The invention provides an inkjet black ink ensuring excellent image durability capable of satisfactorily maintaining the image quality such as non-loosening of black and gradation even when the image is stored for a long period of time, which is a inkjet black ink having a discoloration rate constant (kvis) of 5.0×10−2 [hour−1] or less, which is measured by using an ozone gas, the ink comprising an aqueous medium having dissolved or dispersed therein at least one dye selected from (1) an azo dye having a specific structure where a heterocyclic group is bonded to both of two N atoms, (2) a phthalocyanine dye having a specific structure, (3) an azo dye having a specific structure where a 5-membered heterocyclic group is bonded to one of two N atoms and a 6-membered 2-amino heterocyclic group is bonded to the other, and (4) a bisazo dye constituted by a specific aromatic or heterocyclic group and an azo group.

Accompanying recent popularization of computers, an inkjet printer is widely used for printing letters or an image on paper, film, cloth or the like not only in offices but also at homes.
The inkjet recording method includes a system of jetting out a liquid droplet by applying a pressure using a piezoelectric element, a system of jetting out a liquid droplet by generating bubbles in an ink under heat, a system using an ultrasonic wave, and a system of jetting out a liquid droplet by suction using an electrostatic force. With respect to the ink composition for such inkjet recording, an aqueous ink, an oily ink or a solid (fusion-type) ink is used. Among these inks, an aqueous ink is predominating in view of production, handleability, odor, safety and the like.
The coloring agent used in such an ink for inkjet recording is required that the solubility in a solvent is high, high-density recording can be performed, good color and excellent fastness to light, heat, air, water and chemicals are exhibited, good fixing on an image-receiving material and less bleeding are ensured, an ink having excellent storability is provided, and the coloring agent has high purity and no toxicity and is available at a low cost. However, it is very difficult to find out a coloring agent satisfying these requirements in a high level. Various dyes and pigments for inkjet use have been already proposed and actually used, however, a coloring agent satisfying all requirements is not yet found at present. Conventionally well-known dyes and pigments having a color index (C.I.) number can hardly satisfy both color hue and fastness required of the ink for inkjet recording.
As the inkjet black dye, food black-type dyes, naphthol-base direct azo dyes, acid azo dyes and the like are heretofore widely known.
Representative examples of the food black-type dye include C.I. Food Black 1 and C.I. Food Black 2 and techniques of using these dyes for inkjet black ink are described in JP-A-2-36276 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), JP-A-2-233782 and JP-A-2-233783.
As for the acid azo dye, techniques of using C.I. Acid Black 2, C.I. Acid Black 31, C.I. Acid Black 52, C.I. Acid Black 140, C.I. Acid Black 187 or the like for inkjet black ink are described in JP-A-60-108481, JP-A-2-36277 and JP-A-2-36278. Also, as for the direct azo dye, techniques of using C.I. Direct Black 9, C.I. Direct Black 17, C.I. Direct Black 38, C.I. Direct Black 51, C.I. Direct Black 60, C.I. Direct Black 102, C.I. Direct Black 107, C.I. Direct Black 122, C.I. Direct Black 142, C.I. Direct Black 154, C.I. Direct Black 168 or the like for the inkjet black ink are described in JP-A-56-139568, JP-A-61-285275 and JP-A-3-106974.
Usually, the black color can be hardly covered by a sole dye and a short-wave dye is preferably used in combination.
As the short-wave dye, similarly, direct azo dyes, acid azo dyes and the like are widely known and techniques of using C.I. Acid Yellow 17, C.I. Acid Yellow 23, C.I. Acid Yellow 49, C.I. Acid Yellow 194 or the like or using C.I. Direct Yellow 86, C.I. Direct Yellow 120, C.I. Direct Yellow 132, C.I. Direct Yellow 144 or the like for inkjet black ink are described in JP-A-7-97541, WO97/16496, JP-A-10-158560 and JP-A-11-12514. In these related arts, the above-described properties required of the inkjet ink are not yet fully satisfied and more improvements are demanded. Particularly, the aqueous black ink is demanded to be improved in the color hue, namely, non-loosening of black, and the fastness.
The present inventors have made studies on the inkjet ink using a dye and found the followings. The aqueous black ink has a problem in that the image durability is low. Also, unlike carbon black, a black dye capable of giving by itself a black image such as letter having high printing quality is not known and as described above, a plurality of dyes differing in the absorption spectrum should be used in combination. However, if a plurality of dyes differing in the absorption spectrum are used, the discoloration rate differs depending on the dye mixed and when a dye having a broad absorption property is changed in the absorption waveform due to discoloration, the quality of image including black is seriously impaired.
Furthermore, although the spectrum must be supplemented by various dyes so as to cover the broad region of black and obtain a good black ink, unless all dyes have high weather resistance, the balance of black is lost in aging.
When the inkjet recorded image has fastness and the image quality can be maintained during the long-term storage of image, the utility value of inkjet recording system is enhanced and therefore, it is keenly demanded to solve the above-described problems.


A new and distinct cultivar of winter hardy Hibiscus plant named `Kopper King` is the result of a unique hybridization. This new and distinct cultivar is characterized primarily as to novelty by its extreme cold hardiness to Zone 4, its vibrant reddish-copper colored "maple-cut" leaves, its large white flowers with bright red centers and red streaking to the petal edges, its vigorous and uniform growth habit, and its floriferous nature from midsummer until frost.

The new plant of this invention is the result of a unique hybridization, with the breeding achievement being evidenced in the outstanding combination of characteristics exhibited by this new and distinct hibiscus plant, which include:
(a) Refined and uniquely colored 3 to 5 lobed leaves with a "maple-cut" which have relatively smooth margins and an evenly distributed reddish-copper coloration that compliments the landscape; PA0 (b) Large flowers that are outstanding for their white, thick-textured petals with bright red centers surrounded by hot pink coloring, which streaks through the venation, to the edges of the petals; PA0 (c) The plant being very floriferous with flowers that stay open one full day; PA0 (d) The plant being medium-sized, but vigorous, with compact and uniform breaking action which gives it unique landscape utility; and PA0 (e) The plant being so hardy it can consistently withstand winter temperatures of at least -30 degrees Fahrenheit.


The present invention provides a method for screening a substance having a thermogenesis enhancing effect containing a compound having an effect activating PPAR δ, an agent containing the compound, and an agent having antidiabetic, antiobestic or visceral accumulated fat-lowering function.

