Data processing means adapted to be controlled by sequential instructions, a substantial number of which comprise an operation code selected from a set of n such codes and a qualifying code selected from a set of m such codes, the data processing means comprising a store having approximately n times m locations with each location corresponding to a consistent combination of operating code and qualifying code and holding a series of instructions corresponding to the said operating code and qualifying code. The qualifying code may be the addressing mode and a jump table of 256.times.256 entries may be employed to access the instruction series.

This invention relates to data processing.
There exists a variety of commercially available processors which are capable of providing the central processing unit of a computer. Each processor can perform arithmetic, logical and control instructions and is adapted to cooperate with a particular organisation of memory and input and output devices. To a large extent, the instructions and the manner of addressing data held in the processor or stored in memory, are characteristics of a particular processor or family of processors. As a result, computer programs written for one computer--or range of computers based on a like processor--are frequently unsuitable for use with computers based on a different processor.
It is the case that a large body of commercially available software is based on a common operating system which can run only on particular processors. Computers which are based upon an incompatible processor are not capable of using such software even though the processor may in certain technical respects be superior to the processor for which the software is written. This problem of incompatibility has been recognised and attempts have been made to deal with the problem in two different ways. First, it has been suggested to provide in a computer based on a selected first processor, a second processor serving as a co-processor to provide the necessary compatability. This obviously involves cost penalties. Second, it has been proposed to provide software by which the existing first processor is caused to emulate a different second processor. To be of practical utility, the emulation must not involve a significant drop in effective processing speed and this presents enormous difficulties, even where the processor being used is inherently faster than that being emulated so that the additional processing required by the emulation is to some extent offset by faster processing. It will be recognized that speed is important not only because a user may demand a fast response time, but also because a particular effective processing speed or minimum processing speed is essential for the correct functioning of certain programs.
This invention focuses on the software emulation approach and for clarity hereafter the term "host" will be used to mean the processor which is through software caused to emulate a different processor (the emulated processor).
In what follows, particular attention will be paid to microprocessors though it should be understood that either or both of the host and emulated processors might take other forms.
To take a specific example, consider emulation of the microprocessor manufactured by Intel Corporation and referred to as 8088. This has an instruction set whose instructions are defined by some number of 8-bit bytes the first of which is an operating code (op-code). The instruction set comprises approximately 230 op-codes (not all possible instruction labels being used). Most instructions require one or more operands and the second byte of those instructions may be regarded as defining the mode of addressing the operand. This may recite specific memories or registers and may occasionally include data. In other microprocessors, it may be a byte other than the second byte of the instruction which performs a function comparable to that of the 8088 addressing mode.
If it is desired to emulate the operation of the 8088 microprocessor, several characteristics of that processor must be emulated. Chiefly, the instruction set of the 8088 must be mapped on to that of the host microprocessor. Inevitably, there will not be a one to one mapping. In addition it will be necessary to recreate, using the facilities of the host microprocessor, the many permutations of addressing modes provided by the 8088. To interpret instructions using prior art techniques would require for each operating code (that is to say the first byte of each instruction) a routine which was capable of analysing the second and subsequent bytes of the instruction and providing an appropriate series of instructions in the instruction set of the host microprocessor. Having regard to the facts that there would inevitably be no direct mapping of operations between the emulated microprocessor and the host microprocessor and that there are likely to be differences in registers and memory addressing, the subroutine corresponding to each 8088 operating code would be complex and would typically involve a number of conditional statements serving to distinguish between different addressing modes. Running such a complex subroutine for every instruction, inevitably slows down processing. Further complications will arise in dealing with the flags (such as auxiliary carry and parity) which are provided by the 8088 but not by the host, and in handling interrupts.

Apparatus and method for emulating a computer instruction set using a jump table in the host computer


A battery powered transmitter (330) is provided which includes a power amplifier (332) having controllable output power and current drain, a temperature sensor (300) and a controller (309). The output power of the power amplifier (332) is reduced when the ambient temperature drops below a predetermined threshold in order to reduce current drain from a battery (350) in cold temperatures.

This invention pertains to the field of transmitters and in particular to transmitters which are used in a battery-powered communication devices.
Battery-operated communication devices, such as cellular telephones or portable two-way radios, are extensively used for aerial transmission of communication messages to other communication devices within a communication system. Such communication devices include transmitters having modulating circuitry for communication messages as well as a power amplifier for amplifying the modulated signals before transmission through an antenna.
Frequency modulated (FM) transmitters are conventionally used in a variety of communication devices. An FM transmitter generally includes a class C power amplifier which provides a constant output power when modulated, thus drawing a constant current from its battery. The class C power amplifiers provide higher efficiency at increased distortion which, as is well known in the prior art, does not significantly affect system performance in FM applications.
However, newly developed, time division, multiplexed (TDM) communication systems utilize linear modulation techniques, such as QPSK, or Quad QAM, rather than frequency modulation. A linear modulator requires highly distortionless power amplifiers for transmission of the communication signals. Generally, in these applications, class AB type power amplifiers are used which, as a result of operating below the saturation region, are less efficient than class C type amplifiers. The AB type amplifiers provide non-constant output power which may have a variance in transmitter output ranging from 3 dB to 7 dB. Thus, current drain from the battery is also non-constant and may reach peak points when maximum power is being delivered by the power amplifier.
Generally, a battery power supply performs best at room temperature by presenting a low impedance which allows optimum current to be delivered to the communication device. However, as the temperature decreases, a higher impedance is presented which, under heavy load currents, limits the voltage that can be supplied to the communication device. The inefficient peak current drain situations encountered using class AB type power amplifiers, therefore, may degrade performance of the communication device at low temperatures and cause spurious transmission failures.
Currently, power amplifiers are protected from excessive heat by reducing the output power when the ambient temperature exceeds a predetermined level. However, this approach is aimed at protecting the power amplifier and does not address the problem of energy delivering capability of the battery at very low temperatures.
In many systems it has been recognized that it is not necessary for a communication device to continuously transmit at maximum capable power. This recognition has been the basis for concepts such as "Turbo Power," where the communication device initially operates at less than full power, then increases it when needed. However, this approach also does not consider the effect of temperature on the energy-delivering capability of the battery supply.

Transmitter having a temperature adjusted power amplifier


The invention relates to methods of identifying a candidate compound which may inhibit estrogen receptor-dependent transcription or α9-nAChR overexpression and proliferation of nicotine-derived-compound-induced breast cancer cells by using an activating protein 1 (AP1) polypeptide. The invention found that α9-nAChR has an activating protein 1 (AP1)-binding site, that the α9-nAChR promoter is located at the AP1-binding site, and that ERs specifically bind to the α9-nAChR promoter at the AP1-binding site, indicating that ER-induced α9-nAChR up-regulation plays a central role in the response to endogenous (E2) or exogenous (nicotine) stimulation.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death among women in the USA. Tobacco, a substance that contains human carcinogens, may contribute to the risk for breast cancer development in women. Large cohort epidemiological studies that were performed in the USA and Japan indicate that the risk for breast cancer is associated with both active and passive smoking. Cigarette smoke is a complex mixture of over 4,000 chemical constituents. On average, roughly 1.0 mg (range of 0.3-2.0 mg) of nicotine is absorbed systemically while smoking a cigarette, and studies performed using 14C-nicotine have shown that 80-90% of the inhaled nicotine is absorbed by the body. Nicotine concentrations in the plasma can reach levels of approximately 15 ng/ml immediately after smoking and even higher levels in the saliva and gastric juice (>1300 and >800 ng/ml, respectively). Previous studies using a soft agar transforming assay and a xenografted nude mouse animal model have shown that non-cancerous human breast epithelial (MCF-10A) cells are transformed by either a cigarette smoke condensate or the tobacco-specific carcinogen 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK). In vivo studies have demonstrated that nicotine promotes the growth of solid tumors, which suggests that it might contribute to the progression of cell proliferation, invasion, and angiogenesis in tumors. Such results imply that nicotinic alteration of normal breast epithelial cells may also contribute to breast cancer tumorigenesis.
Among all body tissues, human neuronal tissues have been reported to exhibit the most abundant expression of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subunits. These receptors are composed of either heteropentamers that comprise a combination of a (α1-α6) and b (β2-β4) subunits or homopentamers consisting of α7-α10 subunits that are symmetrically arranged around a central ion pore. The physiological ligand of nAChRs is acetylcholine; however, some tobacco components, including nicotine and its active metabolites, such as the nitrosamines N′-nitrosonornicotine and NNK, are high-affinity agonists of nAChRs. Recent studies have shown that nAChRs can accelerate cell proliferation, tumor invasion, and angiogenesis in addition to conferring resistance against apoptosis.
Most mammary carcinomas contain estrogen receptors (ER), which are important factors for diagnosis and prognosis of breast cancer, and for determining therapeutic choices (Osborne, 1998, Breast Cancer Res. Treat., 51, 227). Estrogens are direct mitogens for hormone-responsive human breast cancer cells, where they promote cell cycle progression and induce the transcriptional activation of "immediate early" and cyclin genes. The relationships between breast cancer formation, estrogen receptor (ER) (which mediates both hormone-induced gene transcription and anti-estrogen action against breast cancer), and ER ligands (such as estrogen, E2) have been discussed in a recent article (Chlebowski, R. T., Kuller, L. H., Prentice, R. L., Stefanick, M. L., Manson, J. E., Gass, M., Aragaki, A. K., Ockene, J. K., Lane, D. S., Sarto, G. E., et al. 2009. Breast cancer after use of estrogen plus progestin in postmenopausal women. N Engl J Med 360:573-587). E2, a group of steroid hormones, act primarily by regulating gene expression after binding to the ER, a nuclear ligand-activated transcription factor. The binding of an agonist (E2) induces a conformational change in the ER that enables it to homodimerize. This dimer is then translocated to the nucleus where it enhances gene transcription. ER activity may modulate the rate of transcription initiation by interacting with the basal transcriptional machinery and by changing the chromatin arrangement at the promoters of its target genes via the recruitment of a variety of coactivators. This ER/coactivator complex activates DNA transcription by stimulating E2 responsive elements (Brzozowski, A. M., Pike, A. C., Dauter, Z., Hubbard, R. E., Bonn, T., Engstrom, O., Ohman, L., Greene, G. L., Gustafsson, J. A., and Carlquist, M. 1997. Molecular basis of agonism and antagonism in the oestrogen receptor. Nature 389:753-758). Additional target molecules that are involved in ER-mediated signaling pathways in breast cancer formation, however, remain to be identified.
Smoking and hormones are two important etiological factors involved in breast cancer formation (Daniell, H. W. 1980. Estrogen receptors, breast cancer, and smoking. N Engl J Med 302:1478). A recent study demonstrated that α9-nAChR expression plays a decisive role in smoking-induced breast cancer formation (Lee, C. H., Huang, C. S., Chen, C. S., Tu, S. H., Wang, Y. J., Chang, Y. J., Tam, K. W., Wei, P. L., Cheng, T. C., Chu, J. S., et al. 2010. Overexpression and activation of the alpha9-nicotinic receptor during tumorigenesis in human breast epithelial cells. J Natl Cancer Inst 102:1322-1335).
Therefore, there is a need to screen compounds that inhibit the α9-nAChR overexpression so as to treat and prevent nicotine-derived-compound-induced breast cancer.

