The expression of the lipidated form of the peptidoglycan-associated protein (PAL) of gram-negative bacteria is achieved through the use of a plasmid containing a tightly regulated promoter. A bacterial host cell is transformed, transduced or transfected with such a plasmid. The host cell is then cultured under conditions such that the lipidated recombinant PAL is expressed. The lipidated recombinant PAL is included in an antigenic composition administered to a mammalian host to immunize against a gram-negative bacterium.

The cell walls of gram-negative bacteria contain cross-linked moieties known as peptidoglycans. A number of gram-negative bacteria produce proteins which are covalently linked to the peptidoglycans. Such a protein is referred to as a peptidoglycan-associated lipoprotein (PAL). PALs are present as part of the to locus in a number of gram-negative bacteria, including Legionella pneumophila (Bibliography entry 1), Escherichia coli (2), Haemophilus ducreyi (3), Campylobacter jejuni (4), Pseudomonas putida (5), Brucella abortus (6), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella aerogenes, Serratia marcescens, Proteus vulgaris, Salmonella typhimurium (7) Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (8), Helicobacter pylori (9) Chlamydia pneumoniae (10), and Chlamydia trachomatis (11).
Other PAL-containing bacteria are the Haemophilus influenzae (H. influenzae) bacteria. The H. influenzae bacteria are divided into two groups. Those strains which possess a known capsule are typed by the serological reaction of the capsule with reference antisera. Types a-f have been identified. Strains which fail to react with any of the reference antisera are known as nontypable.
H. influenzae type b (Hib) is the most frequent cause of neonatal meningitis and other invasive infections in the United States (12). The major incidence of childhood meningitis occurs between the ages of one and five years. Sixty percent of those meningitis cases due to Hib occur in children under the age of two (12).
Nontypable H. influenzae (NTHi) is a gram-negative organism which causes a number of diseases, including pneumonia, bacteremia, meningitis, postpartum sepsis, and acute febrile tracheobronchitis in adults (13). NTHi has been reported to cause between 20 and 40 percent of all cases of otitis media seen in young children (14, 15, 16). Children may experience multiple infections due to the same organism since infection confers no long lasting immunity. Current therapy for chronic or repeated occurrences of otitis media includes administration of antibiotics and insertion of tubes to drain the inner ear. NTHi strains have also been implicated as a primary cause of sinusitis (17). Additionally, NTHi causes neonatal sepsis.
Current capsular-based antigenic compositions are ineffective against NTHi. The surface of these bacteria has been shown to be extremely antigenically variable, with the major outer membrane proteins, P1 and P2, being particularly diverse (18, 19). In humans, the presence of serum bactericidal antibodies has been reported to correlate with protection from otitis media caused by sensitive NTHi strains (20).
Candidates for inclusion in antigenic compositions against NTHi should be highly conserved at the amino acid level, surface exposed (in particular, outer membrane proteins), elicit bactericidal antibodies, and be present in all isolates. Previous research has shown that the P6 (also known as PBOMP-1 and HiPAL) (21) protein of NTHi meets all of these criteria. The purified native proteins have been shown to elicit bactericidal antibodies (22, 23, 24, 25) and are conserved antigenically (22, 23, 26, 27).
Evaluation of the genetic sequence of the P6 gene has shown that it is highly conserved among otic NTHi isolates and thus the protein sequence is also highly conserved. Native P6 is a lipoprotein, more specifically a PAL, which is modified at the amino-terminal cysteine with lipids. This protein is present in H. influenzae in relatively small amounts (less than 1% of total outer membrane proteins), making purification from the native organism of useful quantities quite difficult. Thus, a recombinant version of P6 is required for further development as a component in antigenic compositions.
Several laboratories were unable to express lipidated rP6 in large quantities in E. coli (28, 29). As a result, initial recombinant constructs expressing P6 in E. coli could express only a nonlipidated version of the protein. These groups reported that, while the lipidated P6 protein purified from H. influenzae was more immunogenic than nonlipidated rP6 purified from E. coli, it was difficult to engineer a DNA vector which would express lipidated P6 (28, 29); i.e., not better than the low levels of native P6 expressed by H. influenzae.
Previous attempts to express lipidated rP6 relied on promoters which were not under tight transcriptional regulation, such as trc, taq, lac and PL-C1857. It was theorized that this somewhat leaky transcription led to subtle effects on the E. coli which contributed to low levels of expression of the lipidated protein. Experimental evidence indicated that the ability of signal peptidase II to add lipid to the N-terminus of the protein was not responsible for the low yield of processed P6 (data not shown).
While the P6 protein of H. influenzae has been a primary candidate for inclusion in antigenic compositions against Haemophilus disease (20, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31), the relatively small amounts available from H. influenzae have made recombinant expression of this protein essential. Previous efforts to express lipidated P6 protein in meaningful quantities have been unsuccessful (28, 29). Thus, researchers have focused on the expression and purification of multiple forms of nonlipidated P6.
The antibody response engendered by the nonlipidated rP6 was biologically functional, capable of protecting infant rats from meningitis (28) and eliciting bactericidal antibodies (28, 29), but of a lower magnitude than those elicited by lipidated native P6 (28).
Therefore, there is a need to construct host cell-expression vector systems which express lipidated PALs of gram-negative bacteria. In particular, there is a need to construct host-cell expression vector systems which express lipidated rP6, which can then be included in antigenic compositions against H. influenzae.

Production of the lipidated form of the peptidoglycan-associated lipoproteins of gram-negative bacteria


A composition for local anesthesia which comprises (A) lidocaine, (B) a catecholamine such as epinephrine in an amount of, for example, 1/200,000 (g/ml) based on the volume of the composition, and (C) one or more amino acids such as glycine, glutamic acid, and L-glutamic acid-L-lysine or one or more hydroxycarboxylic acids such as lactic acid, glycolic acid, and citric acid, which has a duration suitable for short-time dental operations such as tooth extraction and excellent storage stability.

For operations in the fields of oral surgery and dental treatment, in particular, for tooth extraction and other in dental treatment, anesthetics for local injection (agents for local anesthesia) containing lidocaine (2-diethylamino-N-(2,6-dimethyl-phenyl)acetamide) as an active ingredient have been used. For example, "Xylocaine.RTM. Cartridge for Dental Use" (Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.) is clinically used. This agent for local anesthesia is a composition for topical administration which contains 20 mg of lidocaine hydrochloride and 0.0125 mg of epinephrine per 1 ml of parenteral solution. The agent is usually used in an amount of 0.3-1.8 ml to carry out infiltration anesthesia or block anesthesia (see, a package insert of the drug).
Agents for local anesthesia are generally formulated with a catecholamine such as epinephrine which has angiotonic effect on local capillary blood vessels to reduce blood flow. The effect of the catecholamine is to decrease bleeding in a filed of operation by lowering blood flow, and to reduce transmigration (diffusion) of an anesthetic agent being an active ingredient into blood and maintain high concentration of the anesthetic agent in the local tissue to achieve a prolonged local anesthetic effect (Collins, V. J., Principles of Anesthesiology, 2nd Ed., Lea and Febiger, Philadelphia, 1976; as a review about agents for dental local anesthesia, see, Dental Outlook, special edition, "Medical practice of tooth extraction," 4. Dental local anesthetics, pp.84-94, 1979).
However, when the aforementioned agent for local anesthesia is used for dental operations such as tooth extraction, which may be completed in a short period of time such as in several to 10 minutes, the local anesthetic effect tends to be maintained longer than required. In a consequence, oral and glossal benumbedness may remain several hours after the operation, and difficulties may arise in eating and drinking. In addition, a catecholamine such as epinephrine constricts blood vessels to decrease blood flow in a tissue and increases local oxygen consumption. For this reason, when vasoconstriction is maintained for longer hours than needed, tissue necrosis and delay of wound healing may possibly be caused. Accordingly, a development of an agent for local anesthesia has been desired which have a duration suitable for short-time operations such as tooth extraction.
A content ratio of a catecholamine added to a local anesthetic is generally recommended to be around 1/50,000-1/200,000 (g/ml) based on the volume (ml) of a local anesthetic agent (see, the above-described "Dental Outlook," special edition, "Medical practice of tooth extraction," p.92, right column), and dental lidocaine preparations which have been clinically used so far contain 1/80,000 (g/ml, 0.0125 mg/ml) of epinephrine. The inventor of the present invention conducted various studies to provide an agent for local anesthesia which has a duration suitable for short-time dental operations such as tooth extraction, and as a result, they found that a necessary and sufficient duration of local anesthetic action for a dental anesthesia can be achieved by adding about 1/200,000 of epinephrine (g/ml, 0.005 mg as a free base per ml).
Catecholamines such as epinephrine and norepinephrine are known to be unstable under neutral or alkaline conditions, and readily oxidized by an oxidizing agent such as oxygen, and colored to give a red or pale red to brown solution (Fukushima et al., "Incompatibilities of Parenteral Injections," published by Fuji Print Co., Ltd., Press Dept., 1982, Section of "Adrenal Hormone Preparations", pp.384-395). Grubstein et al. (Grubstein, B. and Milano, E., Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, 18, pp.1549-1566, 1992) reported an issue of stabilization of epinephrine formulated in local anesthetics.
The aforementioned "Xylocaine.RTM. Cartridge for Dental Use" (Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.) containing epinephrine is formulated with sodium pyrosulfite as an anti-oxidant in a content ratio of 0.6 mg per ml to prevent the oxidation of epinephrine. There are also known a formulation comprising a dental local anesthetic composition containing lidocaine and epinephrine added with dried sodium sulfite as an anti-oxidant ("Xylestesin A," Hakusui Trading, Co., Ltd.), and a formulation comprising a dental local anesthetic composition containing lidocaine and norepinephrine (0.04 mg per 1 ml) added with dried sodium sulfite as an anti-oxidant ("Xylestesin," Hakusui Trading Co., Ltd.).
The inventors of the present invention conducted studies to provide a composition for local anesthesia suitable for tooth extraction or the like by decreasing a content of a catecholamine based on lidocaine. In the course of the studies, they found that the oxidative degradation of a catecholamine was remarkably accelerated by lowering the content of a catecholamine such as epinephrine. They also found that catecholamines are extremely unstable to oxidation in a composition for anesthesia containing a catecholamine in an amount of about 1/200,000 (W/V: g/ml, 0.005 mg as a free base per 1 ml), and that it is quite difficult to store the composition stably by using sodium pyrosulfite or dried sodium sulfite which is conventionally used as an antioxidant. These problems have not been suggested or taught to date in the field of the art.
Grubstein et al. as mentioned above (Grubstein, B. and Milano, E., Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, 18, pp.1549-1566, 1992) discloses the results of stabilization of epinephrine in formulations containing pyrosulfite and citric acid in combination (Table1, Code D). However, these results are not unexpectedly superior to the results obtained by using pyrosulfite alone. In addition, the results neither suggest nor teach stabilizing effect of citric acid for epinephrine. Furthermore, these results were obtained by formulations containing epinephrine in an amount of 1/80,000 (W/V), and do not teach the fact that the stability of epinephrine is markedly reduced with decreasing amount of epinephrine.
A package insert (published in January, 1994) of Xylocaine.RTM. (lidocaine HCl injection, USP), an agent for dental local anesthesia sold by Astra USA, Inc., Westborough, Mass., USA, describes in Table 1 an aqueous solution containing lidocaine (2%) and epinephrine at a concentration of 1/100,000 or 1/50,000 (g/ml) together with citric acid (0.2 mg/ml). However, the package insert neither suggests nor teaches an action of citric acid contained in the aqueous solution. Furthermore, the agent for local anesthesia also contains epinephrine at a high concentration, and therefore, the product does not teach the fact that the stability of epinephrine is markedly reduced with decreasing amount of epinephrine.


