The invention relates to a wireless communication device (1) comprising at least a display (2) for presenting information which display comprise at least a first edge (2a) and a second edge (2b), wherein information is arranged to be displayed between the first (2a) and second edges (2b) of the display. The wireless communication device (1) further comprises keys (3) for performing key functions having at least keys (10) for selecting a phone number; a housing (6) comprising at least a first end (6d) a second end (6e), and a front panel (6a) located between the first end (6d) and the second end (6e); and a cover part (7) arranged to be movable between a first limit position and a second limit position, in which first limit position the keys (3) for performing key functions are at least partly covered by the cover part (7), and in which second limit position at least part of the keys (3) for performing key functions are not covered by the cover part (7). The first edge (2a) of the display is nearer the second end (6e) of the housing (6) than said second edge (2b) of the display. The keys (10) for selecting a phone number are placed in the housing of the wireless communication device so that they are nearer the second edge (6e) of the housing than the first end (6d) of the housing.

The present invention relates to a wireless communication device comprising at least a display means for presenting information, said display means having at least a first edge and a second edge, wherein information is arranged to be displayed between said first and second edges of the display means, and said first edge is situated above displayed information and said second edge is situated below displayed information when information is displayed on said display means in a position natural to a user of the wireless communication device, means for performing key functions having at least means for selecting a phone number, a housing comprising at least a first,end, a second end, and a front panel located between the first end and the second end, and a cover part arranged to be movable between a first limit position and a second limit position, in which first limit position said means for performing key functions are at least partly covered by the cover part, and in which second limit position at least part of said first means for performing key functions are not covered by the cover part.
Wireless communication devices, such as GSM mobile phones, have a user interface (UI) for operating the wireless communication device. The user interface comprises typically a keypad, a display means, an electroacoustic transducer such as an earpiece, and an acoustoelectric transducer such as a microphone. By means of the keypad, the user of the wireless communication device can e.g. select a telephone number, answer an incoming call, write text messages, modify the settings of the wireless communication device, etc. On the display means, it is possible to display various information to the user of the wireless communication device, e.g. to inform the telephone number of an incoming call, display a response to key presses made by the user, display information on the settings of the wireless communication device, display text messages, etc. The display means can also be used to display telephone directory information and other user-specific information possibly stored in a memory means, such as the SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module), of the wireless communication device.
Next, the terms to be used in this specification to describe the different parts in the housing of the wireless communication device are defined. The housing of the wireless communication device, or the housing of the handset in such wireless communication devices with a separate handset, is preferably an elongated hexahedron having in the longitudinal direction a cross-sectional form at least partly resembling a rectangle. Thus, according to the use situation, one wall of the housing can be called a front panel and the wall opposite to it a rear panel. Correspondingly, preferably the longitudinal walls can be called the first and second side walls and the ends the first and second end.
In the early stages of development of wireless communication devices, they were intended for use particularly in vehicles. In these so-called car phones, the user interface was either in a separate handset or it was located under the front panel of the housing of the car phone. The vehicles were equipped with a holder for placing the car phone interface in a detachable manner e.g. close to the dash board. Thus, the keypad could be used without removing the interface from the holder. The display means was placed so that it was above the keypad in a situation when the interface was in this holder. Thanks to this arrangement, when the user was for example entering a telephone number the hand did not cover the display means but it was visible to the user.
Also in wireless communication devices that were developed later, the display means and the keypad were placed in the above-described way. Upon using a wireless communication device., it is usually held in either of the hands so that the keypad is closer to the wrist of this hand than the display means. Moreover, the wireless communication device is usually held in a substantially upright position, wherein the display means is slightly higher than the keypad.
In display means used in wireless communication devices, there is preferably a substantially rectangular display field whose edges are called, in a way known as such, by the terms upper, lower, left and right edge. Thus, the display means is imagined in a position in which the characters and possible graphical figures to be displayed to the user are shown in a position and orientation natural to the user enabling them to be read and interpreted in a manner conventional to the user. In spite of this, in practical situations the display means may be in a position in which the upper edge of the display field is lower than the lower edge, but there is still no risk of confusing the terms defining said display field. It is obvious that said characters can vary in different countries and in different language versions of the wireless communication device. For example, Arabic numbers and the Roman character set are generally used in Europe, but the character set used e.g. in China and Japan may also be different. Moreover, the order of presenting information is not the same in all countries than in most of Europe, i.e. from left to right and from the top downwards. In some countries, the order of presenting information is from the right to the left and from the top downwards. Yet another order of presentation used is from the top downwards and from right to left. However, it is common to all these orders of presentation that the display field of the display means can be kept in the same position and that it is possible to use the above-mentioned edge terms defining the display field in an unequivocal way.
Expressed with the above-presented terms of edges of the display field, the user interface of the wireless communication device of prior art is formed in a way that the display means is close to the second end of the housing so that the upper edge of the display field is closer to this second end than the lower edge of the display field. Correspondingly, the keypad is close to the first end of the housing of the wireless communication device when the wireless communication device is in the use position. The appended FIG. 1 shows one such wireless communication device in a perspective view.
The wireless communication device can be used with two hands so that the wireless communication device is held in one hand and the fingers of the other hand can be used to press the keys. The wireless communication device can also be placed e.g. on a table, wherein one hand is used for supporting the wireless communication device in the lateral direction, if necessary, and fingers of the other hand are used to press the keys. However, there is often a need to use the wireless communication device when walking, in a car, or in another situation, in which it is not possible to operate with two hands and there is no table or corresponding support available. Thus, the aim is to operate the wireless communication device with one hand. In wireless communication devices of prior art, this is difficult, because the fingers of the hand holding the wireless communication device should also be used for operating the keypad for performing desired operations, such as selecting a telephone number. When the wireless communication device is held in a hand, the keypad is located at that end of the housing of the wireless communication device which is close to the wrist of the user, that is, expressed with the terms used in this specification, at the first end, and the fingers are closer to the second end of the housing. The fingers should thus be bent to reach the keypad. This is difficult and requires an unnecessary effort and concentration on the operation of pressing the keys. Moreover, for making it possible to press the keys with one hand, the wireless communication device must be supported with the fingers, relatively far from the wrist, wherein the grip by the fingers on the wireless communication device is unstable.
In the development of wireless communication devices, one aim is to reduce the size of the wireless communication device. Upon reduction of the size of the wireless communication device, the size of the keypad may also be reduced, wherein operation with one hand becomes more difficult. This also increases the risk of incorrect pressing of keys, because a finger may, upon pressing a key, hit the adjacent key and cause it to be pressed down. Furthermore, the keypad and the display means are close to each other, wherein when keys are pressed down, part of the display field may be covered by the hand, preventing the user from seeing all the information displayed on the display field. Some wireless communication devices according to prior art are provided with a hinged flap attached to the main body of the wireless communication device that is pivoted in such a way that it overlaps the main body when stowed but extends the overall length of the wireless communication device when in use. This hinged flap is positioned on top of at least part of the keypad when the wireless communication device is not in the normal use position. In a use situation the cover part is pivoted away from the main body of the wireless communication device wherein the keypad becomes available for use. In some wireless communication devices the hinged flap is equipped with a microphone which is thus placed close to the user's mouth in a call situation. However, turning this hinged flap into the open position and back to the closed position is very difficult, if one must use the wireless communication device with one hand.
Wireless communication devices in which the housing is provided with a cover part, which is slidable or turnable in another way are also known. The purpose of this cover part is to protect the keypad and to prevent erroneous key presses when the wireless communication device is not in the use position. In the use position, e.g. during a call or while writing text messages, the cover part is moved away from over the keypad e.g. by sliding, wherein the keypad can be used. In such a wireless communication device, the microphone is placed preferably in the cover part. Also in such a communication device, it may be difficult to slide the cover part when operating the device with one hand.
Finnish utility model FI-U2229 describes a wireless mobile phone, which has keypad and display means reversed, i.e. the display means is below the keypad when the phone is in its normal use position. The figure of the utility model illustrates that the keys which are used for selecting a phone number, e.g. numeric keys, are situated in the middle of the housing of the wireless mobile phone, while other keys, e.g. an answering key, hang up key, menu key and arrow: keys, are situated near the top edge of the housing of the wireless mobile phone. It is still not easy to use a wireless mobile phone implemented according to such a design, e.g. to select a number with one hand, although the keypad is somewhat nearer the top edge of the housing of the wireless mobile phone than in other wireless mobile phones of prior art. Furthermore, this kind of arrangement of the keys- is not optimal for wireless mobile phones having a movable cover part, which allows the user to press at least some of the control keys independent of the position of the cover part.
It is an aim of the present invention to present a wireless communication device, in which the drawbacks presented above are reduced to a significant extent. The wireless communication device according to the present invention is characterized in that said first edge of the display means is nearer the second end of the housing than said second edge of the display means, and that said means for selecting a phone number are placed in the housing of the wireless communication device so that they are nearer the second end of the housing than the first end of the housing.
With the present invention, significant advantages are achieved compared with wireless communication devices of prior art. The wireless communication device according to the invention can be made in a relatively small size, and the usability of the user interface can still be made to correspond to or exceed that of larger wireless communication devices. In the wireless communication device according to the invention, the location of the keypad and the display means is more advantageous in view of operating with one hand than in wireless communication devices of prior art. Thus, it is easier for the user e.g. to select a telephone number than in wireless communication devices of prior art, particularly in situations in which the use of the wireless communication device with two hands is difficult or is not possible. Furthermore, with the better location of the keyboard, the probability of incorrect key pressings is reduced.