Method of identifying a candidate compound which may inhibit α9-nAchR overexpression or estrogen receptor-dependent transcription in nicotine-derived-compound-induced breast cancer cells


An inshot gas burner nozzle having a flame retention insert that enhances flame stability and reduces noise, the insert comprising a central opening, secondary openings of smaller diameter arranged circularly around the central insert, and a plurality of restricted peripheral openings in the form of stepped notches. The nozzle further comprises plenum chambers which have restricted outlets thereby creating back pressure within the plenums to improve cross-ignition of adjacent nozzles.

Inshot gas burner nozzles, such as used in furnaces and many appliances, generally comprise a venturi tube which diverges from its input end to an enlarged output end. In some constructions, a burner head insert made of sintered or powdered metal having outlet openings is mounted in the outlet end of the tube. In operation, gas is injected into the inlet end of the nozzle, entraining air into the nozzle with it. This primary air/gas mix flows through the tube to the burner head or flame retention insert. The primary air/gas mix passes through the insert and burns as it exits the insert forming a cone of flame projecting from the outer face. Secondary air flows around the outside of the venturi tube and is entrained in the burning mixture around the outside of the insert in order to complete combustion.
Some of the problems associated with conventional inshot burner designs are flame stability and noise. The velocity of the primary air/gas flow from the insert is often greater than the flame speed. Under this condition, the flame lifts off from the burner insert, i.e. the flame begins to burn in mid air at a location spaced from the outer face of the flame retention insert. Flame liftoff is a major cause of the noise associated with the operation of inshot burner nozzles.
If the velocity of the air/gas mixture is too slow when compared to the flame speed, flashback can occur. Flashback is the burning of the gas within the burner nozzle itself. This condition can cause overheating and deterioration of the nozzle.
Various flame retention or burner head inserts have been designed in the past in an attempt to achieve better flame stability and reduction of noise. One known insert has a central opening surrounded by a toothed perimeter or sunburst. The air/gas mixture passing through the central opening of the insert forms an inner flame cone, while the air/gas mixture passing through the sunburst forms a mantle around the flame cone. The velocities of air/gas flow through the sunburst and the central opening are nearly the same. Another known insert has a central opening surrounded by a series of smaller holes. Again, the velocities of air/gas flow through the smaller holes and the central opening are nearly the same. Flame instability, particularly liftoff with its attendant noise, are associated with both of these prior art insert designs.
In most appliances, the inshot nozzles are arranged side-by-side and provision is made for cross ignition. One conventional nozzle has two diametrically opposed, narrow plenum chambers that extend radially from the outlet end of the venturi tube. Each plenum chamber has an outlet along its front or leading edge and along its side edges. Gas escaping from the side edges of the plenums of one nozzle burns and thereby ignites the gas escaping the plenums of the adjacent nozzles. With this conventional construction, it has been difficult to achieve uniform and consistent cross ignition, particularly at low gas input rates.


An implement hitch for ganging multiple implements and towing them forwardly in a field-working position and endwise in a transport position. Trusses extend between hitch assemblies on the implements to provide endwise spacing of the implements. Stabilizers extend rearwardly from the trusses to the front of the implements to maintain the proper fore-and-aft alignment while allowing the implements to move up and down freely over uneven terrain. A main beam pivotally connected to an outermost truss serves as a common link between a towing vehicle and the hitch assembly for both the field-working and transport positions. Transport wheel assemblies mounted near the rear of the implements are provided for raising and lowering the implements to and from the transport position. The inner transport wheel assemblies include means for automatically connecting the adjacent corners of adjacent implements together as they are raised. As the implements are lowered to the field-working position the adjacent corners are automatically disconnected so the implements can move vertically freely with respect to each other.

The present invention relates generally to a hitch and more specifically to a hitch for multiple implements which can be converted between an endwise transport position and a forward field-working position.
Farm implements have been made wider to take advantage of increased tractor power and to reduce time in the field. Often two or more implements such a grain drills are ganged and pulled in side-by-side relationship forwardly through the field to plant a wide swath. The forward field-working width of the ganged implements is too great to allow convenient transportation over roads or through narrow gates or the like. Therefore during transportation the implements are often disconnected from the gang and hitched one behind the other so they can be towed in a line to reduce the overall transport width to that of a single implement. Such rearrangement of implements is time-consuming and can require the help of more than one person.
Another way to convert the implements from a field-working to a transport position is to allow the implements to remain in a side-by-side relationship and raise them on transport wheels having fore-and-aft axes of rotation so the implements can be towed endwise. For example, when ganged grain drills are to be transported, rear transport wheels are provided to raise the drills off the ground, while front caster wheels located near the hitch or gooseneck of each drill support the front of the drills. Either a separate drawbar for endwise towing is provided near one end of the implements such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,913,683 and 3,610,661, or the main hitch connection can be pivoted from a forward field-working position to an end towing position such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,119,329. Some devices presently available allow the hitch to be changed between the field-working and the transport position without disconnecting the towing vehicle.
Several drawbacks exist in the transport systems typical of the prior art. Some are very massive and relatively inflexible, as a result of one or more large beams extending nearly the entire width of the ganged implements to receive the individual implement hitches. Many require the implements to be hinged or otherwise connected at their adjacent ends while in the field-working position thereby reducing the flexibility of the overall gang and resulting in added stresses and uneven planting or soil working in uneven ground. Generally two rear transport wheels are required for each implement in the gang so that the gang can be raised to a uniform height and adequately supported above the ground in the transport position. An individual hydraulic cylinder must be provided for each wheel assembly, or a linkage assembly connected to a cylinder and to a pair of the wheels is necessary. Therefore when several implements are ganged the number of rear transport wheels and the associated number of hydraulic cylinders and linkages significantly add to the complexity, weight and cost of the hitch. In devices such as shown in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,610,661 which use a single transport wheel between pairs of implements, a hinge connection is necessary which limits the flexibility of the gang.


A mobile telephone rack assembly comprising a telephone rack for holding a mobile telephone, a support securing the telephone rack to a motor vehicle's instrument board, a wall plate for mounting the telephone rack on a wall, and a suction disc for mounting the telephone rack on a window glass. The telephone rack has a first socket with an electric heating coil fastened therein and electrically connected to a second socket on a motor vehicle's instrument board by the support for lighting cigarettes.

The present invention relates to telephone racks and relates more particularly to a mobile telephone rack assembly which can be alternatively set into various forms for fastening in a motor vehicle's instrument board or mounting on a wall surface or a window glass.
Mobile telephone is very convenient for conveying speech over distances while one a driving a car, walking on the road or going aboard of a ship, a train or a plane. Using a mobile telephone in a motor vehicle, a telephone rack is generally required for holding it in place. Regular telephone racks for holding mobile telephones are not satisfactory in use because they can not firmly retain a mobile telephone in place.
The present invention has been accomplished to provide a telephone rack assembly specifically designed for holding a mobile telephone in place. According to the present invention, a mobile telephone can be held in the instrument board, the window glass or any flat wall surface inside a motor vehicle.