The energy metabolism-regulating system in vivo consists of a food ingestion-regulating system and an energy consumption-regulating system. The energy consumption-regulating system participates in two categories of energy consumptions, that is, energy consumption for basal metabolism in order to sustain life and the other energy consumption. The main energy consumption under the latter category is nonshivering thermogenesis (nST), which is thermogenesis, and whose functional significance is maintenance of body temperature immediately after birth, during exposure to cold, at the end of hibernation, etc., and prevention of obesity and glycolipid metabolism disorder by consuming excess energy attributable to overeating, etc. Especially, in mammals and birds, which are homothermals, particularly in small animals, nST is important for maintaining body temperature. In the mechanism to induce nST, proton leak in mitochondria, that is, the participation of the electron transport system of the respiration chain in cells and ATP synthesis is important.
In a brown adipose tissue (BAT), a specific protein called an uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) having a molecular weight of 32 kD and consisting of about 300 amino acids exists in the membranes of mitochondria. The protein has a function to uncouple the ATP synthesis from the electron transport system of the respiration chain of brown adipocytes (BA). UCP1 consists of a trebly repeating structure of a domain composed of approximately 100 amino acids and has 2 transmembrane regions in each domain, 6 sites in total. These transmembrane regions form channels in membranes of mitochondria.
UCP1 is a carrier that transports protons. Proton channels formed by UCP1 and others exhibit a function which allows protons to permeate freely in accordance with an electrochemical gradient to release heat. This is nST. That is, nST causes the uncoupling by proton permeation through proton channels, and the uncoupling reduces ATP synthesis, so that respiration in mitochondria is activated in order to keep the ratio of ATP to ADP constant. As a result, a large amount of fats and sugar are oxidized to generate heat.
The physiological significance of UCP1 is that it plays an important role in body temperature keeping immediately after birth, during exposure to cold, etc., and studies using transgenic mice have also elucidated that it participates in the prevention of obesity. The correlation of UCP1 with the development, progression and persistence of obesity has been suggested by the fact that there is a reduction in UCP1 expression in various obesity models. For example, it is confirmed that obesity develops without overeating in BAT-reduced transgenic mice (Lowell, et al., Nature, 366, 740-742 (1993)). Further, the reduction in body fat and the resistance against diet-induced obesity due to high fat-loaded meal were observed in mice which were forced to express a large amount of UCP1 by inserting UCP1 gene into a promoter of adipocyte-specific gene, aP2 (Kopecky et al., J Clin Invest, 96, 2914-2923 (1995)). Furthermore, the decrease in body temperature keeping function during the exposure to cold, obesity due to the increase of body fat, and insulin resistance were observed in mice whose UCP1 expression had been suppressed to ⅓(Lowell B. B., et al., Nature, 366, 740-742 (1993)). Further, UCP1 knockout mice were non-tolerant to cold (Enerback S. et al., Nature, 387, 90-94 (1997)). As shown above, it has become clear from animal experiments that UCP1 has important role in body temperature regulation and energy consumption as a thermogenetic molecule, and is closely related to obesity.
The amount of UCP1 expression is regulated mainly by the endonuclear gene transcription level, and UCP1 gene expression is increased by the elevation in cAMP concentrations (Saito et al., Saishin Igaku, 52, 1095-1096 (1997)).
Approximately 20 to 40% of intracellular energy consumption is considered to be produced by proton leak in mitochondrial inner membranes. Moreover, the majority of nST has been considered to be produced in skeletal muscles and white adipose tissues (WAT) in adult humans and other animals having little BAT. Based on the above-mentioned facts, it has been estimated that UCP exists in tissues other than BAT. cDNA cloning of UCP2 from other tissues than BAT was reported in succession by two groups in 1997 (Fleury, et al., Nature Genet, 15, 269-272 (1997): and Gimeno et al., Diabetes 46, 900-906 (1997)).
Human UCP2 shows 59% homology with human UCP1, and forms channels having 6 transmembrane regions as in UCP1, and it has purine nucleotide-binding sites. UCP2 differs from UCP1 in that it is widely expressed in the systemic tissue and is expressed in particularly high concentrations in the lung and pancreas, and expression is also detected in the heart, the liver, the brain, kidneys, testicles, WAT, BAT and skeletal muscles.
Regarding UCP2 function, the upregulation of UCP2 gene expression in adipose tissues around epididymids is observed in high fat diet-loaded mice. However, it was reported that UCP2 knockout mice were normal in body temperature keeping function under cold conditions (Arsenijevic D. et al., Nature Genet, 26, 387-388 (2000)). Further, an extensive upregulation of expression of UCP2 in the brown adipate tissue, which was considered compensation, was observed in the above-mentioned UCP1 knockout mice, and the mice were non-tolerant to cold (Enerback S. et al., Nature, 387, 90-94 (1997)). Further, it was shown that UCP2 suppressed insulin secretion via changing of intracellular ATP concentration in pancreas β cells (Zhang C.-Y. et al., Cell, 105, 745-755 (2001)). This is a disadvantageous property for diabetic therapy. As mentioned above, for UCP2, up to the present time, the relation to energy consumption/obesity has not been made clear although uncoupling function as proton channel has been confirmed.
The excessive energy in vivo is accumulated at first preferentially as visceral fat (especially, as mesenteric fat). Compared with fats at other sites (especially, subcutaneous fat), the visceral fat is apt to receive adipokinetic effect, and it is quickly decomposed and consumed. The visceral fat (obesity) is regarded as a multiple risk factor to cause life style-related diseases (adult diseases). The reason for this is that fatty acids secreted from white adipocytes (WA) in WAT are flown directly into the liver via the portal vein to accelerate insulin resistance and fat synthesis, and as a result, to induce sugar resistance abnormalities, high blood pressure and hyperlipemia, and these are finally complicated to cause arteriosclerosis. Accordingly, the inhibition of accumulation of the visceral fat and the reduction of accumulated visceral fat are expected to be effective for preventing the occurrence of life style-related diseases such as diabetics in adult humans and treating them.
A peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR) is considered as a member of a nuclear receptor (nuclear hormone receptor) super family from its structure and others. Up to now, three kinds of PPAR subtypes called PPAT α, PPAR δ (also called NUC-1, PPAR β or FAAR) and PPAR γ have been identified, and their genes (cDNA) have been cloned (Lemberger et al., Annu. Rev. Cell. Dev. Biol., 12, 335-363 (1996)).
It was reported that, fibrate agents having a ligand effect on PPARα, among the three kinds of PPARs, clinically show a strong lowering effect on serum triacylglycerol level (Forman et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 94, 4312-4317 (1997)).
PPAR γ is expressed especially in adipose tissues, and it was disclosed that the PPAR γ is a factor deeply implicated in regulating differentiation of adipocytes (Tontonoz et al., Genes and Development, 8, 1224-1234 (1994); and Tontonoz et al., Cell, 79, 1147-1156 (1994)). Various kinds of thiazolidinedione derivatives show a hypoglycemic effect in animal model of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and are expected as new therapeutic agents for NIDDM having an insulin resistance breaking effect. A recent study demonstrated that the thiazolidinedione derivatives have also an effect as a ligand of PPAR y and activate specifically the PPAR γ (Lehman et al., J. Biol. Chem., 270, 12953-12956 (1995)).
However, physiological function of PPAR δ is not made clear yet (Willson et al., J. Med. Chem., 43 (4), 527-550 (2000)). WO97/28149 description disclosed that a PPAR δ ligand has a blood HDL increasing effect, and WO9904815 description disclosed that the administration of a PPAR δ-activating substance lowers a cholesterol level. But, there is no disclosure nor suggestion for the correlation between PPAR δ and a thermogenesis enhancing effect, and that between PPAR δ and an uncoupling protein.
Furthermore, it is known that an unsaturated fatty acid such as arachidonic acid, carbaprostacyclin (cPGI), and L-165041 (4-(3-(2-propyl-3-hydroxy-4-acetyl-phenoxy)propyloxy)-phenoxyacetic acid) increase the expression of UCP2 (The Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 276, No. 14, Issue of April 6, pp. 10853-10860, 2001). However, there is no report on the correlation between UCP1 and PPAR δ.

Methods of screening for a compound that enhances thermogenesis

Abstract: The present invention provides an agent containing a compound having an effect activating PPAR δ, which is a peroxisome proliferator activated receptor, and having effects which enhances nonshivering thermogenesis (nST), specifically enhances uncoupling respiration in mitochondria of cells in an adipose tissue or the like, or proton leak in inner membranes of mitochondria, and increases the amount of expression of UCP1, and provides an antidiabetic agent, an antiobestic gent and a visceral accumulated fat-lowering agent containing the compound. Further, the present invention provides a method for screening the compound by measuring a PPAR δ activating effect.


A method for dynamic channel allocation for access points in wireless networks. Communication information of wireless devices is gathered. A network topology formed by the wireless devices is derived according to the communication information. Switch channel indexes for each wireless device are calculated according to the communication information and network topology. Desired wireless devices for switching channels are determined according to the switch channel indexes.

The invention relates to wireless communication protocols, and more particularly, to methods of dynamic channel allocation for access points in wireless networks.
In conventional wireless local area network (WLAN) environments complying with Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 communication standards, to enhance communication ability and accommodate a greater number of mobile hosts (MH), multiple access points (AP) are located in a communication area, for example, in a schools building or airport, such that a mobile host anywhere in the building can receive wireless signals. Network administrators statically deploy network access points and allocate communication channels therefor, manually deriving communication channels for each access point, such that signal interference between access points is minimized, and communication channels allocated to access points will not be reallocated. Access points described herein serve as bridges in wireless networks, connecting conventional wired LANs and wireless LANs, such that a personal computer equipped with an wireless card can share resources from LANs or wide area networks (WANs). Additionally, access points provide network management functions, controlling and managing personal computers connected thereto via wireless cards.
The number of available communication channels is limited in that many access points use identical or adjacent channels if a considerable number of access points are located in the same area, resulting in signal interference if two neighboring access points use identical or adjacent channels. However, mobile hosts may not equally associate with each access point. If there is no mobile host which associates with one of two adjacent access point and is present in the signal coverage of the access points, the two access points can use the same channel and it may reduce the possibility of signal interference caused by access points with high channel load. Referring to FIG. 1A, both access points AP1 and AP4 are allocated communication channel C1, access point AP2 is allocated communication channel C6, and access point AP3 is allocated communication channel C11. Mobile host MH6 associates with access point AP1, mobile hosts MH7˜MH11 associate with access point AP2, mobile hosts MH12˜MH14 associate with access point AP3, and mobile hosts MH15 and MH16 associate with access point AP4. Referring to FIG. 1B, when mobile hosts MH7˜MH11 disassociate with access point AP2 and associate with access point AP1, the possibility of signal interference between access points AP1 and AP4 may increase due to the channel load of access point AP1 increase and the same communication channel to access point AP4.
Thus, a method for dynamic channel allocation for access points in wireless networks is desirable.

Methods and systems of dynamic channel allocation for access points in wireless networks


A pull starter for an engine powering an outboard motor having a cowling and a water propulsion device is disclosed. The engine is positioned in the cowling and has a generally vertically extending crankshaft. A lower end of the crankshaft is arranged to drive the water propulsion device. The starter includes a drum connected to the crankshaft at a top end of the engine, a starter cord having a first end connected to the drum and a second end connected to a handle, and a cord guide for guiding the cord through the cowling, the cord guide including an arcuate cord-engaging surface. The cord extends through said cowling in a first direction and is then guided by the arcuate surface of the cord guide into a second direction to the drum.

