A protective cover for surrounding a conduit assembly in a mine has a flexible elongate main body that comprises a plurality of discrete functional layers and which is configurable as a sleeve having an outer surface, the protective cover comprising a first layer, substantially comprised of an aramid based material, that is structurally configured to provide substantial protection from the force associated with impacting projectiles originating from the external environment whilst also being configured to substantially resist internally generated forces of the type that are typically associated with a burst hose, a second layer, adjacent to the outer surface of the first layer, that is structurally configured in the form of a mesh thereby protecting the first layer from external bodies that may otherwise potentially induce tear damage to the first layer, the protective cover characterised by further comprising a third layer, adjacent to said first layer, comprising a polymeric membrane that is substantially impermeable to the passage of at least one liquid. There is also provided a system for protecting at least one or a plurality of cables and/or hoses from matter falling from above, said system comprising use of at least one such protective cover suspended from a flexible strand that is in turn attached to a fixed structure that is located substantially vertically above said at least one or a plurality of cables and/or hoses.

As is known to those skilled in the art, guards in the form of protective covers exist or conduits of various types as used in highly abrasive environments. Such guards or covers typically comprise a cylindrical sleeve that of a suitable size for a given application to thereby substantially surround and encase, as appropriate, one or more conduits. The term 'conduit' as used herein refers to an elongate member that is configured to transmit something. Thus typical examples of conduits of the type of interest herein comprise hoses, cables, wires, tubing and the like. The term 'conduit assembly' is defined and used herein as either a single conduit or a plurality of conduits as used in close proximity to one another and thus the term is to be understood herein as expressly including either a single conduit or a plurality of such conduits. Furthermore respective conduits may be configured as distinct elongate members that are thus not formed as part of or otherwise integrally connected to another conduit or they may be integral with one or more other conduits.
An example of such a protective cover or guard and an abrasion resistant cable or hose system is that described and filed by the applicant JHRG LLC in international patent application, publication number WO 2002095891 (Holland) entitled 'Protective Cover'. The protective cover described in WO 2002095891 comprises a sleeve surrounding the cable or hose that has open ends. The sleeve is described as resistant to petroleum-based products and formed from an elongated sheet of fabric that comprises high strength yarns and which further comprises opposing longitudinal edges that can be releasably attached to each other using, for example, hook and loop material such as VELCRO®.
According to WO 2002095891 the high strength yarn is selected from the group consisting of long chain polyethylenes, high strength aramids, liquid crystal polymers, and combinations thereof. Further securing means in the form of grommets are described for securing the open ends of the sleeve to the cable or hose and additional bands ('coverlets') that are to be wrapped around hoses or cables at spaced-apart intervals are described as appropriate for certain applications.
Notably the protective cover of WO 2002095891 is described at paragraph [0001] thereof as providing protection for hoses and cables as they are dragged across abrasive surface such as concrete and asphalt, in environments such as airports and the like. Thus the protective covers described are primarily intended for use on the ground or on whatever surface any hoses and cables to be protected are deployed on.
There are various industrial situations, such as, for example, in underground mines, where, in contrast to the situations of primary concern in WO 2002095891, it is undesirable to have cables and/or hoses on the surface of the ground (i.e. at foot level) where given industrial operations are taking place.
Specific Example—Problems Associated with Mining Roof Support Inter-Chock Hydraulic Hose and Cables
FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a prior art overhead cable system 100 as used in a typical UK coal mine comprising floor 101, roof (or ceiling) 102 that includes roof joists and coal face 103. As is known to those skilled in the art of mining, it is highly desirable, in view of the limited available space at foot level in a tunnel or an atrium of an underground mine, to position a conduit assembly, above the area where workers and machinery are transported around. In the example illustrated roof 102 as typically comprises series of roof joists is supported by chocks (powered supports, generally in the form of large hydraulic jacks) and it is usually the case that so-called 'inter-chock' cables and/or hoses run there-between. Although abrasion associated with movement of such cables/hoses on the floor of an underground tunnel or atrium is thereby negated by virtue of the cables/hoses being above floor level, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art there still exist abrasive factors with such overhead conduits. Chock 104 comprises of a pair of vertical hydraulic cylinders 106, 107 supported on base 108 which thereby support a canopy 109 that is in contact with roof 102. Similarly the chock 105 comprises respective hydraulic cylinders 110, 111, base 112 and canopy 113.
As illustrated, conduit assembly 114 is positioned overhead, that is above the head height of operatives working below and, in the example illustrated, comprises a protective sleeve like cover 115 that encases conduit assembly 114. Conduit assembly 114 with cover 115 is suspended from the respective canopies 109, 113 by respective wire loop hangers 116 and 117 as are attached to each respective canopy at points 118 and 119. Each respective hanger 116, 117 is typically made of a high tensile wire that is suitably affixed to its associated canopy and which, at its other (lower) end, comprises a terminal loop that, as shown, encircles conduit assembly 114.
In the mining industry a known conduit assembly cover 115 may take various forms. Typically, in the UK mining industry, a basic guard in the form of a cover is used which is substantially made of a polyamide cloth, such as of nylon. However, for certain applications, it has been known in the UK mining industry to configure assembly 114 with a more robust cover comprising an outer layer of an impact resistant steel mesh and an inner layer of a polyamide cloth, such as of nylon, with an impact resistant high strength aramid-based layer located there-between. Such covers are desirable in order to try and protect a given conduit assembly against falling debris such, in the example of FIG. 1, fallen boulder 120 on assembly 114 and rock pile 121 on floor 101 as have each originated via a rock fall/roof collapse as is generally indicated at region 121 of the mine roof 102.
Thus a problem associated with such overhead conduits is the damage caused through abrasion with falling debris and liquid, notably water, from the roof of the tunnel or atrium. As is known to those skilled in the art of coal mining in the United Kingdom such abrasion from debris and water from above may be alleviated through using protective covers that are configured in a similar manner to those described in WO 200209589 or using the aforementioned. Nevertheless covers as are used to protect overhead conduits suffer from additional complications as compared with covers configured for use at ground level. In this regard, for example, the weight of the covers themselves may be problematic in that they may constitute substantial extra weight to be supported by the conduits that are being protected. This extra weight that has to be supported is particularly problematic in large mines as are found in various countries around the world such as, for example, in Australia, South Africa and in the USA. In such large mines and large underground caverns/structures there is thus a tendency for protective covers, even of a very basic kind, not to be used. This is partly due to correspondingly larger covers presenting a corresponding additional weight burden and partly because of a lack of availability of a reasonably robust and lightweight cover for use in such applications.
In terms of providing a complete disclosure of all potentially relevant background prior art, UK patent number GB 2513759 B is to be noted as it pertains to another invention by the present inventor 'David Gooding' entitled 'Improved safety shield for a pipe joint'. As its name suggests this pertains to a shield for a pipe joint that comprises a layered structure that is specifically configured for use in shielding such joints.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the amount of cable and hose required in many mines is typically vast and thus there is a need to improve efficiency and thus overheads by minimizing damage to cables and hoses. Reducing or eliminating such damage negates the amount of down time for operation of machinery that is located in the mine and provides a much safer working environment for personnel/operatives and whoever else may have cause to be present underground.
The safety aspect associated with overhead cables/hoses in various industrial environments, such as in mines, factories and other installations such as power stations, is of paramount importance in order to reduce/prevent loss of life and/or injuries as much as possible. Evidently damaged electrical power and communications cables present a serious electrical hazard, but also it is frequently the case that hoses carry fluids at very high pressures. With the fatter a burst hose can cause severe problems in various ways such as, for example, in the release of hot liquids and/or gases that may burn a person. Furthermore, such liquid/gas may be under very high pressures and thus the release thereof may be explosive or of a type that is released as a very fine jet of fluid that may readily and severely pierce the clothing and or skin/body of a person. The latter effect is known to those skilled in the art as a hydraulic injection. Although the aforementioned known cover comprising a steel mesh/aramid outer layer on a nylon inner layer helps to alleviate certain problems to do with impact, it (1) lacks approved testing to certain predefined conditions, in particular high pressure, and it is associated with additional problems such as (2) cable/hose degradation over time due to water derived from the roof of a mine and (3) insufficient provision of protection to operatives/persons in a mine from hose bursts that are associated with very high pressures and from malfunctioning equipment such as chocks being activated because of damaged electrical cables.
Inter-chock conduits thus typically comprise hydraulic hoses and one or more cables such as power and/or communications cables. As described above, these are typically subjected to debris falling from the roof in between the roof supports as they move. This can cause damage to the outer rubber covers of the hose and cables as follows:                (a) hydraulic hoses
As will be understood by those skilled in the art, a hose of the type commonly used in an underground mine typically comprises a reinforced structure that comprises a matrix (in the form of braiding) of reinforcing metal bearing fibres. Commonly such braiding is made of carbon steel. Such a structure may itself be formed within a polymeric material such as of a plastics or rubber based material and constitute the entire wall of a hose or this may be used as an outer layer with, for example, a liner of a non-metal bearing layer of plastics or rubber based polymeric material. Thus, with such a structure of a hose as is normally suspended overhead directly from the roof or a chock canopy:                Where such damage exposes the outer braid steel wires it allows mine water, which is highly corrosive, to penetrate causing corrosion of the steel wires. The hose relies on the strength of the steel wires to contain the high pressure hydraulic fluid. This deletion in strength causes the hose to fail and fluid at high pressure to escape.        In addition, if debris from above falls onto such a hose, large and heavy pieces or rock and the like may strike the hose and such impacts may cause end terminal failure (failure of the mechanical end pieces of a hose as link from one hose to the next) because the hose assembly is not designed to withstand such severe end terminal mechanical pull forces.        First possible consequence of (1) or (2): loss of production in a mine as is caused by the time taken to locate the failure and to remove and replace or otherwise repair the failed hose.        Second possible consequence of (1) or (2): injury to personnel and/or fatalities by fluid injection wherein a person, such as an operative/engineer at a coal face, is close to the point of failure when a failure is arising or has arisen.        (b) Cables
Inter-chock cables are also subject to being hit by falling roof debris in a mine:                When the debris is large and heavy enough the weight striking the cable pulls on the end termination points of the cables as connect from one cable to the next causing end termination failure.        The main consequence is the loss of production caused by having to change and fit a new cable.
In view of the above identified problems those skilled in the art will appreciate that there is thus a need to provide an improved protective cover in the form of a sleeve and/or otherwise an improved system for use in protecting (a) overhead conduits from damage and, simultaneously, (b) operatives from serious injury through hose bursts and/or malfunctions caused by degraded electrical cables.