No. 174, Lane 131, Sec. 2 True Hsing Rd., Panchiao


A central processor-coprocessor assembly comprising an assembler software tool for extending the base central processor tasks into at least one coprocessor. What is important is that the assembler software tool does not need to be rebuilt when changes are made to the coprocessor elements. The invention allows assembly time extension of a base core language processing (CLP) programming model, without the need to rebuild the assembler tool itself. The assembler tool comprises a set of commands which enable the central processor to manipulate the coprocessor registers, and a coprocessor execute instruction, which initiates command processing on the coprocessor. The present invention simplifies the maintenance of the assembler tool through multiple hardware revisions by enabling hardware designers to update their coprocessor definition files to reflect new or modified coprocessors.

The invention relates to the field of a microprocessorxe2x80x94coprocessor architecture. More particularly, it relates to the development of a software assembler tool for use with network processors in interfacing central processors with coprocessors.
The use of coprocessors with central processors in the design of a computer system processing complex architecture is well known. By assigning a task to a specific coprocessor, rather than requiring the central processor to perform the task, a processing complex designer may increase the efficiency and performance of a computer system. In order to add a coprocessor to a processor complex under prior art, a complex designer must program an assembler software tool that provides the hardware instructions required by the central processor to operate the coprocessor. However, a significant drawback to the efficient use of coprocessors is the need to rebuild the assembler software tool every time a coprocessor is changed or added. Accordingly, the finished design may not be changed to incorporate different or additional coprocessors without rebuilding the assembler software tool, where rebuilding involves reprogramming the assembler tool software.
The drawbacks of the prior art are solved by the development of a new assembler tool and associated processorxe2x80x94coprocessor architecture. This invention provides for a core language processor-coprocessor assembly comprising an assembler software tool for extending the base core language processor (CLP) tasks into at least one coprocessor. What is important is that the assembler software tool does not need to be rebuilt when changes are made to the coprocessor elements. The invention allows assembly time extension of a base core language processing (CLP) programming model, without the need to rebuild the assembler tool itself.
The addition of a coprocessor to a microprocessor or other central processor exposes the central processor programming model to a set of scalar registers, array registers and commands. The present invention provides for an assembler tool comprising a set of instructions within the microprocessor complex which manipulate the coprocessor registers, and a coprocessor execute command which initiates command processing on the coprocessor. The software component of the present invention is a special hardware command that executes among the coprocessors. The core language processor fetch""s that command from its processor memory, decodes the fact that it is intended to be executed on the coprocessor, and gives it to one of the coprocessors. The hardware component of the present invention is a unique CLP-coprocessor architecture that incorporates and enables the software embodiment. The present invention simplifies the maintenance of the assembler tool through multiple hardware revisions by enabling programmer""s to update their coprocessor definition files to reflect new or modified coprocessors. The assembler tool itself does not have to be rebuilt to track hardware changes associated with the addition of new coprocessors or modifications of existing ones.
The use of include files is standard prior art. What is new is the inclusion of a special assembler directive in the include files which describes a given coprocessor, the instructions available on the coprocessor, and the hardware registers that the coprocessor supports. The include file assembler directive describes to a core assembler the details of a specific coprocessor in such a way that the core assembler does not have to be rebuilt when the coprocessor is changed. The invention instructs the assembler program itself to recognize the new device. A programmer utilizing the invention supplies text input which specifies specific commands to be executed. The core assembler recognizes those commands and accordingly the correct syntax for those commands and generates the machine code for those commands.
The invention stabilizes the basic core language coprocessor instruction set and documentation associated with it. A further advantage is that the invention allows a hardware designer to test different xe2x80x9cwhat ifxe2x80x9d scenarios when considering the addition of a new coprocessors or modifications of existing ones, through the use of software simulators.

Assembler tool for processor-coprocessor computer systems

International Business Machines Corporation


The presently claimed invention relates to a system and method for organizing data replicated in a target data repository. The method of the presently claimed invention may receive data from a primary data store for replication in the target data repository. The method may then determine that the received data should be organized and stored according to one or more priority metrics. The method may then organize the received data according to the one or more priority metrics, and store the received data based on the priority metrics. Higher priority data may be stored faster data storage devices or be stored in smaller files where lower priority data may be stored in slower data storage devices or be stored in larger files.

Field of the Invention
The presently claimed invention is generally related to copying data from a primary data storage location to a secondary data storage location. More specifically the presently claimed invention is related to optimizing the performance of updating data in a replicated data store.
Description of the Related Art
Computer systems that manipulate large data sets must occasionally copy data from one large place to another. Conventionally data from a first place (i.e. a first database) is copied (replicated) into a second place (i.e. a second database). In order to maintain coherency between a first and a second database, either the entire database must be re-copied, or changes in the data contained in the first database must be merged into the second database. In certain instances the process of merging changed data into the second database is inefficient. For example, when the second database uses a write-once file system data residing at the second database must be read, changes in the data must then be merged with the data from the second database, and the combined data must be re-written. When the databases contain large amounts of data this process may be inefficient and slow.
An exemplary instance where this issue arises is when data managed by a relational database management system (RDBMS) such as an Oracle database is copied into Hadoop. Hadoop is an open-source software framework that manages large data sets using a Hadoop distributed file system (HDFS) that is a write-once file system. Data from a RDBMS database are commonly copied into Hadoop when performing functions such as archiving data, warehousing data, or parsing data to gather intelligence from the data. Examples of replication data from an RDBMS database to Hadoop are utilized by application such as Shareplex by DELL, Golden Gate by Oracle, and Tungsten by Continuent.
What is needed is a system and a method that allows databases to be rapidly replicated and updated without incurring delays associated with conventional data replication approaches.

Partitioning target data to improve data replication performance


A threaded joint is adapted for tubes where the stress or the strain concentration hardly occur at a threaded corner portion of box side even when the threaded joint receives repeated tensile-compressive forces or repeated bending forces. In a radial seal type threaded joint, tensile efficiency TE (%) defined by a ratio Sc/Sp between a cross-sectional area Sc, an area of Critical Cross Section (CCS) including a portion where a tensile stress and a strain become the highest in a tube circumferential cross section of a box and a cross-sectional area Sp of a tube body satisfies formula TE (%)≥2.25×t/ρ+99.9 having a ratio t/ρ between an internal thread height t of the box and a radius of curvature ρ of a corner portion of internally-threaded bottom load surface side.

Threaded joints for tubes are popularly used to connect steel tubes used in petroleum installations of oil industry such as oil country tubular goods. In connecting steel tubes used for search and production of oil or gas, conventionally, a standard threaded joint stipulated in API (American Petroleum Institute) standard has been typically used.
However, recently, since deep wells for crude oil or natural gas have been in progress and horizontal wells and directional wells on behalf of vertical wells have been increasing, excavation and production environments are becoming severe. Further, wells developed in an appalling circumstance such as oceans and polar regions have been increasing. Hence, the performance threaded joints have to satisfy is diversified including compression resistance, bending resistance and sealability against external pressure (external pressure resistance). In view of the above, the use of a special threaded joint having high performance referred to as a "premium joint" is increased, and a demand for the improvement in performance of the premium joint is also steadily increased.
The premium joint is a coupling-type joint where an externally-threaded member (hereinafter referred to as "pin") includes a tapered thread, a metal-to-metal seal portion (hereinafter referred to as a seal portion) and a torque shoulder (hereafter referred to a shoulder) and is formed on a pipe end portion, and an internally-threaded member (hereinafter referred to as "box") including a tapered thread, a seal portion (to be more specific, a metal touch seal portion) and a shoulder (to be more specific, a torque shoulder) and connects the pin to each other are joined to each other. The tapered thread is important to firmly fix the tube joint. Bringing the box and pin into a metal contact at the seal portion makes this portion play a role in ensuring sealability. The shoulder forms a shoulder face that functions as an abutment during making up the joint.
FIGS. 3A to 3C are schematic explanatory views of a premium joint for oil country tubular goods, which are vertical cross-sectional views of a threaded joint for a cylindrical tube. The threaded joint includes a pin 3a and a box 1a into which the pin 3a is fitted. The pin 3a has, on the outer surface thereof, an externally-threaded member 7a and a nose (also referred to as a pin nose) 8a which is a portion formed adjacent to the externally-threaded member 7a on an end of the pin 3a and has no threads. The nose 8a has a seal portion 13a on the outer peripheral surface thereof, and a shoulder 14a on the end surface thereof. The box 1a into which the pin 3a is fitted is a portion having an internally-threaded member 5a, a seal portion and a shoulder 12a on the inner surface thereof, and these portions 5a, 11a, and 12a are portions threadedly engaged with or brought into contact with the externally-threaded member 7a, the seal portions 13a and the shoulder 14a of the pin 3a, respectively. In FIG. 3A, a chain line indicates a tube axis.
In the conventional example shown in FIG. 3C, the threaded joint is a so-called pin end seal type premium joint where the seal portions 11a and 13a are positioned at the end portion of the nose 8a. Apart from such a premium joint, there has been also known a radial seal type premium joint where the seal portions 11a and 13a are positioned at an intermediate portion of the nose 8a in a tube axis direction, and the pin 3a and the box 1a are brought into metal-to-metal contact in a tube radial direction.
To install a tube in a well, there may be a situation where the tube is installed while being rotated. In digging a directional well or a horizontal well, the tube is rotated in a state where the pipe is bent during digging. In this case, tensile-compressive forces are repeatedly applied to the tube. Along with the progress of deep wells, the above-mentioned tensile-compressive forces are also increased. Due to such repeated tensile-compressive forces, plastic deformation occurs in a threaded portion and a seal portion of a box which constitutes a threaded joint, and there may be a situation where sealability is lowered or cracks develop resulting in rupture in a worst case.
In view of the above, as a threaded joint structure exhibiting strong resistance against repeated tensile-compressive forces or repeated bending forces, there has been proposed a structure that alleviates stress concentration by arranging a spiral stress relaxation chase on threaded bottoms of one end or both ends of threadedly meshing end portions of either one or both of pin side and box side (see for example, Japanese Patent No. 3401859 (Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-98082)).
However, a stress or a strain acting on a threaded corner portion of a box side is not determined only based on the shape of threads and the above-mentioned stress relaxation chase, and the stress or the strain is influenced by the tolerance of a cross-sectional area of a weakest portion of the box with respect to a cross-sectional area of a tube body. Hence, there exists a drawback that the stress concentration at the threaded corner portion of box side cannot be sufficiently alleviated only based on the shape of threads or the arrangement of the stress relaxation chase.
It could therefore be helpful to provide a threaded joint structure where the stress concentration hardly occurs at the threaded corner portion of box side even when the threaded joint receives repeated tensile-compressive forces or repeated bending forces.