Internal combustion engines are commonly utilized to power the propeller of an outboard motor. In these types of motors, the engine is mounted in an enclosure formed by a cowling. The engine is oriented with its crankshaft vertically extending, with a bottom end of the crankshaft arranged to drive a drive shaft. This drive shaft extends through a lower portion of the motor to a transmission for selectively driving the propeller.
In some instances, the engine is provided with an electric starter for starting the engine. In others, only a manual starter is provided, or a manual starter is provided in addition to the electric starter for those situations where insufficient power is available to power the electric starter.
The manual pull-type starter typically comprises a drum or pulley connected to the crankshaft of the engine. One end of a flexible cord is attached to the pulley. A knob is positioned at the opposite end of the cord. The operator of the motor grips the knob and pulls outwardly on the cord, rotating the pulley and thus rotating the crankshaft, starting the engine.
To provide convenient access to the manual starter, the knob is located exterior to the cowling of the motor. This requires that the starter cord extend through the cowling from the pulley to the knob, such as through a small aperture in the cowling.
Problems arise with this starter arrangement in that when the cord passes through the cowling at a location or in a direction which is offset from a tangent line extending from the pulley at the point where the cord engages the pulley, the cord rubs on the cowling (i.e. the cord does not pass in a straight line through the opening in the cowling, but engages one side of the opening). When the cord is pulled out to start the engine, and then when retracted automatically by the manual starter, friction between the cord and cowling wears the cord. Eventually, this wearing effect may cause the cord to completely break. Where the engine is provided with only a manual starter, this will result in the operator being unable to start the engine. In addition, the frictional force on the cord increases the pulling force which the user must apply to start the engine.
There is desired an improved pull-type starter for an engine powering an outboard motor in which cord friction is reduced.


Provided herein is a universally applicable biofouling mitigation technology using acoustically excited encapsulated microbubbles that disrupt biofilm or biofilm formation. For example, a method of reducing biofilm formation or removing biofilm in a membrane filtration system is provided in which a feed solution comprising encapsulated microbubbles is provided to the membrane under conditions that allow the encapsulated microbubbles to embed in a biofilm. Sonication of the embedded, encapsulated microbubbles disrupts the biofilm. Thus, provided herein is a membrane filtration system for performing the methods and encapsulated microbubbles specifically selected for binding to extracellular polymeric substances (EFS) in a biofilm.

The background of this invention will address biofilm formation and removal, as well as membrane technology matters.
Biofilm Formation and Biofouling
Microorganisms are microscopic living organisms that are found in all areas of the biosphere in enormous numbers. Bacteria make up a large portion of these microorganisms and are among the most abundant organisms on earth. Bacteria possess a wide range of metabolic versatility and adaptability allowing them to thrive in many circumstances where other organisms could not survive.
Bacteria can exist as individual organisms, but the majority live in colonies consisting of an aggregation of numerous bacterial organisms. One of the mechanisms employed by bacterial colonies, as well as other microorganisms, is the production of extracellular polymeric substances that produce a slime-like covering over the colonies. These aggregated microorganisms usually exist in nature by attaching to and growing upon living or inanimate surfaces. A common feature of this attached aggregated growth state is that the cells develop a biofilm. Biofilm formation is a process whereby microorganisms attach to and grow on a surface and produce extracellular polymers that facilitate attachment and matrix formation.
A biofilm is a bacterial aggregation on a surface with a structure that includes bacterial cells and a matrix of bacterially produced extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), along with biogenic and inorganic particles. Extracellular polymeric substances EPS, which are primarily composed of proteins, polysaccharides, and nucleic acids, plays a vital role in biofilm growth and development. As a result, the extracellular polymeric substances EPS can alter the density, porosity, charge, water content, and sorption properties of the biofilm with time.
Additionally, extracellular polymeric substances EPS enhances the mechanical strength and adhesiveness of the biofilm through electrostatic attraction, hydrogen bonding and London dispersion forces. Thus, biofilm structural integrity, adhesiveness and elasticity make biofilms resilient and difficult to remove from surfaces. The presence of divalent cations, such as magnesium and calcium, can form salt bridges, for example, between negatively charged bacteria and a surface such as a membrane surface. The structure and charges of the biofilm and the EPS thus help to protect the aggregated bacteria or other microorganisms from applied biocides.
Biofouling is the gradual accumulation of organisms on surfaces to the detriment of the function of the surface, and of particular relevance herein are those organisms that produce biofilms. Biofilm formation is caused by the accumulation of microorganisms and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) produced by the microorganisms. Biofilms can form on a variety of surfaces including membranes (e.g., in membrane filtration systems), heat exchangers, medical devices, paper manufacturing systems, food processing systems, and in underwater construction. Biofilm formation, which occurs frequently in membrane filtration systems, causes biofouling, which is an unacceptable decline in membrane performance. Additionally, a hydrodynamic boundary layer generally exists adjacent to the biofilm which reduces the flow of the feed water over the biofilm, thereby decreasing the ability of the feed water to dislodge the biofilm.
The development and rate of biofouling depends on the quality of the feed water supplied to a membrane filtration unit. Feed water typically contains microorganisms (e.g., algae, bacteria, fungi) with nutrient and energy sources that can stimulate the growth of bacterial colonies and the formation of biofilm on the surface of a membrane. Biofouling is a major problem in all membrane filtration systems, for example accounting for about 35% of membrane failures in reverse osmosis (RO) plants. Thus, biofouling presents significant challenges and costs wherever it occurs, but especially in membrane filtration systems. Simply put, a membrane is a selective barrier with a partial permeability—it will allow certain substances to pass through the barrier, while preventing other substances from doing so.
Membrane Technology
A membrane is usually defined by a discrete, thin interface that moderates the permeation of chemical species in contact with it. The substances that can pass through, or be prevented from passing through, the membrane interface may be molecules, ions or other small particles. The influent of an artificial membrane is known as the feed-stream, the liquid that passes through the membrane is known as permeate or filtrate, and the liquid containing the retained constituents (substances that are prevented from passing through the membrane) is the retentate or concentrate. A normal filter meets this definition of a membrane, but, by convention, the term membrane is usually limited to structures that permeates dissolved or colloidal species, whereas the term filter is used to designate structures that separate larger-sized particulate suspensions.
Membranes can be generally classified into two classes: synthetic membranes and biological membranes. Biological membranes include cell membranes (outer coverings of cells or organelles that allow passage of certain constituents), nuclear membranes, which cover a cell nucleus, and tissue membranes, such as mucosae or serosae. Synthetic membranes are made by humans for use in laboratories or industry, such as chemical plants.
Synthetic membranes show a large variety in their physical structure and the materials from which they are made. Based on their structure they can be classified into four groups: (1) porous membranes, (2) homogeneous solid membranes, (3) solid membranes carrying electrical charges, and (4) liquid or solid films containing selective carriers. The materials used for the preparation of membranes can be polymers, ceramics, glass, metals, or liquids, and the materials may be neutral or carry electrical charges (for example, fixed ions).
There are several historical limitations involved with the application, use and manufacture of known membrane processes. A major disadvantage involved with the use of known membranes, especially in water- and wastewater-treatment processes, is that the long-term reliability has not completely been proven. Membrane processes sometimes require excessive pretreatment due to their sensitivity to concentration polarization, chemical interaction with water constituents, and membrane fouling. And, membranes have historically been mechanically unreliable and non-robust, which means membranes can easily be destroyed by a malfunction in the operating procedure.
Depending on the composition of the feed solution and the required quality of the product water, a combination of membrane or filtration processes may be appropriate. For example, if ultrapure water for certain industrial applications is required, a sequence of membrane filtration processes may be applied, such as reverse osmosis, ion exchanger, UV sterilization, and microfiltration as a point-of-use filter to remove traces of particles. In certain applications, such as the purification of industrial effluents and wastewaters or the desalination of brackish water, there may be a problem with the disposal of the concentrate. In these applications, brine post-treatment procedures may need to be applied to the concentrate.
Membrane biofouling occurs heterogeneously on membrane surfaces and often occurs in the first element of the pressure vessel in reverse osmosis (RO) systems, for example. In RO systems, biofilm can form over the course of a few days to a few weeks. In a feed that is biologically active, a short timeline is common, e.g. 3-5 days from inoculation.
Biofouling Control and Biofilm Removal
Although membrane biofouling is common, there has been very limited success in prevention or remediation of biofouling due to membrane sensitivity to chemical/biological processes, site-specific feed water quality issues, and the like. In the prior art, no universal technology exists that can be applied to all sorts of feed water, as feed water quality varies in terms of bacteria levels, pH and in the analysis of both organic and inorganic compounds.
One conventional approach to biofouling control includes the use of biocides and disinfectants, which have achieved very limited success. Chlorine as a disinfectant is widely applied in water treatment, but it has significant limitations in membrane systems. Polymeric membranes, which are commonly used in water treatment, are prone to chemical oxidation and degradation by chlorine; thus, in such uses, chlorine must be removed from the feed water prior to entering the membrane section, and chlorine fails to reach bacterial colonies on the membrane. Furthermore, chlorine can break down natural organic matter (NOM) present in the feed water, creating a nutrient source to the microorganisms present
Apart from chlorine, non-oxidizing biocides are available such as DBNPA (2,2-dibromo-3-nitrilopropionamide) and isothiazalones. Dose rates and application costs for these chemicals are high and are not approved for online dosing in potable applications. Furthermore, these available biocide products are unable to adequately penetrate biofilm layers and lyse/dissolve the foulants within the biofilm.
Membrane cleaning-in-place procedures are mechanical and chemical operations used for disrupting and removing existing biofilm layers. In practice, such processes are inadequate to remove biomass from membrane surfaces. These procedures require plugging of the feed path, which restricts transport of the chemicals into the blocked region. The use of cleaning-in-place is further limited due to several factors, such as mechanical interaction, cost, incorrect chemical selection, inability to penetrate the biofilm layer, poor cleaning practice (with respect to parameters such as pH, temperature, contact time or improper recirculation flow rates) and delays in application.
Recent control technologies primarily focus on limiting biofouling by extensive pretreatment of the feed water to minimize system bacteria and nutrient/energy sources. Current use of membrane technologies, such as microfiltration (MF) or ultrafiltration (UF), has been used for pretreatment with reverse osmosis (RO) systems with little success. These techniques are rarely 100% efficient, and a small percentage of viable bacteria pass through the pretreatment membranes to the RO system, and the MF/UF filtration systems themselves are also susceptible to biofouling. There exists a long-felt, unfulfilled need for a safe, efficient and cost-effective cleaning-in-place method for mitigation of biofouling by prevention or removal of biofilms.