A computer system splits a data space to partition data between processors or processes. The data space may be split into sub-regions which need not be orthogonal to the axes defined by the data space's parameters, using a decision tree. The decision tree can have neural networks in each of its non-terminal nodes that are trained on, and are used to partition, training data. Each terminal, or leaf, node can have a hidden layer neural network trained on the training data that reaches the terminal node. The training of the non-terminal nodes' neural networks can be performed on one processor and the training of the leaf nodes' neural networks can be run on separate processors. Different target values can be used for the training of the networks of different non-terminal nodes. The non-terminal node networks may be hidden layer neural networks. Each non-terminal node automatically may send a desired ratio of the training records it receives to each of its child nodes, so the leaf node networks each receives approximately the same number of training records. The system may automatically configures the tree to have a number of leaf nodes equal to the number of separate processors available to train leaf node networks. After the non-terminal and leaf node networks have been trained, the records of a large data base can be passed through the tree for classification or for estimation of certain parameter values.

As computing power has grown, it has become increasingly practical to process data, and, in particular, large amounts of data, in new and useful ways. For example, the term "data base mining" has been used to describe the practice of searching vast amounts of data for commercially, medically, or otherwise important patterns, patterns which would probably have been impossible to find by human pattern matching, and which probably would have taken too long to have found with prior generations of computer equipment.
For example, one common use of data base mining is for corporations to search through data bases containing records of millions of customers or potential customers, looking for data patterns indicating which of those customers are sufficiently likely to buy a given product to justify the cost of selecting them as targets of a direct marketing campaign. In such searches, not only are millions of records searched, but hundreds, or even thousands of fields within each record. Such data base mining has proven much more successful in selecting which customers are most likely to be interested in a given new product than prior methods.
Similarly, data base mining can be used for scanning vast numbers of medical records to look for subtle patterns associated with disease; for scanning large numbers of financial transactions to look for behavior likely to be fraudulent; or to study scientific records to look for new casual relationships.
Because they often involve a tremendous number of records, and are often seeking patterns between a large number of fields per record, data base mining operations tend to require huge amounts of computation. This, in combination with the fact that most data base mining operations can be easily partitioned to run on separate processors, has made data base mining one of the first major commercial uses of massively parallel computers. But even when run on most commercially available parallel systems many data base mining functions are relatively slow because of their tremendous complexity. Therefore there is a need to improve the speed at which such tasks can be performed.
Neural nets are a well known device for automatically selecting which patterns of values in certain source fields of records are likely to be associated with desired values in one or more target fields. A neural network normally includes an input layer comprised of a plurality of input nodes, an output layer of one or more output nodes, and, in hidden-layer networks, one or more so-called hidden layers, each comprised of one or more nodes. Hidden layers are hidden in the sense that they do not connect directly to any inputs or outputs.
The knowledge in a neural net is contained in its weights. Each node in the input layer or hidden layer contains a weight associated with its connection with each node in the next layer. Thus, in a typical hidden-layer network, each node in the input layer has a separate weight for its connection to each node in the hidden layer, and each node in the hidden layer has a separate weight for its connection to each node in the output layer. The value supplied to each given node in a given layer is supplied to each individual node in the successive layer, multiplied by the weight representing the connection between the given node and the individual node in the successive layer. Each node receiving such values generates an output, which is a function of the sum of the values supplied it. Usually the output is a non-linear function of the sum of values supplied to the node, such as a sigmoid function. The sigmoid function has the effect of making the output operate like an on-off switch whose output varies rapidly from a substantially "off" value to a substantially "on" value as the sum of the values supplied to the node crosses a small threshold region.
A common way for training the weights of a neural network is to take each record in a training set and apply the value of each of its source fields to a corresponding input of the net. The network's weights are then modified to decrease the difference between the resulting values generated at the network's one or more outputs and the actual values for the outputs' corresponding target fields in the record. There are a variety of well know methods for making such weight modifications, including backprogation, conjugate gradient, and quick propagation. The training process is normally repeated multiple times for all the training records until the sum of the difference between the generated and actual outputs approaches a relative minimum.
One of the problems with neural nets is that the amount of time to appropriately train them to recognize all of the possible source field patterns associated with desired target field values goes up very rapidly as the number of source or target fields does, and as the number of different types of source patterns which might be associated with a desired target does. Even with large parallel computer systems the amount of time required to properly train such networks to learn such complex sets of patterns is often prohibitive.
In an attempt to improve the speed at which neural networks can train, a new type of neural network has been proposed. These are so called neural tree networks. These are decision trees, a well known type of classifying tool, in which a neural network is placed at each of the network's non-terminal nodes. In such trees, each non-terminal node is a two layer network, which trains much more rapidly than a hidden-layer network. The data applied to each non-terminal node is used to train up the node's neural net. This is done in a training process which applies the source fields used in the overall classification process to the input nodes of the net and the one or more target fields used in that classification process to the output of the two layer net. Once the network has been trained over the training set, the data objects are split between the node's child nodes based on whether the one or more sigmoidal output of the trained net is "on" or "off" for each such data object. The data object reaching the tree's terminal, or leaf, nodes are considered classified by the identity of the particular leaf node they reached.
Such neural tree networks have the advantage of training much more rapidly than traditional neural networks, particularly when dealing with large complex classification tasks. However, they are not as discriminating as might be desired.
In general, a major issue in parallel computing is the division of the computational task so that a reasonable percentage of the computing power of multiple processor can be taken advantage of and so the analytical power of the process is as high as possible. This issue is particularly important when it comes to many data base mining functions, such the training of neural networks mentioned above or of other modeling tasks.

Computer system and computerized method for partitioning data for parallel processing


There is herein described an insect and animal trapping device. More particularly, there is described an insect and/or animal trapping device such as a rat-trapping device wherein there is a receptacle which is capable of trapping the insect and/or animal and thereafter having the air inside the receptacle at least partially removed thereby killing the insect and/or animal.

Although there are many prior insect and animal trapping devices, there remains the issue that many prior art devices do not kill the insect or animal in a humane manner. This thereby causes suffering to the insect or animal when it is trapped prior to death and also during death.
It is an object of at least one aspect of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one or more of the aforementioned problems.
It is a further object of at least one aspect of the present invention to provide an insect and/or animal trapping device which provides an improved method for trapping the insect and/or animal and also to provide a more humane method for killing the insect and/or animal via the removal of breathable air.