Protective covers for conduits such as cables and/or hoses


A beverage brewing device reduces the time required to produce a cold-brewed beverage. The brewer includes a container and a brewing material holder configured to be suspended from a lid of the container. The brewing material holder includes at least a mesh panel and is configured to support and contain brewing material in the brewing material holder. The lid assembly includes a mechanism configured to rotate the brewing material holder with respect to the lid about an axis extending away from the lid. The container is filled with water and the brewing material holder is filled with brewing material and submerged in the water within the container. Movement of the brewing material submerged in water substantially reduces the time required for cold brewing.

Several types of beverages, such as coffee, tea, and herbal drinks, are brewed by infusing or steeping ground or shredded beverage material in water or other liquid. For quick brewing, hot water is typically used. However, cold brewing, that is, infusion of the beverage material in cold or room-temperature water rather than hot water, is sometimes preferred. For example, some coffee drinkers prefer the flavor provided by cold brewing, and bitterness can be avoided when brewing certain teas by steeping in unheated water rather than hot water. Such cold brewing is provided by submerging a portion of brewing material in unheated water for a period of time to allow the brewing material to infuse the water. While the steeping process may provide a desired result, the time required is longer than that required for brewing in hot water.
Conventional cold-brew steeps require a user to measure and pour a particular amount of brewing material into the steep. A pre-measured simple drop-in portion of brewing material would be convenient, particularly for use in a brewer that simplifies removal of the brewing material and clean-up of the brewer. A brewer that can be used for both hot- and cold-brewing would provide flexibility, and it would be advantageous if the brewer would be configured to speed the cold-brewing process. A further advantage would be provided by a brewer that could replicate the effect of a French press, by adding a compression feature to the brewing process. The ability to use either loose beverage brewing material or pre-packaged brewing material in a capsule or other container would make such a brewer would make such a brewer universally useful.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A system for generating pressure pulses in drilling fluid includes a concentric drive power section. The power section includes a stator and a rotor rotatably disposed in the stator. The rotor is coaxially aligned with the stator. The system also includes a valve. The valve includes a first valve member coupled to the stator and a second valve member coupled to the rotor. The second valve member is configured to rotate with the rotor relative to the first valve member and the stator. The rotation of the second valve member relative to the first valve member is configured to generate pressure pulses in drilling fluid flowing through the concentric drive power section.

The disclosure relates generally to downhole tools. More particularly, the disclosure relates to downhole systems for inducing axial oscillations in drill strings during drilling operations. Still more particularly, the disclosure relates to valves used in connection with concentric drive systems to generate pressure pulses in drilling fluid that actuate shock tools that produce axial oscillations.
Drilling operations are performed to locate and recover hydrocarbons from subterranean reservoirs. Typically, an earth-boring drill bit is typically mounted on the lower end of a drill string and is rotated by rotating the drill string at the surface or by actuation of downhole motors or turbines, or by both methods. With weight applied to the drill string, the rotating drill bit engages the earthen formation and proceeds to form a borehole along a predetermined path toward a target zone.
During drilling, the drillstring may rub against the sidewall of the borehole. Frictional engagement of the drillstring and the surrounding formation can reduce the rate of penetration (ROP) of the drill bit, increase the necessary weight-on-bit (WOB), and lead to stick slip. Accordingly, various downhole tools that induce vibration and/or axial reciprocation may be included in the drillstring to reduce friction between the drillstring and the surrounding formation, as well as increase ROP. One such tool is an axial reciprocation tool that includes a valve that generates pressure pulses in drilling fluid and a shock tool that converts the pressure pulses in the drilling fluid into axial reciprocation.
The valve is operated by a downhole power section (rotor and stator assembly), and is usually positioned between the rotor of the power section and a bottom sub. In addition, the valve is typically made of two carbide plates with flow ports (holes or slots) therethrough. One of the plates, referred to as the oscillating valve plate, is connected to and rotates with the rotor of the power section, and the other plate, referred to as a stationary valve plate, is connected to and static relative to the bottom sub. Accordingly, flow exiting the power section passes through the valve and onward through the drill string or bottom hole assembly (BHA) therebelow.
Most conventional power sections include Moineau type mud motors in which the rotor rotates eccentrically within the stator as drilling fluid flows therethrough. The eccentric rotary motion of the rotor causes the alignment between the flow ports of the oscillating valve plate and the stationary valve plate to vary in a cyclical fashion. This, in turn, cyclically varies the flow area through the valve, which causes pressure fluctuations or pulses in the drilling fluid flowing therethrough.
As noted above, the shock tool induces axial oscillations in the drillstring in response to pressure pulses generated by the valve. The shock tool is typically a spring-loaded stroking tool. The pressure pulses act on the pump open area of the shock tool, causing the shock tool to reciprocate axially, which imparts cyclical axial vibrations to the drillstring.

Valves for actuating downhole shock tools in connection with concentric drive systems


A method of fabricating an integrated circuit (IC) including at least one drain extended MOS (DEMOS) transistor and ICs therefrom includes providing a substrate having a semiconductor surface, the semiconductor surface including at least a first surface region that provides a first dopant type. A patterned masking layer is formed on the first surface region, wherein at least one aperture in the masking layer is defined. The first surface region is etched to form at least one trench region corresponding to a position of the aperture. A dopant of a first dopant type is implanted to raise a concentration of the first dopant type in a first dopant type drift region located below the trench region. After the implanting, the trench region is filled with a dielectric fill material. A body region is then formed having a second dopant type in a portion of the first surface region. A gate dielectric is then formed over a surface of the body region and the first surface region. A patterned gate electrode layer is formed over the gate dielectric, a source region in the body region and a drain region in the first surface region on a side of the trench region opposite to the source are formed, and fabrication of the IC is completed.

Power semiconductor products are often fabricated using N or P channel drain-extended metal-oxide-semiconductor (DENMOS and DEPMOS, respectively) transistor devices, such as lateral diffused MOS (LDMOS) devices, for high power switching applications. DEMOS devices advantageously combine short-channel operation with high current handling capabilities, relatively low drain-source on-state resistance (Rdson), and the ability to withstand high blocking voltages without suffering voltage breakdown failure. Breakdown voltage is typically measured as drain-to-source breakdown voltage with the gate and source shorted together (BVdss).
DEMOS structures generally include thick local oxidation (LOCOS) or trench dielectric in the case of trench isolation (e.g. STI), which protects the gate dielectric edge on the drain side of the device as it would otherwise suffer dielectric breakdown, or progressive degradation during device operation. Since the field oxide thickness is usually limited by technological constraints, higher breakdown voltages typically require more lightly doped layers. However, since Rdson is proportional to the epitaxial layer resistivity, a tradeoff generally results with respect to BVdss, Rdson and BVon (breakdown with high gate-to-source voltage which is a measure of robustness). What is needed is a new process and DEMOS device architecture and/or doping that lessens this tradeoff and thus provides good device performance for BVdss, Rdson and BVon.