Acoustically excited encapsulated microbubbles and mitigation of biofouling

KING ABDULLAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY


The invention relates to apparatuses, methods, systems, computer programs, computer program products and computer-readable media.

The following description of background art may include insights, discoveries, understandings or disclosures, or associations together with disclosures not known to the relevant art prior to the present invention but provided by the invention. Some such contributions of the invention may be specifically pointed out below, whereas other such contributions of the invention will be apparent from their context. Smart coordinated and cooperative relay systems possibly with one or more multiple simultaneous donor cellular systems of one or plurality operators are designed to provide flexible deployment of a number of relay nodes for enhanced cellular coverage in large indoor buildings, hot spots at cell edges, passenger trains or cruise ships, for instance.


A video indexing system analyzes contents of source video and develops a visual table of contents using selected images. A system for detecting significant scenes detects video cuts from one scene to another, and static scenes based on DCT coefficients and macroblocks. A keyframe filtering process filters out less desired frames including, for example, unicolor frames, or those frames having a same object as a primary focus or one primary focuses. Commercials may also be detected and frames of commercials eliminated. The significant scenes and static scenes are detected based on a threshold which is set based on the category of the video.

The present invention is related to an apparatus which detects significant scenes of a source video and selects keyframes to represent each detected significant scene. The present invention additionally filters the selected keyframes and creates a visual index or a visual table of contents based on remaining keyframes.
Users will often record home videos or record television programs, movies, concerts, sports events, etc. on a tape for later or repeated viewing. Often, a video will have varied content or be of great length. However, a user may not write down what is on a recorded tape and may not remember what she recorded on a tape, DVD or other medium or where on a tape particular scenes, movies, or events are recorded. Thus, a user may have to sit and view an entire tape to remember what is on the tape.
Video content analysis uses automatic and semi-automatic methods to extract information that describes contents of the recorded material. Video content indexing and analysis extracts structure and meaning from visual cues in the video. Generally, a video clip is taken from a TV program or a home video.
In U.S. Ser. No. PHA 23252, of which the present application is a continuation in part thereof, a method and device is described which detects scene changes or xe2x80x9ccutsxe2x80x9d in the video. At least one frame between detected cuts is then selected as a key frame to create a video index. In order to detect scene changes a first frame is selected and then a subsequent frame is compared to the first frame and a difference calculation is made which represents the content difference between the two frames. The result of this difference calculation is then compared to a universal threshold or thresholds which is/are used for all categories of video. If the difference is above the universal threshold(s) it is determined that a scene change has occurred.
In PHA 23252 a universal threshold(s) is/are chosen which is/are optimal for all types of video. The problem with such an application is that a visual index of a video which contains high action, such as an action movie, will be quite large, whereas a visual index of a video with little action, such as the news will be quite small. This is because in a high action movie, where objects are moving across a scene, the content difference between two consecutive frames may be large. In such a case, comparing the content difference to a universal threshold will result in a xe2x80x9ccutxe2x80x9d being detected even though the two frames may be within the same scene. If there are more perceived cuts or scene changes then there will be more key frames and vice versa. Accordingly an action movie ends up having far too many key frames to represent the movie.
Accordingly it is an object of the invention to provide a system which will create a visual index for a video source which was previously recorded or while being recorded, which is useable and more accurate in selecting significant keyframes by varying the number of keyframes chosen from a video based on the category of the video.
The present invention further presents a video analysis system supporting visual content extraction for source video which may include informative and/or entertainment programs such as news, serials, weather, sports or any type of home recorded video, broadcast material, prerecorded material etc.
The present invention further presents a new apparatus for video cut detection, static scene detection, and keyframe filtering to provide for more useable visual images in the visual index by comparing two frames of video and determining whether the differences between the frames are above or below a certain threshold, the threshold being dependent on the category of the video. If the differences are above the selected threshold then this point in the video is determined to be a scene xe2x80x9ccutxe2x80x9d. The frames within the scene cuts can then be filtered to select key frames for a video index. If the differences are below a static scene threshold for a number of frames it is determined to be a static sequence.
The present invention may detect significant scenes and select keyframes of source video, based on calculations using DCT coefficients and comparisons to various thresholds where the thresholds vary based on the category of video, e.g. action, news, music, or even the category of portions of a video.
Additionally it is an object of the invention to calculate these thresholds based on a video category provided by electronic program guides, or alternatively instead of calculating the thresholds the electronic program guide provides the thresholds themselves.
Furthermore it is an object of the invention to enter these thresholds manually.
It is even another object of the invention to provide the thresholds in the encoded video.

Significant scene detection and frame filtering for a visual indexing system using dynamic thresholds


Particle storing apparatus including only one electric field restraining charged particles, such as antiprotons, in an ultrahigh vacuum from striking a container surface for a half-life of at least 1 hour. Depending on implementation, restraining can be devoid of a magnetic field, and the container can be devoid of cryogenic cooling or need not include a dewar.

A. Field of the Invention
Embodiments herein relate to the field of charged particle storage and transportation. More particularly, embodiments relate to apparatus and method of storing and transporting charged particles, as well as preparing, filling, and transporting a bottle capable of storing and transporting charged particles utilizing electrostatic containment. More specifically, the present invention addresses the collection and storage of antiprotons; and the transport of antiprotons.
B. Background of the Invention
Antiprotons are annihilated upon contacting matter, and containers (e.g., Penning traps) include: "Container for Transporting Antiprotons," U.S. Pat. No. 5,977,554 issued to Gerald A. Smith, et al. on Nov. 2, 1999; "Container for Transporting Antiprotons," U.S. Pat. No. 6,160,263 issued to Gerald A. Smith, et al. on Dec. 12, 2000. See also Smith et al's. related U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,414,331 and 6,576,916, all of which are incorporated by reference. U.S. Pat. No. 5,977,554, for example, teaches containing with "means for providing the necessary magnetic fields"; "cryogen or cold wall"; and antiprotons are trapped in a potential well formed between the first and second electric fields (italics added herein.)


Some demonstrative embodiments include devices and/or methods of gettering on silicon on insulator (SOI) substrate. For example, a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) integrated circuit (IC) may include a plurality of pixels arranged on a wafer, a pixel of the pixels including: a silicon active area; at least one non-silicided leakage-sensitive component formed on the active area, the leakage-sensitive component is sensitive to metal contaminants; a non-leakage-sensitive area formed on the active area, the non-leakage-sensitive area surrounding the leakage-sensitive component; and at least one silicided gettering region formed on the non-leakage-sensitive area to trap the metal contaminants.

A complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor may suffer contamination of metal impurities.
The metal impurities may result from the manufacturing process of the CMOS image sensor.
The metal impurities may remain in proximity to active areas of the CMOS image sensor and may reduce a performance of the CMOS image sensor. For example, the metal impurities may defect one or more pixels of the CMOS image sensor, e.g., by causing a leakage in a reversed biased diode of the pixel, which may result in Dark Currents and a "Bright Pixel" effect.

Device and method of gettering on silicon on insulator (SOI) substrate


Disclosed is a method for settling suspended finely divided inorganic solid particles from a hydrocarbon slurry using an additive. The additive comprises (a) a hydroxy-terminated polyoxyalkylate chain(s) containing polymer having at least one oxygen atom and at least one nitrogen atom and, optionally, (b) other components such as a solvent, an acid or mixtures thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method for settling suspended finely divided solid, particularly inorganic solid, particles from a hydrocarbon. This invention particularly relates to a method for settling such solids from a hydrocarbon using a additive.
2. Background of the Invention
Solid settlement or separation or removal may be very important for naturally occurring formation fluids such as crude oil or crude oil from tar sand, oil shale or other naturally occurring bitumen, bottoms from various oil refining processes, resid and numerous streams from chemical or polymer plants. All of these streams are known to exist as slurries and contain different types and varying amounts of suspended finely divided solid particles. These finely divided solid particles could be inorganic materials such as sand, clay, dirt or catalyst, insoluble organic compounds, organometallic compounds, or mixtures of such insoluble organic, inorganic and organometallic compounds. These solid particles could exist in a wide range of sizes and shapes. In general, larger or coarser particles are easier to separate than smaller or finer particles of the same density.
If crude oil, crude oil from tar sand, oil shale or other naturally occurring bitumen, or other formation fluids contain a high concentration of suspended solid particles, it may not be feasible to use or process the feedstock in an existing plant or refinery. The solid particles need to be completely or substantially separated from other products in the slurries as part of a purification step. Typically, the suspended solid particles are first rendered to settle. Then, they are separated and removed. Recovery and production of minerals or metals also may require similar types of settlement and separation of inorganic solid particle products from aqueous slurries.
Many different methods and equipment have been used to settle, separate, remove or recover from a variety of slurry mixtures, as discussed in the foregoing examples, the suspended finely divided solid particles. These methods and equipment include sedimentation, magnetic separation if the particles are magnetic, and/or use of processing equipment such as hydrocyclones and centrifugal separators. In processes where direct physical and/or mechanical separations are not economical, technically feasible, or fast enough, different chemicals may be used to effect, aid, improve and/or accelerate settling of such finely divided solid particles upon standing, storage, centrifugation or other ways. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,059 discloses uses of adducts between alkylphenolformaldehyde resin alkoxylate compound and polyacrylic acid to aid solid particle settlement. U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,988 discloses a method of accelerating settlement of finely divided solids from hydrocarbon fluids and slurries by adding certain quaternary fatty ammonium compounds to the slurries.
To be effective, it is generally desirable to use chemical aids, additives and/or polymers that are large, easy to separate and/or capable of forming a settled phase with the finely divided solids suspended in the slurry through various interactions. Such interactions include, but are not limited to, chemical, physical, electrostatic, Van Der Waals, or a combination thereof. It is also desirable to form a settled phase, a sludge or other forms of precipitation between the solids and the additive that are more readily separable from the fluid or liquid phase of the slurry using conventional equipment. Furthermore, it would be advantageous to accelerate the settling of the finely divided solids, especially inorganic solids, to shorten the settling time required to achieve the desired level of residual solids in the fluid/liquid phase. This would help reduce the size of the settling tank or other related equipment and/or increase the throughput of the process. It also would be an advantage if these chemical aids, additives or polymers are (a) readily available or prepared or (b) more effective than those already known or (c) both.