A part made of a composite is intended to be subjected, through at least a point of attachment and in cooperation with connectors, to tensile and/or compressive forces. The part includes a monolithic part having a winding of fibers oriented and embedded in a matrix, and a tubular body, wherein an attachment point, based at one end of said tubular body takes the form of a strap forming a loop turning about an axis perpendicular to the axis of the tubular body, and wherein an internal wall and/or the external wall of the loop is designed to cooperate with a portion of the connector in tension and/or in compression along one or more directions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to the field of the parts made of composite materials, and more particularly of the parts aimed at being assembled with other ones and likely to be subjected to tensile and/or compression forces.
Thus, the object of the present invention is such a part made of composite material aimed at being subjected, through at least one point of attachment, to tensile and/or compression forces, as well as the method for obtaining this part.
The present invention finds a particular application in the field of the manufacture of connecting rods, and thus another object is also a connecting rod made according to the inventive method.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98.
It is known that the weak point of the composite materials is the thermoplastic or thermosetting matrix in which reinforcing fibers are embedded, and which is generally made of a resin, because it has a specific strength that is much lower than that of the fibers. The way of ruining of a part made of a composite material is generally a fracture of the resin binding the fibers.
A good design of a composite part takes this phenomenon into consideration and favors a transmission of the forces by putting the fibers under pure tension or compression, which results into not stressing the resin. Thus, the composite material is formed of layers of fibers oriented in the direction of said forces or in directions close to the latter.
Though this can easily be done at the level of the essential portion of the part when the shapes are simple and the direction of the forces is controlled, it is difficult at the level of the areas of joining with one or several other parts, namely the areas in which the tensile or compression force is exerted.
In general, such a joining area includes an insert provided with a connecting means permitting to make the connection and the transmission of the forces into the part, but the putting in place of such inserts is particularly difficult, namely when the forces are aimed at changing in direction during the use of said composite part.
The main drawback is thus localized at the level of the joining of the body of the composite part with the insert, and is related to the transmission of the force from the one to the other.
Thus, from WO 2008/066606 is known a connecting rod comprising a tubular body made of composite material, each end of which a metallic insert is made integral with through mutually connected dual-shearing joints.
From U.S. Pat. No. 4,992,313 is also known a connecting rod formed of the winding of fibers about a mandrel comprising the inserts aimed at forming the eyes.
From FR 2 152 289 is also known a force-transmitting organ, such as a connecting rod, made of a fiber-reinforced synthetic material. This organ comprises a tubular central body containing fibers oriented according to the direction in which the forces are exerted, and the ends of which are narrowed in the form of a truncated cone in order to permit to make integral with each of them a connecting means, which is formed of two portions, an internal one and an external one, so as to be capable of enclosing the narrowed portion of the end of the tubular central body.
However, this force-transmitting organ only partially copes with the problems of joining the body of the composite part with the insert, and problems of long-term resistance and strength remain.
Also known are composite parts, in which the insert including the connecting means is embedded in the composite material the body is made of. Such composite parts only partially permit to cope with the problems of joining, because problems of discontinuity of the tensile and/or compression strength remain.
From US2005/056503 is also known a connecting rod formed of oriented reinforcing fibers embedded in a matrix, wound onto a mandrel, as well as an insert made by winding fibers, and aimed at forming an eye of said connecting rod, by being embedded in a hole provided for in the end of the latter. Such a connecting rod can in no way be subjected to tensile and/or compression forces, the more when the direction of the forces is intended to vary.

Part made of a composite, its manufacturing process and connecting rod obtained by this process


A brachytherapy device for the provision of brachytherapy is disclosed. The brachytherapy device has at least one source lumen located outside a movable surface of the device. The source lumen may be secured to the movable outer surface in a manner whereby relative movement of the source lumen relative to the movable outer surface is permitted. The brachytherapy device is inserted into a body cavity. After insertion, the movable surface is moved to position the at least one source lumen closer to the tissue boundary of the cavity. One or more sources of radiation are then placed within the at least one source lumen to provide a customizable treatment. Also disclosed are methods for providing brachytherapy via body cavities.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of brachytherapy. In particular the invention relates to an expandable brachytherapy device and methods of using it with the ability to provide a tailored radioactive dose profile.
2. Description of the Related Technology
A variety of devices exist for performing brachytherapy on the body. Exemplary devices that are employed in body cavities or cavities created in the body by surgery include, for example, brachytherapy devices for treatment of breast cancer, uterine cancer, prostate cancer, treatment of a cavity left by removal of a tumor, cyst, polyp or similar mass, and treatment or prevention of restenosis. Some of these devices are merely implants that are implanted in a cavity in the body to deliver the treatment. However, certain types of devices are expandable to allow insertion of the device into the body in an unexpanded state, and subsequent expansion of the device to deliver the brachytherapy. Such expandable devices are particularly useful for the treatment of, for example, breast cancer, vascular restenosis and uterine cancer.
Breast cancer affects many women. Not only is breast cancer a serious and life threatening illness, quite frequently the methods involved in treating breast cancer can have dramatic life altering cosmetic ramifications for a woman. Treatments, such as mastectomies, involve radical surgical procedures that while saving a patient's life, oftentimes extract a high price on both the physical and mental health of a patient. Other treatment methods may be preferable because of these drawbacks.
One method of treating breast cancer is by subjecting a cancerous tumor to radiation treatment. Although, doing this can be as effective in curing breast cancer as more radical procedures, there is a chance that the intense radiation used in destroying the cancer can adversely affect healthy tissue in the area surrounding the area treated. One method for avoiding potential damage to healthy tissue is through the use of special brachytherapy treatment procedures. Applying radiation treatment according to a specialized treatment plan may permit a more effective treatment while minimizing undesirable consequences of that treatment.
In a patient with breast cancer one method of treating the cancer is to excise the tumor without removal of the entire breast. Excising the tumor is performed in a procedure called a lumpectomy. A lumpectomy is the surgical removal of a tumor in the breast, along with a small margin of the surrounding normal breast tissue. A lumpectomy may also be called a wide excision biopsy, breast conserving therapy or quadrantectomy (this latter term is used when up to one fourth of the breast is removed). The procedure is often performed on women with small or localized breast cancers and can be an attractive surgical treatment option for breast cancer because it allows women to maintain most of their breast after surgery. Several studies have shown that women with small breast tumors have an equal chance of surviving breast cancer regardless of whether they have a lumpectomy, followed by a full course of radiation therapy, or mastectomy (complete breast removal, which generally does not require post-operative radiation treatment). A lumpectomy may be performed using a local anesthetic, sedation, or general anesthesia, depending on the extent of the surgery needed. The surgeon makes a small incision over or near the breast tumor and excises the lump or abnormality along with a margin of an appropriate thickness of normal surrounding breast tissue.
Upon excision of the tumor, a cavity is created in the space where the tumor once existed, however some cancerous tissue may remain at the margins. In order to ensure a full recovery, radiation therapy is applied in the area where the tumor was located. An exemplary method for performing radiation therapy is to employ an expandable brachytherapy device that has been inserted into the cavity that remains after the lumpectomy.
One method for using brachytherapy to treat breast cancer involves placing a radioactive source within a balloon catheter that has been inserted into the cavity formed by the lumpectomy. The radioactive source is placed within the central lumen of the balloon catheter, which is generally centered on the longitudinal axis of the expanded device. This practice places significant limitations on the ability to customize the treatment for a particular patient. For example, placing the radioactive source within the central lumen of the balloon does not permit the radioactive dosage to be tailored to treat primarily only the areas surrounding the cavity that require irradiation. Also, placement of the radioactive source in the central lumen may result in healthy tissue being exposed to undesirable amounts of radiation during exposure of the tissue requiring treatment and/or underexposure of tissue that is a high risk for cancer recurrence. This is at least partially due to the fact that the cavity created by the lumpectomy is generally non-uniform in shape, thereby creating a situation where the distance from the central lumen to tissue at the edge of the cavity may vary at different locations in the cavity, or healthy tissue is located in the treatment region of the radiation field. This is also partially due to the fact that healthy tissue may be located closer to the central lumen at some locations than at other locations. This means that in the interest of preserving healthy tissue and minimizing dose to the skin, the physician may have to use a dose distribution that is less effective than desired. Alternatively, should the physician employ a dose sufficient to ensure effective treatment, healthy tissue may be damaged. As a result, many physicians opt for alternative treatments to avoid the risks associated with the prior art devices.
The catheter material must be stiff enough to maintain structural and functional integrity and flexible enough to minimize discomfort and the chance of injury. A broad range of technical properties (modulus of elasticity, apparent flexural modulus, and durometer) can be achieved by using variations on the thousands of different resins that are current commercially available. The catheters are typically constructed of many different materials such as: polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene (PE), polyolefin copolymer (POC), nitinol, fluoropolymers, polyurethane (PU), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyimide, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), super-elastics, and shape memory materials. The materials used may also be rendered radio-opaque by the loading of additives such as barium sulfate.
Some prior art brachytherapy methods using balloon catheters to deliver the radioactive source are discussed below.
An article by Paul V. Harper from 1966, entitled "Some Therapeutic Applications of Radioisotopes," published in the Journal MSMA, discusses use of balloon catheters for the treatment of cancer. Harper describes a water filled balloon provided with a central glass tube which can be used to fill the balloon. A radioactive tantalum wire is inserted into the central glass tube once the balloon is located at the treatment area and inflated in order to provide brachytherapy to the treatment area. The Harper device provides an isodose curve that is substantially the same shape as the inflated balloon surface of the device. Harper also describes filling a specially-designed catheter with a liquid solution of radioisotope after the catheter has been inserted into the body in order to provide radiation to the treatment area. In addition, Harper describes the provision of plastic spheroids coated with a radioactive material, which may be packed into a cavity in the body for delivery of a brachytherapy treatment.
Another method for interstitial brachytherapy involves the insertion of a plurality of hollow needles or catheters into the breast and through the surgical cavity in the breast, followed by placement of radioactive sources in the needles according to a predetermined treatment plan. High dose rate iridium sources as well as seed strands are examples of the type of radiation sources that may be employed in this type of interstitial brachytherapy.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,482,142 to Winkler et al. discloses a catheter for use in a method for interstitial brachytherapy in a tumor bed. Winkler discloses a device, shown in FIG. 4, having a radiation source 82 made of three wires 84, 86, and 88, each having a plurality of radiation particles. Wire 86 is a straight wire that extends along the axis of the device and wires 84 and 88 are curved wires that may be made from a shape memory material to allow deformation of the wires for insertion and removal from the catheter. More or fewer wires can be provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,302,168 to Hess discloses using a balloon catheter for the treatment of restenosis. FIGS. 2-4 show a balloon 36 with radioactive elements 38 attached to the outer surface thereof. Alternatively, the surface of the balloon may be coated with radioactive material. It appears from FIG. 4, that the radioactive elements 38 expand from a first size, shown in FIG. 2, to a second, larger size, shown in FIG. 4, as the balloon 36 expands.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,863,284 to Klein discloses a balloon catheter for use in angioplasty. Radioactive sources 30 are spaced around the circumference of the balloon. The sources may be attached to the balloon (FIGS. 4 and 4a) or may be contained in a sleeve 48 designed to fit over the balloon (FIGS. 9-10). At col. 13, lines 1-30, a distal portion 18 includes a plurality of slits to allow expansion of distal portion 18 when the balloon is inflated to thereby position radioactive elements 30 at substantially uniform intervals around the inflated balloon. At col. 14, lines 46+, a device is described wherein the distal portion 18 includes an elastomeric expansible region 38 which allows expansion of the distal portion 18 when the balloon is expanded to maintain equal spacing of the radioactive elements about the circumference of the balloon. In the embodiment of FIGS. 7-8 described at col. 15, lines 5-19, the distal portion 18 includes a plurality of folds which allow expansion of the distal portion when the balloon is inflated. At col. 15, lines 20-25, the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9-10 is described. In this embodiment, a sleeve 48 containing a plurality of folds is fitted over the balloon. The sleeve 48 is expandable by virtue of the folds when the balloon is expanded. In yet another embodiment, the radioactive element is integrally formed with the balloon such that the radioactive element moves with the balloon as the balloon is expanded. To improve the uniformity of the radiation dose, the device may employ a secondary radiation source in the form of a guide wire inserted into the central lumen of the balloon catheter.
The devices discussed above offer various methods for using a balloon catheter in brachytherapy, but do not address the provision of customized dosing which can be achieved through the use of certain advantageous features of the present invention discussed below and set out in detail in the detailed description of the preferred embodiments. It is an object of certain embodiments of the invention to provide an apparatus and method for providing tailored brachytherapy treatment.