Methods of manufacturing trench isolated drain extended MOS (demos) transistors and integrated circuits therefrom


An insert body (10) for a spray nozzle assembly (1) has a fan jet producing section (17) for producing an oscillating, large-area fan jet and a point jet producing section (18) for producing at least one point jet located in the wetting area of the fan jet. It is thereby ensured that even if the fan jet collapses or is pushed aside, the surface is wetted at least by the or each point jet, which are much more forgiving from a fluid dynamics standpoint.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to an insert body for a spray nozzle assembly, and to a spray nozzle assembly equipped with such an insert body.
2. Description of the Related Art
One insert body for a spray nozzle assembly is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,904 A. The prior insert body comprises a fan jet producing section, which can be impinged on by a fluid via an insert entrance channel and is adapted to produce an oscillating fan jet, issuing from a fan jet exit opening, in order to wet a surface, typically the windshield of a motor vehicle. Although a relatively large-area fan jet can be produced under certain temperature conditions by means of a spray nozzle assembly equipped with such an insert body, there is a problem in that in the presence of unfavorable fluid mechanical boundary conditions, for example a low temperature or a high relative speed of the spray nozzle assembly compared to the surrounding medium, as is the case, for example, with a vehicle traveling at a relatively high speed, the fan jet fails to form or, due to the wind pressure, fails to impinge on the areas of the windshield that are to be wetted down.

Insertion body for a spray nozzle assembly, and spray nozzle assembly


An information processing apparatus includes a conversion section configured to convert one of an SD signal according to a predetermined standard of Standard Definition Television and an HD signal according to a predetermined standard of High-Definition Television into the other one of the signals and output the resulting signal in a predetermined format.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method, a transmission apparatus and method, a recording apparatus and method, and a program. More particularly, the present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and method, a transmission apparatus and method, a recording apparatus and method and a program wherein an SD Proxy signal and an HD Proxy signal are handled in a common format with a suppressed circuit scale.
2. Description of the Related Art
Optical disk recording and reproduction apparatus used in broadcasting stations and so forth in recent years handle a baseband signal complying with a standard of the related art as an original signal of a content obtained by image pickup. The standard of the related art is a standard of Standard Definition Television such as the NTSC (National Television System Committee) system against a standard of High-Definition Television which has appeared in recent years. It is to be noted that such a baseband signal as mentioned above is hereinafter referred to as SD signal.
In this instance, an optical disk of the related art recording and reproduction apparatus can compression encode an SD signal which is an original signal of a content, for example, in accordance with an MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) system and record a signal obtained as a result of the compression encoding on an optical disk. Such a signal obtained as a result of compression encoding as just mentioned is hereinafter referred to as SD main line image signal. Further, the optical disk recording and reproduction apparatus of the related art can reproduce an SD main line image signal recorded on an optical disk, that is, read out and decompression decode the SD main line image signal, and output an SD signal obtained as a result of the decompression decoding.
Further, some optical disk recording and reproduction apparatus of the related art can handle, as an object of recording and reproduction on and from an optical disk, not only an SD main line image signal of a predetermined content but also a Proxy signal regarding the predetermined content. One of such optical disk recording and reproduction apparatus is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Published Application No. 2004/0148551.
The Proxy signal is a generic term of signals which are utilized as a representative of an SD main line image signal when editing of a content is performed and are produced so that, for example, simple and easy editing can be performed.
For example, a signal produced so as to have a reduced image size when compared with an SD main line image signal is a type of a Proxy signal. A Proxy signal of this type has a characteristic that it has a smaller data amount when compared with an SD main line image signal and allows simple and easy editing due to this characteristic. It is to be noted that a Proxy signal of the type described is hereinafter referred to as image size reduction type Proxy signal.
A signal obtained as a result of an encoding process performed for an SD signal in a unit of a GOP (Group Of Picture) is an SD main line image signal, and also a signal obtained as a result of an encoding process performed for an SD signal in a unit of a frame is a type of a Proxy signal. The encoding process in a unit of a frame here is a process of encoding, for all frames which form an SD signal, a frame making use of the frame itself, that is, a process of encoding each frame without making use of any other frame such as a preceding or succeeding frame. The encoding process in a unit of a frame here is sometimes referred to as intra-frame compression. Accordingly, where an SD main line image signal is handled, in order to decode a P picture or a B picture other than an I picture, another frame included in a corresponding GOP is essentially required. In contrast, a Proxy signal obtained by intra-frame compression has a characteristic that any frame thereof can be decoded with the frame itself similarly to an I picture, that is, the Proxy signal can be decoded in a unit of a frame. The Proxy signal of the type described allows simple and easy editing due to the characteristic just described. It is to be noted that the Proxy signal of the type described is hereinafter referred to as intra compression type Proxy signal.
Further, in recent years, the tendency to try to record and reproduce also a baseband signal complying with the standard of High-Definition Television described hereinabove as an original signal of a content obtained by image pickup on and from an optical disk has become intensified. It is to be noted that such a baseband signal as mentioned above is hereinafter referred to as HD signal.
As a result, a demand to utilize an HD Proxy signal in addition to a popular SD Proxy signal has been and is increasing in recent years.

Information processing apparatus and method, transmission apparatus and method, recording apparatus and method and program


A casing for a shielded connector for a multicore cable having a drain wire, the casing comprising an upper and a lower part, where the drain wire is received in a channel in a first wall region of the lower part and upon assembly is firmly held therein by interacting elevations and depressions on the bottom of the channel and on a complimentary rib of a first wall region of the upper part.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a cable plug for a cable having a drain wire, in particular a multicore cable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A drain wire is a non-insulated conductor as component part of a multicore, insulated, shielded cable. Drain wires are used to enable a good connection to the earth potential and to the shield in every part of an electrical connector arrangement. In multicore cables that are shielded with foils, in particular, the drain wire must run near the shield designed as a foil. This enables an additional connection of the shield to the earth potential. At the cable ends, the cable is connected to the contacts of a plug connector. In this case, the drain wire is often connected to an earth potential contact. If no contact locations are available or if it is necessary to save contact locations, the drain wire is directly connected to a metallic part of the plug connector casing. This connection necessitates a separate work step.

Casing for a plug for a cable having a drain wire


A high pressure press for treatment of substances such as food includes a floating piston in a pressure chamber, with seals. The floating piston has drainage system for collecting any pressure fluid that leaks past a seal of the floating piston. The drainage system includes a pressure reducer arranged inside the floating piston. The drainage system also includes an elastometic pad which is so arranged as to supply an underpressure to a space where pressure fluid leaking past a seal may collect. Collected pressure fluid is returned to the pressure chamber later in the cycle.

For some time now high pressure treatment has been used as a method for inactivating micro-organisms and certain enzymes in substances such as foodstuffs and other provisions. A decisive factor for obtaining a good result from a high pressure treatment is that the pressure is sufficiently high. During treatment of food or provisions, the pressure is usually set at a pressure between 1,000–10,000 bar. Such high pressures make however extreme mechanical demands on presses used for high pressure treatment.
It is economically desirable to process food and similar substances with a high throughput. It is known to make high pressure presses with a substantially cylindrical vessel in which a first substance is separated from a second substance, a pressurisation medium, by a floating piston. Pressure exerted by the pressurisation medium is transferred to the substance by the floating piston. This approach offers an advantage of a rapid throughput of product to be treated.
In EP 0 772 981 A1 a high pressure press of the floating piston type is disclosed. The press is made of a cylinder, sealed at the top 3 and bottom, with the enclosed space divided into two chambers by a freely moving piston. One chamber contains pressurisation fluid, while the other contains product for treatment. Each chamber has inlet and outlet pipes equipped with valves. The valves through which product enters and leaves the treatment chamber are incorporated in the top of the press, and the valve which allows pressurisation fluid to be released is incorporated in the base.
However, there are certain disadvantages with known types of free moving or floating pistons with a piston sealing means such as the one described. Under extremely high pressure, a sealing means of the type such as 4A in piston 4 shown in FIGS. 1, 3 of EP 0 772 981 A1 described could be liable to expand under pressure to an extent that does not exactly follow the expansion behaviour of the cylinder. This may be expected with conventional seals of the Bridgeman type under extremely high pressure. A reduced sealing effect of the sealing means between the piston and the cylinder it is in would allow leakage of product and/or pressurisation fluid past the sealing means. This means that either a high pressure press has to be run with longer cycle times at lower pressures to avoid leakage at high pressure, or run at high cycle times with a risk of contamination taking place. A degree of contamination of product is permissible when the pressurising fluid is clean and compatible with the product. However, this imposes further limits in respect of service life for pressurisation fluid and further treatment stages and equipment needed for filtering or cleaning the pressurisation fluid.

High pressure press, method for operating a high pressure press and use of such a press


A zoom lens formed in a small size adaptable to a thin and portable device, having three lens groups, including, from the object plane to the image forming plane: a first lens group with a negative power, a second lens group with a positive power and a third lens group with a positive power. By controlling the ratio of the focal length of the second lens group and the focal length of the tele-photo end, image distortion may be controlled, and the total length of the lens may be reduced to shrink the size of the lens. Hence production costs may be reduced, which is important to mass production.

With the camera-embedded handset becoming very fashionable these days, the demand for a small picture taking lens that is thin and cheap grows tremendously. Besides the fixed focus lens module now widely used, the zoom lens module is a growing trend.
In the past, the zoom lens had to include at least six glass lenses to achieve two to three times of the zoom ratio. The total length of the lens is not suitable for thin portable devices.
In conventional techniques, U.S. Pat. No. 6,757,111 discloses a simple zoom lens with three times of zoom ratio. It contains six glass lenses. Three of them are Aspherical glass lenses. The length of the lens is about 9.4 times of the image height. It is too lengthy and expensive for camera handsets. U.S. publication No. 20040012859 has a lens with a length about 8.6 times of the image. It is also lengthy, and provides a lower zoom ratio (only two times). U.S. publication No. 20040136705 discloses a zoom lens of three zoom ratios, but the length of the zoom lens is about ten times of the image height. It is too lengthy to be used in a thin product.
Hence there is an urgent need to develop a small zoom lens with fewer glass lenses and more plastic elements to reduce production costs and meet market requirements.