Methods for fabricating pole piece tips for a magnetic transducer are disclosed. The ion-milling operations for trimming P2 and notching P1 are controlled using feed-forward and feedback. The preferred method of the invention includes steps for setting four time values used in different phases of the ion-milling process based on feed-forward and feedback of measured values including the P2 width measured in the mask, multiple P2B measurements and measurement of the notch depth.

In a typical prior art magnetic disk recording system a slider containing magnetic transducers for reading and writing magnetic transitions flies above the disk while it is being rotated by a spindle motor. The disk includes a plurality of thin films and at least one ferromagnetic thin film in which the recording (write) head records the magnetic transitions in which information is encoded. The magnetic domains in the media on can be written longitudinally or perpendicularly. The shape and size of the pole piece tips at the ABS and any shields are the primary factors in determining the track width. The read and write elements of the head (also called a slider) are built-up in layers on a wafer using thin film processing techniques to form a large number of heads at the same time. FIG. 1 illustrates the prior art relationships between the P2 pole piece tip P2T and the P1 before P1 is milled using P2T as a mask. The section taken is perpendicular to the wafer surface. Only one set of head structures is shown. The thin film for P1 is deposited first followed by the thin film for the gap layer.
FIG. 2 is an illustration of the shape of P1 after ion-milling. The surface of P1 has been milled to form a tip under the gap. The surface of P1 slopes away from the tip. The distance from interface of the gap and P1 to the recessed beveled surface is called the "notch depth". The process of creating the P1 tip is also called notching. The width of the P1 tip at the gap is called the P1A width. The width of the P2 tip at the gap is called the P2B width. The P1A and P2B dimensions of write pole pieces within the head are critical parameters to the areal density of recording head structures. The view shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 shows the write gap. The track width view (not shown) is perpendicular to the write gap view.
Multiple Ion Mill process steps are used to perform track width trim and P1 notching to control the unique multidimensional structure of the write pole tips. The ion-milling process uses a high voltage source to ionize low pressure gasses, accelerating and neutralizing them through an acceleration grid, creating a nearly neutral beam of atoms which bombards a wafer within the chamber removing material by kinetic or chemical processes. The trimming of track width of pole P2B is achieved by 60°/70° degree ion milling and the P1 notch is defined by 35° to 45° notching of P1 using P2T as a mask. P2B, P1A, (P1A-P2B) and P1 Notch Depth are the critical dimensions of the write pole (P1 and P2) structure. It is very challenging to control all these critical dimensions and achieve a specific design specification. In order to improve critical dimensions control, advanced process control (APC) has been implemented for ion-milling processes. The prior art process control uses feed forward and feedback information to control individual ion-milling steps. Traditional process control methods assume the steps are independent from each other.
Conventionally after the basic structures for the heads have been formed the individual heads rows of heads) are cut from the wafer to expose what will become the air-bearing surface after further processing. The processing of the air-bearing surface typically includes lapping and formation of air-bearing features typically called rails.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing selected hardware used in a prior art plating and ion-milling process. The metals used for the pole pieces are deposited by plating. Various precision measurement equipment are used to make measurements at selected stages of the process. Examples include commercially available photolithography measurement tools such as a scanning electron microscope (CD-SEM) made by KLA-Tencor and generic Focused-Ion Beam tools. The measurements are typically made at selected sample sites on the wafer, rather than attempting to measure all of individual heads. The process is automated by connecting the measurement tools and the process equipment to one or more computers which can include a server which integrates data and control over a wide range of process stages and a personal computer which is dedicated to the pole piece tip processing.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a prior art process for fabricating the P2T and notching P1. The seed layer for P2 is deposited first 40. A standard photolithography mask is applied and patterned on the wafer for P2 41. The width of P2, which is a critical dimension of the mask, is measured using commercially available tools 42. The metal for P2 is deposited by a plating process 43. The critical dimensions of the P2T are measured 44. A first ion-milling sweep or full rotation milling is performed to remove the seed layer for P2 45. Further ion-milling performs the rough trimming of P2 46. The critical dimensions of the P2T are measured 47 using a FIB tool. An ion-milling sweep or full rotation milling is performed to rough trim 48 and to notch P1 49. The critical dimensions are measured again 50 using a tungsten FIB tool. An ion-milling sweep or full rotation milling is performed to fine trim the P2B 51. The final dimensions of P2T are measured 52. The process proceeds with the deposition of the D2 seed layer 53 which is the copper seed layer for an additional coil layer that is formed in the next phase of the process. The final dimensions of P2B are measured 54 using a FIB tool.
The dotted lines in FIG. 4 represent information flow in the form of feedback and forward. The information gathered in the step of measured P2T 44 is fed forward 61 for use in the ion-milling for notching P1 49. The FIB measurement 47 is fed forward 62 to second ion-milling step to rough trim P2 48. The ion-milling for notching P1 49 also receives feed-back information from 63 from the final P2T measurement 52. The measurement at step 50 is fed forward 64 to fine trimming step for P2B 51. The final P2B measurement 54 is fed back 65 to fine trimming step for P2B 51 as well, but typically by manual adjustment.
Selected prior art steps have been omitted from FIG. 4 to simplify the illustration. The P2 photoresist mask is stripped after P2 is plated. A resist to protect features during subsequent milling is patterned after the first P2B measurement step 47. The protective resist is stripped after last fine trimming step 51. There are other processing steps related to the D2 seed deposition 53 which are unrelated to the subject of the application.
In published U.S. patent application 2003/0223150 by Edward Lee a method of protecting the front P2 pole tip during the ion mill patterning of the yoke is described. A front connecting pedestal is electroplated over the front P2 pole tip slightly behind the ABS, and a back gap connecting pedestal is electroplated over the back gap P2 pedestal. Insulator materials are formed over the front P2 pole tip, over the front connecting pedestal, and in between the front and the back gap connecting pedestals. Next, a chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP) is performed over the top of the structure to form a substantially planar top surface. A full-film of yoke layer materials is then sputter deposited over this top surface, followed by the formation of a photoresist mask slightly behind the ABS. When the yoke layer materials are subsequently ion milled to form the yoke, the front P2 pole tip is protected by the surrounding insulator. The front and back gap connecting pedestals form an intervening magnetic layer which connects the front P2 pole tip and back gap P2 pedestal to the yoke.
In published U.S. patent application 20030137771 by Hugo Santini a method of ion milling pole tips in a longitudinal write head is described. Photoresist is spun patterned to form a mask for ion milling to notch the bottom first pole tip layer adjacent first and second side edges of the top first pole tip layer.

Method for fabricating a pole tip in a magnetic transducer using feed-forward and feedback

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.


An adhesion inhibiting surgical barrier. The surgical barrier includes a wound-facing polymeric coating comprising an enteric polymer; and at least one flexible substrate, the at least one flexible substrate having at least one exterior surface, wherein the polymeric coating is applied to the at least one flexible substrate to substantially cover the at least one exterior surface thereof. A method of inhibiting the formation of adhesions in a patient who has undergone a surgical procedure and a method of repairing a gastric or duodenal perforation are also described herein.