A connector includes an insulating body, terminals received in the insulating body, an electrical shell covering the insulating body and two welding pieces. The electrical shell includes a top board, a bottom board and two side boards. Each of the side boards defines a first gap at the upside of the back end. Two sides of the top board protrude to form a first withstanding piece. A second withstanding piece extends outwards from a lower portion of the side board. Each of the welding pieces includes a welding part. The front end of the welding part extends outwards to form a connecting part. The top of the back of the welding part defines a second gap, the front of the second gap forms a block wall. The back of the welding part extends inwards to form a raised lump under the second gap. The back of the welding part extends downwards to form a limitative lump. The first withstanding piece places in the second gap and is against the block wall. The second withstanding piece is against the front wall of the limitative lump. The raised lump is placed at the first gap and supported by the bottom wall of the first gap.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector, and more particularly to a connector which can connect with the electric product firmly.
2. The Related Art
As electronics industry develops, connectors are widely used in the electric products. The traditional connector includes an electrical shell, an insulating body and terminals. The insulating body is received in the electrical shell. The terminals are received in the insulating body and are used to transmit signal. The insulating body usually has fixing pillars extending downwards from the bottom thereof for being connected with a PCB.
When the traditional connector is connected with the electric product, the fixing pillars and the terminals are welded on the PCB. However, because of the manpower for inserting and pulling out, the terminals and the fixing pillars can not connect with the PCB firmly, therefore, the connector is placed in the electric product unfirmly.


Method and arrangement for anchorage in the soil by means of a ground anchor (1) in the form of a tube (2) in which at least two axial slots (3a, 3b) are arranged along at least one region of a tube wall in a part of the tube which is to be driven into the soil. This tube (2) is driven into the soil by cooperating with a pike (4) which is arranged in the tube (2) and which, after the tube has been driven in, is removed therefrom. The method according to the invention is characterized in that the tube (2) in at least one region with axial slots (3a, 3b) is subjected to a radial load by means of a tool (5) which is sunk into the tube and which is actuated so as to exert a controllable expansion of the tube is brought about in this region. The tool is removed from the tube when a predetermined degree of expansion has been attained.

Processes for anchoring soil anchorages which are sunk to a greater or lesser depth, for example, when laying foundations, are well known. The currently most usual type of anchorage consists of a concrete anchorage cast at the intended anchorage site. This type of an anchorage is very demanding in terms of time since a casting mould firstly has to be dug in the soil before the concrete casting process itself can be performed. The concrete then has to be allowed to set before the anchorage is ready to be used. A further disadvantage of concrete anchorages is that they tend to disintegrate after a number of years' use. In order that the durability of the anchorage can be checked, it has to be laid bare.
In order to dispense with casting of anchorages it is also known to drive into the soil a metal object which, owing to its shape, is anchored in the soil when it has been driven in. However this type of anchorage or ground anchor is difficult to drive into the soil to a depth sufficient for the anchorage to support high loads. It is also already known to drive into the soil a metal tube, for example, which is then deformed so that reinforcement in the soil is attained.
DE-1 484 565 has already disclosed a ground anchor of the above-mentioned type. It consists substantially of a tube with a solid tip. A round bar is disposed in the tube and connected to the tip. Slots are formed in the tube above the tip. These slots are uniformly distributed along the tube and extend in the axial direction along the latter. This ground anchor is anchored in the soil as a result of the round bar and the tube disposed about the latter being driven into the soil. When the tube has been driven into the soil, an axial, upwardly directed force is applied to the round bar whilst the tube is held in place by an axially downwardly directed force. The round bar is therefore actuated such that it moves upwards out of the tube whilst the tube tip approaches the upper part of the tube. The shape of the tube is acted upon in the slotted region so that expansion of the tube is brought about in this region. The round bar can then be removed from the tube.
A disadvantage of this known type of anchorage is that it is unsuitable for deep anchorage and can only be used for ground anchors of very small dimensions. In the case of large tube dimensions and deep anchorage, the method is difficult to carry out, both practically and economically. Furthermore the method is unsatisfactory when a plurality of expanded regions are desired in each tubular anchorage in the ground.

Method and device for performing ground anchorage


Converters that employ synchronous rectification, such as DC/DC converters, are disclosed. These converters can control their synchronous rectifiers to selectively block or pass a negative current from flowing in their output lines. Also disclosed are converters which can operate as slaves based on timing signals from other daisy-chained converters. Open-loop synchronous rectifier driving circuitry is further disclosed to allow converters to operate independently of any timing information from their output stages.