Industrial Technology Research Institute


Techniques for conserving battery power in devices are provided. One or more deferrable tasks are queued for later execution. An initiation of a subsequent charging event for a battery of the device is detected. The queued deferrable task(s) are enabled to be executed during the charging event. For instance, the queued deferrable task(s) may be enabled to be executed if the charging event is predicted to be a long duration charging event, such as by referring to a charging profile of the mobile device. In this manner, battery power is conserved while the device is in use and not connected to a battery charger.

Mobile devices, also sometimes referred to as handheld devices, are electronic devices that are sized for being carried and/or pocketed by humans. Mobile devices typically include one or more of a fast and capable processor, a rich but small display, wireless communication capability, a touch screen, a reduced size keyboard, and/or other features that enable device mobility. Such mobile devices also tend to contain rechargeable batteries to provide power.
Mobile devices with rechargeable batteries have a constant tension in delivering a rich experience while providing battery life with enough longevity to enable them to deliver their value while on the go (e.g., while not tethered to a battery charger). A user of a mobile device typically desires to transport the mobile device with them, and does not want to have to leave the mobile device behind for charging. However, some mobile device functions, such as security functionality (e.g., virus scanning, backup functionality, etc.), can greatly use the processing resources of mobile devices, and can therefore be costly in terms of battery usage. As a result, such device functions can limit the portability of mobile devices.

Mobile device operations with battery optimization


A generic insensitive fuze train to initiate insensitive high explosives, such as PBXW-124. The insensitive fuze train uses a slapper foil to initiate sub-gram quantities of an explosive, such as HNS-IV or PETN. This small amount of explosive drives a larger metal slapper onto a booster charge of an insensitive explosive, such as UF-TATB. The booster charge initiates a larger charge of an explosive, such as LX-17, which in turn, initiates the insensitive high explosive, such as PBXW-124.

The invention relates to fuzes for high explosives, particularly to fuzes for insensitive high explosives, and more particularly to an insensitive fuze train for high explosives.
Over the years various approaches have been made for safely igniting a high explosive charge. When employing explosives for the purpose of excavation, strip mining, and related earth moving activities, it has been a common practice to use blasting caps having electrical initiators, such as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,301 issued Oct. 1, 1991 to Richard E. Walker.
In various types of military ordinance and in a great many applications of high explosives in the civil sector, there has been a continuing effort to develop safe, reliable detonators which can be routinely activated by small amounts of electrical energy, such as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,412 issued Feb. 23, 1982 to Robert H. Dinegar et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,509 issued Mar. 13, 1990 to Morton L. Lieberman.
Another approach to the need for effective detonators for various types of explosive application was the thin film bridge detonator wherein a primer is placed on a thin film bridge and when sufficient current passes through the bridge its inherent resistance heating will fire or detonate the primer, which in turn will detonate the primary charge. These prior thin film bridge detonators are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,315 issued Mar. 8,1988 to Robert L. Proffit et al.
A different approach to detonation of high explosives is known as the "slapper detonator", as described in a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory document, UCRL-77639 by John R. Stroud, entitled "A New Kind Of Detonator--The Slapper", dated Feb. 27, 1976, which operates by exploding a thin metal foil that accelerates a plastic film or flyer across a gap to impact on a high-density secondary explosive, which in turn initiates a main charge explosive. More recent detonators utilizing the "slapper" approach are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,595, issued May 29, 1990 to Richard C. Weingart and U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,016 issued Jan. 14, 1992 to John E. Osher.
The U.S. Department of Defense is currently interested in reducing weapon vulnerability and improving weapon safety in extreme and abnormal environments. Insensitive munitions are one way to achieve these goals. High explosive (HE) weapon fills in insensitive munitions have large failure diameters, and they are difficult to initiate intentionally. Thus, a fuze train is needed that will ignite these insensitive munitions at extremes of temperature, but will not compromise the insensitivity of the HE main charge fill to external threats.

Insensitive fuze train for high explosives

The United States of America as represented by the United States Department of Energy


A peritoneal dialysis system includes a base peritoneal dialysis system and a peritoneal dialysis fluid exchange system that operates independently of the base system. The base system includes a first cassette including a first patient line configured to be connected to a patient, and a PD cycler. The PD cycler receives the first cassette, and includes a pump that cooperates with the first cassette to deliver dialysate to and drain dialysate from a peritoneal cavity of the patient via the first patient line. The peritoneal dialysis fluid exchange system includes a second cassette including a second patient line configured to be connected to the patient and a fluid exchange device that receives the second cassette. The fluid exchange device includes a data exchange interface operable to transfer patient treatment data from the peritoneal dialysis fluid exchange system to the base peritoneal dialysis system.

Dialysis is a treatment used to support a patient with insufficient renal function. The two principal dialysis methods are hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.
During hemodialysis ("HD"), the patient's blood is passed through a dialyzer of a dialysis machine while also passing a dialysis solution or dialysate through the dialyzer. A semi-permeable membrane in the dialyzer separates the blood from the dialysate within the dialyzer and allows diffusion and osmosis exchanges to take place between the dialysate and the blood stream. These exchanges across the membrane result in the removal of waste products, including solutes like urea and creatinine, from the blood. These exchanges also regulate the levels of other substances, such as sodium and water, in the blood. In this way, the dialysis machine acts as an artificial kidney for cleansing the blood.
During peritoneal dialysis ("PD"), a patient's peritoneal cavity is periodically infused with dialysis solution or dialysate. The membranous lining of the patient's peritoneum acts as a natural semi-permeable membrane that allows diffusion and osmosis exchanges to take place between the solution and the blood stream. These exchanges across the patient's peritoneum, like the continuous exchange across the dialyzer in HD, result in the removal of waste products, including solutes like urea and creatinine, from the blood, and regulate the levels of other substances, such as sodium and water, in the blood.
Many PD machines, commonly referred to as "cyclers", are designed to automatically infuse, dwell, and drain dialysate to and from the patient's peritoneal cavity in a process referred to as "continuous cycler-assisted peritoneal dialysis" (CCPD). The treatment typically lasts for several hours, often beginning with an initial drain procedure to empty the peritoneal cavity of used or spent dialysate. The sequence then proceeds through the succession of infusion, dwell, and drain phases that follow one after the other. Each phase is called a cycle.
Due to the length of the treatment, the large size of the PD machine and the large volume of dialysate required for the treatment, the treatment may be performed at home while the patient sleeps. Although nighttime CCPD treatments are sufficient for some patients, other patients require one or more additional fluid exchanges during the daytime. To permit the patient to participate in normal daily activities outside of the home, continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is performed by connecting a bag of dialysis fluid to the patient's peritoneal catheter, and delivering about 1-3 liters of dialysate to the peritoneal cavity. After permitting the dialysate to dwell in the peritoneal cavity for a predetermined period of time, the dialysate is drained from the peritoneal cavity. The patient typically monitors and records the number of daytime exchanges and the amounts of dialysate used during the daytime exchanges.

Peritoneal dialysis systems and related devices and methods


The invention describes an oral anti-acid paste comprising anti-acid compound in a slow releasing carrier medium which disperses the anti-acid, and releases the anti-acid from the paste upon contact with the aqueous media such as saliva. The paste can be used by placement in the mouth for slow release of the anti-acid into the saliva thereby contacting the mucosa of the esophagus to inhibit irritation to the mucosa due to excess acid.

The aim of the traditional anti-acid is to coat the sensitive tissues and neutralize acid within the stomach. Attempts have been made to protect the sensitive esophageal tissues from the effect of stomach acids which is sometimes allowed to reflux up and out of the stomach, into the esophagus. The acid damages this sensitive tissue, causing scarring and constriction which can lead to difficulty in swallowing. The common time during which this reflux occurs is in bed, when the patient is lying down, and the effect of gravity aids the acid in its exit from the stomach.
Traditional anti-acid liquids simply drain down into the stomach, leaving the esophagus unprotected. Other forms of medication attempt to inhibit the creation of acid by administration of biochemical modulators. This is only partially effective and the medication is expensive and not free of side effects. There is another form of anti-acid which in theory is designed to bubble up, and is referred to as a "foam tab". This design is ineffective at protecting the esophagus, and is no better than the liquid or pill form of chewable anti-acids, in that it is confined to the stomach, and its effects and benefits are limited to the stomach.


The present invention relates to a method in the radio access node for paging user equipment attached to a radio network. The steps performed by the radio access node include receiving (31) a core network paging message from a core network. A request for paging of the user equipment in a set of neighboring radio access nodes using paging level information in the core network paging message is identified (32), wherein the paging level information may include information that an escalated page is to be performed. A radio access node paging instruction is generated (33) in the radio access node receiving the paging message; the paging instruction including an escalated page instruction. The paging instruction is sent (34) to the set of neighboring radio access nodes, whereupon a page is initiated in at least one cell of each neighboring radio access node. The invention also relates to a radio access node configured to perform the inventive method.