Adhesion formation is a well-known complication of many types of surgical procedures, particularly abdominal and bowel surgeries. Adhesion formation typically occurs as a result of the formation of a fibrin clot, which transforms into scar tissue connecting different tissues that are normally separated. Surgical intervention is frequently required in order to eliminate the adhesions, although the adhesions can, and often do, reappear following the surgery. The primary objective of adhesion inhibiting barriers is to interrupt the adhesion formation mechanism, which is believed to result from the diffusion of fibrinogen into the space between the tissues subject to surgical trauma, thereby causing the formation of fibrin clots in the space.
As such, post-surgical adhesions present a major healthcare problem of significant clinical and medical economic relevance. Abdominal adhesions are not only the leading cause of small bowel obstruction, but also major sources of infertility and of abdominal and pelvic pain. It has been shown that post-surgical adhesions cause at least about 20% of cases of infertility and about 40% of cases of chronic pelvic pain.
Although it is known that the incidence of post-surgical adhesions may be reduced by various improvements in surgical techniques and/or better instrumentation, adhesions cannot be prevented without adjuvant therapy, because every minute trauma may induce their formation. In view thereof, significant efforts have been made to provide effective means and treatment methods for reducing or preventing such adhesions connected with surgery. Many substances or constructs have been reported to have positive effects on surgical adhesions, such as collagen films, collagen gels, and sodium hyaluronate/carboxymethylcellulose film and fibrin glue.
In addition to acting as an adhesion barrier, a successful anti-adhesion formulation should be "biocompatible," meaning that it has minimal to no medically unacceptable toxic or injurious effect on the biological function of the subject, and "bioabsorbable," meaning that it can be absorbed by the tissue without a significant amount remaining in the subject as an implant device. It is to be understood that such bioabsorbable materials are broken down by the body, then the resulting products are excreted therefrom by various means, including passage in urine, feces or as carbon dioxide in the breath. Thus, the formulation should remain in the body for a sufficient period of time to be effective in separating the tissue and preventing adhesions, while being absorbed by the tissue once the danger of adhesion formation has ended, thereby minimizing any long term effects which may result from the use of an implant device.
Perforation is the second most common complication of peptic ulcer and is often associated with NSAID use especially in the elderly population. See N Zaji, "Laparoscopic Repair of Perforated Peptic Ulcers Versus Conventional Open Surgery," Laparoscopic Hospital, New Delhi, India, July 2007. Approximately 10-20% of patients with peptic ulcers suffer perforation of the stomach or duodenum, in which a chemical peritonitis develops initially from the gastric and duodenal secretion then bacterial contamination superimposed within hours. Helicobacter pylori infection plays a central role in the genesis of peptic ulcer. See Graham, D. Y., "Treatment of peptic ulcers caused by Helicobacter pylori," 328 N Engl J Med 349-350 (1993).
The perforation of a duodenal ulcer allows for the egress of gastric and duodenal contents into the peritoneal cavity with a resulting initial chemical peritonitis. If there is continued leakage of gastro-duodenal contents, bacterial contamination of the peritoneal cavity could occur. See A. J. Donovan, "Perforated Duodenal Ulcer An Alternative Therapeutic Plan." 133 ARCH SURG 1166-1171, (November 1998).
U.S. Pat. No. 7,198,786 proposes a method of reducing or preventing adhesions which would form in a patient during or after surgery by administering to the wound surface of a patient a fibrinogen solution in an amount of about 0.025 ml fibrinogen/cm2 to about 0.25 ml fibrinogen/cm2 of the surface being at risk for developing adhesions. The use of fibrinogen in a preparation comprising fibrinogen at a concentration of 20 to 80 mg/ml for the reduction or prevention of post-surgical adhesion formation is also proposed.
EP 1,341,561 proposes a layered wound dressing material comprising: a wound facing hydrogel layer and a barrier layer, wherein the barrier layer comprises a pH-sensitive material that is substantially insoluble in water at 25° C. under acidic conditions, but substantially soluble in water at 25° C. under neutral or alkaline conditions. In use, the hydrogel layer absorbs and is gradually neutralized by wound exudate until its pH rises to a level that causes dissolution of the barrier layer, thereby allowing excess exudate to flow out from the hydrogen layer. Also proposed are wound dressings comprising barrier layers and methods of use of such dressings.
Despite these advances in the art, it would be desirable to provide a suitable adhesion inhibiting barrier as well as a method for reducing or preventing post-surgical adhesions in a patient. There also remains a need for a barrier for containing the gastric and duodenal contents of a perforated ulcer in order to minimize the risk of further deterioration of the compromised area.