The ever-increasing need for lower cost, higher power density, higher output current, and lower voltage levels for digital electronics such as CPUs, memory, and microcontrollers has boosted demand for higher efficiency converters. This demand has commonly been addressed by DC/DC converters that employ synchronous rectification. To maximize efficiency, these converters use synchronous rectifiers, such as MOSFETs and other low power dissipating devices, instead of output diodes.
When synchronous rectifier MOSFETs are turned on and their controlling driving signal (gate) is not precisely controlled, they will allow current to flow back into the output section of the converter. The MOSFETs will therefore load down any preexisting voltage source connected at their output and parallel operation with current sharing may not be possible. Synchronous rectifiers can even suffer catastrophic failure if they are allowed to conduct an excessive current.
Several different schemes have been proposed for controlling synchronous rectifiers to deal with the problems associated with the negative current in synchronous rectifiers. One approach has been to avoid negative output current through the synchronous rectifier at turn-on by allowing parasitic diodes in the synchronous rectifier MOSFET to perform the rectification and then, depending on the status of a monitoring parameter or a time delay, enabling the synchronous rectifiers. But if the synchronous rectifiers are turned on after a time delay, even with no load, the input current to the converter can be 10 to 20 times higher than those converters with rectifying diodes due to the switching losses of the synchronous rectifier and the negative output current.
Prior art solutions generally rely on some kind of monitoring circuit to sense a chosen parameter, such as current, voltage, temperature, or transformer duty cycle (Zhang, U.S. Pat. No. 6,490,183), and thereby control the synchronous rectifiers and avoid negative current while boosting efficiency. Boylan (U.S. Pat. No. 6,618,274 B2) offers a control scheme for synchronous rectifiers that not only requires the input of the monitor circuit, but also switches from partially synchronous mode to full synchronous mode. These approaches generally result in increased converter cost and complexity, and do not necessarily provide for optimum performance.

Power converter with synchronous rectification and digital current sharing


A diagnostic pedestal assembly for measuring ion current and DC bias voltage within a high-power plasma reaction chamber of a semiconductor wafer processing system. The diagnostic pedestal assembly contains an aperture located in a surface of the pedestal and a probe element that is supported within the aperture.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor wafer processing equipment and, more particularly, to a diagnostic pedestal assembly for measuring ion current uniformity and DC bias uniformity within a reaction chamber of such equipment.
2. Description of the Background Art
Ion flux and wafer bias voltage are important parameters of a plasma contained by a reaction chamber within a semiconductor wafer processing system. These parameters indicate the effectiveness of the semiconductor wafer processing system to process a wafer uniformly across the wafer. Specifically, the ion flux and wafer bias voltage affect the uniformity of an etch process (as well as deposition uniformity in chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes) and indicate the potential for damage to a wafer due to a non-uniform plasma. Since these parameters are so important to the etch and/or deposition process, the measurement of both ion current and wafer bias voltage at a given location within the chamber is important to characterizing the effectiveness of the plasma in processing the wafer.
Typically, to measure ion current, an ion current probe, similar to a Langmuir probe, is used. To measure the distribution of current at the surface of a wafer, one or more current probes are affixed to one surface of a placebo wafer, i.e., a silicon disk having the same size and shape as a semiconductor wafer. The placebo wafer is then positioned within a semiconductor processing system in a similar location as a semiconductor wafer would typically be located. Once a plasma is generated by the processing system, the ion current probes are biased negatively to collect ions from the plasma. Consequently, an electric current is produced in a wire attaching the probe to a current meter. The measured current is indicative of the number of ions incident upon the current probe at that location on the placebo wafer. By judiciously positioning the current probes in an array on the surface of the placebo wafer, the ion currents measured at each individual current probe are combined to estimate the ion current distribution over the surface of the placebo wafer. This current distribution is indicative of the ion flux within the plasma.
To measure DC bias voltage, the conductive probes are unbiased, RF filtered and are each coupled to a volt meter. The measured voltage is indicative of the DC bias voltage on the surface of the wafer at the particular locations of the probes. Judicious placement of the voltage probes in an array on the surface of the placebo wafer provides an estimate of the DC bias voltage distribution over the surface of the placebo wafer.
Although the use of a placebo wafer carrying a plurality of diagnostic probes is very useful in monitoring and measuring a plasma within a reaction chamber, experience has shown that a placebo wafer having surface mounted current and voltage probes is not a useful diagnostic tool to characterize a plasma within a high-cathode-powered reaction chamber i.e., a chamber having a substantial amount of power coupled to the plasma from the cathode. One problem associated with placebo wafer utilization in a high-cathode-powered chamber is the significant degree of arcing that occurs due to voltage differentials created on various components of the diagnostic wafer. Such arcing is detrimental to the diagnostic wafer, the measurement equipment and the semiconductor wafer processing equipment itself.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for apparatus that measures ion flux uniformity and DC bias uniformity in a high-cathode-powered reaction chamber of a semiconductor wafer processing system.

Diagnostic pedestal assembly for a semiconductor wafer processing system


A lighted antenna is provided. The lighted antenna is composed of an antenna pole, a base block, a cylindrical body, a control circuit, and a battery. The base block has a hole in the center for fixing the antenna in upright position, and a plurality of clipping holes surrounding center hole. The cylindrical body has a plurality of cylinder clips formed along the circular rim on one end, corresponding to the positions of the clipping holes. A plurality of light-emitting diodes are installed inside the base block and positioned directly below respective clipping holes. The cylindrical body is attached onto the base block by press fitting the cylinder clips into respective clipping holes. Whenever the antenna is activated, light is projected onto the antenna surface with inclined angle, passing through unblocked portion of clipping holes, to produce flashing light.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lighted antenna, and in particular to an antenna set having built-in light source that is capable of producing a flashing light, especially at nighttime, whenever the antenna is activated.
2. The Related Art
Nowadays, electronic products not only require technological innovation, but also have to be aesthetically pleasing to the users.
For example, many of the features on notebook computers are fairly standardized, so vendors now turn their attention to the external forms and fresh icons. Some of them use aluminum alloy casing in an effort to enhance a user's impression, while others introduce mirror-like reflection titanium plated casing. Still others use silver plating, vibrant color combinations, or fluorescent materials to highlight their stylish casings.
All these efforts are intended to appeal to those shoppers who are looking for something special in the line of computer equipment that usually gives people an ice-cold feeling.
But the user's curiosity about the fresh icons would not last for too long. As the user is gradually acclimatized to the once interesting icon, the initial enthusiasm starts to wear off. A better approach is to create a dynamically changing icon instead of a static icon. For example, a flashing light that is synchronized with the operation of the host machine can fit in such design concept.


A database system translates a received set of workflow actions into a graph of nodes. The graph of nodes includes a node set corresponding to each node type of the set of workflow actions. Each node set may be re-executable for each instance of an action type of the set of workflow actions. Upon completion of an action, the graph of nodes is executed. Execution of the graph of nodes includes executing processor executable instructions corresponding to a subset of the set of workflow actions. The subset may be determined based on the completed action. The completed action may be determined based on a sequence tracking parameter.

A cloud platform (i.e., a computing platform for cloud computing) may be employed by many users to store, manage, and process data using a shared network of remote servers. Users may develop applications on the cloud platform to handle the storage, management, and processing of data. In some cases, the cloud platform may utilize a multi-tenant database system. Users may access the cloud platform using various user devices (e.g., desktop computers, laptops, smartphones, tablets, or other computing systems, etc.).
In one example, the cloud platform may support customer relationship management (CRM) solutions. This may include support for sales, service, marketing, community, analytics, applications, and the Internet of Things. A user may utilize the cloud platform to help manage contacts of the user. For example, managing contacts of the user may include analyzing data, storing and preparing communications, and tracking opportunities and sales.
In some cases, managing contacts of a user may include scheduling workflow actions using the cloud platform. A set of workflow actions corresponding to contact management may include a large number of repeated actions in various timeframes, which may result in a large process flow that utilizes significant computing resources such as processing and memory to create and update records corresponding to contacts and contact management.