In a typical cellular radio system, wireless terminals communicate via a radio access network, RAN, with one or more core networks. The wireless terminals can be mobile stations or other types of user equipment, UE, such as portable, pocket, hand-held, computer-included, or car-mounted mobile devices which communicate voice and/or data with radio access network, e.g., mobile telephones and laptops with wireless capability.
The RAN covers a geographical area which is divided into cell areas, with each cell area or group of cell areas being served by a radio access node. A cell is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by equipment at the radio access node. Each cell is identified by an identity within the local radio area. The radio access nodes communicate over the air interface with the UE within the cells served by the node.
The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System, UMTS, is a third generation mobile communication system, which evolved from the Global System for Mobile Communications, GSM, and is intended to provide improved mobile communication services based on Wideband Code Division Multiple Access, WCDMA, access technology. UTRAN is essentially a radio access network using wideband code division multiple access for user equipment units, UEs. The Third Generation Partnership Project, 3 GPP, has undertaken to evolve further the UTRAN and GSM based radio access network technologies. Specifications for the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network, E-UTRAN, are ongoing within the 3GPP. Another name used for E-UTRAN is the Long Term Evolution, LTE, Radio Access Network, RAN.
Long Term Evolution RAN is a 3GPP radio access technology wherein a flat architecture is used with a singled type of nodes connected directly to a core network. The LTE RAN comprises evolved radio access nodes, e.g., evolved NodeBs or eNodeBs or eNBs, providing evolved UTRA user-plane and control-plane protocol terminations toward the User Equipment, UE. The eNodeB is a logical node and not a physical implementation. A common implementation of an eNodeB is a three-sector site, where the eNodeB includes equipment for handling transmissions in three cells. However, other implementations can be found as well. The eNodeB hosts functions for radio resource management, mobility management and user plane functions, among others. The X2 interface connects eNodeBs to each other.
The eNodeB is connected to the core-network by means of the S1 interface. One eNodeB can be connected to multiple Mobility Management Entities. A Mobility Management Entity, MME, is the core network node responsible for mobility management, e.g., UE tracking and paging procedures.
Paging is used for network-initiated connection setup when the UE is in a Radio Resource Control idle mode, RRC_IDLE. In idle mode, the UE does not belong to a specific cell. No data transfer may take place as the UE is in idle mode, RRC_IDLE, most of the time in order to reduce battery consumption. User Equipment, UE, in the RRC_IDLE is periodically enabled to receive paging messages from the network.
Each time a UE attaches to the network, it also performs a Tracking Area Update, TAU, procedure and registers in a certain Tracking Area, TA. The Tracking Area represents a group of cells, preferably adjacent. Each eNodeB may handle radio transmission in cells belonging to different tracking areas. A Tracking Area List represents a group of Tracking Areas, thus including a higher number of cells than the Tracking Area. In response to the registration, the UE receives a Tracking Area List from the network and as long as the UE is present in one of the Tracking Areas within the Tracking Area List it does not have to perform a new TAU procedure.
In LTE, the mechanism for downlink data transmission on the Downlink Shared Channel, DL-SCH, is used for paging. The UE monitors control signaling for downlink scheduling assignments related to paging. The location of the UE in Idle Mode is not known on a cell level; thus, the paging message is typically transmitted across multiple cells. The MME initiates the paging procedure by sending a paging message to one or more eNodeBs. In LTE, an S1 paging message is sent from the MME to the eNodeB to request paging of a certain UE. In present LTE system, paging is escalated from an eNodeB level, to a Tracking Area, TA, level and finally to a Tracking Area List level.
The tracking area is controlled by the MME. Typically, the eNodeB in which the MME knows the UE to have been present last is first asked to perform the paging procedure (in all configured cells) a number of times. If no page response is received, the eNodeBs are secondly asked to perform the paging procedure in cells of the eNodeBs belonging to a Tracking Area, and last the eNodeBs are asked to perform the paging procedure in cells of the eNodeBs belonging to the Tracking Area List. However, if a TA is extensive, escalating from eNodeB level to Tracking Area level could imply an escalation from one eNodeB up to 100 eNodeBs or more involved in the page of one User Equipment, UE. Such escalation will incur a high paging load on the radio access network.
What is needed therefore, and an object of the technology described herein, is to provide solutions that reduces paging load in the network during an escalated paging procedure.

Method and node for paging in a radio access network


According to one embodiment, non-volatile storage device stores a program for causing a processor to execute processing of determining whether registered authentication information exists in the information processing apparatus, authentication processing determining whether input authentication information matches the registered authentication information, and processing of booting an operating system. The operating speed control module decreases an operating speed of the processor in response to the determination that the registered authentication information exists in the apparatus, and increases the operating speed of the processor in response to the confirmation of the match between the input authentication information and the registered authentication information.

In recent years, various portable personal computers of a notebook type or laptop type have been developed. Portable personal computers need to minimize the time taken to start up in order to enhance user friendliness.
Since portable personal computers may be carried to various places, they require a high security function to prevent leakage of information in the computers.
As one security function, there is known a basic input/output system (BIOS) password processing function. The BIOS password processing function is a function of executing user authentication processing by a BIOS (BIOS program) to confirm the authenticity of a user upon power-on of a computer. All operations including boot processing of an operating system are inhibited unless a BIOS password registered in advance in a computer and a password typed by a user match each other. Even if a computer is stolen, it can be protected from unauthorized use by using the BIOS password processing function.
Recently, a function of automatically turning on a computer when its display panel is opened has also been developed for higher user friendliness. This function can turn on a computer simultaneously when the user takes it out from his bag and opens the display panel.
However, if the computer in the bag is erroneously turned on without the user's knowing it, it may remain at the stage of BIOS password processing for a long time.
In another case, a malicious person may turn on the computer of another person for the purpose of unauthorized use. Since the malicious person does not know a correct password, the computer may remain at the stage of BIOS password processing for a long time even in this case.
Many operating systems have a thermal control function. However, while the computer remains at the stage of BIOS password processing, the thermal control function of the operating system does not operate. This is because the operating system has not been booted.
Hence, if the computer remains at the stage of BIOS password processing for a long time, the amount of heat generated by several devices in the computer increases, and the temperature of the computer may excessively rise. While the computer remains at the stage of BIOS password processing, large power may be consumed wastefully. If the computer is driven by power from a battery, the remaining capacity of the battery decreases.

Operating speed control of a processor at the time of authentication before an operating system is started


The present invention provides a board cleaning apparatus excellent in foreign-matter removing efficiency. Fixed brushes are each made in contact with a circuit board over an entire width thereof, and attached to a case of a board cleaning apparatus respectively on the upstream side and the downstream side of the case in the board transporting direction with respect to a rotary brush for removing and ejecting foreign matters. This arrangement makes it possible to cover a gap between the circuit board and the case to prevent a board transporting rail to be moved so as to be shifted in accordance with circuit boards having various dimensions from intervening with the case.