Method for settling suspended fine inorganic solid particles from hydrocarbon slurry and additive for use therewith


Deployment of computing environment is initiated. The computing environment includes at least one integration scenario and at least one adapter providing an interface to a backend computing system. Thereafter, a runtime component prevents activation of the at least one integration scenario until such time that the at least one adapter is fully deployed. Integration flows within the at least one integration scenario are subsequently enabled to utilize the at least one adapter. Related apparatus, systems, techniques and articles are also described.

Integration scenarios enable the definition of message exchange and process flow for computer-implemented collaborative processes (sometimes referred to herein as business processes). Such processes are often among different entities and are generally coupled by the exchange of messages amongst various computing nodes and/or applications. In particular, an integration scenario can provide a central point of access for all objects that are required for semantic and technical integration, such as interfaces and mappings.

Integration process to integration adapter connector


Methods and associated apparatus for maintaining management information pertaining to a storage subsystem attached to a plurality of host systems. In particular, the present invention stores configuration and other management information regarding a storage subsystem in a reserved area of the storage subsystem called a host store region (HSR). The configuration information is timestamped by the storage subsystem when stored in the HSR. The information written therein is written and read by attached host systems using standard read and write commands directed specifically to the HSR. The storage subsystem has a reserved area distinct from the storage capacity used for persistent storage of host supplied data. A portion (the HSR) of this reserved area is set aside as a scratchpad for use by all attached host systems to communicate management information among one another. The present invention uses the existing communication channel between each of the attached host systems and the common storage subsystem. Where, for example, the storage subsystem is a RAID storage subsystem attached to the host systems by SCSI interfaces, the SCSI interface is used by each host system to access the HSR thus obviating the need for another communication channel to synchronize all attached host systems. A host system modifying the configuration or state of the storage subsystem writes an appropriate message to the HSR to indicate the management information modification. All host systems periodically poll the HSR to determine the present administrative state and configuration information.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to host based storage subsystem management and in particular to a method and associated apparatus for storage of configuration information, shared among a plurality of attached host systems, on a reserved area of a commonly attached storage subsystem.
2. Description of Related Art
It is common in the art relating to storage subsystems that host system programs are, in part, responsible for administration and management of attached storage subsystems. For example, initial configuration of a storage subsystem to allocate available storage capacity to the storage of data may be performed by such a host program. The host program, for example, interacts with an administrative user to determine the desired configuration of the storage space and then transmits any requisite command sequences to the storage subsystem to effectuate the desired configuration. The configuration thereby become known to the host system as well as the attached storage subsystem.
Further, it is known in the art to permit a plurality of host systems to share access to common storage subsystems. In such clustered environments where a plurality of hosts connect to a common storage subsystem, the plurality of hosts communicate their respective configuration and management operations among one another. When a first host system configures, re-configures, or otherwise administers an attached storage subsystem, other host systems attached to that storage subsystem need to be informed of any changes in the configuration or operation of the storage subsystem.
As taught by prior techniques, host systems attached to a common storage subsystem have used a communication channel such as a local area network (LAN) or other communication channel to exchange such administrative messages. Each host system broadcasts messages on the communication channel to other host system to announce the configuration or other administrative operations performed by the broadcasting system. A number of the host systems (frequently all) maintain a store of the current configuration information related to the present state of the storage subsystem. As messages are received from other host systems, each host system updates its model of the present storage subsystem configuration.
These methods and structure taught by prior techniques create a problem for a host system which is newly attached to a common storage subsystem or which is temporarily disconnected from the other host systems. Such a system must seek to synchronize its model of the present state of the storage subsystem by inquiring of one or more of the other systems as to the present status of the storage subsystem. When so inquiring to synchronize status, a host system must determine whether any received status information is more recent than status already known to the host system.
It is therefore a problem to devise a simple method and associated apparatus to permit a plurality of host systems to maintain synchronization regarding state information pertaining to a commonly attached storage subsystem.

Method and apparatus for storage of multiple host storage management information on a storage subsystem


Methods and systems for the in-place or post-facto migration of data to a cloud-based data storage service or other virtual storage environment, include a Cloud Storage Import Utility (CSIU) device having a file selection module and configured to generate a user interface. The user interface allows a storage administrator to select one or more files, file folders, or shares to be published to the cloud and optionally migrated from a current storage device to another storage service, and for providing an indication of the selection. The CSIU is configured to capture metadata for the selected files or file folders. The CSIU also provides one or more commands understandable by the cloud-based data storage service, to migrate the metadata to the cloud-based data storage service independently of the files or file folders, so that they are usable by the cloud-based storage service without being moved to the cloud-based storage service.

It is important for companies to find cost effective ways to manage their digital file storage. Although it may seem that file storage is inexpensive, 80% or more of the total cost of ownership is in managing and administering that storage. Most organizations' need for file storage is growing at 40% to 50% per year, along with the cost to manage that storage. Today, many companies have so much data that moving it from place to place can be cost-prohibitive.
A number of storage software vendors provide solutions that will store and organize data. Examples of such solutions in include conventional NAS, SAN or DAS storage devices which are typically deployed and maintained by an enterprises IT department. In addition, there is currently a trend towards public and private cloud-based or virtual data stores and associated name spaces supported internally and externally, and accessed by users via a Wide Area Network such as the Internet and by legacy protocols such as CIFS and NFS. Examples of these approaches include the Microsoft® SharePoint™, ByCast, and Xanet services, etc.
One of the drawbacks the Storage Industry has today is that, unlike in the past when file data was comparatively small could be easily copied from one location to another, today's enterprises often have too much data to move other than by necessity. This may be particularly problematic for relatively large users attempting to migrate from conventional user-supported NAS, SAN or DAS storage devices, to the aforementioned cloud-based or virtual data stores. Indeed, for an enterprise-class customer that may have several terabytes (or more) of data, such movement may not be realistically feasible, since the resources required for such a data migration may approach or exceed the available resources of their IT infrastructure.
For example, the US military has recently attempted to standardize on SharePoint™. In total there are approximately 3 million users, hundreds of petabytes of data and trillions of files. Currently, it may be possible to load a trillion records into a database. Indeed, in some applications it may be possible to manipulate a billion records using a conventional desktop computer. However, it is impractical, if not substantially impossible, to move 100 petabytes of data electronically from point A to point B in any reasonable period of time or affordable cost.
Accordingly, what is needed is a cost-effective system and method for the virtual, or post-facto migration of relatively large amounts of data to cloud-based data sharing services or other content management systems.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System and method for in-place data migration


Electronic systems, such as automobile radios, portable and other computing devices, and global positioning system receivers, often require that a correct security code be inputted from a small memory card that is removably inserted into a card slot of the system before the system is rendered operable in total or in part, or before certain data can be retrieved. The same type of memory card is also used to store digital data that is utilized by the system in conjunction with its function that is enabled by the security code, such data cards being removably inserted into the same card slot as the card containing the security code. Alternately, both the utilization data and the security code are included on a single card. An example application is an automobile radio wherein data supplied by the second card are of music that is reproduced through the radio's audio system.