Surgical barriers having adhesion inhibiting properties


Copper can be pattern etched in a manner which provides the desired feature dimension and integrity, at acceptable rates, and with selectivity over adjacent materials. To provide for feature integrity, the portion of the copper feature surface which has been etched to the desired dimensions and shape must be protected during the etching of adjacent feature surfaces. To avoid the trapping of reactive species interior of the etched copper surface, hydrogen is applied to that surface. Hydrogen is adsorbed on the copper exterior surface and may be absorbed into the exterior surface of the copper, so that it is available to react with species which would otherwise penetrate that exterior surface and react with the copper interior to that surface. Sufficient hydrogen must be applied to the exterior surface of the etched portion of the copper feature to prevent incident reactive species present due to etching of adjacent feature surfaces from penetrating the previously etched feature exterior surface. The most preferred embodiment of the invention provides for the use of hydrogen chloride (HCl) and/or hydrogen bromide (HBr) as the sole or principal source of the reactive species used in etching copper. Dissociation of the HCl and/or HBr provides the large amounts of hydrogen necessary to protect the copper feature etched surfaces from penetration by reactive species adjacent the etched surface. Additional hydrogen gas may be added to the plasma feed gas which comprises the HCl and/or HBr when the reactive species density in the etch process chamber is particularly high. Although the HCl or HBr may be used as an additive in combination with other plasma feed gases, preferably HCl or HBr or a combination thereof accounts for at least 40%, and more preferably at least 50%, of the reactive species generated by the plasma. Most preferably, HCl or HBr should account for at least 80% of the reactive species generated by the plasma.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to a particular chemistry which provides advantages in the pattern etching a copper layer on the surface of a semiconductor device substrate. In particular, the etched portion of a feature surface is protected from reactive species during the etching of adjacent feature surfaces.
2. Brief Description of the Background Art
In the multi level metallization architecture used in present day semiconductor devices, aluminum is generally used as the material of construction for interconnect lines and contacts. Although aluminum offers a number of advantages in ease of fabrication, as integrated circuit designers focus on transistor gate velocity and interconnect line transmission time, it becomes apparent that copper is the material of choice for the next generation of interconnect lines and contacts. In particular, when the aluminum wire size becomes smaller than 0.5 .mu.m, the electromigration resistance and the stress migration resistance of aluminum becomes a problem area. In addition, when the feature size of an aluminum-based contact requires an aspect ratio of greater than 1:1, it is difficult to obtain planarization of the substrate during the application of the next insulating layer over the contact area of the substrate. Further, the resistivity of copper is about 1.4 .mu..OMEGA.cm, which is only about half of the resistivity of aluminum.
There are two principal competing technologies under evaluation by material and process developers working to enable the use of copper. The first technology is known as damascene technology. In this technology, a typical process for producing a multilevel structure having feature sizes in the range of 0.5 micron (.mu.m) or less would include: blanket deposition of a dielectric material; patterning of the dielectric material to form openings; deposition of a diffusion barrier layer and, optionally, a wetting layer to line the openings; deposition of a copper layer onto the substrate in sufficient thickness to fill the openings; and removal of excessive conductive material from the substrate surface using chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP) techniques. The damascene process is described in detail by C. Steinbruchel in "Patterning of copper for multilevel metallization: reactive ion etching and chemical-mechanical polishing", Applied Surface Science 91 (1995) 139-146.
The competing technology is one which involves the patterned etch of a copper layer. In this technology, a typical process would include deposition of a copper layer on a desired substrate (typically a dielectric material having a barrier layer on its surface); application of a patterned hard mask or photoresist over the copper layer; pattern etching of the copper layer using wet or dry etch techniques; and deposition of a dielectric material over the surface of the patterned copper layer, to provide isolation of conductive lines and contacts which comprise various integrated circuits. An advantage of the patterned etch process is that the copper layer can be applied using sputtering techniques well known in the art. The sputtering of copper provides a much higher deposition rate than the evaporation or CVD processes typically used in the damascene process, and provides a much cleaner, higher quality copper film than CVD. Further, it is easier to etch fine patterns into the copper surface and then deposit an insulating layer over these patterns than it is to get the barrier layer materials and the copper to flow into small feature openings in the top of a patterned insulating film.
Each of the above-described competing technologies has particular process problems which must be solved to arrive at a commercially feasible process for device fabrication. In the case of the damascene process, due to difficulties in the filling of device feature sizes of 0.25 .mu.m and smaller (and particularly those having an aspect ratio greater than one) on the surface of the dielectric layer, the method of choice for copper deposition is evaporation (which is particularly slow and expensive); or chemical vapor deposition, or CVD (which produces a copper layer containing undesirable contaminants and is also a relatively slow deposition process). Just recently, electroplating has been investigated as a method for copper deposition.
Regardless of the technique used to deposit copper, the CMP techniques used to remove excess copper from the dielectric surface after deposition create problems. Copper is a soft material which tends to smear across the underlying surface during polishing. "Dishing" of the copper surface may occur during polishing. As a result of dishing, there is variation in the critical dimensions of conductive features. Particles from the slurry used during the chemical mechanical polishing process may become embedded in the surface of the copper and other materials surrounding the location of the copper lines and contacts. The chemicals present in the slurry may corrode the copper, leading to increased resistivity and possibly even corrosion through an entire wire line thickness. Despite the number of problems to be solved in the damascene process, this process is presently viewed in the industry as more likely to succeed than a patterned copper etch process for the following reasons.
The patterned etch process particularly exposes the copper to corrosion. Although it is possible to provide a protective layer over the etched copper which will protect the copper from oxidation and other forms of corrosion after pattern formation, it is critical to protect the copper during the etch process itself to prevent the accumulation of involatile corrosive compounds on the surface of the etched copper features. These involatile corrosive compounds cause continuing corrosion of the copper even after the application of a protective layer over the etched features.
Wet etch processes have been attempted; however, there is difficulty in controlling the etch profile of the features; in particular, when the thickness of the film being etched is comparable to the minimum pattern dimension, undercutting due to isotropic etching becomes intolerable. In addition, there is extreme corrosion of the copper during the etch process itself.
Plasma etch techniques provide an alternative. A useful plasma etch process should have the following characteristics: It should be highly selective against etching the mask layer material; it should be highly selective against etching the material under the film being etched; it should provide the desired feature profile (e.g. the sidewalls of the etched feature should have the desired specific angle); and the etch rate should be rapid, to maximize the throughput rate through the equipment.
Until very recently etch rates obtained by purely physical bombardment were typically about 300 .ANG.-500 .ANG. per minute or less, as described by Schwartz and Schaible, J. Electrochem. Soc., Vol. 130, No. 8, p. 1777 (1983) and by H. Miyazaki et al., J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 15(2) p.239 (1997), respectively. Recently, applicants have been able to improve on the etch rates achievable by purely physical bombardment so that etch rates as high as 5,000 .ANG. per minute can be achieved. Further, the selectivity between copper and materials commonly used as barrier layers, insulating layers and patterning masks is more than satisfactory. This technology is disclosed in detail in pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/891,410, filed Jul. 9, 1997. However, etch rate and selectivity must be accompanied by the ability to etch a pattern having the desired cross-sectional profile. To improve etch profile, it is necessary to use a limited amount of chemical reactants during the etch process.
The chemical reactants must be very carefully selected to react with the copper and create volatile species which can then be removed by application of vacuum to the process chamber. However, when such chemical reactants are used, corrosion is a major problem during the fabrication, as copper does not form any self passivating layer like aluminum does. In particular, oxidation of copper increases resistivity; further, in the case of copper interconnect lines, the whole wire line may corrode all the way through, resulting in device failure. As described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/891,410, referenced above, it is possible to use a limited concentration of particular halogen-based reactants in combination with physical bombardment, when physical bombardment is the controlling etch mechanism and avoid corrosion of the copper by the reactive species used to assist in the etch process.
There are some etch profiles for which etching in the physical bombardment regime does not provide the best result. In addition, applicants have discovered that it is possible to obtain etch rates which are higher than those obtained to date in the physical bombardment regime and still avoid corrosion of the etched copper. Typically, a chlorine-comprising gas is used in the reactive ion etch processing of the copper. Although the chlorine provides acceptable etch rates, it causes the copper to corrode rapidly. The chlorine reacts very fast, but produces reaction by-products which are not volatile. These byproducts remain on the copper surface, causing corrosion over the entire etched surface. The byproducts can be made volatile subsequent to the etch step by treatment with chemical species which create a volatile reaction product, but by this time the corrosion is already extensive.
An example of a treatment to remove chlorides and fluorides remaining after the etch of a conductive layer is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 4,668,335 to Mockler et al., issued May 26, 1987. In Mockler et al., the workpiece (wafer) is immersed in a strong acid solution, followed by a weak base solution after the etch of an aluminum-copper alloy, to remove residual chlorides and fluorides remaining on the surface after etching. Another example is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 5,200,031 to Latchford et al., issued Apr. 6, 1993. In Latchford et al, a process is described for removing a photoresist remaining after one or more metal etch steps which also removes or inactivates chlorine-containing residues, to inhibit corrosion of remaining metal for at least 24 hours. Specifically, NH.sub.3 gas is flowed through a microwave plasma generator into a stripping chamber containing the workpiece, followed by O.sub.2 gas (and optionally NH.sub.3 gas), while maintaining a plasma in the plasma generator.
Attempts have been made to reduce the corrosion by introducing additional gases during the etch process (which can react with the corrosion causing etch byproducts as they are formed). In addition, gaseous compounds which can react to form a protective film over the sidewalls of etched features as they are formed have been added during the etching process and after the etch process. However, residual corrosion continues to be a problem and the protective film, while protecting from future contact with corrosive species, may trap corrosive species already present on the feature surface.
An example of the formation of a passivating film on pattern sidewalls is presented by J. Torres in "Advanced copper interconnections for silicon CMOS technologies", Applied Surface Science, 91 (1995) 112-123. Other examples are provided by Igarashi et al. in: "High Reliability Copper Interconnects through Dry Etching Process", Extended Abstracts of the 1994 International Conference on Solid State Devices and Materials, Yokohama, 1994, pp.943-945; in "Thermal Stability of Interconnect of TiN/cutin Multilayered Structure", Jpn. J Appl. Phys. Vol. 33 (1994) Pt. 1, No. 1B; and, in "Dry Etching Technique for Subquarter-Micron Copper Interconnects", J. Electrochem. Soc., Vol. 142, No. 3, March 1995. In this 1995 article, Yasushi Igarashi et al. show photomicrographs of cross-sectional views of the subquarter-micron etched features. In reviewing the article, applicants noticed that although the exterior walls of the feature appear to be solid, there appears to be interior hollow areas within the feature where the copper line has been eroded away. Applicants subsequently reproduced this effect, demonstrated by the comparative example (Example 3) presented subsequently herein. Apparently, reactive chlorine species are trapped interior to the passivating film formed on the wall and these species react with and erode the copper beneath the passivating film.
Passivating films are used to protect the walls of forming features during the etching of aluminum. Such films are generally used to protect the walls of etched features from further etching by incident reactive species during continued vertical etching of the feature through a mask. Typically the protective film comprises an oxide or a nitride or a polymeric material, or a combination thereof. In the case of aluminum, aluminum oxide forms a cohesive, continuous protective film very rapidly. This rapid formation of a continuous protective film protects the interior of the etched feature from exposure to significant amounts of the reactive species which could cause corrosion interior to the etched wall. However, in the case of copper, there is no similar rapidly-formed film which prevents reactive species from reaching the copper surface and being trapped there by a slowly-formed "passivating" film. It appears that the passivating films of the kind described by Igarashi et al. in their March 1995 article trap reactive species inside the feature walls and these reactive species corrode away the copper interior to the feature walls.
If the patterned etch technique is to be used for fabrication of semiconductor devices having copper interconnects, contacts, and conductive features in general, it is necessary to find an etch method which does not create immediate corrosion or a source of future corrosion.
In addition to controlling corrosion, it is necessary to control the profile of the etched pattern. An example of a technique used for obtaining a high etch rate and highly directional reactive etching of patterned copper films copper is described by Ohno et al in "Reactive Ion Etching of Copper Films in a SiCl.sub.4, N.sub.2, Cl.sub.2, and NH.sub.3 Mixture", J. Electrochem. Soc., Vol. 143, No. 12, December 1996. In particular, the etching rate of copper is increased by increasing the Cl.sub.2 flow rate at temperatures higher than 280.degree. C. However, the addition of Cl.sub.2 is said to cause undesirable side etching of the Cu patterns. NH.sub.3 is added to the gas mixture to form a protective film that prevents side wall etching. The etch gas mixture which originally contained SiCl.sub.4 and N.sub.2 was modified to contain SiCl.sub.4, N.sub.2, Cl.sub.4, and NH.sub.3.
Thus, protective films formed during etching are used by some practitioners skilled in the art to reducing corrosion (as described above) and by others for controlling the directional etching of the pattern surface. In either case, although the formation of such a protective film may work well for aluminum etching, it may be harmful in the case of copper etching for the reasons previously described.
Toshiharu Yanagida, in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-96036, published Oct. 22, 1993, describes a method of dry etching of a copper material in the temperature range at which a polymeric resist mask can be used (below about 200.degree. C.). Etching using a polymeric resist mask is said to be preferable so that the presence of oxygen (present in a silicon oxide hard masking material which can withstand higher temperatures) can be avoided. The oxide causes harmful corrosion of the copper, producing copper oxides which increase the resistivity of etched copper features. In particular, the Yanagida reference describes the use of hydrogen iodide (HI) gas and combinations of HI gas with chloride and/or fluoride compounds to achieve etching at substrate temperatures below about 200.degree. C.
FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate the kind of corrosion which typically is experienced during the reactive ion etching of copper. The pattern etched was one of lines and spaces, wherein the lines and spaces were approximately 0.5 .mu.m in width looking at a cross-sectional profile of the pattern. The details of the preparation of the etched substrates shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B will be discussed in detail subsequently herein, for comparative purposes. For now, the important features to note are that the copper lines 510 which appear to be solid looking at the exterior walls 516 are actually hollow in the interior, where the copper 520 remaining after etching is surrounded by vacant space 522. The vacant space is created by the harmful copper reactions we are calling "corrosion". Corrosion is caused when the copper reacts with oxygen or with other reactants present in the process vessel to produce undesirable by-products. Corrosion also includes reaction with halogens which are typically used as etchant reactants, but the reaction occurs at an undesired rate so that the desired etched feature profile cannot be obtained. FIGS. 5A and 5B are representative of this latter case.
We have discovered a particular etch chemistry which makes it possible to etch micron and submicron sized copper features on a semiconductor substrate while maintaining the integrity of the etched copper feature.