The present invention provides liver parenchymal cells having a clonal growth ability, which possesses at least one of the cell biological properties such as: presence of peroxysome; being positive to hepatocyte-markers; being partially positive to neoplastic hepatocyte-markers or immature hepatocyte-markers; being positive to antibodies against the surface antigens of ovall cells; and being partially positive to bile duct cell-markers. The present invention also provides a method for obtaining such cells and a method for subculturing such cells.. With the liver parenchymal cells above, it will be possible to research in detail the process of development and differentiation, the mechanisms of growth and functional expression of hepatic cells, and to open up a new way to clalification of mechanisms or hepatoma and various other diseases and to development of therapeutic method against these disseases.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to liver parenchymal cells having a clonal growth ability, a method for obtaining such cells, a method for subculturing such cells, and a subculturing system of primary hepatocytes. More particularly, the present invention relates to progenitor cells culturing system of liver parenchymal cells which are useful as a material for cell biological and molecular biological research on development, differentiation and proliferation process of hepatocytes or on the carcinogenic mechanism thereof, or as medical materials for developing therapeutic techniques of various hepatic diseases.
2. Description of Related Art
An animal is a multicellular organism formed through repeated division of a fertilized egg and differentiation thereof into various structures (cell aggregates) taking charge of different functions. The individual structures composing a body of organism maintain the individual by producing cells having active differentiation ability through constant division and growth of individual cells. Therefore, in order to understand the biological facts of humans and other animals or to develop a therapeutic technique through clarification of the carcinogenic mechanism, it is believed important to analyze in detail cells composing individual structures to clarify the developing and differentiating process and the mechanism of proliferation.
A method has conventionally been established, as a means to analyze in detail cells of structures in vivo, to culture cells taken out in vitro, and causing division and growth of cultured cells to ensure survival through subcultures. While various methods of subculturing primary hepatocytes have been studied, the only actual case of subculture of primary hepatocytes so far reported is one for calf, and no case has yet been achieved as to rat and mouse. A reason is that, because hepatocytes are cultured in a serum-free medium added with various growth factors on a collagen-coated dish effective for adhesion and growth of hepatocytes, it is difficult to detach the cultured cells from the dish with a little damage, and hepatocytes treated with an enzyme such as trypsin have very serious damage. While hepatocytes cultured with a dish not coated with collagen coat and a serum-free medium can be detached with a slight damage, those cultured cells cannot continue to live or grow for a long period of time, although it may be possible to adhere them again onto the dish.
More recently, on the other hand, it has been reported that small hepatocytes growing while forming a colony appear in a culture system comprising a medium added with nicotinamide and epidermal growth factor (EGF). These small hepatocytes are confirmed to express functions of matured hepatocytes such as albumin, to be divided 2 to 3 times during the first four days, and to be partially present on the 20th day of culture in the form of cells having a growth ability. Since the colony forming frequency in such a culture system is high for hepatocytes isolated from an young rat and decreases according as the age in weeks increases, these subcultured hepatocytes are considered to be "committed progenitor cells".
In this case also, however, subculturing of cells is not satisfactory, leaving problems to be solved regarding prevention of damage. It is therefore the current situation the subculturing of hepatocytes has not as yet been established.
Furthermore, in order to understand complicated and diverse functions of hepatocytes or clarify carcinogenic mechanism thereof, it is considered essential to identify pure precursor hepatocytes (progenitor cells) for which orientation of differentiation has not yet been specified, but presence thereof has not yet been confirmed or a preferential culturing method has not been established.
For these progenitor cells, the following facts are conventionally known and the following efforts to identify them are reported. More specifically, it is reported that stem cells are developed from the foregut endoderm in the course of liver development, and these stem cells differentiate into hepatocytes and bile duct epidermal cells (Shiojiri, et al.; Cancer Research. Vol. 51, pp. 2611-2620, 1991). While there is no case of confirmation of stem cells in liver of an adult (such as rat), oval cells emerging in a precancerous state in the course toward cancer of rat can lead to either hepatocelluler carcinoma or cholangiocarcinoma. This oval cell is therefore attributable to an aberrant differentiation of stem cells present in the liver of the adult rat. Hixon, et al.(Pathobiology, Vol. 58, pp. 65-77, 1990) prepared several antibodies against surface antigens of oval cells obtained from experimental hepatocarcinogenesis. Brill, at al.(Proc. Soc. Exp. Bio. MEd., Vol. 204, pp. 261-269, 1993) selected cells conbined with these antibodies from among hepatocytes of an adult rat by means of a sorter to investigate properties of these cells. As a result, it was suggested that these cells contained hepatic progenitor cells among those combined with antibodies against surface antigens of oval cells, since cells growing and differentiating into matured hepatic cells by culturing in a medium added with additive factors, or culturing on a feeder layer of mesenchyme cells of a fetus.
Presence of hepatic progenitor cells is estimated by several pieces of evidence, but has not as yet been confirmed.

Liver parenchymal cells having clonal growth ability, method for obtaining same, method for subculturing same, and subculturing system of primary hepatocytes

Research Development Corporation of Japan


The invention relates to a lead-frame configuration with a frame base and multiplicity of lead-frames connected with the frame base, of which each lead-frame is intended to hold a chip, where each lead-frame has two connection plates of which each is intended to connect with a connection of a chip, where the two connection plates of each lead-frame delimit a bridging zone which can be bridged using a chip.

Such a lead-frame configuration is known from patent document U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,282 A. With the known lead-frame configuration, for each lead-frame in the bridging zone provided between two connection plates, there is a holder section of the lead-frame concerned mainly intended to hold a chip and the chip connected with the lead-frame is also embedded in a casting compound with which also the two connection plates and the holder section between the two connection plates are mechanically connected together. Because of this structure there is a relatively large height in a direction vertical to the plane of the lead-frame. Also in the known design the problem arises that the holder section lying between the two connecting plates requires a certain minimum space, which is disadvantageous in more and more applications and in particular for connecting chips that are as small as possible with a lead-frame in flip-chip technology or connecting the chip connections of this chip with the connection plates of a lead-frame in flip-chip technology.


An apparatus for conveying items to a selected receiving station comprises a round carousel rotatable about a center thereof to align a portion thereof with a selected azimuth, a platform disposed in the carousel, the platform being movable rotatably with the carousel and movable vertically in the carousel to a selected height, and a sled disposed on the platform and movable on the platform sidewise through a path concentric with the carousel to align the sled with a second selected azimuth, the sled being configured to receive thereon at least one of the items. The item is movable circularly by the carousel, vertically by the platform, and circularly by the sled, whereby to be conveyed to and from the receiving station disposed at the selected height and at the second azimuth.