A pull pin assembly includes: a first pole having a first hole; a second pole having a second hole, and sliding in the first pole; a main body having a central hollow containing the first pole; a pull pin body extending radially from the central hollow, and having a space extending into the central hollow; a pull pin, having a circumferential stop, disposed in the space to move from a first position extending into the central hollow through the first hole to a second position outside the central hollow; a pull pin plug fit into the space and having a hollow containing the pull pin; and a biasing member biasing the pull pin toward the second position to lock the first and second poles; wherein the biasing member is disposed to bias the pull pin between the circumferential stop and the pull pin plug.

The present invention relates to a pull pin assembly, particularly to a pull pin assembly for a portable canopy. More particularly, the present invention relates to a pull pin assembly that is easy to produce, assemble, and use.
Portable canopies are known which fold out, and expand or telescope from a compact, storable state to an expanded, folded out and erected state. Such canopies have wide application, for example, for various recreational uses, and as temporary shelters. Such canopies also have wide application for commercial uses, such as temporary sales booths or display booths for conventions, fairs, and the like.
One such typical canopy is shown in FIG. 1. In the FIG. 1, canopy 10 comprises a frame 4, on which a canopy cover 5 and side panels 6 and 7 are draped. The frame 4 comprises a roof of expandable scissor-like members 9, four supporting telescoping corner uprights 8, and two side rails 3. The supporting corner uprights 8 further comprise telescoping poles or rods 11 and 12, and a locking means 1, for locking the poles or rods 11 and 12 in a desired expanded position. The locking means for locking poles or rods 11 and 12 in the erected, expanded position have traditionally been difficult to assemble and mount, unnecessarily complicated, and often unreliable.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a locking means, particularly one for a portable canopy, which is easy to assemble, easy to mount, uncomplicated and reliable.
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a pull pin assembly comprising: a first rod or pole, having a first hole and a second notch or hole, and a second rod or pole, having third hole, the second rod or pole being slidably contained within the first rod or pole, so that the first hole is superimposable on the second hole. A main body is provided having a central hollow dimensioned to contain the first rod or pole, and having at least one resilient tab, the resilient tab being cut out from the main body and having a boss thereon extending into the central hollow to engage the second notch or hole of the first rod or pole. A pull pin body is provided integral with the main body and extending radially outward from the central hollow, the pin body having a space therein extending into the central hollow. A pull pin is slidably disposed in the space of the pull pin body to move from a first position extending into the central hollow through the first hole to a second position outside of the central hollow. A biasing member biases the pull pin toward the second position to relatively lock the first rod or pole and the second rod or pole when the first hole is superimposed on the second hole.
The pull pin assembly according to the present invention preferably further comprises a pull pin plug fit into the space of the pin body, the pull pin plug having a hollow dimensioned to slidably contain the pull pin, the pull pin also having a circumferential stop, wherein the biasing member is disposed to bias the pull pin between the circumferential stop and the pull pin plug, and wherein the circumferential stop is dimensioned to prevent the pull pin from passing completely through the first hole in the second position.
In a further embodiment, the pull pin comprises a circumferential tongue, wherein said pull pin plug comprises a radial groove, wherein, the pull pin has a first engageable position in which the circumferential tongue is movable in the radial groove, and a second, disengaged position, wherein the pull pin is radially pulled against a biasing force of the biasing member to come out of the radial groove and rotated so that the circumferential tongue is biased against the pull pin plug.
The pull pin plug is friction fit into the space of the pull pin body. In a still further embodiment, the pull pin comprises a radial hole near a distal end removed from the central hollow, and further comprising a pull ring disposed in the radial hole to prevent the pull pin from passing completely through the pull pin body.
The central hollow, first rod or pole and second rod or pole all preferably have square cross sections. The main body preferably further comprises a lip disposed to engage and end of said first rod or pole. The pull pin plug is preferably countersunk and friction fit into the pull pin body.
In a still further embodiment, the present invention provides a pull pin assembly, comprising: a rod or pole, having a hole; and a main body, having a central hollow dimensioned to contain the rod or pole. A pull pin body is preferably provided integral with the main body and extending radially outward from the central hollow, the pin body having a space therein extending into the central hollow. A pull pin is slidably disposed in the space of the pull pin body to move from a first position extending into the central hollow through the first hole to a second position outside of the central hollow, the pull pin having a circumferential stop. A pull pin plug is fit into the space of the pin body, the pull pin plug having a hollow dimensioned to slidably contain the pull pin. A biasing member is provided biasing the pull pin toward the second position to relatively lock the first rod or pole and the second rod or pole when the first hole is superimposed on the second hole. In this embedment, the biasing member is disposed to bias the pull pin between the circumferential stop and the pull pin plug, and wherein the circumferential stop is dimensioned to prevent the pull pin from passing completely through the first hole in the second position. Preferably, the pull pin comprises a circumferential tongue, wherein the pull pin plug comprises a radial groove, wherein, the pull pin has a first engageable position in which the circumferential tongue is movable in the radial groove, and a second, disengaged position, wherein the pull pin is radially pulled against a biasing force of the biasing member to come out of the radial groove and rotated so that the circumferential tongue is biased against the pull pin plug.
Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments, which follows, when considered together with the attached Figures.


An infrared detector device is described. It is based on an infrared analog of the Fabry Perot interferometer, using one curved, fully reflecting, plate and one planar, mainly reflecting, but partially transmitting, plate. The space between these plates behaves as a resonant cavity which can be built to respond to either a broad or a narrow band of wavelengths in the general range between 1 and 15 microns. It is also possible to combine several detectors of different narrow bands in a single device. Actual detection of the radiation is based on use of thin film resistors, having a high thermal coefficient of resistance, that are thermally isolated from the other parts of the structure. Details relating to the manufacture of the devices are given.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the general field of infrared detectors, more particularly to the use of tuned cavities.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a Fabry Perot interferometer. Its basic components are a pair of transparent plates 5 and 6, spaced a few millimeters apart, whose inner surfaces have been coated with a thin film of metal which reflects almost all of a light beam that may be incident upon it but does transmit a small proportion thereof. Typically about 90% of the light is reflected and about 10% is transmitted, absorption being negligible.
Thus about 10% of light beam 1, entering the system at other than normal incidence, will enter the inter-plate cavity where it will be successively transmitted and reflected at both of the inner surfaces. It is readily seen that the transmitted beams that emerge on the far side of plate 6 (designated 2,3,4 in FIG. 1) are all coherent relative to each other and adjoining beams differ in phase from one another by the same amount. If such beams are caused to converge by means of a lens (not shown, but located to the right of plate 6) they will form interference fringes, dark where they were out of phase, light where they reinforced one another.
Interferometers of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 can have very high resolving power but they are very sensitive to a number of factors. These include the reflectivity and optical finish of the surfaces involved and establishment and maintenance of parallelism. Additionally, small variations in optical path length within the cavity that may result from temporary or permanent inhomogeneities of the material contained in the cavity, must be avoided.
A number of these problems are removed or mitigated if the plates of the interferometer are concave, as illustrated in FIG. 2. Light beam 21 enters the cavity by passing through partially reflecting surface 25. After making four passes back and forth between the two concave surfaces it has reached region 22, which is approximately its point of entry. After four more passes it is back at 22 again, and so on. This arrangement of two concave plates need not be perfectly aligned to still function. Nor is it as sensitive to external vibration as the parallel plate version.
An optically equivalent version of the double concave structure can be constructed by using a single concave plate in conjunction with a planar mirror. A virtual image of the concave surface is created by the planar mirror so a light beam will end up in the same spot within the cavity after every eight passes. An interferometer of this type forms the subject matter of the present invention and may be looked at as a resonant cavity in the microwave sense.
We are not aware of any prior art relative to infrared radiation detectors that is based on the use of a resonant cavity. Cole (U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,976 FEB 1994) teaches a detector that is partly transparent to infrared and is backed up by a mirror so it receives additional input from the reflected beam, making it, in effect, a two pass cavity. This is not, however, a resonant cavity and Cole's detector is sensitive over a wide range of infrared wavelengths. The present invention, by contrast, is based on an eight pass resonant cavity and, for a given geometry, is sensitive to only a narrow band of wavelengths.
Liddiard (U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,263 Mar 1986) also provides a mirror to increase the sensitivity of the detector, but notes that said mirror is optional and not key to the invention (which it is in the present invention).