A spray paint gun structure having a coaxial control of fluid and atomization includes an atomization control air passage connected to a pressurized air passage in the rear section of a housing. An atomization control adjustment valve includes a sleeve, an atomization adjustment nut, a locking nut, and an elastic member. A rod extending from a fluid control adjustment valve penetrates through the sleeve. The middle section of the sleeve is provided with an external thread to engage with the atomization adjustment nut and the locking nut. The elastic member is accommodated in the rear section of the sleeve. The rear section of the sleeve is provided with an internal thread to relatively engage with a fluid adjustment nut. The atomization adjustment nut is provided with an external thread to engage with a thread relatively disposed at the rear section of the housing.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a spray paint gun structure having a coaxial control of fluid and atomization, and more particularly, to one that has an atomization control adjustment valve coaxially disposed at the rear section of the housing of the spray paint gun to allow the user to simultaneously adjust fluid and atomization at the rear section of the housing.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
The adjustment structure of a conventional spray paint gun is usually divided into fluid and atomization controls. The fluid control is disposed at the rear end of the spray paint gun and is done by rotating an adjustment screw to control the flow of the pressurized air, so that the amount of paint is to be delivered.
The atomization control is provided at a cap of a nozzle. By rotating the cap, the airflow of an atomized air passage located by a main air passage, i.e., the air passage to control the amount of paint, thus to change the extent of the atomization of the paint to be sprayed (i.e., the size of the atomized particles) and the spray pattern.
However, it takes both hands to adjust either control and it prevents the adjustment of both controls at the same time. Therefore, it becomes very inconvenient to use the spray paint gun because it usually needs several rounds of adjustment back and forth.

Spray paint gun structure having a coaxial control of fluid and atomization


Methods and apparatus for supporting the management of mobility and addresses by a Customer Premises Edge (CPE) router in a Mobile IP environment are disclosed. When a network prefix is allocated by a DHCP router to the CPE router, the CPE router divides the network prefix among its interfaces, and allocates home addresses to Mobile Nodes connected to its interfaces, as appropriate. The CPE router also assists in performing Duplicate Address Detection (DAD) to ensure that a home address that has been allocated has not already been assigned to another node. Upon completion of registration of a Mobile Node that is connected to one of the interfaces of the CPE router with its Home Agent, the CPE router assists in routing traffic to the Mobile Node. In addition, the CPE router assists in notifying nodes when one of the Mobile Nodes has moved, as well as when one of the Mobile Nodes has de-registered with the Home Agent.

The present invention relates to Mobile IP network technology and home address management. More specifically, this invention relates to mechanisms for managing addresses associated with a network prefix via an edge router that serves as a proxy Home Agent for management of the addresses.
Mobile IP is a protocol which allows laptop computers or other mobile computer units (referred to as "Mobile Nodes" herein) to roam between various sub-networks at various locations—while maintaining internet and/or WAN connectivity. Without Mobile IP or a related protocol, a Mobile Node would be unable to stay connected while roaming through various sub-networks. This is because the IP address required for any node to communicate over the internet is location specific. Each IP address has a field that specifies the particular sub-network on which the node resides. If a user desires to take a computer which is normally attached to one node and roam with it so that it passes through different sub-networks, it cannot use its home base IP address. As a result, a business person traveling across the country cannot merely roam with his or her computer across geographically disparate network segments or wireless nodes while remaining connected over the internet. This is not an acceptable state-of-affairs in the age of portable computational devices.
To address this problem, the Mobile IP protocol has been developed and implemented. An implementation of Mobile IP is described in RFC 3344 of the Network Working Group, C. Perkins, Ed., "IP Mobility Support for IPv4," August 2002. Mobile IP is also described in the text "Mobile IP Unplugged" by J. Solomon, Prentice Hall. Both of these references are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties and for all purposes.
A similar approach has been described in Mobile IP for IPv6. This is described in RFC3775, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and for all purposes. RFC 3775, entitled "Mobility Support in IPv6," published in June, 2004, by D. Johnson et al discloses a protocol which allows nodes to remain reachable while roaming in IPv6. This RFC defines the entities of Home Agent (HA), Mobile Node (MN) and Correspondent Node (CN), and describes the Mobile IP registration process with reference to an IPv6 environment.
RFC3775 specifies a method for performing registration of a Mobile Node with its Home Agent in IPv6. Specifically, the Mobile Node provides its care-of address (i.e., location on the foreign network) to the Home Agent via a Binding Update message. In contrast to the registration process that is performed via a Foreign Agent in Mobile IPv4, registration is performed via a co-located care-of address of the Mobile Node in Mobile IPv6. In other words, the care-of address is associated with the Mobile Node rather than a separate entity. The Home Agent then sends a Binding Acknowledgement message to the Mobile Node upon successful completion of registration of the Mobile Node with the Home Agent.
The Mobile IP process in a Mobile IP environment are illustrated in FIG. 1. As shown there, a Mobile IP environment 2 includes the internet (or a WAN) 4 over which a Mobile Node 6 can communicate remotely via mediation by a Home Agent 8 and may also include a Foreign Agent 10 in Mobile IPv4. In the absence of a Foreign Agent in a Mobile IPv4 environment, or in a Mobile IPv6 environment in which a Foreign Agent is not implemented, the Mobile Node 6 can obtain a topologically correct IP address (i.e., collocated IP address) and register this IP address with the Home Agent. (In a Mobile IPv6 environment, this is accomplished via an Access Router rather than a Foreign Agent.) Typically, the Home Agent and Foreign Agent are routers or other network connection devices performing appropriate Mobile IP functions as implemented by software, hardware, and/or firmware. A particular Mobile Node (e.g., a laptop computer) plugged into its home network segment connects with the internet through its designated Home Agent. When the Mobile Node roams, it communicates via the internet through an available Foreign Agent in Mobile IPv4 or an Access Point in Mobile IPv6. Presumably, there are many Foreign Agents (or Access Points) available at geographically disparate locations to allow wide spread internet connection via the Mobile IP protocol. Note that it is also possible for the Mobile Node to register directly with its Home Agent.
As shown in FIG. 1, Mobile Node 6 normally resides on (or is "based at") a network segment 12 which allows its network entities to communicate over the internet 4 through Home Agent 8 (an appropriately configured router denoted R2). Note that Home Agent 8 need not directly connect to the internet. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, it may be connected through another router (a router R1 in this case). Router R1 may, in turn, connect one or more other routers (e.g., a router R3) with the internet.
Now, suppose that Mobile Node 6 is removed from its home base network segment 12 and roams to a remote network segment 14. Network segment 14 may include various other nodes such as a PC 16. The nodes on network segment 14 communicate with the internet through a router which doubles as Foreign Agent 10 (or Access Point). Mobile Node 6 may identify Foreign Agent 10 in Mobile IPv4 or an Access Point in Mobile IPv6 through various solicitations and advertisements which form part of the Mobile IP protocol. When Mobile Node 6 engages with network segment 14 in Mobile IPv4, Foreign Agent 10 relays a registration request to Home Agent 8 (as indicated by the dotted line "Registration"). Similarly, in Mobile IPv6, when the Mobile Node 6 engages with network segment 14, an Access Point relays a Binding Update message to the Home Agent. The Home and Foreign Agents/Access Points may then negotiate the conditions of the Mobile Node's attachment to Foreign Agent 10 (or Access Point). For example, the attachment may be limited to a period of time, such as two hours. When the negotiation is successfully completed, Home Agent 8 updates an internal "mobility binding table" which specifies the care-of address (e.g., a collocated care-of address or the Foreign Agent's IP address) in association with the identity of Mobile Node 6. Further, the Foreign Agent 10 updates an internal "visitor table" in Mobile IPv4, which specifies the Mobile Node address, Home Agent address, etc. In effect, the Mobile Node's home base IP address (associated with segment 12) has been shifted to its care-of address (e.g., Foreign Agent's IP address associated with segment 14 in Mobile IPv4 or a co-located care-of address in Mobile IPv6).
Now, suppose that Mobile Node 6 wishes to send a message to a Correspondent Node 18 from its new location. In Mobile IPv4, a message from the Mobile Node is then packetized and forwarded through Foreign Agent 10 over the internet 4 and to Correspondent Node 18 (as indicated by the dotted line "packet from MN") according to a standard internet protocol. If Correspondent Node 18 wishes to send a message to Mobile Node—whether in reply to a message from the Mobile Node or for any other reason—it addresses that message to the IP address of Mobile Node 6 on sub-network 12. The packets of that message are then forwarded over the internet 4 and to router R1 and ultimately to Home Agent 8 as indicated by the dotted line ("packet to MN(1)"). From its mobility binding table, Home Agent 8 recognizes that Mobile Node 6 is no longer attached to network segment 12. It then encapsulates the packets from Correspondent Node 18 (which are addressed to Mobile Node 6 on network segment 12) according to a Mobile IP protocol and forwards these encapsulated packets to a "care of" address for Mobile Node 6 as shown by the dotted line ("packet to MN(2)"). The care-of address may be, for example, the IP address of Foreign Agent 10 or a co-located care-of address associated with the Mobile Node 6. Foreign Agent 10 (if present) then strips the encapsulation and forwards the message to Mobile Node 6 on sub-network 14. The packet forwarding mechanism implemented by the Home and Foreign Agents is often referred to as "tunneling." In the absence of a Foreign Agent, packets are tunneled directly to the Mobile Node 6 collocated care-of address.
RFC 3633, which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes, discloses a prefix delegation feature. With this feature, a DHCP server may allocate a network prefix rather than a single IP address. Unfortunately, since service providers generally do not want Home Agent functionality to be performed within the customer network, this prefix delegation feature cannot easily be incorporated into a Mobile IP environment.
In view of the above, it would be desirable if the new prefix delegation feature could be implemented in a Mobile IP environment.