Increasing vehicle traffic in the larger population centers, as well as the increasing need for space, have made it necessary to provide parking places for even more vehicles, while at the same time minimizing the space used. In this connection, above-ground and underground garages are already known, in which vehicles are positioned close to one another on a plurality of parking levels. In this kind of parking garage, it is usual for the vehicles to move under their own power along appropriate ramps and corridors to the individual parking locations.
This kind of parking is, however, subject to various disadvantages. The entry and exit passages require a substantial amount of additional space, so that with a given construction volume, fewer parking spaces can be provided. Further, the vehicle exhaust gases make it necessary to provide extensive ventilation systems which greatly increase the cost of the parking facility and, in addition, require even more space. Moreover, this kind of installation must be publicly accessible, which on the one hand can endanger the parked automobiles in the sense of being stolen or damaged, and on the other hand can endanger individuals.
For these reasons, various proposals have been made in the past for the construction of mechanized, automatic parking garages, in which the vehicles are left by their owners in an entrance, are loaded onto a lift platform by a special apparatus, are conveyed to the entry of one of a plurality of parking compartments with the help of the lift platform, and finally are deposited within the corresponding parking compartment. In this connection, a particularly simple construction involves a circular arrangement with outwardly lying parking compartments and a central lift apparatus.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,182, there is a discussion of several different automatic parking garages. For the sake of convenience, this discussion is substantially repeated below.
In Swiss Patent specification CH-A5-649 340, there is disclosed an automatic parking garage having:
(a) a storage silo with a circular periphery, which storage silo encloses a cylindrical inner shaft and includes, on a plurality of stacked parking levels, a plurality of radially directed parking compartments open toward the inner shaft; and PA1 (b) a conveying apparatus located in the inner shaft for the transportation of vehicles between at least one entrance and the parking compartments, or between the parking compartments and at least one exit, the conveying apparatus including a plurality of vehicle-receiving transport surfaces which are movable in a vertical direction and can be rotated together in a horizontal direction about a central axis, such that they can be positioned through vertical movement at the level of one of the parking levels or at the level of the at least one entrance, or the at least one exit, and then, through rotation about the central axis, can be brought adjacent to one of the parking compartments in the corresponding parking level.
In the parking garage described immediately above, a plurality of parking compartments or single parking spaces are arranged in different parking levels radially about a cylindrical shaft. In the shaft is provided an elevator apparatus with a rotatable lift platform which defines two rotatable spaces for receiving vehicles. By vertical movement and/or rotation of the platform about a central axis, all parking compartments can be reached by the rotatable spaces.
The two rotatable spaces are provided parallel with one another at opposite sides of the central axis, and have their longitudinal axes displaced away from one another, so that their longitudinal axes are substantially out of alignment with the radial direction. The parking compartments of each parking level are correspondingly angled to each other, so that their longitudinal axes can be brought into alignment with the longitudinal axes of the rotatable spaces. The parking spaces of each level are divided into two equal halves, such that each of the halves can be directed only to one of the rotatable spaces, because of the different angulation.
On the one hand, because of the special arrangement of the parking compartments, the construction of the parking garage is relatively expensive. On the other hand, the deposit of the vehicles is relatively slow, because only two rotatable spaces are available, and only one rotatable space is available for half of the parking compartments of one level.
A further automatic parking garage is known from the German publication DE-A 1-38 31 463. In this parking garage, the parking compartments are arranged radially. For the distribution of the vehicles there is likewise provided a combined lift and rotating apparatus, which, however, provides only a single transport space. The loading and unloading of the transport lift is assisted by an accessory car on which is placed the vehicle to be parked. Since the transport lift can only accept one vehicle, this type of parking garage cannot perform a rapid in and out parking cycle. The use of accessory cars, moreover, makes special apparatus necessary for introducing the car into all parking compartments, requiring a considerable technical expenditure.
Special transfer apparatus for the transportation of vehicles between lift and parking compartment are furthermore known from publications WO91/18162 and EP-A1-0 395 601. In the first of these two publications, a transfer apparatus is proposed which is mechanically very expensive, and especially susceptible to breakdown, this transfer apparatus requiring several levels which are displaceable with respect to each other and have comb-like ends which, upon depositing the vehicle in the parking compartment, inter-engage with corresponding comb-like configurations in the bottom of the compartment.
In the second of these two publications, a transfer apparatus is disclosed which travels sideways with respect to the vehicle and utilizes one of the forward wheels to pull the vehicle into the lift and to push the vehicle into a parking compartment. Because of the external position of the transfer apparatus, additional room is required. Moreover, this transfer apparatus grips only one side of the vehicle, which leads to an unbalanced loading of the chassis.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,182, there is disclosed an automatic parking garage in which the individual parking compartments on the parking levels and the lift mechanism are positioned in a precise radial direction. In the lift, several transport surfaces, preferably four, are provided for the vehicles. The individual parking compartments can be accessed by all transport surfaces in the same manner, since the construction has a high degree of symmetry, and all compartments are equivalent to each other. Finally, the connection between a transport surface and a parking compartment is particularly simple, because the facing edges are very closely spaced due to the radial configuration.
The transport surfaces can be moved in various ways. In accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the invention, the transport surfaces are provided on a common transport platform, and are displaced together vertically by a vertical movement, and are rotated together by rotation of the transport platform.
According to a second preferred embodiment, the transport surfaces are vertically displaceable independently of one another by means of individual lifts, wherein the individual lifts are provided on a common rotary table which rotates about the central axis.
A further preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized in that a pulling apparatus operating in a radial direction is provided on each of the transport surfaces, for pulling a vehicle out of an entrance or out of a parking compartment onto the transport surface, and for pushing a vehicle from the transport surface into an exit or into a parking compartment. The pulling apparatus moves the vehicle being parked by using the wheels of the vehicle.
The apparatus of the aforementioned '182 patent utilizes a pushing and pulling apparatus comprising a sliding carriage movable radially of the transport surfaces along a radial guide rail. The carriage includes a pair of arms having rollers thereon adapted to engage the front wheels of a vehicle and to pull the vehicle by its front wheels out of the parking compartment or entrance and onto the adjacent transport surface. During the reverse process of expelling the vehicle, the sliding carriage pushes the vehicle by its front wheels.
Inasmuch as many vehicle owners prefer to leave their car in "park" and locked, it is deemed preferable to provide a transfer apparatus for moving vehicles onto, and off of, transport surfaces without the need to require rolling of the wheels of the vehicle.
Further, the apparatus of the '182 patent requires rotational movement of each transport surface having a vehicle thereon to align the vehicle with a selected parking compartment. Rotational movement of one transport surface requires rotational movement of the entire carousel, thereby generally mandating moving only one vehicle at a time into a parking compartment.
It is deemed preferable to have the facility of moving a plurality of vehicles into parking compartments at substantially the same time.

Apparatus for conveying items to a selected receiving station


A given set of videos are sequenced in an aesthetically pleasing manner using models learned from human curated playlists. Semantic features associated with each video in the curated playlists are identified and a first order Markov chain model is learned from curated playlists. In one method, a directed graph using the Markov model is induced, wherein sequencing is obtained by finding the shortest path through the directed graph. In another method a sampling based approach is implemented to produce paths on the digraph. Multiple samples are generated and the best scoring sample is returned as the output. In a third method, a relevance based random walk sampling algorithm is modified to produce a reordering of the playlist.

The Internet is an increasingly popular medium for users to consume audio/video content. For example, users often use programs executing on computing devices to select videos they want to listen to and to organize their playlist according to their preferences. As such, audio/video playback programs (hereinafter 'media players') often provide a way for users to organize their playlist according to individual preferences. However, such programs often do not provide a method of sequencing audio/video content in an aesthetically pleasing way such that the sequence of files in a playlist provide a compelling user experience.
Media players typically try to generate an audio/video playlist (hereinafter 'video playlist') for a user by trying to identify videos a user may like to consume. For example, a video playback program may try to identify videos that a user may be interested in by identifying videos listed in the user's social networking system feed, by identifying videos in previous playlists created by the user, or by identifying the user's video playback history in one or more media players. However, these recommendations often result in video playlists that are ordered either chronologically or by random shuffle. Therefore, such programs fail to sequence playlists in an aesthetically pleasing way.
Some media players and information retrieval systems try to improve a chronological search result by promoting diversity within search results. Such programs produce a new ordering of a given set of items by presenting relevant results while simultaneously promoting diverse results to the top. However, in such systems, the reordering is done independent of themes presented in the retrieved documents. Thematic diversity in retrieved videos, such as metal, soft rock, pop, hip-hop may be arranged in an aesthetically pleasing way; however, such systems provide no emphasis on the order in which these themes are presented.
Some information retrieval programs try to sequence a playlist by stringing subsequences of videos together. For example, a program may analyze radio playlists to learn models of good subsequences of videos and assemble a playlist by stringing together subsequences from a library of video. However, such programs fail to generate a sequence of videos from a fixed set of videos which may or may not include videos used in a radio playlist subsequence. Some systems use permutation modeling to generate a sequence of videos in a playlist. However, such systems are typically complex and it is difficult to implement such modeling to sequence a large quantity of videos on a regular basis.

Automatic sequencing of video playlists based on mood classification of each video and video cluster transitions