Industrial Technology Research Institute


A pair of centering spindles are disposed away from cutting spindles and movably in the direction of Z or parallel with the axial center line of cutting spindles. A plurality of log center detecting means are disposed along the Z direction in relative to a log chucked by the centering spindles. A pair of holding members are mounted movably in the directions of X, Z, and Y including components orthogonally intersecting the X and Z. By way of controlling means, the centering spindle holding a log is caused to rotate at least one revolution thereby enabling the log center detecting means to determine each position of axial center which is assumed to constitute the axial centers at both end faces of the log, the virtual line passing through every positions of axial centers in Z direction is aligned with the Y, and the holding members are moved in the Z direction to hold the log, after which the chucking of log by the centering spindles are released. The holding members are moved in the X direction toward the cutting spindle, as well as in the Y direction to align every axial centers with the rotational center of cutting spindles, thus allowing the log to be chucked by the cutting spindle.

This invention relates to an apparatus for centering and feeding a log and to a method for centering and feeding a log, which are adapted to be used in combination with a working machine for turning a log while chucking the log by means of cutting spindles.
There is known a veneer lathe provided with cutting spindles having, in the direction of Z thereof, an axial center for chucking a log to be cut or peeled into a monolithic veneer (hereinafter referred simply to as a veneer). There is also known an apparatus for centering and feeding a log (or a log centering and feeding apparatus), which is designed to feed a log to the cutting spindles of the veneer lathe in such a manner that the log can be properly centered.
FIG. 23 shows part of one example of the conventional log centering and feeding apparatus which is disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication H4-60001, wherein one side portion of the log-chucking section of the apparatus is illustrated. According to this log centering and feeding apparatus, a pair of centering spindles 100 (only one of them is shown) having an axial center in the same Z direction as that of the cutting spindles (not shown) of the veneer lathe are disposed away from the cutting spindles by a predetermined distance in the direction of X. The centering spindles 100 are mounted on a guiding shaft 103 which is horizontally interposed between a pair of frames 101 erected vertically (in the direction of Y), and the position of centering spindles 100 is made adjustable by means of an X-axis adjustor comprising a fluid cylinder (not shown), etc. A pair of transporting claws 104 (only one of them is shown) are disposed over the centering spindles 100 in such a manner that the position of each of the transporting claws 104 can be adjusted in the vertical direction (in the direction of Y) by means of a Y-axis adjustor comprising a fluid cylinder 105, etc. and the transporting claws 104 are made entirely movable along the rail 110 or in the direction of X toward the cutting spindles of the veneer lathe.
Further, a plurality of log center detecting means each provided with a displacement detector 121 for detecting the position of center of a log (not shown) while the log is being kept chucked by the centering spindle 100 is mounted on a proximal end of each rocking arm 120 which is positioned at a desired interval along the longitudinal direction (in the direction of Z) of the log. In this case, the centering spindle 100 holding the log is rotated at least one revolution thereby enabling each log center detecting means to determine, through processing, each position of axial center which is assumed to constitute the axial centers at both end faces of the log, thus obtaining coordinate values on the axial center throughout the full length of log, on the basis of which the pair of centering spindles 100 are respectively shifted along the horizontal guiding shaft 103 by making use of the X-axis adjustor thereby performing the positional correction in the direction of X. Thereafter, each of the transporting claws 104 is moved downward to a predetermined degree so as to allow the log (that has been determined regarding the positional correction in the direction of X) to be held using the transporting claws 104, after which the log is moved in the vertical direction (in the direction of Y) up to a predetermined position by making use of the Y-axis adjustor (comprising the fluid cylinder 105), thereby performing the positional correction in the direction of Y. After finishing the alignment of axial center of log in both X and Y directions, the transporting claws 104 is moved, while maintaining this state of log. in the direction of X toward the cutting spindle of the veneer lathe so as to transfer the log to the cutting spindle.
As described above, according to the conventional log centering device, the adjustment data is output to the X-axis adjustor as well as to the Y-axis adjustor on the basis of data of axial center of log which have been obtained through the processing of data obtained from the displacement detector and from the rotation angle detector, whereby the log is shifted in the directions of X-axis and Y-axis so as to make the axial center of the log agree or align with the cutting spindle, thus performing the centering of the log.
However, since the aforementioned conventional centering device requires not only the X-axis adjustor for moving the holding claw (centering spindle 100) in the direction of X-axis but also the Y-axis adjustor for moving the transporting claw 104 in the direction of Y-axis, the log centering device itself inevitably becomes large in size and at the same time, becomes complicated in structure, thus inviting an increase in cost.

Apparatus and method for centering and feeding log


A closed cycle, hydraulic-turbine heat engine for providing a steady electrical or mechanical power source from any available or created relative heat source comprising an evaporation chamber, a vapor conduit connected to the evaporation reservoir and extending vertically therefrom, a condensing reservoir at the upper end of the gas conduit, and a liquid conduit between the condensing reservoir and the evaporation chamber. The liquid conduit, vapor conduit, evaporation chamber, and condensing reservoir form a closed system for containing a refrigerant. A heat exchanger coupled to an external heat source is arranged to provide heat to the refrigerant in the evaporation reservoir, and a condenser, coupled to a heat sink, condenses refrigerant vapor entering the condensing reservoir from the vapor conduit. A pressure regulating device responsive to a characteristic temperature of the system regulates the pressure in the closed system to raise or lower the boiling point of the refrigerant, so that the system is operable over a wide range of operating conditions and ambient temperatures. A turbine is positioned in the liquid conduit for coverting the flow of liquid refrigerant through the conduit into useful mechanical or electrical energy.

The present invention is a pollution free, closed cycle, hydraulic-turbine heat engine which operates readily from any environmentally available or created relative heat source or temperature differential, for example from solar or geothermal energy, to generate useful mechanical or electrical energy. It is especially adapted to operate as an individual unit for homes or small factories.
A number of heat engines, which operate from occuring or created heat sources, have been proposed in the past. Typically, these involve a high pressure, high velocity heat exchange cycle, in which a refrigerant having a boiling point lower than the heat source is placed into heat exchange relationship with the heat source and evaporated in a high pressure closed chamber. The vapor, under pressure, is directed through a high speed gas turbine to generate electricity.
In addition to the operating hazards of high pressure steam or gas, engines of this type usually require a substantial heat input and substantial temperature differentials (between various phases of the cycle) to operate efficiently. The high throughput of vapor needed to operate the turbine necessitates complicated piping and ducting, as well as the associated pumps, safety valves, and other such regulatory equipment. This renders such engines impractical, from both space and cost standpoints, for all but high output commercial applications.
Also, variable heat source and heat sink temperatures can cause these systems to operate inefficiently, or, with too great a temperature variance, can render them inoperable. Engines of this type possess no inherent energy storing capabilities, and without separate accommodation, they operate only so long as a heat input is maintained. Thus, although theoretically adaptable to a variety of heat energy sources, as a practical matter most heat engines are unsuitable for all but a limited number of applications, and particularly, to large temperature differentials of controlled, steady heat sources. These cost and performance drawbacks render most heat engines or power generation systems using heat engines impractical for an individual home or small factory, or other such applications requiring modest but steady and reliable power output.