Methods and apparatus for using DHCP for home address management of nodes attached to an edge device and for performing mobility and address management as a proxy home agent


A structure of pattern pressing roller comprises a shaft and a plurality of pattern pressing loops suitable for slipping onto the shaft, wherein each loop consists carved pattern on its surface. The pattern pressing loops are slipped onto the shaft, and they are aligned and located tightly against each other and onto the shaft so that when the shaft is in the rotation motion, the pattern pressing loops are moved together with the shaft in one motion. When one or more of the pattern pressing loops is required to be repaired due to damages or weariness on its surface, the pattern pressing loops can be removed away from the shaft or a new one is replaced the damaged one quickly and easily.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to a structure of pattern pressing roller suitable for pressed printing on the cardboards. More particularly, the present invention relates to a structure of pattern pressing roller that can provide various patterns or diagrams on the cardboards through the pressed printing process.
2. Description of the Related Art
The patterns on the cardboard are pressed-printed by the pattern pressing roller comprising the corresponding pattern on its surface. In other words, the patterns on the cardboards will be various according to the carved patterns on the surfaces of the rollers.
The conventional fabrication of the patterns on the cardboard usually provides some straight lines or wave line patterns. Since the cardboards cannot generally subject to the compressing pressure process, therefore, the thickness on the cardboards is increased in order to improve its hardness so that it can provide some resistance toward the pressing pressure.
The hardness of the cardboards is the main problem that is well known in the prior art, a lot people in this field have tried to find different ways to resolve the problem. In recent years, the hardness of the cardboards is gradually improved. It is an object of the invention to provide a pattern pressing roller that can improve the hardness of the cardboards based on inventive ideas of the inventor, his years of experiences in this field. In order to pressed print a desired pattern onto the cardboards, the pattern pressing roller must consists the desired pattern. The pattern is normally carved through the carving equipment to sculpt onto the surface areas of the roller in order to produce the desired pattern onto the surface of the roller. However, a lot of these patterns are complex with highly density of patterns or drawings that the accuracy of producing those complex patterns is very difficult. Particularly, a weariness problem is normally occurred during the carving process. Further, if those conventional carving equipments of the pattern pressing roller have not been through a heat process to increase its hardness in the first place, then once the patterns are completed on the roller and those pattern pressing roller goes through a heat process, the patterns or the size of the patterns on the roller will be distorted due to the heat. To repairing or re-sculpt those distorted patterns becomes very difficult, the cost and time are consuming. Thus, the efficiency of the fabrication is reduced.
During the pressing process, those patterns on the surfaces of the pattern pressing rollers will eventually wear out due to the surface friction. But the conventional pattern pressing rollers are difficult and costly to repair or re-carve its patterns on the surface of the rollers. Unless the patterns are very badly to be seen or distorted badly, otherwise it is not wise to increase the production cost by repairing or replacing the damaged rollers frequently. It is understandable that in such condition, the pressing quality is not very good due to the cost and inconvenience. Further, the repairing process is lengthy and inconvenient, so it induces another problem in the production process.


The present application relates to a device and method for processing digital broadcast signals comprising three-dimensional images. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the digital broadcast signal processing method comprises the steps of: encoding a video stream of a two dimensional reference image; encoding a video stream of an additional image, for generating a binocular-disparity three-dimensional image together with the encoded two dimensional reference image; generating signaling information such that the video stream of the encoded additional image is processed only in a three-dimensional image signal receiver; generating a first broadcast signal comprising the video stream of the encoded reference image; generating a second broadcast signal comprising the video stream of the encoded additional image and the signaling information; and respectively sending the first broadcast signal and the second broadcast signal over different channels.

As 3D televisions (3DTV) have come into widespread use, 3D video content has come into widespread use and 3D video content has been transmitted through a digital broadcast.
In general, 3D video provides a stereoscopic effect using the principle of stereovision. Since a human feels a perspective effect through binocular parallax due to an interval between the eyes spaced apart from each other by about 65 mm, 3D video is provided such that a left eye and a right eye view respective plan images, thereby providing a stereoscopic effect and a perspective effect.
Examples of a 3D video display method include a stereoscopic method, a volumetric method, a holographic method, etc. In the stereoscopic method, a left view image to be viewed by a left eye and a right view image to be viewed by a right eye are provided and the left eye and the right eye respectively view the left view image and the right view image through polarized glasses or a display device, thereby perceiving a 3D video effect.
In case of stereoscopic 3D video content, when two similar videos of different views are transmitted, a receiver uses a method of displaying 3D video using the two videos. At this time, the two similar videos of the different views may be transmitted via an existing broadcast channel or separately transmitted via the existing broadcast channel and a separate transmission channel. In this case, the receiver should receive signal information of two videos forming a pair in order to display the two videos as 3D video. When such information is not received, a left-view image and a right-view image forming 3D video may not be distinguished such that the 3D video is not restored. In addition, it is not possible to check a synchronization time of the left-view image and the right-view image and when 3D video can be displayed.

Digital broadcast signal processing method and device


The image forming apparatus comprises: an ejection head which includes a plurality of nozzles to eject a liquid to deposit the liquid on a recording medium being conveyed relatively to the ejection head to form an image on the recording medium; a tank which stores the liquid to be supplied to the nozzles and has an adjustable internal pressure; a liquid supply path which connects the tank and the ejection head; a cap which faces a nozzle face on which the nozzles of the ejection head are formed; a liquid collection path which is capable of connecting the cap and the tank; and a liquid circulating device which is provided on the liquid collection path, collects the liquid in the ejection head through the cap, circulates the liquid to the tank along the liquid collection path, and adjusts the internal pressure of the tank to a desired value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus which forms images by depositing a liquid such as ink onto a recording medium from an ejection head.
2. Description of the Related Art
An inkjet recording apparatus (inkjet printer) having an ink ejection head (print head) in which a large number of nozzles are arranged is known as a conventional image forming apparatus. This inkjet recording apparatus forms an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink in the form of liquid droplets from the nozzles of the ink ejection head onto the recording medium while moving the ink ejection head relatively to the recording medium.
Various conventional methods are known for ejecting the ink in this type of inkjet recording apparatus. Known examples of ink ejection methods include a piezoelectric method, in which a diaphragm constituting a part of a pressure chamber (ink chamber) is deformed by the deformation of a piezoelectric element (piezoelectric ceramic), thereby altering the volume of the pressure chamber such that when the pressure chamber volume increases, ink is introduced into the pressure chamber through an ink supply passage, and when the pressure chamber volume decreases, the ink inside the pressure chamber is ejected through the nozzles as an ink droplet, and a thermal inkjet method in which air bubbles are formed by heating the ink, and the ink is ejected by the expansion energy generated as the air bubbles grow.
In an image forming apparatus having an ink ejection head, such as an inkjet recording apparatus, ink is supplied to the ink ejection head from an ink tank which stores the ink via an ink supply passage, and the ink is ejected using one of the various ejection methods described above. When the ink used in such an image forming apparatus is deposited on the recording medium, it is desirable that the ink dry and become fixed immediately.
The nozzles of the ink ejection head are filled with ink at all times so that when a printing command is issued, printing can be executed immediately, but if the ink in the nozzles dries, ink ejection from the nozzles becomes unstable, and hence during standby periods when printing is not performed, the ink ejection head is sealed tightly by a cap to prevent the ink in the nozzles from drying.
However, during printing the ink in the nozzles is exposed to the air, and hence the ink in a nozzle from which ejection is not performed for a long time dries, leading to an increase in the viscosity (thickening) of the ink. As a result, the nozzle may become blocked, the ink in the nozzle may disappear, and hence ejection may become impossible.
Further, when bubbles that have become mixed into the ink supply passage and so on accumulate in front of a foreign matter removal filter disposed in the ink ejection head or ink supply passage, the accumulated bubbles may block the ink supply so that the ink cannot be ejected from the nozzles.
Conventionally, a purging (spitting) operation is performed at fixed time intervals to remove the viscous ink or ink containing foreign matter or bubbles that is the cause of the defective ejection and thereby restore the ink ejection head. In this purging operation, the cap is placed over the ink ejection head, and the ink is ejected forcibly from the nozzles toward the cap. Alternatively, a suction operation is performed periodically by placing the cap over the ink ejection head and suctioning the ink out of the nozzles using a pump.
If the purged or suctioned ink is discarded at this time, this constitutes wasteful ink consumption, and therefore, to limit the amount of wasted ink as much as possible, ink circulation is performed to return the suctioned ink to the ink tank (sub-tank) so that the ink can be re-supplied to the ink ejection head and reused.
For example, a device is known in which a head is sealed tightly with a cap, and a pump is driven to suction ink from the head into the cap. The ink suctioned into the cap is then led through a pipe to the sub-tank side, and returned to the sub-tank through a filter. Thus the waste ink is circulated and reused (see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-266745, for example).
However, in the conventional inkjet printer having an ink circulation path described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-266745, the ink circulation path for returning the ink suctioned into the cap to the sub-tank is wound around the outside of the head, and therefore the ink circulation path is long and complicated, disposal space must be secured for the ink circulation path, and there is a high likelihood of bubbles merging with the ink through the circulation path, which is constituted by a tube or the like.
Furthermore, in the prior art the pump which circulates the ink and a pump which adjusts the internal pressure of the sub-tank are provided separately rather than being constituted by a single pump, making the apparatus constitution complicated and preventing size reductions.