This invention relates, generally, to the use and structure of removable electronic circuit cards having different mechanical and/or electrical interfaces, and, more specifically, to the use of non-volatile memory cards according to the related MultiMediaCard ("MMC") and Secure Digital ("SD") Memory Card interfaces and cards having an interface according to a standard of the International Organization for Standardization ("ISO") and the International Electrotechnical Commission ("IEC"), an example being the ISO/IEC 7816 standard.
The physical and electrical specifications for the MMC are given in "The MultiMediaCard System Specification" that is updated and published from time-to-time by the MultiMediaCard Association ("MMCA") of Cupertino, Calif. Versions 2.11 and 2.2 of that Specification, dated June 1999 and January 2000, respectively, are expressly incorporated herein by this reference. MMC products having varying storage capacity up to 64 megabytes in a single card are currently available from SanDisk Corporation of Sunnyvale, Calif., assignee of the present application. These products are described in a "MultiMediaCard Product Manual," Revision 2, dated April 2000, published by SanDisk corporation, which Manual is expressly incorporated herein by this reference. Certain aspects of the electrical operation of the MMC products are also described in co-pending patent applications of Thomas N. Toombs and Micky Holtzman, Ser. Nos. 09/185,649 and 09/186,064, both filed Nov. 4, 1998, and assigned to SanDisk Corporation. The physical card structure and a method of manufacturing it are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,622, assigned to SanDisk Corporation. Both of these applications and patent are also expressly incorporated herein by this reference.
The newer SD Card is similar to the MMC card, having the same size except for an increased thickness that accommodates an additional memory chip. A primary difference between them is that the SD Card includes additional data contacts in order to enable faster data transfer between the card and a host. The other contacts of the SD Card are the same as those of the MMC card in order that sockets designed to accept the SD Card will also accept the MMC card. The electrical interface with the SD card is further made to be, for the most part, backward compatible with the MMC product described in version 2.11 of its specification referenced above, in order that few changes to the operation of the host need be made in order to accommodate both types of card.
Cards made according to the ISO/IEC 7816 standard are of a different shape, have surface contacts in different positions, and a different electrical interface than the MMC and SD Cards. The ISO/IEC 7816 standard has the general title of "Identification cards-Integrated Circuit(s) Cards with Contacts," and consists of parts 1–10 that carry individual dates from 1994 through 2000. This standard, copies of which are available from the ISO/IEC in Geneva, Switzerland, is expressly incorporated herein by this reference. ISO/IEC 7816 cards are particularly useful in applications where data must be stored in a secure manner that makes it extremely difficult or impossible for the data to be read in an unauthorized manner.
One-general use of the small ISO/IEC 7816 cards is for security against the theft and/or unauthorized use of electronic systems, in which case the card stores a security code personal to the user or the electronic system. A radio installed in a vehicle is one type of electronic system, for example, where a security code personal to the radio needs to be input at times in order for the radio to operate. In one arrangement, circuitry within the radio is provided that renders it inoperable when battery power has be disconnected. Entry of a unique security code is then required to again allow the radio to operate. One way to deliver the security code is to store it on a small ISO/IEC 7816 card and provide a card slot in the radio into which the card is inserted. Circuits are included in the radio to read the code from the card, compare it with a unique code for the particular radio and, if the codes match, re-enable operation of the radio after the battery has been reconnected.

Use of small electronic circuit cards with different interfaces in an electronic system


The invention relates to firing brake assembly for weapons of the type incorporating an actual firing brake and means to modulate the function of said firing brake wherein the modulating means are in the form of a chamber equipped with a piston delimiting an upstream chamber and a downstream chamber, the upstream chamber communicating with the gun barrel by means of an upstream circuit ensuring that part of the combustion gases are taken up and a downstream chamber filled with a fluid and communicating with the firing brake by means of a downstream circuit.

1. Field of the Invention
The technical sector of the present invention is that of firing brakes for cannons or mortars enabling a reduction in the recoil.
2. Description of the Related Art
The recoil of this type of weapon is known to be reduced by adding a brake body to the weapon that comprises an oil-filled chamber and a rod fixed to a piston to draw the oil.
Thus, patents FR-2869406 and FR-2789760 disclose embodiments of firing brakes.
However, a certain rigidity has been noted in the functioning of these brakes since it is not possible to vary the braking force of the brake according to a certain number of factors such as the elevation laying of the weapon, the type of ammunition used, the desired recoil profile, the temperature.


An inner housing telescopingly receivable by an outer housing for movement between an extended and a retracted position, biasing means for urging the inner housing into the extended position, and a lockable latch assembly for retaining the inner housing in the retracted position. A cut-out formed in the inner housing for receiving the electrical connector of an electrical appliance when in the extended position, and securably containing the electrical connector when in the closed position.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to lockable containers.
More particularly, the present invention relates to devices of the type used for containing and securing electrical connectors to prevent unauthorized use of electrical appliances.
2. Prior Art
Many common appliances, tools and games are electrically powered and therefore have a cord with an electrical connector, such as a plug, for connection with an electrical outlet. For reasons of safety and to prevent unauthorized use of the appliances, tools or toys, various devices and methods have been developed to secure or otherwise prevent operation of these electrical devices. These include a locking cover to secure outlets, locking devices on the controls of the electrical devices, or locking devices for enclosing part or all of an appliance cord connector.
Securing outlets, has the disadvantage of requiring each outlet to be secured as well as requiring that a device be associated with a particular stationary electrical wall receptacle and therefore not being readily portable with one particular appliance.
Locking devices on the controls of an electrical device add substantially to the cost of manufacturing that device and can be very complex.
The most effective locking devices for preventing unauthorized use of an electrical device are those which are secured to the electrical connector. However, at the present time many of these locking devices are complex, large and bulky, relatively expensive to manufacture, or come in multiple pieces which may be lost, rendering the lcoking device unusable.
It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
Accordingly it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved means for controlling the use of an electrical appliance.
Another object of the present invention is to provide improved means for selectively disabling electrical devices.
And another object of the present invention is to provide a container which lockably incapsulates an electrical connector or the like.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a container for preventing unauthorized use of an electrical appliance, without modification to the appliance.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which is compact and readily stowable.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which is of simple construction, inexpensive to manufacture with conventional techniques using various materials.
Yet still another object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which is readily usable allowing for quick and easy disabling of the electrical device.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which is versatile, able to accommodate electrical connectors of varying sizes.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which is unincumbered, having relatively few parts.
And yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a locking container which may be closed and locked without the presence of a key at that time.

Lockable container for securing an electrical connector


The present invention provides a biochip reader for reading image information appropriate for a plurality of samples with an optical detector, by emitting a plurality of light beams onto a biochip on which the plurality of samples are arranged in spots or linear arrays. The biochip reader is configured so that the spatial positions of the plurality of samples and the plurality of light beams agree with each other. Since this biochip reader configuration requires no scanning, it is possible to read image information from multiple samples at high speed. Furthermore, as long as a comparison is made with reference to the same duration of reading, the required level of light intensity decreases as the number of beams increases. Thus, there is no need for emitting high-intensity beams of laser light as seen in the prior art. Consequently, there is virtually no risk of bleaching fluorescent stain.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a biochip reader for reading the wavelengths of fluorescence resulting from the excitation of samples on a biochip with excitation light. More specifically, the invention relates to improvements made in order to increase the speed of measurement, simplify the biochip reader, reduce damage to the samples, and make uniform the distribution of intensity within a spot of light that is formed when excitation laser light is condensed with a microlens.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There has been apparatus for detecting and analyzing DNA or protein segments by marking the segments with a fluorescent substance, emitting laser light onto them, and reading fluorescent light thus produced. In this type of apparatus, a biochip on which such samples as DNA or protein segments marked with a fluorescent substance are spotted in arrays is used.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual schematic view showing one example of a conventional epi-illuminated biochip reader. In this biochip reader, 1) a plurarity of DNA molecules (genes) A, B, C, . . . with known sequences are combined and arranged on a substrate PL to form a biochip 6, as shown in FIG. 1a, 2) the biochip 6 is hybridized with an unknown gene a, as shown in FIG. 1b, and 3) the result of hybridization is read using such a mechanism as shown in FIG. 1c.
In FIG. 1c, light (laser light) emitted from a light source 1 is collimated by a lens 2, made to pass through a dichroic mirror 4, and then condensed onto the biochip 6 by a lens 3. Light returning from the biochip 6 is changed back to parallel light by means of a lens 3, is reflected by the dichroic mirror 4, and forms an image on a detector 9 by means of a lens 8.
In this case, a stage (not shown in the figure) on which the biochip 6 is mounted is moved in the X/Y-axis direction by drive means (not shown in the figure) so that the surface of the biochip 6 is optically scanned and a surface image is obtained.
However, such a prior art biochip reader as described above has had problems. One problem is that the stage is scanned using a single spot of light beamed at the biochip 6, in order to obtain the surface image of the biochip. This method is disadvantageous since a stage drive mechanism is complex and it takes a long time to obtain the image.
Another problem is that the intensity of a light beam must be high in the case of the prior art biochip reader. This is also disadvantageous since a high level of light intensity causes fluorescent stain to bleach more easily.
Yet another problem is that a spot of high-intensity light is liable to cause the detector 9 or a subsequent A/D converter to saturate. For this reason, the gain of the detector or converter must be lowered. This is also disadvantageous since lowering the gain prohibits the measurement of weak light and, therefore, results in a narrower dynamic range of measurement.
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems by providing a biochip reader that eliminates the need for moving a stage on which samples are placed, as practiced in the prior art, and that involves virtually no risk of bleaching fluorescent stain. Thus, the present invention is intended to provide a simple-structured biochip reader capable of measuring even weak light.
In order to attain the above-described object, a biochip reader is provided for reading image information appropriate for a plurality of samples with an optical detector, by emitting a plurality of light beams onto a biochip on which the plurality of samples are arranged in spots or linear arrays, wherein the biochip reader is configured so that the spatial positions of the plurality of samples and the plurality of light beams agree with each other, as defined in claim 1 of the present invention.
This biochip reader configuration eliminates the need for moving a stage and permits non-scanned reading of image information from a plurality of samples. Furthermore, as long as a comparison is made with reference to the same duration of reading, the required level of light intensity decreases as the number of beams increases. Thus, there is no need for emitting high-intensity beams of laser light, as seen in the prior art and, therefore, there is virtually no risk of bleaching fluorescent stain. Consequently, it is possible to realize a biochip reader capable of measuring even weak light.
As described in claim 2 of the present invention, in the above-mentioned biochip reader configuration, it is also possible for a light beam emitted onto any one of the plurality of samples to form an image at a position on the optical axis different from any position on the surface of the sample. As a result, a spot of light on the biochip will have an almost uniform intensity distribution across its entirety, and the distribution of excitation light intensity will no longer affect the sample.
Note that when a biochip is mounted at a position on the optical axis beyond the focal point of an objective lens, the working distance increases and therefore the efficiency of such work as mounting or removing the biochip improves.
As described in claim 3 of the present invention, it is also possible for a fluorescent image from the above-mentioned sample to form at a position on the optical axis different from any position on the surface of a detector. As a result, it is possible to reduce intensity bias in the detector or an A/D converter, and thus widen the dynamic range of measurement.
As described in claim 4 of the present invention, the above-mentioned emitted light beam may be made obliquely incident on the sample, so that the fluorescent image from the sample and the image of excitation light are separated from each other. As a result, background noise due to the excitation light can be removed.
As described in claim 5 of the present invention, the fluorescent image and the image of excitation light from the sample may be formed at positions on the detector distant from each other. As a result, it is possible to easily remove the reflection image of excitation light during the image processing stage.