Closed cycle, hydraulic-turbine heat engine


A color signal interpolation system and method, which performs a green sample interpolation on a signal with a cross color sample. The method includes: (A) providing neighboring color samples on an interpolation sample; (B) computing a luminance respectively of the interpolation sample and the neighboring color samples; (C) computing an edge value of the interpolation sample based on the luminance computed; (D) determining if the edge value is smaller than a predetermined threshold; (E) computing an average of the neighboring color samples that have the same color with the interpolation sample when the edge value is smaller than the predetermined threshold, and using the average as a first color output of the interpolation sample.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the technical field of color signal interpolation and, more particularly, to a color signal interpolation system and method for reconstructing green color.
2. Description of Related Art
A color image processing system essentially includes an image capture unit, an image reconstruction and processing unit, an image display and an image compression unit. The image capture unit includes an image sensor and a color filter array (CFA). FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a Bayer CFA and associated interpolation operations. As shown in FIG. 1, the frame is arranged in a form of interlaced GR-contained row and BG-contained row, where R, G and B are the three primary colors: green, red and blue (RGB). Each photosite in the CFA can have only one of RGB. The image reconstruction and processing unit thus uses an interpolation to reconstruct missing colors for each photosite, which fills up the respective green, red and blue planes.
In addition, the image sensor has the pixel crosstalk effect in which, when a pixel is illuminated by a light, charge generation and signal transmission will diffuse to the neighboring pixels due to the semiconductor process in pixel layout and production. In accordance with the observations and experiences, the horizontal crosstalk effect is stronger than the vertical crosstalk effect. For the example of Bayer color filter array, red and blue pixels present the crosstalk on the respective left and right green pixels. Due to the pixel crosstalk effect, the left and right green pixels relative to a red pixel have different outputs from those relative to a blue one. In this case, the pixel value of a green photosite presents an error component. Thus, the pixel crosstalk effect can be seen obviously in a flat area when an interpolation is used to reconstruct each pixel's red, green and blue values because of the result of error component.
To overcome this problem, U.S. Pat. No. 6,727,945 granted to Jaspers for a "Color signal interpolation" has disclosed that a difference of green photosites at different rows is compared to a threshold to accordingly determine if a corresponding photosite locates on an edge area, thereby selecting one from an original green value of the photosite, a interpolation value, or an average value for the corresponding photosite. However, the threshold is computed with pixels (on the RGB domain) captured by the image sensor, which encounters the problems of lower representative, easy to cause a resolution reduction, and hard to improve the crosstalk effect caused by a green error. Therefore, it is desirable to provide an improved color signal interpolation system and method to mitigate and/or obviate the aforementioned problems.

Color signal interpolation system and method


A horn pad for a steering wheel incorporating an air bag device. The horn pad comprises a pad main body, a planar switch opposed to a lower side of a horn operating portion and a support plate. A plurality of pressing protrusions are formed on the lower surface of the horn operating portion. The support plate is urged upwardly by the air bag and comprises a first support plate and a second support plate separatable from each other. Work preventive protrusions are formed passing through the planar switch and the first support plate between the second support plate and a lower surface of the horn operating portion such that a non-press-contact state can be maintained between the pressing protrusion and the planar switch when the horn operating portion bears no load. Accordingly, even if the support plate should be urged upwardly by an air bag or the like, this will not cause erroneous operation of the planar switch and, in addition, the thickness of the support plate can be made as thin as possible.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a steering wheel pad for use in vehicles and, more specifically, to a pad having a planar switch and a support plate having a rigidity sufficient for supporting the switch.
2. Description of Related Art
A steering wheel pad having a planar switch of the above-mentioned type has been known as described, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Hei 6-305425.
The conventional steering wheel pad comprises a pad main body (outer cover), a planar switch, and a support plate having a rigidity sufficient to support the switch. A plurality of attaching holes (engaging holes) are formed in the periphery of the support plate passing vertically therethrough, and attaching ribs (engaging legs) for engaging the periphery of the attaching holes of the support plate are formed on the rear face of the pad main body.
However, it has been found that the pad of the above-mentioned structure causes the following problems.
That is, when the support plate of the horn pad is urged upwardly by an air bag of an air bag device, for example, when an air bag folded and contained in the pad main body is loosened or relaxes from its initially assembled state, a gap between pressing protrusions and the planar switch is eliminated even when a horn button bears no load. Thus, the planar switch may make electric contact and thus may operate erroneously.
In view of the above, to maintain a gap between the upper surface of the support plate at a portion inboard of the periphery and the rear face of the pad main body, spacer protrusions are formed on at least one of the rear face corresponding to the periphery of the support plate.
However, there is still a concern that the support plate may distort upwardly in the vicinity of a central portion, thereby inadvertently actuating the planar switch. This drawback may be overcome if the support plate has a sufficient rigidity not to distort due to the urging force of the air bag. However, ensuring sufficient rigidity of the support plate increases the thickness of the support plate considerably, which is not desirable because this conflicts with the demand of reduced weight and compact structure of the horn pad.


A hollow gas turbine vane is shown enclosing, in spaced relation, a vane insert for receiving cooling air. The insert has a plurality of apertures for selectively directing jets of the cooling air against the internal walls of the vane. A portion of the air is discharged from within the vane chamber through a slit in the trailing edge which contains cooling pins extending transversely thereacross to maintain the slit dimensionally stable and also induce turbulence in the exhausting cooling air to improve its cooling effectiveness. Certain apertures in the insert adjacent the trailing edge are selectively directed to cause jets of the cooling air to impinge at the base of certain of the pins in the inlet area of the slit to promote turbulence in the air entering the slit and adjacent the internal face, thereby maximizing heat transfer from the slit walls to the air.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cooled gas turbine vanes and more particularly to hollow vanes housing an insert having apertures directing jets of cooling air against the internal walls of the vane.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hollow, air-cooled gas turbine vanes containing an insert for directing the cooling air to impinge against the internal walls of the vane are known in the art as exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,056,332 and 3,767,322, with the latter patent and the present invention having a common assignee. The cooling air, after impinging on the inner walls of the vane is normally exhausted into the gas turbine motive gas flow path. A portion of the air may be exhausted through side openings in the vane walls to provide a protective layer of air adjacent the exterior surface of the vane for film cooling and another portion may be exhausted through a trailing edge outlet in the form of a radially extending narrow passage or slit from the internal chamber which also cools the area of the vane adjacent the trailing edge.
It has been suggested in the prior art air cooled vanes to employ pin-like members extending transversely within the trailing edge outlet to generate turbulence in the flowing air to improve the convective heat transfer between the air and the adjacent vane wall of the slit. The pins also serve as mechanical support to maintain the exhaust passage or slit dimensionally stable and minimize thermal distortion that could cause unpredictable air flow therethrough.
It was found that the pin height has no appreciable effect upon the heat transferred to the air flowing thereacross, and the greatest cooling effect was provided by turbulent air flow adjacent the internal wall surfaces of the slit. However, because of the generally broad entrance or throat leading to the downstream narrowed exhaust slit, the cooling air velocity, at its entrance, was generally insufficient to generate turbulence therein as it flowed around the initial pins in this entrance area. Thus, to maximize the heat transfer to the cooling air in the vicinity of the entrance area it was necessary to increase the air velocity across the initial pins sufficiently to cause turbulence in the air flow adjacent the slit wall surfaces. (The air velocity to the downstream narrowed passage of the slit was sufficient to cause turbulence in this downstream area providing adequate heat transfer to the air flowing therethrough.)
Two obvious alternatives for increasing the entrance velocity of the cooling air are (1) increase the volume of air flowing therethrough or (2) decrease the entrance throat area to the slit. However, because the efficiency of the turbine is reduced with each incremental increase in cooling air flow, it is preferable to maintain the volumetric flow rate of such cooling air to the vanes at a minimum. Further, because of the variations in heat absorption rates and resulting rates and amount of thermal expansion induced thereby along the vane walls and the attendant stresses associated therewith, it is preferable not to decrease the throat or entrance area to the slit by any sudden or abrupt increase in the wall thickness of the vane.


The present invention relates to parasitic helminth aromatic amino acid decarboxylase proteins; to parasitic helminth aromatic amino acid decarboxylase nucleic acid molecules, including those that encode such aromatic amino acid decarboxylase proteins; to antibodies raised against such aromatic amino acid decarboxylase proteins; and to compounds that inhibit parasitic helminth aromatic amino acid decarboxylase activity. The present invention also includes methods to obtain such proteins, nucleic acid molecules, antibodies, and inhibitory compounds. Also included in the present invention are therapeutic compositions comprising such proteins, nucleic acid molecules, antibodies and/or inhibitory compounds as well as the use of such therapeutic compositions to protect animals from diseases caused by filariids. The present invention also includes a method for detecting the presence of amino acid decarboxylases.