The present invention relates to a board cleaning apparatus and a board transporting apparatus, for removing foreign matter such as dust, dirt and other adherents from a surface of a circuit board in a circuit board transporting process.
In general, electrode terminals and circuits are printed on one side or both sides of a circuit board. Then, an adhesive layer is printed on the circuit board and components are mounted on the circuit board. Further, the circuit board is subjected to electrical connection by soldering reflow; thus, a product is obtained. During these processes, foreign matter tends to adhere to the surface of the circuit board upon processing and in the middle of the transporting process, and might cause an issue with the product. In order to improve this issue, a process of removing foreign matter from the circuit board is generally carried out at an appropriate stage in the middle of the processing and transporting processes.
Conventionally, the foreign-matter removing process has been carried out through processes, such as air blowing onto the surface of the circuit board, pressing a fixed brush thereon, pressing a sticky roller thereon and a manual operation using a cloth; however, these processes do not necessarily provide the desired results. For example, in the case where foreign matter firmly sticks to the surface of the circuit board due to moisture and scattered adhesive or the like, the air blowing process fails to remove the foreign matter. Moreover, the pressing of a fixed brush thereon fails to sufficiently remove the foreign matters although a static-eliminating effect is obtained, and, in the case where the foreign matter overlaps each other, the pressing of a sticky roller tends to cause some of the foreign matter to be left on the circuit board, and also requires time-consuming replacing processes after the use of a predetermined amount of the sticky roller.
In the conventional art, a technique has been proposed in which an air blower, an air aspirator, a rotary brush and transporting rollers are housed in a semi-cylindrical shaped container using a bellows or the like, and the containers are placed on both of the faces of the circuit board to completely cover the circuit board from both of the sides so that foreign matters are removed therein (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H02-50822). However, the apparatus of this type becomes bulky, and it is difficult to attach the apparatus to a limited space back or front the processing apparatus, or in the transporting apparatus for the circuit board.
In order to improve these issues, in the conventional art also, a board cleaning apparatus for a circuit board, which has a small size and is easily attached, has been proposed. FIGS. 5A and 5B show the outline of the board cleaning apparatus structure. FIG. 5A is a perspective view showing a board transporting apparatus equipped with the board cleaning apparatus 50, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view of the board cleaning apparatus 50 taken along the XZ-plane of FIG. 5A. In FIGS. SA and 5B, the board cleaning apparatus 50 is provided with a case 51, a rotary brush 52 installed in the case 51, a motor 153,for driving a rotation of the rotary brush 52 and a cylindrical duct 54 that sucks foreign matters by introducing negative-pressure air to the board cleaning apparatus 50. The duct 54 is connected to a negative-pressure supply source 160 installed outside the case 51 through a hose 156.
A circuit board 1 (numeral 1a indicated by a solid line or numeral 1b indicated by a broken line in FIG. 5A) is transported while being supported by a pair of opposing board transporting rails 2 (2a and 2b). Each of the board transporting rails 2a and 2b has a virtually U-shaped cross section with a concave section provided in a center portion thereof, and conveyor belts, not shown, are housed inside the concave section. The circuit board 1 is inserted into the concave section in the U-shaped cross section of the two board transporting rails 2a and 2b, and placed on the conveyor belts to be transported in the X-direction of FIG. 5A (the board transporting direction "S" in FIG. 5B).
When the board cleaning apparatus 50 having the above-mentioned structure is operated, the rotary brush 52 (see FIG. 1B), which has been made face to face with the circuit board 1 transported by the paired board transporting rails 2, is allowed to rotate in a direction indicated by an arrow A to brush the surface of the circuit board 1 so that foreign matters that adhere to the surface of the circuit board 1 are wiped off and ejected by the rotary brush 52. A suction force is exerted in the duct 54 connected to the negative-pressure supply source 160 through the hose 156 so that the foreign matters, removed and ejected by the rotary brush 52 to float in the case 51, are sucked into the duct 54 as indicated by an arrow B through a function of the negative-pressure air from the negative-pressure supply source 160 and removed.

Board cleaning apparatus and board transporting apparatus


A particle counter may include a housing having an inlet, an outlet, and a window therebetween. The inlet and the outlet may be configured such that a fluid can be flowed therethrough. A plurality of light sources may be arranged outside the housing to provide lights of different wavelengths into the housing through the window. Sensors may be provided outside the housing to detect fractions of the lights scattered by a bubble and/or a particle in the fluid. A control part may be configured to monitor intensities of the lights detected by the sensors and to analyze a difference in intensity between the scattered lights, thereby distinguishing the particles from the bubbles in the fluid.

Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a particle counting device and/or an exposure system with the same, and in particular, to a particle counter configured to distinguish particles from bubbles in fluid and/or an immersion exposure system having the same.
Conventionally, the formation of a semiconductor device includes a plurality of unit processes, such as a thin-film deposition process, a photolithography process, and an etching process. To form a photoresist pattern serving as an etch mask on a wafer or a thin layer, the photolithography process includes a photoresist coating process, an exposure process, and a developing process. The exposure process is performed to selectively expose a photoresist layer with ultraviolet light using a photomask or a reticle, and the developing process is performed to selectively remove one of exposed or non-exposed portions of the photoresist layer.
A critical dimension (CD) of a semiconductor device may be decided by an exposure system to be used for the exposure process. A density of the semiconductor device may be inversely proportional to a wavelength of an exposure light to be used in the exposure process. In the past, a G- or I-line had been used for the exposure light, but KrF or ArF is recently being used for the exposure light. Although the ArF light has the minimum wavelength that can be achieved from the commercialized light sources for the exposure process, the usage of an immersion exposure system makes it possible to use an ultraviolet light, whose wavelength is shorter than that of the ArF light. In the immersion exposure system, the water, whose refractive index is higher than that of the air, is interposed between an object lens and a wafer of ArF exposure system, and thus, a light with shorter wavelength can be used for the exposure process.

Particle counter and immersion exposure system including the same


An optical imaging system and a method for generating a report regarding elasticity of arteries in the brain of a subject under test. Light output from the light source of the imaging system non-invasively illuminates at least one blood vessel or region of interest in the brain and, upon the interaction with the vessel, is registered with an optical detector to obtain a shape parameter of a hemodynamic pulse in the vessel. The shape parameter is further correlated to an elasticity parameter of the blood vessel(s) feeding the brain region of interest and presented in a form of report that may be a two- or a three-dimensional image of the parameter across the tested region of the brain.

Normal aging is accompanied by a number of cognitive changes, including decline in working memory and executive function/attention control, as well as in long-term memory and speed of processing. These normal age-related declines in cognitive functions are exacerbated in those older adults who suffer from mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which, according to the American College of Physicians, affects about 20% of the population over 70 years old. Beyond this class of individuals suffering from MCI, some among the older population develop Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. An estimated 26.6 million people worldwide had Alzheimer's in 2006 and this number may quadruple by 2050. Increasing knowledge about possible predictors of age-related cognitive impairments and their interactions, providing means of early detection, and improving the chances of successful prevention and/or treatment of the impairments can yield substantial societal and economic benefits.
Recent work with human and animal subjects suggests that cardiopulmonary (aerobic) fitness is one such predictor, and that increased level of fitness can slow down or even reverse some of the cognitive effects of aging. For example, highly-fit older adults were shown to have more preserved white and grey matter in brain areas susceptible to age-related loss, such as frontal, parietal, and temporal cortex. The same older adults demonstrate increased performance in neuropsychological and cognitive tasks compared to age and gender-matched low-fit older adults. Highly-fit older adults also display patterns of brain function that are similar to those of younger adults. Finally, sedentary older adults who undergo a 6-month exercise intervention have been shown to improve in all of these aspects of cognitive health—brain anatomy, function and behavioral measure of performance. Measurements of brain function provide invaluable information for these purposes. Cerebrovascular function is particularly informative in this respect and can be viewed as a complex phenomenon in which different cerebrovascular compartment, such as large arteries, regional arteries, arterioles and capillaries, play interdependent roles.
One measure of the cerebrovascular health is stiffness or, alternatively, elasticity of arteries in the brain. Arterial stiffness may be correlated with cognitive aging as well. Generally, data representative of arterial stiffness may be obtained through measurements of pulse in a given artery. Therefore, imaging of the brain can be performed to obtain spatial brain maps containing data that represent arterial stiffness in order to facilitate the understanding of different cerebrovascular compartments, different aspects of brain anatomy and function, and complex profiling of the cognitive function of the brain.
Traditionally, studies of brain function in human subjects rely on surface measurements of electrical potentials, such as electroencephalogram, or EEG, ultrasound, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), or various tomographic techniques such as computer X-ray tomography (CT) or positron emission tomography (PET). All these techniques are powerful and have some advantages, but they suffer from drawbacks that limit their use as continuous, non-invasive, portable, and low-cost medical monitors. For example, EEG can be inaccurate and does not lend itself to creating accurate spatial maps. On the other hand, while PET and fMRI lend themselves to providing useful spatial maps of changes in brain functions, such as metabolism or blood flow, fMRI requires high-energy magnetic fields and PET data cannot be obtained quickly enough for informative comparison with other type of data. Furthermore, PET requires the use of a radionuclide or radiopharmaceutical, which can be undesirable. Likewise, CT requires the use of an ionizing radiation, which can also be undesirable.
Conventional non-invasive methods of characterizing the brain arteries, specifically, blood-flow velocity and direction, include transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasonography. However, ultrasound-based methods, such as TCD, produce only localized images and do not lend themselves to spatial mapping. Furthermore, TCD is often disfavored in clinical settings due to the level of interference presented by the skull bones that significantly deform and disperse the propagation of the ultrasound waves thus making it complicated to provide localized estimates of intracranial structures. Rather, when utilizing ultrasound to study arterial stiffness, the ultrasound analysis methods are typically limited to localized studies of arteries providing blood flow to the brain, such as arteries in the neck.
It is desirable, therefore, to have a system and method for studying the performance of brain blood vessels, including vessel stiffness, for the purpose of characterization of vascular health of the brain that does not suffer from the above-described drawbacks of traditional imaging systems.

Non-invasive optical imaging for measuring pulse and arterial elasticity in the brain

The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois


Provided herein are a glucagon receptor (GCGR) antibody and its fusion protein with glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), and a pharmaceutical composition thereof. Also provided herein is a method for using the GCGR antibody and its fusion protein with GLP-1 to treat, prevent or improve one or more symptoms of hyperglycemia, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome or dyslipidemia.