Improved electron acceptor materials for organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells are provided. More specifically, electron acceptor materials for OPVs can include vinylimide, vinylthioimide, alkynylimide and/or alkynylthioimide moieties. Experimental work with members of this class of material has demonstrated record solar cell power conversion efficiency (3.36%) for non-fullerene acceptors.

Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are a promising alternative energy technology that can help address current and future energy issues. By utilizing organic semiconducting small molecules or polymers to directly convert sunlight into electricity, OPVs have several potential advantages over conventional inorganic solar cells, including low-cost fabrication, simple processing, device flexibility, semi-transparency, and aesthetics as they can range in color from blue to red. A solution-processed subset of OPVs, termed bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells, has attracted significant attention during the last decade with recently reported NREL-certified power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of >8.5%. With regard to materials, fullerenes and their derivatives, such as [6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) and PC71BM, have been the dominant electron-acceptor materials in BHJ solar cells due to their large electron affinity, good electron mobility, and development of new synthetic routes towards soluble fullerenes. However, fullerenes have significant disadvantages, such as weak absorption in the visible spectrum compared to typical donor polymers, high-cost production and purification, and an electron affinity that is too large (exothermic) with respect to the ionization potential of a number of donor polymers resulting in low open-circuit voltages (Voc). To address these problems, new electron acceptor materials from simple, minimal step, high yield, and inexpensive synthetic processes for application in OPVs are needed. However, very few reports on solution-processed fullerene-free OPVs have shown PCEs approaching or exceeding 2%. Thus, increased efforts to develop novel non-fullerene-based acceptors are still needed.

Electron deficient molecules and their use in organic electronic applications

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


Provided herein are methods and compositions for improving muscle performance and increasing endurance. Agonists of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and agonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta (PPARδ) can be used in such treatments.

Skeletal muscle is an adaptive tissue composed of multiple myofibers that differ in their metabolic and contractile properties including oxidative slow-twitch (type I), mixed oxidative/glycolytic fast-twitch (type Ha) and glycolytic fast-twitch (type Hb) myofibers (Fluck et al., Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol., 146:159-216, 2003; Pette and Staron, Microsc. Res. Tech., 50:500-509, 2000). Type I muscle fibers preferentially express enzymes that oxidize fatty acids, contain slow isoforms of contractile proteins and are more resistant to fatigue than are glycolytic muscle fibers (Fluck et al., Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol., 146:159-216, 2003; Pette and Staron, Microsc. Res. Tech., 50:500-509, 2000). Type II fibers preferentially metabolize glucose and express the fast isoforms of contractile proteins (Fluck et al., Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol, 146:159-216, 2003; Pette and Staron, Microsc. Res. Tech., 50:500-509, 2000).
Endurance exercise training triggers a complex remodeling program in skeletal muscle that progressively enhances performance in athletes such as marathon runners, mountain climbers and cyclists. This involves changes in metabolic programs and structural proteins within the myofibers that alter the energy substrate utilization and contractile properties that act to reduce muscle fatigue (Fluck et al., Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol, 146:159-216, 2003; Pette and Staron, Microsc. Res. Tech., 50:500-509, 2000). Training based adaptations in the muscle are linked to increases in the expression of genes involved in the slow-twitch contractile apparatus, mitochondrial respiration and fatty acid oxidation (Holloszy and Coyle, J. Appl. Physiol., 56:831-838, 1984; Booth and Thomason, Physiol. Rev., 71:541-585, 1991; Schmitt et al., Physiol. Genomics, 15:148-157, 2003; Yoshioka et al., FASEB J., 17:1812-1819, 2003; Mahoney et al., FASEB J., 19:1498-1500, 2005; Mahoney and Tarnopolsky, Phys. Med. Rehabil Clin. N. Am., 16:859-873, 2005; Siu at al., J. Appl Physiol, 97:277-285, 2004; Gamier et al., FASEB J., 19:43-52, 2005; Short et al., J. Appl Physiol, 99:95-102, 2005; Timmons et al., FASEB J., 19:750-760, 2005). Such exercise training-related adaptations can improve performance and protect against obesity and related metabolic disorders (Wang at al., P. Biol, 2:e294, 2004; Koves at al., J. Biol. Chem., 280:33588-33598, 2005). Moreover, skeletal muscles rich in oxidative slow-twitch fibers are resistant to muscle wasting (Minnaard et al., Muscle Nerve. 31: 339-48, 2005).

Methods for enhancing muscle performance and tone


In a baseband processing circuit unit, a reception signal type determination unit determines whether or not a reception signal in a GPS reception unit is an indirect wave. A movement speed calculation unit calculates a movement speed of the GPS reception unit using a correction coefficient of a relative speed determined in accordance with the determination of whether or not the reception signal is an indirect wave, a transmission frequency of a GPS satellite signal and a reception frequency in the GPS reception unit.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method of calculating a movement speed of a receiver, or the like.
2. Related Art
As a positioning system using positioning satellite signals, a GPS (Global Positioning System) is widely known, and is used in a GPS receiver which is embedded in a mobile phone, a car navigation device, or the like. In the GPS, position calculation using information, such as the positions of a plurality of GPS satellites or a pseudo distance to each GPS satellite is performed to obtain the position of the GPS receiver or a clock bias.
In the GPS, under the principle that the reception frequency changes depending on the relative speed of the GPS satellite and the GPS receiver, the movement speed of the GPS receiver can be calculated using the transmission frequency of the GPS satellite signal and the reception frequency in the GPS receiver (for example, JP-A-2010-175426).
As described above, in the GPS, the movement speed of the GPS receiver can be calculated. On the other hand, if the movement speed calculated under the above principle is temporally integrated to calculate the movement distance of the GPS receiver, an experiment has shown that the calculated movement distance tends to become shorter than the actual movement distance of the GPS receiver.
If the movement speed can be correctly calculated, the movement distance of the GPS receiver will be correctly obtained. Nevertheless, in the method of the related art, the condition that the movement distance is not correctly obtained means that the movement speed is not correctly calculated due to any number of factors.

Method of calculating movement speed and device for calculating movement speed


An arrangement for a suspension for a load carrying vehicle is provided. The suspension is provided with air springs and comprises at least one front axle and at least two rear axles, and each rear axle is provided with at least one pair of corresponding suspension air springs and at least one air spring is provided for lifting one of the rear axles. The suspension air springs for at least the rearmost axle is connected to the air spring for lifting one of the rear axles by a conduit for compressed air, which conduit is provided with a controllable valve, whereby the controllable valve is arranged to open during a vehicle loading process. A vehicle provided with the arrangement, and a method for carrying out a loading operation using the arrangement, are also described.