The present invention relates to parasitic helminth aromatic amino acid decarboxylase (ADC) nucleic acid molecules, proteins encoded by such nucleic acid molecules, antibodies raised against such proteins, compounds capable of inhibiting the function of such proteins and methods to identify such inhibitors. The present invention also includes therapeutic compositions comprising such nucleic acid molecules, proteins, antibodies, and/or inhibitors, as well as their use to protect animals from diseases caused by parasitic helminths. The present invention also includes a method for detecting the presence of amino acid decarboxylases.
Parasitic helminth infections in animals, including humans, are typically treated by chemical drugs. One disadvantage with chemical drugs is that they must be administered often. For example, dogs susceptible to heartworm are typically treated monthly. Repeated administration of drugs, however, often leads to the development of resistant helminth strains that no longer respond to treatment. Furthermore, many of the chemical drugs cause harmful side effects in the animals being treated, and as larger doses become required due to the build up of resistance, the side effects become even greater. Moreover, a number of drugs only treat symptoms of a parasitic disease but are unable to prevent infection by the parasitic helminth.
An alternative method to prevent parasitic helminth infection includes administering a vaccine against a parasitic helminth. Although many investigators have tried to develop vaccines based on specific antigens, it is well understood that the ability of an antigen to stimulate antibody production does not necessarily correlate with the ability of the antigen to stimulate an immune response capable of protecting an animal from infection, particularly in the case of parasitic helminths. Although a number of antigens have been identified in several parasitic helminths, including proteases and macromolecules demonstrating protease-like activity, (See, for example, Lustigman, 1995, Antimicrobial Agents and Chemother., 39(9): 1913-1919; Mehta, 1992, Mol. Biochem. Parasitol., 53:1-16; Richer et al., 1992, Exper. Parasitol., 75:213-222; Tripp et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,603) there is yet to be a commercially available vaccine developed for any parasitic helminth.
As an example of the complexity of parasitic helminths, the life cycle of Dirofilaria immitis, the filariid nematode that causes heartworm, includes a variety of life forms, each of which presents different targets, and challenges, for immunization. In a mosquito, D. immitis microfilariae go through two larval stages (L1 and L2) and become mature third stage larvae (L3), which can then be transmitted back to the dog when the mosquito takes a blood meal. In a dog, the L3 molt to the fourth larval stage (L4), and subsequently to the fifth stage, or immature adults. The immature adults migrate to the heart and pulmonary arteries, where they mature to adult heartworms. Adult heartworms are quite large and preferentially inhabit the heart and pulmonary arteries of an animal. Sexually mature adults, after mating, produce microfilariae which traverse capillary beds and circulate in the vascular system of the dog. In particular, heartworm is a major problem in dogs, which typically do not develop immunity upon infection (i.e., dogs can become reinfected even after being cured by chemotherapy). In addition, heartworm infection has been reported in cats, ferrets, and humans.
The mechanisms and regulatory pathways involved in the development of helminths are not clear. For example, it has been shown in the free living nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), that the development of the larvae is regulated by environmental signals through chemosensory neurons. Blockage of signal transmission affects the development of the nematode (Bargmann, et al., 1991, Science, 251, 1243-1246). Many neuron-related genes have been identified in C. elegans. Mutation of the genes which control normal neuron function in C. elegans will not only affect the behavior of the nematode, but will also affect the development of the larvae and egg laying of mutated female worms. In parasitic nematodes such as D. immitis, very little is known about mechanisms involved in the migration, signal transmission and the developmental regulation of the parasites. However, host and tissue specificities in parasite infections suggest that parasitic nematodes might also need correct environmental signals for development.
There has been no previous report of aromatic amino acid decarboxylases (ADC) in parasitic helminths. Although three genes coding for putative aromatic amino acid decarboxylase-like proteins have been sequenced in the free-living nematode C. elegans, neither biochemical properties nor biological functions of these proteins have been described. An unrelated but biochemically similar molecule, dopa-decarboxylase (DOPA-DC), has been shown to be an important enzyme in catecholamine metabolism in animals. In Drosophila, studies of DOPA-DC indicate that the majority of DOPA-DC is localized in the epidermis and that the enzyme is involved in the formation of flexible cuticle during the development of larvae (see Wright, T. R. F., 1996, Journal of Heredity, 87:175-190). Due to the similarities in biochemical properties and in vivo expression between DOPA-DC and parasitic helminth ADC disclosed herein it is likely that parasitic helminth ADC plays a significant role in cuticle formation during parasitic helminth development and in larval survival in the hostile conditions within the host.
As such, there remains a need to identify efficacious compositions that protect animals against diseases caused by parasitic helminths such as D. immitis. Such compositions would preferably also protect animals from infection by such helminths.
The present invention relates to a novel product and a process to protect animals against parasitic helminth infection (e.g., prevent and/or treat such an infection). According to the present invention there are provided parasitic helminth ADC proteins (e.g. Dirofilaria and Brugia ADC proteins) and mimetopes thereof; parasitic helminth ADC nucleic acid molecules, including those that encode such proteins; antibodies raised against such ADC proteins (i.e., anti-parasitic helminth ADC antibodies); and compounds that inhibit the function of parasitic helminth ADCs (i.e. inhibitory compounds).
The present invention also includes methods to obtain and/or identify such proteins, nucleic acid molecules, antibodies and inhibitory compounds. Also included in the present invention are therapeutic compositions comprising such proteins, nucleic acid molecules, antibodies, and/or inhibitory compounds, as well as use of such therapeutic compositions to protect animals from diseases caused by parasitic helminths.
One embodiment of the present invention is an isolated nucleic acid molecule that includes a parasitic helminth aromatic amino acid decarboxylase nucleic acid molecule. Such nucleic acid molecules are referred to as ADC nucleic acid molecules. A preferred parasitic helminth nucleic acid molecule includes an isolated nucleic acid molecule selected from the group consisting of: (a) a nucleic acid molecule having at least about 50 nucleotides wherein said nucleic acid molecule hybridizes with a nucleic acid molecule selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:7, SEQ ID NO:9, SEQ ID NO:11, SEQ ID NO:13, SEQ ID NO:15, SEQ ID NO:16, SEQ ID NO:18, SEQ ID NO:19 and SEQ ID NO:21 under conditions that allow about 20% base pair mismatch between said isolated nucleic acid molecule and said nucleic acid molecule having said nucleic acid sequence, and (b) a nucleic acid molecule having at least about 150 nucleotides wherein said nucleic acid sequence hybridizes with a nucleic acid molecule selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:7, SEQ ID NO:9, SEQ ID NO:11, SEQ ID NO:13, SEQ ID NO:15, SEQ ID NO:16, SEQ ID NO:18, SEQ ID NO:19 and SEQ ID NO:21 under conditions that allow about 30% base pair mismatch between said isolated nucleic acid molecule and said nucleic acid molecule having said nucleic acid sequence.
Additional preferred parasitic helminth nucleic acid molecules include either a Dirofilaria ADC nucleic acid molecule, preferably a Dirofilaria immitis (D. immitis) ADC nucleic acid molecule, or a Brugia ADC nucleic acid molecule, preferably a Brugia malayi (B. malayi) ADC nucleic acid molecule. A D. immitis ADC nucleic acid molecule preferably includes nucleic acid sequence SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:7, SEQ ID NO:9, SEQ ID NO:11, SEQ ID NO:13, SEQ ID NO:15, SEQ ID NO:16 and/or SEQ ID NO:18, and a B. malayi ADC nucleic acid molecule preferably includes nucleic acid sequence SEQ ID NO:19 and/or SEQ ID NO:21.
In one embodiment, a preferred D. immitis ADC nucleic acid molecule comprises a nucleic acid molecule of at least about 50 nucleotides, preferably at least about 100 nucleotides, more preferably at least about 350 nucleotides, more preferably at least about 450 nucleotides, more preferably at least about 500 nucleotides even more preferably at least about 800 nucleotides. In another embodiment, a preferred B. malayi nucleic acid molecule comprises a nucleic acid molecule of at least about 50 nucleotides, preferably at least about 100 nucleotides, more preferably at least about 350 nucleotides, more preferably at least about 500 nucleotides even more preferably at least about 550 nucleotides. In yet another embodiment, a preferred D. immitis or B. malayi ADC nucleic acid molecule comprises a full-length coding region which encodes a full-length ADC protein.
The present invention also relates to recombinant molecules, recombinant viruses and recombinant cells that include an isolated ADC nucleic acid molecule of the present invention. Also included are methods to produce such recombinant molecules, recombinant molecules, recombinant viruses and recombinant cells.
Another embodiment of the present invention includes a parasitic helminth ADC protein. A preferred parasitic helminth ADC protein includes an isolated protein comprising an amino acid sequence that is at least about 90% identical to an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO:6, SEQ ID NO:10, SEQ ID NO:14, SEQ ID NO:17, and SEQ ID NO:20 or fragments thereof having at least about 35 amino acid residues.
A preferred parasitic helminth ADC protein includes a Dirofilaria or a Brugia ADC protein. More preferred ADC proteins include Dirofilaria immitis or Brugia malayi ADC proteins (referred to herein as Di-ADC or Bm-ADC proteins respectively). A preferred Di-ADC protein comprises amino acid sequence SEQ ID NO:6, SEQ ID NO:10, SEQ ID NO:14 or SEQ ID NO:17, and a preferred Bm-ADC protein comprises amino acid sequence SEQ ID NO:20.
In one embodiment, a preferred Di-ADC protein comprises an amino acid sequence of at least about 35 amino acids in length, preferably at least about 50 amino acids in length, more preferably at least about 100 amino acids in length, more preferably at least about 200 amino acids in length, even more preferably at least about 250 amino acids in length. In yet another embodiment, a preferred Bm-ADC protein comprises an amino acid sequence of at least about 35 amino acids in length, preferably at least about 50 amino acids in length, more preferably at least about 100 amino acids in length, more preferably at least about 150 amino acids in length, even more preferably at least about 180 amino acids in length. In yet another embodiment, a preferred Di-ADC or Bm-ADC protein comprises a full-length protein, i.e., a protein encoded by a full-length coding region.
The present invention also relates to mimetopes of parasitic helminth ADC proteins. A preferred mimetope of a parasitic helminth ADC protein includes a mimetope of a Dirofilaria ADC protein or a Brugia ADC protein. The present invention further relates to isolated antibodies that selectively bind to parasitic helminth ADC proteins. A preferred antibody includes an antibody that selectively binds to either a Dirofilaria ADC protein or to a mimetope thereof. Also preferred is an antibody that selectively binds to a Brugia ADC protein or to a mimetope thereof. The present invention further relates to inhibitors of parasitic helminth ADC proteins. A preferred inhibitor of parasitic helminth ADC proteins includes an inhibitor of Dirofilaria ADC protein function or an inhibitor of Brugia ADC protein function. Also included are methods, including recombinant physical or chemical methods, to produce proteins, mimetopes, antibodies, and inhibitors of the present invention. Also included is a method to identify inhibitors of ADC activity which includes the steps of contacting an isolated filariid aromatic amino acid decarboxylase protein having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO:6, SEQ ID NO:10, SEQ ID NO:14, SEQ ID NO:17, and SEQ ID NO:20 with a putative inhibitory compound under conditions in which, in the absence of said compound, said protein has aromatic amino acid decarboxylase activity; and determining if said putative inhibitory compound inhibits said activity.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a therapeutic composition that is capable of protecting an animal from disease caused by a parasitic helminth. Such a therapeutic composition includes one or more of the following protective compounds: a parasitic helminth ADC protein or a mimetope thereof; an isolated parasitic helminth ADC nucleic acid molecule; an isolated antibody that selectively binds to a parasitic helminth ADC protein; and/or a compound capable of inhibiting ADC function identified by its ability to inhibit parasitic helminth ADC function. A preferred therapeutic composition of the present invention also includes an excipient, an adjuvant and/or a carrier. Preferred ADC nucleic acid molecule therapeutic compositions of the present invention include genetic vaccines, recombinant virus vaccines and recombinant cell vaccines. Also included in the present invention is a method to protect an animal from disease caused by a parasitic helminth, comprising the step of administering to the animal a therapeutic composition of the present invention.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method for detecting the presence of an amino acid decarboxylase, said method comprising the steps of: (a) contacting a putative amino acid decarboxylase-containing composition with a synthetic substrate to create a reaction product, wherein the synthetic substrate comprises an amino acid conjugated to a tag which produces a reference signal, where the tag is cleaved from the synthetic substrate in the presence of an amino acid decarboxylase resulting in a cleavage product which produces a cleavage signal which is different from the reference signal; and (b) observing the reaction signal produced by the reaction product and comparing the reaction signal with the reference signal and the cleavage signal. A reaction signal qualitatively equivalent to the cleavage signal indicates the presence of an amino acid decarboxylase.

