary to get both tags.

Method for determining communicative value


The present invention provides an inverted pendulum-type moving body having a pair of wheels suspended from the moving body, using a floor as a traveling plane, and is provided on the same plane vertical to its travelling direction, a driving mechanism for rotating these wheels, posture measurement means for measuring an inclination angular velocity of its upper body that a straight line connecting a center-of-gravity position of a body of the moving body and an axle of the one pair of wheels makes with a vertical direction, and a mechanism control part for maintaining an inverted state of the moving body by controlling the driving mechanism, by having a velocity planning device for performing a movement plan so that the upper body angular velocity and the upper body angle may be in a relationship of quadratic function when a velocity change is needed.

As a conventional technology related to this technical field, there is Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-168603 (Patent Literature 1). As this conventional technology, there is a coaxial two-wheel moving truck that has a driving wheel, an operation part, an obstacle detection part, and a control part for driving and controlling the driving wheel, and the moving truck is configured so that a stop instruction signal may be outputted to the control part by the operation part when the user instructs stop of the truck while this truck is in movement or by the obstacle detection part when existence of an obstacle is detected.
This control part is configured to set a value of a current vehicle velocity multiplied by −1 as a target vehicle velocity and to drive the driving wheel at the number of revolution according to the target vehicle velocity based on the stop instruction signal. For this reason, a force will be applied to the vehicle body in a direction opposite to its traveling direction, and a braking distance at the time of stop becomes short. Moreover, the target vehicle velocity is made to vary so as to approach zero sequentially until the vehicle body stops. Since the target vehicle velocity can be varied while the posture of the vehicle body is controlled by this control part, emergency stop of the vehicle body in a stable posture is made possible.
Moreover, there is Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-319991 (Patent Literature 2). In this conventional technology, described is a moving robot that has a moving mechanism with left and right wheels and a traveling motor for driving these wheels to rotate and a control device for controlling an upper body supported by this moving mechanism and the moving mechanism.
This control unit has a travel target generation part for generating multiple time series target values, and this travel target generation part is configured to generate a time series values of a characteristic point that is a linear sum of a position and an inclination of the moving robot located above a grounding point of the moving robot in such a way to fulfill a moving condition to the multiple time series target values.

Inverted pendulum type moving body having velocity planning device


Provided is a semiconductor device including a test mode circuit capable of changing the semiconductor device into a test mode with fewer malfunctions and without providing a test terminal. The semiconductor device includes a test circuit configured to compare data of a data input terminal and a data output terminal in synchronization with clock, and control whether or not to change the semiconductor device into a test mode in accordance with a result of the comparison.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor devices including a test circuit, and more particularly relates to a test circuit to change a semiconductor device to a test mode.
2. Background Art
It is an effective technique for manufacturing of semiconductor devices to improve efficiency of a shipping test to keep the quality of the devices and reduce its manufacturing cost. As a method to improve the efficiency of the test, some ICs are equipped with a test-mode function that is used only for the test, aside from functions that are used by users. Such a test mode is equipped with unique functions other than functions that users require, such as a function to output an internal node state and a function to rewrite a memory IC by one operation, and so can improve the efficiency of the test. Such test-mode functions require a method to implement the mode in a state that is not available by users, and a configuration for changing has to be devised so as not to let a user change the device into the test mode erroneously. An available method to change the semiconductor device into a test mode includes implementing a test mode function using a test terminal (see Patent document 1, for example).
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-67180