Human glucagon is an important hormone, that works in coordination with insulin, in adjusting the glucose level in the circulation system of the human body. Glucagon and insulin are both peptide hormones. Glucagon is generated by the α-cells of pancreatic islets, while insulin is generated by β-cells of pancreatic islets. When blood sugar level decreases, glucagon mainly functions through stimulating some targets cells (mainly hepatocytes) to release glucose, counteracting insulin function in adjusting the blood glucose level. When blood glucose level rises, insulin stimulates cells to absorb and store glucose, in order to lower blood glucose level.
Natural human glucagon consists of 29 amino acid residues: His-Ser-Gln-Gly-Thr-Phe-Thr-Ser-Asp-Tyr-Ser-Lys-Tyr-Leu-Asp-Ser-Arg-Arg-Ala-Gln-Asp-Phe-Val-Gln-Trp-Leu-Met-Asn-Thr.
Glucagon, through interaction with its receptor, activates the downstream signaling pathway. Glucagon receptor ("GCGR" in short) belongs to the G protein-coupled receptor family and secretion receptor subfamily, after ligand-receptor interaction, through the activation of second messenger of adenylate cyclase, to exert its functions. This increases the level of cAMP in hepatocytes, and in turn initiates the gluconeogenesis reaction and glycogenolysis reaction, increasing the blood glucose level. (Wakelam et al., 1986, Nature 323:68-71; Pittner and Fain, 1991, Biochem J. 277:371-8).
Diabetes is a common glucose metabolic disorder, which manifests as hyperglycemia, subcategorized into type 1 diabetes (T1D) with absolute insufficiency in insulin and type 2 diabetes (T2D) with relative insufficiency of insulin. T1D patients show symptoms of hyperglycemia and hypoinsulinemia, and for this type of diabetes the usual countermeasure is to provide insulin. But, in some of the T1D and T2D cases, absolute or relative high level of glucagon results in hyperglycemia. In healthy or diabetic animal models, using selective or specific antibody to eliminate the glucagon in blood circulation can facilitate the decrease of blood glucose level (Brand et al., 1996, Diabetes 45:1076). These studies indicate that inhibiting glucagon or GCGR can be an auxiliary approach for treating the common hyperglycemia in diabetes cases.
Through antibodies that target GCGR, the interaction between glucagon and GCGR can be blocked, which may be used as an approach to control or reduce the blood sugar level and a novel method to treat diabetes (US 2008/036341 A2 and US 2012/0128679 A1). But in practice, animal experiments and clinical studies showed that direct blocking of the glucagon through a GCGR antibody induced notable negative feedback, and caused very high level of glucagon release into blood, transient rising of AST level and α-cell hyperplasia in pancreatic islets (Kostic et al., 2018, Diabetes Obes Metab. 20:283-91; Gu et al., 2009, JPET 331:871-881).
For the fusion protein of GCGR antibody with GLP-1 (GLP-1 fusion protein), in one aspect, the GCGR antibodies moiety, through preventing glucagon from interacting with its receptor, lowers the intracellular level of cAMP and the blood sugar; in another aspect, the GLP-1 moiety is also effective in lowering the blood sugar. In this way, the two parts of the GLP-1 fusion protein, the antibody of GCGR and the part of GLP-1, play the role of lowering blood sugar at the same time. The two have a synergistic effect, which can lower blood sugar more greatly, thereby improving the blood sugar lowering effect.
In addition, on the basis of the synergistic effect, the GCGR antibodies do not need to be at a very high clinical dosage, that is, at a lower dosage, coupled with GLP-1 agonist, the GCGR antibody is able to reduce the blood sugar level significantly. This can reduce blood sugar level to a larger extend than using GCGR antibody alone at high dosage, and thus circumvent the side effects associated with high dose of GCGR antibody, for example, the α-cell hyperplasia in pancreatic islets. Furthermore, GLP-1 agonist induces the release of insulin, which in turn inhibits the generation of more glucagon (Mari et. al., 2016, Diabetes Obes Metab. 18:834-9). The GLP-1 part of the GLP-1 fusion protein can inhibit the leveling up of glucagon concentration and counteract the increase of glucagon level as a result of negative feed of GCGR inhibition by antibody. Thus, the administration of GLP-1 fusion protein can significantly reduce the toxic side effect of the drug.
The sugar lowering effect of the GCGR antibody part of the GLP-1 fusion protein functions synergistically with the GLP-1 part, through their two distinctive mechanisms to treat hyperglycemia, T2D, metabolic syndrome and other syndrome including dyslipidemia. GLP-1 fusion protein lowers the blood sugar level more than using GLP-1 agonist alone, and also it has less toxic side effects than using GCGR antibody alone. GLP-1 fusion protein has a more significant blood sugar lowering effect and is safer as well.

GCGR antibody and GLP-1 fusion protein thereof, pharmaceutical composition thereof and application thereof


A method of forming jewelry articles comprises the step of fabricating sheets of jewelry article halves, bringing such sheets together, fastening the articles halves together and separating the individual jewelry articles from the sheets by die punching or the like.

Typically with prior art jewelry articles such as, for example, links that form a jewelry chain, wherever the links are hollow in nature, each half of the link is punched or cut out individually and then the two parts of the link are joined together. By way of example, FIG. 1 illustrates a link 50 formed from two halves, namely an upper half 52 and a lower half 54. Each half 52, 54 is formed separately. Thereafter, some type of sealing material 60, such as solder or the like, is placed at the portions of the link 50 to be joined. The two halves 52, 54 are then typically held in place by means of a wire 62 or the like wound around the link 50. The link 50 is then placed in a furnace (not shown) with the wire 62 around it. After the solder 60 is hardened, the wrapping wire 62 holding the two link halves 52, 54 in place is removed and the final link 55 is thereby formed.
The aforementioned prior art process of individually forming each link is incredibly time consuming and labor intensive. Accordingly, the present inventors have devised a more efficient method of creating pluralities of jewelry articles without the labor intensive shortcomings of the prior art.


A main power source supplies current through path impedance to a power terminal of an integrated circuit device under test (DUT). The DUT's demand for current at the power input terminal temporarily increases following edges of a clock signal applied to the DUT during a test as transistors within the IC switch in response to the clock signal edges. To limit variation (noise) in voltage at the power input terminal, an auxiliary power supply supplies an additional current pulse to the power input terminal to meet the increased demand during each cycle of the clock signal. The magnitude of the current pulse is a function of a predicted increase in current demand during that clock cycle, and of the magnitude of an adaption signal controlled by a feedback circuit provided to limit variation in voltage developed at the DUT's power input terminal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to systems for testing integrated circuits and in particular to an apparatus for reducing power supply noise in an integrated circuit under test resulting from state transitions of the logic it implements.
2. Description of Related Art
An integrated circuit (IC) tester can concurrently test a set of ICs in the form of die on a semiconductor wafer. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a typical IC tester 10 connected through a probe card 12 to a set of similar IC devices under test (DUTs) 14 which may be formed on a semiconductor wafer. Tester 10 uses pogo pins 15 or other means to connect various input and output terminals to a set of contacts 16 on probe card 12. Probe card 12 includes a set of probes 18 for contacting input/output (I/O) pads 19 on the surface of each DUT 14 and provides conductive paths 20 linking contacts 16 to probes 18. The paths through probe card 12 allow tester 10 to transmit test signals to DUT 14 and to monitor output signals produced by the DUT. Since digital integrated circuits often include synchronous logic gates clocked in response to pulses of a periodic master clock signal (CLOCK), probe card 12 also provides a path 22 through which tester 10 may supply a CLOCK signal to each DUT 14. The test system also includes a power supply 24 for supplying power to DUTs 14 as they are being tested, and probe card 12 connects power supply 24 to a power input pad 26 of each DUT 14 through probes 18.
Each switching transistor within a DUT 14 has an inherent input capacitance, and in order to turn on or off the transistor, the transistor's driver must either charge or discharge the transistor's input capacitance. When a driver charges a transistor's input capacitance it draws charging current from power supply 24. Once the transistor's input capacitance is fully charged, its driver need only supply a relatively small amount of leakage current needed to keep the transistor's input capacitance charged so that the transistor remains turned on or off. In DUTs implementing synchronous logic, most transistor switching occurs immediately after an edge of each CLOCK signal pulse. Thus immediately after each pulse of the CLOCK signal, there is a temporary increase in the power supply current I1 input to each DUT 14 to provide the charging current necessary to change the switching states of various transistors within the DUT. Later in the CLOCK signal cycle, after those transistors have changed state, the demand for supply current I1 falls to a "quiescent" steady state level and remains there until the beginning of the next CLOCK signal cycle.
The signal paths 28 through which probe card 12 connects power supply 24 to each DUT 14 have an inherent impedance represented in FIG. 1 by a resistance R1. Since there is a voltage drop between the output of power supply 24 and the power input 26 of DUT 14, the supply voltage input VB to DUT 14 is somewhat less than the output voltage VA of power supply 24, and although VA may be well-regulated, VB varies with the magnitude of current I1. After the start of each CLOCK signal cycle, the temporary increase in I1 needed to charge switching transistor input capacitance increases the voltage drop across R1, thereby temporarily reducing VB. Since the dip in supply voltage VB occurring after each CLOCK signal pulse edge is a form of noise that can adversely affect the performance of DUTs 14, it is desirable to limit its magnitude and duration. We can limit that noise by reducing the reactance of the paths 28 between power supply 24 and DUTs 14, for example by increasing conductor size or by minimizing the length of path 28. However there are practical limits to the amount by which we can reduce that reactance.
We can also reduce power supply noise by placing a capacitor C1 on probe card 12 near the power supply input 26 of each DUT 14. FIG. 2 illustrates the behavior of supply voltage VB and current I1 at the power input 26 of IC 14 in response to a pulse of the CLOCK signal input to IC 14 when capacitor C1 is insufficiently large. Note that the temporary rise in I1 above its quiescent level IQ following an edge of the CLOCK signal at time T1 produces a temporary increase in voltage drop across R1 that in turn produces a temporary dip in supply voltage VC below its quiescent level VQ.
FIG. 3 illustrates the behavior of VB and I1 when capacitor C1 is sufficiently large. Between CLOCK signal pulses, when DUT 14 is quiescent, capacitor C1 charges to the quiescent level VQ of VB. Following a rising (or falling) edge of the CLOCK signal at time T1, when a DUT 14 temporarily demands more current, capacitor C1 supplies some its stored charge to DUT 14 thereby reducing the amount of additional current power supply 24 must provide to meet the increased demand. As may be seen in FIG. 3, the presence of C1 reduces the magnitude of the temporary voltage drop across R1 and therefore reduces the magnitude of the dip in the supply voltage VB input to the DUT 14.
For capacitor C1 to adequately limit variation in VB, the capacitor must be large enough to supply the needed charge to DUT 14 and must be positioned close to DUT 14 so that the path impedance between C1 and DUT 14 is very low. Unfortunately it is not always convenient or possible to mount a large capacitor on a probe card 12 near the power supply input terminal 26 of each DUT 14. FIG. 4 is a simplified plan view of a typical probe card 12. IC tester 10 resides above the probe card and the wafer containing DUTs 14 is held below the probe card. Since the I/O terminals of IC tester 10 of FIG. 1 are distributed over a relatively large area compared to the surface area of the wafer being tested, probe card 12 provides a relatively large upper surface 25 for holding the contacts 16 the tester accesses. On the other hand, the probes 18 (not shown) on the underside of probe card 12 that contact DUTs 14 on the wafer are concentrated under a relatively small central area 27 of probe card 12.
The path impedance between contacts 16 on the upper surface 25 of card 12 and the probes 18 under area 27 is a function of the distance between each contact 16 and its corresponding probe. To minimize the distance between capacitors C1 and the DUTs, the capacitors should be mounted on probe card 12 near (or above) the small central area 27. However when a wafer includes a large number of ICs to be tested or an IC having a large number of densely packed terminals, there is not enough space to mount the required number of capacitors C1 of sufficient size sufficiently close to central area 27.