The invention relates to apparatus for pressurizing the rear suspension of a vehicle provided with air springs, when one end of a container or similar is lifted onto the rear-end of the vehicle by a load handling system of the hook-lift type.
There are many known designs of vehicles with load handling systems of a variety of different hook-lift types. In one known arrangement, a commercial vehicle has a load handling system which is arranged to load and unload over the rear end of the vehicle chassis. The most demanding phase of the loading operation arises during the first part of the loading when the front end of a container, a flatrack or a similar load carrier is being lifted up over the rear end of the vehicle to make initial contact with the rollers or similar guide means which will support and guide the container during the rest of the loading movement.
During the initial phase of the loading, the air springs of at least the rearmost axle may be compressed to the extent that they reach the load limit and contacts their bump stops. This can be caused by the driver starting the loading before the air springs in the suspension have had time to build up a sufficient pressure to support the sudden increase in load. This is a particular problem if the vehicle is unloaded, in which case both the pressure in the air springs and the spring stiffness are relatively low. In this case, the filling of the air springs will not begin until a signal is transmitted from sensors monitoring a change in height of the vehicle chassis. This process will usually be too slow to allow the air springs to be pressurized to take the load.
Also, unknown to the driver, the container itself may be too heavy for the vehicle suspension. If an insufficiently pressurized suspension is subjected to an overload condition, this may cause buckling of parts of the air springs and even deformation of the rear end of the vehicle chassis.
One solution to this problem is to provide the vehicle with support legs that may be deployed by hydraulic cylinders. Support leg of this type will take the load but requires a separate hydraulic system, which adds to the weight, complexity and cost of the vehicle. A further problem with such legs is that the loading of the vehicle will be more time consuming, as the driver must first ensure that the ground below the vehicle is stable, then deploy the legs, and finally retract them after a completed loading operation.
It is desirable to provide an improved arrangement for pressurizing the rear air springs of a vehicle during operation of a load handling system of the hook-lift type, which arrangement assists the driver in avoiding the above problems.
In the text below, the term "air spring" is intended to encompass all types of pneumatic springs comprising a resilient, elastic or similar member used in a vehicle suspension. The axle to be lifted is preferably a so-called trailing axle that is not driven. However, the invention may be adapted to other types of axles in a commercial vehicle.
In addition, air springs are connected to a source of compressed air via one or more controllable valves, whereby the air springs may be pressurized or vented by means of said valves. However, the means for controlling the pneumatic pressure in the air spring or any valves for controlling auxiliary devices will not be described in detail. As these components are not part of the inventive idea, they will only be discussed briefly in the text and shown schematically in the drawings.
The An aspect of the invention relates to an arrangement for a vehicle suspension comprising air springs, which vehicle comprises at least one front axle and at least two rear axles. In the text below, aspects of the invention is are mainly described in relation to a vehicle having a load handling system of the hook-lift type, where the invention is intended for assisting pressurization of said air springs during loading of a freight container onto a rear end of the vehicle by the load handling system. However, aspects of the invention may also be applied to other type of load handling vehicles, such as dump trucks, wherein the suspension may be subjected to a sudden increase in load that in some cases may cause damage to the vehicle and/or the vehicle suspension.
Commercial or construction vehicles suitable for application of aspects of the invention are provided with means for lifting at least one of the rear axles of the vehicle. The vehicle may have a plurality of rear axles having axle members which are in the form of cross-members and support the chassis of the vehicle by way of corresponding pairs of pneumatic suspension air springs supplied from a compressed air source. The vehicle may comprise a lifting assembly located in each, adjacent both or in between a corresponding pair of air springs on the axle to be lifted. The lifting assembly is at least one air spring expansible by the effect of the pressure of the compressed air source, such as a compressor or an accumulator and suitable valves to maintain said axle in the raised position when its suspension air springs are load-free.
An aspect of the invention relates to an arrangement for a suspension for a load carrying vehicle, which suspension is provided with air springs and comprises at least one front axle and at least two rear axles, and where each rear axle is provided with at least one pair of corresponding suspension air springs and at least one air spring is provided for lifting one of said rear axles.
The suspension air springs for at least the rearmost axle is connected to the air spring for lifting one of said rear axles by a conduit for compressed air, which conduit is provided with a controllable valve, whereby the controllable valve is arranged to open during a vehicle loading process.
For a vehicle with two rear axles, the axle to be lifted is a non-driven axle and may be either the forward or the rearward axle. The invention can also by applied to vehicles with three rear axles, wherein at least one non-driven axle may be lifted. At least one air spring may be used for lifting each of said non-driven rear axles. As stated above, the suspension air springs of at least the rearmost axle is connected to the lifting air spring. If two separate air springs are used for lifting an axle, each lifting air spring may be connected to a separate suspension air spring via separate, but simultaneously actuated controllable valves. Similarly, for a vehicle with three rear axles with a single driving axle, two separate air springs may be used for lifting one axle each. Each lifting air spring may be connected to the suspension air springs of separate axles via separate, but simultaneously actuated controllable valves.
The lifting air spring may be arranged to be pressurized prior to the vehicle loading process. For a vehicle with a hook-lift load handling system, pressurizing of the lifting air spring can be actuated by the driver as the vehicle is being maneuvered into position for loading a container or similar. The suspension air springs for the axle to be lifted by said lifting air spring is arranged to be pressurized to balance the pressure in the lifting air spring, in order to prevent said axle from being lifted. For instance, if the a lifting air spring is pressurized to the supply pressure of the pneumatic system of the vehicle, for instance 12 bar, the suspension air spring may be pressurized to at least maintain ground contact, for instance 2 bar. These pressures may vary depending on the type and the size of the vehicle, the available supply pressure from a compressor or an accumulator, the relative size of the lifting and suspension air springs, and other parameters.
If the vehicle travels unloaded, with a non-driven axle in a lifted position, then the lifting cylinder is already pressurized to the supply pressure of the pneumatic system. Actuation of the arrangement by the driver will then cause the suspension air spring to be pressurized to lower the lifted axle in order to at least achieve ground contact.
When the above-mentioned controllable valve is opened during a vehicle loading process, the pressurized air in the one or more lifting air springs will be supplied to the suspension air springs of at least the rearmost axle through said conduit. This equalization of pressure between the lifting and suspension air springs causes a relatively rapid increase of the pressure in the suspension air springs. In this way, the rear suspension of the vehicle may support a sudden increase in load during an initial period of a loading process, until additional pressure can be provided by the compressed air supply of the vehicle.
According to a further aspect, the suspension air springs may comprise a pot made of rigid, pressure-resistant material, such as steel or a suitable plastic material, and a resilient bellows closed by a substantially flat plate at one end and at its opposite end fitted onto an open end of the pot, made of e.g. nylon-reinforced rubber. The bellows is in pneumatic connection with the pot and is connected to a source of compressed air via at least one controllable valve. An air spring of this type may be provided with a pot having an air shut-off valve in a partition wall arranged to shut off the open end facing the bellows, creating a separate pressure tight chamber inside the pot. The volume of this chamber may be as much as half of the total volume of the air spring.
The controllable valve may comprise a seat or poppet valve a sliding valve or a rotary valve, which valve may be controlled pneumatically or electrically.
In the case of a poppet valve, the poppet may be raised and lowered by means of a piston in a separate cylinder inside the pot, arranged to shut off the air inside the pot, in a lowered position, while air is being vented from or supplied to the bellows, and to equalize pressures between the pot and the bellows, in a raised position, when air is neither vented from or supplied to the bellows. The opening and closing of the poppet is controlled by a pressure supplied to the cylinder when it is desired to open the poppet valve.
In this aspect, the above arrangement may be used in combination with the air spring for lifting one of said rear axles. For instance, when a rear axle is to be lifted the pressure supplied to the poppet valve is shut off, causing the poppet valve to close and retain the current air pressure. This pressure may in some cases be as much as 8 bar. To lift the axle, the volume contained within the bellows is vented to the atmosphere as the lifting air spring is pressurized.
During a subsequent loading operation, as described above, the controllable valve between the one or more lifting air springs and the suspension air springs of at least the rearmost axle is opened and the pressurized air in the lifting air springs will be supplied to the suspension air springs through said conduit. This first equalization of pressure between the lifting and suspension air springs causes an initial increase of the pressure in the suspension air springs. Subsequently, pressurized air is supplied to the cylinder to open the poppet valve. This causes a further increase in pressure during a second equalization of pressure between the bellows and the pot. Depending on the pressure in the volume contained in the pot, it may be necessary to close the controllable valve between the suspension and lifting springs before the poppet valve is opened to maintain the pressure in the suspension air spring. Alternatively, a non-return valve may be provided in the conduit. This provides the rear suspension of the vehicle with additional pressure for supporting a sudden increase in load during an initial period of a loading process, until additional pressure can be provided by the compressed air supply of the vehicle.
According to a further aspect, the vehicle may be provided with a signal generating means, arranged to generate a signal when a vehicle loading process is in progress, whereby the signal is arranged to open said controllable valve. According to one aspect, the signal generating means may be a switch controllable by an operator. For instance, this may be the switch used to initialize the loading process, whereby a pneumatic or hydraulic means are moved to load the vehicle.
According to a further aspect, the signal generating means is a load sensor for indicating that the vehicle is subjected to a load exceeding a predetermined value. This may be a weight sensor or a strain gauge monitoring the current load applied to one or more positions of the vehicle or to a load carrying platform thereon.
According to a further alternative, the signal generating means is a sensor for indicating that the vehicle is subjected to a load causing a predetermined compression of at least the rear most suspension air spring. This may be a height sensor measuring the relative distance between a fixed position on the vehicle chassis and a suitable position on a vehicle axle. Sensors of this type are may be available on many types of commercial vehicles, whereby an existing signal output may be used.
An aspect of the invention further relates to a method for assisting pressurization of said air springs for loading of a freight container onto a rear end of the vehicle by the load handling system of the hook-lift type, which vehicle comprises at least two rear axles, each axle provided with at least one pair of corresponding suspension air springs for each rear axle and at least one air spring for lifting one of said rear axles. The method may involve the steps of; -pressurizing the air spring for lifting one of said rear axles prior to actuation of the load handling system,                pressurizing the suspension air springs of the axle to be lifted to prevent said lifting air spring from lifting said axle;        generating a signal indicating that a vehicle loading process is in progress;        actuating a valve for connecting the lifting air spring to the suspension air springs of at least the rearmost axle in response to the signal.
According to a further aspect, generation of the signal may be achieved by a sensor indicating that the rear part of the vehicle is subjected to a load. According to a further aspect, generation of the signal may occur when the load handling system is actuated to load the vehicle. According to a further aspect, generation of said signal may occur when a sensor indicates that the vehicle is subjected to a load causing a predetermined compression of at least the rear most suspension air spring.
An aspect of the invention further relates to a vehicle provided with an arrangement according to one or more of the above embodiments.