Methods for fabricating vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) on a large wafer are provided. An un-patterned epi layer form is bonded onto a first reflector form. The first reflector form includes a first reflector layer and a wafer of a first substrate type. The un-patterned epi layer form includes a plurality of un-patterned layers on a wafer of a second substrate type. The first and second substrate types have different thermal expansion coefficients. A resulting bonded blank is substantially non-varying in a plane that is normal to an intended emission direction of the VCSEL. A first regrowth is performed to form first regrowth layers, some of which are patterned to form a tunnel junction pattern. A second regrowth is performed to form second regrowth layers. A second reflector form is bonded onto the second regrowth layers, wherein the second reflector form includes a second reflector layer.

VCSELs are generally fabricated on a wafer with a plurality of VCSELs being fabricated on the same wafer. After the plurality of VCSELs are fabricated on the wafer, the wafers are separated using a dicing procedure. The only type of VCSELs emitting in a wavelength range between 1200 and 1600 nm that have demonstrated long term reliability are fabricated by separately preparing two reflector blanks and a patterned active region blank then assembling them together using wafer bonding1. The bonded reflector blanks and the patterned active region blank provide an active region sandwiched between two reflectors. However, due to thermal expansion coefficient differences between the materials of the reflector blanks and the patterned active region blank, properly aligning the patterned features presents a technical problem and reduces the fabrication efficiency. 1 U.S. Pat. No. 10,396,527, issued Aug. 27, 2019.

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser fabrication on large wafer


A light source error detection system and method including monitoring a plurality of characteristics of a light source and controlling the light source based on a plurality of monitored results. The system and method control the light source differently for a first case when only one of the monitored characteristics is abnormal than a second case when more than two of the monitored characteristics are abnormal. In controlling the light source, an output power of the light source is decreased with different time constant for the first case and the second case.

1. Field
The present invention is directed to light source anomaly state detection and, more particularly, to a light source anomaly state detection enabled to selectively control a light source based on monitored characteristics of the light source.
2. Description of the Related Art
A Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) optical transmission is an example of one technique used in optical transmission systems. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a light source configuration for use with the WDM technique. As shown in FIG. 9, a light source 1 monitors an output optical power from a laser diode (LD) 4 using a monitoring photodiode (PD) 2 and an LD output light monitor 3, and monitors a wavelength of the output light from the LD 4 using a wavelength locker 5 and a wavelength monitor 6. When an anomaly is detected in a monitored value for the output optical power or in a monitored value for the wavelength is detected by an optical output alarm detector 7 or a wavelength alarm detector 8, the optical output is instantaneously blocked (shut down) by an optical power controller 9.
Generally, in a WDM optical transmission system, optical amplifiers which make use of EDFs (Erbium Doped Fibers) are disposed in the transmission lines to extend transmission distances. The WDM light, which is a wavelength multiplexed light composed of a plurality of signal lights with a plurality of differing wavelengths, is input to the optical amplifiers and amplified therein. When a change in the number of input wavelengths, i.e. the number of multiplexed optical signals included in the input WDM light, or some other factor causes an increase in input optical power, the amount of excitation light input to the EDF increases in Automatic Gain Control (AGC). Similarly, when a change in the number of input wavelengths or the like causes a reduction in input optical power, the amount of excitation light is reduced. Hence an amount of output optical power is controlled so as to remain constant.
FIG. 10 is a set of schematic plots illustrating optical changes in the transmission path when output from a portion of the light sources is instantaneously shut down. As shown in FIG. 10, when an anomaly in the monitored value of the output optical power is detected in a light source outputting a light of a specific wavelength, an output optical power 11 of the LD module of the light source in which the anomaly has been detected is shut down. As a result, the input optical power 12 to the EDF optical amplifier drops steeply by precisely the amount of output optical power of the shut-down light source.
Since there is a transition time (EDF excitation light emission time constant), which is a time between a time when the excitation light input to the optical amplifier and a time when emission occurs at the EDF, even though control is performed to reduce the excitation light intensity corresponding to a decrease of the input light power to the optical amplifier, there is a time when the optical amplifier remains in an excitation state corresponding to the intensity before the input optical power is reduced. This excitation state is a state having a high gain with respect to the reduced input optical power, and so an output optical power 13 from the optical amplifier temporarily increases. Thereafter, for the period (AGC circuit tracking time constant) until the automatic gain control (AGC) begins to function normally, the output optical power 13 of the optical amplifier becomes unstable, and the output optical power 14, which is the output optical power of the optical amplifier excluding the optical power of the shut-down light source, temporarily changes.
In WDM optical transmission systems, it is required that an anomaly occurring in a light source of a specific wavelength does not affect signal light of other wavelengths. Thus, even when optical output of the light source of the specific wavelength is shut down, the output optical power of the optical amplifier at other wavelengths must be maintained without any large changes.
A configuration in which an optical attenuator and an optical input monitor are provided at an optical input stage of the EDF optical amplifier is discussed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H11-112435 (JP11-112435), for example. The optical attenuator allows variation based on an amount of change in the input optical power to the EDF optical amplifier. With this configuration, abrupt changes in the input optical power are absorbed by the optical attenuator, and temporary changes in the optical output power of the EDF optical amplifier are suppressed.
In the above-described and other similar configurations, such as the light source shown in FIG. 9, when an anomaly is detected in the monitored value, even if the cause is an anomaly in the various monitors and the optical output of the LD is in a controllable state, the optical output is uniformly shut down and a large level change temporarily occurs in the EDF optical amplifier in spite of the LD optical output being in a controllable state.
Further, in the above-described related art, such as the optical amplifier with the configuration disclosed in JP11-112435, it is necessary to provide the optical attenuator and the optical input monitor at an optical input stage of the optical amplifier. That causes an increase of a number of parts, requires a more complex configuration, and deterioration of noise properties.

Light source error detection apparatus and method


A method and apparatus include a therapeutic or developmental apparel that includes hardware and/or software for stimulating a muscle. Such apparel may comprise, for instance, of: a glove, a uniform, a shoe, a sock, a vest, a sleeve, a shirt, a hat, a helmet, a brace, a suspender, eye wear, a pad, jewelry, a watch and pants. A muscle of a user may be stimulated by the garment as the user moves, such as a when a golfer practices her swing. Combining such muscle stimulation with the act of practicing the movement of the swing has a synergistic effect of training the muscle as it builds strength. Similarly, a partial paralytic may regain strength in their hand by wearing a vest or other garment configured to transcutaneously deliver a stimulating signal. Where desired, the garment may include at least one electrode configured to deliver a stimulating signal to the wearer. In another or the same embodiment, wired electrodes may extend from the garment or an adjacent signal generator to the wearer. This configuration may allow other, targeted muscles to be concurrently stimulated while the user wears the garment.