Predictive, adaptive power supply for an integrated circuit under test


An outboard motor includes a multi-cylinder engine which includes cylinders longitudinally oriented and vertically paralleled in a cylinder block, a cylinder head arranged at a rearward position of the cylinder blocks, and a crankcase arranged at a forward position of the cylinder block, the cylinder head having an outlet of an exhaust port at one side thereof. An exhaust system for the outboard motor includes an exhaust manifold which communicates the outlet of the exhaust port with an exhaust outlet opening, the exhaust manifold including a first exhaust gas passage extending in a vertical direction for gathering exhaust gas discharged from the outlet of each exhaust port and a second exhaust gas passage extending in a vertical direction adjacently to the first exhaust gas passage, and a catalyst unit is provided on the way of the second exhaust gas passage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exhaust system for an outboard motor.
2. Related Art
An internal combustion engines such as gasoline engine discharges an exhaust gas containing harmful components such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbon (HC), nitrogen oxide (NOx). An exhaust gas purifying device for rendering such harmful components harmless is generally classified into two types of devices based on their concepts.
An exhaust gas purifying device of one of these types is a device which induces complete combustion of fuel in a combustion chamber of an engine for preventing generation of harmful components. An exhaust gas purifying device of the other type is device which renders the exhaust gas discharged from a combustion chamber of an engine harmless before the exhaust gas is discharged to air, even if the exhaust gas contains harmful components.
As a system for purifying the exhaust gas of the latter type, there is provided a purifying device in which a catalyst containing, for example, platinum, rhodium and palladium is provided in an exhaust system in a manner such that the catalyst is exposed to the exhaust gas discharged from the combustion chamber of the so as to cause a chemical reaction therebetween for promoting oxidation and reduction of the exhaust gas for changing the harmful components into carbon dioxide (CO2), water (H2O), nitrogen (N2) and the like to render them harmless.
As a catalyst device for an outboard motor, there is provided a device in which the outboard motor includes an exhaust outlet portion in a side surface of an upper portion of an engine, an exhaust gas passage in a lower portion of the engine, a spacer plate secured to cover the exhaust outlet portion and the exhaust gas passage, and a cover mounted to the spacer plate.
Another exhaust gas passage is formed between the spacer plate and the cover, and a catalyst is arranged in this exhaust gas passage.
Further, there is also provided a device in which the outboard motor includes an exhaust gas gathering member secured to a side surface of an upper portion of an engine for gathering exhaust gas discharged from an exhaust port, and a horizontal exhaust pipe and a vertical exhaust pipe which are coupled to the exhaust gas gathering member, and a catalyst is arranged in both the exhaust pipes (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-356123 (Patent Publication 1), for example).
Furthermore, there is also provided a catalyst device for an outboard motor in which an engine of the outboard motor includes exhaust gas passages which are paralleled with one another and are communicated to plural cylinder portions, an exhaust gas gathering portion which is communicated to the exhaust gas passages at the side of the exhaust gas passages opposite from a space, and a catalyst extending from the upper exhaust gas passage to the lower exhaust gas passage, in the exhaust gas gathering portion (refer to Japanese Patent No. 3180118 (Patent Publication 2), for example).
However, the structure which employs the spacer plate requires ensuring of a flat surface for arranging the plate, which causes a catalyst to be arranged far from the engine, resulting in an increasing of the size of the entire outboard motor.
Further, the structure which places plural catalysts in the plural exhaust pipes in different directions requires a complicated structure for holding the catalysts in the exhaust gas gathering member.
Furthermore, the structure which provides a catalyst extending from the upper exhaust gas passage to the lower exhaust gas passage requires a carrier having a cross-sectional shape different from the cross-sectional shapes (round shapes, elliptical shapes and oval shapes) of common carries (base members for catalysts) made of ceramics and metals. Therefore, it is difficult to manufacture such a carrier.


In one embodiment, a method for workload management using instant capacity (iCAP) processors comprises generating performance data related to workloads on multiple servers, determining processor resources appropriate for the workloads using the performance data, communicating a request from a first server to reallocate processor resources in response to the determining, deactivating at least one iCAP processor on a second server in response to the request, and activating at least one iCAP processor on the first server in conjunction with the deactivating.

Instant capacity (iCAP) purchasing of high-end computers provides customers flexibility to acquire high capacity computer systems without imposing the normal single large capital investment. Specifically, an iCAP customer only pays for active central processing units (CPUs) in a given system (plus maintenance fees) while a number of CPUs remain inactive. As the customer's computing requirements increase with time, the customer may activate one or several of the previously inactive CPUs. After activation, the customer is charged for the newly activated CPUs. Accordingly, an iCAP customer is able to flexibly scale the system's computing power as the customer's needs change.

Multiple server workload management using instant capacity processors

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A database system with a transactional commit protocol based on a safe conjunction of majorities is disclosed. In various embodiments, a directed acyclic graph comprising, for each of a plurality of database transactions, data identifying the transaction, data indicating one or more prior database transactions on which the database transaction depends, and data indicating whether the transaction has been committed is stored. A leading edge comprising a set of committed leaf nodes of the directed acyclic graph is determined. Data representing the leading edge is provided to a transaction coordinator configured to use the leading edge to determine based at least in part on the leading edge to commit a transaction.

A graph database is a computerized record management system that uses a network structure with nodes, relationships, labels, and properties to represent data. A node may represent an entity such as a person, a business, an organization, or an account. Each node has zero or more labels that declare its role(s) in the network, for example as a customer or a product. Nodes have zero or more properties which contain user data. For example, if a node represents a person, the properties associated with that node may be the person's first name, last name, and age. Relationships connect nodes to create high fidelity data models. Relationships are directed, have a type which indicates their purpose and may also have associated property data (such as weightings).
Graph databases have various applications. For example, a graph database may be used in healthcare management, retail recommendations, transport, power grids, integrated circuit design, fraud prevention, and a social network system, to name a few.
The graph model is popular. However, the field of graph database management systems is in its infancy. Popular graph database management systems which provide safety and strong consistency for data in a replicated system exist but typically use algorithms which constrain scalability.
There are also popular graph database management systems which distribute data across collaborating servers. They aim to improve the throughput of the graph database management system by partitioning graph data across multiple cooperating servers to process work (queries and updates) concurrently.
However, there are known are flaws in update algorithms for contemporary distributed graph databases such that they place the consistency of data at risk, even in the absence of faults. Specifically, relationships that span servers are susceptible to corruption. Moreover, it is known that the rate of corruption, while low, compounds over time as corrupt data is used as the basis for future updates, which spreads through the structure of the graph.

Database system with transactional commit protocol based on safe conjunction of majorities