A method for the recovery of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid from the mother liquor obtained by the solid-liquid separation of a suspension of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester crystals is disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for the recovery of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid from dilute solutions containing .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester (hereafter abbreviated as .alpha.-APM) which comprises recovering .alpha.-APM from a mother liquor from which .alpha.-APM has already been crystallized out of, and also recovering L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid after hydrolysis.
More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for recovery of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid which comprises concentrating part or all of the mother liquor obtained by the solid-liquid separation of a suspension of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester crystals, either taking a part of the resulting concentrate (Solution A) and adding a mineral acid and methanol thereto or mixing Solution A with a solvent comprising mineral acid, methanol, water, and, optionally, .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, to recover .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester and/or its acid addition salt analogue (.alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester acid salt), and hydrolyzing the remaining concentrate and, if desired, the remaining mother liquor with a mineral acid to recover L-phenylalanine or L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid.
2. Discussion of the Background
.alpha.-APM is a peptide sweetener which exhibits a sweetness about 200 times that of sucrose. Because of its sweetness, extremely high flavor quality and low calorie content, .alpha.-APM has been widely used as a dietetic sweetener in recent years. It is expected that world .alpha.-APM demand will exceed 10,000 tons/year by 1995.
.alpha.-APM has been prepared on an industrial scale according to the following methods: (1) condensing an N-protected aspartic anhydride with L-phenylalanine methyl ester in an organic solvent and removing the protecting group in a conventional manner (U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,039); (2) converting .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine in a mixture of water, methanol and hydrochloric acid into the methyl ester to form .alpha.-APM hydrochloride, followed by neutralizing the hydrochloride to give .alpha.-APM (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 53-82752); and (3) condensing an N-protected aspartic acid with phenylalanine methyl ester in the presence of an enzyme followed by removal of the protecting group (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 55-135595).
In the chemical synthesis described in (1) above, impurities including .beta.-isomers (i.e., .beta.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester) are necessarily produced as unwanted by-products. In order to selectively remove these impurities, a method for purification is known which comprises contacting impure .alpha.-APM with a hydrohalic acid and performing solid-liquid separation to isolate .alpha.-APM as the hydrohalide salt (4).
The most popular method of industrial preparation of .alpha.-APM is via the methyl ester hydrochloride obtained after esterification, as shown in (2) above. Further, and as shown in (4) above, the purification of .alpha.-APM is often pursued through the hydrohalide. In order to obtain .alpha.-APM from its hydrohalide, including the hydrochloride, it is conventional to dissolve or suspend the hydrohalide of .alpha.-APM in an aqueous medium followed by the addition of aqueous solutions of sodium carbonate, sodium oxide, sodium hydrogencarbonate or ammonia to carry out the neutralization.
In preparing .alpha.-APM on an industrial scale, the mother liquors formed during the course of isolating and purifying .alpha.-APM contain, in addition to un-isolated .alpha.-APM, compounds associated with its production such as .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine (.alpha.-AP), .beta.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester (.beta.-APM,), .beta.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine (.beta.-AP), 5-benzyl-3,6-dioxo-2-piperazineacetic acid (DKP), .alpha.-L-aspartyl(.beta.-methyl)-L-phenylalanine methyl ester (.alpha.-A(M)PM), .alpha.-L-aspartyl(.beta.-methyl)-L-phenylalanine (.alpha.-A(M)P), N-formyl-.alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, and large quantities of inorganic salts due to prior neutralization(s). The type and amount of inorganic salts vary depending upon an alkali used to neutralize the .alpha.-APM hydrohalide such as .alpha.-APM hydrochloride, etc. Generally, the inorganic salts are NaCl, NH.sub.4 Cl, KCl, etc.
The recovery of valuable starting materials, particularly the amino acids used as the main raw materials in the production of .alpha.-APM, from the mother liquors mentioned above greatly contributes to an overall reduction in the production costs of .alpha.-APM. In order to enhance productivity on an industrial scale, it is extremely important to recover these substances. Furthermore, it is advantageous that any recovery process also lead to a reduction in the organic materials present in any waste liquid(s) so a to reduce the overall cost of waste treatment.
The following techniques are known for recovery of .alpha.-APM starting materials: (1) hydrolyzing .beta.-APM with an aqueous mineral acid solution and precipitating L-phenylalanine at Ph of 4 to 8, and then precipitating L-aspartic acid at a Ph of 3 to 1 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 48-97812), (2) concentrating one or more filtrates, etc. used in the preparation of .alpha.-APM, hydrolyzing the concentrate, rendering the concentrate acidic to precipitate the salt of L-phenylalanine, and adjusting Ph of the mother liquor to obtain L-aspartic acid (Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 57-130958), and (3) concentrating the mother liquor formed during the course of preparing .alpha.-APM below 70.degree. C., hydrolyzing the concentrate to recover L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-159355).

Method for recovery of .alpha.-L-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester, L-phenylalanine and L-aspartic acid


A device and a method for an accelerated oxidation test of fuels or petroleum products, as well as a computer program for controlling such a device, and a corresponding computer readable storage medium, which are applicable, in particular, for the simulation of the aging of fuels or petroleum products. A device for an accelerated oxidation test of fuels or petroleum products is proposed, whereby the device comprises of a pressure vessel (1) to hold specimen (2) of fuels or petroleum products, and the pressure vessel (1) contains at least one device to change the temperature. A corresponding method provides that a specimen (2) of fuel or petroleum product is placed in a pressure vessel (1), the specimen is brought to a predefined temperature above 100° C. by at least one device to change the temperature, which is placed in the pressure vessel (1) and/or in the specimen (2), and the absolute pressure value is monitored so as to determine the oxidation.

The international standards, such as, for example, DIN 51 780 (outdated), (EN) ISO 7536 or ASTM D 525, exist for the determination of the oxidation period, for example, of fuels. These standards stipulate that a 50 ml fuel specimen is placed and sealed in a pressure vessel with specified deviations, and is charged with oxygen to a pressure of 700 kPa so as to determine the time of the pressure drop setting-in later on, which presents the standardized oxidation result.
Conventionally, a device for an accelerated oxidation test of fuels and petroleum products is provided with a pressure gauge, and is placed in a water bath tempered at 100° C. Under these conditions (increased temperature, as well as oxygen under pressure effect), the fuel usually oxidizes considerably faster than under normal storage, which allows conclusions to be drawn regarding the lifespan of the fuel expected under normal ambient conditions in this regard.
The manual or automatic evaluation takes place on the basis of the oxidation that sets in after some time, which, according to the standards, is defined as the breaking point with 14 kPa pressure drop in 15 minutes, and in automatic detection, leads to the recording of curves/data.
In case of present day fuels, the breaking points, under the above mentioned test conditions, typically lie around 6 . . . 8 hours, which has to be felt as very disadvantageous, if one compares these periods with those of the other laboratory tests for the dispatch release, which are mostly made within minutes. Furthermore, there are fuels, whose additives decelerate the oxidation in such a manner that the slope described in the standard ASTM D 525 for the result sought is not achieved.
Thermal processes are applied as additional techniques, such as, for example, the dynamic Heat Flux or the dynamic Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), and/or the Pressure Differential Calorimetry (PDSC) in which the heat flux of a small sample quantity is determined under defined measuring conditions. Thereby, a local temperature increase in the specimen compared with the environment indicates an oxidation.
Consequently, the problem of the invention was to provide a method and a device for an accelerated oxidation test of fuels or petroleum products, as well as a computer program to control such a device, and a corresponding computer readable storage medium, which eliminate the above mentioned deficiencies and, in particular, allow to reduce the time duration for the determination of the breaking point.

Method and device for an accelerated oxidation test of fuels or petroleum products, as well as a computer program for controlling such a device, and a corresponding computer readable storage medium


A brake pump for vehicles having a pump body and an actuation device, operatively associated with the pump body. The actuation device being operable to generate a braking. A piston is housed inside a housing of the pump body, the piston being operable by the actuation device to vary the pressure of a brake fluid in a braking system to which the brake pump belongs, to generate the braking. The brake pump also has a switch group and an auxiliary actuation element.

In today's market of brake pumps for vehicles, increased performance in terms of sensitivity and readiness to intervene is increasingly requested, as ensured for example by "push-insert" type brake pumps with significantly reduced empty strokes because the movement of the braking lever or pedal immediately moves the piston which is adapted to vary the pressure of the brake fluid in the braking system which the brake pump belongs to.
Against this background, it is obviously increasingly more important that also the signaling of braking is as adequate as possible to the brake pump in terms of performance, not only for turning on the stop light but also for actuating other devices on board the vehicle (e.g. the ABS system).
In order to satisfy this need, microswitches associated with parts of the brake pump are typically provided, for example the braking lever or pedal, in order to measure the movements thereof and to signal the braking.


A gas generator usable in a vehicle occupant protection system. The gas generator includes an initiator holder and an initiator secured within the holder, the initiator including a housing enclosing an initiator charge. A bore seal is molded into the initiator holder, and a casing is attached to the bore seal along an exterior surface of the bore seal. A gas generant material is positioned within the casing so as to enable fluid communication between the gas generant and combustion products formed by combustion of the initiator charge, thereby enabling ignition of the gas generant. In one embodiment, an edge portion of the casing is pre-formed so as to snap-fit over a shoulder formed along the bore seal. In another embodiment, an edge portion of the casing is crimped onto outer surfaces of the bore seal. In yet another embodiment, the casing is welded to the bore seal.

The present invention relates generally to gas generating systems and, more particularly, to gas generators used in vehicle occupant protection systems and related components, such as seatbelt pretensioners.
Gas generators used in seatbelt pretensioners are known as micro gas generators due to the relatively small size of the gas generator. Exemplary pretensioners using such micro gas generators include those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,460,794, 6,505,790, 6,520,443, and 6,419,177, incorporated herein by reference. Micro gas generators generally include an initiator holder for receiving and securing an initiator therein, an initiator including an initiator charge, and a gas generant composition which ignites and bums in response to ignition of the initiator to produce gases for actuating the seatbelt pretensioner.
In addition, conventional micro gas generator designs usually incorporate a casing secured to the initiator holder for containing the gas generant therein and for positioning the gas generant in proximity to the initiator. The casing is secured to the initiator holder by crimping, using deformable crimp tabs machined into the structure of either the holder, or onto the structure of a bore seal affixed to the holder. An O-ring or some other type of compressive seal may also be required to seal the interface between the casing and the initiator holder.
Machining of the crimp tabs along the holder and machining of surfaces along the bore seal for use in securing the casing therealong increase the manufacturing complexity and cost of the initiator holder and bore seal. In addition, existing conventional micro gas generator designs may provide a relatively small bearing surface area along the holder and/or bore seal for use in supporting and securing the bore seal within a pretensioner housing.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.