The ability to stimulate or exercise muscle tissue is critical to the development and rehabilitation of muscle. In nature, alterations in ion channels cause the brain to generate electronic impulses or synapses. An impulse propagates along an axon to its termination on its way to initiating a muscle contraction. As such, characteristics of the impulse complement the active processes of the nervous system. Mechanically generated attempts to stimulate muscles often strive to emulate natural impulses, working within the confines of axon receptors. Therapists and athletes use machines that produce variations of such signals to develop muscle tissue by inducing a series of contractile twitches that aggregate to form a contraction. Benefits of such stimulation include the promotion of blood flow and the localized development of muscle tissue.
Conventionally, such signals embody a series of discontinuous pulses. Despite charges being measurable in millivolts, each pulse communicates at least a minimum threshold potential to a muscle. A threshold potential corresponds to a voltage level, or charge, as measured at a motor nerve, where the membrane of an axon experiences depolarization. Also called a firing level, it coincides with the moment of a twitch, where the potential in the axon releases its energy into a calcium/adenosine triphosphate (ATP) union at one or more toggling bridges in the sarcomere until the axon arrives at zero potential.
In this manner, the threshold potential presented via each pulse initiates a full-fledged twitching reaction. That is, sarcomere tissue of a muscle creates one twitch worth of contractile force in response to an application of a generated threshold potential. Successive bridging of adjacent sarcomere tissue comprises a contraction. Of note, a toggling reaction will not occur if the stimulus is sub-threshold in magnitude, i.e., it fails to convey the requisite threshold potential. The contractile reaction at each bridge in the sarcomere is therefore all-or-none. In this manner, conventional techniques repeat pulses of identical potential and duration to produce consecutive twitches that add up to a contraction. In this manner, each pulse of a signal will theoretically stimulate a next twitch.
In nature, sarcomere bridges toggle simultaneously across the length of each muscle as individual twitches aggregate to form a single contraction. In this manner, the twitches are said to toggle uniformly across a muscle. Such uniformity evades electrical attempts to stimulate muscle. In contrast, conventional applications use single short pulses that may succeed in toggling a high concentration of sarcomere bridges near the electrodes, but ultimately fail to stimulate more distant bridges. That is, while a high frequency application may initially toggle more bridges, the shorter spacing of the pulses is too small to allow time for depolarization and nutritional replenishment, ultimately frustrating continuing contraction.
As such, any contractile reaction initiated by the pulse is ended within a fraction of a second. Conversely, if the pulse rate is made slow enough to allow for depolarization and nutritional replenishment, accommodation drops in proportion to the drop in frequency, thus the deeper penetration is made possible. However, penetration comes at the expense of pain from the yanking and dropping effect produced by the toggling, de-toggling, re-toggling of more and more bridges in more sarcomeres with the increase in time between pulses as the frequency drops.
Other prior art techniques attempt to affect larger portions of the muscle by extending pulse length. However, such attempts still fail to achieve a uniform contraction. Namely, sarcomere bridges of the portion of the muscle nearest to the electrodes will release due to polarization and nutritional problems prior to an adjacent portion of the muscle toggling. The duration of the pulse causes the bridges in sarcomeres closer to the center of the muscle to toggle, but only at the cost of painfully yanking the spent and relaxing sarcomeres nearest the electrodes into a stretched condition as the process travels in a wave or ripple effect outward from the electrodes, but inward toward each other.
By the time the bridges in the middle sarcomeres begin to toggle, the mass of the muscle has developed a crushing velocity to add to the twitch. Those sarcomeres of the muscle nearest the electrodes have already been spent. Despite the relatively weaker twitch of the center sarcomeres, the hyper-compression, as the sum of the above, nonetheless, tugs on adjacent sarcomeres. Over time, repeated applications will increasingly stress and deplete energy supplies of muscle tissues. Repeated applications further produce relatively little beneficial effect, because the muscles are being stretched out of shape, traumatized almost as much as they are being treated. Additionally, high currents associated with long pulses stings the skin of the user. Thus, stimulation of sarcomeres distally positioned from the electrodes has not been possible without incurring preclusive pain and potential damage.
Known techniques used to address such factors include incorporating periods of recovery in between pulses. Sufficient lengths of such periods may allow the muscle to partially prepare for another contractile twitch. Muscle may use this short period between pulses to replenish a portion of expended ATP and calcium ions before the contraction process continues, re-initiated by a subsequent pulse. Each rest time between pulses also allows the body an opportunity to partially reset electrical polarities skewed by its preceding pulse by dissipating capacitance retained in the skin.
Despite these provisions, known pulse applications still suffer diminished returns with successive pulses due to nutritional depletion and motor-nerve boredom. Unless the pulse rate is so slow that it causes a painful, jerking sensation, there is inadequate time between pulses to allow for complete replenishment and electrical recovery. Consequently, pulses of repeated strength and duration incrementally drain overall muscle resources. As the muscles strength and supply wane, so does the muscle's ability to contract. As such, a subsequent pulse, identical in polarity, amplitude, shape and timing produces shallow contractions that result in less penetration than the preceding pulse. Less penetration translates into less muscle development, as weaker contractions fail to increase blood flow to required muscle tissue levels as needed for muscle development.
Still other obstacles hinder the effectiveness of conventional pulse signal applications. Namely, accommodation may prevent repeated pulses from penetrating deeply into the muscle, mitigating the potential benefit of successive pulses. Muscle accommodation regards the ability of the body to adapt to constant and repeated stimuli. Such stimuli includes the successive pulses of conventional muscle stimulators. As such, a muscle adapts to subsequent pulses in such a manner as it fails to achieve the same level of potential in response to a repeated pulse. Two major factors contributing to accommodation relate to electrical polarity and nutritional supply as discussed herein.
To compensate for the detrimental effects of accommodation, some applications attempt to increase the voltage of subsequent pulses to maintain comparable levels of stimulation. Other applications attempt to combat accommodation by varying pulse shape, width, height and frequency. Although such techniques can realize somewhat greater contractile reactions with less voltage, a targeted muscle still twitches in response to each pulse to a lesser degree than to the previous pulse. Further, while marginally effective in temporarily achieving deeper penetration, such attempts still result in preclusive pain that frustrates further treatment. In part, this pain stems from inability of known application and pulse variations to affect motor nerves (associated with muscle development) to the same degree as sensory nerves (associated with pain). In this manner, conventional pulse designers are limited in the range of voltage they can apply and the depth of contractile reactions they can achieve.
Significantly, conventional techniques further fail to uniformly address different types of muscle implicated in a treatment/development session. An inability of prior art pulse applications to simultaneously and consistently stimulate both slow and fast twitch muscle types often results in disproportionate muscle development. Such undesirable development detrimentally impacts balance, mobility and other motor considerations. The absence of uniformity is, in part, a product of how a single pulse induces different reactions in dissimilar muscle types of a user. For instance, as a signal propagates through a patient or athlete, fast and slow twitch muscles respond differently to conventional pulses. This limitation is a product of the different sensitivities and reaction rates of slow and fast twitch muscles.
Fast twitch muscle is developed in response to frequent, quick use. Fast twitch muscle is common in muscle groups that control fine motor functions, such as the wrist and hand. Consequently, fast twitch muscles process electrical stimuli relatively quickly. Of note, such muscles are prone to tire quickly and are vulnerable to overstimulation, causing tetany, a painful tightening of muscles. In contrast, slow twitch muscles react more slowly to stimuli than do fast twitch muscles, and they tire less easily. Slow twitch muscles are developed where smooth, methodical muscle contractions are common. For instance, regular motions and support realized by muscles of the back will typically develop associated muscles as slow twitch.
The disparate reactive characteristics of slow and fast twitch muscles preclude known transcutaneous signals from uniformly addressing both muscle types. Namely, no conventional pulse train can simultaneously sustain even distribution of contractile twitching reactions throughout both fast and slow twitch muscles. More particularly, a conventional train of pulses having a frequency synchronized with the response time of a fast twitch muscle is too quick for a slow twitch muscle to react to its fullest extent for the voltage applied.
Such an application, to a great degree, fails to stimulate slow twitch muscles and almost exclusively activates fast twitch muscles because the signal fails to propagate profound contractile twitches within the sarcomere of the slow twitch muscle. That is, the signal neglects the slow twitch muscle in favor of the fast twitch when both are inline with a signal, resulting in disproportionate development. Of note, high frequency pulses may still cause overstimulation in the fast twitch muscle. Such over-stimulation causes fast twitch muscles to painfully tighten, ending a therapeutic session before any gain can be realized in the slow twitch muscle.
Conversely, slowing the frequency of pulses so as to target slow twitch muscles can produce dissatisfactory results in fast twitch muscles. Thus, any gains realized in the slow twitch muscle group may be tempered by ineffectual and painful reactions in proximate fast twitch muscles. For instance, slow pulse rates may promote a painful, jerking reaction in fast twitch muscles. As a result, the rate of consecutive pulses may be too infrequent or painfully preclusive to substantially exercise or tax fast twitch muscles relative to the slow twitch muscle. In this manner, fast twitch muscles can act as a barrier to treatment of slow twitch muscles in that the high sensitivity and low pain threshold of the fast twitch muscles precludes more extensive propagation of twitches throughout slower twitch muscles. As such, exercising slow twitch muscles remains a challenge to conventional stimulators.
Consequently, what is needed is a single signal capable of uniformly exercising muscle tissue, while accounting for nutritional, comfort and accommodation considerations.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The present wrist brace includes an advantageous lacing configuration that provides a cast-like compression on a patient's forearm, wrist, and hand. Pulling the lacing mechanism equilibrates lace tension along the length of the wrist brace in a way that applies consistent compression to the patient's forearm and wrist.

Immobilizing a patient's forearm, wrist, and hand can promote healing of bone fractures and soft-tissue injuries (e.g., sprains), and so wrist braces and supports are often used for this purpose. Conventional wrist braces are designed to fit the typical patient with somewhat frustoconical forearms, whereby the arm tapers from the elbow to the wrist (i.e., narrower near the wrist and wider near the elbow). For patients with arm shapes that deviate from standard—especially obese patients or patients with muscular forearms—conventional wrist braces can provide a poor fit. If a patient with non-standard forearms tries to manipulate a conventional wrist brace to apply uniform pressure to the patient's forearm and wrist, straps for securing the wrist brace can wrap helically along—rather than circumferentially around—the patient's forearm, rendering ineffective the mechanism for securing the wrist brace to the patient. For example, hook-and-loop fasteners can become misaligned and thus ineffectual.