Methods for the detection of amino acid decarboxylases


A method and system for failsafe recovery and upgrade of an operating system embedded within a peripheral or consumer electronic device. The method and system involves replacing current implementations that use ROM memory to store a copy of the embedded operating system, or critical portions thereof, with a disk-based ROM and redundant backup copies of the initial operating system kernel and the primary image required for booting the final embedded operating system. By maintaining critical files in read-only partitions, the robustness and reliability achieved using ROM memory in currently available devices can be achieved without expensive ROM memory via the disk-based ROM.

The present invention relates to embedded operating systems and, in particular, to a method and system, for upgrade and recovery of an embedded operating system that do not rely on read-only memory.
Computer operating systems represent a well-known and mature technology of fundamental importance to the computer hardware and software industries. Computer operating systems have evolved into relatively large collections of software programs and routines that provide an interface between the processing hardware of a computer system and the users of that processing capability, including human users, application programs, peripheral devices, appliances, and remote devices and computers interconnected with the computer system via one or more communications networks. For example, a computer operating system is responsible for managing the internal memory resources of a computer system and allocation of those resources to active processes, as well as for managing loading and execution of programs associated with active processes and multiplexing of concurrently active processes. Computer operating systems include various device drivers that control peripheral devices interconnected with the computer system and that manage data transfer between the computer system and the peripheral devices, memory management facilities, command interpreters, file system facilities, and many additional functions. Modern computer operating systems are also responsible for providing an interactive environment with which human users interact with the computer system.
Initially, computer systems did not include operating systems. Operating systems evolved to provide efficient and robust servicing of concurrent human users of computer systems. The evolution of operating systems has been tightly coupled to the evolution of computer system hardware capabilities. As the hardware capabilities of peripheral devices and the functions and requirements for peripheral devices have increased, the concept of embedded operating systems that run within peripheral devices, such as printers, has emerged. Embedded operating systems internally manage peripheral and consumer electronic devices just as computer operating systems manage computer systems. In fact, certain operating systems initially developed as computer operating systems are currently being transformed into embedded operating systems for managing peripheral and consumer electronic devices, such as printers, home entertainment devices, and other such electronic devices.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical computing environment managed by an embedded operating system within a peripheral or consumer electronic device. A typical, high-end device includes a processor 102 that executes an embedded operating system and various software routines that control operation of the device, a random access memory (xe2x80x9cRAMxe2x80x9d) 104, a read-only memory (xe2x80x9cROMxe2x80x9d) 106, a hard disk or other mass storage device 108, a communications controller, such as an Ethernet controller, fibre channel controller, or modem 110, and various controllers 112 and 114 that control electrical and electromechanical components of the device. In a printer, for example, various controllers, such as controllers 112 and 114, may control electrical motors that feed sheets of paper and that control mechanical and electromechanical components such as print heads, collation mechanisms, and LCD front panel displays and pushbuttons that display information to a user and through which a user may input data to the routines that control operation of the printer. Typically, the processor 102, RAM 104, and ROM 106 may be interconnected via a high speed bus 116, that is, in turn, interconnected with a lower-speed bus 118 via a bus bridge 120. The lower-speed bus 118 typically interconnects the mass storage device 108 and controllers 110, 112, and 114 with the processor 102 and the RAM 104.
In current devices that employ embedded operating systems, instructions that represent the embedded operating system or critical components of the embedded operating system are stored in ROM 106 so that, when the device is powered on, the embedded operating system or critical components of the embedded operating system can be reliably retrieved from ROM for execution by the processor 102. The failure rate of ROM is much lower than the failure rate of mass storage devices so that, by using ROM to store the embedded operating system or critical components of the embedded operating system, the device can be powered up to a functional state even when the mass storage device becomes unreliable or fails completely. ROM data is maintained through power-on and power-off cycles, as is data stored on disk drives, but RAM data is not, and therefore RAM cannot be used for storing non-volatile copies of the embedded operating system. In addition to the critical components of the operating system, called the kernel, an operating system typically requires a data environment, called a file system, in which less frequently invoked routines and data files are stored. This data environment is typically stored in current peripheral and consumer electronic devices in file systems on the mass storage device 108 that allow data to be both read from and written to the file system. However, file systems that allow both reads and writes are potentially error prone, and sufficient robustness of the data can be obtained only by complex and expensive software technologies or combinations of specialized hardware and software technologies.
The kernel and associated data environment that together compose an embedded operating system are referred to as the xe2x80x9cprimary image.xe2x80x9d Normally, when errors occur that corrupt the embedded operating system, user intervention is required to rebuild the primary image from stored backup copies of the primary image, routines stored in ROM, or a combination of backup copies and ROM-based information. ROM memory is an expensive component, small in capacity, and is relatively expensive and time-consuming to update. Designers, users, and manufacturers of peripheral and consumer electronic devices have thus recognized the need for robustly storing an embedded operating system within an electronic device without using ROM memory and without using complex software or software and hardware solutions for robustly storing archival copies of primary images. In addition, designers, manufacturers, and users of peripheral and consumer electronic devices have recognized the need for embedded operating systems that can automatically detect and correct file system corruption, including corruption of the primary image, without user intervention, and that can be easily updated to newer or alternate versions from remote locations without extensive user intervention.
In one embodiment of the present invention within a peripheral or consumer electronic device, a read-only disk partition /boot is employed as a disk-based ROM that stores a failsafe copy of an initial operating system (xe2x80x9cOSxe2x80x9d) kernel as well as a backup copy of a primary image comprising a compressed archive file containing the data environment and operating system routines that are sufficient to boot up and install an embedded operating system. A second generally read-only disk partition /dist stores a backup copy of the primary image as well. The initial OS kernel, upon power-on or other boot event, is instantiated in a RAM-disk partition and runs several script routines that verify the integrity of the primary image and automatically rebuild the primary image in case of corruption. These script routines also perform integrity checks on the /boot partition and can rebuild the /boot partition in the case of a xe2x80x9cdestructivexe2x80x9d upgrade operation invoked as a result of a new primary image that has been downloaded to the /dist partition. By using the /boot partition as a disk-based ROM, the expensive ROM component typically employed in currently available peripheral and consumer electronic devices can be eliminated. Detection and correction of file system corruption is automatic, as is installation and upgrade to a new embedded OS version. Because the /boot partition that serves as disk-based ROM is read-only, corruption of the primary image and OS kernel stored within the /boot partition is extremely improbable, providing the robustness and reliability currently provided by storing critical routines and data in a ROM component.

Method and system for failsafe recovery and upgrade of an embedded operating system

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.